It’s been a really long time since I attended school. Let’s just say we’re talking decades! But October 8, 2018 was my first day of school in this millennium. I’m still battling the vestiges of jet lag combined with some sort of upper gastrointestinal tract issue ( stress-related? Reflux? Gallbladder?? – nothing like self diagnosis!) so I feel pretty out of it. It’s a 15 minute walk down narrow cobblestone streets to the L’Accademia Italiana, housed in a baroque style palazzo situated between the seaside and the Via Roma, a major thoroughfare. One enters the building by pushing the door buzzer, the ornate carved wooden door lock disengages and one ascends to the primo piano (1st floor in Europe but 2nd floor to all you Americans) via a marble staircase. The office staff greeted everyone as they entered and we were each directed into different classrooms to take a brief placement exam. Jet lag and a lack of knowledge of Italian prepositions (di, da, a, con, in, per) certainly impacted the score on my test! Also I couldn’t remember the third person plural conjugation of the conditional tense for the life of me (under normal conditions, i.e. not exhausted, I could have told you that the ending was “-ebbero”)! There was also a brief oral evaluation by one of the instructors. We were then divided into our classes for the week. As students attend for varied periods, one week up to several months, these classes change on a weekly basis. I am the only American in a class of eight women from Russia, Switzerland, Norway, France, Germany and Luxembourg.
Our instructor is Anna, a petite ball of energy. After introducing ourselves ( in Italian, of course), we commenced with a discussion on the topic of vacations, segueing into a review of when to use two of the several forms of past tense (passato prossimo and imperfetto). In English, it’s much more streamlined (e.g. walked, have walked are pretty much all the walking you can do in the past!). After a three hour session, broken up with a half hour break to grab a caffe’ (you don’t have to specify espresso as that’s what coffee is in Italy), most of the students dispersed to enjoy il pranzo (lunch) or head back to their apartments. Since I have a 45-minute private lesson every afternoon at 1:30, there isn’t much time to “fare il pranzo”. And I needed to take care of an issue with my accommodations (more on that later). Then I had my first session with Pina, my private instructor for the week. It is a struggle for me to speak with any degree of confidence – I can understand Italian reasonably well if spoken slowly and clearly – but pulling the words out of my brain is difficult. We spent the 45-minute session with me answering questions about myself.
Although this was my first day, I must say that I am impressed with the instructors – their energy, enthusiasm and desire to help each student improve her knowledge of Italian. Classes are held entirely in Italian, and since students come from all over Europe, Japan and even a few from the USA, one cannot resort to speaking English when frustrated trying to express a thought. However, most of the students have some degree of facility in other languages beside their mother tongue – many speak English or German as their second or third language. And many Americans cannot even speak (or write) proper English.
After the private class, I was famished. So I crossed the street to try out a Roman style trattoria, Nona Maria, that was recommended by Pina. I ordered a classic Roman pasta, cacio e pepe, an Italian version of “mac and cheese” made with bucatini (a thick spaghetti), pecorino Romano cheese and freshly ground pepper. Just three ingredients (plus some pasta cooking water added in to combine the ingredients), sounds simple to make but it’s difficult to not end up with a gloppy mess! It’s the ultimate Italian comfort food. Roasted zucchini as a contorno (side dish) completed the meal. 
Just as I was starting to eat, one of my classmates, a Russian woman named Christina, entered the restaurant and I invited her to join me. We enjoyed a lively conversation in Italian, as she does not speak any English. She is very independent, confident and adventurous and is a real Italophile. In fact this is her third time attending the school.
There was a city tour scheduled for 4 p.m. After a brief introduction to the history of Salerno, we spent about two hours walking through the streets,
many of which were decorated with murals (not graffiti) 
as Stefania pointed out important sites, including the castle overlooking the city,
and the Marble Room in the municipal building where the treaty was signed ending Fascism in 1944. 
We ended at the Duomo, a basilica built and consecrated around 1088, honoring San Matteo. He is the patron saint of Salerno, his image is on the city seal and a few of his bones (as well as the wrist bone of Pope Gregory VII who consecrated the Church) are found in the underground crypt.
I ended this long and exhausting day by joining one of the other students (Kathleen from Australia) for a non-alcoholic drink at a bar in the old town. I have to admit we resorted to speaking in English!
Camino Musings 