Nel Cuore della Citta` Eterna...

Ahh Roma, the eternal city...

I am sitting in the faculty room in the Palazzo Pio (which houses the UW Rome Center), trying to stop sweating like a farm animal (it's the evening so it's not terribly hot -just HUMID), and growing hungrier as I smell wonderful things wafting in through the large open windows.... Soon I will head down to Sabrina's apartment for dinner with her, an LSJ student and the little girl that Sabrina is babysitting for another professor. Mmmm, I can just taste the pasta con burro, parmigiano e spinaci right now...

Well, it's been quite the adventure to get here, though things went more than well, travel-wise this go 'round.

Yesterday morning, I was wisked away from home at O Dark O'Clock (i.e., 3:30am. Yes. AM.) by the friendly Shuttle Express driver. I got to the airport at 4:20am for my 7:10am flight, thinking things would be dead and I'd breeze through everything.... hahaha. ha.

At this lively hour of the morning, the line from the American Airlines International Check-In counter stretched through their cordons, around the corner, and down all the way to the beginning of the security line, which, granted, was considerably shorter.

Anyway, once I was checked in, things went swimmingly. The flight left on time, and on the leg to Chicago, I chatted to the girl next to me. It turns out she was flying to Rome as well, but then on to home: Israel.

She was very nice, and we had a very interesting conversation. Actually, she reminded me quite a bit of one of my best friends in middle school, who was from Ukraine. We had a lot of fun being geeky together. Then, while we were both waiting in Chicago, she asked me if I wanted to play a game while we waiting, as our conversation about the differences between the American and Israeli school systems was kind of dying down. I guess her father loves games (sound like anyone I know?), so she had bought one as a gift for him, and figured he wouldn't mind if we broke it in for him.

So we sit down on the floor of the gate lobby, and guess what she pulls out of her bag? Settlers of Catan! What's more, she already knew the game well, and so continued to whip me quite soundly... (Dad, please don't disown me...)

Unfortunately, we were not seated anywhere near each other on the flight to Rome, so I only saw her again briefly a couple of times. But isn't it neat when you meet such fun travel partners?

Anyway, our flight to Rome was uneventful, and we actually arrived nearly 30 mins early! I couldn't believe it! A flight from CHICAGO, to ROME (neither of which are exactly known for the promptness of their flights...) was EARLY... *insert twilight zone music*

I splurged on a car and driver from the airport into Rome, and chatted with him in Italian. He was quite nice and recommended some good Italian music for me. Boy did it feel good to be back in Rome, flying down cobblestone streets by the Vittorio Emmanuele monument and the Palatine hill...

I arrived at the Rome Center bright and early at 8:30 this morning and got my keys. I had a meeting with Sabrina and we went over all sorts of logistical things for the program. We sorted through the calendar, figured out that, despite what the office said, I had not been "rented out" (without my knowledge) by the Design program for three days to translate for them in Pisa and Parma, and discussed general logistics.

Well, I thought I would be able to make it the whole day before I crashed, but alas, twas not to be. By 11 o'clock, all I remember is hearing Sabrina ask me if I wanted to take a nap in her apartment (in the same building as the UWRC, unlike my apartment). As I was feeling rather woozy, I agreed and thanked her profusely. I drank a couple glasses of water and drifted off to the sounds of the market outside the window.

I woke up a couple hours later, about 1:00, and talked to Sabrina, who had tried to get the cellphone I'll be using for the program. Well, to make a long story short, there were complications, and so we decided to put that off till the evening. I gathered my luggage, called a taxi, and headed over to my apartment to meet the landlord.

It ended up being a very quick ride, and I beat him there by about 15min. So I hung out and watched the Italians making their afternoon passagiata. When he showed up, he was very nice and actually carried my heavy suitcase up several flights of stairs for me, despite my protestations.

The apartment is gorgeous! It's right near the Roman Forum and very close to the Colosseum... I will post pictures tomorrow, most likely, so more on that later. But just so you know. It's fabulous. :)

I was still feeling a bit woozy, so I decided to take another nap. Boy did that feel good. After about an hour and a half, I woke up to get ready to come back to the UWRC to meet Sabrina. While I was getting ready, I turned on the telly to see what Rai Tre, an Italian station, was playing.

It took me a second, but then I realized it was "Quantum Leap" dubbed into Italian!! It was truly fabulous, and I wish I could've stayed to watch all of it.

But Roma beckoned... Before I left the apartment, I took out my map to figure out how to walk back to the UWRC. I stared blankly at it for a few minutes, stuffed it back into my purse (just in case), and decided to just wing it, as I knew the general direction I was headed in... And 25 mins later, I arrived at the UWRC.

I met Sabrina, and we went and rented a program cellphone for me (although it did take us a while -across the Tiber and back- to find the place...)

Now I'm back here, listening to a clarinet player in the piazza below play Mack the Knife, and about to go down and have dinner... La vita e` proprio bella, no?

Well, I will update more later, definitely with some pictures, but for now:

Arrivederci!!