Today I brought my laptop to the villa where I will have school in the fall, and I am now relaxing in the student lounge and using the wireless internet. I thought it was high time to show everyone a few pictures of my adventures thus far....bear with me as I figure out how to do this.... [View Full Entry]

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This week has been wonderfully busy, as Siena was absolutely mobbed with tourists visiting for the Palio. The Palio took place on Wednesday, but the preparations and pomp surrounding it are continual. It is a huge tradition around which life in Siena is very focused, which therefore makes it very difficult to explain! As I was sitting down to try to write this entry on my host brother's computer, I was telling him how much trouble I was having trying to explain everything that I had seen and how frustrated it was making me. He told me not to worry, and [View Full Entry]

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I had my first Italian exam for my class today, and despite the fact that I was completely exhausted from being out entirely too late last night, I think I did pretty well. Things are getting pretty exciting, as Siena is preparing for the Palio, a horserace that happens twice every summer in Siena (I'll explain it in more detail after it happens when I know a little more. I've been reading about it, but I won't fully understand it until it happens, especially because I've been reading about it in Italian...). But basically, Siena is divided into seventeen sections, (each [View Full Entry]

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Last week, Carlo and Lucia, my host parents, started talking to me about something that was going to be happening on Sunday. I listened attentively and understood that they were going somewhere, and I thought I also heard 'the beach,' and then they asked if I wanted to come, so, putting together what I had gathered, it sounded pretty good to me! Sure enough, Sunday morning Lucia woke me up early and told me to get ready to go to the beach (she noticed how fair skinned I am, and just like a mother, made sure I brought sunscreen). We drove [View Full Entry]

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I've had a busy but exciting week so far. On Monday, it was time to say goodbye to Nonna Tina and move in with the family with whom I will live until Christmas. It was definitely hard to leave her-we had a great week and really enjoyed one another's company (she probably thinks I am the most patient listener ever-little does she know that I listened so quietly because I didn't have any idea what to say). I was supposed to leave sometime Monday afternoon, but Nonna Tina and I kept putting off the inevitable departure. First, we had an extensive [View Full Entry]

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On Saturday, I thought that I might sleep in a little because I had been out pretty late the night before....but Nonna Tina and the Swedish student woke me up earlier than I wanted because he was leaving (for good!) and he wanted to take a picture and say goodbye. Well, I guess getting rid of him wasn't really the worst reason to wake up.... At dinner on Friday, Nonna Tina got really excited and said she had a dessert surprise for us. She went into the kitchen and came back with a strawberry cake kind of thing and a large [View Full Entry]

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I can't believe I've already been in Italy for a week. Looking back, it seems impossible that life can change so much in only a week. I've grown in so many ways through my experiences thus far (including the horizontal way I have grown from all of the delicous Italian cuisine I have been consuming- Mom and Dad, if you're wondering where all of the money is going, most of it is for the large quantities of gelato that I pack away every day). This week has been filled with so many different emotions for me-I've been scared to fly for [View Full Entry]

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Today was market day in Siena, so I got up early to accompany Nonna Tina to the market. It was a totally overwhelming experience. The streets become packed with vendors selling everything--clothes, household items, shoes, delicious food, jewelry, purses.....and the streets are packed with intense shoppers. There was even an outdoor bar set up where I suppose people could stop by and take a few shots if the pressures of shopping became too great. I shopped for awhile with Nonna Tina, then after she left I browsed around by myself. At one point I was looking at some clothes, and an [View Full Entry]

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I just ducked into an Internet cafe from my first Italian rainstorm! I'm having an overwhelming but very wonderful time in Siena so far. The language barrier is frustrating at times, because there are so many things I want to say that I can't find the words for, but that's why I need to work hard at learning! The flight went well and I was actually surprisingly calm (without even taking any tranquilizers!). I apologize if there are mistakes or random symbols in this entry; I'm still getting used to the placement of the keys on this keyboard. And, in addition, [View Full Entry]

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Well, here it goes. I finally broke down and gave into the blogging craze to keep track of my travels abroad. I am getting ready to go to Europe for the first time on Thursday, July 20...I leave the country at 6:55 p.m.! This week has been crazy with preparations and will only get busier and more difficult as the time comes to say goodbye to everyone. Here's to a new life experience! [View Full Entry]

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