A Week in Milano with Good Food and Good Friends

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March 15- March 20 ~ Group B with Vic, Sophie, and Eoghan
*Thanks Eoghan for letting me steal your pictures....yet agian.

After a Skype conversation with my father on Sunday I have decided to stick to the day by day paragraph format, as he is one of the two people I know subscribe to this blog. So I know I’m pleasing at least 50% satisfied reader rate 

Sunday, March 15th: Had a quiet morning. Arrived home a 4am/04:00. Spent Saturday night out with friends in Milano. Went to a Couch Surfing gathering/birthday party first and then met up with people at “the columbs”. After puddering around for about an hour went for a jog. Got back home, showered, got dressed. A little after noon I drove around with Zander trying to find a supermarket that was open but alas Sunday is not a day for shopping in Italy. Did so for about an hour, then both hungry we returned home and made lunch from the few articles of food we did have left. Did laundry, and had a really nice skype convo with my Dad. I had to type and he spoke. It was nice - as I am the one who usually does the majority of the talking to do some more listening. Also got to catch up with another good friend, Marcy. It was nice to catch up with home - though neither of them seemed particularly excited about the possibility of me go to Palestine this summer. Will be able to write more about that after I meet with the women in charge of the volunteer organization in Rome next week. We are working in Milano all week. Laura, Xander, and Helen are in the flat with us until Wednesday afternoon, then will return Friday evening. Were here all week. Think it will be a nice week.

Monday, March 16th: Doing shows at the same theatre for three days. The kids were very quiet. Had to show up VERY early and the people running the theatre seem a little tightly wound. They are very not Itailan and always want us to be early and finish early. No workshops for these shows. So for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. We four do one show from 9-10, hour break, one show from 11-12, two and a half hour break for lunch, then one more show from 2:30-3:30. Monday we did “Three Little Brothers” and “Peter Pan”. During our lunch break we went to Carefour. Our stereo broke so we had to find another one, but the loaner from the theatre is pretty good, and our food shopping took up too much time. I took particularly long as I also had to get: new iPod headphones, a microphone for my computer to Skype, airborn/immune boosters (my cold is back), breathing strips (as my cold is back so my snoring), get my boots re-healed at the shoe repair place across from the supermarket, and weigh myself for the week. Despite all the munching I did last week I still lost a little over 1lb, . Had a very quick lunch and then rushed back to the theatre, which is about twenty minutes away. After our third show we headed home and the girls and I went for a jog near the flat. When we returned we had a message from Christina saying we needed to drop off a TomTom that had been left at the flat with someone from the office, who was close to where we were doing the shows. Ugh! Back in the car, with the TomTom that didn’t have a charger - hope that didn’t become a problem later for Valeria. First we couldn’t find the address. Then Eoghan and Christina got it sorted. Xander, came with Vic, Sophie and I as he needed to go to Cariefour to do food shopping and we needed to go back to pick up a new stereo. Of course it’s now around 5pm/17:00 and there is Milan traffic. Then when we reach the destination we realize that the street and house number are correct, but we are not suppose to be in Milano but a town another twenty minutes away from where we were in Milano (which is much closer to where the theatre is and would also be twenty minuets from the house). More traffic. Everyone is trying to be a sport but it’s frustrating, I was glad to have something to do. Arrived at the correct location, dropped off the TomTom. Then sat in MORE traffic to get to Carriefour. Got a sterio and made it home about two and half hours after we set off. Today we did lots of waiting. In the morning we made sure we left before 7am/07:00 because the theatre told us they wanted us to arrive at 8am/08:00 and that the traffic would be aweful. It took us twenty two minuets so we waited for the office people to show up. Then after getting our stuff set in and set up (which takes about five minuets) we waited again until 9am/09:00 for the show to start. Waited an hour between shows. Sophie and Vic had to wait for me at Cariefour (the first time we went), I ended up choosing the wrong line to stand in with the worlds slowest cashier and sitcom like people standing in front of me, anything to make it take longer: chatting with one another, multiple price checks, incorrect barcodes on items and so on. Seems strange that I just read “Godot” and NOW I’m waiting for everything. Katie arrived around 9pm/21:00. She, Vic, and Helen are going to see The Killers tomorrow in Milano. It was really nice to see Katie and catch up with her. Watched an episode of Scrubs with Xander while I eat my dinner and went to be.

Tuesday, March 17th: HAPPY ST. PADDY’S DAY! (Which is not a big holiday at all in Italy.) Another day at the theatre. Three shows. “The Gift” and “The Jungle Book”. Went home for lunch and went for a little jog with Vic and Sophie. The weather has continued to be amazing, almost too hot for running. Sent some postcards before returning to the theatre. After our 2:30/14:30 show, we drove back home. Sophie went to Milano to meet a friend of hers, who is also on tour in Italy doing TIE. Eoghan took a nap. I put on something green and went to the café and used the internet. Skyped Mom and had a nice chat with her. Heard some lovely exciting news - my brother and his wife will be moving to IL! Laura picked me up and drove me to the train station, so I didn’t have to carry my computer around Milano. Met my Israeli friend Yuval for a drink. Been good about writing in my journal this week as well. Yuval took me to a really cool area with super swanky bars, AMAZING aperitif near a Piatza with an arch that use to be the northern entrance into Milano, built by Napoleon, and during the summer apparently the streets are swamped with people. Got the train and bus back to Palazzolo around midnight and met up with Helen, Katie, and Vic at the Irish Pub. They had a wonderful time at the show and were glowing and really really happy. Eoghan was at the Irish Pub too, which I was shocked to see was almost empty. Had one more vino and then headed home. It was a very good St. Paddy’s Day, though there was nothing like the hubbub or drunkenness in America.

Wednesday, March 18th: Last day at the theatre. Two “Jungle Books” and finished up with “Peter Pan”. Hottest day so far and it’s the two shows I wear full body animal suits. Baloo’s bear suit for the WHOLE show and I’m in and out and then back into the Nanna dog suit for PP. Stayed in the little town with Eoghan over lunch. Went the park with him and then took myself on a jog. Met back up with him after my run at a lovely café that smelled wonderful. Café Roma. I found myself wishing I hadn’t already eaten everything smelled and looked so good. Started looking in Lonely Planet for what Vic and I might like to do on our Easter holiday. Originally Vic had friends coming to visit her in Milano but the company they worked for is going bankrupt and so they had to cancel their flight. So now Vic and I are planning to spend our Easter week off (April 7th-12th) on some adventure together. I feel terrible for her friends but would be lying if I said I wasn’t pleased to have Vic coming with me. It’s scary, these little pangs of reality, being reminded of just how lucky I am with my job: cash payment weekly for 8 months despite how much or how little work is booked and performed. I usually have some of the afternoon and my entire evening off, a company car to share, gas/petrol paid for, and I’M IN ITALY! The weather continues to be beautiful. I am a very very lucky girl. Just wish I could stop worrying about my next move: what will I do this summer? Where will my next job be? Should I stay and work for Lingue until June 30th like they want me to? Should I return and work for them next season? I wish I could just put all these worries in a drawer and enjoy the sun shine and when I feel really ready to, take them out and calmly sort my shit our, but everything just keeps bouncing around in the back of my mind. I can’t help it. During our last show, I noticed a formulary looking little girl in the audience. It turned out to be a camper from the summer camp I did in Milano last summer. Laura. She looked exactly the same. It was nice to see her, gave her a big hug. It was a nice way to end our little stay and the time Nazi theatre. As the Bum Chums and Xander were leaving in the evening we finally had enough room in the kitchen to make one of our planned meals. We did all the prep work for our: Falafel, Cuscus, Salad, Taziki Sause, Grilled cheese and veg on bread dinner and for our chocolate strawberry desert. Around three thirty we (S,V, E, and I) went and laid out on my big blanket in the park where we usually go running. Did a little more running with Sophie. Then we all chilled out for a bit. Eat some carrots, fruit, cheese, and crackers. Drank some cheep Vodka with even cheeper lemonade. We four had great fun trying to teach Eoghan how to do a cartwheel. Got a little bit of sun even! Got back home just in time to say ciao to Group A. Then we made up the rest of dinner, and all sat down together. It was a lovely lovely dinner. Went over my WW points a little….a lot, but it was good food and totally worth it. I enjoy eating and cooking with this group and though we may rub one another the wrong way from one moment to the next we do get along really well and I enjoy the group and the dynamic of it very much.

Thursday, March 19th: Got to sleep in a little bit which was nice after our grand meal. Did two “Peter Pan’s”, maybe my favorite show to do. My Captain Hook is getting pretty freaking fantastic if I don’t say so myself. The school was four minutes from the flat. The teachers were lovely and the kids were nice. Did one workshop after each show - and we were out of there and back home by 1pm/13:00. Made up some vegy stir fry for lunch and Sophie, Vic and I went back to the park to catch some more sun and enjoy the day. Lazed about on the blanket for some time, I was in a tank top and got some funny looks from the Italians who feel that 18 C/70some F (I think) is still winter jacket weather. Did some more thinking about Easter break, I think Sardinia looks like a strong candidate. Realized though that Pasah is April 8th, our first whole day off. I would love to find a sater to go to, but maybe Vic and I will each just drink four glasses of wine together and I’ll tell her the story of Passover - might have to settle for that if we want to make it to Sardinia and have any time to see anything and get back by Monday to Milano. While Vic and Sophie ran I finished listening to “Alice - Through the Looking Glass”. Realized that all the ‘reading’ I’ve done since I returned to Lingue in January has been in the last three weeks. Never finished “Measure of a Man”, so all I’ve gotten though it “Waiting for Godot” and both of the “Alice” books. Tonight Vic made us potato leek soup for dinner. She and Sophie went to Carifour to get some soup fixings as well as some apartment stuff: TP and an Iron. Laura has been going to a park near Carifour so I drove over with the girls and when they went shopping I started running back via this park. It’s huge and really nice. There is a lake, which I’m almost positive was a quarry. The park is quite big, there are cafes, area’s to play soccer, sunny lawns, and lots of wooded paths. After a little run around/exploration I started figuring out how to get back to the apartment, in about no time at all I was back home, so I wandered around the neighborhood at a jogging pace for another half hour or so. As I was running home Vic and Sophie were just pulling up in the car. Man did I feel cool helping carry the 48 roll TP pack upstairs. Eoghan got back from his swim short after we returned. I was assigned parcelie cutting duty for dinner. The menu tonight was: carrot sticks and more taziki (plain yogurt, vinegar, cucumber, a little salt, a little garlic, and mint) dip, had to use up the bread from the night before so we made flatbread with pesto & tomato and flatbread with spinach and brie. Then we eat the soup, which Vic had never made before but was excellent. I did not take part in the bread and butter spoon substitute option, though I was tempted. For desert Vic made a layered cup ( a baby cup for me) of biscuit/digestive crumbs, strawberry jam, cream-cheese-like cheese (name begins with an M, I think it’s often used in creamy pasta sauces and cheese cakes), strawberry yogurt, sliced strawberry, and a little piece of chocolate. YUM YUM YUM! After dinner and washing up Vic and I walked to the café to use the internet. I was glad to have a walk after another heavy dinner. I had thought about going to the boxing gym and having a very light dinner but a good dinner and being with everyone was more important then saving WW points and exercising. When I told Vic that I was thinking about going to the boxing gym in the evening she seemed really disappointed, she didn’t ask me to stay, but I could tell she wanted me there. I love my Brits but at times I do wish they would be a little more direct and just say what they thought and what they wanted. Sometimes I think with Sophie too that she doesn’t tell me what’s on her mind or what’s bothering her - which leaves me guessing and feeling self conscious. Talked with Vic about it on the walk over to the café. Got some interneting done, but I still wish we had it at the flat. The man who owns the café gave me the password to his connection - but I still feel obligated to buy something when I’m in there and it’s a café not really an internet café so I never feel like I can stay as long as I want to. And I think we (the company) are pretty much the only one’s who go in there and use the internet so I don’t want to appear to be, as the Brits would say, “taking the piss”. Sometimes I can get a signal at the laundry next door but tonight I couldn’t. So I got my immediate e-mails and facebooking done - and again, my theatre inquiry and job searching was put off until another day. I wish I could hire someone to do all this crap for me - yes I am aware of the concept of an Agent, but an agent doesn’t want me to travel, and agent wants me to be a work machine, to make enough money that a 10% cut is a nice chunk of change. Ahh well, walked back to the flat in the crisp evening. Showered and spent the end of the evening writing these blog entries in the bathroom (it’s the only place I can type or make noise after both people in the bed room or the boys in the kitchen bed room have gone to sleep). Now I should do the same. Feels good to be getting something checked off my check list, and though I havn’t been able to check the “stick to WW” box, I have been much much better about making sure I: wear sunscreen, floss, and write in my journal because of the check list. Usually I’ve been pretty good about jogging but I need to do my 30 min of stretching too. Also need to be spending more time practicing my Italian. Even if it’s something I might do anyway like wash a sink of dishes, or take my vitamins in the morning, it feels nice to get to check something off a list. Feel like a bit or a lamo/dork but who’s judging? And it seems more or less to be working.

Friday, March 20th: Had an interesting day at work. We arrived at school a little after our usual thirty minutes before the first show. Then we discovered that the shows were suppose to be at a theatre, not in the school. This theatre was on a piatza, with no parking. Parked and walked with TomTom to the theatre. It was a nice 250 seat theatre. Nice to be in a real theatre, after joking with Vic last night about wanting to be a real actress again. Our little stereo wasn’t big enough for the theatre and since we were in the four group we were able to work it out so that one of us would work the sound for the show from the booth at the back of the theatre. First was “Three Little Bro’s” (though we were half way through setting up for Jungle Book before a teacher told us that this was the crowd for Lil Bro’s). There were almost 200 kids and it took a little while to figure out how to use the space well. I ditched the flashcards as their was no way they would see them past the first tear of seats. It was a little daunting being alone on stage (as I am in both the The Three Little Bro’s as Mummy, and Jungle Book as Baloo) for the first ten, fifteen minutes of the show on my own. We had a stage mic and the music was nice and loud, the only thing I had to keep up was my energy and make sure that my actions were even bigger and my over acting even over done for the little one’s sitting in the back of the house to see. When I left the stage I was feeling pretty good and as I was changing into Timmy I got myself really syked up. So much so that I forgot to take off my Mummy skirt and I went out, and bounded up and down the stairs, introducing myself as Timmy, doing the “Hello Children! I’m Timmy, whats your name? Nice to meet you” lines. I had no idea I still had my skirt and apron I was so focused on being energetic and keeping the kids focus. I was having a great old time, till Vic, almost crying she was trying not to laugh so hard, whispered to me “that’s a nice skirt you got on Timmy”. I was totally caught off guard. You can’t really improve your way out with clever speech in these shows as the kids English is so limited. I whipped the skirt off and the rest of the show went well. Eoghan was doing the sound and came on still as the wolf. The theatre manager was lovely and brought us food and drinks after the first show. The rest of the show went fine - but I still can’t believe I came on with my Mummy skirt on, apparently I was holding it and everything going up and down the middle isle in the stairs. OY! Next we did “Peter Pan”. I did sound and came on as Captain Hook from the back. It was cool to get to watch the show, they aren’t as awful as I remember thinking they were in San Remo. I don’t know if that’s because I’ve gotten so use to them or if they are just that dependent on the interaction with the kids. Probably a little bit of both. I had a second costume malfunction: my cheap plastic hook fell apart, but I was able to adlib with that one and pretend to be really embarrassed to be seen without my hook. Got quite a work out chasing Eoghan up and down the stairs during our sword fight, and Vic (who was doing the music while I was on stage) and I had a good loud laugh in the sound proof booth when I ran off. We had another huge crowd for Peter Pan, I think a little smaller then the first maybe 180 kids. Jungle Book we only had 80, but we started VERY late. One class just never showed up, the whole day was a little disorganized but what else is new? No costume problems this time, just a little smudging from my bear noise by the end of the show. Had a nice last group. Had one particularly adorable boy who I bonded with as his class was all Milan fans and I’ve adopted Inter as my favorite soccer team. I had him come on stage to be the lion during my epic fifteen minuet intro on stage alone. He not only repeated everything I told him to say “My name is___” “I am a lion” “I am king of the jungle” “Roar” but he did the same voice and hand gestures as me. He was awesome. I saw him dancing his little tush off during the Animal Boogie and after the show he came up to me and told me in very good English for an Italian eight year old “Inter Forever. They are the best”. The whole show was made more enjoyable for us by Sophie, who had been doing the music coming on as Julie (the little girl at the end) and with all the confidence in the world saying “Hello my name is Sue” (she plays Sue in “The Gift”, who also happens to talk about her village) We had another little chuckle after the show. What a funny way to end the week. Again we had no workshops. We drove straight to Milano Centrale after to drop Vic off, she is going to meet up with her Dad this weekend, who is skiing in the alps and who invited her to join him and his wife. Dad should you decide you need a last minute ski holiday in the Italian Alps -Yes, I would love to come too. A little jealous but pleased at least one of us will get some more snowboarding in before the season is over this year. Not sure what I’m up to tonight. Probably going to go to the boxing gym but other than that….it’s still a mystery. Think I’ll go back to the big park with the lake for a little bit, and spend some more time outside today before I go to the café with internet. I didn’t realize how often I go on the internet when I have the option to, how dependent I’ve come to be on it. Skype, e-mail, booking flights, keeping in touch with people, looking for work; I never feel like I have enough time to get everything done on the internet I mean to. No plans as of yet for tonight or tomorrow. Sunday we are leaving early in the morning to head to Rome and get as much time in the city as possible. Sophie has already been, Eoghan is going back for Easter break, and Vic isn’t coming because it’s the three group who is going and she went with the three group last time. Hope I’ll have time enough to see everything I want to. I’ve also planned to meet up with Helen the women in charge of the Palistine volunteer project this summer. So much to do: little things like mailing gifts to people, keep up with my exercise, do my laundry, figure out my Easter break plans, buy groceries for next week, weigh myself ( a little worried with all our group eating the WW will not be satisfied with my light jogging to make up for all the extra food I’ve consumed. ), I also have to figure out my life, figure out what I want to do with my summer, and my life. So much to do. But for now I think I’ll just go enjoy the sun. Will add my updates after I weigh in.

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Photos

sun set on Wednesday
can you see the hang glider?

Eoghan (and me)
on the deck

Brugherio - Milano
view from our deck where we took our breaks at the threatre from Monday - Wednesday

Vic
on the picnic blanket

Wednesday
view of me and Sophie from the picnic blanket

working out
Wednesday

Sophie
on the track near the apartment