Buonasera! Yesterday, I had arrived smoothly in Rome to be greeted by our program coordinators and 3 other members of the group. Sadly, everyone who was on the group flight to Rome from JFK had severe delays and will not arrive until this afternoon. However, adventure does not hit pause; starting off, we had lunch in a beautiful, flower-themed Italian restaurant called Prato di Cavour. We had a lovely appetizer called a bruschetta (the "ch" is pronounced as a "k") which was then followed by pasta with amatriciana sauce. After lunch, we started unpacking in our hotel room, staying at the Grand Hotel Olympic. Right after, we left to try one of Italy's most iconic desserts: gelato! Following gelato, we visited a location called Palazzo Della (Di) Giustizia, which is home to Rome's Supreme Court. Dinner took place at Camilio B., where we each all got a bite of Italian pizza.
Jetleg has been a slight problem as the time zone is off by 6 hours compared to New York, but otherwise cultural shock has not been a problem because Rome, in a way, is like home. It is very welcoming and is also a city just like New York. Orientation has been delayed but otherwise this trip cannot be more perfect.
The program coordinators have been more than welcoming. Italian is a fairly new language to me and they are more than happy to answer our questions. I am looking forward to meeting the rest of the group and getting to know everyone on this 3 week trip. Speak soon! Ciao :)
Beautiful picture!!