Day Two of Class

Hey y'all!

Today was our second day of class, and the first day we met for class with Albert, one of our professors for our Humanities class. We studied the Imperial Forums, and it was one of the most interesting classes I've ever had. I absolutely adore Albert because he is so sweet and so knowledgeable about Roma! It was really interesting to learn about the five Imperial Forums, and it's crazy to see how much of it is still standing, despite modern excavations and building.

We had to wake up pretty early at 745, but I went with Alex and Stephen to go get a cappuccino to wake up. The group found this amazing place near the AIRC to get cappuccinos for one euro. They are delicious, and so convenient. I ordered in Italian for myself and two other people this morning, and I felt very excited when the man actually understood what I was saying. :)

During class, we went through this really amazing museum that used part of Trajan's Market. I guess I've never really thought about it before, but all these ancient buildings were HUGE. The museum had a bunch of pictures showing the ancient structures to scale, and the temples and Forum buildings were enormous. And very beautiful. There was one exhibit that had just the pointer finger of one of the statues from Augustus's Forum, and the finger was about as big as half of my body. It was insane!

After vising the Imperial Forums, the group went to go visit the Coloseum, where Adam gave a report on it. It is really crazy to be walking up the street toward the Coloseum on just a regular class day. Also, I really love the Arch of Constantine which is right beside the Coloseum, so it was very cool.

After the Coloseum, I walked back to our apartments with Alex and Stephen. I ate a delicious sandwich and peach for lunch, and then walked back to the AIRC.

Now, I should be writing my paper. Instead, I'm just relaxing and talking with the other students in my group. It's been a relaxing afternoon, and I just keep looking out the window at Trajan's Column thinking how cool it is to be in Roma this summer!

I am starting to miss TexMex, but the gelato here makes up for it.

I love you all!

Ciao,
Ashley