Rain Rain Go Away

The clouds in Positano
Beach in Positano
Katie and I on the beach
Mom and I on the beach
Positano

In front of St. Peters
on top of the Castel St. Angelo
with out audio guides
with mom

So basically it pretty much looks like Seattle in Rome. It hasn't really stopped raining since we got here way back in January. There have been those few occasional days of sun and some sunny spots mixed in, but for the most part, Rome has been pounded by rain. So much rain that the Tiber river is over flowing! The only positive side of rain is that, like Seattle, the cloud cover keeps things a lot warmer. So even when it is bright and sunny outside, it is absolutely FREEZING! We have managed to take advantage of the few sunny days and brave the cold by going on some walks. Yesterday we walked from the Campo de' fiori to Piazza Navona then to the Pantheon, we wandered our way through some neighborhoods to the Termini train station. Behind the train station is the University of Rome, which looks nothing like the UW. Then we made our way back past Victor Emanuel and eventually back to our apartment. One heck of a long walk, about 4 and a half hours, but well worth it. And I'm glad we did it yesterday because once again, it is raining today. 

Mom was here this past weekend. We had a great time hanging around Rome and on Saturday we went Pompeii, Positano, and Naples. It was a fabulous day and it was fun to get away from Rome. We explored Pompeii for a while and then headed down to Positano which was beautiful. We stopped by a roadside stand and bought some delicious mandarine oranges and tomatoes. Our day ended with pizza and beer in Naples, real Italian pizza.

On Sunday we went to the Porto Portese flea market which was quite the experience. Lots of crap followed by even more crap. Pretty much if we wanted kitchen supplies, cheap clothes, or scarves, that was the place. And once again, it rained like hell. Thank goodness for umbrellas. We also went to a bar to watch Roma play Genoa in a soccer game. It was really interesting to see how people act in a bar here versus in the US. In Rome, nobody talks during the games, the only loud cheering is when one team scores a goal and thats it! But it was a fun game to watch, especially because Rome won!

And to round out the trip nicely I made dinner for my mom on Sunday night. We made fresh tomato sauce out of the tomatoes we bought in Positano which was delicious. I also sauteed lots of veggies and our favorite Italian sausage. Put the entire thing together with some pasta and it was perfect. Especially with a little wine and bread. A perfect way to end a great weekend.

Last night was the 21st birthday of one of the guys in my program so we all went out for some fun. It was really neat to have my entire program out together, even with one of our professors. The night seemed to go on forever but we all had a great time. And we are having a Valentines Day party at our apartment on Saturday, can't wait!