First Impressions of Italia

I’m finally starting to feel settled. The first few days here were a little rough because of some culture shock, homesickness, and exhaustion from being jetlagged. When we first moved into our apartment, some things just didn’t feel right. Everything in the apartment felt so foreign. It wasn’t easy learning how to operate the washing machine, dealing without heat for 14 hours a day, and realizing that we can’t run the stove, hair dryer, or washing machine at the same time without blowing a fuse. Even going across the street to buy a few things at the little shops was extremely difficult.

Actually, that night we first bought groceries without knowing any Italian was probably the most frustrating experience I’ve had here so far. Because the shops were so small, everything we needed was behind a counter and we had to order everything in Italian. We had a terrible time communicating with the owners. After we figured out how to order half a kilo of prosciutto and cheese, we were starving and decided to visit the pizzeria to pick up a couple of slices to eat at home. We thought it would be quick and easy, but it was impossible to understand anything the owners tried to tell us in Italian. Who knew ordering pizza off of a menu would be so difficult! We ended up ordering one thing and getting something completely different than what we thought. On the way home, I was in a terrible mood. I was exhausted from traveling, getting lost in Macerata, and being unable to express myself in Italian.

Most of my initial concerns—navigating, cooking, bad roommates, living in a rundown apartment, not fitting in with the other students, and no internet in the apartment—have vanished. It’s a relief to live in a nice apartment, with lots of space, and a great roommate. Besides being history majors, we have so much in common and I think we’ll become really close by the end of this semester. We’ve already been through so much together.

The first few days in our apartment was somewhat of an adjustment. The apartment is a big, bright yellow building with green shutters and elegant balconies. It’s at least a century old, with vaulted ceilings and huge windows. Filiberto and Angelica told us that it used to be for upper-middle class Italians living in the 1900s. At first, it seemed empty and eerily quiet, probably because I’m so accustomed to dorm-life and always having people around. Rai and I have to walk 10 or 15 minutes to get everywhere, but we enjoy it (though it will be much more pleasant when it starts to warm up). Only after I cooked my first few meals and did the laundry did it finally sink in that this will be my home for the next 3 months. My family will be pleased to know that in the past few days, I have cooked two pasta dishes that actually turned out really well, especially considering my challenges at being domestic. Everything we make is made of the freshest ingredients. A few nights ago we made a great pasta dish with tomato sauce, fresh zucchini, onions, garlic, asiago cheese, red peppers, herbs, and chicken.

Though there are times I really miss everyone at home, I’m happy to be here. Everything seems to be falling into place and I’m ready to start soaking up all of the Italian history I can before it’s time to return home.