Viva Rome!

I have been away from this blog for far too long. Quite honestly trying to get stories published in newspapers today is quite a hassle. The reason behind this is because many newspapers are going out of business and do not have a budget for any freelance writers. So I have been changing up my tactic and writing for the online publications which seem to be somewhat immune to this downturn.

However, I did want to put up a review of my experience at TorrediBabele in Rome, Italy. This was the language immersion school I attended while I was there and it was the reason I went to Rome in the first place. Now to be honest it was not always a pleasant experience but that is to be expected when you are in a foreign country for one month. You have to realize that not everything is going to go your way.

The best word that would describe the first week in Torredibabele would be stressful. But this is honestly what you want when trying to learn a language. If you go with the apartments that the school will set you up with then you are going to learn Italian much faster. This is because they choose to put you in apartments in non-tourist areas of Rome where very little to no English is spoken. I was put in Piazza Bologna area which is very near to the school. This area is extremely Italian and extremely Roman as well. This means that you better start talking Italian very fast otherwise you will have a very hard time.

The first task is just learning to survive when you can not speak the language fluently. This means finding and learning all you can about shopping for food and going out to eat. These are by far the two most important subjects in Italian you should learn first. If you do not know how to get food you will starve. Being a single guy in Rome is also a disadvantage. Most Italians seem very helpful to all the single girls but guys not so much. I am not sure why but I did notice a difference when ever I went out in a group.

Now as far as the lessons were concerned the school teachers will only speak to you in Italian. You can not speak a word of English, Spanish, or any other language while you are in class in this school. It is a forced language immersion school. But this is okay as the first day of class they do teach you how to ask questions in Italian so that you can try to understand what they are talking about. Some people found this forced immersion technique to be a bit stressful and either quit or broke down. I actually found this technique stressful as well but was lucky to find a friend in the school to help me out.

The very first day of class you are given your textbooks and a list of cultural events sponsored by the school. I would highly recommend that you attend these during your first week as that is one great way to make friends while you are away. Without some sort of friends your stay is going to be miserable.

The first week was a stressful one but I learned more Italian in this week then I ever would if I had studied it on my own. This is because of the classes and the environment as well. Rome is one hectic and noisy city and you best have your game face on if you want to learn the language. Italians do not like to speak English and would prefer to speak their own language. That is one great motivator in learning the language so that you can get along with more people while you are away.

Well I have already made my offical announcement on my Venice, Italy website so i decided that I would make another announcement on my Rome, italy website.

It is official I am heading back to Rome, Italy for a month in April and will be gone until May. The reason for this trip is to get a stronger grasp of the Italian language and totally immerse myself in the italian culture. My first website on Venice, Italy was supposed to help me get there but as it turns out i believe that Rome is the better place to be to start out. In Rome you can get a stronger grasp of real Italian life as there are more places where real Italians hang out as opposed to Venice which is a beautiful city but sometimes a bit of a tourist trap.

I still love the city of Venice and I know I will be going back there as well. However, for this trip I am going to focus solely on the Roman experience and see how that is different from Venice, Italy.

The school I chose to visit is called Torredibabele and I firmly believe that they will do a great job in teaching me the fundamentals of the Italian language. For those that actually know me personally you know that Ialian is not the only language I am attempting to learn but it is really top on my list.

I think that I will have a great time in this city and am really looking forward to it. Who knows I might get some sponsorships for my blog network out of this whole experience. I am going to use this trip to really launch my  International Travel Writing career and see how far it can take me.

So there you have it a realization of a long term goal! It feels good to be actually accomplishing a goal instead of just talking about it all the time. I also have a travel writing website which I will also be posting to about how to get published as  a freelance travel writer for those that want to break into that field.  Hopefully you will find it useful.