“The more you know, the better you'll do. That's all there is to say really.” - Aroop
What's the deal with the bag?
I did receive the bag. Exactly eight days after landing in Rome, but I did get it. I was really starting to get used to it. The worst part was wearing the same pair of socks. The second worst part was not having a toothbrush. A close third was wearing the same boxers. Around day six, when I thought that maybe my bag would never come, I went to the Italian version of Wal-Mart. This was almost impossible to find because in Rome, at least in the downtown where I live, the clothes are all about style. So one pair of boxers are definitely around eleven euro. So at this place, UPIM, I bought a pair of boxers, two pair of socks, a white undershirt, a toothbrush, and toothpaste. Before having these items, I refused to take a shower only to put on the same dirty clothes. So this allowed me to take my first shower in Rome.
But one thing I would like to add about getting my bag, brings me back to public transportation in Rome. The bag was delivered to my school, the bag being fairly large due to the fact it was the only one I brought. Now, when returning home with my bag, it was around 6:30pm, the busiest time to take the bus. I think italians are trying to break a record every time they fill up a bus. My words will never do justice to the comedy involved with riding a bus during rush hour in Rome. I will say that this particular bus I take is probably not the kind you are thinking of. This, the 117, is incredibly small, because it goes down really narrow roads. On the bus there is a sign, and it recommends eight people sitting and another eight standing. Well... my record , and yes I counted, is eight sitting, and nineteen standing. I can't take all the credit though, it was without doubt a group effort. It has become a game really, for me at least. Whenever we come to a stop I just hope and pray nobody is getting off and a lot more are getting on. When I was still an amateur 117 rider, I would see a bunch of people waiting at a stop and think, “there is no way they are getting on, absolutely not happening”. To my amazement, we would all squish in with room to spare. The crazy thing is that the faces of those waiting to get on never showed any doubt. They were getting on the bus even if it meant the door could not shut. So on this particular day that “we” set my personal record, I must have had the above thought three stops in a row. The first two times the Italians did not fail to impress, they coolly flattened out their bodies and joined the rest of us. However, at the third stop, I would have bet a lot of money against one more getting on, let alone numbers twenty-six and twenty-seven. This time I could sense the doubts from the body language and grumbles from those already on the bus. I could also see some hesitation from the two that planned to join us. But when the doors opened, either the bus driver did not realize how many of us were already on board, or he was trying to set his own personal record (I like to believe the latter), he did not move until they got on. I'm still not sure of the physics of the whole thing, but numbers twenty-six and twenty-seven climbed in. I would have lost a lot of money had I made a bet. Geez, I went off there a bit. I really just wanted to make clear that it was really crowded on the bus and having my bag with me made it worse.
Are your classes difficult, what are you taking, are the profs. any good?
Yes. Unlike everyone else who seems to have this as their “semester off”, I am not taking a single elective. All my classes are going towards my major/minor. My schedule is as follows:
Monday & Wednesday: 10:30-12:00 International Finance
3:00-4:30 Italian Theatre
4:30-6:00 International Trade
Tuesday & Thursday 4:30-7:30 Italian Cinema From Fascism to Present
My first class is with professor Aroop. I like him, should be an interesting class. I won't go in to the details of what the class is all about. Check out the subject of this blog to see what he said to begin the first class.
Next is Italian Theatre... err, Italian Theatre from the Renaissance Through the Twentieth Century. Geez, this class is no joke. Professoressa Carmela Merola is quite the character. Basically, we read four plays in Italian. After finishing each one, we go to a theatre in Rome to view the play. Then we write a four page paper on it. The whole class is taught in Italian, oh yea, and there are myself and two other girls in the class. The play we are reading now, “Gli Innamorati” (The Lovers) by Carlo Goldoni is written in Veneziano (the Venetian dialect of Italian). Not the easiest thing, but I actually like the class.
International Trade with Aldo Pantania... I will let his website do the talking: http://www.aldopatania.com/ He is also a good professor despite beginning the first class by saying, “We are not friends and you probably won't get an A”.
Italian Cinema... We watch movies!! I have to take tests in Italian and do readings in Italian, but it should be swell.
Way too long this one... I know.
I did receive the bag. Exactly eight days after landing in Rome, but I did get it. I was really starting to get used to it. The worst part was wearing the same pair of socks. The second worst part was not having a toothbrush. A close third was wearing the same boxers. Around day six, when I thought that maybe my bag would never come, I went to the Italian version of Wal-Mart. This was almost impossible to find because in Rome, at least in the downtown where I live, the clothes are all about style. So one pair of boxers are definitely around eleven euro. So at this place, UPIM, I bought a pair of boxers, two pair of socks, a white undershirt, a toothbrush, and toothpaste. Before having these items, I refused to take a shower only to put on the same dirty clothes. So this allowed me to take my first shower in Rome.
But one thing I would like to add about getting my bag, brings me back to public transportation in Rome. The bag was delivered to my school, the bag being fairly large due to the fact it was the only one I brought. Now, when returning home with my bag, it was around 6:30pm, the busiest time to take the bus. I think italians are trying to break a record every time they fill up a bus. My words will never do justice to the comedy involved with riding a bus during rush hour in Rome. I will say that this particular bus I take is probably not the kind you are thinking of. This, the 117, is incredibly small, because it goes down really narrow roads. On the bus there is a sign, and it recommends eight people sitting and another eight standing. Well... my record , and yes I counted, is eight sitting, and nineteen standing. I can't take all the credit though, it was without doubt a group effort. It has become a game really, for me at least. Whenever we come to a stop I just hope and pray nobody is getting off and a lot more are getting on. When I was still an amateur 117 rider, I would see a bunch of people waiting at a stop and think, “there is no way they are getting on, absolutely not happening”. To my amazement, we would all squish in with room to spare. The crazy thing is that the faces of those waiting to get on never showed any doubt. They were getting on the bus even if it meant the door could not shut. So on this particular day that “we” set my personal record, I must have had the above thought three stops in a row. The first two times the Italians did not fail to impress, they coolly flattened out their bodies and joined the rest of us. However, at the third stop, I would have bet a lot of money against one more getting on, let alone numbers twenty-six and twenty-seven. This time I could sense the doubts from the body language and grumbles from those already on the bus. I could also see some hesitation from the two that planned to join us. But when the doors opened, either the bus driver did not realize how many of us were already on board, or he was trying to set his own personal record (I like to believe the latter), he did not move until they got on. I'm still not sure of the physics of the whole thing, but numbers twenty-six and twenty-seven climbed in. I would have lost a lot of money had I made a bet. Geez, I went off there a bit. I really just wanted to make clear that it was really crowded on the bus and having my bag with me made it worse.
Are your classes difficult, what are you taking, are the profs. any good?
Yes. Unlike everyone else who seems to have this as their “semester off”, I am not taking a single elective. All my classes are going towards my major/minor. My schedule is as follows:
Monday & Wednesday: 10:30-12:00 International Finance
3:00-4:30 Italian Theatre
4:30-6:00 International Trade
Tuesday & Thursday 4:30-7:30 Italian Cinema From Fascism to Present
My first class is with professor Aroop. I like him, should be an interesting class. I won't go in to the details of what the class is all about. Check out the subject of this blog to see what he said to begin the first class.
Next is Italian Theatre... err, Italian Theatre from the Renaissance Through the Twentieth Century. Geez, this class is no joke. Professoressa Carmela Merola is quite the character. Basically, we read four plays in Italian. After finishing each one, we go to a theatre in Rome to view the play. Then we write a four page paper on it. The whole class is taught in Italian, oh yea, and there are myself and two other girls in the class. The play we are reading now, “Gli Innamorati” (The Lovers) by Carlo Goldoni is written in Veneziano (the Venetian dialect of Italian). Not the easiest thing, but I actually like the class.
International Trade with Aldo Pantania... I will let his website do the talking: http://www.aldopatania.com/ He is also a good professor despite beginning the first class by saying, “We are not friends and you probably won't get an A”.
Italian Cinema... We watch movies!! I have to take tests in Italian and do readings in Italian, but it should be swell.
Way too long this one... I know.