Ciao!! We have now been in Rome for a week, and I couldn't be having a better time than I am right now. While I expected to see all of the things that Rome is so well known for such as the Pantheon, the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, and The Vatican, what I did not expect was how genuinely immersed I would feel in the culture. After only one week, everyone I encounter in the streets speaks exclusively Italian to me, I can almost walk 10 minutes away from the hotel without getting lost (which everyone on the trip knows is a big feat for me), and I now know how to make authentic Italian cappuccinos.

Class has been interesting, and every day we get to hear from a speaker, discuss Italian current events, or present to each other what we have seen and learned about Rome (all in Italian, of course!)

To the right is a picture of what my favorite American beverage, Diet Coke, looks like in Italy. It's like it was made for me, haha.

 To the left is a view looking up from inside of the Pantheon. Marianna and I frequently walk past the Pantheon, and one of my favorite memories of the trip so far was when we sat at a cafe in the Piazza outside the gorgeous building, drank our cappuccinos, and people watched.

While we love cultural excursions, our favorite pastime of the trip so far has been (shocker) shopping. Marianna and I daily walk down Via Condotti, the main shopping street in Rome, and admire all of the beautiful designer items in the shop windows. We only yesterday realized that the the entire street was decorated with Mercedes Benz ornaments, like the tree is decorated in the picture to the right. Talk about subliminal advertising!

 Wednesday night, six of us ventured out to a jazz club nearby our hotel. The food was delicious, and after we ate we went upstairs to the cozy nook pictured at the right to listen to live jazz. We all agreed that we wished this were more of a pastime in American culture.

Below is a video of "la nostra mama" Cinzia, doing a current events presentation in class yesterday. (Christopher and Julia, I hope you are following our blog, this one is especially for you guys!!)