Wonderful Venice

This passed weekend the study abroad group traveled to Venice. Venice is a beautiful and romantic city. We drove the bus from Carpi to the outskirts of Venice and then proceeded to take the tram across the water a short way. It seemed it may be bad weather with a drop here and some clouds as well but as we walked over our first bridge in Venice the clouds parted the sun brightened the sky. It was perfect, just like my entire trip!

I traveled around Venice with my roommates for this weekend trip– Taylor, Randi, Kendall, Logan, and Hannah. We had a WONDERFUL time! We checked into our residence and then headed straight to lunch. We ate at a lovely little restaurant and had gelato on the way to San Marco’s square. The square just takes your breath away. It and all the buildings in Venice just do not seem real to your eyes. Unfortunately, not but 5 minutes into our visit at the square I got lost…woops. Well, you see I thought I was doing the nice thing by  waiting up for Taylor while the other girls headed forward. I thought Taylor was throwing away the rest of her gelato and so I waited so that we could then catch up. I looked forward again and the group was gone and I looked back and I couldn’t see Taylor. So, I stood in the middle of the square, apart from people, waiting for rescue. After about ten minutes or so I convinced myself that “everything was fine, I could be all by myself for the day in a city that I do not know but that I do know is known for thievery.” Just as I was coming to terms with my lonesome fate my roommates found me and I found out that I wasn’t being kind and waiting for Taylor but I was waiting on some randoooo lady who also happened to have blond hair. Just wonderful – next trip, a leash please. Also, Logan looked at her watch wrong and thought that we had missed our tour so they were frantically trying to find me as well as try to get to our tour of the Doge’s Palace – even though it was thought we were an hour late!

After our minor heart attacks we walked around San Marco’s square, looked out on the water and all the beautiful churches and other buildings surrounding it. It was all so beautiful! After looking around for a bit we went to Doge’s Palace. It was beautiful building with an incredibile amount of history. The guided tour also lead us on Ponte dei Sospiri (the Bridge of Sighs). For those of you that do not know Ponte dei Sospiri is a bridge built between the Doge’s Palace (the building of the former courts, government, and the Doge (a figure head political, government leader)) and the jail. Prisioners would have to walk from said freedom in the government building to their cells – so the prisioners would sigh. I actually ended up purchasing a hand painted canvas drawing of the Ponte dei Sospiri (a small one of course). At the end of our tour we traveled to the gift shop and much to my suprise my Economics 104 professor from this semester, Brian Staihr, tapped me on the shoulder to say hello. Since I was leaving early and had to take his final in Italy he knew I was going to be in Venice. He mentioned he would be in Venice during that time as well and we both though “how crazy would it bei f we bumper into each other” and sure enough we certaintly did. Seriously, small world.

After our tour we walked around some more, stopped for a sit, water, and wine, did some shopping, more seeing the sites like the Riolto Bridge and then we returned to our residence to freshen up and go to dinner. I had spaghetti for the first time since I have been in Italy and it was very good! We all had a great time at the restaurant – lots of laughing and taking pictures. Actually, lots of laughing and lots of pictures really sums up our weekend! After dinner, of course, can you guess? We had more gelato. It was necessary – trust me. Okay, not really but it is so good!

The next day we woke up early so as to see all that we could! We walked around the square some more and then  decided to take the boat taxi to Lido Beach across from San Marco’s, a 10 minute ride. Lido and the beach were very nice! Lido is a cute little town and we had an amazing time walking through it and the beach. We took some really great pictures at the beach and we experienced our first topless beach. This is how it went - walking along the beach, picutres, walk, picutres, walk and then “oh let’s climb these few rocks and walk out onto this little peer…where all the old ladies are laying out…with their tatas out.” Ah,  a new cultural experience! You know, whatever floats your boat is fine by me. After the beach we had one of the best lunches I have had so far in Italy at a little restaurant in Lido. It was a bugliese pizza – simply a pizza with onions but it was so good! We headed back to the mainland of Venice to walk around more (discovering along the way some more beautiful spots in Venice), shop, and of course eat dessert (do you see a pattern here with the food?).

Venice was an amazing trip and I spent my time with some really great girls! I was happy though to come back and see my host family! I can’t wait for Florence next weekend – but I can at the same time because this trip is going entirely too fast - I want more time with my students, host family, and Italy!

Please make it slow down. Okay, thanks!

Peace

Cooking Dinner for my Host Family and Random Interjections

This passed Wednesday I made dinner for my host family! It was quite an experience! I made 3 or 4 trips to different grocery stores in search of the ingredients, I had to look up the ingredients in Italian to purchase them at the store, I was cooking in someone else's kitchen, and I had to free hand all the measurments (not gonna do conversions, not my thing!). With all that and cooking for four hours it was still one of my BEST experiences here so far. It was a challenge and it was baking - two of my favorite things! So, I very much enjoyed the experience! I made bean burritos for dinner and since it was my host parents' 20th anniversary I made them a carrot cake which my host siblings helped with and, which actually turned out really well! We all had a wonderful night with this dinner and just enjoyed each others company.

First random interjection: I found gold today. Or in other words a "porta banana." A porta banana is like a tupper ware case for bananas. It is shaped like a banana so that when you are on the go and you want a banana (always the case in my life) it doesn't get crushed! A true revelation.

Second random interjection: I accidentally ate a couple bites of meat today after being a vegetarian for 2 and half years. Some how, I thought what I was eating a vegetable I didn't recognize - I am a dumb one sometimes!

That is all - Ciao

First English Lesson of My Very Own

I taught my first lesson, one on my very – one that I didn’t just help lead, on Monday May 23rd. I began my lesson by reminding the students, from last week’s assingment to bring pictures, what scrapbooking is in the United States. Since scrapbooking is a fairly foreign concept here in Italy I decided toh ave all the students create their own scrapbook page. They were provided with scrapbook paper, markers, and stickers. The students brought pictures to class. The students were asked to decorate their pages with stickers, pictures, materials such as a ticket from the enven in their picture (scrapbook scraps), and then write in English their age in the picture, what is happening in the picture, who is in the picture, possibly how the event was (fun, exciting, etc.) and of course their name.

A good number of students forgot their photos but they still participated by imagining what photo they will bring to the next class adn writing about that imagined picture. The students did well adn they used the English I asked them to use, with some reminding and some writign of that English on the board. I asked the students to say things such as, “May I please use the scissors, markers, glue, stickers” adn we worked together in English, in Italian, adn wiht a pocket dicitonary to understand each other. The students worked hard the entire hour and the hour itself flew by. Once everyone’s page is completed I will put all the pages together in the scrapbook I brought. I will present the pages to the class in a scrapbook that I brought and when it is presented we will have a wrap up discussion on what scrapbooking is and why people in the US scrapbook.

Holiday Weekend in Modena, Tuscany - Pissa and Lucca

May 20th is a holiday in Carpi for the Patron Santo Bernadino so the schools are closed. Thus, Valentina (my host sister), Catertina, Kendall (the host student of Caterina),  and I went by train (my first train ride!) to the city of Modena. It is only 15 minutes by train from Carpi and it is also a beautiful city! We saw beautiful buildings including the Duomo, a military acadamey, an art school, and countless others. We shopped, took many pictures and had pizza in the square. The best part was Kendall and I learning more Italian and Valentina and Catarina learning more English. They tried to make learning a little difficult for us by giving us words that are difficult to pronounce and this made them laugh because we spoke them terribly! They would laugh and laugh and so I then I used a bad word from the bad words my host dad has been teaching me (He doesn’t know much English but he can communicate well enough to teach my bad words in Italian). So I then used one of these bad words - pretending to be angry at their laughter - and it made them laugh even more. So, at least I can say bad words in Italian just perfectly! After an adventurous day we returned to Carpi to do homework and Lorenzo and I went to the grocery store to buy food so that I can cook dinner next Wednesday – wish me luck! We then went to the square later that night. I had an absolutely wonderful day with everything and everyone!

Over the weekend we then went to Tuscany – Pisa and Lucca. Both places were absolutley beautiful. We first went to Pissa and visited the Piazza dei Miracoli. We went inside the cathedral, baptisery, and up to the very top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. All the monuments were very insipiring and wonderful. We spent the afternoon Touring them and the surrounding area. We had a wonderful lunch in Pisa and then we had an also wonderful dinner at our bed and breakfast. The bed and breakfast was right out of a movie, it was so beautiful and it had the most wonderful view of Pisa from the mountainside. After our stay at bed and breakfast we then traaveled to Lucca – the city of 100 churches. But before actually touring the city we ate at a bar (a bar is a breakfast, gelateria, etc. in Italy – much different from the States I can assure you) for breakfast and I had a nutella crossiant – it was so incredibly good!  Lucca was also a beautiful city and we toured, of course, some very elaborate and nice churches will we were there. We also went up on top of this tower that had trees growing from the top of it – it had a beautiful view of Tuscany, much like the Leaning Tower did.

I had a wonderful weekend with my host family and I truly could not have had a better time than I did. I cannot thank them enough for being so kind and for giving me such a great experience!

Focherini: Being in an Italian School!

Being in the schools and teaching in the schools has been quite an adventure! It is thrilling and I love every minute of it. The differences between student responses in the classroom and teaching styles, when compared to the American classroom, have been many. My first day of school I stayed in one classrroom of 7th graders (or what they call the second year of middle school) and simply observed them and the teachers for the day. It is important to note that in Italy students in all grades from elementary through high school stay in one classroom all day (like our elementary schools) and the teahcers move around the school. Also, the students go to school from about 8:00-1:00, Monday through Saturday (the high schools longer and the high schools are specialized into art schools, language schools, etc. and middle schools can be as well such as with Lorenzo’s school – Alberto Pio, which is a school with a music program).

There is a lot to learn about and from Italian people. The Itialians that I have spent time with really seem to appreciate the things they have and they respect things and others greatly. For example, my host family and many others really conserve energy, recycle everything, and they are generally very mindful of people around them and the needs of others. They spend a great deal of time with their family, friends, and even if there is little time do so, at times, they still make it a priority in their lives. I really hope to take away a greater apreciation for this consciousness in their lives and transfer it to my life. I am very busy but I really do hope to express how much I love my family and friends by giving them more of my time and slow down my life at least a little bit more.

As for what I am learning in the schools so far, I am not exactly sure what I will take away just yet. I am in Focherini (spelling mistake in my first blog but this is really how you spell the school's name) middle school and the teacher I teach with is an English teacher, Antonella. Antonella is very nice and eager to include me in her lessons as a co-teacher as well as teach my own lessons (Next monday I am teaching a lesson on scrapbooking so the students can practice English as well as learn about scrapbooking which many Italians do not do - I am very excited!). As of right now, I believe it is too early to tell what I will take away from the schools, the teachers, and the students. They have all been wonderful and I am learning a great deal about Italian culture and education. Many things are different in the schools in Italy as compared to the school systems in the US. With variances in culture schools in each country are run differently and teaching styles are different. Italian students on the other hand seem to very similar to students their ages in the US. Schooling is very imporant to many people in Carpi and so the government in Carpi works hard to make sure that educaiton is put first and made as great as it can be for the students.

In my observations so far I have seen 5 different teachers teach and many are pretty strict and short with the students. The teachers discipline the kids by singling them out and then the student must bring their “diario” (a schedule book with all of their disciplinary actions taken, notes sent home to parents, grades, and homework lists) up to the front of the class and the teacher then writes down what they were doing wrong or if the student was not prepared for class that day in the the diario. However, for the many disiciplinary actionts taken that seem embarassing or harsh with sometimes cosntatnt yelling or desk pouding from a teacher, things that most American students would cry over, do not seem to phase most students. All of the Italian teachers I have observed also give praise only to their best students and they are very open about telling you, in front of the other students who is a bad student and who is a good student. The Italian teachers that I have observed so far also do not praise unless something is completely correct and when I correct a student but then praise them it confusses them greatly. These have been some cultural differences I have noticed in the classrooms at my school here in Carpi. One is not necessarily better than the other, just culturally different!

I think that both Carpi schools and many, many schools in America face a similar challenge though in their schools. As I have talked with my host mother and father about the different schools and their chidlren’s experiences as well as my experiences in the schools, Ihave found that schools have very good teachers who care but they also struggle to find those good teachers who are well trained, are passionate about the teaching and then in turn teach well. Ibelieve this is a great issue in America and it seems to be so here in Carpi, though with new initiatives and laws education seems to moving towards more imporvement. However, like in the US education is being cut back left and right – just this year in my school they had to close another computer room, science, lab and the only art room in school because they needed to provide more classrooms for the growing student population but they cannot afford many more teachers or a new building. Considering that the municipality in Carpi really considers education to be very important this situation will hopefully change.

As for teaching in the classroom, I have been very busy! The first day I spent observing and I have been teaching ever since in the English classes of levels 1, 2,  and 3 or in the US 6th, 7th, and 8th. The first day of their English class I asked the students to introduce themsleves to me – name, favorite color, favorite subject, what they like to do in their free time, where they live, etc. Then I presented myslef in the same way. The students then asked me questions about myself, American culture, etc. After the presentations and the question time I talked to the students about the differences I noticed from my first day of observations between students in Carpi and students in America. I told them that in public schools religion is not allowed whereas in Italy it is because Catholiscism is the official religion in Italy – we talked about why there is not religion in public schools and why there can be religion in private schools. We also talked about the way they count on their hand and raise their hand as compared to students in America. In much of Europe people begin counting with their thumb whereas Americans mostly start with their index finger and students in Carpi mostly raise their hand with only their index finger up right and the rest folded in their hand whereas students in America raise all of their fingers when raising their hands. I noted other differences like the length of school day, how many days, and how students in America have lunch at school and do not go home for lunch.

The students appreciated learning these differences adn so did I! It is fascinating to learn how other people live and in what ways they carry out their days. I have learned so much in the schools from this week alone and I cannot wait to learn more from the people of Carpi!

What a wondeful place!

Where do I begin. This first week has been incredibile. I have seen so much and done so much already during just the first part of my stay in Italy. It feels like I have been here for much longer than 6 days, but in a good way. People in Carpi, my host family, and the students are wonderful but especially my host family. They have been so great to help get me settled, take me out and about in the city, and they have made me feel like apart of the family! I already cannot thank them enough.

The city of Carpi is so beautiful and pictures could never do it justice. I started my stay by going to the Bulgarelli and Lodi household with my host mother, Lia. The first song I heard, on the way home was Animal Planet (you and me baby ainàt nothn’ but… you get the picture). So, I quickly learned that American music, American movies, companies, etc are very popular in Italy. That was not something that I was really expecting to see while in Italy or at least not to the extent that I have seen. When we arrived to the apartment I was given a tour by Lorenzo (my 12 year old host brother). They are so nice and Lorenzo is just like my brother Donald so it is easy to get along well with him! We then went right into the 3rd largest Piazza in all of Italy! This is one of the most beautiful places in Carpi. There is the Duomo, the Castle of Alberto Pio - a prince of Carpi’s past. It was a beautiful day to be outside.

The next day, May 15th, Lorenzo, Lia, and I went to bowl in Modena, the next town over. We had a wondeful time bowling and I had to explain to them that even though they were always beating me that my scores were much higher here than at home. Then Lorenzo and I played aracade games and air hockey. Then we came back to Carpi – we played Uno, which of course I had to lose at as well but it was fun never-the-less. We spent the rest of the afternoon talking, reading, and watching TV. Andrea and Valentina were in France for Valentina’s skating competition (which her team received 1st place – Yay Valentian!) so I was not able to meet them until Monday but when I did meet them they, Andrea and Valentina, proved to be just as nice as Lia and Lorenzo!

Lia and Valentina speak English well. Andrea and Lorenzo do not know much English but it is interesting and fun communicating with all of them and other Italians! Sometimes I understand them sometimes I don’t and sometimes they do understand me and sometimes they don’t but we always find a way to comunicate. For instance, we are all eager to learn each other’s languages so we use dictionaries at home and I do also when I am at school teaching. In two intances people have wanted to speak to me and I to them but they did not know English and I do not know Italian so we communicated in Spanish because we both knew the language. – this happened with a professor at the my school, Foccerini, and one of Valentian’s friends last night. I was very excited to be able to communicate in this way!

The first few days of this week we spent getting oriented in Carpi with guided tours, a presentation from a woman on the council for education in Carpi, and visiting schools other than our own after our school day was finsihed. We have visited my school –Foccerini, a middle school, a high school – Liceo Fanti, another middle school – Alberto Pio, and  pre-school for ages 3-6 – Ballena Blu. We took tours and learned about the different programs available at those schools. I am excited to continue to learn about the teachers, students, and the school systems in Carpi!

Being in Italy has been a wonderful experience so far and I only anticipate it getting better!

P. S. - I love you family and friends!!!

Ciao!

Passo Due: Experiencing Italy in America (“Under the Tuscan Sun” and “Bread and Tulips”)

For my second Italy assignment I decided to watch two movies in order to see a couple of different views of Italy and Italians. I watched an American movie – Under the Tuscan Sun and an Italian movie – Bread and Tulips. Not much to my surprise the films did not really provide me with an incredibly new outlook on Italy or Italians – many stereotypes, not necessarily bad ones but nothing particularly knew. However, watching both of the films reminded me to open, willing, and excited to being a wonderful journey into a new, foreign country and culture.

Under the Tuscan Sun is a cute film with Diane Lane as Frances. Frances goes through a divorce and her friends decide that she should take their tickets and go on a vacation to Italy. Once in Italy she decides to stay, live in Italy, and really experience the culture (Don’t worry mom and dad – I will be really experiencing Italy myself but I will come home…eventually.). As the movie continues Frances learns to take risks, experience new things, develop new friendships, and she learns more about life. Frances discovers much about Italian culture and much of Italy. In doing so, Frances learns not only more about Italy, its people, and culture but she learns more about herself in her discoveries and experiences in another country.

Bread and Tulips is a funny and yet somewhat depressive film about a house-wife’s journey to self-discovery. The movie begins with Rosalba, the housewife played by Licia Maglietta, on a vacation with her family. Rosalba is having a difficult vacation and nothing is really going in her favor. At the end of the day the last blow comes when she is accidentally left behind by her tour bus at a rest stop. Rosalba does not have a cell phone and she must call her husband from a pay phone. When she calls him, he ends up blaming her for missing the bus. However, they do not return to retrieve her and she must take a train back home. Through a series of events, missing trains on accident and ultimately a decision by Rosalba to stay in Venice, she does not make it back to her home. Rosalba is befriended by a suicidal older man who allows her to stay with him and helps her get a job in Venice. Rosalba’s husband is irate that she is staying in Venice and not at home being a house wife. Through the sadness of Rosalba’s unhappiness at home – commanding and cheating husband and the older man’s, Fernando’s, loneliness is enough to make the film depressing. However, both Rosalba and Fernando change their unfortunate dispositions and begin to discover life and the joy it brings. They both take advantage of new experiences and opportunities. Ultimately the learn more about life and better their lives.

And that my friends, is something I would like to accomplish while in Italy. I want to embrace and learn about a new country, its people, and culture. I also want to really allow myself to take advantage of every opportunity and experience allotted me while in Italy. Italy is sure to be a wonderful place with wonderful people and I am ready to leave for my next, new adventure in life – 4 days until Italy!