Expectations of what European adventures will be like started out young in my social circle. The magic of cinematography created an idea in our minds of the ambiance that exists across the globe.
In 2003, I was 7 years old and my first taste of Rome came to life in the form of “The Lizzie McGuire Movie.”
I wouldn’t say that I chose to study abroad in Italy because of this film, but it was the defining movie of my time that first introduced me to the scenic views of Rome.
From shots of gelato and pasta to a grand performance of the hit song “Hey Now!” in the Colosseum, and the very famous scene where Lizzie McGuire tosses a coin into the Trevi Fountain, the movie sold me on the fact that I needed to visit this city.
“The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants” introduced me to another set of expectations when I visited Santorini, a small island off the coast of Greece.
It’s a beautiful island in which one of the four main characters, Lena, spends a great deal of her summer. The film flaunted the bluest ocean I had ever seen through a screen and the winding steps that led to adorable little homes built into walls intrigued me within the first 15 minutes.
However, while “The Lizzie McGuire Movie” inspires many people's Instagram shots by the Trevi Fountain and those visiting Santorini feel the need to bring their favorite pair of jeans even if it’s 100 degrees, experiencing the place for yourself introduces you to an atmosphere you haven’t seen in a movie theater or even been able to imagine before being there in person.
In Rome, the glamour I’d seen in a film overshadowed what I found to be the best aspect of the city, its history.
The film doesn’t mention the holy Vatican City and the hidden piazzas and churches treasuring works by Michelangelo himself. In the huge city of Rome, it wasn’t the touristy spots that held my interest, but the understated accents I knew I would never find anywhere else.
Santorini’s beauty, I quickly found, was unattainable through a lens. When I turned a corner on the way to my Airbnb, I saw the most stunning electric blue circular building I’d seen in pictures and film time and time again, but the emotions I felt in person were different from what I expected. I knew in that moment that the emotions that a view evokes are distinctive to the person not the screen.
Films and pictures can give one an idea of a place and how it will look and feel. Yet, there is a reason some people love Paris and others hate it. A new destination can surprise you by the way it makes you feel. Some cities may surprisingly disappoint you, and others will understand you in ways you never imagined possible. Your special nook in the world most likely isn’t televised.
