La nevica a Roma!?!

Oh Dio! I know I said my next post wouldn't be up until Sunday, but certain events occurred today that must be shared with you all!

First of all, it snowed today in Rome. Seriously, there was snow EVERYWHERE. It fell in huge clumps, totally covered cars and sidewalks, and generally turned the whole of Rome during rush hour into one slushy, snowy mess; the daily raucous cacophony of car and bus horns added to the chaotic atmosphere. Needless to say, I had the time of my life trying to preserve my dignity as I walked the slippery sidewalks to Ciampi's piano store and to John Cabot. I had a lovely conversation with an Italian woman on the bus about how incredible the snowfall was (in Italian!) and how she had never seen snow like this in the city before. Apparently Rome hasn't had a single snowfall in over twenty years!?!? That's nuts. By the way, if you're tired of me getting excited about talking in Italian with people here, you're just going to have to deal with it because it seriously is so thrilling to talk in a language completely different from your own! I mean, that's exactly why I came to Rome--to meet her people, learn the language, and come to function positively in a totally foreign place that's thousands of miles away from my dearest friends, family, and university. So far, I think I'm being pretty successful :)

Second, I will officially be running the Rome Marathon on March 21, 2010. Yep, you heard me--in one month Laura Jane Taylor will run 26 grueling miles through the most famous sights in Rome, starting and ending at the Colosseum. Perhaps training for said marathon will counteract the effects of all the amazing food we've been having! :)

Ah it is now almost time for Chrissy's sure-to-be-amazing eggplant parmesan dinner! Complete with a caprese salad appetizer, yumm :D After dinner, my roommates and I are going up to another girls' room to celebrate the survival of our first full month in Rome with all the rest of the ND students. I can't believe we've been here a MONTH already--are there seriously just three of these left?? Time really does fly when you're in the most beautiful city in the world.

Tomorrow will certainly be an adventure--our bus to Venice leaves at 8am from Termini Station, and we've got a six-hour bus ride ahead of us until we reach the "City of Water." We should arrive around 3pm if all goes well, and our bus will depart Venice at 1am--that leaves us ten hours to experience as much of Venice and Carnevale as possible!! Goodnight friends, and I'll be back on Sunday!

Vi amo!
*~*Laura*~*