May | 19
Volcanic eruptions had made the weather here in Perugia spotty but the Umbrian sun smiled on the new crowd of Umbra Institute students, whohad their Orientation yesterday in the main room of Perugia's beautiful fourteenth century town hall. Most of... Read MoreMay | 12
The Umbra Institute is putting all the chairs in order in the classrooms, preparing for Orientation and the first week of Survival Italian for the new students. The planes landing at Rome's Fiumicino Airport on the 16th of May will... Read MoreMay | 05
For a few days after the official departure date there were still some Umbra students around Perugia: you'd see them having their last panino con pollo at Ciao Ciao's, or on the Steps, soaking up some Umbrian thermonuclear radiation (sun).... Read MoreApr | 28
Every American study abroad program has computers, digital projectors, and a server, but the Umbra Institute, lead by IT expert Mauro Renna, has leapt into the 23rd century. After having read an article on new forms of electromagnetic reception (actually... Read MoreApr | 21
Last night's vernisage was a welcome break from the hectic, end-of-semester sprint to study for exams and put the finishing touches on papers. Most of the student body attended the art opening, held in the Via Bartolo building. On display... Read MoreApr | 20
"Writing is hard work," quipped Hemingway famously. Yesterday was a chance, though, for the students of Professor Cynthia Clough's "Italy of the Imagination" creative non-fiction course to relax, and to listen. The twice-yearly Umbra Institute literary anthology reading was last... Read More