I'm a Local!

"There is no foreign land, it is only the traveller that is foreign." -- Robert Louis Stevenson

Yesterday a guy told me that I look Sicilian (which might have just been to butter me up, but I don't care).  And today, an Italian girl, who I assume speaks no English, stopped ME to ask for directions, which I successfully gave her...in Italian.  It's official.  I'm a local!! : )

Things I've learned since living here...

• Florence has a LOT of tourists, which gets annoying when walking to class means fighting through crowds with cameras.
• The people who live in my building really hate Americans.
• Cars, mopeds and even horsedrawn carraiges will run you over if you are in their way.
• Evaluating wine is actually pretty difficult and I'm really bad at it...for now.
• Spraining your ankle and not being able to walk is so much harder than you think it will be.
• Strawberries make for better chasers than limes.
• Going out nearly every night for more than 3 weeks really will wear your body down...whoda thunk.
• Italians truly are more attractive and more well-dressed than Americans.
• Likewise, Italian children are more adorable than American children.
• Gelato > Ice cream
• Cab drivers are angry people.
• A guy will always walk a girl home without being asked, solely out of habitual politeness.
• On the other hand, occasional rudeness is not only recommended...it's necessary, because 70% of the male attention is extremely annoying.
• Bar owners make for sketchy bosses.
• Gypsies are fascinating.
• Eating after 8pm actually is okay.  Dinner at 10pm is becoming a habit.
• Watching a bartender make your drink with fresh fruit is way better than watching him make it with juice.
• I really really enjoy my Travel Writing class even though every one in it is a much better writer than I am.
• People in America complain about EVERYTHING.

Things I miss (so far) from home...

• My dog
• My car
• Milk sold by the gallon
• My bed
• Baseball
• Cold weather

..and that's about it.  I love it here.

Mission Accomplished

So I've been abroad for exactly one week and so far...this is already the best thing I have ever done.  I've met amazing people and I've seen the most beautiful places that I don’t even know how to describe with words how happy I am.  All my problems at home are suddenly behind me and the only thing that matters is making sure that my time here is the best that it could possibly be.  And so far...mission accomplished. 

I’m one of those people who, although I love (and need) my alone time, I thrive on social interactions.  When arriving into Italy, I already knew that “Step One” for me was to meet a lot of people and make friends.  Done.  All six of my roommates are awesome and we pretty much love each other already.  I was nervous about living with six girls because I assumed that they were likely to have six equally strong personalities...and they do, but in the best way possible.  Aside from them, I have met so many people since we’ve been in Florence.  We have all gone out together every single night since we’ve been in Italy, and every night I meet at least two handfuls of new people...all of whom, are extremely nice and extremely fun.  Turns out that not all the boys are as creepy as I've been warned (emphasis on ALL because obviously some of them are pretty creepy).

Aside from social interactions, I also thrive on new experiences.  I’m sure this will sound corny and cheesy and all the other equivalent words but hopefully someone will understand what I mean when I say that I feel as if and I am exactly where I am supposed to be.  Before I left, I told some of my friends that I felt like I was homesick for a place I’ve never been (and yes, I stole that line from “The Mechanic”) but now, I feel like I actually am home.  Life is just so much simpler here.  I’m living in an apartment with no dryer, no microwave, no working television, internet that allows only one person online at a time, a tiny tiny washing machine, a phone that allows for hardly any usage, a bed that’s exponentially less comfortable than my bed at school, and neighbors who complain about us walking too loudly in the stairwell...and yet I struggle to justify any complaints.  I’ve recently felt a bit uncomfortable with America’s materialism because I feel as if I’ve gotten pretty good at living on nothing...in other words, I’m used to being broke.  But here, life is just simple.  I even live on a street that doesn’t allow cars and I love it, which is a big deal to those of you who understand how much I love driving and blasting my music.  I’m sure I’ll miss the luxuries of America at some point but at least for now, I absolutely adore this lifestyle because it’s slower, more relaxed and again...so much simpler.

Two of my goals when coming here were to become fluent in Italian (which will happen because I made it into the Advance Italian class!) and to learn how to cook.  Look at this picture of my first homemade italian meal and try to tell me that I’m NOT going to come home as a master chef. 

Pesto pasta with shrimp, tomatoes and peas

It's also worth mentioning that we have NOTHING in America like they have in Italy.  I thought I saw some beautiful places in France, which I did, but after taking a guided tour of Rome and now being in Florence it just seems crazy to me that in America, when a building gets old, we tear it down and build a strip mall.  Here, when a building gets old, they strive to update it by either cleaning it or making it even more beautiful.