Yesterday was the first day of classes. I am taking two classes this summer: Writing for Engineers and Engineering Economy, and each is 3 units. Writing is from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM and Engineering Economy is from 2:00 to 4:00. This schedule is nice for sleeping in and exploring in the mornings, but does tend to eat up the afternoons. I guess one good thing is that our last class is during the siesta period (2-4 PM) in which most shops and restaurants are closed.

Yesterday I chose to start the morning by going for a run. Mike and Jeff were going to join me, but Mike ended up talking with Laura (girlfriend) and Jeff had some blister issues. Since we are so close to the Vatican, I decided to run around the Vatican walls. It is almost exactly a two mile loop. However, it is rather challenging for several reasons. First, we are at just about the lowest point on the loop. So no matter which way I start, its a killer uphill climb for the first half. The good news is that the second half is downhill though. Also, the sidewalk is not continuous around the walls. This means that for some parts I had to run in the street – not an easy task if you know Italian drivers. However, I was careful (don't worry Mom :) ) and avoided all the crazy mopeds and smart cars. I actually ran at a pretty good pace and felt like I got a good workout. It was also getting pretty hot by this point. Also, when I came around to the front of the Vatican, I was confronted with masses of people. This made running a little challenging and I definitely got some strange looks. More on the crowds later.

So, after the run I showered and got ready to head to class. We chose to walk, even though it was already over 85 degrees outside and a thirty minute walk. As we passed by the Vatican, we discovered the reason for the masses of people. On Wednesdays, the Pope gives his Papal Address. As we walked, we heard and saw him give a small portion of this, which was both unexpected and amazing. Things like that make Rome so special...the many surprises and discoveries that can be found around every corner.

Eventually we got to class, which turned out to be quite miserable. The teaching was great – Professor Bucher is a lot of fun, very interesting and a great communicator – but the setting was just too much. The rooms lack A/C so the window must be left open. But then the traffic noise comes in, and it seemed especially bad yesterday. At least four car alarms went off in the first hour! And then there's the polizia sirens...almost like back home in L.A. Add in the length of the class – two hours – and it was just a recipe for sleep. As interested as I was, it was nearly impossible to keep my eyes open. Thankfully, Prof. Bucher understood and gave us a break half way through and tried to make up for the poor setting as best he could. Hopefully we will adjust soon, but a change in the weather would definitely help. After writing, we had a thirty minute break to go grab some lunch. We headed down the street to a little panini shop and pointed our way through ordering. The owner was quite helpful and told us the name of each item as we pointed. I had ham (forget the italian word), mozzarella, and pomodoros (tomatoes) on pizza bread. It was delicious and only cost 2.50 euro. We will definitely be getting many of our lunches there.

We then returned to Accent for our next class, which unfortunately was in the same exact room. Much of the same problems occurred, but again the Professor was really good and fun. Professor Bottlik spent most of his career working for Xerox and has endless stories and examples that spice up the class. He also was kind and gave us a short break half way through.

Following this, we had another half hour break before our first Survival Italian class. First, we made a quick stop for gelato and I found my new favorite – melone, which is creamy and tastes like cantaloupe. Then, we headed down the road to Piazza Navona, the square with the Four River Fountain, and this time got a chance to go into the church of Sant'Agnese in Agone, designed by Boromini. This church was breathtaking. Other than the Pantheon, it was the first church we had been inside. There was such intricacy and detail in every inch of the building. I especially loved the fresco on the inside of the dome. I can't even imagine the work that required. Unfortunately I did not have my camera with me, so I will have to go back to get pictures. Luckily it is only a short walk from Accent.

The Survival Italian class was a lot of fun, but I was ready to pass out by this point. The teacher was really really good and somehow made us understand her when she rarely spoke in english. I felt like I learned a lot, but I just need practice speaking for it to really sink in. This was again two hours in the same room. Afterwards was some kind of appetizer mixer at a little restaurant, but I chose to pass so I could come back and take a nap. Also, I still had that paper hanging over my head. I napped for about an hour and then began to write. I cranked out four pages by 12, and then Mike and I went around the corner for some pizza. Finally I came back and went to sleep for the night.

Today turned out to be quite the opposite from yesterday. I woke up around nine and worked some more on my essay. When we were ready to leave for class, it suddenly started raining. Of course, I don't have an umbrella, so we considered taking the bus. However, our manlier sides prevailed and we decided to walk. This turned out to be the wrong decision. Half way to class, just after passing the Vatican, God really let the rain come down. I have rarely seen it rain so hard. To avoid losing all of my papers, I surrendered my pride and bought an umbrella from a street vendor. I'm sure I paid twice as much as it was worth, but I managed to get to class without getting any wetter than I already was. Mike, being the rugged outdoorsman that he is, continued to walk in the pouring rain. I guess Alaskans don't believe in umbrellas.

So, once arriving at Accent, we had to print out our papers. Then we went to class, which was immensely more bearable today. The temperature was cool, and street sounds were muffled by the rain. The class was a little more involved today as well, as we did some group analyses of our papers and analyzed some old “good” and “bad” papers. I still have a lot to work on for my paper, but I feel like I have a good foundation to build upon. Class ran a little late, and so we had to rush over to the same panini place for a quick lunch. Today I tried the prosciutto, again with mozzarella and tomatoes. Again, it was delicious.

Then it was back to class, this time engineering economy. Class was a little more boring today, as we went over definitions on powerpoint most of the time, but our professor claims that these are needed mainly as a foundation. After this class, we again had a half hour before our final Survival Italian class, which we spent lazing on a couch in the lounge. The italian class was more advanced today, and honestly passed my current capabilities. I could have used a refresher from yesterday's class rather than continuing forward. For this reason, during our break after an hour I chose to leave and come home. I needed the rest, and have used the extra time to write this blog!

At eight, we went to find a place for dinner and ended up at a pizzeria and birreria. We did our part and ordered pizza and beer. I decided to go out on a limb and try the shrimp, lettuce, and tomato sauce pizza. It turned out to be quite delicious and I'm glad I risked it. Then, we hunted down a gelato shop (most were closed by this time) and tried some new flavors. I had millenium (the specialty of the shop), black cherry (the recommendation from the server) and stratiacella (chocolate chip). We also tried a new technique taught us by our Italian teacher, called “fondo panna”, which means whip cream in the cone before the ice cream. It was awesome, and proved to be a fitting end to a very good day. I look forward to catching up on some sleep tonight, and tomorrow we head to Orvieto for our first day trip!