Half-way through!

After living here in Italy for over a month, I have to say that my confidence has spiked. I feel comfortable attending music events, ordering in restaurants and cafes, taking the bus to different parts of town, navigating through the city, and meeting up with Italian friends. That’s not to say that I don’t have moments where I feel very out of my comfort zone, but the frequency of those moments has significantly decreased. I’m proud to say that in Italian I can ask for things behind the counter at most stores and buy a train ticket at the station without any problem.

In addition to living in a foreign country, living in my own apartment has also been an adjustment. I’ve only lived in a dorm room with a meal plan at Alma. I’ve now mastered how to live on a budget and how to cook. In fact, cooking has become a new hobby of mine. With so much free time because of our low course-load (in comparison to classes at Alma), I try to cook almost every night. Usually meals are pasta dishes with chicken, lots of fresh veggies, Maceratesi wine, and fresh bread from the bakery across the street. I love having people over for dinner too. I’m going to really miss this kind of lifestyle when I go back to dorm life and a meal plan.

Classes are as fascinating as ever. I’m taking the History of Art and Architecture, Making Renaissance Italy, Modern Italy, Italian language, and Cross-Cultural Communications. Learning all of the Roman, medieval and renaissance history of Italy makes living here so much more meaningful. I’ve gotten better at determining the time period of the buildings, cathedrals, and the art that I encounter on a daily basis. I’m constantly asking questions in my classes and on our excursions to take in as much as I can.

I finished up midterm exams this week. It’s been a little difficult trying to figure out the vague expectations of my Italian professors because my only grades are my exams. It’s apparently very uncommon to have multiple choice exams in the Italy, therefore most of my exams were solely 3-6 essay questions. Hopefully I did well on them.

Today started the first day of spring break! I’m extremely excited because my parents are flying into Venice tomorrow. We’re going to spend the week together in Venice, Florence, and Pompeii. My sister Emily and brother-in-law Chris are meeting up with us in Naples and then everyone is going to stay in Macerata for a few nights! It will be so great to share everything I’ve learned with them. This will be their first overseas trip too and I can’t wait to experience it with them. Tomorrow I’m going to take the train to meet my parents in Venice. It should be an adventure because I haven’t made a trip that far by myself yet. Wish me luck!