Alberto's wife's father died a few days ago, from natural causes. His funeral was yesterday. Gianna left the house at 2, telling me she'd be back by four o'clock. Four passed, then five passed, and at 5:30 I heard the elevator coming up to our floor. Gianna and her son, Michele, came in saying "Sorry we're late, but something happened at the funeral.." Oh my, I thought, I hope everything is alright! Before I could ask what had happened, Gianna began recounting the events of the funeral. First, I should mention that in Italy, privileged families don't bury their dead. They build a family mausoleum, where the caskets are kept in comparments in the wall.
Well, after the funeral in the church, everyone went to the cemetery to see the casket being put in the family's mausoleum. The casket's spot was rather high up in the mausoleum, thus requiring a machine to lift it up and put it in it's place. As the machine was lifting the casket, something in the machine malfunctioned. Black oil sprayed everywhere, dousing the people standing closest to the machine, and the casket slipped, balancing precariously on the machine. A quick thinker managed to wedge a ladder under the casket, stabilizing it. The family waited for the machine to be fixed, and the casket was properly placed in the compartment. I suppose Alberto's wife's father wanted to go out with a bang.
After Michele left, Gianna and I decided to go grocery shopping. (Michele had pretty much cleaned out the fridge, and we were in need of food for dinner.) As we were unloading the groceries from the car, Gianna pointed out some graffiti painted on a wall. She told me Michele's friend painted it, and I made a disapproving face.
"Oh, but he was a troubled youth" she said. "His father was a lawyer, and the Mafia shot him in broad daylight in the center of Gallarate."
"What?" was my reply.
"Yeah, he defended someone in court.."
"But the Mafia is only in the South!"
"Oh, well they come up to the North to kill people sometimes."
Well sheesh. I was shocked that the Mafia had killed someone in the center of my town, but also shocked that nobody had ever mentioned it before.
Today I'm staying after school to help paint the backdrop for the school's play, and there's no school tomorrw. I'm heading back to Lecco on Saturday, so this may be the last post for a few days. Happy last day of April!
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Pancakes and Peanut Butter
The pancake party I had been planning was postponed time and time again. Today, after much planning and organizing, a group of 27 Italians ingested several varieties of cakes (made by them) peanut butter and jelly and peanut butter and banana sandwhiches, and pancakes with syrup.
A while back, the prof who suggested this party made fun of me for liking peanut butter and banana sandwhiches. Naturally, I made her one. I handed her the tinfoil-wrapped sandwhich, which she opened with a look of terror in her eyes. She ripped off a tiny piece, took a bite, chewed slowly, swallowed and said "Well. It's not awful." Then she ate the rest. I gloated.
Several other Italian children raved about the peanut butter and jelly sandwhiches. I don't know why, but that gives me a huge sense of accomplishment.
The pancakes were by far the biggest hit. I made them this morning, and the nice lady at the school's bar stuck them in the oven to warm up, and several hungry Italian boys eyed them. Most of the kids in the class ate them plain, because somebody forgot to bring forks. The braver kids dipped pieces of pancake in maple syrup, and everyone asked for the recipe.
As I walked back to class after returning a tray to the bar, I ran into the English teacher, who is sort of my overseer. She said "So, I heard the party went well!" and I laughed. I asked her if she liked the school play (which was last night, but that's another story for another time) and she said it was probably the best play put on by students that she's seen. Then she told me that I'm the best exchange student the school has had, and that the other students "are very fond of me." That's probably the best compliment I've received the whole year I've been here. Today has been a very good day, so far.
This evening, I'll be having dinner with my first host family. Tomorrow afternoon, I'll be on a train to Rome!!
It's ironic that I'm finally having fun here, I'm making real friends, I have a life, and now I have to go home. Nearly the whole year, I've been looking forward to the day I would get on a plane to return to where I belong, and now I wish that day wouldn't come.
I'll be back Sunday, and I'll be sure to recount all the adventures I have in Rome!
A while back, the prof who suggested this party made fun of me for liking peanut butter and banana sandwhiches. Naturally, I made her one. I handed her the tinfoil-wrapped sandwhich, which she opened with a look of terror in her eyes. She ripped off a tiny piece, took a bite, chewed slowly, swallowed and said "Well. It's not awful." Then she ate the rest. I gloated.
Several other Italian children raved about the peanut butter and jelly sandwhiches. I don't know why, but that gives me a huge sense of accomplishment.
The pancakes were by far the biggest hit. I made them this morning, and the nice lady at the school's bar stuck them in the oven to warm up, and several hungry Italian boys eyed them. Most of the kids in the class ate them plain, because somebody forgot to bring forks. The braver kids dipped pieces of pancake in maple syrup, and everyone asked for the recipe.
As I walked back to class after returning a tray to the bar, I ran into the English teacher, who is sort of my overseer. She said "So, I heard the party went well!" and I laughed. I asked her if she liked the school play (which was last night, but that's another story for another time) and she said it was probably the best play put on by students that she's seen. Then she told me that I'm the best exchange student the school has had, and that the other students "are very fond of me." That's probably the best compliment I've received the whole year I've been here. Today has been a very good day, so far.
This evening, I'll be having dinner with my first host family. Tomorrow afternoon, I'll be on a train to Rome!!
It's ironic that I'm finally having fun here, I'm making real friends, I have a life, and now I have to go home. Nearly the whole year, I've been looking forward to the day I would get on a plane to return to where I belong, and now I wish that day wouldn't come.
I'll be back Sunday, and I'll be sure to recount all the adventures I have in Rome!
Pancakes and Peanut Butter
The pancake party I had been planning was postponed time and time again. Today, after much planning and organizing, a group of 27 Italians ingested several varieties of cakes (made by them) peanut butter and jelly and peanut butter and banana sandwhiches, and pancakes with syrup.
A while back, the prof who suggested this party made fun of me for liking peanut butter and banana sandwhiches. Naturally, I made her one. I handed her the tinfoil-wrapped sandwhich, which she opened with a look of terror in her eyes. She ripped off a tiny piece, took a bite, chewed slowly, swallowed and said "Well. It's not awful." Then she ate the rest. I gloated.
Several other Italian children raved about the peanut butter and jelly sandwhiches. I don't know why, but that gives me a huge sense of accomplishment.
The pancakes were by far the biggest hit. I made them this morning, and the nice lady at the school's bar stuck them in the oven to warm up, and several hungry Italian boys eyed them. Most of the kids in the class ate them plain, because somebody forgot to bring forks. The braver kids dipped pieces of pancake in maple syrup, and everyone asked for the recipe.
As I walked back to class after returning a tray to the bar, I ran into the English teacher, who is sort of my overseer. She said "So, I heard the party went well!" and I laughed. I asked her if she liked the school play (which was last night, but that's another story for another time) and she said it was probably the best play put on by students that she's seen. Then she told me that I'm the best exchange student the school has had, and that the other students "are very fond of me." That's probably the best compliment I've received the whole year I've been here. Today has been a very good day, so far.
This evening, I'll be having dinner with my first host family. Tomorrow afternoon, I'll be on a train to Rome!!
It's ironic that I'm finally having fun here, I'm making real friends, I have a life, and now I have to go home. Nearly the whole year, I've been looking forward to the day I would get on a plane to return to where I belong, and now I wish that day wouldn't come.
I'll be back Sunday, and I'll be sure to recount all the adventures I have in Rome!
A while back, the prof who suggested this party made fun of me for liking peanut butter and banana sandwhiches. Naturally, I made her one. I handed her the tinfoil-wrapped sandwhich, which she opened with a look of terror in her eyes. She ripped off a tiny piece, took a bite, chewed slowly, swallowed and said "Well. It's not awful." Then she ate the rest. I gloated.
Several other Italian children raved about the peanut butter and jelly sandwhiches. I don't know why, but that gives me a huge sense of accomplishment.
The pancakes were by far the biggest hit. I made them this morning, and the nice lady at the school's bar stuck them in the oven to warm up, and several hungry Italian boys eyed them. Most of the kids in the class ate them plain, because somebody forgot to bring forks. The braver kids dipped pieces of pancake in maple syrup, and everyone asked for the recipe.
As I walked back to class after returning a tray to the bar, I ran into the English teacher, who is sort of my overseer. She said "So, I heard the party went well!" and I laughed. I asked her if she liked the school play (which was last night, but that's another story for another time) and she said it was probably the best play put on by students that she's seen. Then she told me that I'm the best exchange student the school has had, and that the other students "are very fond of me." That's probably the best compliment I've received the whole year I've been here. Today has been a very good day, so far.
This evening, I'll be having dinner with my first host family. Tomorrow afternoon, I'll be on a train to Rome!!
It's ironic that I'm finally having fun here, I'm making real friends, I have a life, and now I have to go home. Nearly the whole year, I've been looking forward to the day I would get on a plane to return to where I belong, and now I wish that day wouldn't come.
I'll be back Sunday, and I'll be sure to recount all the adventures I have in Rome!
Lecco and Lake Como
April 25 is the day the WWII ended in Italy, and it is a national holiday. This year, it fell on a Friday, and I didn't have school! I had invited one of my friends, Morgan, to stay at my house for the long weekend. Morgan, however, plays trombone in a marching band, and had to play on the 25th. Her host family graciously invited me to stay with them for the weekend, and of course I accepted.
On Thursday of last week, Morgan and I met up after school in Milan. We walked to the Castello, met up with Kristen and Kailee, got gelato, walked around some more, and then headed to the train station to catch a train back to Lecco. Lecco is a city on lake Como, one of Italy's most famous lakes. George Clooney has a house somewhere on Lake Como, and rumor has it he just bought another house in Lecco. I thought Morgan lived in Lecco itself, but I was mistaken. We ended up taking a 45 minute bus ride through the mountains to arrive in Barzio, the tiny little mountain town where she lives.
We didn't stay up too late Thursday night, because Morgan had to be at the marching band's meeting point at 7:30 the next morning. Morgan's host family plays in the band, actually. The two host brothers both play clarinet, the younger sister plays sax, and the host mom plays the cymbals. Dario, the host father, is instrumentally challenged, so he stayed with me through all the parades.
Here is how the festivites went:
The band (and Dario and I, and some of the other parents of people in the band) piled into cars and drove to a small mountain town. The band then marched in a "parade" down the main street of the town playing "Bella, Ciao". The parade was led by the town priest, followed by the band, veterans of the war, the mayor, some police officers and military members, then people who lived in the town. Each town had a memorial to those from the town who died in WWII, so the priest would say a prayer, and the mayor would give a little rememberance speech. The band would then play the national anthem, we would walk back to the cars, pile in, and drive to the next small town.
Barzio was the last town the band played in, and the whole town was in the piazza to see the parade. I was recruited to help carry the memorial wreath in the parade, and I got to talking with the other person carrying the wreath. He was an enthusiastic old man, (he insisted someone take our picture with the wreath) and I mentioned that my great-grandfather fought near Lake Como in WWII. The man got all excited and ran off to tell the mayor. When we reached the memorial, the Mayor included my great-grandfather in his speech, and thanked the Americans for helping out in WWII. I felt proud to be American, and proud that all of my brothers are in the military.
After the parade, we walked home and had lunch. Later that afternoon, Morgan's host father took Morgan and I to Lecco to walk around. It was a beautiful day, and Morgan and I ended up sitting under a tree next to the lake, enjoying the weather and the view.
After dinner that night, Morgan, her host brother and sister and I ran around the town, pretending we were secret agents. After we got tired of that, we played charades in the front yard until it was bedtime.
Saturday morning, morgan and I slept in, then walked to the grocery store to get the fixings for an apple pie. Dario told Morgan that she wasn't allowed to return to the U.S. until she had maken an apple pie. We got home, made the pie, french toast, and pancakes, and the family ate breakfast for lunch. The pie turned out not-so-great (the crust crumbled to bits and the apples weren't cooked all the way) but Morgan's family loved it. Her health-conscious host mother even had two slices. Saturday afternoon, there was a market in town. We took Sara, Morgan's host sister. We got gelato, then browsed around the market for a few hours.
Sunday was a fantastic day. Dario took Morgan and I to Varenna, a small town on Lake Como. We walked around, enjoying the Italian-ness of it all, and of course we got gelato. After about an hour, we took the ferry (Dario took the car on the ferry!) to another town, Bellagio. Bellagio was beautiful. The houses were well kept, and there were flowers in bloom everywhere. Morgan did some shopping, we explored a little, and then got in the car to return home. Dario took us up the mountian to a place where there was a beautiful view of the lake, and a chapel devoted to the Madonna of Byciclists. I'm sorry to say my camera battery died while we were on the ferry.
Speaking of cameras, the computer won't let me upload pictures again. I tried to upload pictures I took in France, and there was an error of some sort. Any advice would be appreciated, but you guys may just have to wait until I get home to see all the pictures I've taken!
Monday morning, I caught a ride with Dario to Milan, then took the train home. Morgan's host mother invited me back this weekend, and I plan on going!
I hope everyone else is enjoying their spring as much as I am!
On Thursday of last week, Morgan and I met up after school in Milan. We walked to the Castello, met up with Kristen and Kailee, got gelato, walked around some more, and then headed to the train station to catch a train back to Lecco. Lecco is a city on lake Como, one of Italy's most famous lakes. George Clooney has a house somewhere on Lake Como, and rumor has it he just bought another house in Lecco. I thought Morgan lived in Lecco itself, but I was mistaken. We ended up taking a 45 minute bus ride through the mountains to arrive in Barzio, the tiny little mountain town where she lives.
We didn't stay up too late Thursday night, because Morgan had to be at the marching band's meeting point at 7:30 the next morning. Morgan's host family plays in the band, actually. The two host brothers both play clarinet, the younger sister plays sax, and the host mom plays the cymbals. Dario, the host father, is instrumentally challenged, so he stayed with me through all the parades.
Here is how the festivites went:
The band (and Dario and I, and some of the other parents of people in the band) piled into cars and drove to a small mountain town. The band then marched in a "parade" down the main street of the town playing "Bella, Ciao". The parade was led by the town priest, followed by the band, veterans of the war, the mayor, some police officers and military members, then people who lived in the town. Each town had a memorial to those from the town who died in WWII, so the priest would say a prayer, and the mayor would give a little rememberance speech. The band would then play the national anthem, we would walk back to the cars, pile in, and drive to the next small town.
Barzio was the last town the band played in, and the whole town was in the piazza to see the parade. I was recruited to help carry the memorial wreath in the parade, and I got to talking with the other person carrying the wreath. He was an enthusiastic old man, (he insisted someone take our picture with the wreath) and I mentioned that my great-grandfather fought near Lake Como in WWII. The man got all excited and ran off to tell the mayor. When we reached the memorial, the Mayor included my great-grandfather in his speech, and thanked the Americans for helping out in WWII. I felt proud to be American, and proud that all of my brothers are in the military.
After the parade, we walked home and had lunch. Later that afternoon, Morgan's host father took Morgan and I to Lecco to walk around. It was a beautiful day, and Morgan and I ended up sitting under a tree next to the lake, enjoying the weather and the view.
After dinner that night, Morgan, her host brother and sister and I ran around the town, pretending we were secret agents. After we got tired of that, we played charades in the front yard until it was bedtime.
Saturday morning, morgan and I slept in, then walked to the grocery store to get the fixings for an apple pie. Dario told Morgan that she wasn't allowed to return to the U.S. until she had maken an apple pie. We got home, made the pie, french toast, and pancakes, and the family ate breakfast for lunch. The pie turned out not-so-great (the crust crumbled to bits and the apples weren't cooked all the way) but Morgan's family loved it. Her health-conscious host mother even had two slices. Saturday afternoon, there was a market in town. We took Sara, Morgan's host sister. We got gelato, then browsed around the market for a few hours.
Sunday was a fantastic day. Dario took Morgan and I to Varenna, a small town on Lake Como. We walked around, enjoying the Italian-ness of it all, and of course we got gelato. After about an hour, we took the ferry (Dario took the car on the ferry!) to another town, Bellagio. Bellagio was beautiful. The houses were well kept, and there were flowers in bloom everywhere. Morgan did some shopping, we explored a little, and then got in the car to return home. Dario took us up the mountian to a place where there was a beautiful view of the lake, and a chapel devoted to the Madonna of Byciclists. I'm sorry to say my camera battery died while we were on the ferry.
Speaking of cameras, the computer won't let me upload pictures again. I tried to upload pictures I took in France, and there was an error of some sort. Any advice would be appreciated, but you guys may just have to wait until I get home to see all the pictures I've taken!
Monday morning, I caught a ride with Dario to Milan, then took the train home. Morgan's host mother invited me back this weekend, and I plan on going!
I hope everyone else is enjoying their spring as much as I am!
Friday, April 18, 2008
Oops.
Looking over my blog, I realized I haven't written anything substatial in quite a long time. Actually, I wrote a nice post a week or so ago, I just forgot to post it. Oops.
My lack of posting is a good thing, though! It shows I've finally found things to do. I've been hanging out in Milan more than usual, my new host mom (yeah, I changed families almost a month ago. 'Nother story for another time) has been taking me on nice little day trips and concerts, and I've started meeting with one of the teachers at my school to help her with English.
I'll continue being busy, too: tomorrow I'm going to Lecco for a Rotary function (I do believe we're having a scavenger hunt, although I'm not entirely sure about that) and I'll be staying the night there. Also, next week, the second year class is having an "American Pancake Party" hosted by yours truly: My mom managed to get me a nice big bottle of Connecticut Maple Syrup, along with a jar of Peanut butter and a Bottle of grape jelly, so I'll be making PB&Js, and enough pancakes to feed 30. Wish me luck!
In the meantime, I'll get to posting some of the pictures I've taken in my travels.
My lack of posting is a good thing, though! It shows I've finally found things to do. I've been hanging out in Milan more than usual, my new host mom (yeah, I changed families almost a month ago. 'Nother story for another time) has been taking me on nice little day trips and concerts, and I've started meeting with one of the teachers at my school to help her with English.
I'll continue being busy, too: tomorrow I'm going to Lecco for a Rotary function (I do believe we're having a scavenger hunt, although I'm not entirely sure about that) and I'll be staying the night there. Also, next week, the second year class is having an "American Pancake Party" hosted by yours truly: My mom managed to get me a nice big bottle of Connecticut Maple Syrup, along with a jar of Peanut butter and a Bottle of grape jelly, so I'll be making PB&Js, and enough pancakes to feed 30. Wish me luck!
In the meantime, I'll get to posting some of the pictures I've taken in my travels.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
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