Lisey

Well I made it home....after 22 hours of flying, I arrived very tired and very jet-lagged to a beautiful San Diego day! First stop was In-N-Out and then home to look at the massive amount of stuff I have compiled. It feels really good to get home....to drive my car, get a pedicure, have a cell phone......as much as I love Italy I definitely am happy to be here, catching up with family and friends. Thank you to all who have read and responded to m blog this summer. It was fun for me to be able to share my experiences with you all, and I hope you got a glimpse of what my summer was like (even though I feel like I can't even really put it all into words). For further narration, you'll have ... read more

So it is my last day here in Milan.....and I have slightly mixed emotions. I have been a little sad to leave but now that I am all packed and pretty much ready to go, I am ready to come home. It will be good to get settled and stop spending so much money traveling every weekend (even though I love it!) These last few weeks have been great....its really cemented how blessed I have been in this whole endeavor, how much this is exactly the place I was supposed to be. At the beginning I knew that because things kind of came together like they did....I found housing (for free at that!), we had a great bunch of interns that I loved hanging out with, the people I worked with were so welcoming and interested ... read more

There are pictures up of my weekend in Chamonix, France, Naples and Capri, our lunch with the Consul General, my new place....check them out.....same website as before.... read more

So here I am, looking out my 7th floor window and thinking how much I love this city.....also thinking I have six weeks left here....then having the jolting realization that it is really 4....and so I must get everything I have yet to do done really fast. That is going to include climbing the Duomo in Milan, trying my best to see an opera at La Scala, going to Naples this weekend with Francesca (yay for Napoletano food!) and of course wrapping up all of the things I have started/worked on here at my job. Things have been busy here but I really didn't think it would fly by this fast, and I really didn't think I would be so sad to leave! I have so much enjoyed the work environment here, I really like A ... read more

Last weekend Laura and I went to Geneva to see my other friend Laura. I loved it, but I've always loved Switzerland! The 4 1/2 hour train ride up there was beautiful, and once we got near the border it was very serene. I wasn't aware that Lake Geneva was SOO big, but the atmosphere there reminded me a lot of downtown San Diego. Because the lake is so big, it is kind of like the center of the city, and there is the waterside, with cute little cafes and boats etc. The weather was gorgeous, and a nice change from Milan in that there wasn't much humidity and there was a breeze. Plus I always love having water nearby (makes me think I'm at home). :) So we met up with the other Laura and ... read more

Florence was a blast! I arrived late Friday night after a surprisingly (air-conditioned) train ride. My family picked me up and we were all so excited to see each other. They are the dearest people and truly treat me like I am their own daughter! We went back to the house and dropped my stuff off and then went up to Fiesole, which is the littel town up on the hill above Florence, to watch the fireworks that were going off from Piazzale Michelangelo. Friday was the holiday of the parton saint of Florence, I think. So that was fun, not the greatest view, but hey, it was a nice night. Then we went home and RosaMaria made me almost a full meal! It was like 10:30 at night! But sure enough she mad me penne ... read more

I have put new pictures up...they are from Stefano's birthday dinner (yes he had a birthday week instead of day) and also my trip to Florence.....here's the link: http://community.webshots.com/user/harelm Enjoy!! p.s. Journal about the trip soon to follow...... read more

This week was so busy at work! I feel like I barely slept this week but its okay because that means I was out doing fun things. We are in "peak season" for visas, which let me tell you is great fun. I have been enjoying apertivi after work (which I was corrected actually means a drink, but in trying to equate it to something in the U.S., I said appetizers, which is actually antipasti). So moral of the story is that "apertivi" is kind of like happy hour, but with better food than peanuts and chips. So there. That's what I've been doing a few times a week and its fun. On Wednesday night I went out to dinner with Stefano and Lucia to (re) celebrate his birthday. It was really fun, albeit long, but ... read more

I have put my pictures up on a new website because it is easier for me to do and I can add more at one time. Here is the link. http://community.webshots.com/user/harelm I will add more as I go.....Enjoy!!!!... read more

So Friday night the Marines had a TGIF happy hour at their place. They have a really nice place where all of them live, just on the other side of the wall from the consulate. It was fun and nice to socialize with people from work outside of work. One thing I reallylike about the group at this consulate is that it is a pretty close group, everyone is really friendly, knows everyone, and is really helpful. The CG's secretary, Debra, is always telling Laura (the other intern) and I that if we need anything to just let her know because she knows how hard it is moving to another country all alone. So it was fun. The Marines do this happy hour every Friday to raise money for the Marine Core Ball, which I guess ... read more