End of the first week (part two)
Monday morning was the first day of class, and at 9:00 I had "most" people. Everyone eventually showed up, and we talked about how the class would operate, and what they needed to do. Much of the work they'll do is on a website, where they can share observations about Italian service processes (groceries, dining, buses, trains, etc.) and also analyze the companies we will visit.
After class, I worked on the websites and got things organized for Wednesday.
Tuesday was a pretty quiet day for some shopping (how many times will I go to the grocery store before I remember everything?) and some laundry. I also spent time at school talking to people there and catching up on things. I've been cooking for myself for breakfast and dinner, and getting sandwiches or something for lunch. The Oil Shoppe (Alli's favorite) is still there and the food is still great.
Wednesday was class again, and this time I had everyone (but one guy) when I started class. He showed up a little late, so eventually I had a full house. Here are pictures of the classroom I teach in.
Thursday I met with the person who will help me while the Penn State professor recuperates (he took ill and will come in June). Alan (the guy from the school) seems great and is proficient in Italian, so we'll be all set for all the trips. We go on three next week and he's really excited about going with us. Later I had a meeting with General Electric here in Florence, and they are going to host us again. We set up a very nice afternoon with them, with a presentation from some of their information specialists and a tour of a very interesting factory.
Today I actually slept in a little, and then went to school to work on the last details for the trips we'll be making. I'm going to test the train to one of our locations next week, and then I think we're all set for the rest of the semester. The students are all gone traveling to see stuff (a whole bunch went to Rome for soccer), and next week they will have a long weekend, since the school will be closed on June 2nd for an Italian holiday. Tried to get a computer problem fixed, but what they tried did not exactly fix everything. It works okay, so now I have to try to figure out whether to spend more time on it. Got some walking around picture taking time in, too. I'll try to process the pics and put them up on the web soon.
That's all for now.
