C1, Day 1

This morning I actually got to have some company before school! Bart and Isabel were always still asleep when I left (I think their classes started later), so it was really nice to get up and have breakfast with someone. When I went to the kitchen, Nuala was boiling water for tea, and asked if I wanted some. I said sure, so she got out a tea bag for each of us. The box said English Breakfast tea, but one sip, and Nuala said, "This is NOT English Breakfast, it's Earl Grey!" And it was possibly the most British thing I've ever experienced in my life. (Which is redeeming, since she doesn't care for Doctor Who, Sherlock, or even Harry Potter.) The funny thing is, even before she tried it, I thought it tasted like Earl Grey too, but I thought I was just having an "all-teas-taste-alike" moment. Glad to know I'm not going crazy.

No comments from any of you lot about how I'm already crazy.

Of course, I also got to go to school with them, which seems like a really small thing, but when I've made the journey on my own for three weeks, I enjoyed having someone to go with for a change! We successfully made it to school, and they both got in line to register for their placement test. I, on the other hand, went on to my first day in level C1, where I was excited to find that my friends Olivier (from my second class) and Pablo were joining us! It looks like a couple of previously-B2 classes were combined to make this one, so not everyone here was a brand-new student- just new to me. Still, now I have new classmates from Russia, the Philippines, and Venezuela. We also got a new teacher, who is a lot more... hm, how to describe her? She's nice, but seems a lot more businesslike. Not that she doesn't have a sense of humor, but she is very quick to correct you if you make a mistake, sort of like she doesn't want to waste time on us trying to wade through grammar until we come up with what we're trying to say. The other teachers I've had will help you if you are clearly struggling, but try to let you work things out on your own. With her, the moment you misspeak, she jumps right on it. I'm not sure which method is more effective- on the one hand, I am glad to know the proper way to say things. On the other, I am often aware of when I make a mistake, but I don't have a chance to correct it myself.

My other class was as delightful as ever. We got two new students, so we still have six, from the US (though she lives and works in Japan) and Colombia. We spent most of the class posing ridiculous questions to each other: "When was the last time you...?" (ate pasta, read a book, ate gelato, and other stupid things). With the remaining few minutes, we learned some phrases for various social situations- when to say congratulations, when to wish someone luck, what to say after "buon appetito!" So now we can fill those awkward silences.

After a little bit of time to unwind at home, Nuala and I walked back to the school to attend a sort of informal lecture thing on getting around Rome. (She really likes walking.) We ended up *ahem* taking the scenic route, so it took an hour to get there. (Oh, the irony.) We met a couple of her friends there, also new today from Australia and Canada. Gabriela was initially going to stay and meet us as well, but ended up going home after class because she was tired. I can't say I blame her- I'm wiped out too!

C1, here I come!