"I am a guy who can tuck away a lot of peanuts"

It has just started to rain for the first time since coming here. Supposed to rain for the next three days. I guess with the weather we've been having it is about time for April showers. This is more like an April wind and rain storm though. It's pretty loud outside the window.

We've finally started classes. It's weird to only be two days in while people at Emory are already starting midterms! I really like all of my classes. I'm really excited about the Contemporary Italian Politics one because of all that's going on with Berlusconi right now. I think it is going to be extra interesting. Apparently today the courts decided that he will have to go to trial but he refuses. I also had my class about Contemporary Issues in the Catholic Church which I think sounds amazing. The teacher kept trying to get students to drop the class though because he thinks there are too many of us. He offered to bribe us and tried to scare us by lying about the amount of work and credits. I actually will drop it though because I got an internship at La Sapienza! I will be helping start an advising program for Italian students looking to get a masters or PHD in America. 

Tonight was Trattoria night with IES. You could sign up and pay 10 euro to go to dinner. About 10 of us went. We got 3 kinds of bruschetta, roasted vegetables, pizzette (funnel cake dough with pizza sauce and cheese), potato soup, pasta and pesto, pasta and red sauce, tiramisu, and wine. All of it was so so so amazing. By the time we got to pasta though, I was stuffed. I didn't want to be rude though especially since the owner kept coming out to check on us. My friend Will helped finish the pasta off. I did eat all my tiramisu though. I don't think I have ever had some that good. It was incredible. After dinner (which took 3 hours), Will and I went towards Piazza Navona and met up with Jake and Maria at what Maria called "Peanut Bar." We had never heard of it and were excited, only to discover that it was in fact "Steeler's Bar," which we all already knew. The Bar is actually called Boticella but it labeled "Vino Olio." This is the problem in Rome, or at least with the study abroad students, we never know places by their actual names. Anyway, one cool thing about Peanut Bar (the name we all decided was best) is that you can get an "Asciugamano Terribile" or terrible towel. They were sold out because of the super bowl but should have some soon (don't worry, Daisy and Steve, I'll get you one).

Tomorrow we have "field studies" which are basically on site classes. Our political science class is visiting Roma Tre and my archaeology class is headed to one of the museums. Details to come.

Buona Notte!