All Blacks in Rome!

In this story, Tracy, a Kiwi living in Italy, tells us about her weekend in Rome going to watch the All Blacks take on the Italian national team. Tracy writes.....

A weekend in Rome is always something to look forward to and I don’t do it nearly enough even though it’s less than 4 hours by train from where I live in northern Tuscany.

My last trip to the Eternal City, however, took on a whole new dimension. I was heading there to watch the New Zealand All Blacks play Italy. What’s more, I was taking along two Italian rugby virgins – my fiancé Marcello and his friend Massimo.

Pre match in Rome

From the moment we arrived in Rome on Friday afternoon Marcello played “spot the New Zealander” as they were out in force and not exactly difficult to miss in their All Black shirts. He got extremely excited when we were at a restaurant that evening and he saw a guy in a New Zealand shirt and, emboldened by a couple of glasses of wine, he engaged in some light-hearted banter. Mark from New Zealand and his Irish girlfriend Fiona were over from London for the weekend and seemed to thoroughly enjoy meeting a real live Italian so we chatted a bit and wished them good evening, saying, as you do, “see you tomorrow!”

Marcello was so excited by pre-match fever that he woke me at 5am and suggested we nip down to the Trevi Fountain to enjoy it in peace. I grouched and grizzled that it was 5am for crying out loud, but he pointed out that it was literally 20 metres away and that it was an opportunity not to be missed. My Lovely Italian was right. It was an absolutely magical experience. For a whole 5 minutes, we had it to ourselves apart from a police car discreetly parked off to one side, no doubt there to deter any would-be imitators of Anita Ekberg in the famous scene from La Dolce Vita. But, what is a girl from Carterton to do when she finds herself alone there with her fiancé who just happens to be called Marcello? OK, I didn’t wade into the water, but I did content myself with doing a ballet in front of it and calling out “Marcellllllllo! Marcelllllllo!”…

Onwards to the match. The centre of Rome was just abuzz with a feeling of anticipation. Marcello proudly wore an All Black jersey from the early Nineties, the classic black thick cotton with white colour and with just the silver fern and Steinlager logo (it was a souvenir from my days as a sales rep). He spent the morning trotting out “G’day Mate” in a mangled Italian-New Zealand accent to anyone who remotely looked like a New Zealander. He and Massimo kept shouting out at random moments “All BLACKS” with the emphasis on the word “black” despite my best efforts to teach them that it’s ALL Blacks. Along with thousands of others we queued patiently for the tram just behind the Piazza del Popolo and my two Italians marvelled at how relaxed and good-humoured everyone was, with Italian and New Zealand fans interacting and joking together. When we got off the tram at the other end we joined the throng heading towards Stadio Olimpico and again Marcello and Massimo were amazed by the happy atmosphere and the lack of police. For them I think this was the biggest revelation of the day – the vast difference between a rugby crowd and a soccer one.

Stadio Olimpico di Roma

We took our seats along with 80,000 others around 20 minutes before the 3pm kickoff. What a fantastic stadium. We’d splurged and spent €80 on seats about 15 rows from the front but I would say that there isn’t a bad seat in the stadium. My boys were having the time of their lives with Marcello bantering with all and sundry. I did think he was going over the top though when a group of four filed into the empty seats directly in front of us and he started whooping it up. Incredibly it was Mark and Fiona from the evening before. Of all the seats in all the stands they just happened to walk into those …

The haka was, as ever, a spine tingling moment as 80,000 sat in total silence. For Marcello and Massimo those 60 seconds were worth the entire trip alone. And yes, maybe the match itself wasn’t the best, with some of the key stars missing, but as a total experience it was pretty amazing. I’m not the most patriotic person in the world, but it’s at times like that, I realise how proud I am to be a New Zealander, especially living somewhere like Italy where we are few and far between.

Revelation Number Two for my Italian boys occurred during the match as they observed the beer consumption of our friends in front of us. To be fair, Marcello is by now pretty used to the fact that we drink a drop more than Italians, but I watched with amusement as Massimo’s eyes got bigger and bigger each time a round of beers was bought. I think it was a mere three rounds, but by Italian standards that is substantial and particularly for women. Certainly, looking around the stadium, I didn’t spot many supporters in blue shirts drinking…

Stadio Olimpico after match

After the match we participated in the Italian version of a boot party: Terzo Tempo, which roughly translates as The Third Half. The Olympic Stadium is set in large park-like grounds, dotted with lovely maritime pines. A party area had been set up where fans could mix and have a drink. Can you believe it, though, that there was no wine? In Italy! An absolute disgrace for this non-beer drinker. Again, Marcello and Massimo couldn’t believe that everyone just rubbed along together so amicably. Kids and adults alike were throwing rugby balls around under the trees and fans joked and drank together. The only jarring note (aside from the lack of wine, I mean, REALLY!) was when three young Kiwi kids, who are living in Turin, told me that their New Zealand flag, signed by Jonah Lomu, had disappeared.

On Sunday Massimo, inspired by the whole experience, made his way to the adidas store on the Corso and bought a rugby ball for his nephew. If, over the next few years, if Italian rugby blossoms, I will lay claim to having played a small part in converting at least one child and definitely two grown men to the oval ball game!

Tracy Goodall lives in Pietrasanta, Tuscany, with her Italian fiancé Marcello. She offers a service especially geared towards New Zealanders planning a trip to Italy who might appreciate a few tips to get more out of their Italian experience: www.downunderthetuscansun.com

She also posts photos, recipes and random observations on life in Italy on https://www.facebook.com/Downunderthetuscansun

All Blacks in Rome!

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