Walking the Streets and Italian Classes Begin...

So, I have been in Italy for all of 5 days but I am already chatting with people on the street thanks to some well-timed introductions.  This little town is feeling more and more comfortable with each passing day.  When I walk home from the bus stop in the downtown area I pass by the restaurant where I had that amazing ossobuco.  If I make the first bus from Siena to Colle the cooks there are sitting out front talking about the lunch service and smoking (shocking, I know).  Today I got a head nod and a ciao from one of the cooks on my way back up the hill.
Speaking of the bus, I walk down to the bus station in downtown every morning before the cafes are even open, so no espresso for this guy until Siena (yeah, it's a tough life I live, I know).  My walk takes me through Old Town down to an elevator that brings me to the inside of the hill and through a tunnel which spits me out in downtown.  I'm sure you can imagine my surprise when I first saw the elevator at the edge of Old Town and needed to see where it would lead me.  After a short walk to the main piazza I wait for the bus with a large group of students headed for university.  The bus ride is about 30 mins so I get to read the Globe on my Nook and keep up with the news back home.  When I arrive in Siena, it's about a 10 minute walk and my landmarks are all statues (right at the bald priest, past the first she-wolf, left at the second she-wolf, right at the turtle fountain and straight up the hill).
The classes are going well I just wish that I could forget everything I know about Spanish as it is screwing up my pronunciation and conjugation of Italian words.  There are students from all over the world and classes are conducted entirely in Italian so the first day was a bit of a culture shock.  I am not nearly as good as some of the students in my class but then again I am not nearly as bad as a few either.  I definitely feel like I am making progress but it does make me feel a little slow when I get hung up searching for a word.  Alas, the only way I will get better is practice so I should stop blogging and maybe get some homework done.
Ciao ciao!