Culture Shock...4 months in

So it was a kind of emotional weekend, I have been wanting to write, but I have been kind of busy in the afternoons. I now am dancing 3 times a week. Classico (ballet) Monday 7:30-9, and Moderna 8-9 Wednesday and Friday. The girls are the nicest. I was kind of surprised they knew most of my classmates, but this is a small enough town that between school and extracurricular activities you kind of know everyone. Including me, there are 6 girls in my ballet class, and mmm probably 15 in my modern class. I realized just how long it's been since I did dance. I remember being so flexible, and now, nothing. But its okay, it will come. Haha All of the french words are the same, and I understand italian now so no translations are needed (but the girls like to try and translate stuff for fun it's cute!)


Anyway, lets get down to why the title is the title. I broke down twice this weekend. Alessandro laughed at me when I told him that...but like for real. I think it's usually just when there is too much drama, and when I feel like no one truly understands where I am coming from. It's difficult because my family always wants me to open up, but when they are the problem, I cant say anything. Anyway I am beating around the bush...


Saturday's lesson: Discipline methods vary from country to country or even from house to house. I wanted to learn about a new philosophy at first, but I realized that sometimes learning isn't always pretty. It's hard to take things in when its sooo different from what your used to. Why is it that we have to be put in the most difficult situations to realize how lucky we are? 


Sunday evening: I was texting Elisa and asking her for help with math, we were talking a bit how I don't understand anything, and Italian math is much more confusing...she said "devi impegnarti" (basically means you need to work harder) I tried to discuss this with my family, and soon I revealed the thing that I had really been thinking for a while: here, the teachers speak, you take notes, you study, you learn, you fail, it's your fault. In the USA (and Trine said in Norway): the teachers speak, you take notes, they give you exercises  you work in groups, they help you learn the material,  you can email them, you fail, it's their fault and they help you learn the material. Alessia who had been telling me "cosa c'e' Sara? Dimi" (what is it Sara? Tell me.) now was telling me to talk about it later because the boys have 10+ more years of school in Italy  I can't give them other ideas. This really hurt. I mean okay, so they tell me to talk to them, but when I actually have something on my mind I'm not allowed to say it. Great. Anyhow, I am feeling better now. I mean there are few people who actually get where I am coming from, but it's good to know that there are some. I wish that in the future I could come back to Italy, become a teacher, and change the way Italians are taught.


The quadremestre is coming to a close, I am feeling pretty good, I think almost all of my classes I am going to pass. Honestly I am not really worried about grades because the first 3 months I understood very little its just been this past month or two that I actually could kind of read the books on my own, but still the concepts are difficult. I think they would be difficult even if they were in English  I am just proud that I have had so many passing grades :)


Love and hugs from Italy...time to get ready for math with Emanuele (Daniele's brother, he talks a lot...hopefully he is able to summarize this time)....hahaha :)


Hugs from Italy!

Oh! I forgot to add that today we got the names of the Spanish people who are coming to our school in Feburary, unfortunatly we wont be hosting because my family is already hsot ing me, but I am excited to go there. When Prof Lessie said that some parents get so attached to their host children and cry when they leave...I was like gosh give me a break, 4 days is nothing.  It wasn't till like a month and a half later that I actually felt close to my family here. I hope there is not a ton of crying when we leave for spain because 1 week vs 1 year...hmm who should be more homesick? Hahaha jk jk. But yeah I am excited! I mean Spain was my first choice and now I get to go there! :D :D 

Sappada, Ancona, e La Epifania

So I guess I just talked about Natale, now I will catch you up on the second week of Christmas break and then we can move on to the regular updates....

Anyhoo...we went to Sappada, a place in the Dolomite Mountains/Alps from December 30th to January 2nd. A PIECE OF INFORMATION: The Dolomite Mountains are part of the alps, so if you went there (like me), you can say you have been to the Alps. But the Alps are not the Dolomite Mountains. Hehe :) Just thought of the "a square is a rectangle but a rectangle is not a square". Basically, the Dolomite Mountains are ONLY in Veneto (says Daniele...if it's wrong, he's to blame) then the Alps are all of the north north part of Italy.

An Ice Fountain in a town near Sappada

Nicola grooving with Alessia's new sunglasses :)

Enrico

We came back Wednesday night arround 8:30 pm, had dinner at Alessias parents house, and then I went home to unpack and repack for Ancona where Vito and Franca (two teachers that my grandparents hosted when my dad was my age) still live. Sorry mom, didn't get a picture of them, but it's only like 3 hours away by train, so i plan to be back before I leave. Here are a few pics, there was like no one there because it's a beach town and its winter right now....A thing that Vito and Franca kept repeating is that Ancona kind of is the division line, the towns to the left (more north) are all flat and the beaches are flat like normal. Then to the right its more "mountainus". 

The Cathedral of Loretta where the "house" of  the Virgin Mary is. 

And lastly here are 3 pictures. The first is the morning of the Epiphany, when the Befana (a witch that puts candy in stockings of children if their good, coal if they are bad...like Santa) then there is the burning of La Befana...but its just a manikin. Here they believe this witch/old person represents the year that just past, and by burning it cleans up the past and makes way for a better future year. If the ashes go to one side it will be a lucky year, to the other side it will be an unlucky year. It went to the lucky side...so if this year was better than last year that would be amazing because last year was pretty fantastic. 

Christmas in Italy

Well I am sorry I have not posted much these past few weeks, but I have been kind of busy, getting closer with my family and adding to it. So we have 2 weeks of winter break. Cool I know :) But that's because we also celebrate the Epiphany. Well, lets talk about Christmas and then I will explain more. So about Christmas here...its basically the same, with a few changes in the meal plan (well, my family back home is not very traditional when it comes to Christmas meal but anyway, i am digressing ;) Mr. P!) Let's start the story Christmas Eve. I went to Mass. The first time I have ever gone to church on Christmas Eve. It was beautiful. At the end of the mass we kissed eachother on both cheeks (a normal italian greeting) and wished eachother a Buon Natale. Afterwords, most people went out for hot chocolate but we went home because Nicola was asleep (after the first 10 minutes of the mass he was out haha)! Then Christmas morning began like any other.   The boys woke up at like 7:30, and we went down stairs to see the pile of gifts Babbo Natale brought us. Then we got dressed, and went to Nonna Carmen's to see what gifts Babbo Natale brought there.

Here are a few pics.

Troubble! and Toot and Puddle...in English!

Nicola got a hamster

Alessia got a beautiful purse

CUPS AND TEA/TABLESPOONS!!!!

Then it was time for lunch. Alessias family came over. That means Nonna Carmen, Nonno Loris, and Fabio. We had a type of salsage, chicken, mashed potatoes,and tonge...Then for dessert was my birthday cake! It had a lemony tasting cake, creamy frosting, and in the middle of the two layers of cake was chocolate ganash...mmmmm!

Thats enough for now, I will post pictures of the Alps, and la befana later!

The End? Or a new begining?

Tomorrow is 21/12/12 or 12/21/12 depending on how you write it. Anyway, it's the Mayan end of the world, or maybe just a change...anyway, as I said at dinner, if the world did end tomorrow, for me, it would be sad, but also okay. It's sad for the obvious reason, that when I said goodbye to my parents on september 5th in New York, hugged them, it was the last time that I saw them, and felt their presence. BUT! On the good side, it would mean I died living my dream. Isn't that the best way to die? Not suffering, not from illness, or in a place you didn't want to be, but in a place you always dreamed of, a place that you took risks to get there, a place that you (and maybe other people) always wanted to be, and you got there!! Also, if we put a little christian into this, my family here, and my family in the USA will all be able to meet each other in heaven. Nonna Carmen will let my family try some of her amazing food, dad can let everyone taste what REAL pancakes and other baked goods taste like, Nonno Sergio will get to see God, who he has faitfully been following and reading about for so many years, all will be okay.

5 days till christmas. :) No tree yet. Going to do that Saturday...I hope. Tomorrow school, shopping in Padova with Diletta and Andrea, and the dinner for 3^C. Saturday is school, then lunch at Nonno Sergio's (it's his birthday), and Rugby dinner. Sunday should be free, then Monday is Christmas eve, Tuesday is Christmas, Wednesday is another feast day, Thursday-Saturday are homework days, Sunday-Wenesday (2nd January) we are going to the mountains to ski and have fun, Thursday-Saturday I go to Ancona to meet  "Franca" a person I have been hearing about for years but never met. Sunday rest. And monday the 6th back to school. Gosh. This break will go fast!

I promise to post pictures of christmas! Buon Natale!

Ciao!

Wait, what is this I am eating?

So, I have eaten some pretty strange things here in Italy. Mostarda, various types of squid, quail, cow's intestine, horse meat. Yesterday at lunch I ate something that was on the same level of gross as the cow's intestine. It was a calf's (baby cow) liver. I was not told what I was eating untill after I hade taken a few bites. It did not taste good, but it wasn't awful either. Once they told me I was eating a calf's liver, I almost lost it. That is soooo gross. Yuck! Good thing there was more normal meat being served as well.

After lunch we went to Verona. Not to like Verona Verona with the history and all that, but to a Villagio di Natale (Christmas Village).

There were soooooooooooooo many manger scenes, and things to add to your manger scene. Ornaments, yeah it just kept going and going. When we finally reached the end/main part there was this little kids Christmas play. Daniele (my host dad) was asked to be Babbo Natale (Santa Clause). Alessia was laughing because she said that Nicola needs to watch out because papa is Babbo Natale, can't be a bad boy, Babbo Natale may be closer than you think! haha anyway...

Today I made chocolate chip cookies. Enrico kept complaining that I was using the wrong bowl, and I was doing stuff wrong. I asked him if he would like to help, but he just said "no no vai vai" (no no, go go). But the cookies came out pretty well. I am always so nervous about translating recipes from cups to grams, because it never feels like the measurement is correct. Every sight has a different translation. This is the recipe I used to try and copy the Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip cookies. Tea spoon meaning the spoon Italians use for coffee, not a soup spoon. 

300 grams chocolate chips

335 grams flour (farina)

1 teaspoon aking soda (lievita) 

1 teaspoon salt (sale)

225 grams butter (burro)

180 grams sugar (zucchero)

180 grams brown sugar (zucchero di canna)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

2 large eggs (uova) 

Then just follow the instructions of normal Toll House Cookies.