Final Review a HIT!

I must admit, in the end I was pretty surprised at how successful Ron and my final review went yesterday! Considering the serious bashing we took at our last review about a weak concept, poor execution, etc, last night was amazing. My favorite comment was "I like your project. I like to so much I have a lot to talk about..." -- and this from a genuine Roman woman. Who else would know more about her city and what's appropriate for it? In general we had a strong concept, excellent plans and sections, and elevations could have used more work but were "on the right track". I feel really good today after that...quite pleased.

Last night the "crew" got together and partied a little bit to celebrate. We had a great time and ended the evening by strolling over the Pantheon and sharing a bottle of wine among the 6 of us. They have been great friends, especially supportive after Carin had to leave to go back to L.A. Ron was a great partner to work with, Pat and Mike are hilarious and a lot of fun to hang out with, and Ellen and Kelly are sweet and good company in their own right. It been nice to make new friends while here after having not known anyone before I came.

Now we are beginning to think about Turkey. Today is Tuesday and my Roman adventure already ends this Friday...its hard to believe 6 weeks have already gone by. Admittedly, I wish I could stay here longer, and I have mixed feelings about Turkey. On the one hand it will certainly be interesting to experience a new country, but I also feel like it will be so foreign I may feel a little lost there. I don't know any Turkish and far fewer people will actually speak English there than do here, the culture is compeltely different whereas Italian and American culture have many similarities, and the HEAT really scares me. Its been hot and humid here but I've heard its actually worse there. I'm sure I will enjoy it in many ways though, otherwise I wouldn't have chosen to do this. I'll stay in touch with you as much as possible from there too, although I have no idea what the internet connection situation looks like.

That's it for now...talk to you TOMORROW! Ciao!