Un Giorno Normale

I thought this whole moving to Italy thing was going to be a piece of cake...that most of my days would be spent sitting in a piazza with my journal and a cappuccino. Not the case. Everyday, we wake up at 8:30am, which you might think is late by American standards but you would be surprised how hard it is to get out of bed at that time, when we were just up until 2 in the morning doing homework. So, we get up, fight our way through the crowds of locals going to work, or tourists getting lost in the subway. These aren't just ordinary crowds either...you virtually cannot move when getting to or on the subway. There is no such thing as personal space anymore and you get used to a perfect stranger leaning up against you, or feel comfortable standing on someone's feet. We stop at our favorite cafe, where our favorite barista, Federico, starts our drinks before we even order. The foam on my cappuccino is such perfection every morning, I have honestly considered naming my first born Federico. We head to class, which starts at 10. We wouldn’t dare be late for our first grammar lesson of the day. Our teacher, who is a seriously strict Irish woman, with white skin and jet black hair just looks at you and you want to crawl out of the room in tears. She starts out the day, with something like this, “OK, give me a sentence using a subject pronoun, auxiliary verb in the base form and a main verb in past participle form….ummm, Andrea.” I seriously feel like vomiting every time she says my name. She has been affectionately referred to as “The grammar Nazi” by our classmates. And I am convinced she has it in for me. Believe me…I learned grammar that I didn’t know existed, faster than I would have thought possible. Then we have teaching methodology class, with an Italian woman, who speaks English uhh pretty well. If you ever ask her a question she doesn’t know the answer to, which is most of the time, she says in her heavy accent, “it is that way just because it is…I don’t know why, it just is. I cannot help you.” She is teaching us the phonetic alphabet, however, is teaching us British phonetic spelling. So there are a bunch of Americans in our class pretending to have British accents so we can spell the words correctly and don’t fail the exam. It is pretty funny and odd at the same time. Then after class we prepare our lessons, and in the evenings we teach hilarious Italian students English. My favorite students to teach are the teenagers. They are pure entertainment and say things like, “I will only date a boy if he pays.” Or, “everyone wants to be with our clique”. Or, “if I met Brad Pitt, I would make him come home with me.” I am just happy they are using the grammar and vocabulary I taught. We head home around 8pm, make a fast meal, and lots of coffee and do loads of homework. We are both exhausted, but hanging in there. Final exams start on Monday, so we are in for a long weekend cramming as much grammar and phonetics that will fit into our brains…one more week to go!

Amore.

Napoli.

I woke up Saturday morning to the sun shining brightly in my face from Sean opening the window shades. I have to note that with the windows and shades closed you could pretty much sleep for days with no interruption. They black out the light and silence the loud city. Good thing for sleeping in late, but also a little dangerous. After another rainy Friday night, we were happy to see a sunny Saturday morning. With tons of homework in our school bags, and finals right around the corner, we decided to avoid it all and go on a day trip to Napoli. So, we got in gear, downed our cappuccino, crossed the street to Termini and hopped on the next train out of town. When we arrived in Napoli, it almost felt like walking into TJ. Overbearing, shady street vendors lined the sidewalk selling useless nick nacks. Garbage was blowing everywhere, as if trash cans never existed. And if anything looked like it may have been remotely interesting at one time, graffiti now covered it. It was really a sad site to see. A lot of homeless begging for money...a lot of sad souls. However, as we continued walking, we found Napoli to be a pretty cool city. We found a bustling, crowded area with trendy shops and some amazing architecture. We made it to the waterfront to see some ancient castles sitting upon the water along with a breathtaking view of mountains in the distance. Napoli is known for being the birthplace of pizza...and therefore having the best pizza in the world! We were actually really excited to be apart of this, and got a couple slices. The pizza was good, but lacking in mozzarella. I guess thats how its done there. Lots of sauce, little cheese. After we ate, we passed a couple more pizzarias with huge crowds of Italians lined out the door, and regretted our hasty choice for dinner. We just figure we will have to go back for another slice at one of the popular places in town. Another thing we saw were some unreal looking pastries. Every time we passed a pasticcerie, the cakes, the canolli, the chocolate, the colorful, glazed fruit made us salivate and stare in a trance at the lovely deserts. The sweets were everywhere, and definitely calling us back for another visit to Napoli. We did indulge in a torrone, a white, nuggetty bar with hazelnuts and chocolate in the center. We ate the whole bar throughout the day, no problem. We saw the ugliest dog in the world. I am not kidding. I love pets just as much as the next person, but this was truly a dog only a mother could love. It was HUGE! As we walked by wondering if it was even a dog, it slowly picked its head up and looked up at us, and I ran in horror. Sean thought it was a boar and tried to pet it. I can only be glad we passed it again, so I could take a picture. Napoli is also full of librerie (book stores), which were all packed. Guess thats a good thing, but it was just strange to see millions of packed bookstores one after another. Maybe a new book was launching and we were missing out or something. Anyway, at least everyone is literate in Naples. After a full day we nearly got run over by about 40 motos on our way back to the station. Sean bought us the wrong train tickets and it took us about 3 hours to get home (it should have been only 1 hr. 40 min)...I wont go into details about how I got us fined 13 euro each on the way there for buying the wrong tickets...thats another blog entry. Anyway, Napoli was an interesting place. It could use to be cleaned up, but we appreciated the realness of the city. It was very Italian, and under the thick layer of roughness and garbage, it was actually very bello.

Follow up on teaching

Just had my review with the senior teacher who was observing my lesson. She said I did great! AND I didnt say "like" once! Yay! I stepped in dog poop today....maybe that was a good sign.

e quando piove...

I walked out of class tonight to another storm! It doesnt just rain, it comes down and is accompanied with thunder and lightening. I cant believe that it really did change seasons over night. I love the rain, dont get me wrong. Living in a city where foot is my main mean of transportation might be a different story. So much for the cute new sandals and beach towel I bought when it was 100 degrees a week ago. My first teaching experience was "eeeehhh"...I taught Italian adults in an intermediate level English class. It is hard to teach concepts to students that I myself am trying to grasp. I mean, I know English because I speak it, but to answer why we say things certain ways, is much harder. I just wanted to say " because we do", when asked why, but I couldnt. Another obstacle was that their accents were so strong I struggled to understand them. I can only imagine how I sound to them. Lastly, as we all know, I need to drop "like" and "um" from my vocabulary immediately. Anyway, I teach new students tomorrow (Wednesday), and hopefully I feel more confident. After all, they dont really care who is in front of them, as long as they learn something. Off for pizza now. Mmmm!

A few more things to note from the weekend.

Some other things we discovered this weekend, in a nutshell...

Sean has officially witnessed me eat a whole pizza. Thats right...when I got back from my last trip, no one believed I could do it. Well, now I have a witness. It was a whole pie, and yes, I ate the whole thing and felt completely satisfied.

While on the subject of pizza, I saw a woman eating a pizza with egg on it. It was a normal looking pizza with whole, hard boiled eggs on top. Enough said. It looked totally odd, and I am not sure if I will try it. But, hey, when in Rome...so maybe....

We went to Piazza Navona, which was very cool. Something I missed the first time I was in Rome. It was bustling with people, street performers and music. Sean almost lost it when I nearly paid 5 euro for a coke though. That is equivilant to about 8 dollars, for a regular can of coke. Needless to say, he wouldnt let me buy it.

We stumbled upon the Jewish ghetto. Something else I missed during my first trip to Rome. It was very interesting, and a kind of runned down part of town. Very cool to see though.

We also stumbled upon a cat sanctuary. This was as gross as it sounds. Its called Torre Argentina - it is an area of ancient ruins where millions of wild cats have made their home. It smelled like a giant litter box. Ick.

Well, those were just a few highlights of the weekend!! Overall it was nice and relaxing. Sean and I are so happy here. Well, today is another day at school. I am teaching tonight for my first time! More to come on that!

Sunday...

It has literally turned to fall over night. The weather is now cool and breezy and crisp and all the reasons I love this time of year. Sunday feels like Sunday anywhere in the world. There is a calm in the air, a lazy feel, a day you want to just be comfortable and with someone you love. We woke up slowly, had our cappuccinos at a local bar and sat in the park, bundled in cool-weather clothes. We read Italian and observed the way everyone else moved slowly and had the same lazy presense that we did. We hand washed our clothes, which was much harder than it sounds. It actually took a good 2 hours to finish. We worked in shifts, and I ran to the store when it was Seans turn and got us lunch. It felt like any other Sunday, just a million miles from home. It is obvious we are slowly establishing this foriegn land as home. It is becoming less foriegn.

Fitness in Rome...it does exist.

Its our first weekend after a long week of school, and you would never believe what happened. Our 90 degree weather turned into a massive thunder, lightening and rain storm. Big surprise. I guess that doesnt just happen in so cal. So our plan to go to the beach this weekend has changed. Today is a little nicer but still wet out. I am welcoming the change, since the heat was just too much for me. The tempurature always feels way hotter in a big city too.

I have been feeling super cardio deprived lately, and the thought of running in this crazy city seems dangerous - due to both the fact that my chances of getting hit by a car are pretty high, and I wouldnt say the air quality is the best. So, this morning, as we were taking out the trash we discovered there is this super posh, high-end fitness facility right across from our house. My heart jumped and insisted we go in and find out how much it costs. It felt like we stepped outside of Rome when we walked in. It was cool, and clean and modern. And aside from the overweight Italians, in interesting work out clothes, it felt just like my gym at home. Well, another thing that is the same, is that there is no clear answer to a cost question when it comes to a gym. The guy talked our ear off for about an hour about the benifits of the gym, he gave us a tour, showed us the equipment and the fact that they also provide free movie rentals in the actual gym (weird, huh?). He basically wouldnt let us leave until he sealed the deal. Well, I just stared at him blankly while Sean talked to him in half Italian, half Spanish. No idea what they said, but in the end the prices were outrages and I am going to have to find another work out alternative...fast!

Nostra Casa...is a very very very fine house.

Un Cafe Per Favore

It has become apparent that I need to learn to drink my coffee, or cappuccino a little differently here than in the US. I am accustomed to going to a cafe, purchasing my bevereage and sitting in a comfortable chair, slowly sipping my drink at a leasurly pace, savoring every sip. Or, I would take my coffee to go and sit at my desk sipping my flavored latte. Not the case here. I absolutely love capppuccinos, but cafes actually serve you at a "bar". You walk up to a bar, order a drink, and are supposed to gulp your coffe drink in one fast shot and head out on your way...well, thats the way the locals do it. On vacation I would sit at a table and drink my cafe, which actually costs more. In an effort to save money, we no longer request a table, stand at the bar, order a drink and well, drink quickly, as fast as I can. Sean has perfected shooting his coffee down in one gulp. I on the other hand, have not. Every morning, before going to class, we stop at the "bar" across the street. The barrista knows us by face now, and we order the same drinks every morning. While Sean patiently waits for me to finish, we see several Italians come in, take their coffee shot and leave. I am trying to not look like such a rooky, so I drink quickly and am hoping one day I will finish in one gulp. For now, I am at about 4 or 5...I will let you know of my progress.

Recap...

So, the end of my first week is almost here! And what a week it has been...who knew the English language was so difficult? I dont even understand it, and I am a fluent speaker. With that said, class has been more than challenging. We have disected English to the point where I am confused. I feel sorry for my future students. I teach my first English lesson to real Italian students on Monday...I am really excited, but know I will be nervous. I get my first formal Italian lesson tomorrow too, which I am really looking forward to, so is the guy at the cafe across the street, since I am no doubt butchering their beautiful language. Anyway, thats school life. As for life life, things are good. I could write a whole blog entry on gellatto. I know this topic comes up frequently with me, but it still amazes me that everyone eats it...all the time...and I mean everyone. It isnt like in the US, where we are constantly watching what we eat. Everyone indluges. Business men, women, children, old people, nuns, priests, etc. During the lunch hour, gellatterias have lines out the door and they are mostly professionals funny enough...Can you imagine in the U.S, seeing some high powered executive walking around in a business suit with a huge ice cream cone, piled high with several scoops and toppings? I dont think I have ever seen one, let alone a ton of them. I love that about Italy actually. Sean and I joined in on this tradition immediately. We have it everyday and dont feel an ounce of guilt. Sean has started wearing his collared shirts unbuttoned half way, which worried me at first, but oddly enough, he looks like a local. I am considering buying Birkinstocks....not as a tribute to my Humboldt days, but because I walk around so much in a day, I have been dying for more comfortable sandals. And, you would never believe me, but they are actually in style here. Everyone wears them, and I imagine comfort is also their reasoning. Our room looks like that of a college dorm room, that two first year students live in. It looks like our suit cases expoloded, and we both decided it isnt a productive learning environment. But we cant complain about having to go study at the Spanish Steps, or Piazza del Popolo and we even sat in the Piazza at the Vatican to study yesterday. I said a little prayer too that I pass this class. So, it served 2 purposes. We grocery shop every day. I love that we have to weigh our fruits and veggies and price it. For that reason alone, we have been buying fruits and veggies regularly. I am looking forward to the weekend and hope to make it to the beach to get out of the city for a bit. We also have lots of studying to do, and laundry, which I am sure will be something to blog about...till then!

Back to School...

So, we started school today and I am really a little frightened. This is going to be an intense 4 weeks, with a lot of teaching practice. I will have to get over my fear of public speaking immediately. We have been in class since 9:30 this morning...it is now 4:30pm. I will be back at 7:30pm to observe a senior teacher giving a lesson. I couldnt sleep last night - not sure if it was just the anticipation or nerves or the mosquitos or the fact that it was 90 degrees all night long. The knot in my stomach hasnt subsided yet either. Hopefully it will before dinner tonight since we are having a class dinner to get to know the other students. Most of the other students are American. On our break Sean and I went to the market and got some fruit, which was nice. Have I mentioned yet how much I love the fruit here? Its another food highlight (there are so many). Pears are my favorite...anyway, it was still scorchingly hot outside, so it is nice to be in a cool building. When we got to class this morning, after getting lost (Sean thought he knew a short cut) the teacher gave us a test right away. As an English major, I am totally embarrassed. I can almost be sure I got none of the questions right. I have a lot to learn in the next 4 weeks...Oh, and dont think the teacher didnt call me out on having a boys name either...yes, in Italy, "Andrea" is a boys name. It goes perfectly with my middle name now...its fine. And if you dont know my middle name, its "Michael", no, not "Michelle". Thanks mom and dad for that! Anyway, I will write again soon. XOXO

Rome is HOT!

Today has been so hot, the air feels like its suffocating me. Not sure how bad I smell right now, but I have a feeling I fit right it. Last night we made our first dinner of gnocchi, zucchini and marinara sauce. The parmesean cheese is the freshest I have ever tasted in my life. Dinner was amazing, and making it ourselves made us feel like we are really at home. We spent the rest of the night brushing up on our Italian. I have to say, I feel pretty defeated by the language. Hopefully I catch on soon. Before we knew it it was 2am and we were wide awake practicing...the jet lag really got to us this time. So, needless to say, we woke up this morning around noon and quickly got our cappuccinos and pasteries at the Piazza del Poppolo. It started raining, which was actually nice since it was just so hot. We found our school today, so we wouldnt get lost tomorrow before class. I really cant believe I am starting class again. We walked around some more, and saw more sights. It was a nice day, and we are off soon to make another dinner together. I have to say, the food is probably my favorite part of Rome...or one of. There is nothing better than Nutella gellatto or a fresh margherrita pizza. The water around this city is also incredible. At any given location, you will find some random spicket with cold, fresh water pouring out. Its very nice for a hot day like today. Anyway, I will write again tomorrow to keep you all posted on our first day of school!! Ciao for now!

I made it!

So, we have arrived and are slowly getting acquaited with our new city. It is extremely HOT, which makes simple activities, such as walking, difficult. Our apartment is adorable...but definitely no escape from the heat. The apartment is on the 4th floor of a building with a tiny lift and miniature bathroom right across the street from Termini, which is the central station in Rome. The location is pretty loud, bustling and a little sketchy. We fell asleep last night to the sound of a man screaming for literally hours. We are both exhausted, hot and fighting the jet lag. We walked around all day yesterday, just checking out the sights and getting familiar with this huge city. Even though I was just here, seeing everything with Sean is just as exciting as before. We saw almost everything one would want to see while visiting this city. I am not sure cramming it all into one day was the best idea, especially since my sore muscles are hating me right now. We went grocery shopping this morning, which was a pretty fun experience and made me feel like a true local...although it took me about 10 minutes to decipher between shampoo and lotion. I just got both, just in case. We just got back from the beach, which was so nice! We found salvation in the breeze, people watching and relaxing in the sun...both of us hoping for a tan. It is nice to be back in Rome, although strange, since I feel like I was just here. It is a totally different experience this time. Rather than just being here to see the sights and observe, I am actually here to live this life. I have to assimilate to this whole new world. Its different, a little scary, but very exciting. We are about to get some gelatto and slowly make our way back to the apartment...We are getting nervous but excited to start school on Monday and are going to spend tomorrow getting ready!