Home Sweet Home

After some delay, I finally moved into my flat last night. I'm now a resident of Via Eleonora Duse, and I have the set of keys to prove it! So far, things are going swimmingly.

The flat itself is enormous, or as enormous as a place without a proper sitting room can be. We have 2 bedrooms, a bathroom, and one large, L-shaped hall/kitchen/living room space. The bathroom alone is bigger than my room in Loopeng! Of the bedrooms, I have the larger one, the tradeoff being that I only have one window, but my, what a window! It fits the scale of the apartment and is quite large. It is both screened and shuttered. Soon, I hope to invest in some curtains.

I am not living with other SAIS students, but rather an Italian girl who has lived in this very flat for some time. She's still away on her summer break, but I'll meet her next week. So far, moving into an already-occupied flat has been a great blessing. While other SAISers hunt for furniture and try to figure out how to get internet access at their apartments, I walked into a fully furnished flat with WIFI. I was fully moved in as soon as I emptied my suitcase in the closet! It could not have been easier.

What could be easier is my commute to school. I walked both ways today, in the August heat, and it was rather brutal. It took exactly twenty-five minutes each way, as Google predicted. Hopefully it will become more pleasant as the weather cools down. The walk, while enjoyable in the sense of getting a bit of fresh air, is not particularly scenic. I may as well be in New York, or Cleveland, or Kimberley. It's terribly nondescript. While SAIS is on the edge of the medieval city center, and most students live further into that area, my flat is in the opposite direction. I am deep within the modern section of Bologna, and while it is brighter, cleaner and less crowded than the city center, it lacks a certain mystique. Oh well, on hot days, the fact that I am one of a very few students with air conditioning at home more than makes up for it!

School is definitely picking up at this time. I have my first problem set in economics due tomorrow, and plenty of Italian homework to keep me busy as well. Oh, and then there's SAIS's secret third required course: Professional Development. I have assignments for that as well. I roll my eyes at quite a lot of it, but frankly job placement is the only possible justification I can think of for their outrageous tuition fees, and I do appreciate them taking it so seriously.

A Special Kind of Sadness

It's a special kind of sadness experienced by those who watch the sun go down on a beautiful, medieval, European city from the inside of a classroom. I was taking notes in microeconomics from 5-7:30 this evening, a practice I will continue four days a week for the next four weeks. But you know what would make me feel better? Mail! If you'd like to write, the best way to reach me is at the university.

Kelsey Soeth
The Bologna Center
Johns Hopkins SAIS
Via Belmeloro 11
40126 Bologna
Italy

Please, please, please do not forget to put the country! Not that I'm pointing any fingers...

In other news, I ventured out onto the streets today to buy a SIM card for my ancient Blackberry. While the data bundles offered here aren't nearly as cheap as South Africa, I don't think I was swindled too badly and the big news is that I'm back online. Call me, text me, BBM me (23E416E6), e-mail me (kmsoeth@gmail.com), Facebook me (Marie Soeth), tweet me (KSoeth)! I can do it all!

The number is rather a mouthful, and I have no idea how you'll make it work in the States, but the Italian version is: 333 658 9343

Look forward to hearing from you!

First Impressions

Welcome to my latest blogging endeavor! This round I'm even typing on an actual keyboard, rather than my tiny but trusty Blackberry. Now I have no excuses for errors. In any case, I will try my best to keep this blog updated with all my exciting Italian adventures, but, as usual, please keep your expectations low. 

I left London yesterday morning. It was typical English weather, cold, cloudy and wet. Even with a wool sweater on, I felt the chill. So when I debarked the plane on the runway in Bologna, the first thing to strike me was the heat. It wasn't warm, no, it was hot. Hot like a beach in the tropics hot. Or maybe I felt that way due to the damp sweater I was still wearing.

The airport was tiny, but easy to navigate which was a relief with all my luggage. I only had to walk a few meters to find the taxi stand and wait about twenty seconds before I was ensconced in a taxi on my way to the big, bad city of Bologna. The trip was short but scenic. The countryside, or what little of it I could see from the backseat of a taxi roaring down the highway, was stereotypically Italian. All open plains, distant mountains, and those ridiculous Seuss-like trees. It wasn't as green as I expected, it was more brown and gold. Sun-drenched is my best description.

Entering the city proper of Bologna was at first disappointing. We turned off the highway onto a long, broad commercial strip. There was nothing even remotely lovely about it, but just when I began to despair of the location, we reached the city center. Suddenly, Bologna was beautiful. The buildings are ancient, painted all shades of red and yellow, with enormous shutters. They're packed together along narrow, winding streets. While it appears dangerously easy to get lost here, it's hard to imagine that being an upsetting experience. I could wander the streets for ages and be perfectly happy.

This morning, that is exactly what I did. I walked around with the vaguest intention of finding the Johns Hopkins Bologna Center campus. Of course, I set off in completely the wrong direction and found myself on a bridge over the rail yard. While I watched some dark and stormy clouds roll in over the horizon, I had my first stereotypically Italian experience when a older gentleman walked past and said "Ciao, bella." Not being very quick on my feet, I just gave him a nod and walked on. I nearly walked straight into a couple of Jehovah's witnesses who gave me a pamphlet and invited me to a meeting. At last I extricated myself from that conversation and continued to wander. A light rain started to fall and since I managed to not pack a single element of rain gear, I was endlessly grateful for the long arcades. 

Eventually, and completely unintentionally, I came to one of the most popular sights in Bologna, the Two Towers. I know very little about their history, but I can tell you definitively that they both appear to be leaning dangerously. A man on a scooter was stopped at a light in the shadow of one tower, and I couldn't help but worry for his safety should the tower begin to fall.

Scooters, naturally, are everywhere. I have seen far, far more of them than actual cars. Clearly, I am amongst my people. The locals also appear to be dog lovers. Most everyone out for a Sunday morning stroll had a dog with them. It was not unusual to pass by a cafe and find a dog tied to a chair leg while its owner enjoyed a bit of breakfast.

After a few hours, I finally caved and looked at a map. I was only a few blocks from SAIS, so I popped over and had a look. The campus is home to, by far, the ugliest building in the center of Bologna. Oh well, it's not like I'll have to spend much time looking at it. But I do pity the neighbors whose view is so lacking. 

My camera batteries died while I was in London, so I will have to buy new ones before I post any pictures. Stay tuned!