Ciao!
It is officially our second week in beautiful Italia! Aside from the rain, our first week in Ariccia and beginning of our second week has been an incredible start to the trip. Most of us are finally recovered from jet lag and starting to feel adjusted to our daily routines at the Palace. To start off the second week, we took a class trip to the Monday market. Everyone had been looking forward to this day since we arrived. After gathering our coins together, Cinzia led us up the hill to the market and gave us a tour of the different tents. Most of us bought bananas, kiwis, oranges and apples. The kiwis were delicious!

Later that Monday afternoon we had our first Italian cooking class. We all enjoyed meeting Mary Lou, our cooking instructor. What a sweet lady! She taught us how to make Amatriciana, a common Italian dish. It was so delicious that most of us had to go back for seconds. For dessert, she had a few girls make a simple Nutella-filled cake. It definitely didn’t take long for the Nutella-cake to disappear! The first cooking class was a success and we all cannot wait to cook with Mary Lou again!

Throughout this week, most of our lectures have been focused on preparation for our Grand Tour of Rome. Roberta and Professor Francesco Petrucci taught us all about the sites that we will be touring in Rome on Wednesday and Thursday this week. After learning about the history and facts of each site, we are all anxiously looking forward to visiting them in person. I have never been to the Colosseum before so I am excited to visit that for the first time! We are officially ready for our Grand Tour!

Katie Ludlow

Ciao friends!
It’s been a busy week for us 22 Chigi babies! Once we conquered jet lag, a few cold showers, and the challenges of Italian wi-fi, we couldn’t wait to explore Ariccia and the surrounding towns. Our new home is as charming as charming can be. Cobblestone streets, flowers on balconies, and picturesque sunsets are just a few of Ariccia’s treasures.

Living here has been a refreshing change of pace. The Italian people have such passion for life… but must we never forget that their lives are approximately 50% food. Italian food puts every other country to shame. In the past 6 days, I’ve probably inhaled 8 plates of pasta, 3 pizzas, and of course, GELATO. It’s truly life changing.

Speaking of life changing, let’s talk travel! When we’re not attempting to learn the language or taking cooking classes, we’re visiting the many hidden treasures of Italia. This semester’s forecast includes Rome, Venice, Florence, Tuscany, and many other cities in between! Last week, we had the opportunity to visit several of the Castelli Romani towns that are scattered throughout the Alban Hills. Each town has its own story and its own specialty. A few of our favorites were Frascati, Castel Gandolfo, and Nemi!

After walking a little over 6 miles in freezing temperatures, we were certainly excited to get back to our humble abode: The Palazzo Chigi! It’s incredible to be living in a building that’s been around since the 16^th century… a building that was renovated by Bernini himself. I think I speak for everyone when I say this has been a great start to an even greater semester.

Arrivaderci!
Haley McCarrell