Drink Water!!! (a repost from my Loyola blog)

Natalie drinking from the fountain at Via del Burro

Susanna Cavallo, Dean of Faculty at the JFRC, said in a speech early in the semester "You'll leave Italy more beautiful than when you came". She was, of course, talking metaphorically - but I'm starting to think that she was also being literal. My skin is clearing up and my legs are toning - and I know this is due to Roma.

First off, about the toning. I live at the Zone Hotel rather than campus and everyday is a fifteen minute walk all up-hill. I'm taking two on-sight classes and I have yet to go downtown without getting lost (and incidentally finding the Pantheon). I walk a lot. And Roma is not flat. It's all built on hills. So basically, I can eat as much pasta as I like at Mensa and burn it all off in the course of the day.

I like to think Caesar drank from here too.

Now about my skin. I have average skin but lately it's been really clear and I'm pretty sure it's just generally healthier. The reason? Water! I drink a lot of it. I mean a lot. I refill my water bottle several times a day either on campus or in the course of my travels. Roma is blessed with an abundance of water - not just the beautiful fountains that are great attractions but also drinking fountains in many main areas of town and along the streets. There's even one on Palatine Hill. The water from these fountains is safe, cold, and delicious when you've been walking around lost for forty-five minutes (yep, there's one at the Pantheon).

Water is supposed to make you healthier, right? Well, it's definitely helping my skin. So what has Roma taught me so far? Drink lots and lots of water.

I also need to tell Susanna that she was right.