Perugia, Fat Tuesday/Middle School and Ash Wednesday

Last weekend I took a trip to Perugia, the capital city of the Umbria region. It was about a two hour train ride there, so we left bright and early. It was another really cool city, with beautiful views, lots of art, and great food. We spent a lot of time roaming the city, and also spent quite a bit of time in the art museum. They have a great collection, and lots of art from the byzantine, gothic, and renaissance periods, which I've been studying in my art history class. Here are just a few pictures from my trip:

The Perugia Fountain by Pisano

Fat Tuesday and Ash Wednesday were this week, and here, the whole Easter/Lent season is really important. Tuesday was my morning at the middle school, and the teacher brought in Cenci, a traditional Italian pastry for the class to eat. I learned a lot from the students about their carnivale traditions. On Wednesday, a group of us decided to go to an Ash Wednesday service. We went to one of the Catholic Churches in Sesto, and it was very different from what I am used to. First, the service was in Italian, so following along was a challenge. Second, the Catholic format is a bit different from the Methodist one I am used to. Regardless, it was a really cool experience, and really nice to take a little time out of my day to reflect and remember the importance of this time of year. Being in this Catholic state, it is somewhat inevitable that you will think a lot about religion. All of the artwork we study is religious, there are so many beautiful churches, and the culture is completely surrounded around Catholicism. This atmosphere has sparked a few really great discussions among the other kids in my program that I've really enjoyed being a part of. It's been a long time (probably since high school youth group) that I've really had a good discussion about faith, the institution of the church, etc., etc.

Well tomorrow is the start of my "spring" break, and I am off to Spain for the next 11 days. I will be traveling to Barcelona, Sevilla, and Madrid with a few kids from my program, and I so excited to get a taste of Spanish culture! Unfortunately, there will be no new blog posts for about a week, so you'll have to wait patiently.

A presto!

Danielle

After One Month In Italy...

As of Friday, I have officially been in Italy for an entire month! It's amazing how much I've seen and done, how much I've learned, and how quickly time has past! Ever day is a new adventure filled with something new or unexpected. There are so many things about Italy and the culture that I am in LOVE with:

• The emphasis on people and spending time together. I don't know the last time I sat down for three meals a day (probably never). The purpose of every meal is not just to enjoy good food and good wine, but also good company. It makes me miss you all a lot, but hopefully I can bring some of this tradition back to the states with me!
• A slower paced lifestyle. I guess this goes hand in hand with the last point, but I love how people take the time to enjoy life. Everyone isn't always on the go, running to their next activity.
• Older Italians. I've never seen so many older people walking the streets. It is normal to see an older couple, or an older person with someone who looks like their child or grandchild, arms linked, walking through the streets. It's just a really nice site.
• Coffee and Red Wine. Never liked either of these things before, but I've acquired a taste for them here. I've enjoyed sipping on a glass of wine with dinner, and having a cup of coffee with dessert or after a meal.

Things I've missed/ have not been too thrilled with:

• My family and friends. Being here has made me realize how lucky I am to have the support system that I do back home. If it wasn't for you guys, I'd probably never want to leave Italy!
• Diet Coke and free water. Wine is literally cheaper than water, so I'm always trying to remind myself to keep hydrated. And diet coke is too expensive to maintain that habit.
• My bed. The bed here is no memory foam...
• Dog poop. Apparently people do not pick up after their dogs. You always have to watch your step when walking on the sidewalk.
• The amount of work I've had. It's not as much as UofM, but more than I expected. But I guess I am here to learn, huh?

So besides a few minor inconveniences, I've had an amazing time thus far! If the next three months are as great as the first, I'm in for a good semester! Can't wait to see what's in store for me next. Thanks everyone for keeping up with me!

Until Next Time,

Danielle

Firenze vs. Rome Football Match

Last night I went to my very first soccer game, and let me tell you, I have never experienced anything like it! The crowds were energetic, loud, rowdy, and extremely passionate! The best thing I can think to compare it to is what I imagine the Big House would be like if there were no rules or security guards. The fans had so many chants, cheers, and songs, and knew exactly when they were supposed to start yelling them. The crowd was filled with purple (the team's color), and there were so many purple and white stripped scarves, it reminded me of a Harry Potter Quidditch match.

Whenever there was a bad play, the people in the crowd would throw up their hands, scream, kick the seat in front of them, thrown their cigarette, you name it. One man was waving a large flag around and hit it against the seat in front of him so hard that he broke it clear in half. The most dramatic thing that I noticed was the entire section left empty between the Florence and Rome fans lined with security guards. At one point during the game, we noticed a cloud of smoke coming from the dividing section. Apparently, this was not cigarette smoke, fans from each side were throwing smoke bombs at each other! Could you imagine that happening in the US? It would be national news and considered some sort of terrorist threat. But it Italy, its just a normal occurrence at a football match. Here's a picture of this divide:

On a side note, the score was 0-1, with a Rome win. Rome did not score until the last five minutes of the game, so it was pretty disappointing.

ROMA!

This weekend, in 60 jam-packed hours, I went to Rome and I cannot even begin to describe how fantastic it was! It was amazing to see how the legacy of the Roman empire and the influence of the Catholic church are present throughout the entire city. I apologize in advance for the length of this post, so bear with me!

The trip began at 7am thursday morning, as we boarded a bus the Villa Chartered out. The ride was about 4 hours long, and when we arrived we checked into the hotel and headed off to our first tour. That afternoon we saw the Roman Forum, Palatine Hill, and the Colosseum. The Roman Forum, now in ruins, was the center of their civilization. What I found most interesting about this was how the Romans built their empire on top of itself. The newest parts of the city are 60 feet higher than the oldest ones. As far as the forum, the level in which we see the ruins today is from the 1st century, but earlier remains are still below the ground level. From the Forum and Palatine Hill, we made our way to the Colosseum. The Colosseum is a large elliptical shaped amphitheater at the heart of the city, and was used for gladiator games as well as large public gatherings. This amazing piece of architecture was once also made with marble and other precious stone, but it is mostly stripped due to stone robbers.

The last led tours of the day were the church of San Clemente and The Pantheon. San Clemente Church is a basilica dedicated to Saint Clement, and built upon an old pagan temple for the god Mitras. We were able to see the basilica, as well as the lower levels of the old pagan temple. This was another cool example of how the city is built on top of itself. Our last attraction of the day was the Pantheon, which is another grand church in the city. After that we grabbed dinner in a little restaurant in the Campo di Fiore, and then went to a nearby bar for a drink.

We spent friday all of friday morning in Vatican City exploring the museum, the Sistine Chapel, and of course St. Peter's Basilica. My favorite part of Vatican City had to be St. Peter's Basilica. It is the largest church in the world, and there is only one phrase to describe it "sensory overload!" The church is filled with beautiful pink marble, paintings, statues, an intricately carved pulpit, and so much more. I wish I could explain to you the beauty of this place, but words just can't do it justice. After we finished the Vatican, it was time for lunch. We wandered around, found a restaurant, and then headed to see the Trevi Fountain and Spanish steps. After that, we did a bit more wandering and then headed back to the hotel to change for dinner. A group of us decided to go to an apertivo. Basically you pay between 6 and 8 euro for a drink and then a little buffet of appetizers. This is a very popular thing for young Italians, who usually treat this as a pre-dinner event, but we of course, ate more food than you are supposed to and made it our dinner. After dinner we decided to walk around and see some of the sites at night. We went to the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish steps. They were gorgeously lit; it was definitely a site to see.

Saturday, we woke up and went to the Villa La Farnesina, which is a villa filled in the Trastevere area of Rome. There are many frescoes in the building by famous artists, like Raphael and others. After that we explored the surrounding area and had lunch. That afternoon we went to the Villa Borghese, once the house of the prominent Borghese family, and now a large museum. There were more amazing frescoes, statues, etc. From there we loaded the bus to head back to Florence.

Whew! So we definitely hit the main sites, but there is still so much more to see in Rome and I would love to go back! I took millions of pictures, but here are some of my favorites!

La Scuola Media G. Cavalcanti

On tuesday, I started volunteering at Sesto's middle school. I am helping out in an 8th grade English class to give them more exposure to the language. These kids have been taking English since elementary school and are actually quite good.

My day began with the 20 minute walk to the school, and when I arrived a woman in the lobby immediately came up to me and said "Sei americana?", to which I responded "Si, sono americana." (I've got that phrase down). She grabbed me by the arm and whisked me over to another lady, who turned out to be the English teacher. We walked up to the classroom, where 25 8th grade students were giggling and talking amongst each other.

The teacher started off the lesson by having the students write down things they thought about me. How old I am, where I'm from, what kind of house I live in, what kind of music I like, etc. After a few minutes of writing things down, the kids told me what they thought. Among other things, they believed I was about 20 or so (yay! at least I don't look 16 to the Italian 13 year olds), live in a big house, enjoyed pop music, (when the teacher asked what band, they insisted on Coldplay), liked to go to the cinema (for some reason they don't say movie theater), had two cats (one boy said their names would be Snow and Charcoal), and had no siblings. Once they were done, I told them what was right and a little more about myself.

For homework the kids had prepared things to say to me about Sesto. They told me about the cinema in town, the town square (or the piazza), the restaurants, parks, etc. I then told them about Birmingham, and Ann Arbor.

I will be volunteering every tuesday morning, so I'll keep you updated on more fun experiences! Next week we will be talking about foods.

Shiny Puffy Coats and American Pop Music

They say that fashion in Italy is two years ahead, while music is five years behind, and in my experience I have definitely found this to be true. In every cab, store, and cafe the background music is extremely familiar; it's always American and from roughly the years 2003-2007 (and not always music that topped the charts).

While the music is familiar, the clothing is not. All the rage in Italy is this coat that look like a space suite, or as we refer to them "the-shiny-puffy-coat." I've seen men, women, children, babies, and even dogs wearing these things all around Florence. While I personally think they are a bit bizarre, part of me is intrigued. If fashion is really two years ahead here, maybe I should get one in anticipation for this new trend? What do you think? Should I rock this coat in Ann Arbor, winter '11? :-/

If you're interested my roommate Caroline found this video on the New York Times fashion section:

http://video.nytimes.com/video/2010/01/15/style/1247466574515/on-the-street-puffed.html?ref=fashion