Trips and Routine

I am starting to get in the routine of things, and I love routine. I also love how clothing matters a lot here in Italy. It forces me to make an effort to look nice every morning. As a result, I feel good about myself during the day, which is always a good thing if you need to focus on class and papers. Every Morning, we eat breakfast at a little bar next to our class building called Pascucci’s. I always order either a Café Latte, or a Cappuccino and a cornetti, or sweet roll. If you are lucky, the cornetti will still be warm from the oven. The coffee is always superb and does the job of waking me up.
Depending on whether or not I have homework to do, I will usually go to the library to finish a reading or to start on a paper or project. The good thing about all of my classes is that they are all interesting in their own way, and apply to life and culture in Italy. I sometimes crave for more information and will spend some time in the library looking up books on the topics and researching online.
On Monday, Friday, and some Saturdays, out hotel serves us lunch. So far, there has not been one meal served by the hotel that I have not loved. A dessert of fruit or gelato usually follows the meals at the hotel. On the other days, we go to Pascucci’s and order a sandwich. My favorite of these is a Pizzeta. It has the bread of a pizza folded up and on the inside are either mozzarella cheese and tomatoes or cheese and Prosciutto (ham).
After Lunch is class. I do have some classes in the morning. For instance, on Thursday I have my religion class at 8:00 a.m. After Religion is my Italian class. I think my favorite class so far is Italian. It is a two hour class, which makes it the longest class on my schedule, but it is more interactive and not all lecture. I feel like I learn more in the class also.
Dinner is the same ordeal as lunch, depending on what day of the week it is; we are either at the Hotel or at Pascucci’s. After dinner, we walk around our area exploring stores and trying out gelato places. If we do get gelato, we will make our way to the piazza which we will then sit and enjoy the weather and the people. Usually in the piazza, there will be musicians playing. Our favorite entertainer is a man whom we have dubbed the “Opera Man”. He has a little recording of a song and he will sing along with it. He has the best opera voice I have ever heard and it sounds so typical of Italian culture and music. It is the perfect way to end the day.
The weekends are totally spontaneous and different. On Saturday’s we will have excursions to different parts of Rome and nearby cities. On Sunday’s we are off on our own to explore and visit popular spots in Rome.
We do, of course plan to travel to different countries. Our first trip that we have booked is to Paris. We are going on the first weekend of November and it was a very good deal. We are booked with Andy Steves who graduated from Notre Dame last year and whose Dad is Rick Steves. Rick Steves is a famous travel guru. For only 150 euro, this tour includes a stay at an eight and above rated hostel for two nights, a boat tour on the river, a biking tour, meals, and entrance fees to the major tourist spots like the Louvre and the Eifel Tower. The only thing not included is the transportation to Paris.
Another trip that we are planning on doing is a three day ski trip on the Alps in Grimminauld, Switzerland. It is through the same program as Paris and it only costs and additional 190 euro for the three day ski pass and equipment. Not bad, eh? This is the trip that I am looking forward to the most!
We thought about going to London, but after looking up airfare and hostels, we found it to be extremely expensive. So, as of now, London is put on a hold. The last week in October, our whole group is taking a trip to Southern Italy where we will visit Pompeii, Naples, and Capri.