Dolce Far Niente.

Ciao from Firenze,

My weekend was relaxing. I went to Assisi on Friday with some girlfriends, as I explained in my last post. Saturday I slept in, which was so needed. I went to the gym and had one of the best stress release workouts I've had in a while. I rode my bike around town a little bit. My bike makes me feel more like a local, haha.  When I got back I skyped with my family for a while as they got ready to go to my Nana's house for the events preceding that day. I had a nice long chat with my dad and updated him on my adventures. I even told him the story about the crazy guy asking to buy me a drink then informing me he didn't expect sex. That was pretty funny, I reassured him my friends were literally right there because I could hear the worry stirring in his brain...haha.

     After taking a shower I went on the rooftop terrace and hung out. I figured out I have full service internet connection up there so I immediately skyped my family one time before they left for Nana's. I had to show them the view I get to enjoy everyday. They loved it. I stayed up there and took a few pictures. Hence the picture of me touching the Duomo, haha!
    I made an incense holder out of a glass cup with soil in it and burnt some incense while hanging out up there. It's probably my favorite spot in Florence. It's private, safe, and gives you a birds eye view of the whole city. Plus, the sun is right there so I plan to sunbath very soon too! When my roomie, Holly, got back from the library we got ready and headed to meet others for dinner. We didn't find a restaurant until an hour later. My mood was very short tempered the whole day yesterday but I just am masked in mourning right now. Things that wouldn't usually bother me, or would usually be funny to me just aren't. Although, I insist I enjoy everyday here and really take it in because time is going to fly. The restaurant we found was amazing, so it was well worth the wait. The restaurant was all home cooking. I had roasted chicken and rabbit accompanied by roasted potatoes. It was one of the best meals I've had here. The season of the meats were to die for. After dinner I took a taxi home so I could be apart of Poppa's funeral services. While I waited to call my mom for the services, I watched the Life Aquatic. Which I actually need to finish tonight because I got probably 3/4 of the way through. It's pretty unique but hilarious, my roommate gave it to me ( She's awesome).

     At 1 am my time, (7pm their time) I was put (by phone) near the podium of Uncle Bill (Poppa's brother) and was able to hear the whole service. Uncle Bill is a priest which made the whole thing very personal and so much better. Uncle Bill was able to tell us actual stories from when they were young and growing up. He mentioned me and how his voice was being heard all the way in Italy. This made me cry, wishing I could be there but SO happy technology allowed this. I couldn't see Poppa but I was told that Nana baked him an apple pie to put in his casket. I think that is so perfect. I was also told he was wearing one of his favorite red suit jackets. I imagined him looking very dapper all dressed up.
    The services were an hour long, my sister and my cousin Nick spoke...it was really beautiful. During it I could hear laughter as everyone remembered good memories they've had with Poppa. I could hear Aunt Katie, my dad, Gobbie, and a little bit of Nana. It made me feel more connected, but also made me wish I could see them, hug them.

    Uncle Bill read a poem called The Dash, it was perfect. It spoke about the year you were born and then there is the year you pass on. The most important thing though is the dash, the dash in between those years. That's what really matters. It questioned, What will you do with that dash? I plan the answer that and make what some people may call a bucket list. Spontaneity is my main way of living with trying new things and putting myself out there in challenging situations but I would like to compile things that I really want to make sure I do before it's my time to pass on. Even though I may have a while before that happens, life is fragile and you have to enjoy everyday. A lot of people, including myself forget that sometimes. I don't care if that sounds cheesy, it's really true.
    Before the service started, I was afraid I might fall asleep because it was so late here but I stayed awake for the whole thing. After it was over I wanted more than anything to be with the family...I guess I was still there in spirit. I always will be there in spirit.

I slept in again today (lovin' it). After I woke up I went to the rooftop again. It gave me time alone to think, do homework, burn incense, and enjoy the beauties of Florence. I left the house around 2pm and headed to Piazza Signoria, where I went to look at sculptures. My art history class homework was to look at one specific statue and they asked a bunch of questions on it. They even made us draw it which was a disaster but I did my best, lol. I rode my bike around after and enjoyed the weather. I found a cute little restaurant for lunch and had a spinach/cheese fritta (Omelet) with some rosso vino ;-) It was soooo good to have eggs, and these eggs were 'bitchin' as my friend Chloe would say. I had some chocolate gelato afterwards from a chocolate shop...I will only get chocolate gelato from there now. Grom is my main gelato place but I usually get raspberry and hazelnut there. So it's all a balance, ahah.
On my way home I had this one guy drive past me on a moped, check me out as he drove past, and then adjust his mirror to look behind him, ahhaha. I couldn't help but literally laugh out loud!

I took the best nap when I got back. Holly went to dinner with her grandma who is visiting so I had dinner with Laura & Baldo & Laura's sister by myself. It was great as usual, haven't had a bad meal yet here. Rice for the first course, Thin slices of beef with fresh cheese and basil along with cooked cabbage for second course, and this traditional Florentine dessert which was like a sponge cake on the outside with soft mousse ice cream inside and soaked in rum, sooooo yummy. They spoke more Italian tonight and I am figuring out words. I'm able to figure out their questions and answer them. I can't go into much detail in my answers but I can speak some basic things. Kind of exciting!

Another week of classes begin tomorrow and Thursday I leave for the Almafi Coast with two of my girlfriends! I CAN'T WAIT!

Also, a brief service announcement...lol

Alexandra Leigh Waterbury 
c/o Syracuse University in Florence 
Piazza Savonarola, 15 
50132 Firenze 
Italia

Send me a letter! :-)




<3 Alex

P.S. I miss Indie so so so much...<3

September 23, 2010.

Yesterday (September 23, 2010) my grandfather passed away. He was 90 years old and lived a great, long life. I'm just so sad I couldn't be there when everything was happening. I love him so much, as well as my whole family. I love and miss them all so much. It was really rough when I found out because I'm so far from reach. I know for sure Poppa is in a better place now and looking down on us. I want to be there for my Nana. Sunday would have been their 51st wedding anniversary...

I admire the long life he had and the wonderful long marriage Nana & Poppa had as well. I really hope I can say the same for myself in my lifetime. I am so happy I was able to talk to them last week over Google Talk...it was free so I had a really nice, long conversation with them. He kept telling me that they loved me.  Oh god, I miss him so much already...

Today, I went on a field study trip to Assisi, Italy. My mom kept telling me Poppa would want me to go. I thought about him a lot while we were there but it helped to keep me busy too. We were guided through the main church. I lit a candle for Poppa and also, Mr. Crisafulli. I prayed for them, to keep them safe and for my/their family to get us through this unbearable time.

My roommate and I hiked up to the Fortress in the town, which was great because it helped to relieve some stress. The view was breathtaking and well worth the hike.

There is no great segway into this but I keep having thoughts on death. I've never had someone so close to me die before. I cried a lot but I still feel as though I'm in shock, with both deaths. I've had classmates, my other grandfather and my great-grandfather pass away but the family members didn't live very close. The classmates I knew but either hadn't talked to in a few years or it was when were very young. When I was younger I used to go over to Nana & Poppa's house every Friday night. We would watch TGIF on ABC and usually make snacks. Nana & Poppa's house was/ will always be a safe haven...a comfortable place to be. I can't even imagine coming back to the states and dealing with going to their house. I will do it because I love them and I love Nana but it will be so hard. Pasta dinners at Nana's house will always be amazing but it really won't be the same without Poppa sitting right next to me...A piece of the puzzle will be forever missing. :-(

The services are tomorrow and I am depressed I can't be there. I'm not a train ride away, I'm not even in the same time zone. I'm 6 hours ahead of when the services will be.
I feel so lucky to have this opportunity to be living in Italy and really enjoy it but I can't help but feel sadness and remorse. Family is family and grandparents are grandparents. They are so important, they link you to who you are and where you came from. My heart will be there tomorrow and I know they know that.

I love you Poppa, you are forever in my heart. <3

Peanut Butter is only in the 'Ethnic Food' Store.

I like how I get a lot done in a day here. It seems like I won't be able to fit it all in but it all works out.

Tuesdays and Thursday are my early days. Art history at 9am. With the espresso I've been consuming at home every morning, I've been able to get through it and actually, it's pretty interesting. Old school slides aren't usually my thing, but the art is interesting. I think it's even more interesting to me because I'm in the core of the art we're studying. Most of the things are either a walk away, or a plane ride away to visiting them which makes it all that more realistic.

Following art history, I have Italian class. I mean, Italian is everyday but it's pretty damn challenging. I keep wanting to say stuff in French. I have to say it definitely helps that I've studied French in the past...I have something to relate Italian to. Specifically the italian class is hard because of the way my professor teaches it. We're basically thrown in to everything...so I ask a lot of questions. In a sense, I guess it's helping me learn. I wish we would review what we learned more though. After Italian was Classical Mythology. A lot of incest occurred in the mythological era, that's what we learned today, haha.

Holly (my roommate) and I biked around town after. We grocery shopped a little bit, found peanut butter in an ethnic food store which was hilarious...we bought some. I got my bangs cut...the hairstylist didn't understand or speak English. I was so nervous he was gonna screw me up. Luckily, the girl at the desk translated for me. What an adventure.

We got home around 5 and I checked my email. The guy that owns the marketing firm I want to intern for emailed me back and could meet at 5:30pm. I called a taxi, changed quick, and ran out the door. I actually got there early and we sat at an outdoor cafe. We had a great meeting, I think I can learn a lot from the projects he told me about. I walked home and figured out it's real close to where I live. Everything seemed to work out kind of perfectly. I am really excited, I'm starting to get settled in here.

I just found out, while I was writing this, that there is a club here in Florence called "Be Bop". A Beatles cover band is playing tonight!!! HELL YES!

8pm dinner soon, peace out lovies<3

No title, just words.

So, no Ravenna this past weekend. A bunch of us girlies went out on Friday to an Appretivo. Definition of Appretivo: A restaurant/bar where you pay anywhere between 6-10 euro for a drink. With that you get as much appetizer type food as you want.

This was pretty good but I like real food. So I much rather would have paid a little bit more for an entree.
We met a couple of guys that spoke English, they were from South Africa. Justin, was flamboyantly gay and Alexander was straight but hilarious. Their personalities fit perfectly together which made our evening even better! I headed out early because I thought I was going to Ravenna. My roomie got a little too drunk. I had to take care of her when she got back...

So Saturday I ended up meeting Julia & Rachel to go to the Ponte Vecchio...a bridge with buildings on it. All the buildings have expensive jewelry stores in them, so beautiful to look at. We ate lunch at a little restaurant and I had my first pizza in Italy. It was hella good.

Sunday, a bunch of us went and visited the Uffizi Museum  in Florence.  It was really great to see a lot of really old works of art...it was just a little overwhelming. We didn't even get through half it before we were ready to leave. The good thing is that being a student, we receive a museum pass to get in free. SO, I will finish it before I leave.  We went out for lunch and I had the best pasta I've had here yet. It had eggplant, zucchni, cheese, and mint mixed in it. Oh my gosh....SO good. Later on, I broke off and explored a bit on my bike.

The weekend was quiet but good. Gave me a chance to get around Florence a little bit more. The next few weekends I plan to travel! I was a little homesick this weekend but was able to deal with it.  It's all different here too because the people I love the most and have known for longer are in the states. So if I have a dream about past shit or whatever, I'm on my own. I'm meeting a lot of amazing people and growing a lot as an individual but it's not as easy to shoot a text in times of bad dreams or homesickness. All in all though, the homesickness hasn't been frequent. I keep myself busy and explore my surroundings. Although, this all seems natural and it seems to be the point of me being here. I've found a good gym which helps to relieve any stress that overcomes me.

We had classes again today. I rode my bike and it got very frustrating. Well...not as much as the weekend (tourists are idiots, ha) but it was still frustrating today. I think of my little bell as the "Get the hell out my way" bell because people are always in the friggen' way. Some places around the city have bike lanes and people walk in them. I want to run them over.
Although, Haha...that is probably how the cars feel about me while I'm on the bike.

Also, one complaint. Seeded grapes. I love grapes...hate the seeds. I may be growing a grape vine out of my insides by the time I return to the states from all of the seeds I've ingested.

You were forewarned...


Love&Peace,

Alex

My new furry slippers & My delicious sandwich!

The rest of the post...

Hollaa,

To start off. The mosquitos in Florence are vicious. I'm getting eaten alive even in my room. My host mother gave us this little zapper but they seem to like me more.

So...Tuesday we went out and went to a place called the Red Garder. The dancing was fun but it was very americanized. Which is whatever but I'm not looking for that experience. Afterwards, we went to a dance club called Twice. The dancing was definitely better there, haha. My friends and I danced for awhile. One of the guys we were with got a drink so we were all near the bar. We were getting ready to leave but I sat down on the barstool for a few minutes while we rounded up the troops. All of the sudden I hear someone say in an English accent "Is someone sitting there?" (pointing to where I was sitting) I look up and its this large man that was old enough to be my father. I said "I am." He starts to chat me up, I was friendly because my friends were right there. Didn't sense it being very harmful. He then asks me if he could buy me a drink. I decline because we were gonna leave soon and it was semi creepy. The next thing I know he says, "Just so you know, I'm not expecting sex." I laughed! hahahaha, I couldn't help myself. I was thinking "What the eph?!, hahaha!" I just laughed and said "Well that's good!" He goes on to tell me I'm not ugly, he thinks I'm beautiful...he just isn't expecting anything. After that I excused myself and high tailed it out of there with my friends. It made it even more hilarious because he had an english accent.

Yesterday, (Wednesday) I had classes till 2:45pm then I signed up for the gym I found. I had one of the best workouts I've had in awhile. I was sweating like crazy. It so comforting to exercise, something somewhat normal in this Italian speaking country. I'm not complaining by any means about the language. I am having so much fun learning Italian and actually using it when I'm riding around town, but it's just a huge change. Finding a little comfort in a workout felt nice.

Today, I had class from 9am-6pm with minimal breaks. It wasn't too bad, but I was so tired. My first class is an art history class. I've never taken one before, so it's introductory. Each Thursday we meet at a site out in Florence and visit famous works of art or buildings. It was so beautiful. When you're all together in a group and you're looking at these huge statues. I was overwhelmed (in a good way) with all of the beauty that encircled me. I couldn't stop thinking of how much labor went into the intricate detail of these works of art in such a non technological day in age. Michelangelo's David was made out of a huge block of marble which was first carved out of mountains nearby Florence. To transport this today they have machines but in the days when this was made it seems impossible that they were able to transport this! We learned today that they used logs to carry it along the river but when the river was low they would have to drag it on land. It had to have taken forever!

After the art class, I had Italian and then Classical Mythology. My last class was my business class which I am SO excited for. The length of it I'm not so stoked for (3 hours) but my professor is amazing. He is a very forward Italian man. He has high expectations and is extremely knowledgable in the world of business. He actually is a businessman himself so his class is more about real life application, rather than the theory. I already respect him greatly and this was my first class with him today. He said something interesting that I wrote down, "If something is a waste, change it." He was telling us how Italian business is much different than American business. There aren't many ethics here and being 'professional' is not really taken seriously in the sense that American business is taken. For example, Execs. working at Prada have thrown things when something has went wrong in the past. With that, Italians in general think about themselves much more when driving. Defensive driving is minimal, haha. He told us a story of his wife walking with his 2 year old son. The son walked a little bit out into the road, and a car almost hit the little boy but squealed his breaks to stop. Professors wife grabbed the child very quickly to get him. When the car halted, the man driving the car looked at the mother and said "Fuck off Bitch!"
I was in shock and laughing at the same time. He was generalizing mostly because I've met some very nice Italians but it was so fun to hear what my Professor had to say.
I'm rambling but he is very motivating.

None of us have Friday classes so tomorrow I'm going to get to sleep in! After the gym, I plan to explore more of Florence, it really helps having a bike.
My roommate, some friends and I are going to a rave tomorrow night  right by our house. I've never been to one, this shit is gonna be sick!
Saturday, I'm going on a day trip to Ravenna, Italy! Real excited to travel...

Bye for now!
<3 Alex

I better learn Italian...fast

Hello, Hello.
I am sitting in the computer lab after rushing to the Villa Rossa (S.U. campus) on my new ride thinking I had class at 9:55am. My new ride is a bicycle, its pretty sweet...even has a bell & a basket. After arriving here (after getting lost down one ways and side streets) I see my Italian teacher. She reminds me our class doesn't begin until 10:55am. MAMA MIA!

Anyways, my weekend was amazing. The school calls it "Full Imersion Weekend". Your host family is supposed to spend time with you and acclimate you to Florence. My roommate's grandma was in town and insisted on taking her to Rome that weekend. So it was just Laura (host mom) and I. Baldo (host dad) went to visit family somewhere else. Laura and I had a great time though.
She took me to their beach house which is on the Medditeranean sea. They have a private beach, which I posted pictures of on Facebook. We went down Saturday morning, only took an hour to get there. After arriving we jumped into our bikinis and headed for the beach! It's a flat rock area which was great to get a tan. Right away, we went for a swim in the open sea. It was amazing, the water is so blue. We found sea urchins, fish and little crabs. She headed back to the house a little earlier than I. Around 7pm I went back to the house, where Laura was cleaning and getting ready for dinner. In Italy the people generally eat around 8pm for dinner and that's the way it's been at my home stay. Dinner. 8pm. Sharp. (usually)

Dinner was amazing, per usual. I really was able to get to know Laura and it was easy to talk to her. When I found out my roommate was leaving for the weekend, I was a little nervous to be alone with my host mom but it turned out to be really great.
After dinner, Laura had things to do to close up the house for the Winter. I went for a walk around the small little town. Most of the shops were closed (they usually close all around 7:30pm here...which sucks) but it was nice to get out. A lot of people were around still getting dinner and just relaxing. After about an hour of  walking around I found an outdoor cafe/restaurant in a small garden. I grabbed a glass of wine and relaxed there (& people watched, which was fun in itself.) You may find this corny, but it was very peaceful. What's better than being in Italy and relaxing with a glass of wine.

The next day while Laura finished up closing the house, I headed to the beach again. The Italian sun was good to me and I got a nice tan. I decided to go swimming by myself while I waited for Laura to come down. I went out, (not touching the bottom because she told me you never know if you might step on a sea urchin) and when I finally reached the deeper part, I find a pink jelly fish. Well, I freaked out and swam back to the flat rock, haha!

A little while later, I got the courage up to use the snorkeling goggles she let me use. (this is my favorite part)
I swam around the shallow area for a little bit and saw many fishies hiding around the rocks/coral. As I swam farther out I noticed another jelly fish. I wasn't scared, I just swam around it. THEN, I found 4 more spread apart. I was able to swim around them and somehow (THANK GOD) not get stung. It was the most amazing thing to see pink jellyfish swimming around me while also regular fishies swam underneath me. All of this combined with the beautiful blue water was amazing.

A little while later Laura came down and was surprised to hear I saw jelly fish. She said they don't usually come around that beach. We were in the water ready to go for a swim when someone screamed. A girl had been stung right in front of us. The girl ended up being fine, just really red on the arm but that was enough for Laura and I. We swam in the area around the flat rock.
As the day went on, the jelly fish swam into shore near us. We ended up catching 6 of them and put them in the sun to melt. I kind of felt bad about this but I didn't want to get stung, haha!
I also caught a sea urchin so I could touch it. The spikes aren't sharp unless there is force applied, so it was pretty sweet to experience that. I put him back afterwards though.

Around 4pm Sunday we headed back. It was good to be home but I would've lived at the beach too...(a little far from school though)

Monday, classes started. Since then it's been pretty stressful. My classes seem very interesting. It is just stressful trying to acclimate to the new culture. A LOT of things are done differently here. Classes are classes, but learning Italian is one big stress in itself. I really want to learn as much Italian as I can. It's been really frustrating when I can't pronounce words or I try to use what I've learned in a store and forget what exactly to say. I am very happy I am immersed in this culture because I think learning Italian will be a smidge easier. I will be practicing basically all day and night.

Figuring out a bus route to get to school, being surrounded by a new language, trying to find a 'good' gym, keeping organized with classes, learning that new language, finding a place to get a cheap used bike---> these are some of the things that are stressful. Luckily, within the last couple days I've figured some of this out though. I found a bus route, I found a good gym, I found a bike. Buying a bike may have been one of the most stressful lanuage barrier situations I've experienced yet. They spoke basically no english and another customer ended up helping translate. Craziness I tell you, Craziness.

I have to get my bum to Italian now. I will write more later today. We went out last night and there were some bizarre experiences all in one night. Funny but bizarre!

I get to sleep in tomorrow!

Buona sera tutti!
(Good Evening Everyone!)

It has been a busy last few days. Let's start back to Wednesday. Wednesday was the start of orientation which was the day after we had arrived. I felt like a freshman again and by the end of the day I was sick of it. Sure, there was some good information and things to take care of but I was hanging on by a thread trying to stay awake! Some how I was able to get through the day though. I also purchased a tiny, basic phone...I'll have to show you that one. Its so cute but texting sucks, haha. Wednesday night we managed to stay awake enough to go out in Italy. Some friends found a bar with real good deals (euros, of course). Very laid back and chill. We stayed there for a bit, we 'should' have went back to the hotel but instead we went to get our dance on or 'party down' as the American Consulate told us today, haha, at a club called '21'. It was so sweet, packed full of people but the dancing was great.

Thursday, (yesterday), we finally met our host families. The anticipation was killing me. I wanted to stop living in a hotel and actually get settled into my home. My host mother picked myself and my roommate up, she was driving a Mercedes Mini van. My roommate, Holly, is great. We seem to get a long really well and have a lot in common. We share a bedroom and off our bedroom is a beautiful terrace over looking all the beautiful buildings nearby. It gets better though. You climb a ladder which takes you to the rooftop terrace. From the rooftop you can see the whole city. It is absolutely breathtaking and has successfully exceeded my expectations. Dinner was served at 8pm, so Holly and I unpacked in between, also took a nap (thank god). Dinner was fantastic...fresh pasta with red sauce, salad, fresh green beans, chicken with spices, a splash of wine, and fresh bread. Dessert was a bit of italian ice cream and italian cookies, with a shot of espresso to wash it down.

My host parents are adorable. They are most likely in their 60's, have four kids which three of them live in NYC. Baldo, the husband, is the sweetest italian man with a great sense of humor. He wears a bib at dinner, baby yellow in color. Laura, the wife, is one of the sweetest people I've ever met. She also has a great sense of humor and you can really tell that Baldo & Laura truly love each other. They've been married 40 years. They are both very caring and easy to talk to.

Today, we had to get up early...which sucked. Holly & I walked to the train station and hopped a bus to get to school. If we walked, it is probably about a 20 min. walk but we decided to take the bus for now. Once we got there she registered for classes while I sat in the garden and waited for my specific time. I got all the classes I wanted so I was happy about that.

After a few meetings I went exploring with a few friends but found out stores are closed from 1pm-3pm. This is when they take their 'siestas'. So we hung around until then. Later on, my friend Julia & I went to actually explore. We bought some spectacular gelato and got our nails/toes done. Everything got done around 7pm, we split and I wandered around the streets (using my map of course) and explored the streets while heading home. Laura made me dinner. It was just her and I because my roommate's, Holly, grandmother came to take her to Rome for the weekend. Baldo went to visit family. Dinner was better than last night! (Which I didn't think was possible) We had bowtie pasta with Laura's homemade pesto sauce, thin beef slices with cheese and fresh basil leaves, and spinach. I'll probably say this about every meal I have here with them, but it was seriously amazing. Laura and I talked for about an hour and a half. I also found out that tomorrow she is taking me to their beach house on the Mediterranean. I am SO excited to lay on the beach and swim there in the beautiful blue water.
It felt so good to start getting to know her...I feel more settled this way.

The men are so forward/aggressive here. Not in a mean way or even bad way...as I have experienced so far anyways, but they are very aware of the women here. They are not afraid to look you up and down, and really let you know they are interested. I mean, some of them are obviously creepers, I'm not being naive, but even the good ones that don't creep seem more in tuned to women.

We have been warned though,"Ciao Bella"(Hello Beautiful) is a classic creepy line unless you're saying it to someone you know well. Another one housing staff told us--"Oh, you dropped something" the girl will say "oh, did I?" and the guy says "my heart" (I think that's hilarious) They tell us--"You're not going to find the love of your life on the street" Which I agree, haha.

Some of the girls I've become friends with and I were saying that the guys in the U.S. need to learn a little more charm because you almost have to hit an American guy over the head to let them know you like them. It's real funny.

All in all, I'm really enjoying it here. I've been meeting some great people and am trying to make friends with people in the community as well. Also, I will be doing an internship here so I will really get to be involved into the business district of some sort. On the side, I plan to volunteer in the elementary schools here and help teach younger children English!

I do miss home though, of course. I'd really like to skype with you all. So let's make a date and get on it!

Love you and miss you all!
<3Alex

Here I am.

Well...Here I am. Florence, Italy.
The past few days have been crazy...between packing, rushing to the airport, saying 'see ya later' (never goodbye ;) ) to everyone and then traveling through different airports & timezones.

Had a four hour layover at JFK but that wasn't terrible because it allowed me to make friends. We left on a huge plan at night and I slept for most of it. My seat mate and I went through my Dirty Italian book (Thanks Ash & Liz) to 'learn some Italian'. Even with some sleep though I still feel jet lagged and am really sick of carrying luggage around. All in all it really wasn't a bad trip at all.

I am currently laying on my bed in the hotel. We'll be staying in the hotel for two nights. Thursday morning  we are introduced to our host family. I'm really looking forward to getting settled in so I don't feel so jumbled. After we arrived at the hotel we took a walking tour. A grad student walked us around and pointed out bars, restaurants, pharmacies, where to get a cell phone, etc. We also got gelato (AMAZING).

OH & also, I'm paying for the internet right now...almost forgot. I remembered because my hour runs out soon...4 euros for an hour at this hotel. Not too bad when you have no other form of communication to family & friends.  I will have full term internet access by the weekend so hit me up!

Have to go for now, internet hour is running out...

<3Alex

The night before life goes on.

As I sit here making another list of last minute things to do or bring to Italy, I have run across "Make a blog". I figure this is quick enough, and may calm my 'night before' jitters. (This blog thing did not end up being quick, by the way)

I've had this decision made to study abroad for about 8 months now and I can't believe travel day is already here. TOMORROW. This summer was really great, I love my Ichiban5<3.

 It seems funny to see Facebook statuses last week saying 'The start of senior year' while I was at home still enjoying one more week of summer.

None the less, I can not wait for tomorrow to be over with and to get settled in at my host family's home (whom I know nothing about, yet). It will definitely ease my nerves and then the acclimating will commence. Let's not forget I don't know a lick of Italian, BUT Ash & Liz gave me a book called "Dirty Italian", so I'm pretty much set. ;-)

During these 3 months, I plan to write about my adventures and post pictures for the visual learner/enjoyer. ;-)

Read, Comment, and enjoy reading about my time there, but most importantly keep in touch! (Skype preferably)--->Ask for my Skype name. I wanna see some facesss!

I love you all and will miss you all so much! I can't wait for it all to begin!

<3 Alex