Dear mom, I arrived.....finally.

After a 5 hour delay at JFK our plane took off and smoothly took us to Italy. We arrived and went through customs with a surprising amount of ease, but then had to wait another 3 hours for our bus to take us into Rome. The driver spoke very little English and seemed shocked and slightly annoyed with the amount of luggage the nine of us had, but it all fit! He dropped us off a five minute walk from our door and so we proceeded to our new home. The building itself is beautiful. There is a garden in the center, Piazza Navona on one side, and a touristy street on the other. Danya snagged what is supposedly the best room of them all. The room is oddly shaped with two beautiful windows although it overlooks the touristy street so it is a bit noisy. The view is what makes the room so special. We can see St. Peters right from the window and it is lit up at night similarly to the Empire State Building (cool)!
So, we moved in and then almost immediately were taken to our first dinner...and oh what a dinner it was. They started us off with a red wine and a platter of various cured meats and mozzarella. Then they followed with a pasta, eggplant, and marinara sauce that was perfectly cooked. Just when we thought we were done they brought out fried lamb chops, potatoes, and salad, and finally ended with tiramisu. Although it was so delicious we were so exhausted by the end that we almost fell asleep at our table. Danya and I were confident enough that we could find our way home so we led the way and now we are trying to stay awake while we prepare for our orientation tomorrow.
I still can't believe I am actually here, but I think maybe a good nights sleep will help.