Monday January 31st

After a weekend of traveling to Venice with Natalie, I was excited to get back into school and get into a rhythm again. Don't get me wrong, I love to explore new places, but after a weekend in Venezia, I have discovered that there is no place like Rome. We started out the day by talking, book-club-style, about Amara Lakhous' book A Clash of Civilizations Over an Elevator in Piazza Vittorio. We talked mostly about the ending and what its implications were. What I had liked most about the book was how Amara presented different aspects of the "truth." Each chapter displays what has passed according to an individual's perspective. At the end, we were presented with two different view points of truth. Debating how to view and consider the ending was what our "book club" was centered on. After wrapping up our discussion and doing brief check-ins about our weekends, we headed out to Esquillino school to see an example of a multi-cultural Italian school. After grabbing a quick cappuccino and cornetto, we headed to the subway (my first time using this system) and arrived for an introduction by the school's vice headmaster, Paola. What struck me as completely different (other than the massive size of the structure) was the amount of artwork and the emphasis on creative outlets for children. The hallways were lined with creative pieces in all sorts of different mediums. My favorite were the decorated suitcases. A music class sang a song for us and played "What a Wonderful World" on the recorder for us and we also got to interact and speak with some of the students. It was interesting to me also, how the class seemed to be divided: there were the kids who had just recently immigrated--within the last five months--and the kids who had been here longer. Observing this presented a physical distinction between language knowledge and abilities. Visiting the school in Esquillino was a high point in my day because it allowed me to see similarities and differences from Iqbal Masih, the school in which I am completing my service learning.

Poster encouraging cultures from around the world in

Esquillino.

After finishing our visitation Laura, Germaine, Natalie and I took the subway back to Termini where we decided to walk home because finally the sun was out in full force! We stopped in at a local restaurant to eat a hamburger (we are all getting a tad tired of pasta and pizza) and then headed home enjoying the Vitamin D. Germaine and I then headed to a local cafe, Barnum, to work on our blogs. Barnum for me has become a little piece of Seattle. At home I live to study in cafes, but with the trend of drinking coffee at the bar instead of a tavolo, I haven't been able to actualize my Seattlite habits. The day finished with a run along the river and relaxing in my apartment with good friends and good food. What other way is there to end a perfect day in Roma?