gelato

This picture was taken the day after Easter, while Antonello and I were at his uncle's house in Bari, on the east coast of Italy. His aunt took us to this little cafe where we ordered some gelato and while I was going through my pictures tonight, I found this little treasure and now I'm craving some ice cream. I think I have some in my freezer. Gotta go! :)

a little history

It was "culture week" at the National Archeological Museum in Napoli this week so Antonello and I took advantage of the FREE entry tickets and spent 3 beautiful hours in a world of massive statues, intricate & beautiful mosaics and frescoes that people who once lived in Pompeii, thousands of years ago, displayed in their homes.

IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE to walk around and see the original artifacts, statues, and paintings that existed from 2nd century B.C. to about the 1st century A.D.. All of the research I have been doing on Pompeii only made it that much more exciting to see it in person today and to experience history first-hand.

My computer isn't allowing me to actually see the pictures so I will try and explain what they are in numerical order:
1. an ancient tomb with the different mythical "Gods" carved into the side
2. a huge mosaic representing the battle between Alexander the Great and Darius, the Persian King
3. a HUGE head of Emperor Caesar
4. a common ground mosaic telling people to "Beware of Dog"
5. a breath-taking statue of Flora from the Farnese collection

a bit foggy

It's 1:44 in the afternoon and I'm sitting at my little orange table looking out to my balcony where the rain won't stop pouring down on the little Italian street below, and I feel lost. It has almost been a year since I have worked last and it's, once again, making me feel purposeless. Not that I'm not looking or anything, but you have to agree, it's becomes a little harder with a different language than your own.

I have no idea what the next step is. I haven't heard back from Bruno, the guy I was praying/wishing/hoping to work with as a guide in Pompeii and all other avenues seem foggy. This language still eludes me and as hard as I try, I still feel and KNOW that I truly can't communicate my heart/ideas/desires fully. Why am I here? What is my purpose? Was I supposed to come back? Am I not listening closely enough for God's little voice in all of this?

As it is still pouring down rain outside, I am now going to turn my attention to my heavy Italian book sitting in front of me and read about my new mountain to tackle: Si impersonale

1. When the si construction is used with an infinitive, the conjugated verb is in the third-person singular or plural, depending on the object of the infinitive.
2. The phrase ci si must be used when a reflexive verb is used impersonally.
3. Compound tenses of impersonal si constructions are formed using 'essere'. If the verb is normally conjugated with 'essere', the past participle is always plural, even if the verb is singular.
4. If the verb is normally conjugated with 'avere' and the sentence has a direct object, the past participle agrees with the direct object in gender and number.

Good luck to me?

first days

I spent my first day, yesterday, all by myself in my little studio and had a wonderful day unpacking a few things, getting an unexpected visit from my "property manager" named Mustafa (sort of like Mufasa from the Lion King!) who I tried my best to understand and be understood in italian, a long walk to my favorite bookstore by my language school where I ended up buying "Twilight", a wonderful lunch of pasta fagioli (beans) and of course, bread & fruit, and a night of studying some italian and finishing the night with watching an italian show called, "Affari Tuoi" which is like the American show, "Deal or no Deal".

Antonello and I just got back from a walk to the waterfront where we grabbed some gelato and caffe'...I'm still trying to figure out where and how I fit in this country/city that can oftentimes be scary but so liberating at the same time. Now, I'm just praying for a stable job...rent is coming up soon. :)

sigh

I have unreliable internet access at my little apartment so my posts will be few and far between.

my week

Here are some pics of my little apartment right in the heart of Napoli. We are still trying to figure some things out so tomorrow will be my first night by myself. When I stop and think about it, I feel like it's someone else's life. This time around, being my second time experiencing life here, has brought less culture shock but a little more anxiety with living by myself in a different language than my own.

little kitchen the double doors leading out to the balcony

picture taken off my balcony looking out to Corso Umberto, a well-known street downtown

taken from the second floor where the bedroom is

my huge bed with my new lamp, mirror and bedspread

cute little bathroom

Since Monday, Italia has experienced a string of earthquakes, having the big one happen early Monday morning in a town called L'Aquila, just north of Rome. At around 3:30 in the morning, both Antonello and I felt the earthquake in grandma's apartment and were scared as the whole place shook and lasted for about 15 seconds, which seemed like a very long time. No one and nothing was hurt but almost 300 people have died from the quake and thousands are left without homes. It has been devastating to watch the news; there was a story where a man had lost his mother and son, who were found dead, hugging, trying to comfort eachother as the roof collapsed on them.

On a lighter note, on Tuesday, Antonello and I got on the train and headed to Pompei to meet Bruno and to talk about my possible work with him. The meeting went well, seeing that Antonello and I actually went on a tour with Bruno as our guide, so I was able to experience what I would be doing. I tried to understand what he was saying but, mamma mia, I think I only understood like 30%....which is not enough. He gave me some study materials so I have been doing that but I feel I have such a LONG way to go in my italian. Bruno also mentioned that there may be some good work for me to lead tours to the island of Capri and to lead tours around Napoli, around the region of Campania so it might be another possibility but nothing is for sure yet.

For Easter, we are heading to Bari, which is on the east coast of Italy, and spending the weekend with his uncle and aunt. I think I should start preparing my stomach for the grand feast. :)

Ciao amici! A presto!

my trip in short...

It began while I was checking my bags in at the British Airways counter. There was a young englishman behind me, traveling to London, his name was Nathan, but because of his accent, he pronounced it Nafan; so great. It was almost as if he was speaking pig talk. :) He was heading back after a month-long visit in the U.S. to see his 19 month old son and wife and we ended up sitting by eachother on the plane, well, an aisle separated us, and it was nice to have someone to talk with after such a teary good-bye with my mom.

On that particular flight, the plane wasn't full AT ALL so I had an aisle seat with two seats empty to the right of me so I could lay down, fully. As wonderful as that was, I couldn't fall asleep but the flight felt so short, that it was fine. I definitely felt like I wasn't prepared to fly for 8/9 hours, but somehow my body did it.

At the London airport, after standing in the security line forEVER, I started to talking to this young woman behind me, who I noticed had an Italian passport. We started speaking italian with eachother and since she was studying english, we had that language going too. It was so fun to be able to use what I've learned and also for her. Since her flight for the States didn't leave for another couple hours, she walked me to my gate and we just sat and talked before I left. Her name was Marta, she was 22, and was headed to Philly to stay there for 3 months to study English.

As I said good-bye to her and stood in the line to get on my final flight, I met two older women who were traveling to Rome for a 10 day-exursion. They were so pumped up, their enthusiasm was contagious. Rosemary and Martha were their names and they were so friendly as all 3 of us were able to sit next to each other for the last 2 and half hour leg of the journey.

When we landed in Rome, I got off the plane, headed through customs and picked up my bags with no trouble at all. I headed out to see Antonello and it was great to see his beautiful smile. After we left the airport, we headed to this little town called Fumicino which was right by the airport. It sat on this little river and although it was dark and rainy, we decided to go to a little pizzeria and walk in the rain, eating our little cheese pizzas. I really couldn't have asked for anything more special.

Today, I went and saw my apartment for the first time and met my landlords. I now hold in my hands, the 3 keys that will allow me to have a little more independence in my life. Part of me is super nervous to be on my own, but another part is looking forward to this next step. Who knows how it will turn out, I just know I would have kicked myself if I didn't try at all.

Jet-lag is setting in and I'm hitting a wall. I have to sleep now. :)

Ciao friends!