Travel | Back to Rome on Monday…Why Again?

Found via Google image search.

Found via Google image search.

The other day I wrote a post about being nomadic, and once again I find myself about to board an airplane.  Monday, I return to Rome and will be there for a month.  If you were to ask me why, then I could give you about 5 good reasons (not in any particular order): 1) my stuff is still there, 2) I need to pick up my work permit, 3) I never picked up my university degree, 4) I’ve had a poetry translation published in a book and I will receive a copy there, and 5) it’s a great chance to see my friends.

Still, above all of these reasons, remains the most important:  I will know whether or not I really want to live in Rome.

When you are immersed in a situation, it is difficult to be objective about the reality of it.  This is why it is important to take a distance from it.

As a nomad, it’s incredibly easy for me to adjust to a new environment.  After about 2 weeks, I am often settled into a routine, thoughts about my previous life have eased out of my mind, and I’m excited to focus on what my new environment has to offer.

For some, being able to transition so easily from one environment to another would be a welcomed skill.  For me, I have to remind myself that, although it is great that I acclimate well to new places, it is important for me to understand what I have left behind, both people and things.

So, I’m heading back to Rome. I have no idea what this trip will mean, what it will accomplish in moving me further on my path, but I’m looking forward to it.  I’m packing my almost-finished-novel-in-progress (yes, it’s really almost finished), my camera and laptop, and whole lot of faith in the universe.

Wish me well. 🙂

Until Monday, (I’ll write while I’m in the airport)

D.

 

 

Travel | Mercatino Giapponese (Japanese Market) in Rome

Took the metro line B to Termini, then grabbed the 105 to Grotte Celoni, hoping that I would figure out the exact location of the Mercatino Giapponese (Via Casilina 713).

I came to this event two years before, and back then it seemed like a cross between a neighbourhood yard sale and a cosplay convention.  This year, it was more or less the same, except for the cosplay, which was the part I had been looking forward to seeing.

It’s the kind of event where everyone knows everyone.  It’s less about selling stuff than having a reunion with old friends. I didn’t mind it.

Still, it was more of a manga-meets-anime convention that just happened to be in a dancehall that casts several shades of shady upon entering it: stacks of comics and posters everywhere, Japanese dolls and anime/manga characters lined up, handcrafted jewelry and used clothes that reminded me of my goth days, and random Italian pop music playing.

It didn’t phase me when I saw the telltale Italian cornetti (croissants) and espresso at the bar. After all, I’m in Rome. Still, I was hoping to find something more…Japanese.

Only a handful of vendors were selling things other than anime/manga items. There were kimonos, Japanese socks, bookmarkers and, of course, food…but that’s a whole other tale. In the meanwhile, enjoy the photos. 😉

D.

 

 

Writers’ Cafe at Meccanismo in Piazza Trilussa (Rome)

Image found via GIS and modified with Gimp. Click to visit event's page on FB.

Image found via GIS and modified with Gimp. Click to visit event’s page on FB.

I’ve decided to begin a writers’ social in the early evenings on Thursdays.  Ideally, it will become a space for writers (any genre) of all levels to share their thoughts about writing and their personal work, provide support and inspiration for each other.

Hopefully, we can make this into a community. 🙂

If you are in Rome, hope to see you on Thursday at Meccanismo in Piazza Trilussa!

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Wanting To Share Your Work With An Audience?

Don’t Forget: Jahan Genet’s

Suddenly Every Wednesday at Bar Garbo in Trastevere!

Best,

D.

Aug-Dec 2014 | Submissions Deadlines: No Entry Fee Contests

Who doesn’t like creative writing contests with no entry fee…Enter one with me! What harm could it do? 🙂

JCU // Creative Writing Workshop

Image Found: http://creativewritingatguelph.ca (University of Guelph, Creative Writing at Guelph)

Freelancewriting.com, a website dedicated to assisting writers in achieving their goals, has been in operation since 1997. The site provides writers with guidance through articles, video tutorials, reading recommendations, job listings, and contest information.

Certainly, there are many sites that offer as much or more to writers.  Freelancewriting.com, however, makes a point of sharing creative writing contests (book/fiction/nonfiction/poetry) which only have no entry fee.

In essence, Freelancewriting.com has done the proverbial work of finding the needle in the haystack. So, many thanks to them for having done that work!  It is a time-consuming task searching through hundreds of contests to find the ones that do not even try to break the bank.

So what are some  contests that they have listed?

Click on the name of the contest for details.

(Deadline | Contest Name…

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