You've gotta love Italy.  So while I'm waiting till next Thursday to go into the city to the Department of Motor Vehicles to give them my documentation and sign up for my written exam, I decided to start checking out driving schools.  Why you ask?  Because even though I am studying for my license as a "private", I'm still required to do 6 hours of driving with an instructor who will also be the one to conduct my driving test.  All for a cost of course.  So, as I don't work on Thursdays and it was a lovely, brisk day I walked down the hill to Strada Genova which is the commercial district below us.  There are two driving school in about a 30 minute walking distance so I visited both.  This is what I found out.  When I pass my written exam I will be given a pink slip which I am to bring to my chosen driving school.  There I have to sign up, (180 euro), have 6 hours of private driving instruction, (160 euro), and then will be given the test, (35 euro).  When this is all said and done I'll be a pauper.  But the most interesting thing they told me was that in a few months the written exam will be given in English, again.  Up until a couple years ago the exam was given orally and was offered in all different languages.  To be more efficient, (cough, cough, oh! sorry), the exam was changed to be computerized and to be given only in Italian, German and French, (there are two semi-independent provinces of Italy where German and French are the first languages).  Now after a couple years they realized that all the immigrants who come here are failing the exams because they don't have the language.  As of April,(so he said), the exam will again be offered in every language from the European Union.  Soooooo.  If I don't pass the first time I'm waiting until the tests are out in English before trying again.  xxoo me