The Roman Multiverse

March 2025

Having moved around places and schools so much, I’ve built different groups of friends - almost like parallel worlds that never quite collide. One thing I had never experienced, though, was when those worlds overlapped. For my trip to Rome, that changed.

Rome became the meeting point of my multiverse - where two of my best friends from Bocconi, Piri and Diya, met one of my closest UR friends, Will. Before the trip began, I was nervous. Would my worlds get along? Would it be awkward for a brand-new group of people to spend four days together in an unfamiliar city?

The answer was better than I could have imagined. What unfolded wasn’t the Marvel Multiverse of Madness but a multiverse of connection - a fusion of laughter, exploration, and endless pasta.

Piri, Diya, and I started our journey with a grueling eight-hour FlixBus from Milan to Rome - naturally, my idea. Was it uncomfortable? Absolutely. Did it save us money? Also absolutely. By the time we arrived, sleep-deprived and hungry, Rome’s golden light felt like a reward. The city buzzed with life - chaotic yet timeless. After all, Rome is Rome.

Soon after, Will joined us. I had prepped Piri and Diya with Will’s “background file,” but introductions were hardly needed. The click was instant - like my universes had always known each other. I didn’t have to bridge conversations; it felt like we were a group of old friends, finally reunited after years apart.

Our first day took us to the Colosseum, where history towered over us in sandstone and shadow. I had learned about it before I even knew what a monument was - and now, there I stood, tiny before it. We wandered through the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, surrounded by the ghosts of emperors and poets. It was like walking through the original timeline of civilization.

That night, I began what I dubbed my Roman Food Tour. My mission: to try every iconic Roman pasta. Naturally, the journey started with carbonara - creamy, salty perfection that tasted like centuries of tradition in one bite.

Day two was dedicated to Vatican City - a country within a city. I got to check off visiting the world’s smallest nation, but what stayed with me was standing under Michelangelo’s Creation of Adam in the Sistine Chapel. Every corridor shimmered with masterpieces; every ceiling told a story. It felt like stepping into yet another universe - one built entirely out of faith and art.

We ended the day with more pasta (because, of course) and an evening stroll to the Trevi Fountain. Even amid the crowd, it was breathtaking. Piri had ambitiously suggested a 6 a.m. visit to beat the tourists - that didn’t happen - but seeing it glow under the 7 p.m. sky was its own kind of magic.

Our final day was slower, spent meandering through Trastevere, a charming neighborhood of cobbled alleys, vine-draped façades, and tucked-away churches. Between spritzes and laughter, I realized that what began as separate worlds - my Bocconi life, my Richmond life - had collapsed into one.

In Rome, my multiverse didn’t just collide; it converged. It was a reminder that life’s best moments often come from the intersections - when the past, present, and people from different chapters of your story find themselves sharing the same meal, under the same Roman sun.