beautiful tuscania!

May 28, 2010

It was so cool today - I said "ciao" to someone and he wanted to talk to me! I found out he was from Argentina so I said "se habla espanol?" and he said yes! I talked to him for a while in Spanish and he showed me his guitar shop and stuff where he makes all sorts of string instruments (including one that he made a long time ago that's a little guitar made from an armadillo shell!) it was really cool! Talking to him made me want to visit Spain. Maybe I will! I loe this pace of life - being able to take a walk early morning and afternoon and then just sitting in the park and writing - yeah, that doesn't happen too much or even at all at home. Sitting here makes me miss family and friends back home though - I wanna share this with everyone!

May 29, 2010

I decided that this would be my "go off on my own adventure and explore Tuscania" day. So I did. Hehe. I just started walking down those cobblestone streets and found the cutest shop that I know a friend back home would LOVE! It's kinda like a little Tuscanian Anthropology. I loved speaking in Italian to the lady that works there - Amanda. And then I found out that she speaks English so we were able to get to know each other a bit which was great. She told me about the ceramics lab where the owner of the store makes all the wonderful tea sets and things in there with her dad and grandpa and also told me about a wedding that would be going on the next day. So, here I am off on my own and I find all this stuff! I went off the beaten path to find this ceramics lab and I totally thought I was going the wrong way, but it's cool because I stumble upon this awesome little overlook with a little slide and swing park and shady bench just for me! I found the lab by asking some old grandmas for clues to its location and then went off again and found this great little shop that features stuff from the Middle Ages. Later that evening, Maria Carla took me to Viterbo - the nearby city- where I saw a Ferrari festival and went to this great frozen yogurt place called Baby Yogurt , went to Santa Rosa church and actually saw Saint Rose kinda half decaying in her casket that was on display and went back home. After dinner, I had a pretty good time talking with Maria Carla and watching the Italian news and another TV program in Italian. It's crazy how quickly you can learn things here - especially the language!

May 30, 2010

What a day! Or should I say, what a weekend!

It's been pretty chill but I've decided that I really like Tuscania. Today was one very relaxed day. I got called French 3 times today and someone else thought I was South American. Yet another person told me that I looked like a famous actress though couldn't remember the name haha. Anyway, I woke up and went to the little stand that this lady has every week and bought some dried fruit -- the exotic kind…dried pineapple, strawberries, cantaloupe, and kiwi) which was yummy since I've never tried it before. Then, I found the wedding that Amanda had told me about yesterday! It was really cool to see since Italian weddings seems to simple but so wonderfully elegant.

It's funny how much Maria Carla reminds me of my real momma - she's a neat freak and is very protective but at the same time really supportive and even likes to watch TV right up until she goes to bed. I'm really glad that she has her cute, but very energetic/slightly annoying little puppy Nirina. I think she might get a little lonely otherwise (although she has family and friends over quite a bit). She's very accommodating and it's cool how we can really have a good time together now - we understand how to communicate! I think I'm even getting used to the Italian way of life - like eating dinner at 8/8:30 at night!  I feel like I've learned so much already in the week that I've been here! It's been a very slow but fast week at the same time. There has been so much packed into the last 7 days - it's incredible!

May 31, 2010

Happy Memorial Day back home!

I'm sitting in my favorite park (one of the only people here this bright beautiful morning) and I can't help but smile…I've got the first day of school jitters! I'm excited to be taking Italian - it'll definitely help with the communication factor!

May 31, 2010

School was cool!

My Italian teacher is really enthusiastic and my Ancient Mediterranean Civilizations class teacher has the coolest Italian/Irish accent EVER!

After dinner my first night of school (pasta with an asparagus pesto and a whole fish), I met Maria Carla's cousin Andrina. They're like best friends so it was really cool to hang out with them for a little bit. The two of them remind me a lot of my mom and aunts - just the way they hang out and gossip and talk and just have fun together.

June 1, 2010

We had a very Italian morning I should say! In between classes, Gabrielle, Emily, and I had a little break and stopped in this Café called La Dolce Vita (The Sweet Life) and had baby canolies and other little delicious treats! I also had a cappuchino with ginseng which was awesome!

June 2, 2010

What a very rainy day! We got caught in a storm but I'm all nice and warm now drinking tea in Maria Carla's kitchen. I feel very at home since this is what I'd do at home anyway. I was able to journal a lot which was nice while I waited for Maria Carla to make some phone calls. I had asked on my very first day here in broken Italian if we could bake together and she said that today was the perfect day to do it!

When we actually did - I felt like I was blessed! I mean, this is what I've wanted since I was like 10! We baked! She just pulled her Sicilian dishes off the wall where they're hung up all nicely and she just showed me how she baked from the heart - no recipe, no nothing…just trusting herself and knowing what tastes tood. We ended up making 5 different crostatas or tart/pies…blueberry, fig, peach, raspberry, and nutella/ricotta. They were SO GOOD. Maria Carla was such a proud mama haha. She wrapped one up to take with me to school the next day! It was great! And I think it was a bonding experience for us because we definitely got closer :)

On another note, Colleen (another student) and I were talking about how great of an opportunity this experience is. And a unique one at that! I mean, we got to be tourists in Rome for a week and really got to know the Italian culture - and now everyone in this beautiful, calm place to settle down is wonderful and I'm having such a great time! I'm very glad I did the home-stay option because not only am I learning Italian and having a very authentic experience, I'm also learning a lot about myself and how to be on my own and think on my own 2 feet. I mean, I knew no one going into this trip and it's been great! I'm a lot more confident now with travel and just being on my own now. I'm also really happy that I chose to stay in Tuscania instead of Rome or Florence because this is what I've always looked for but never knew existed. I feel like I can really get to know the locals here and the locals feel perfectly fine approaching us and asking us questions and introducing themselves too! It's a great place to make connections with people.

For instance, yesterday, I was able to make a connection with the local grandmas. I felt right at home! Maria Carla and I went over to Andrina's and as we were just chilling, some grandmas came over and started making fun of some new study abroad kids and how they were pronouncing everything incorrectly. They kept telling me I was exotic  and "bellisima" and asked if I was from India. When I said yes, they asked me all about my culture which I had to explain in Italian which was cool. They also made fun of me being a vegetarian in Italy and said that I wasn't really trying Italian cuisine if I wasn't having il carne (meat)…although with all the delicious pasta, rice, fish dishes I've been having, I beg to differ! Haha!