Biongornio, mi amici (June 26)
Day 2 in Monte was a pretty good one. Sleeping last night was not a problem…at all. After being sleep deprived, I think most of us slept pretty hard. The one time I remember waking up was when Ellie (my roomie) closed the windows. Birds here are OBNOXIOUS! We woke up around 8 and had to be at the restaurant for breakfast by 9:30. Today was one of the only mornings we were given breakfast. We’re on our own from here on out! From breakfast we split into 2 groups and did a tour around the city. It was really amazing to learn about what a lot of the things around here are. Or better yet, what they mean! My apartment is on the left side of the city right at the entrance. We got to go all the way around which is quite a hike around here. Remember, everything is uphill both ways!
After the hike we were left to our own devices! We stopped at the ATM first and then the grocery store for a very much needed item – WATER! I’ve never drank so much water in my life, but it’s so cheap here!! 1.5 liter is 0,22 Euros which comes out to about $.35-.40 in the US. Yeah, can’t beat that! The water out of the faucet is definitely not water like in the States, but as a last resort, it’s water. On the way back into the city (grocery store is just outside the city walls), we stopped at a little pizza place! Nothing like a Caprese pizza! It was so delicious.
We finally made it home and crashed. When I say crash, I mean out for about 4 hours. It felt awesome! Unfortunately we were woken up by our doorbell which we found rather odd. Only the program directors know where we live at this point. My window is just over the door and it was like a romantic movie. Hello, hot guy ringing our doorbell!! He started speaking in Italian, but alas, I have not grasped the entire language yet. I guess when he realized that I don’t speak it, he waved and was off. I’m still kind of speechless about it.
After our 4-hour coma, we set off to wander Monte more before dinner. Unfortunately, as were getting ready to lock the door, the key wouldn’t budge. The thing about doors here is this, there aren’t any doorknobs to get in the door. Your turn your key and it opens the door. ALSO – this is very important that we learned today – if a key is in the keyhole on the other side, you CAN NOT lock or open the door. Guess what we did!! It’s a good thing there aren’t doorknobs! Eventually someone came while we were at dinner and opened it up for us. Otherwise, bedtime would be interesting!
Speaking of dinner, oh my! Dinner’s here are FANTASTIC! First we had risotto which was fabulous. I tried not to fill up on that since I accidentally filled up on pasta yesterday! Dinners here last about an hour and a half to two hours. They bring out a dish at a time and give you time to let it digest. I think it’s a great plan, but by the 4th dish, you’re tired. The second dish was a meat. I think it was pork. Either way, it was good! Then we had cooked spinach which was very mushy but again, delicious! Then mashed potatoes. Mashed potatoes here are a lot thicker, but still so very good. For dessert? WATERMELON! Oh man, that was a treat!!
So far, home sickness hasn’t really set in. I do miss my bed and all my pillows! The beds here aren’t quite twin bed sizes. And of course, I miss talking to my parents. It’s hard to coordinate a time to talk when I’m 6 hours ahead! But so far, I’m having such a great time. I can’t believe it’s only been 1 day! Tomorrow there’s a two-hour hike through the country side. I’m totally planning on going. Pictures from that should be amazing!! Anyway, talk soon!
¡Ciao!
After the hike we were left to our own devices! We stopped at the ATM first and then the grocery store for a very much needed item – WATER! I’ve never drank so much water in my life, but it’s so cheap here!! 1.5 liter is 0,22 Euros which comes out to about $.35-.40 in the US. Yeah, can’t beat that! The water out of the faucet is definitely not water like in the States, but as a last resort, it’s water. On the way back into the city (grocery store is just outside the city walls), we stopped at a little pizza place! Nothing like a Caprese pizza! It was so delicious.
We finally made it home and crashed. When I say crash, I mean out for about 4 hours. It felt awesome! Unfortunately we were woken up by our doorbell which we found rather odd. Only the program directors know where we live at this point. My window is just over the door and it was like a romantic movie. Hello, hot guy ringing our doorbell!! He started speaking in Italian, but alas, I have not grasped the entire language yet. I guess when he realized that I don’t speak it, he waved and was off. I’m still kind of speechless about it.
After our 4-hour coma, we set off to wander Monte more before dinner. Unfortunately, as were getting ready to lock the door, the key wouldn’t budge. The thing about doors here is this, there aren’t any doorknobs to get in the door. Your turn your key and it opens the door. ALSO – this is very important that we learned today – if a key is in the keyhole on the other side, you CAN NOT lock or open the door. Guess what we did!! It’s a good thing there aren’t doorknobs! Eventually someone came while we were at dinner and opened it up for us. Otherwise, bedtime would be interesting!
Speaking of dinner, oh my! Dinner’s here are FANTASTIC! First we had risotto which was fabulous. I tried not to fill up on that since I accidentally filled up on pasta yesterday! Dinners here last about an hour and a half to two hours. They bring out a dish at a time and give you time to let it digest. I think it’s a great plan, but by the 4th dish, you’re tired. The second dish was a meat. I think it was pork. Either way, it was good! Then we had cooked spinach which was very mushy but again, delicious! Then mashed potatoes. Mashed potatoes here are a lot thicker, but still so very good. For dessert? WATERMELON! Oh man, that was a treat!!
So far, home sickness hasn’t really set in. I do miss my bed and all my pillows! The beds here aren’t quite twin bed sizes. And of course, I miss talking to my parents. It’s hard to coordinate a time to talk when I’m 6 hours ahead! But so far, I’m having such a great time. I can’t believe it’s only been 1 day! Tomorrow there’s a two-hour hike through the country side. I’m totally planning on going. Pictures from that should be amazing!! Anyway, talk soon!
¡Ciao!
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