Biking ~

Ludo and I took out the bikes today. I couldn't remember how to. Made a fool of myself. What's new.

On the bright side, summer is arriving!!! Ludo and I are planning trips to Bologna, Florence, Rome, and possibly Milan & Venice & AMERICA. What? Yes. Ludo is (possibly, hopefully, please God) coming to America this summer. Mamma mia.

It's all very exciting. Tomorrow I have Italian lesson. Wednesday is national holiday (Italian equiv of Labor Day) and that's about as far into the future as I have planned for now. Love y'all. Ciao.

Urbino

Yesterday - April 25th - was the celebration of Italy's independence. Like America's July 4th. Wooo. We didn't have school. Double woo. And my host family so generously gave up their day to show me a beautiful, ancient city named Urbino.

it just wouldn't be a sisterly trip without a few selfies

entrance to a castle we toured///place where we ate lunch

this house was perfection

I want to live here

STANDARD PICTURE OF ICE CREAM

it's not fair how good the food is here

it's just not fair

Parent Teacher Conference (Disaster)

Yikes.

Today my host mom went to speak with my Italian, German, and Art History teachers. She already spoke with my physics teacher (who gave me a great performance review, shout out to Prof Ortenzi), but these teachers weren't so thrilled with me.

None of the three teachers my host mom spoke to today were happy but one comment hurt above all. My German teacher said I show no interest in learning German so she's stopped assigning me work. Up until 2 weeks or so ago, the German teacher allotted 30 minutes at the end of every lesson for me. So, during the lessons I would wait for my 30 minutes by studying Italian. But then she stopped teaching me in the last 30 minutes of the class. I don't know why. Maybe she mistook my fatigue for disinterest. Until about 10 minutes ago I thought it was because she was behind in her lesson plans for the other 5 girls in the class. 

My host mom said she doesn't care because I'm attending university in the fall and it doesn't really matter. She said I can do whatever I want. But I'm so disappointed in myself. I want to study. I want to leave a good impression of myself//America behind. I feel like I've let the whole team down.

It's difficult for me to study for many reasons:

A) I came here speaking 0 Italian. This is probably at the root of all the subsequent problems but honestly just imagine being in a classroom and not knowing anything that's going on. It's incredibly frustrating and tiring. 

B) I started in the middle of the year.

C) I'm not accustomed to interrogations // the way Italians study // learn.

D) It's difficult for the teachers to assign me homework because they aren't sure what I can do // they weren't prepared for an American student who spoke no Italian.

E) I'm a senior. Junior year killed me and while I did knock the first semester of senior year out of the park it wasn't exactly easy. 

F) I'm still adapting to life here~!!!!! Yes, it's better now but ugh.

Ok these are excuses. I need to stop. I still have 6 and a half weeks of school left. I'm going to salvage the situation and try to learn something in German besides the numbers 1-20.

On a positive note, Elena and I went to get handmade gelato today after lunch. It was the best thing I've ever eaten. Ok maybe not ever but definitely in the top 5. 

Amore mio

I don't know what I'd do without Elena.

Love y'all. Ciao.

No news is good news!!!!

Everything is wonderful. I don't have to pause 20 seconds every time I want to speak in Italian. The words come semi-naturally/fluently. Sometimes I even think in Italian. Ahhhhhhhhhhhh it's awesome.

Each language has its own personality and now that I can (more easily) speak Italian, I feel like I've been given a second identity. I'm not sure if I can explain, but I'll try. English, for me, is exact and static. I can express my most complex, personal thoughts in English. It's my native language and I'll always love it. But Italian is gorgeous. I can't breathe when I speak Italian because all the words connect like a song and there isn't time for something as trivial as breathing. It's urgent, sweet, and calming all at once.

Ludo and I have been going out, attending birthday parties and dinners, hanging out in the shalets on the beach. I love Ludo's friends. I go to Italian lessons every Tuesday and Friday with another exchange student with AFS from Japan - Risa. Our tutor, Alice, is the daughter of my host mother's cousin. Italy is a very small country haha. Anyway, she's incredibly helpful.

All in all, I finally feel adapted. I understand the daily routine. I'm comfortable with the daily routine. There are ups and downs but I know I can handle them. 

Yesterday my host family - and their extended family - went to a 5 hour lunch to celebrate my host dad and his brother's birthdays. It was delicious. Mi piace tanto.

Ludo's cousin - Tomasso 

Picture of my school - Ludo and I were doing some intense Google mapping yesterday

center of PS Giorgio

Tomorrow is St. George's Day!!! And because I live in Porto San Giorgio, that's a big deal. Wednesday is one of Ludo's best friend's (Benadetta) birthday party. Thursday is the day of Italian independence (aka we don't have school) so my host family is taking me to Urbino, an ancient city about an half and a half north of PS. Giorgio. Anddddddd that's about it. Ok love y'all. A dopo!

Day 84/164

I'm sorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry I've been seriously neglecting my blog. I've been super busy.

Ok yesterday, for example:
-8 am school
-1:30 pm lunch @ Elena's
-more school until 4:30
-2 hour Italian lesson
-directly from Italian lesson to Chinese restaurant with Ludo & friends in Civitanova (about 20 minutes from PS. Giorgio)

-then to the movies... we saw Come un Tuono (The Place Beyond The Pines) Ryan Gosling was fantastic omg + I understood 99% of the dialogue
-arrived home at 2 am

Today sucked. Not only because I'm exhausted but because my spring allergies have arrived. They're the absolute worst. I forget about them every year and then they come outta nowhere. And - yes, they're here. Everything hurts: nose, head, ears, throat, everything. I'm going to go to the pharmacy today and try to find a decongestant but Italians view medicine very differently from Americans. Plus there's the language barrier.

What else.

The end of April is approaching very quickly. With it brings 1) my 3 month anniversary with Italy and 2) the deadline to make a decision about college. I have mixed feelings about both. As far as Italy is concerned: sometimes I never want it to end, sometimes I half jokingly text my (American) mom to pick me up in the middle of German class. It's difficult. It's still difficult. But in a different way now. I'm more accustomed to the daily routine of my host family. I understand what's expected of me. I'm shocked a lot less by cultural differences.

Making a decision about college, however, is nearly impossible from here. If I was attending Lower Merion HS right now, everyone around me would be able to sympathize. It would be on my mind 24/7. But here, no one in my class is thinking about university. I'm not sure what I want to major in, I'm not sure what I want out of the experience, I just feel like I'm running out of time to make a decision and that gives me such anxiety. I need to take some time to talk to my family // friends and figure this out ASAP.

Other things I've done
-taught Ludo the chorus to Thrift Shop (she likes to impress people w her perf pronunciation)
-bought & wore a polka dot dress in public

 made ricotta muffins for my physics teacher

Elena <3

tea time 1

tea time 2

tea time 3

Ludovica's cousin, Tomasso

various dogs I've met:

~update~update~

Ludo has a big English test tomorrow. She - and almost everyone else in my host school - will be taking the "English For You" test tomorrow from 9am til 7pm. She's been studying incredibly hard everyday for the past 2 months. Good luck bb.

Sara - one of my classmates - gave me a short, modern novel called Tre Volte All'Alba written by Alessandro Baricco. I find it easier than Il Giovane Holden because there's a lot more dialogue but, like Il Giovane Holden, it's written in the remote past. The remote past is a verb tense not commonly used. My Italian tutor suggests I read Bianca Come il Latte, Rossa Come il Sangue. It's written in the present tense and from the narrator's point of view. Very simple prose but complicated ideas about the meaning of life, a teenage love story, a girl dies of cancer, etc.

My physics teacher and I started talking about cheese and - long story short - I'm making ricotta muffins for her on Monday. Ah the things I get myself into.

Ludo and I are officially going to Rome on April 30th~!!!!!!!!! We're seeing a concert and going shopping. So excited.

Pedaso

Host mom's hometown. Pictures taken on Saturday. 2,000~ people live here. It's absolutely gorgeous.

host mom showing me how to knock on a door