A typicaL day in Budapest...?

Ok so because this is no longer an assignment I've been slacking, but crazy things have been happening so I must write! First, Switzerland and Austria are the most beautiful places in the world! (besides Farmington maybe) but really, if you've ever questioned a fairy tale like Hansel and gretel or rapunzel I challenge you to spend a day ( which is generous because it only took me 5 minutes) to be a firm believer that they are all true! Second, Budapest? Really cool but let me share my day and you can decide whether or not it's somewhere you would enjoy. Kirsten and I had already been in Budapest for a few days, had made some friends and were really enjoying our time. We had planned to meet up with our 3 friends we'd met the day before in church and had spend most of Sunday with the next morning, they were 3 American guys one visitng his old mission so he translated for us and the other two along for the adventure. It was Jed's birthday (the one who spoke Hungarian) and so we wanted to do something cool and since as a missionary he hadn't been able to visit Margaret island in the middle of the Danube and Kirsten and I had had it highly recommended to us we went there. Kirsten and I woke up early to work out and try to save off the softness of all the good food we'd been eating and then went to the large open market to get some fruit for breakfast. We bought a pastry to give Jed for his birthday and then wandered through the light rain to meet them. They weren't there but since the area we'd designated was large we didn't know if we'd find them so we decided to just start walking the island and hopefully run into them, it didn't take long before we caught sight and then we slowly stalked them until we were in throwing range and chucked a couple of pine cones, partially because we didn't want to run to catch up and partially as revenge for them splashing as at the Turkish baths the day before when they'd found us. Anyway, we found them, walked and talked and then said our farewells. Kirsten and I wanted to do some shopping because Budapest is cheap but as we made our way to the mall it started pouring so we ducked into a Starbucks to wait it out. We were talking and enjoying ourselves when 2 Italian guys offered to buy us drinks in very broken English, I responded no but mentioned I'd been studying Italian so they motioned the seat closer to them and I moved over leaving my bag on the other side of Kirsten. We were having a good time and I was grateful to practice my Italian, 2 more of their friends showed up and we all were laughing and trying to figure out what everyone was saying, the added us on facebook so that when they fulfilled their dream of coming to California they could find us there. I turned to translate something for Kirsten and out of the corner of my eye I notice the old guy sitting in the window with his hand in my bag! I hadn't thought about it because it was right there and we were inside a Starbucks but this happens, I just gave him a stern disgusted sorta look and grabbed my bag and not before too long he disappeared but he had been sitting in that window seat for quite some time! He didn't take anything gratefully but I now will remember to be more careful. Eventually the Italians left and then Kirsten and I braved the rain and made a run for it to the stores. Later that evening after a most delicious dinner at a lovely little restaurant we'd found earlier and fallen in love with me decided to walk to heroes square on Jed's recommendation to see it at night. On our way we saw a poor old homeless guy sleeping on a bench and I felt really sorry for him, I hate how much there is of that in Hungary, we moved on but keep him in mind. We got to heroes square and it really was stunning. But as we moved closer to the statues we noticed to high school boys running around. Kirsten told me she was pretty sure they were streaking but I was absolutely convinced they had compression shorts on until they ran right in front of us and left me with no more room for doubt. Not an experience I care to relive. On our walk back we were discussing how it probably wasn't a brilliant idea to be out late but now we really had no choice now so we should hurry back. Just then I noticed a statue out of the corner of my eye in a doorway but as I passed the doorway the statue moved. A white head on a long emancipated body in a dirty trench coat was much too close to me. I felt the blood drain from my face and turned to Kirsten chilled. She says my face was so white but the guy didn't do anything so we just hurried past and then sorta giggled at my slight overreaction but I must say that was the most frightening 2 moments of my life! All in all I really enjoyed Budapest, it was beautiful and unique and we had a lot of good times...and some really strange ones. The end.

Goodbye Siena

After 6 wonderful and educational weeks I have to say goodbye! My last job was Friday morning preparing the farewell lunch for both my group and the group of students from the U then I had to say goodbye to a lot of my friends, some whom I'll be seeing back in Utah but many that I will be possibly never see again and am leaving right here in Italy. The people I've had the opportunity to meet on this journey has been the best part of the whole thing, I have learned so much from all of them and am going to miss them so much, but I guess that is part of life, meeting people, learning what you can from them and then saying goodbye, wow, that's really lame, I hate goodbyes. On my way home last night from il campo where I finished saying goodbye to some friends I was calmly walking down the street when what should cross my path but a giant rat! I was going to scream and runaway but when it's late at night and you're alone this is probably not a good idea so i walked quietly, though not calmly by and I swear it stalked me the whole way home, I could feel its beady little eyes, creepiest part of my journey, well maybe with the exception of some of the leering men. Mollie and I left the house at 530 this morning and Marco and Paula even woke up to see us off, I will miss them so much! Living with a host family was the best thing ever and I highly recommend it to everyone! When I got to the station the first train to Milan was all full so I had to wait Around for 5 hours until the next one at 1030 which doesn't sound very late but when you're up that early, it is late. I was able to see a lot of people though who were catching their trains in that time period. The only negative experience in the train station was an old man who would not leave me alone, kissed my hand, touched my face And tried to kiss me but I finally just had to push him away, very uncomfortable but I came through mostly unscathed. After a 5 hour bus ride I have now arrived on Milan and will certainly have more stories for you all soon. Ciao!

I bottini

Our group had the fantastic opportunity to visit the ancient underground waterworks of medieval siena so on the day of our appointment, Tuesday we arrived at the assigned location and waited for a guide to appear, an hour later someone came to tell us there had been a mixup, come back tomorrow. Wednesday we show up same time, same place, a representative from the school shows up and we think it is for sure this time, but after 30 minutes the rep is on the phone and the conclusion is reached that we need to come back the next day. Obviously we were all a little annoyed by this because we had wanted to visit another city one of those days and our plans were foiled time and time again as the schedule kept falling through but after some talking we decided this was really just a cultural experience. In Italy appointments are much more lax than those in America, this isn't a difference I'm partial too but it's all part of the journey. Finally Thursday we made it underground, and wow, it was worth the wait! The tunnels

San gimingano

Wow, so I thought Assisi and Siena were unbelievably beautiful? San Gimingnano just blew them both out of the water. I felt like rapunzel, or some princess in a picturesque fairy tale the whole time! There were towers and flowers everywhere! Also, this is the home of the worlds best gelato, and yes I believe the signs. They had some really unique favors like Gorgonzola cheese and rosemary raspberry and blackberry lavender and saffron cream and yes they were all delicious. I think I took more pictures in those few hours I spent in that town than I have in any other city regardless of the amount of time spent there (this includes Siena even though I've been here for 6 weeks). It was also just so great to be with the kids in our group on a little adventure again, I know we just had the weekend together but this was different and it was so much fun! The town is very small and compact but clean and well kept. Each street had many specialty shops the best of which was a chocolate shop. They had chocolate spoons and cups and pasta and shoes and bolts and horse shoes and chocolate in all favors and intensities from white chocolate to 99percent chocolate, yup it was magical, sadly since I have many weeks after Italy I didn't think buying any of it to bring home would be a very intelligent idea. Because Tuscany has so many hills, and San Gimingnano is built on one of them the city offers many incredible vistas overlooking the surrounding valleys and they are all simply breathtaking, a picture just doesn't even come close to doing them justice so I will just try to hold onto them in my memory.

Genova

Half of Saturday and most of Sunday was to be enjoyed in the famous port town of Genova. Erik, a guy in our group who served his mission in northern Italy claims it as his favorite city so those of us going were pretty excited. We first arrived and found our hostel with no problems, the city was a but dirty but we assumed we were just staying in the less uppity end and that once we started touring things would get prettier. We went to meet Erik and Elizabeth and Carson so that the party could get started but somehow all six of us wandered around the train station for the exact same hour never running into each other. Mary mollie and I were tired, hungry and in a starve place with no idea of anything that Genova offered. The sky was gray the streets were filthy and the men were leering. Needless to say, we weren't loving Genova so we bought some nutella and fruit and went back to our hostel waiting for the boys to drop Elizabeth off. They finally arrived and everyone except Erik was having similar feelings. The next morning wasn't proving much better when we four girls went to meet the boys we got stuck at the train station for an hour while the trains were cancelled one after another. We finally made it to Carson and Erik and things took an almost immediate change for the better. Erik showed us all the beautiful things Genova has to offer, the sun was shining and we were all together. One of our last stops was the original home of Christopher Columbus where Mary pulled out her book of Mormon to read the scripture in first nephi 13 about the spirit of the Lord working on Columbus to send him to America, it was incredible think that that had taken place right there and that thanks to him listening I now get to be an American with the blessing of the restored gospel, so yes Genova officially gained my approval and I'm so grateful we were able to see it.

I speak English real good

As has been afore mentioned, I sometimes enjoy the great privilege of translating for tourists during cooking classes. This week was no exception but I have the unfortunate habit of tripping up and stuttering when other bilingual speakers are in the room. Thursday was a group of students from the U who know a little Italian, but I still feel confident when speaking in front of them, two Australian tourists who don't know any Italian, Louisa who knows barely any English and then claudio who's language skills I'm still not certain of, but it is enough uncertainty to trip me up. I started off a wee bit nervous and stuttering but as I gained confidence and claudio didn't correct anything I gained more and more so that the class was flying not too far into it. It wasnt until after the class I realized the problem, I can translate into English very well because I understand what is going on in Italian and, not to brag or anything, but my English is pretty fluent. However, if I were asked to translate the other direction I would fail, miserably. This is now how I am going to measure my Italian proficiency, when I can translate English into Italian as well as I can translate Italian into English I will feel quite pleased with myself.

Cinque Terre

This Friday was spent in the most beautiful place in the world! Namely Cinque Terre. Mollie and I took the 6:29 am train to riomaggiore where we met up with the rest of our group, found a little cove and had our first swim in the Mediterranean. The water was a beautiful clear blue and the not too cold, though perhaps little choppy but after not too long the majority of the group was decided that the hike between towns should begin. The first and only open path was the via di amore, a beautiful stretch of cliffs and flowers looking out into the vast ocean, a simple hike but we took our time because it was so beautiful! We spent the rest of the day visiting all 5 lands and by the end of the day were tired, but well pleased with our adventures. The next morning we intended to go kayaking but the waves were too rough so all the rentals were closed leading us to another day of swimming in the blue Mediterranean and lounging on the beach. Mary, mollie, and i enjoyed an incredible seafood lunch at at restaurant just off the boardwalk called mikys that my family had visited the summer before and I had the greatest memories of, and indeed I was not disappointed in the least. Exhausted, slightly sun burned and full we got on the train to Genova to enjoy our next adventure.

The great fountain scavenger hunt!

Saturday's are wonderful day days for adventures in Siena and this one was no exception. It began a little slow as Saturdays are want to do with a lack of a schedule and all but before long Mollie and I found ourself in the city center with a brilliant idea! We were going to find every contradas fountain. We already knew where quite a few were from our previous wanderings of the city but many were completely unknown to us. We started at the fontebranda, claimed by l'oca and made our way from there. Some were easy like tartuca, torre, leocorno, or pantera but others were hidden and required asking for directions and lots of searching, like civetta, and nicchio. My personal favorites were lupa and giraffa, lupa because it is beautiful, and giraffa because a baptism into the contrada was happening and we got to see it all. Valdimontone was an interesting story: we were wandering through their contrada way out of the city center and very very empty. There was no tabbacheria to ask at and no natives walking by so we went into their church and decided to just take a break and figure it from there. When we left the church we were going to just abandon that contrada when I decided to ask 3 older people who looked like they lived in the area. The lady looked a little confused by our question and one of the gentleman told us they don't have a fountain then the lady said something like " why would we want a fountain, those are boring, we have an incredible view" at which point the other gentleman opened some large wooden gates we were standing in front of and beckoned us in. It turned out to be their contradas headquarters with the view that had been mentioned and I admit it was indeed breathtaking and much more beautiful than any of the fountains we'd seen. There was a small sculpture of a ram ( their mascot) that we took a picture of to complete the scavenger hunt and then we just marveled at our good luck to be allowed inside their headquarters which really aren't open to strangers. It was quite an incredible experience and I can honestly say that we completed the greatest scavenger hunt ever!!!

Edo and Elena

Friday and Saturday nights brought a welcome change to dinners with my host family. When Mollie and I arrived home on Friday we heard the happy sounds of little children and ventured out into the back garden to discover who they were. It was Elena (8) and Eduardo (6), they aren't related to Marco and Paula but fondly refer to them as Zio and Zia (aunt and uncle) and are close enough to them to have earned a place in a framed picture on Marco and Paula's wall. They were shy at first and wouldn't make eye contact but they quickly warmed up to our attention and were soon reading to us and trying to talk to us in our broken Italian and they with their childish Italian, it should make it easier you think but no, their unclear voices, rapidity of speech and inability to explain things in another way made it more difficult but it didn't matter. Smiles, laughter and games was all it took to become fast friends and a lot of speech wasn't necessary. Dinner was more lively and quite a bit messier, Marco and Paula were so happy to have them there, they love children so much it is really sweet. We said goodnight and hoped to see them again, I really miss having little kids around and I didn't want to say goodbye for too long. Never fear they were there when we arrived the next night and there was no awkwardness at all. They instantly sought us out and were continually putting on a show, their nonna also came for dinner that night and we had a jolly good time. I'm afraid I was not helpful during the dinner because Edo would keep doing silly things and the adults would ask him to stop but I would laugh every time and make funny faces at him which obviously encouraged the behavior but he was so cute how could I not?! We played with them a little after dinner and they were so sad to go and we were sad to say goodbye. Elena told us her school is almost out for the summer and then she can come over more often! I would love that because their parents got home from Paris on Sunday so Marco and Paula don't get to babysit them as much.

People are Awesome!!

My internship is putting me in contact with some of the most interesting and amazing people! Thursday night was an eclectic group with an older couple from New York, a young couple moving to Portland, a girl from Australia, a girl from Germany and an older guy from Australia. The three single people were students at the school, the wife of the new York couple was a student and the others were just tourists. They were all so enthusiastic to be here, so amazed by the experience and so grateful for both mine and Louisa's help. I got to translate for all of them and cook quite a lot, they were also so interested to hear what I was doing there. Everyone reminded me how lucky I am to have this experience and all encouraged me to enjoy every moment. It was a good reminder that I really am on an incredible adventure, that this will only happen once and that I have so much to be grateful for. I had been feeling that Siena was becoming a little monotonous but these people caused me to take a deeper look and as I walked through the city the next day I had a new appreciation for its beauty and a renewed interest in the history and culture. The next day I got to help with a private class for a young couple from New York city celebrating their graduations from their respective masters programs. They were overwhelmingly thrilled with their experience and so very gracious, they too were so excited for my opportunity and did their part in reminding me how lucky I am to be here. They told me a little about their lives and I got to remember how incredible people are. How every single person has a unique and important story to tell and they can all do a lot of good, myself included. Will to change the world renewed! I think all the people I get to meet in my job, thoug not the focus of my internship on paper, is my favorite and also the most educational.

Segreteria

Alas, the cooking classes are not every day so I spend the days I'm not in the kitchen assisting the school secretaries. It has been interesting trying to explain the concept of an internship to Italians, apparently that isn't a big thing here and they don't understand why someone would work for free, experience isn't a valid answer. I know this will look good on a resumè and I'm also getting college credit for it, but they all think I'm a little crazy.

I'm only on my second day in the office, and I don't think I'll ever be very busy because I already finished up the project they had for me of editing the study abroad website for American students. They immediately placed all that trust in me and I got to read through the entire website, correcting spelling, grammar, awkwardly worded sentences and giving suggestions to make it more appealing to college students. It was interesting trying to frame the awkward sentences into more commonly worded phrases, because what they said was technically correct, it just sounded foreign. I'm guessing I probably sound like that a lot of the time.

I get to listen to a lot of Italian while I'm in there, but fortunately Victoria, another secretary, lived in the US for 15 years so when I don't understand something perfectly she helps me out. They offered to let me answer phones, but I don't feel comfortable doing that yet, hopefully by the end or, even better, the middle, I'll be to that point, but for now, I'll just listen and try to compose Italian answers in my head.

And then with Louisa

The next night I was in the kitchen, but this time Louisa was the chef. We only had 4 students: 3 American tourists, a mother and her two daughters, and a lady from Holland who has been studying at Dante Alighieri for this week, but because she speaks about 4 other languages fluently she is picking it up really quickly. I had thought from the first cooking class that I did with my study abroad group that Louisa spoke a lot more English than she does, turns out her English is very limited and I had the great pleasure of playing translator all night. Fortunately I understand Italian pretty well, and speak English perfectly so it wasn't an issue and I got to feel very useful. Also, because the group was so small I was able to cook a lot! It was so wonderful, I'd been missing cooking, not good food--my host mom is an incredible cook-- but the ability to make the good food on my own.

Louisa is maybe 50, a native of Tuscany, and so incredibly sweet. She is always happy, bustling around the kitchen keeping an eye on everything and singing. It is so wonderful to work with her. She was very grateful to have me there to translate and to have someone to talk to. Also probably so she wouldn't have to do the dishes on her own, but I didn't mind that at all, because strange as this may sound, I've actually missed doing dishes! I always offer to help my host mom but she just says no, no, and sends me away. Louisa also was so welcoming into her kitchen, trusted me with cooking and speaking even though she had never had any proof that I could do either. I got to work with her the 3rd night also and it was even better than the first because I felt more comfortable around her and knew what she expected from me. All in all, I love my internship!

Beginning the Internship

Monday was my first day in the Kitchen. Ferdinando was the chef and Valentino was assisting, we had a group of 19 people from an aeronautical engineering university in Florida; needless to say, most of them were boys. I couldn't have anticipated a warmer welcome into the kitchen, and it was a wonderful start to my so far wonderful internship. Ferdinando and Valentino were both grateful to have me there and were very courteous and accommodating but also playful and ridiculous. Ferdinando is probably in his early 40's, speaks hardly and English, is passionate and blunt as most Italians, but even more so because he is from Naples, so he is a little crazy. Valentino claims to be 30 but looks closer to 23, is young, and Italian, need I say more? but don't worry, he figured out really quickly that I'm an innocent Mormon girl and he calls me 'little lamb'. I didn't understand everything the two of them were saying, which was probably for the best, because I might have been scarred by some of it.

At one point I was helping Valentino with the dishes and got my hand stuck between two large pots, and at long last I got to use the phrase I've been dying to use ever since I got here: ''aiutami!'' they both came rushing to my aid, saved me from the pots and then mocked me kindly for just a moment, but it was all ok because it really was a silly situation. I think they were more entertained by the tone of my voice when I said 'aiutami' than anything else because they kept repeating it in affected, high-pitched, desperate voices--I'm sure I didn't sound that ridiculous, but who knows.

The group of students were also all very friendly and attentive, and because only the 3 girls in the group had any confidence in their cooking abilities, I got to assist a lot. It was nice to have some good 'ol American to listen to and converse in, sometimes I miss it while I wander the city, but I can definitely tell my Italian skills are improving and I'm able to move around the kitchen with confidence. It also helps that Valentino, Ferdinando, and the entire class had absolute confidence in my abilities to both cook, and to varying degrees, to speak.

Firenze

Florence is filled with museums and art thanks to the Medici and it can all be overwhelming but it was also lovely and fantastic. I thought it was interesting though that my favorite views were from the balconies looking out onto the countryside, all the art in the world cannot compare with the beauty that God has created, he is the ultimate and absolute artist. The Tuscan countryside is not lacking in beauty even a little which makes me think this was a perfect place for the rebirth of art, they had so much natural art to inspire them! Watching the changes from medieval art to baroque and how the return of truth affected the ability of man to create beauty. The reformation brought not only an interest in developing a closer relationship with God but a new found interest in science and humanity that is incredible. The contrast between the darkness of the apostasy and the light of the rebirth is so obvious everywhere that I wonder that more people don't notice and query as to the cause. It's truth! My favorite piece in the uffizi was the birth of Venus by Botticelli because it so so clean and beautiful. The figures are soft and lovely and Venus is feminine which is a good contrast from many of the women in medieval art. I also loved the caravaggio's, not because the topics were particularly inspiring or lovely but because they were so real. Art was a faint imitation of life for so long that when they began to make it more realistic and copy the great designer again it is so wonderfully beautiful. Wow, the church is true! And I love it! Also, I love Italy and think everyone should visit right now! Farewell, I love you all.

Talking with Claudio

We had 'intensive' language courses this week, for both grammar and our internships. Monday was a placement exam and I was put into a class with people I know speak better than me so of course I felt proud of myself but it was also incredibly intimidating, also I have discovered I do not perform well under pressure. The class was set up for a lot of speaking which is definitely the best way to learn but I would get so tense and scared I couldn't say anything! Even when I had a little notice because my turn wasn't first I'd have the sentence perfect in my head and then I'd totally botch it when I had to speak. I think this was mostly a lack of confidence but possibly also an effect of the intensity of my teacher. His name was claudio and he was really really nice and entertaining but also in the true Italian fashion he was passionate and blunt which made it a little frightening. There was an older Australian gentleman who was an opera singer and truly a character. I loved listening to him speak because his Italian wasn't fantastic but he said it all with such gusto that is was so fantastic to listen to. Everyone in the class was boggled by the fact that the byu students dont drink or have premarital sex, honestly I find it reaffirming and easier to feel good about my standards when they are questioned. Overall the class was helpful yet terrifying and sometimes I felt like my Italian was getting worse, I'm sure this is an affect of understanding more which leads to an understanding of how many mistakes I'm making and how little I actually know. However, I know I'm improving and I love all the opportunities I get to speak Italian.

Marco and Paula / Siena

We arrived in Siena around 7 where all the host families were anxiously standing around to find out who they got. Molly and I were collected by a very sweet nd Italian looking older gentleman who led us over to a Mercedes and then told us his wife would be there in a second. Paula rode up on a little Vespa smiling hugely and welcomed us, then Marco loaded all our stuff into the trunk and drove us to their apartment. The drive was fairly quiet because he speaks no English and Molly and I don't know much Italian but we made do and discovered they have no children, he hasnalwaysblived in Siena and Paula is from Florence. Their apartment is beautiful! All the floors are either marble or hardwood and the furniture is modern but classic and elegant. The kitchen is teeny but it is perfect for just the two of them. As soon as we got our bags into the room Marco took us on a tour of Siena to show us where we were to meet the next morning with our professor and point out a few things. Paula stayed at home to make dinner and when we arrived it smelled mouth watering. We began with crostinini Toscana and it is probably better that she doesn't speak English and couldn't tell us what was in it because it was so good! But when I read about it later I am quite certain I would have mentally kept myself from enjoying it, the. We had a delicious pasta dish and then potatoes, meat, peppers and peas followed by a dessert of strawberries with lemon juice and sugar. Im not sure how I'll adjust to one or two course American meals after this, I've been very spoiled. Though the food was delicious dinner was difficult and exhausting because we couldn't quite understand each other and I must say the language barrier is much more difficult than I was expecting, they know really NO english, I had come o expect something different being in Rome where everyone seems to know a little, but this will definitely be helpful with learning the language. Marco also showed us the picture of his horse Rimini that won the Palio back in 1982. He is very proud of it and I was happy to have something to talk about. We went to bed soon after dinner because they don't eat until around 9 here and we were already tired. The subsequent dinners have been getting better and better and molly and I learn more and become more comfortable with them. Thursday night was really good and we stayed talking to them for almost 2 hours after dinner about traveling and then their family and their horses. They pulled out photo albums to show us and for the first time I felt like we all carried on a real conversation though it did have its humorous stumblings as we tried to figure out words. Overall im so glad to be here and really like both Marco and Paula and hope as time goes on things will get better and we can all become a little more comfortable.

Assisi

Picture the most beautiful Tuscan town you can. Don't forget the greenery, the vibrant flowers, the narrow streets, the cobble stones, any of it, then times this by 100 and you have Assisi. The town is still mostly the same as it was one st. Francis roamed the streets and it has only gained charm by its aging. It is set up on a lovely hill affording views of the surrounding farm land and showing the picturesque contradiction of pine trees next to palms. The church was done in a more gothic style which is much simpler and less overwhelming than the overdone beauty of baroque that Rome was full of. The city had just finished a festival and the remnants of flowers and fabric draped around everything were still in someplaces. Vehicle traffic was scarce making the streets perfect to meander through. A tiny little cafe that sat on the site of an old olive press pulled us in and we had the best panini ever! Mine was a traditional Tuscan focaccia with prosciutto crudo, arugula, fresh mozzarella and heavenly olive oil....oh and tomatoes. The duomo had a wall running near it where Mary, Molly and I sat and enjoyed the sunshine and people watching. I find it perfectly acceptable to be a creeper ( aka people watcher) when you are sitting on a ledge in the sunshine in Assisi, and the fact that people are constantly walking back and forth below you doesn't hurt either. I was surprised at the large amount of nuns and priests for such a small city but it makes sense I guess since it is the hometown of st. Francis who started his own order of monks (the Franciscans) and is the patron saint of Italy, but I still don't understand what all the different colors and styles of dresses the nuns wore...different convents and different ranks I get but why we're there so few of each one and they were all together? After assisi we climbed back on the bus to go tonsiena and meet our host families.

The morning began a little later which was magical because we have been run to the ground and ache in every way possible but after a goodnights rest I was set to explore Rome again. It was a short day with only 3 churches all together before we were turned loose on Rome and every single one offered something unique. The first was the church of bones...just as disturbing as it sounds, some of the complete skeletons still had skin and hair but the two worst parts were the bone chandeliers (I didn't like that I could walk right under them) and the last room had some baby skeletons in it that really got to me. No pictures to follow because we weren't allowed to take any. The second church we walked in on a couple renewing their vows for their 50 wedding anniversary and in the last church we walked in on a baptism. Thee prayer forgave the baby for his sins and I was so grateful that we have the truth and know that infants are innocent! After that we were set loose and began to wander. The group slowly broke down Into smaller ones and eventually yielded the perfect combination of Mary Molly Berkeley and myself. We stopped at an adorable cafe in the most picturesque neighborhood in Rome (trastevere)for a delicious lunch in the beautiful spring weather while a man serenaded us with an accordion. Roaming Rome (baha imfunny) is the most delightful experience so we just did it until after dinner and then were going to meet the YSA group for the avengers movie but they ended up going to The 3d one so we deferred until a later date and continued to roam. Berkeley, Elizabeth, Carson and I ventured off into the great unknown of cinecitta anxiously guessing what wonders it could hold and guess what we found?! A closed building...a large freeway and the most gorgeous full moon ever! But it was all sketchy feeling so to calm ourselves we returned to our favorite gelateria and sweeted away all the creepiness with the most delicious gelato of all. What a perfect end to a perfect day...well almost end, the party is just getting started in the hotel so I'll see y'all later.

I forgot to figure I couldn't put pictures on my iPad from my camera so if you would like please enjoy the photos on Facebook. Rome has been the most perfectly wonderful place in the world! On mondaywe saw the colosseum roman forum etc plus discovered the Jewish ghetto crossed the Tiber several times wandered through piazzas full of street performers and street vendors and beautiful neighborhoods with crawling vines on warm Mediterranean stucco walls. The weather has been ideal, the company has been ideal, the location is more than ideal and I love errything! I have now seen 3 Italian gingers...one of them twice in two separate locations so it is clearly fate that I find the Italian gingers It is magical. We visited pompeii yesterday and the strangest thing ( the brothel) spawned and incredibly deep conversation with the girls in the group which pulled us all together really quickly. We were already close and getting along famously but now we have connected in a much more meaningful way and I can't believe how lucky I was to get this amazing group of people! We got to partake of a very important cultural experience on wednesday after visiting the catacombs and appian way (which I plan on owning a villa on someday) and were heading back to take a bus into the city for lunch and then some wandering time. We arrived at the bus stop at 1 and were enjoying ourselves when it chose that moment to downpour. We didn't think much of it because the bus would be there shortly and we would jump on and soon be dry...an hour passes, we are soaked and starving but still in good spirits and enjoying each others company. Another hour passes but the rain had let up so we were just starving and exhausted but never fear we were laughing and singing and having a jolly old time. Cinzia (our director)had called the bus company twice now to make sure they were coming and they said yes but after 3 hours had passed with no buses and food becoming a priority we finally called a taxi. The taxi ride was the most enjoyable ever! The driver was so funny driving next to another car just leaning out the window talking to him and scaring us all to death. This was entertaining and an cultural experience but not the one I speak of, the cultural experience I was most impressed by was that we had been victims of a bus strike!!!! Just for a few hours that day just because they can, in the Italian way! I was so pleased...I feel quite induced into the culture. The men here are quite lovely but quite sketchy in a funny way and they are all friendly. The worst part is when I tr to speak in Italian but they respond in English and wont let me try... So if I come back no better it's not even my fault. We got to go to a YSA activity tonight with the Roma ward and all the people were so friendly! Being a Mormon certainly did not diminish the boys lovely faces at all...in fact I believe the holy ghos accentuated them. Anyway, it was such a fantastic experince because they are all such good people living in a very different society than I ever have and most of them are converts, I was so impressed that they went out of their way to find the truth and completely lleft their culture for the gospel. The branch president after told us what a big impact it had for us to be there so I was so grateful we had that opportunity. Wow this is really long I'm sorry...I just want to keep going but I'll stop now and just be more consistent about writing in the future. Vi voglio tanto bene.

In Rome at last! After a 3 hour delay in Dallas I was certain I'd miss my connection in London but gratefully the British were experiencing a bit of a downpour to welcome us which delayed the outgoing planes as well.So after much rushing and a slew of extremely friendly people with fantastic accents I reached my plane and came to Rome! When I got here I thought it would be easy getting to termini train station and from there the metro. I bought my ticket and discovered the guy had charged me too much for my ticket but I was already on the train and didnt want to go back so then I started listening to the statins we were stopping at and termini wasn't one of them. The people around me tried talking to me and as much as I like to pretend I speak italian I really had no idea what they were saying so I gve up And told them I don't speak Italian. I was informed I'd gotten on the wrong train...it doesn't go to termini and the one I was on cost half the price of the train I was on. The lady sitting next to me got off with me and showed me where to go so I bought a new ticket, got on a train with a really sweet nun and arrived at termini! I made my way to the metro, one line was closed but fortunately not the one I needed so I got to where I needed to go. My directions were to ask for directions and even though I asked in Italian my accent is apparently so awesome! That they still spoke to me in English...not that it's a bad thing, just a wee bit embarrassing. It was dark and things were looking sketchy so I was slightly affrighted but never fear I arrived and the angry hostess lady directed me to where my group was having dinner. So though I was tired...incredibly disgusting and aching I arrived in one piece and really...I'm in Rome, how upset can I be? Ciao!

Goodbye

Ciao America! I'm sitting in the airport enjoying my last few minutes of actually understanding what is going on but that's part of the fun, right? Well part of the experience at least. Well I love you all and might even miss you little bit...I'm typing on my iPad with a red cover...fond memories. I will slowly learn the art of blogging but until then and mostly until I have fun stories bare with me. Buona giornata e buona fortuna!