Adventures in Italy: The First Week of School

It's hard to believe that we have already finished one week at the Istituto Italiano. Melissa absolutely loves her class and has made some good friends (from Australia, California, Spain, Serbia, and Egypt). Her teacher, Paolo, is a lot of fun (doesn't speak ANY English) is really helping them to learn quickly. I had tested into the highest level (superior) for both grammar and conversation, but asked to put in the third level (one below superior) since I only had two semesters of formal grammatical lessons 12 years ago and never learned anything past simple tenses. I decided to stay in the superior level for conversation because I can understand (almost) everything and think I will learn more in that class.
Friday evening, Christian arrived for his visit. Yesterday we went on a bus with 23 other students and a guide to Siena and San Gimignano. Although it was VERY hot and exhausting, the trip was well worth it. The last time Melissa had gone to both those towns, she was only 6 years old. When we returned to the apartment, we all took naps and showered and had a late dinner at the Ristorante Ghibellini in the Piazza San Pier Maggiore which is a few doors down. It was very relaxing and quite good. After dinner, Melissa and Christian set out to find her friends at the bars and I went home and watched some Italian TV shows to help improve my language skills.