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Published: August 28th 2006
Ciao! A lot has happened since I last posted. Least of all another thunderstorm playing havoc with my hair 😉
So, as I mentioned in my last post, I moved to my 'Spanish Apartment' yesterday (for those who have seen the movie). It's a simple sentence, isn't it - "I moved to my apartment." Deceptively so, cos there was a hell of a lot of complications, anguish, confusion and CRAP in general! Again, Benvenuto in Italia!
In the end I had decided to get a taxi from my hotel to the apartment (even though they are really close) because I had
excessively excess baggage. The taxi driver dropped me there and I dragged my case to the door with all the nameplates and buzzers - couldn't see their name ANYwhere. The taxi driver called out to see if I was OK and I'm going yep, fine so he drives off. I decided there must be another entrance so I'm circling the building with my case, up and down driveways in the muggy muggyness and eventually go back to the first door and press the buzzer for the blank nameplate. No answer. Try another - no answer. Try the blank one again. Eventually I get a man "Sì?" "Mancini?" Sì" and buzzes me up. STAIRS STAIRS STAIRS STAIRS!!! I whimper softly. I am currently carrying about 30kg of crep btw. I get up the first few then realise the big metal cage in the middle of the staircase is a lift! It's so cool, one of those old-fashioned ones made of wood with windows and brass handles with folding doors etc. Although me + case barely fits it's so tiny! Anyway I get up there and this young guy opens the door and I'm thinking to myself "I didn't know they had a son!" (Note his age would make it physically impossible for him to be their son unless Lucia was quite the promiscuous primary school student). He turns out to be Nichola (sp?), a French student who's been living there for two weeks already. BUT.....this is where things go in a downhill direction.
He's been living there two weeks and has never met the Mancini's. He had no idea I was coming. My room is dirty, the sheets are still dirty from the last guy who was living there, the whole apartment is dirty. When he'd arrived he'd had to search the whole apartment to find any sheets for himself. He doesn't know what is happening and can't contact anyone from the school. The list goes on.
HURRAH!!!
Talk about disaster. He was really good though, trying to call school people, he and his girlfriend took me to a local bar for breakfast, gave me one of his maps, showed me where the supermarket is etc but I was just really overwhelmed. His girlfriend Dora (a Romanian girl from Germany) was leaving that afternoon so at about lunchtime he left with her and didn't come back till after I was in bed. So I basically spent all afternoon in the apartment by myself feeling SO overwhelmed and just a bit freaked in general. Not fun times. I didn't want to leave the apartment either as I felt so disorientated and didn't know if I could find my way back. (eventually I did venture out to try and find a phone and phone card to call and hear a familiar voice) (PS. that was another disaster - every phone and been ripped out of the bloody box for the next 5 miles...). ANYWAY! I felt better, found my way home, sat around for a while more and then a neighbour arrived to wait for two German girls who were to arrive that night. Then things *started* to look up. They are really nice, Sybille & Mariella (I can't even remember!) and M in particular is such a cack. She's all "fucK!!" "shiT!!", swearing all the time with a strong accent.
The appartment is actually really cute (if it was clean), v. quirkily decorated and quite old and retro, posters and trinkets and all kinds of things everywhere. In the end we ended up putting a towel down on our bare mattresses and sleeping on that, I made a pillow out of my jumpers. Luxury what? Was woken in the middle of the might being positively ASSAULTED by mozzies so had to cover up even though it was quite hot. Also need to sleep with earplugs cos we face onto a VERY loud road, as well as being under a flightpath!!
I thought
I had fun with my luggage at (or not at) the airport, but my story pales in comparison to Nichola's!! He too flew Alitalia, he's been here two weeks so far and IS YET TO GET HIS BAGS. He and the school ring everyday but the airline does nothing and just generally epitomises the stereotype of the inefficiency of Italian bureaucracy! Poor guy. That plus the flat is making him rather annoyed shall we say!
Moving on. This morning we three girls walked together to the school for our test. It is literally like a 1 minute walk! Craziness. Most students have to take the bus or metro every day. The building is so gorgeous, inside and out. I will have to take some photos. (PS. no luck re. loading photos as yet.) The test wasn't too bad, then there was an individual oral test, I actually spoke better than I normally do so was quite happy. That didn't take long and we had a few hours before we had to go back so we went to the supermarket.
SO bizarre shopping in an Italian supermarket, only made an idiot of myself a few times so wasn't too bad for my first go. It's good to have some food in the house now at least.
Went back for our results and I'm in level 5! I was really pleased with myself lol, it is the 'high intermediate' level. Had 2 hours of class this arvo with one of my two teachers, middle-aged guy called Sergio, from Napoli. He is so nice and really funny, so class is cool. Almost EVERYONE is German at the school, no exaggeration! There are 8 in my class, only one is a COMPLETE dick, American w/ Australian parents who married an Italian. SO frigging up herself and I already want to punch her and it's only the first day. Please note for her little 'introduce yourself to the class' speech she just went on about how all Italians just stare and stare at here everywhere she goes (because she is so beautiful dontcha know), she is so on herself and arrogant and ARGH!!!! Sorry. Had to vent somehow! Overall I'm looking forward to class. I've signed up to go see some church on Thursday evening, it's free lol. (Santa Maria del Popolo???) There's also a cool half-day excursion this weekend so I'll prob do that too.
We complained to the school and they are v surprised and trying to fix everything, but can't get in touch with the couple, so we shall see. They are meant to arrive tonight so let's hope...
Anyway better go, this post prob isn't that interesting to read but again I have to vent somehow! Oh, one note about the (currently gross) bathroom. The shower (in the bath) 'non funziona molto bene' as they say here; it leaks at the tap, so very quickly you find yourself showering in cold water while standing in an almost-full bath!!! As Mariella said she is worried about "growing mushrooms on her feet." I couldn't stop laughing.
Thanks all for your comments, messages and emails. Missing each and every one of you, and love being in contact with all back home.
Lots and lots of love from Italy,
tess xoxoxoxo
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Camilla
non-member comment
The Spanish Apartment is my favourite!!
Except for the uncleanliness etc you're living my student dream!!!