Assignment
“Of course it is happening inside your head… but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?”
Albus Dumbledore
She was walking numbness through a street...not a street actually, it looked more like a square..
‘Where the hell am I?.....Well, at least I’m not naked...still in my pajamas, but that’s better than naked’...It was in the late afternoom, she could tell, because the lights of ‘wherever she was’ were lighting up.There were people around, but they didn’t seem to notice her.
‘I recognize this place...It looks like...’ To tell the truth she was feeling silly of saying what she was thinking. God knows it’d be impossible for her to be where she thought she was.
She continued her walk and the more she walked more she found herself lost in history and feeling slightly silly.Was her imaginaton or she was now in front of the statue of Marcus Aurelius?
“Hey!You are Miss Bennet, aren’t you?”
She looked back and saw a purple haired girl looking at her waiting for an answer.
“Ye...ah..yes, that..that’s me” ‘Oh, just great, she is stammerer’
“Ok then” the girl said slowly “Nice to meet you.I’ll be your guide.Hurry up, we have lots to see and we have only a week”
She felt completely lost “Where exactly are we?”
‘Does she have a memory problem or something?’ the girl sighed ‘Remember: Be nice or you’re on the street’ “What do you mean ‘where are we?’. In the Eternal City, of course”
She was sure she didn’t get that one right “Ahh.. What?”
“Sometimes I hate tourist, they don’t know the first thing about the city..” the girl muttered in an undertone thinking Miss Bennet wouldn’t catch “Rome, we are in Rome”
The information took a minute or two to sink in ‘Now I know I’ve gone mad’ “Ok, it’s impossible for a person to be in two places at the same time” she was saying gesturing hard “I mean that’s what Physics says, and that kinda thing usually isn’t wrong, so I can’t be anywhere else than my bed since I’ve just lain down, especially at the Eternal City.Oh, and just for the record I know what that means!”
‘She’s nuts!’ “Wow!Hey, girl chill out!You are in Rome, ok?We’re in front of Marcus Aurelius.” The other girl was about to say something “Don’t interrupt, I know you know!As I was saying, we’re in front of Marcus Aurelius like you agreed with my boss on the phone two weeks ago.I get you’re feeling a little bit lost, but don’t panic. I’m here to help you.”
“You don’t get...I don’t remember talking with your boss on the phone at all!”
“Maybe it’s because of the traveling..was it the first time you traveled on a plane?”
“I...I what?!Me on a plane?” Her eyes went wide.
“Dear Lord, we are gonna be in this all day, aren’t we?”
“I’m sorry, ok!My head is spinning and this is impossible and..it looks like a dream...”
“Perfect!That’s what you should do!Pretend it’s a dream, and everything will be alright” ‘I’m suggesting guiding a girl that’ll pretend this’s a dream...who’s the nuts now?’
“That’s the craziest idea I’ve ever heard” she sighed in disbelief thinking what she was about to say “but I think it’ll work until I wake up...the only problem is that I’m still in my..”
As she looked down she saw she was no longer in her pajamas.Instead she was wearing her favorite jeans and the beautiful blouse she’d bought last week.And, of course, she was also carryng a bag, which she imagined would have everything she needed. ‘Isn’t it the perfect dream?....Oh, I give up, now I’m just going with the flow’
“Now what’s the problem?” Her voice was tired
“Nothing, just...let it go”
“Great!We have a deal then.Oh, but keep it between us, ok?I think most people don’t take it very well traveling through dreams”
“Ok.”
“Oh, by the way, I’m Hannah Cooper” the girl reached her hand.
“Niobe Bennet” The other one took her hand in hers.
“Oh, I’m sorry about the tourist thing..” she gave a smirk “You were very annoyed by my comment, so I assume that you do know something about Rome, right?”
“A couple of things..”
“Let’s do the following: I’ll guide you like I’d do to anyone and if I’m talking too much and saying things you already know, tell me, ok?”
“Ok”
“We aren’t gonna be able to see much today, it’s getting dark but we still have a full week...So, as you can see we are in the Capitoline Square (Praça do Capitólio). In 1536 the Pope Paul III handed the Square to Michelangelo.His work was to draw the new structure and rebuild it.Later, the work passed to Jaime Della Porta and Jerónimo Rainaldi since the first one had died. Before the rebuilding the Square was used as a prision during the Middle Ages.” the girl stoped “By the look on your face you already know this”
Niobe felt a little uneasy “Sorry, I don’t wanna sound snobbish or something like it, but yes, I do. I’m interested in Rome so I’ve read about it”
“But you haven’t seen it, right?”
She smiled “No, I haven’t”
“Ok, I’ll show you Rome then” and so she did.
Niobe looked marveled to the Capitoline Square, with its 50 meters and the three palaces surrounding it: on her left the Conservatives Palace (Palácio dos Conservadores), and on her right, the New Palace (Palácio Novo) and in front of her the Senators Palace (Palácio dos Senadores). From where she stood she could also catch a glance of the Cordonata, the famous staircase, and the Miliarium, the start point of the Consular Roads.
Hannah showed her the subterraneous passage that exists between the Conservatives’s Palace and the Senators Palace which leads to the subsoil of the last one.There they could see ‘the most spectacular view of the Roman Forum’ as was said by Hannah.They also visited the Capitoline’s Museum that stays in the
Conservatives Palace and in the New Palace, where they saw the real statue of Marcus Aurelius. There was a gift shop at the Museum and Niobe bought a necklace that had a drawing of The Colosseum with a phrase on the back: “I’ve been to Rome”.
The girl was fascinated by the view of Vatican City from the coffee’s terrace in the Capitoline’s Museum.And, out side of the center of the Square, they saw the wolf with the twins Romulus and Remus, who, according to the legend, founded the city.
Hannah made the terrible mistake of telling her partner that there was a street that’d lead them to The Colosseum across the ruins of the Roman Forum. Niobe insisted they should at least take a look and promised that it’d be the last thing they would visit.When they got there Niobe concluded that looking at that huge monument in books wasn’t even one percent exciting as it was to really look at it (as one would guess).
As promised, that was the last pleace visited and Hannah drove Niobe to the hotel, while informed the girl of her plans for the following week and details about the monuments they’d seen that day that only someone who had studied them for years would know.
When which one reached their rooms they were exhausted.Hannah slept the moment she put her head on the pillow; Niobe, on the other hand, fought against her sleep ‘Because if I’m really dreaming’ she thought ‘maybe it means if I sleep I’ll be back to reality’.And right now that was the last thing she wanted.
***
“Niobe, wake up!”
“Ah...what?” it took at least one minute until the girl was able to speak “It’s too soon, you said we’re gonna leave by 10 o’clock” she said feeling a bit dizzy.
“What are you talking about?”
She opened her eyes and look at her wristwatch “It’s only 6 o’clock!”
“I know!And you have classes to attend!”
Her eyes went wide as she sat in her bed and almost yelled “What?”
“Class!You know?Learning and that kinda thing...”
“Oh... college, right...” ‘Back to reality’ She couldn’t believe in how disappointed she was feeling. Unwillingly, she got out of her bed and walked to the bathroom.As she looked in the mirror and tried to remember what day was and what subjects she had on that day she saw a silver thing glowing in her neck. With an incredulity look on her face she took off the necklace and stared at it with a dropped jaw.
“If the necklace is here it means that...it was for real” She slowly admitted it to herself, knowing that this was the craziest idea she’d ever heard, because by logic it’d be impossible, but she was so excited with the sight of the necklace that she didn’t care for logic and the only thing on her mind in that moment was something that Hannah had said ‘but we still have a full week...’.
‘A full week!!Maybe tonight I’ll see the Trevi Fountain, the St. Peter's Basilica...’
Happier than ever she started to think of the places she’d want to go first while she got into the shower, holping the day would pass faster than it normaly did.
[2007]
Albus Dumbledore
She was walking numbness through a street...not a street actually, it looked more like a square..
‘Where the hell am I?.....Well, at least I’m not naked...still in my pajamas, but that’s better than naked’...It was in the late afternoom, she could tell, because the lights of ‘wherever she was’ were lighting up.There were people around, but they didn’t seem to notice her.
‘I recognize this place...It looks like...’ To tell the truth she was feeling silly of saying what she was thinking. God knows it’d be impossible for her to be where she thought she was.
She continued her walk and the more she walked more she found herself lost in history and feeling slightly silly.Was her imaginaton or she was now in front of the statue of Marcus Aurelius?
“Hey!You are Miss Bennet, aren’t you?”
She looked back and saw a purple haired girl looking at her waiting for an answer.
“Ye...ah..yes, that..that’s me” ‘Oh, just great, she is stammerer’
“Ok then” the girl said slowly “Nice to meet you.I’ll be your guide.Hurry up, we have lots to see and we have only a week”
She felt completely lost “Where exactly are we?”
‘Does she have a memory problem or something?’ the girl sighed ‘Remember: Be nice or you’re on the street’ “What do you mean ‘where are we?’. In the Eternal City, of course”
She was sure she didn’t get that one right “Ahh.. What?”
“Sometimes I hate tourist, they don’t know the first thing about the city..” the girl muttered in an undertone thinking Miss Bennet wouldn’t catch “Rome, we are in Rome”
The information took a minute or two to sink in ‘Now I know I’ve gone mad’ “Ok, it’s impossible for a person to be in two places at the same time” she was saying gesturing hard “I mean that’s what Physics says, and that kinda thing usually isn’t wrong, so I can’t be anywhere else than my bed since I’ve just lain down, especially at the Eternal City.Oh, and just for the record I know what that means!”
‘She’s nuts!’ “Wow!Hey, girl chill out!You are in Rome, ok?We’re in front of Marcus Aurelius.” The other girl was about to say something “Don’t interrupt, I know you know!As I was saying, we’re in front of Marcus Aurelius like you agreed with my boss on the phone two weeks ago.I get you’re feeling a little bit lost, but don’t panic. I’m here to help you.”
“You don’t get...I don’t remember talking with your boss on the phone at all!”
“Maybe it’s because of the traveling..was it the first time you traveled on a plane?”
“I...I what?!Me on a plane?” Her eyes went wide.
“Dear Lord, we are gonna be in this all day, aren’t we?”
“I’m sorry, ok!My head is spinning and this is impossible and..it looks like a dream...”
“Perfect!That’s what you should do!Pretend it’s a dream, and everything will be alright” ‘I’m suggesting guiding a girl that’ll pretend this’s a dream...who’s the nuts now?’
“That’s the craziest idea I’ve ever heard” she sighed in disbelief thinking what she was about to say “but I think it’ll work until I wake up...the only problem is that I’m still in my..”
As she looked down she saw she was no longer in her pajamas.Instead she was wearing her favorite jeans and the beautiful blouse she’d bought last week.And, of course, she was also carryng a bag, which she imagined would have everything she needed. ‘Isn’t it the perfect dream?....Oh, I give up, now I’m just going with the flow’
“Now what’s the problem?” Her voice was tired
“Nothing, just...let it go”
“Great!We have a deal then.Oh, but keep it between us, ok?I think most people don’t take it very well traveling through dreams”
“Ok.”
“Oh, by the way, I’m Hannah Cooper” the girl reached her hand.
“Niobe Bennet” The other one took her hand in hers.
“Oh, I’m sorry about the tourist thing..” she gave a smirk “You were very annoyed by my comment, so I assume that you do know something about Rome, right?”
“A couple of things..”
“Let’s do the following: I’ll guide you like I’d do to anyone and if I’m talking too much and saying things you already know, tell me, ok?”
“Ok”
“We aren’t gonna be able to see much today, it’s getting dark but we still have a full week...So, as you can see we are in the Capitoline Square (Praça do Capitólio). In 1536 the Pope Paul III handed the Square to Michelangelo.His work was to draw the new structure and rebuild it.Later, the work passed to Jaime Della Porta and Jerónimo Rainaldi since the first one had died. Before the rebuilding the Square was used as a prision during the Middle Ages.” the girl stoped “By the look on your face you already know this”
Niobe felt a little uneasy “Sorry, I don’t wanna sound snobbish or something like it, but yes, I do. I’m interested in Rome so I’ve read about it”
“But you haven’t seen it, right?”
She smiled “No, I haven’t”
“Ok, I’ll show you Rome then” and so she did.
Niobe looked marveled to the Capitoline Square, with its 50 meters and the three palaces surrounding it: on her left the Conservatives Palace (Palácio dos Conservadores), and on her right, the New Palace (Palácio Novo) and in front of her the Senators Palace (Palácio dos Senadores). From where she stood she could also catch a glance of the Cordonata, the famous staircase, and the Miliarium, the start point of the Consular Roads.
Hannah showed her the subterraneous passage that exists between the Conservatives’s Palace and the Senators Palace which leads to the subsoil of the last one.There they could see ‘the most spectacular view of the Roman Forum’ as was said by Hannah.They also visited the Capitoline’s Museum that stays in the
Conservatives Palace and in the New Palace, where they saw the real statue of Marcus Aurelius. There was a gift shop at the Museum and Niobe bought a necklace that had a drawing of The Colosseum with a phrase on the back: “I’ve been to Rome”.
The girl was fascinated by the view of Vatican City from the coffee’s terrace in the Capitoline’s Museum.And, out side of the center of the Square, they saw the wolf with the twins Romulus and Remus, who, according to the legend, founded the city.
Hannah made the terrible mistake of telling her partner that there was a street that’d lead them to The Colosseum across the ruins of the Roman Forum. Niobe insisted they should at least take a look and promised that it’d be the last thing they would visit.When they got there Niobe concluded that looking at that huge monument in books wasn’t even one percent exciting as it was to really look at it (as one would guess).
As promised, that was the last pleace visited and Hannah drove Niobe to the hotel, while informed the girl of her plans for the following week and details about the monuments they’d seen that day that only someone who had studied them for years would know.
When which one reached their rooms they were exhausted.Hannah slept the moment she put her head on the pillow; Niobe, on the other hand, fought against her sleep ‘Because if I’m really dreaming’ she thought ‘maybe it means if I sleep I’ll be back to reality’.And right now that was the last thing she wanted.
***
“Niobe, wake up!”
“Ah...what?” it took at least one minute until the girl was able to speak “It’s too soon, you said we’re gonna leave by 10 o’clock” she said feeling a bit dizzy.
“What are you talking about?”
She opened her eyes and look at her wristwatch “It’s only 6 o’clock!”
“I know!And you have classes to attend!”
Her eyes went wide as she sat in her bed and almost yelled “What?”
“Class!You know?Learning and that kinda thing...”
“Oh... college, right...” ‘Back to reality’ She couldn’t believe in how disappointed she was feeling. Unwillingly, she got out of her bed and walked to the bathroom.As she looked in the mirror and tried to remember what day was and what subjects she had on that day she saw a silver thing glowing in her neck. With an incredulity look on her face she took off the necklace and stared at it with a dropped jaw.
“If the necklace is here it means that...it was for real” She slowly admitted it to herself, knowing that this was the craziest idea she’d ever heard, because by logic it’d be impossible, but she was so excited with the sight of the necklace that she didn’t care for logic and the only thing on her mind in that moment was something that Hannah had said ‘but we still have a full week...’.
‘A full week!!Maybe tonight I’ll see the Trevi Fountain, the St. Peter's Basilica...’
Happier than ever she started to think of the places she’d want to go first while she got into the shower, holping the day would pass faster than it normaly did.
[2007]