There's No Place Like Rome

Ciao a tutti! My name is Carla, one of the program leaders for Rome, Session 1 and welcome to our program blog. Myself and my fellow program leader Tylar will be keeping you up to date on our group’s adventures over the next few weeks.

After a long day of traveling yesterday, today was our first full day in the Eternal City. After breakfast at our hotel, we took a short walk to our classroom building for a full day of orientation. Here, we reviewed some important health and safety tips, as well as some cultural differences between the US and Italy. One of the many fun activities we did today was trying to decipher the meaning of many Italian hand gestures, which can mean anything from “it’s crowded” to “it’s perfect”!

And of course, let’s not forget about the food. Today at lunch, our students had the opportunity to try one of several classic Italian pasta dishes: amatriciana, carbonara, gricia, and cacio e pepe. Some of our students noticed how pasta in Italy is usually cooked “al dente” (literally “to the tooth”) or firm to the bite. One student even remarked how the portion sizes in Italy are smaller than at home, but it allows one to savor the food more.

After lunch we finished orientation by setting up our sim cards and cell phones for use in Italy and a few more teambuilding activities. We had some free time before dinner. One group decided to go shopping on Via Cola di Rienzo with a stop for Sicilian style gelato, while another group walked to Piazza del Popolo and visited the church of Santa Maria del Popolo.

Students were also introduced to the “nasoni” (literally “big nose”) which are public drinking fountains found all over Rome. We learned that they are called “Nasoni” because of their design. There are anywhere from 2,500 – 2,800 nasoni in the city, keeping us supplied with plenty of cool water in the summer heat.

We are fortunate enough to be staying about a ten minute walk from the Vatican, in the "Prati" district of Rome. In just a day and a half, our participants have glimpsed St. Peter's church, Castel Sant'Angelo and Piazza Cavour. Much more to come! Stay tuned for more updates on where we go next.