Feb 2 Pt. 2

Giovanna walked me to the bank this morning, then we joined another hostmom and student on the tram/train down Viale di Trastevere to Largo di Tor Argentina, the end of the line. There we happened to run into five other IES students, one a full year student who knew his way. We got on a bus with him for the rest of the trip. Altogether it was about a 15 minute trip on public transportation. That left us about 4 blocks from the school. The full year student, who is practically an employee at the school, took us the long way to school, which took us in sight of St. Peter's Basilica.

I think most, if not all of the hostmoms know each other.

All day we had orientation and speakers talking to us about the good and bad spots of Rome. The head of the our program is an Italian who was actually born in Argentina. He said the city of Rome "adopted" him nearly 25 years ago. He wears a bright red sports coat everyday. His speech is very precise and measured. He certainly doesn't speak like an American, but if you compare the way he speaks with the way an American speaks, you'd think he knew more about the language. But nearly everyone is still suffering from an extreme case of jet lag, so no one really heard what he had to say.

On the way back I happened to be walking with the same students I arrived with, minus the full year student who happened to also be the only person who knew where he was going. One of the students, who if he were a student at Illinois I would be certain he was studying Computer Science, declared that he was certain where the Argentina square was. He sniffed out that we should be going straight south, which would take us near The Vatican, rather than back east where we needed to be to take the tram. I kept silent, deciding as long as I knew where we actually were I would get a different view of Rome along the way. Eventually, he did find the right way and they did find the tram. I decided I had had enough of the obnoxious Americans so I walked the rest of the way in the rain.

Every Roman I have spoken to has apologized about the current weather, which feels just like a rainy Fall day back home. Giovanna can't believe I walked 1.75 miles "in this awful Winter weather we are having." The main topic in the city is "The Snow." The weather tomorrow has evolved into more than a forecast. Tomorrow is an event. Tomorrow is "The Snow." Most living in Illinois would look at the forecast and expect a typical late-Winter day, but to the Romans, there is a blizzard coming, and it's going to be huge. The public school system has already closed for tomorrow. Most conversations had by locals mention "neve" and "nevicata" which is "snow" and "snowfall." The most humorous aspect of tomorrow's impending doom, is that there is virtually no chance of accumulation, and there is never even an hourly forecast featuring "snow," but instead a "snow/rain mix." Nevertheless, it will likely cripple the city. An IES employee is predicting the city will come to a halt and public transportation will be useless. I assume we will still have class, since the weather is still better than the current conditions at the US schools of most of our students, which seem to be mostly the Big Ten, GWU, and several small liberal arts schools in the Northeast. There are maybe five students altogether from the South.

In the Roma's defense, the forecast for Saturday morning between 3-5 a.m. is for heavy snow. I don't know why that makes canceling school almost a day before necessary, but I'll let these Italians have their fun. They seem to enjoy being able to express emotion. Nothing deserves more emotion than the mayhem that will be caused by this blizzard.

Ciao

p.s. As I finish typing this, there are five Italians, two adults and three 12-year-old boys, yelling at each other and the TV while watching a show that I believe is a cross between Who Wants to Be A Millionaire and Family Feud. The answer was Barbra Streisand. No one got it correct.

Feb. 2

Giovanna just took Federico to school. Last night we had dinner around 9 p.m. Rice, something "better than spinach" and salad. It wasn't fancy but it was still really good. I don't think Giovanna ever eats out at restaurants. Actually, I'm not sure if anyone does. Federico's friend, Federico (we'll call him Federico 2), was picked up by his dad last night and he said they never go out to eat either. I guess no one but tourists use these restaurants. Federico 2's dad was pacing around while yelling at someone on his hand's free iPhone. I haven't the foggiest what he was saying, but it was hilarious. This morning Giovanna made coffee in a moka pot. It was... different. Not bad though. I don't think very many food items are bought that she doesn't prepare herself, which is probably good. I still can't figure out how to upload pictures, but once I do, I have some pretty good ones. I have orientation today from 9-5. Tomorrow and all next week I have Intensive Italian from 1-6 p.m. Giovanna claims she doesn't speak English very well, but she does. Claudio, her boyfriend, speaks very well. He has been to America several times, "but once to Oregon. A weird place that is. Portland? My god!! It was great but it wasn't really America, was it??" His best friend is the head of the Architecture Department at Iowa State University. Claudio is an architecture professor here at Rome Due. He looks exactly like you would expect an Italian professor to appear. He eats with more passion and intensity than anyone I have seen. It was practically theatre. Tonight Giovanna is cooking Spaghetti Carbonara with Artichoke. Claudio was very happy that Giovanna cooks artichoke "the correct way. Not the way the Roman Judaism people cook! They know nothing of Artichokes!!"

I was in shock the first few hours I was here. I woke up a few times last night completely disoriented. I need to buy an alarm clock and some credit for my phone. It will be nice to talk with other Americans when I get to school. Apparently, I'm just like all other Americans, in that I "talk way too fast. Americans should try to talk like the Brits. They have a great rhythm in their speaking," said Claudio.

Claudio is walking me to school. Ciao for now.

Arrivederci

I arrived at my home for the next 3 1/2 months at around 2 p.m. Roman time. I have gotten just a few minutes of sleep in the past 40 hours. I am too tired to say much more other than Giovanna and her 12-year-old son, Federico, are both very nice and helpful. I believe I am supposed to help Federico learn English. Normally Italians begin to learn English "before the womb" as Giovanna's boyfriend put it. However, there is a major shortage of English teachers in Italy, so Federico and his classmates are getting a late start. It's 10:39 p.m. right now and I must be at my school by 9 a.m. Hopefully I will post more tomorrow. There is snow in the forecast. Giovanna's architecture professor boyfriend Claudio said this is a once-in-a-generation event. I believe he was embellishing a bit.

Ciao

The Trast

Gianicolo

This view is a 15 minute walk from Giovanna's

Trastevere

Host Family (or Non-family)

I just received an email with the details of the family I'll be staying with while in Rome. My host's name is Giovanna. Unfortunately her name and her address are all I know. I do not know if she lives alone or has a family, but after googling her I think she lives alone (if I found the right woman (and may even own a jewelry shop?)).

Here is a map. The distance between A and B is roughly 1.5 miles.

A: Giovanna's home
B: My school, IES Abroad
C: Vatican City
D: Colosseum
E: Pantheon

"Trastevere maintains its character thanks to its narrow cobbled streets lined by medieval houses." There are not many tourist sites in Trastevere, but tourists still venture here mainly for its excellent restaurants and popular bars. The Colosseum is about 15 minutes on foot, the Sistine Chapel about 30. Most of the foreign universities are located here, including John Cabot. Giovanna's apartment is located on the busiest street in the area, Piazza Ippolito Nievo, which is shown by the yellow line running through the red A on the map. One website said Trastevere has the feeling of a small Italian village. I guess I'll know much more about "The Trast" in 3 weeks.

Here is a video of Anthony Bourdain visiting a restaurant just a short walk from my future home:

No Reservations: Rome