Making Friends

Things seem to be improving day by day. Sometimes I dont feel that way, but I think that most of the time, I do. My roommates and I click and are lucky about where we live and the fact that there are three of us, rather than eight like this one girl Ive met! We met another girl named Alexa who is hilarious and so sweet. My roommates are both only 18 but she is 20, like me, and from Texas! She was actually born in Mexico and is fluent in Spanish (always speaking it with her parents) but went to San Antonio to school before coming here and shes also only here for a year. It is so great to meet someone else who has had queso and who will miss Mexican food!!! No one else Ive met knows what a burrito or enchilada is, and they have no clue what queso tastes like! Gasp. We met another girl named Ottavia whose family is from Italy and speaks Italian, also.
Last night, Alexa came over and the four of us stayed up until 2:30 talking and laughing and just getting to know each other. Before we knew it we were rushing to get to sleep so that we could be ready for orientation today. We talked about everything from Bulgarian/Balkan politics to guys to Italy and how it feels to be here. I feel lucky that we have the common experience of never having done something like move to Rome basically alone. I think that we have the makings of a small community and on Monday we will all meet more people with classes starting, too. The situation is certainly looking up from what it was this summer and even a day or two ago when I first saw my apartment. Im still not entirely settled and I still miss home but I can feel myself on my way to a different place where Im more at peace. There is nothing that will make me stop missing home, but I am working on being present here now that the situation is much more conducive to happiness for me. I have thought a lot about coming home in December, not because I dont feel like I can do it here, but because I may feel that after 7 months Ive had the experiences I hoped to have and that I need to get on with acquiring credits and getting on to my Masters degree. Im not sure what I will want, but whatever I choose I know it will be whats best for me and I know that either way, Ill have the support of my family and friends. So, let the chips fall.

The Whole Schmageggi

What a whirlwind past two days these have been! Dad and I arrived in Rome on the 26th but still everything was moving relatively slow because we had only to see the city. No matter what youre doing or what your schedule looks like, Rome is always crazy and its always overwhelming. So, when I moved my bags into my new apartment on the 28th, things really got started on a whole new level. Not only juggling Roman life and moving in, meeting roommates, attending orientation, but also thinking about classes and trying to create a community here for myself. On the 28th, none of my roommates moved in, the Italian renter was still moving out, and the place seemed a little bit disappointing. It was an exhausting day where we were shuffled from one room to another to fill out forms and get things taken care of and it ended with me feeling discouraged about my time here. Then, yesterday the other two of my roommates came! One of them, Irene, is from California but is Italian born (as are her parents) and is fluent in both Italian language and culture. Her mom is a chef in California and her dad lives in Milano. The other of them is Christina, who is from Bulgaria! She and Irene are pretty different people but I think there are threads that tie us all together and that we will have a good time this year - we already stick together and lean on each other a lot and I hope we continue in that way.
Today I take my Italian placement exam at 3:00 and that will determine whether or not the classes Ive been taking are of the caliber that JCU offers in Rome. Clearly, Italian taught in Italy will move faster and speaking will be of more importance but I dont know where I line up yet and will find out fairly soon. I have exempted from my math and english exams so those are just one less thing to worry about! On Friday I register for classes and get books, etc. and on Monday I actually begin them! Im excited because the class sizes here are between 8 and 20 people but normally closer to the lower end, so I should meet lots of people in those and really have lots of attention from professors.
Things are looking up but this morning my dad left for home again and that was sad for me. I feel like we had a great time together and he has helped me out so much! I know that it would be possible for me to have come here without him but so much harder and more overwhelming - I think Id have been in tears for the first few days, at least. I waited all summer for him to arrive and it seems like he was only here for a second before leaving, but at least I get to see him in a few months when I go home. Mom will get here in one month and I hope that by then I know things better.
OH! Last night, in the Piazza of Santa Maria in Trastevere (a church) there were these two people who did a dance with two fire balls each and it was awesome! Dad and I call that piazza, which is the main one, The Circus because there is always something or someone completely bizarre there! One time, we saw two really old hippies there and often there are performers and tourists and so on. I guess it sort of represents Rome and the university - extremely diverse and sometimes very random or hard to figure out.

Apartment

Today dad and I woke up, ate breakfast, and called a taxi to take us to the university where orientation was beginning. Its a marathon event - all the way from the 28th through the 4th - and we were there with a small pack of other people filling out forms, getting IDs, getting permesso di siggornos, etc. I managed to have all of my documents with me and do everything pretty quickly, so there were no problems. Then, we got our housing contract and keys and went over to the new apartment! Ive waited months for this moment and was hoping that some roommates were already there or coming shortly. We came to the door and there was an Italian woman there with her daughter who own the place and are renting it to the university, which is renting it to me. She showed us some things, including many things that dont work and so forth. Living there is like living a few decades back in the US. The stove requires a lighter and only has two working burners, the dishwasher doesnt work at all, theres a bath tub but no shower, and the oven requires a lighter, also. Its very different and it feels like a small Italian apartmnent. Also, despite the small size, its bigger than I thought. Needless to say, no roommates ever showed today, so the other two should arrive tomorrow. I dont have any information on them yet but I am eager to meet them and have some friends. At each step in the journey from Lucca to classes, I think that the next one will make it easier, but at each step, I have felt basically the same way. Im learning new things but Im struggling and I hope that really, I do feel more excited and more connected here soon. Tomorrow is a new day!

Dads Arrival

Yesterday, my dad arrived in Lucca and I was so happy to see him that it was all I could do to fight back tears of joy when he got off of his bus and I got to hug him. It is so wonderful to have a familiar face and a friend to talk with - a companion to show all of the things I have been doing and to have conversations with. I look at him and I can see him sitting in our living room and it makes me think of home so much! He reminds me of home and what I love about it, and it both makes me feel relieved to have some connection to it this week and also makes me miss it even more than I did before.
Today, we went around the town on rented bicycles and saw all of the main piazze and churches. I think that he likes Lucca the best because its so well manicured and beautiful, with friendly people. It is near everything and yet remains relatively quaint and simple. I also think that when I look back on life here, I will have a certain sentimentality about it.
I wont be able to write much for the next week because we will be in transit - or, I cant count on internet access, at least. Tomorrow we head to San Gimignano and then to Siena. After that, to Assisi and then, finally, Roma! Im really ready to be in one set place after having moved around more than seven times, when all is said and done, this summer. This will be my first time to lug luggage around Italy without a group with me, so wish me luck! We are going to do our best not to be robbed blind or broken down with muscle aching...my suitcases are big.

Excitement Building

As of today, I have less than one week until my dad comes to pick me up in Lucca, at which point we will travel for a couple of days and arrive in Roma! I am so thrilled, not only to see him and enjoy his company, but because Ive made it so far and I never thought I would. So many times over the past three weeks (since I stayed at the Italian family's home) and the two weeks before that (with Mark and Zeek), I have felt like I didnt know how I would make it through the next day, much less the weeks ahead. For someone as reliant upon social interaction as myself, its been a hard road to travel, mostly alone, and quite an accomplishment, as I look back on it now.
While I had moved away from home for college, I still lived nearby and with my very best friend, so I had never lived completely by myself until this summer. Its strange to be in a place where, when you need something like lined paper or a washer for your bike, you have no idea how to find it. Things that seem so easy (and will be, over time), and that are simple tasks at home, require a lot more thought - to talk to someone in Italian and find the words to say, but also to locate the correct type of store without a car and request the thing you need. Everything takes more thought, but I think that sometimes having to think about the very small moves we make in life does force us to feel them more. We become numb to the ease of our everyday tasks that we forget how crucial communication is and how enjoyable taking things a little slower can be. Living alone has opened my eyes to the difficulty that foreigners in the United States must have in living, where I never really thought about it much before. Its true that being an outsider is much more work!
Soon, I will be starting school and Im growing more and more excited everyday. I will have roommates again - new people to meet and befriend - and also new classes, professors, a new campus, and the eternal city of Roma! I know that Im about to embark on a grand adventure - one that I hope I will enjoy - and knowing that there is some kind of greatness ahead of me feels thrilling and scary all at the same time. Either way, here I go...

Grocery Excursion Part 2

Yesterday I acquired a bicycle from the next door neighbors who have been generous in every respect, and now in one that is very crucial to a positive grocery store experience. When I last went to the supermarket, I walked and found that the walk back was the longest Ive ever experienced in my life - I had back pain for at least four days. I vowed never to walk it again, and now this nice bike with a basket and everything is mine to use. I decided that I would only get enough this time to fill the basket and a bag on either handle bar, and so I proceeded. I arrived at the supermarket in record time and parked the bike in one of those bike racks. As I was leaving to get a basket, a little old Italian lady (also a cyclist) asked me in very fast Italian if I would help her with loading her huge 6 bottle water case onto the bike to take home (ALONG WITH all of her other groceries...she has obviously been doing this for a while). Of course, as is true when most Italians speak to me without at least a few minutes of warning for me to perk my ears up to the different language, I was completely lost and needed to follow her hand signals. I did finally succeed and, I think, its even possible that she doesnt know Im a foreigner. Im really getting better at Charades. So, I went inside and got all of the things I wanted that I wasnt prepared to buy at the corner market. Some things are harder to find, like good pudding (that has been properly refrigerated), a variety of cereals (I like special K with berries), popsicles and other frozen things, etc. I went through check out, always a stressful time in an Italian grocery store, and managed to get out alive with everything in my possession. In Italy, when you check out at a supermarket, there is no one to help you bag and the checkers are incredibly quick (there are scanners on all sides of their machine) so its very stressful because you have to manage to bag everything faster than she can scan it and pay but if you dont, everyone behind you waits while you finish red-faced and shaking from the shot nerves. Fortunately for me, Ive been through this with the Gherardi's and twice on my own so Ive become accustomed to the stares and it puts me in less of a panic than other tourists Ive seen. Anyhow, I got out and put my basket back and managed to find spots for everything on the bike. What I didnt realize before I left was that actually steering such a contraption so heavily loaded down would be quite difficult. If you can imagine, me...riding down the side of the road (at the part where theres a small shoulder for bikes) with a bag on each side and one in front, with two boxes of cereal under the latch in the back...I am sure there were many laughs had on my behalf. No matter, I strolled on only managing to almost ram into about 12 cars on my way back. However, half way there, I heard this really loud sound like a popped tire and started cursing the grocery store, my bicycle, the groceries, and heck, even Italy when I realized that one of my bags had sort of lodged itself in the spokes of one of the wheels. I managed to pull it free and watch for it the rest of the ride home, making it safe and sound. Even with all of the drama of the tight-rope-like balancing act, it was still 100 times better than carrying everything home in a backpack and by hand. I plan to make a well-organized plan of action for my next time out so that I can start on the road to professional-dom that the water-lady I met has already completed. I aspire to such greatness.

Things Ive Learned...

1. The corner market will sell me two tomatoes, a cucumber, two carrots and a huge bottle of water for under 3 Euro.
2. The Florence train station is incredibly confusing and one should not attempt to navigate it without much frustration or a map.
3. You dont actually have to pay to ride buses in Italy because the bus drivers get off and everyone loads then, so no one checks. Of course, you should still buy the tickets...
4. Florence is hotter than Rome.
5. It rains in Tuscany when it gets hot (it has rained - thunder and all - for four days straight).
6. Murder She Wrote and Matlock air in Italy (in Italian) as do Friends and Gilmore Girls almong some.
7. Many pizza joints are open until after 11 PM in Lucca.
8. Bicyclists in Italy have learned to be very quiet so that when they pass you, you nearly have a heart attack at their sudden appearance right THERE.
9. Italian boys and men wear these three-quarter length capri pants everywhere...things I have never even seen on a man in the states.
10. The only type of food sold in Italy is Italian food...no wonder they are so good at making it!
11. Italians do not care about street signs either in the car or out of it. Pedestrians do not wait for a signal to walk in the middle of the street but cars dont care about their lives - a dangerous combination! Also, mopeds cut in front of the lines and cars swerve across lanes to make their exits even in dense traffic. Shudder.
12. Italy needs to discover wireless internet.

The Beach!

Yesterday, I went to the beach for the first time by myself. I had attempted this once before but when I stepped off of the bus, it started storming and it didnt seem like a good idea to tackle the waves. So, I decided to try out a new beach yesterday, Viareggio, and I really loved it. The sky was amazing and the clouds were some of the fluffiest white I have ever seen. From the shore (as is true on most Italian beaches) you can turn around and look into the mountains, and that is also breathtaking. I took some pictures of surfers (yes, there are surfers - I was surprised to see them in Italy though) and of the jetty and the kids making sandcastles. Viareggio is actually a fairly substantial town, unlike most beach areas around here, and I found the boardwalk to be much more like a Texas boardwalk than anywhere else Ive been in Italy.
I walked up to get some food from the bar and there was a girl there trying to order in very broken Italian. When she had finished I asked her what state in America she was from and she said Florida. Perhaps that was presumptuous of me, but I had a pretty good inkling. It turns out she had an umbrella next to mine with a friend of hers who was also from Florida and studying at Florence for the summer. They got me really excited about the coming school year because of how much they had enjoyed having classes and roommates and traveling in Italy. I can see how, when youre surrounded by new people to meet and new information to learn, things move so much faster. They leave soon but it was nice to meet people my age who had encouraging words about the coming year and said that they would "definitely do it again." Wahoo! Rome here I come...3 weeks and counting...

Nightmare Parts 1 and 2

Okay, today I have two interesting stories to tell. The first: imagine that you are locked in a jail cell-like holding space between your house and the garden. The gate in front of you is closed in wrought iron with four bolts locking it. The door behind you just locked you and a 10 year old Italian boy inside because he didnt tell you that it did that. If you imagine yourself in that situation, you are where I was this morning. Oh, and add in the fact that once Andreà, the boy, realized our circumstances he began screaming "aiuto!" (help) and "oh Dio!" (oh God). Looking back I can see how hilarious it is and even then I knew that it would be funny to remember but he was crying and my phone was dead and we were as stuck as you get and I was actually scared about what we would do. So, naturally, I started to yell with him! What is a girl to do? So, here we are screaming with the huge blonde lab dog in the yard wimpering because she wants out and finally the neighbor comes. We gave him the key and got out and everything settled down until....
Story number two: I got on the phone with Gisella because Andrea had called her to ask her how to work the multi-bolt door. Unfortunately, he was still sobbing from the previous incident (the boy is afraid of his own shadow, so you can only imagine) and she was at work and was very annoyed at the situation. I got on the phone at her request and that is when the yelling commenced. I couldnt believe that someone I had only known for three days was screaming at me that I should know how to work the door (despite never having been shown and the fact that none of the keys would work). So, it upset me and I felt overwhelmed. We went on a walk but the whole time I was thinking of how I could possibly stay there for more than three weeks until school. I realized that my Italian was just not good enough to entertain a 10 year old boy and that I couldnt live for so long always fearing that my hostess would explode when I didnt know how to do something or was unfamiliar with the culture. I feel like I tried really hard to do things the right way and not to be a burden. I cleaned and cooked two meals a day for Andrea and I tried to help out, but I guess that I wasnt ready for the experience and I am sure that my hostess had too much going on to be able to help me in the ways that I would need to be helped. Living in a foreign country is hard but even harder when communication is bad. So, I told her that I would be leaving and now I am back at the Gherardi house with the Aussies and things are okay. I spoke with the right people and I left on good terms, so things are worked out. It was quite a morning but what I keep telling myself is that sometimes things just arent what you plan them to be...and thats okay. You just have to regroup and create a new course, so these three weeks I will be venturing out and trying to be creative to fill my days with new and exciting things. Wish me luck!