Success!

Oh my word, what a day! After a rather warm night of sleep, we headed out of the apartment at 10:15 for our 11 o'clock meeting at the university with the intention of catching the bus. Naturally, we couldn't find the bus stop, so we ended up walking to the school....again. However, the walk was much more direct and successful than yesterday. Like we actually had a clue about what we were doing! We still arrived 15 minutes late, but what the heck. We then sat through our program orientation which was, in a word, overwhelming. By the time the meeting was over, I was panicking. There was just so much information and so much to do. After the meeting though, the day got better because we finally figured out the bus system!! We successfully took the bus back to our stop without a hiccup! So we now officially know how to take the bus to school! YAY. Back in our neighborhood, we ran some errands during which we met a man who is from New York and he talked with us for a while in very good English which was quite refreshing! After the errands, we headed back to the apartment to take a nap! (As is the Italian Custom! I wouldn't have known, but Italians take siestas too! Almost everything closes down from 1-3pm and we even have official "quiet hours" in our apartment complex so everyone can rest! Maybe that's why the Italians are so happy!)

Finally, the day was topped off by heading back to the university to go on a walking tour of Rome which was splendid! Some of the places we visited were the Pantheon, Campo de Fiori, and the Trevi Fountain. It was led by a precious and hilarious older lady who was hilariously full of character and snappy comments. After the tour, some of us went and got our first gelato, then wandered back through the path to Campo de Fiori where we caught the tram back to our apartment!

 

a view of Rome

the Tiber

Campo de Fiori

Campo de Fiori

a "headless" street performer

the Pantheon!

the Pantheon

Rafael's tomb

tossing my coin into the Trevi Fountain and making a wish! our tour guide told us to throw it in with your right hand over your left shoulder. The first coin brings you luck, the second promises an Italian love, and the third guarantees a fiancee. I just threw in one. :)

all the roomies at the Trevi

A crazy day to be sure, but certainly a successful one! Can't wait to see what tomorrow holds!

Ciao!