our window garden

So we tried to go to the health office today but it was closed even though it said it should be open on the door (typical). On the way back we ran across a nursery in our neighborhood and got some plants for our window garden. We're "putting on the dog" for our first guests next week.

ASLO Office

I have completed my first full week of school! It went well but I'm now sick and lying on the couch on a Saturday :(. We're going to venture out to the national health office to apply for our insurance cards. We should be an interesting sight because I'll be blowing my nose every five minutes and Andy has a swollen eye. Hopefully we don't get denied insurance coverage...

Vegetables will make you beautiful.

Sorry for the long hiatus in blog posts! It has been a busy start of the school year. I have a great, and incredibly cute, group of kids. One little boy in my class thanks me everyday for teaching him. I have Italian, Arabic, Hebrew, Mandarin and Hindi speakers in my class all at different levels of English proficiency. This will be a great opportunity for me to put my teaching English skills to the test!

The swing of things

Caitlin and I are on our first full week of school, she in the classroom and me on the tennis courts. Our second practice was fun. We lost the parked cars and gained a head coach. Coach Phil is a riot. He's basically the opposite of me: tons of coaching experience, but not too familiar with the game. I think we'll work well together. I played skyball with the kids today. Think they enjoyed it.

Caitlin, meanwhile, has four — FOUR! — boys named Lorenzo in her 2nd-grade class. So if she doesn't know who threw the paper airplane in class, there's a 20 percent chance it was a Lorenzo.

We take the 5 p.m. bus home from school, whereupon we decide what to do the rest of the day. Today, we went with "drink beer, eat pizza, read books, take a stroll, bed by 9:30." Good call.

By the way, I was trying to think of a good post title for my last post. There just HAS to be a great pun involving cars parked on tennis courts. Any thoughts?

Tennis (with cars)

I am officially an assistant high school tennis coach! We had our first practice on Friday, with only one minor hiccup: Cars were parked on the courts.

I'll repeat that: Cars were parked on the courts. Oh, Italy. You are too much.

There was a big after-school event at the school, so the folks in charge of directing incoming traffic told at least 8 parent drivers to go ahead and park on the tennis courts. Because, why not?

Thirteen kids on 2 courts was going to be difficult enough. But cars on courts? That's a new one for me. By the time we were done w/ warmup and introductions, the eight cars were down to three. But that's not exactly much better. Still, we made it work somehow. Some windshields were hit, I'll admit. And eventually all the parents returned with kids in tow and embarrassedly drove off.

Fun stuff! Can't wait for Monday!

The best of August

Caitlin's new book about UFOs. Andy is a nonbeliever.

Arrivederci, August. It was a hell of a month. We went through some trying times (and some ungodly climates), but I think we both emerged as stronger, healthier people. Amazing to recall how far we've come, and how much we've seen and done. Amazing to know we've made some great friends, we have an awesome apartment, and that we actually live in Rome. Amazing to think that in about 90 percent of situations, we have no idea what we're doing. Truly amazing.

I had a wonderful 29th birthday yesterday, and I told Caitlin it was my favorite day in Rome so far. We spent an hour at a cafe, bought some new books at the neighborhood bookstore and took a picnic lunch to Villa Sciarra, the smaller of our nearby parks. The weather cooperated, dropping to about 80. It was downright pleasant (and, later that night, cold! Caitlin had to wear a sweater! I thought it'd never happen!). Then we connected with a trio of Caitlin's teacher friends for a nice dinner (at the same cafe we had visited that morning, apparently). A toy dancing cat was nearly purchased, until the teachers realized Shania Twain's lyrics are not appropriate for 8-year-olds. Mesmerizing moves, though. Later, we invited our friends over for drinks and a slice of cake, expertly baked by Ms. Vallerga. All in all, a very chill day, punctuated by another thrilling season opener by Chicago's Big Ten Team!

Oh, and we wrote a song together. The little white plastic cups (seen above) are ubiquitous in Rome. No one simply drinks Coke out of a can or a bottle; you need a plastic cup, or at the very least a straw. We think it's funny. But then again, the cups come in handy when splitting a small bottle of wine at a picnic. So here's our song, sung to the tune of "Red Solo Cup":

          White plastic cup
          we fill you up
          with vino rosso!
          with vino rosso!


Here are some August highlights:

• Latest bedtime: 3 a.m. That's right, ladies and gents: Ms. Vallerga stayed up until 3 a.m. with our fellow language learners on a random Tuesday. A new record for Caitlin, who claims she really wasn't even all that tired. (Maybe it was the gelato?)

• Favorite hang-out spot (Grand prize): The rooftop on Jessica J's apartment. Great views of the city. Great spot for a snack and some vino. Thanks for the hook-up, Jessica.

• Favorite hang-out spot (2nd place): The steps at Piazza Trilusso, 200 steps from our door and a great spot to sit, drink and people-watch.

• Favorite hang-out spot (honorable mention): The mall! This is embarrassing, but accurate. Let me put this another way: I hate malls. Can't stand the muzak, the perfume-y smells, the ridiculous costs, the food court options. Just not my thing. But in 100-degree heat, you go where the A/C is. So we went to the mall. On a weekly basis. Plus, Ikea!

• Favorite appliance (Andy): Oscillating fan

• Favorite appliance (Caitlin): Drying rack

• Least favorite appliance (both): Dehumidifier

• Top neighborhood merrymakers (tie): The dancing cat and the Guarda! magician (a somewhat entertaining jester who has an unmistakable voice that carries for at least 5 kilometers. We hear him imploring crowds to Guarda! Guarda! Guarda! pretty much everyday.)

• Best get-away location: Moneglia, a small town just past the Cinque Terre. Not nearly as well known as the CT towns, but 15 minutes away and much cheaper. Clean beach, nice hotel (Mondial), fun hikes to jumping-off rocks. (Which, btw, I believe "Jumping off rocks into water" made Jack's Pyramid of Greatness). Just behind Moneglia are Santa Marinella (on the coast) and Lago Bracciano, both of which are under an hour (and 5 euros) away.

• Weirdest noise we still can't figure out: The cannon that goes off Saturdays at noon.

• Best spot to get lost: Villa Pamphili, the huge park right up the hill from Trastevere. Half an hour in this park, and you'll forget you're in a city. It feels downright forested. Fountains, fields, benches and water spouts by the dozen. Not to mention to exquisitely manicured grounds of the centuries-old villa.

OK, that about sums it up. It really has been an amazing August. Thanks for all the messages and thoughts. Here's to a stupendous September.

a stroll through trastevere