Long Time No Blog!

Well it has been over a month since I've posted.......some of you may have not even noticed haha! But alas, I'm back, and ready to share share share what's been going on. If you're not ready to read read read all of this, don't. Or feel free to skip around. Or grab a friend and popcorn read (!). Ready, GO :)

So, to start off I'm just going to briefly recap the end of my time in Spain. Considering the fact that my last post was in complaint of the (bogus) Spanish health standards, things definitely ended better than they started. But I'm not going to go into too much detail (won't go into the funny stories or bratty backtalk...) because I've mentally moved on from España. and it's better that way. Gotta compartmentalize things these days.

1. I got to go to the Atletico de Madrid futbol team training session, hang out by their really nice cars, and take pictures with all the players once they came out from the locker room after practice. This was all courtesy of my host dad who's client is actually one of the members of the team (a very good looking 20 year old professional soccer player... victory). I got to meet Kun Agüero from Argentina and Diego Forlàn who won the Golden Ball in the World Cup this year! It was really cool.

2. Maria came to visit me in Madrid for a whole week! So my host family left for vacation and since there wasn't enough room for me in the first place they went, they told me I could just stay home for a week alone. Which would kind of be cool if I weren't in the middle of nowhere. Anyways, I convinced Ria to fly down from Vienna to stay with me for the week. We got to do all the touristy things I hadn't gotten to do yet in Madrid and it was a great time. We took the Hop-On, Hop-Off bus around Madrid (quick! change the language of the commentator without the other person noticing!) and also took a day trip out to Toledo. We also got to relax by the pool by my house and I finally was able to prove to someone that yes indeed I was living in Africa-looking boonies.

3. After Maria left, I took a train down to the south of Spain to meet up with my host family. It was nice because I got to go to the beach, but most of the time I was having to deal with the baby who wouldn't stop running to and from the water, try to eat sand (typical.), all while his grandma and grandpa say obnoxious things about what I'm doing right or wrong (or how obscene it is that some women were topless, etc. etc.) to the other retired people who own condos there. This was all going down while my host mom was further down the beach away from the family because she didn't feel comfortable tanning topless around her mother and father in law. hah.

Anyways, I got to go to Aguadulce Beach (by Almeria) for about 5 days and then we drove further down the coast closer to Cartagena and stayed at La Azohia Beach for 3 days. Close quarters + too much family that's not even my family = ready to gooo. At each place we were meeting up with some part of their extended family. So basically I was at another family's family reunion. Talk about awkward. I felt like the whole time I was either a- invisible or b- in the way. Not a good feeling. But hey, BEACH. and it was pretttty blue/green water. So suck on that.

Kiddie/I'm a Demon Child Quote of the Trip: I play high-five with the baby all the time and I also say high five to Ivan a lot. This one time though I did the whole "Up high, down low, in the middle... Too Slow!" thing and to my surprise, his face went stone cold and he proceeded to say "I don't want to be friends with anyone who does that." Then he walked away.

CLASSIC.

When I got back from the beach I had one day to pack up everything and say my goodbyes...to my two friends...? hahahaha i sound like a loser (but you would be a loser too if you lived in Las Matas, just sayin').

THEN I FLEW TO ITALY. (after paying easyJet around 60 euros because they are the DEVIL.)

So the first night I was in Italy I wrote a journal entry on the computer because I knew I wouldn't have internet for days and I was just going to use that as my blog post, but since that was over a week ago I'll include it (just for kicks, it'll be funny to go back and read my reactions from the first day with the study abroad group) and then tell you more about being here in Siena! (Disclaimer: I was still really annoyed with easyjet so please disregard, or laugh at, my ranting.)

Arrival to Siena Italian Studies Program- Sunday, September 5, 2010

So the morning started off pretty terribly after Roberto (host dad) dropped me off at the airport at around 5:30am. I had to pay easyJet for all this stupid baggage crap because they’re huge losers. First of all, my main checked bag was 3 kg over weight… I knew it was going to be a little overweight but sometimes they let it slide. Not easyJet. They just want to steal your money left and right. So I had to pay 36 euros. Then after going through security and getting a quick coffee and croissant. I stood in the ridiculous boarding line since there are no seat assignments and everyone freaks out and wants to be first. I was pretty close to the front but once they started checking tickets the ticket lady would make every single person with a carry-on suitcase fit it into their stupid little measuring holder thing. Mine fit of course but I had stuck my camera case on top of it and covered it with my jacket and it almost passed but she busted me and then I had to get out of line and pay them 22 more euros to send my carryon under the plane even though my little tiny camera bag can fit under the seat in front of me perfectly fine and doesn’t bother anyone or take up any overhead compartment space! I was so extremely pissed off by the time I got on the plane I just wanted to get to Rome. And then, homegirl in the row behind me starts painting her nails. Really. Really?! You didn’t think about the toxic fumes that are currently permeating the entire enclosed aircraft? Rude. Anyways, the flight was fine. Got to Rome and got my bags and headed to the Siena Italian Studies meeting point. There were already lots of students and bags sitting in the middle of the hallway. I arrived there around 10:30am and we had to wait until the entire group arrived before heading to Siena so we had to wait around till 2pm. Not that fun and certainly uncomfortable (airplane floor bruised my butt) but we all started talking a little and getting to know each other. There is no one from the South (well except for Rebekah who’s the other girl from UGA). There are 32 students total and about half the group is from Siena College in New York. They all basically know each other because that school is baby size and some of them are even good friends. They were friendly though. Then there are some other people from around New York, then some randomers from Montana State University who seemed cool and outdoorsy and the rest I haven’t really met yet. Once everyone arrived we boarded a charter bus and drove three hours north to Siena. I sat with Sophia who is really nice and we talked a lot and slept some too (at least I don’t have jetlag…). Everything was going great until the anticipation of meeting our host families arrived. As we pulled into some parking lot, we spotted all the host families waiting in a big clump. Roni and Mike (staff from SIS) would call us out one by one (or in twos if you have a roommate) and you would get off the bus to meet your family! Really nerve-wracking! I got picked up by my “family” who is an older widow named Giovanna. We packed my suitcases into her little car and drove to a gelato place (where I got to pick out the flavors I wanted---Nutella and Peach first!) and took some home to eat. Pros of my living situation= I don’t have to share a room. I don’t have to share a family. The apartment is close to/within walking distance to the city walls. Cons= It’s just her, Giovanna. Not exactly the loud, big dinner table full of people I was thinking in my head. She smokes. I don’t think a lot, but she smokes in the house therefore it is smelly…ughhhh. She told me she’s a vegetarian? Which is so bizarre because I didn’t mark veggie on my application and there are lots of people who did and who might not be with families who are veggies. And I’m pretty sure I marked that I didn’t smoke either. And I also wrote in my app that I am close to my family and like to be around lots of people and blah blah blah… so much for them “perfectly matching” us to what we wrote in our apps. This is basically the exact opposite of what I wanted lol. But looking on the bright side, this is verrry different from my last new family experience and I think if I had been placed with a family that had little kids I would have compared it a lot to Madrid and to the De Frutos family. This way I’m having a totally different experience and keeping a widow company while her daughter is studying/living in Pisa. Plus, I’ll be gone most of the days in classes and stuff. And it is very nice that she lives close to the city doors. I’m curious to find out where other people live in relation to me. Tomorrow we start the real orientation!

Ok so even reading through that now is funny to me. I've only been here in Siena for a week and I feel like I've been here for weekS. It really is incredible how much you can learn and do in such a short period of time. I already know the entire bus system (more on the public transport later), can walk to and from school from outside the city walls, and successfully informed 4 different sets of American tourists who, while trying not to get soaking wet in the rain, needed to know which bus to take to get to the train station today! dominationnn.

I'm tired. just got reallllly tired. plus this post is already long enough. that's what i get for letting everything run together! but of course i'll post again in a few days with actual information about what i've been doing here in italia and how things are going with the program. oh and pictures too (although pictures don't do Tuscany justice...).

Baci from Italia,

Bella Gabriella