Il settimana 2

My second week of school has started off well, as I'm adjusting to my small, small classes over here in Roma. Its amazing the concentration that comes with being in class with one other person, and being forced to participate and pay attention!! Its normally great, except when class begins at 8am and you're still half asleep, trying to learn about Socrates and Plato. My philo professor is really great though, and he loves to teach over cappuccini e cornetti (my favorites!) He always arrives late, by about 20 minutes, but he says that's how Italians are....always late! My family would fit in perfectly here!! Professor Andrea also consistently goes off on tangents about life, culture, travel, etc....and somehow always finds his way back to philosophy. Yesterday, he was encouraging us to travel to several spots in Italia, including Pisa and a small area of Lazio, north of Roma. His family lives north of Lazio, and he has invited us to visit sometime this semester. I think it would be great to go to a small town and really see how Italians live outside of the major cities.

In order to cure the Monday blues, I walked to il Campo with Caroline to take advantage of the open-air mercato! Its probably one of my favorite places in the city, so far. Its not too large, not too small....perfect size, offering the freshest vegetables and fruits you'll ever taste. I have made friends with some vendors...trying to bargain my way to lower prices. I walked away with 2 humongous peaches, 2 pears, and an apple for 1, 30. Then, I found a cheese and meat station that I like. The owner (or the lady behind the stand) reminds me of a typical Italian mamma.....constantly calling me cara (dear). She let me try some parmigiano, and I was sold at the first bite. Forget the stuff in the green shaker in the grocery stores back home.....this is the real deal! So much flavor, you only need a little bit to satisfy. I also indulged in some green olives...a whole bag for a euro. My philo professor told me about a forno (bakery) at the end of Il Campo, so Caroline and I tried it out. The choices are endless, but we settled on crispy baguettes. We, then proceeded to walk around the city munching and shopping in between classes. I'll definitely be back tomorrow morning :)

Last night, Hank, Caroline and I ventured over to the Spanish Steps for the first time, and brought along a bottle of wine (actually a jug)! The Steps are so fun, with so many different types of people from all over the world. A couple sitting next to us was from San Diego, and the crazy young kids on the other side were on a school trip from Holland. I couldn't believe it when I saw these kids who looked about 13, drinking beers and wine all night long. They started chanting things, almost like soccer/football cheers to some nearby students. I made friends with one boy, who told me they were yelling at the Germans....saying "All the Germans are Gay!" Strange...but they were cheap entertainment. European life is so so very different from American life!!