1. I got really sick in class
2. I rested and felt a ton better
3. I had a great dinner with the VCU crew and then went to listed to some music. Umbria Jazz started last night and we stayed up until the wee hours of the morning sitting on the steps of the main church in Perugia listening to wonderful music and drinking vino with some new friends we made this week. 

This is such a great city!!!!

1.       

CLASS IS SOOOO HARD!  That pretty much sums up my week.  I was placed in B2 and did not think I would have a problem at all.  I could not have been more wrong!  Apparently the school got rid of C2 so all of the students trickled down into lower levels and the teachers kicked the classes up a notch. Needless to say (I am sure that if you have traveled out of the US you will understand this ), Americans were the most unintelligent people in the group which made an already hard class even harder.  I left class the first day and wanted to cry.  The good thing was that I was not the only one.  Everyone in the VCU group felt the same was so after much effort and paperwork we all moved down a level.  I start my new class on Monday and am hoping that it will be better.  Fingers crossed! 

I have been here a week already and it really does feel like home.  There is something extraordinarily captivating about this city that is so steeped in history.  So I was walking along and found this little church just up the street from my house  that had people sun bathing on the grass just inside the gate.  It was so interesting to see that…only in Italy!  When went in the church I was underwhelmed until I started looking around in all of the little nooks and crannies and seeing how much this church has been through over the years.  It got even better when 2 people dressed to the 9s came in and started playing music.  I sat, listened, and just tried to soak it all it.  I can say without hesitation that it was one of the most special moments in my life (I will try to post the video I took but it might be too large to load).  Upon leaving I found out that the only reason the church was open was for a wedding that was about to start.  The bride, who was from Sweden, and the groom who was Italian invited us to stay and watch the ceremony which was too cool for words!!!!

Getting to Perugia and Siena!!

Okay so I made it to Perugia in one piece and am so very glad to be here!  I am not going to lie...getting here was a bit insane! Lets see...I got on the wrong Metro (which was going the complete opposite direction I needed to be going in), broke my shoes while trying to catch the correct Metro and then got caught in a massive rain storm.  So to sum it up, it was AWESOME! However, I made it to the bus and met up with 3 others that are a part of the VCU group.  We made it to Perugia in a couple of hours and then went out for dinner as a group.  The next day we went to Siena, toured a bit then saw the Palio which is by far one of the most exciting things in the world! 

We started classes today and have just been spending free time cooking, drinking vino and getting lost in this beautiful city.  Let me tell you...it does not suck waking up to this view every morning!

Roma...

Okay so here is the count for today:

• number of priests walking down the street....28
• number of times I got asked (by Italians I might add) for directions.....3 (I guess I either look Italian or I look like I know where I am going)
• number of times I got proposed to (yes, you read that correctly)....1 (by a guy on a school trip)
• number of Asian tourists.... 2,323,567,978,380 (rounding up)
• these are just a few of them...

Other fun things I noticed...

• The most European things I saw: people doing the double kiss, a woman about 7 months pregnant smoking and dressed in a very cute dress and 3 inch heels
• The most Italian thing I saw:  every single Italian woman walking through the streets in 3-5 inch heels (how they do it is beyond me)
• The most American thing I saw:  A man sitting on the steps of a church in Piazza di Popolo with a small paper cup in hand.  Upon closer examination I saw that it was filled with vino rosso and then saw that there was a box, yes  BOX, of red wine that the guy was trying to hide.  I think it was a lost cause for hims since smelt of alcohol and looked like he had been drinking for the past 4 days straight.

Ciao (kiss, kiss)

Here at long last!

After much delay and complication I have made it to Roma safe and sound.  I am staying at Hotel Saturina and am so happy to be here.  This is the cutest little hotel with the smallest rooms I have EVER seen.  When I say small I mean SMALL.  I am not even sure there is enough room for me to take a picture so that the true size will come across... I shall try!

Yup...that is my little room! 

Okay, off to explore!

ciao ciao

Here we go!

Okay so I am officially on my way!  I have just gone through security at the Richmond airport and am boarding in about an hour.  I would just like to say to all of those people who thought I was crazy to be going to Italy for 5 weeks and not checking a beg that it CAN be done.  Here is the picture to prove it!  I will update when I get checked into my hotel in Roma!
Ciao Ciao!!!

Ciao famiglia e amici!

          Last summer I traveled to Italy for the trip of a lifetime.  Not only did I have the wonderful opportunity to study the beautiful Italian language alongside people from around the world, I was able to see many new and wonderful places.  Although my home base was Perugia, I was able to see many other parts of the spectacular country that is Italia.  In addition to the many stunning sites, I made countless lifelong friends that I now consider family.  At the end of the trip I felt as though I was a changed person, more capable of seeing and understanding the world, more open to various ways of life, and simply more able to fully cherish every moment. 

          My experience in Italy had affected me so greatly that as I came back to the United States, I felt as though I had landed in a foreign and uncomfortable land. Gone were the days of speaking beautifully seductive Italian and spending three hours cooking and enjoying a meal with friends.  Gone were the glorious strolls down winding cobblestone streets at two in the morning with a gelato in hand.  Gone were the historical monuments that had made me feel as though I had been transported to a different era.  Now, there was just traffic, cars, and surprisingly uncultured people.  At that moment, I made a commitment to myself that I would not let a year go by that I would not visit the place that had become my home, Italia. 

              I am about to set off on my journey to the beautiful land yet again and could not be more excited.  Just as I did before, I will be attending class at the Universita per Stranieri di Perugia.  In the class room I will be challenged in numerous ways and will be forced to discover new and wonderful things about the Italian language.  The real challenge, and the most exciting part, will be using what I learn in the classroom when out and about in town.  As it is commonly said, application is key, and it will truly allow me to expand my knowledge of the language.  In addition, I will be working on an independent study while in Perugia (more on that later). 

                This time, I will have the same home base in Perugia but will be going on different weekend adventures.  I will post a calendar so that you can follow me on my trips and check in as I make my way through the beautiful country.  I will be posting pictures in addition to videos on a daily/weekly basis so I can log my ventures.  In addition, I will be posting information for my independent study so that I can keep up with my work and see it progress as the days tick by.  If you have any questions at all please don’t hesitate to ask!  

Ciao!