Ciao!
I am currently sitting in my room eating a banana, wearing an oversized sweater, and sipping on some tea. Life is good. The weather is getting colder outside and I am really excited about it, which is strange, because in the USA I live for summer. So here's what's been going on lately!
Last weekend I had my mid-October AFS orientation camp and….oh my god. It was so much fun. I'll break it down like I normally do, day by day.
Friday: I got there at noon, we spent the afternoon just chilling and doing activities, catching up with one another and making new friends! In the night we had an activity where the girls had to dress as guys and the guys as girls, and we got pretty into it (makeup for the boys and fake beards for the girls) and we did a runway show. It was hilarious
Saturday: In the morning we went to Sorrento (where I live) and I had the embarrassing responsibility of being our tour guide, which of course resulted in me getting lost and having to turn around to face around 30 students and 5 volunteers and tell them I was lost…..I wanted to melt into the ground haha. But it was still fun! I showed them the famous gelato place, and then when we broke up into smaller groups I ended up finding the place I was trying to find before, but only a few of my friends got to see it. In the afternoon we did more activities, and they were actually kind of helpful. In the night, we all hung out outside and then about a dozen of us went into one of the rooms that was pretty big, and we all talked and hung out and listened to music, it was a lot of fun, even though we didn't get to sleep until like 2.
Sunday: Activities all day, and then in the night we had to plan a talent show. This was probably my favorite activity, because it helped me learn so much about other cultures. My really good friend (Hinerapa) is from New Zealand, and she showed us her talent which was poi. It was probably one of the most fascinating things I have ever seen and I fell in love with it instantly (even though I couldn't figure out how to do it). I also hung out with all the Latin Americans (and a girl from Spain!) and it was really nice, because they remind me of all my family from Mexico so it felt very comfortable and familiar. They taught me how to do bachata (a style of dancing) and we all got up and started dancing and it was amazing, now all I listen to is bachata music and I am determined to master it :) I loved watching all the kids' talents, and usually we all ended up joining in and trying to learn, wether it was the Flamenco or a special dance from Thailand, we would all try and copy the presenter and it usually had disastrous but amusing results. A guy from China sang a song in Chinese, and it was funny, because even though I didn't understand the words I felt like I understood the song, and it sounded like it could have been in English or Spanish, which to me helped me realize that no matter where we're from we are all ultimately the same. I had so many ideas of how certain people from certain countries would be, and I have since then discovered that it is not true at all, I have a friend who is the cutest, tiniest little Japanese girl, but when you watch her dance I swear she turns into Britney Spears. Afterwards, I hung out with some of the other exchange students and I didn't go to bed until around 3 am. So yeah I was exhausted by this point.
Monday: In the morning we just hung out and did some more activities, mostly games (We played suck and blow. Hilarity ensued. We also played a game where you hold an apple between your chin and your neck and have to pass it around the circle without using your hands, and it was so so so funny to watch people struggle. At a certain point, we all randomly started passing around Kanako, the cute little Japanese girl. One person just randomly picked her up and then passed her down, and we made a few rounds around the circle for no particular reason….only exchange students haha), I ended up spending an hour talking about Maoori culture with my friend Hinerapa, and I just find it so fascinating. Then we all had to say goodbye and go our own ways, which was really sad since I know I won't get to see some of them who are only here for a trimester ever again.
So, here are some of the things I've learned this past weekend:
- If I'm ever feeling homesick, I just need to spend some time around latinos and I will instantly feel 10000 times better.
- It doesn't matter what country someone comes from, if they are an exchange student I can almost 100% guarantee that they will be funny, outgoing, friendly, and crazy. Not to mention they will be full of surprises
- Everyone is going through the same stuff, and the best thing you can do is just share your struggles and laugh at the awkwardness of it all.
- Sleep is overrated (Okay just kidding I really need sleep, but when you have only a few days with such an amazing group of people sleep gets knocked down to the bottom of your priority list)
- Poi and bachata are life
- If you have problems, talk about them. Chances are you will come out feeling like a giant weight has been lifted.
- New Zealand is a really amazing country and I am definitely moving there at some point in my life
It was overall really fun, and I feel a lot more positive about everything! Other things that happened this week:
- Tuesday after Italian lessons I went with Hinerapa (New Zealand) and Nabila (Indonesia) for pizza and ice cream, which was really fun and delicious! Since all the other exchange students in my chapter live in Castellammare and I'm in Sorrento I haven't really hung out with them, but now I have decided to do it a lot more because it's so nice to be able to spend time with people who understand you
- Wednesday I went into Napoli for my residence papers, and when we got there at 9:45 they were on number 18. We were number 132. Thanks to my host mom's persistence we managed to get in at number 46, and we were out of there by 11:30 (they were only up to number 61, if you were wondering).
Tomorrow I'm going to another school to talk about Intercultura in the morning (I've only gone to school 3 days this week. Not complaining ;) ) and then heading to Calabria with my host family in the afternoon! It's a 5 hour drive there, which will be interesting… But it should be beautiful and then we will head back Sunday afternoon! I'll keep you guys updated :)
P.S. I am so so pumped for Halloween next weekend <3
A dopo! Xoxo
-- Tami
Friday, October 24, 2014
Monday, October 13, 2014
Overdue Update
Ciao tutti!
I'm sorry I haven't written in forever, I've just been taking all this time to process everything and think and just experience life. So, first of all I just want to say I was brought to tears by the response to my last post. I had people I didn't even know messaging me giving me support and kind words, and everyone was so sweet, it really warmed my heart <3 So thank you all so much :) Secondly, yes I am feeling better. I don't wake up on the verge of tears feeling I have to leave right this instant. However, I still don't believe that a year is the right choice for me. As of now, my plan is to switch to a trimester program, which means I will leave in the beginning of december, just before the holidays and the second semester of American high school, which seems like a nice breaking point for me. I am not going to go into a lot more detail about this, because frankly I am kind of tired of explaining myself and I trust that if someone is interested they can talk to me personally so I don't bore all of you with the dramatic details ;) So anyways, time to play catch up!
October 3rd was my 16th birthday, and it was really amazing!! I woke up at 6:30 as normal for school (of course this year my birthday was on a Friday, but I have school the next day -.- Stupid Italian school schedules) and I was in the bathroom getting ready for about 15 minutes before I went back to my room to check my phone, and I saw I had multiple missed calls from my family back home. I immediately called them back, but then my mom told me that she will call me because she uses a service so it doesn't cost a million dollars for long distance phone calls haha. But of course, right as she called me my host mom and host sister came in with a box, so I told her I would call her back. Then, I realized the box was from my parents and told them to call me once again (pretty confusing). Inside was my mom's iPhone (mine is broken) along with a case with a girl on an elephant looking at the world (I love elephants), a beautiful silver ring with a very muted pink heart, some fuzzy aloe socks (I am in love with them), some stuffed animals from my sister, and a letter. I had to try really hard not to cry, and it was so sweet of them to send me those things and wait until I woke up to call me. Then, I went to a bar with my host sister instead of having breakfast at home since I love pastries, and I got this big fluffy bread filled with Nutella. Once I was at school, my class surprised me with yet another pastry on my desk with a candle and a note in it. They sang me happy birthday and I blew out my candle, and it was very sweet. School was normal, and afterwards my entire class took me out for a pizza. We were about 20 people, and we went to this restaurant and it was delicious! We ordered three "meter pizzas" (giant, rectangle sheets of pizza) and split them, and afterwards they gave me a cake that one of the girl's mom made, which was absolutely heavenly. I was so stuffed haha. Then, they all gave me a card and an $80 gift card to Mondo Bio (this vegan/health food shop two doors down from my house, I go there literally every day after school. Sadly, I am not exaggerating) which was so sweet of them. But it didn't end there! In the evening, my friend asked me if I wanted to go out to Syrenuse, our favorite bar, so I agreed. We were there until around 9, when it was time to head home. My friend said she had to give my host sister a book, so she would drop me off. When we got into the apartment, I found that my friends and host family had thrown me a surprise party! It was so sweet and thoughtful of them to do that, and it was really fun :) We ate and hung out until 11, and then I went to bed. It was an unforgettable birthday :) Then, the next day after school I went with my host sister and mother into Naples and we did some serious shopping, and in the night I went clubbing with some friends and my host sister! It was a great time and I really enjoyed it.
Other than that, nothing really special has happened. I started Italian lessons every Tuesday and Thursday, and school is still really boring. But this weekend I have the mid-October orientation camp which will be really fun! I am going to Castellamare di Stabia from Friday-Monday, and I am so excited to see all my AFS friends again :) I will keep you guys updated on how that goes!!
A dopo <3
-- Tami
Tuesday, September 23, 2014
Second Week in Italy and Decisions
Ciao tutti,
I know I missed my usual Sunday post, but that's because I didnt have wifi and I needed some time to process some things and gather my thoughts. This post is going to be really, really long (don't say I didn't warn you) and divided into two parts. The first part will be what has been going on (my normal daily summaries) and the second half will be more personal, about some of the things I have been going through lately and how I plan on handling them. Feel free to read whichever part interests you (or both).
Last Monday: So it was the first day of school (we only went for 2 hours), and everyone was really nice and friendly! A group of friends invited me to go with them to a bar that one of the girl's dad owns, and we went and had some pastries. It was so nice and I made a lot of friends :)
Tuesday: The second day of school was good too, I went over to one of the girl's houses afterwards for lunch with a group of girls, and again it was so nice and they were all very helpful. They made me a map of the train stations, photocopied parts of their textbooks, and taught me some new Italian words.
Wednesday: Third day of school, nothing special, and then in the evening I went to Castellamare di Stabia to have a meeting with my local AFS chapter (two of my friends from school were so sweet and rode the train there with me, because I was scared of going alone). The meeting was actually pretty fun and almost all the volunteers are young returnees so it was really easy to relate to them. After the meeting we all went to a bar and had some yummy pastries :)
Thursday: School (again), nothing special, and then in the afternoon I went to the gym for the first time (I've been inhaling everything that people offer me, so I thought it was probably a good idea to start exercising) and it felt so good to work up a sweat again.
Friday: School (surprise surprise) and then afterwards I went to one of my friend's houses for lunch with another girl. She has a small cooking and dining house really close to the school and it was gorgeous!! The walls were all windows so there was tons of natural light, all the furniture and walls and everything were white, and then outside there were tons of lemon trees. It was like a dream. Her dad cooked a really delicious meal for us, and then we went to her normal house (which was also beautiful) to study. Then, I went home and packed, because the next day my host family took us to Ascea.
Saturday: School (Yes I have school here on Saturdays….not fun.) and then my host siblings and I were picked up by my host parents and we drove like 2 and a half hours to Ascea. Ascea is this beautiful open beach, and my host family spends all their summers there. They stay in this little village area where there are tons of small little bungalows and everyone there is like a family. They put on plays and do activities and most of the families have been coming for generations. It was so nice :) We swam, then they put on their last play of the season, Moulin Rouge, and then had a goodbye ceremony filled with tears and hugs. Then, we all had a HUGE dinner, and I really do mean huge! I'm talking probably 25 10 feet long tables filled with all types of foods. The dessert table was literal paradise.
Sunday: We just kind of lounged around, watched this guy do card tricks, and it was pretty relaxing. Then, we drove home (but there was tons of traffic so it took us like 3 hours and we got back super late at night) and had dinner.
Monday (yesterday): Nothing special, I went to school, then to the gym, and then I met up with my AFS liaison.
Overall, Italian school is very different. We only go for around 4 hours every day so it feels shorter, but we don't get lunch and we have school on saturdays so that's the tradeoff. I met with a professor in the school to see about getting a personalized schedule, but she didn't let me, so I am only actively participating (homework, tests, etc.) in 2 or 3 out of all of my classes. I am still trying to see if I can find a way to change this, because for 95% of the time I am drawing in all my classes (except for art history, I am actually really excited about that class and the teacher is so kind and helpful and tries to translate for me!)
Okay, now on to the second part. Please wait until the end before you react or judge. Hear (or, I guess read) what I have to say first :) Thank you.
Alright I am just going to be blunt and to the point: As of now, I intend to shorten my exchange. Like I said before, please try and listen to my reasons before you form any opinions. Before you go on exchange, people will warn you time and time again that it will be really hard, that a year is a long time, etc. etc. You will listen and think you understand, but you honestly will not truly understand. It's as if you asked a person to imagine a new color; it isn't their fault that they cannot picture it. If you haven't seen the color, you can't understand what it looks like. Now, I have seen the color, and I don't think I want to. Nothing specific has gone wrong, my Italian is improving tremendously, I have made lots of friends, school is going well (as well as school can be), and my host family is good as well. My life here is, according to the standards of society, blossoming. However, I am still unhappy here. I have thought about this a lot over the past week, and I think the best way to explain it is like this: Imagine you are in a store, and you see this beautiful shirt. You fall in love with it, and you are 100% sure that it will be a perfect fit, so you buy the shirt without a second thought. Once you're home, you put it on, excited to wear it out. But when you try it on, it doesn't seem to fit. It simply doesn't look right on you. But you loved the shirt, and you spent a lot of money on it, so you aren't going to just give up. You try sowing it, tying it up, cutting it, and anything else you can think of, but it still isn't right for you. It doesn't make you or the shirt any less beautiful, the shirt just wasn't meant for you. Do you see where I am going with this? Sometimes, the path you thought was perfect for you really isn't. Exchange isn't for everyone, and every person reacts differently to studying abroad. In my case, I think it isn't right for me. However, I am not going to just give up. Like I mentioned in the first part of this post, I spoke with my liaison (she is so sweet and understanding, I love her so much. She helped me a ton), and we came up with a plan. Until mid-October (AFS has a 3 day orientation camp in the middle of October), I am going to really try to make it work here. I am going to say yes to every opportunity, keep an open mind and find the positive side of every situation, and pour my heart and soul into making it work. If, when I come back from the camp (which my liaison says usually helps boost your motivation), I can honestly say "I really did try as hard as I could to make it work, and it just isn't meant for me" then I will go home. If I reevaluate how I'm feeling, and I feel like I can stay a little longer, then I will pick another date to reevaluate how I'm feeling, and if I want to postpone my departure then I will, and if I don't want to then I won't. It honestly takes so much of the pressure off knowing that I can leave whenever. Now, I know that this decision will face a lot of opposition, but I would like everyone to know that leaving early does not mean I failed. It means that I was mature enough to realize that this isn't what is best for me, and I don't feel the need to stay here for 10 months just to prove to others that I can. As far as I'm concerned, I have already succeeded. I'm 15 years old, and I found a way to create the opportunity to move to the other side of the world for a year. I tried, and I believe that is what is most important. I took the chance, I stepped out of my comfort zone, and I have already learned so much. I see my life back home in an entirely new perspective, and I have realized how lucky I am, and I really value and appreciate where I come from and my family so much more. If I stay, yes I would probably grow and learn more things, but this is just one of many opportunities for me to grow and mature. I have also learned a lot about myself and what I do and don't like. I always thought I wanted to travel the world without a home, going with the wind, and I have realized that it is important for me to have a home. I still want to travel the world, but I need to have somewhere to come back to. I have realized many other things about my future and what I do and don't want to do, but I won't go into detail because that requires a whole other post. Maybe the reason this experience was brought into my life was to help me realize these things, and to learn to let go of dreams instead of denying that something is wrong just because this is what I thought I wanted at some point. I am well aware that I may regret this decision later on in my life, but you know what? Life goes on. We all make mistakes, and we all make decisions that we regret, but it's how we learn. If I do end up regretting going home then I will at the very least learn from it and use it to help me with other decisions later on in my life. I may not know what's best for me, but this is how I will figure it out- by making decisions and yes, sometimes making mistakes. I managed to raise $3,000, move to a country where I don't know anyone, or how to speak the language, or any of the customs, and live there for (at least) over a month all by myself, and I'm only 15. I am proud of myself for making this happen. In conclusion, I will take these next few weeks to try and make it work, but if it doesn't then I am not going to stress out and kill myself over it. Life goes on. If you read this whole thing then thank you, I am sorry it was so long I just wanted to explain myself thoroughly.
I will write again soon!
Ciao <3 Xoxo
-- Tami
I know I missed my usual Sunday post, but that's because I didnt have wifi and I needed some time to process some things and gather my thoughts. This post is going to be really, really long (don't say I didn't warn you) and divided into two parts. The first part will be what has been going on (my normal daily summaries) and the second half will be more personal, about some of the things I have been going through lately and how I plan on handling them. Feel free to read whichever part interests you (or both).
Last Monday: So it was the first day of school (we only went for 2 hours), and everyone was really nice and friendly! A group of friends invited me to go with them to a bar that one of the girl's dad owns, and we went and had some pastries. It was so nice and I made a lot of friends :)
Tuesday: The second day of school was good too, I went over to one of the girl's houses afterwards for lunch with a group of girls, and again it was so nice and they were all very helpful. They made me a map of the train stations, photocopied parts of their textbooks, and taught me some new Italian words.
Wednesday: Third day of school, nothing special, and then in the evening I went to Castellamare di Stabia to have a meeting with my local AFS chapter (two of my friends from school were so sweet and rode the train there with me, because I was scared of going alone). The meeting was actually pretty fun and almost all the volunteers are young returnees so it was really easy to relate to them. After the meeting we all went to a bar and had some yummy pastries :)
Thursday: School (again), nothing special, and then in the afternoon I went to the gym for the first time (I've been inhaling everything that people offer me, so I thought it was probably a good idea to start exercising) and it felt so good to work up a sweat again.
Friday: School (surprise surprise) and then afterwards I went to one of my friend's houses for lunch with another girl. She has a small cooking and dining house really close to the school and it was gorgeous!! The walls were all windows so there was tons of natural light, all the furniture and walls and everything were white, and then outside there were tons of lemon trees. It was like a dream. Her dad cooked a really delicious meal for us, and then we went to her normal house (which was also beautiful) to study. Then, I went home and packed, because the next day my host family took us to Ascea.
Saturday: School (Yes I have school here on Saturdays….not fun.) and then my host siblings and I were picked up by my host parents and we drove like 2 and a half hours to Ascea. Ascea is this beautiful open beach, and my host family spends all their summers there. They stay in this little village area where there are tons of small little bungalows and everyone there is like a family. They put on plays and do activities and most of the families have been coming for generations. It was so nice :) We swam, then they put on their last play of the season, Moulin Rouge, and then had a goodbye ceremony filled with tears and hugs. Then, we all had a HUGE dinner, and I really do mean huge! I'm talking probably 25 10 feet long tables filled with all types of foods. The dessert table was literal paradise.
Sunday: We just kind of lounged around, watched this guy do card tricks, and it was pretty relaxing. Then, we drove home (but there was tons of traffic so it took us like 3 hours and we got back super late at night) and had dinner.
Monday (yesterday): Nothing special, I went to school, then to the gym, and then I met up with my AFS liaison.
Overall, Italian school is very different. We only go for around 4 hours every day so it feels shorter, but we don't get lunch and we have school on saturdays so that's the tradeoff. I met with a professor in the school to see about getting a personalized schedule, but she didn't let me, so I am only actively participating (homework, tests, etc.) in 2 or 3 out of all of my classes. I am still trying to see if I can find a way to change this, because for 95% of the time I am drawing in all my classes (except for art history, I am actually really excited about that class and the teacher is so kind and helpful and tries to translate for me!)
Okay, now on to the second part. Please wait until the end before you react or judge. Hear (or, I guess read) what I have to say first :) Thank you.
Alright I am just going to be blunt and to the point: As of now, I intend to shorten my exchange. Like I said before, please try and listen to my reasons before you form any opinions. Before you go on exchange, people will warn you time and time again that it will be really hard, that a year is a long time, etc. etc. You will listen and think you understand, but you honestly will not truly understand. It's as if you asked a person to imagine a new color; it isn't their fault that they cannot picture it. If you haven't seen the color, you can't understand what it looks like. Now, I have seen the color, and I don't think I want to. Nothing specific has gone wrong, my Italian is improving tremendously, I have made lots of friends, school is going well (as well as school can be), and my host family is good as well. My life here is, according to the standards of society, blossoming. However, I am still unhappy here. I have thought about this a lot over the past week, and I think the best way to explain it is like this: Imagine you are in a store, and you see this beautiful shirt. You fall in love with it, and you are 100% sure that it will be a perfect fit, so you buy the shirt without a second thought. Once you're home, you put it on, excited to wear it out. But when you try it on, it doesn't seem to fit. It simply doesn't look right on you. But you loved the shirt, and you spent a lot of money on it, so you aren't going to just give up. You try sowing it, tying it up, cutting it, and anything else you can think of, but it still isn't right for you. It doesn't make you or the shirt any less beautiful, the shirt just wasn't meant for you. Do you see where I am going with this? Sometimes, the path you thought was perfect for you really isn't. Exchange isn't for everyone, and every person reacts differently to studying abroad. In my case, I think it isn't right for me. However, I am not going to just give up. Like I mentioned in the first part of this post, I spoke with my liaison (she is so sweet and understanding, I love her so much. She helped me a ton), and we came up with a plan. Until mid-October (AFS has a 3 day orientation camp in the middle of October), I am going to really try to make it work here. I am going to say yes to every opportunity, keep an open mind and find the positive side of every situation, and pour my heart and soul into making it work. If, when I come back from the camp (which my liaison says usually helps boost your motivation), I can honestly say "I really did try as hard as I could to make it work, and it just isn't meant for me" then I will go home. If I reevaluate how I'm feeling, and I feel like I can stay a little longer, then I will pick another date to reevaluate how I'm feeling, and if I want to postpone my departure then I will, and if I don't want to then I won't. It honestly takes so much of the pressure off knowing that I can leave whenever. Now, I know that this decision will face a lot of opposition, but I would like everyone to know that leaving early does not mean I failed. It means that I was mature enough to realize that this isn't what is best for me, and I don't feel the need to stay here for 10 months just to prove to others that I can. As far as I'm concerned, I have already succeeded. I'm 15 years old, and I found a way to create the opportunity to move to the other side of the world for a year. I tried, and I believe that is what is most important. I took the chance, I stepped out of my comfort zone, and I have already learned so much. I see my life back home in an entirely new perspective, and I have realized how lucky I am, and I really value and appreciate where I come from and my family so much more. If I stay, yes I would probably grow and learn more things, but this is just one of many opportunities for me to grow and mature. I have also learned a lot about myself and what I do and don't like. I always thought I wanted to travel the world without a home, going with the wind, and I have realized that it is important for me to have a home. I still want to travel the world, but I need to have somewhere to come back to. I have realized many other things about my future and what I do and don't want to do, but I won't go into detail because that requires a whole other post. Maybe the reason this experience was brought into my life was to help me realize these things, and to learn to let go of dreams instead of denying that something is wrong just because this is what I thought I wanted at some point. I am well aware that I may regret this decision later on in my life, but you know what? Life goes on. We all make mistakes, and we all make decisions that we regret, but it's how we learn. If I do end up regretting going home then I will at the very least learn from it and use it to help me with other decisions later on in my life. I may not know what's best for me, but this is how I will figure it out- by making decisions and yes, sometimes making mistakes. I managed to raise $3,000, move to a country where I don't know anyone, or how to speak the language, or any of the customs, and live there for (at least) over a month all by myself, and I'm only 15. I am proud of myself for making this happen. In conclusion, I will take these next few weeks to try and make it work, but if it doesn't then I am not going to stress out and kill myself over it. Life goes on. If you read this whole thing then thank you, I am sorry it was so long I just wanted to explain myself thoroughly.
I will write again soon!
Ciao <3 Xoxo
-- Tami
Sunday, September 14, 2014
The First Week in Sorrento
Ciao tutti!
So I think I'm going to try and do a blog post a week, probably on Sundays! I also think I'll do a day by day summary of what I did, so enjoy!
Tuesday: I don't remember a lot of this day, but I went to the beach with Francesca and some friends, and it was absolutely gorgeous!! The water is entirely crystal clear and it's breathtaking! It's freezing though, which kind of sucks :/ But we played cards and it was fun! Then at night we walked around Sorrento, which is always so much fun! It's very calm and chill and we run into people we know like every 5 minutes, and I just love walking around at night!
Wednesday: I went to Capri with Francesca and Speranza and it is truly a dream. The island is so beautiful and when I went it was covered with a fog and it just felt like a dream! We walked around, did some window shopping, took gorgeous pictures (the water is an unbelievably bright blue. It's insane), and then we ate lunch on this beautiful little beach and I ended up falling asleep, then we swam, talked (Francesca helped me a bit with Italian), and went home! Then, again in the night we went out around the town with friends!
Thursday: Thursday was a super fun day, I rode a motorino (Motor scooter, vespa, you get the idea) for the first time which was super fun! And I went with my host siblings to a friend's house and we had lunch there. After lunch, we were all hanging out and we decided to cover their outdoor marble floor with soap and water and we kept sliding across the floor. We would pour soap on ourselves and then dive onto the ground and slide, it was so so much fun! We also jumped from the balcony into their pool, which was also really fun! Then, we went to this gelato shop that I had actually been to the year before when my family and I visited Sorrento on a cruise (we were only there for a day), and I had nutella covered pancakes with pistachio gelato, it was heavenly! And once again, in the night we walked around with friends! I met this girl who moved to Sorrento from South Africa a few years ago, and we have gotten really close! She speaks perfect english, so we spent the whole night talking and it was so refreshing and relaxing to have a full conversation with someone! You don't really notice how nice it is to be able to communicate with everyone until you can't.
Friday: Friday morning I went to a breakfast with Francesca and some of her friends since it was one of the girl's name day (Here everyone has a name day, I didn't fully understand what it meant, but you just have a small get together to celebrate). Then, I met up with Sofia (the girl from South Africa) and we got coffee and I bought some shoes. It was so nice to communicate and connect with someone again! Then, in the night I went to a party with Francesca at one of our friend's house since it was her birthday, and I made a lot of friends! Everyone was so nice and made such an effort to speak English (I really need to start speaking purely Italian, it's just so much easier in English) and they kept asking me all about high school in America, and if it really was how the movies say it is. It was so nice :)
Saturday: Yesterday morning Francesca and I went to buy school supplies (Yes, I actually do have to go to school. I know. It sucks.) Then, we went to the beach to study, and I did some yoga with some friends, it was really nice :) Then, I met up with Sofia and one of her friends and we did some shopping (I bought a pretty, small, black purse) and went to a bar for some espresso. Then, I went home, ate dinner, showered and started getting ready to go clubbing. I ended up going over to Sofia's house to get ready, and then we went out to another bar and met up with my host siblings before we all headed over to the club. I actually ended up breaking the strap of my shoe before we got to the club, which really sucked but it was still a lot of fun!! The club was in the open air near the beach, and we didn't end up getting home until around 5:00 am.
Sunday (Today): I woke up at around noon, and I had lunch, showered, and watched some TV with Antonio. Later I am meeting up with Sofia to walk around and maybe get an espresso, then I'll probably just hang out and go to sleep early. Tomorrow is the first day of school and I am really nervous, seeing as I barely speak the language. Luckily, I will go to a Linguistico school (you study mostly languages) so people will probably speak basic English or Spanish which will definitely help, but I will not be able to understand anything. I'm really excited and also extremely nervous and I feel very lost and kind of unprepared, but I'm sure it will be okay! I'll let you all know how it goes!
Ciao Ciao! <3 Xoxo
-- Tami
So I think I'm going to try and do a blog post a week, probably on Sundays! I also think I'll do a day by day summary of what I did, so enjoy!
Tuesday: I don't remember a lot of this day, but I went to the beach with Francesca and some friends, and it was absolutely gorgeous!! The water is entirely crystal clear and it's breathtaking! It's freezing though, which kind of sucks :/ But we played cards and it was fun! Then at night we walked around Sorrento, which is always so much fun! It's very calm and chill and we run into people we know like every 5 minutes, and I just love walking around at night!
Wednesday: I went to Capri with Francesca and Speranza and it is truly a dream. The island is so beautiful and when I went it was covered with a fog and it just felt like a dream! We walked around, did some window shopping, took gorgeous pictures (the water is an unbelievably bright blue. It's insane), and then we ate lunch on this beautiful little beach and I ended up falling asleep, then we swam, talked (Francesca helped me a bit with Italian), and went home! Then, again in the night we went out around the town with friends!
Thursday: Thursday was a super fun day, I rode a motorino (Motor scooter, vespa, you get the idea) for the first time which was super fun! And I went with my host siblings to a friend's house and we had lunch there. After lunch, we were all hanging out and we decided to cover their outdoor marble floor with soap and water and we kept sliding across the floor. We would pour soap on ourselves and then dive onto the ground and slide, it was so so much fun! We also jumped from the balcony into their pool, which was also really fun! Then, we went to this gelato shop that I had actually been to the year before when my family and I visited Sorrento on a cruise (we were only there for a day), and I had nutella covered pancakes with pistachio gelato, it was heavenly! And once again, in the night we walked around with friends! I met this girl who moved to Sorrento from South Africa a few years ago, and we have gotten really close! She speaks perfect english, so we spent the whole night talking and it was so refreshing and relaxing to have a full conversation with someone! You don't really notice how nice it is to be able to communicate with everyone until you can't.
Friday: Friday morning I went to a breakfast with Francesca and some of her friends since it was one of the girl's name day (Here everyone has a name day, I didn't fully understand what it meant, but you just have a small get together to celebrate). Then, I met up with Sofia (the girl from South Africa) and we got coffee and I bought some shoes. It was so nice to communicate and connect with someone again! Then, in the night I went to a party with Francesca at one of our friend's house since it was her birthday, and I made a lot of friends! Everyone was so nice and made such an effort to speak English (I really need to start speaking purely Italian, it's just so much easier in English) and they kept asking me all about high school in America, and if it really was how the movies say it is. It was so nice :)
Saturday: Yesterday morning Francesca and I went to buy school supplies (Yes, I actually do have to go to school. I know. It sucks.) Then, we went to the beach to study, and I did some yoga with some friends, it was really nice :) Then, I met up with Sofia and one of her friends and we did some shopping (I bought a pretty, small, black purse) and went to a bar for some espresso. Then, I went home, ate dinner, showered and started getting ready to go clubbing. I ended up going over to Sofia's house to get ready, and then we went out to another bar and met up with my host siblings before we all headed over to the club. I actually ended up breaking the strap of my shoe before we got to the club, which really sucked but it was still a lot of fun!! The club was in the open air near the beach, and we didn't end up getting home until around 5:00 am.
Sunday (Today): I woke up at around noon, and I had lunch, showered, and watched some TV with Antonio. Later I am meeting up with Sofia to walk around and maybe get an espresso, then I'll probably just hang out and go to sleep early. Tomorrow is the first day of school and I am really nervous, seeing as I barely speak the language. Luckily, I will go to a Linguistico school (you study mostly languages) so people will probably speak basic English or Spanish which will definitely help, but I will not be able to understand anything. I'm really excited and also extremely nervous and I feel very lost and kind of unprepared, but I'm sure it will be okay! I'll let you all know how it goes!
Ciao Ciao! <3 Xoxo
-- Tami
Monday, September 8, 2014
Orientations and Arriving in Sorrento
Ciao tutti! I'm sitting on the balcony of my flat in Sorrento, watching a beautiful sunset with a view of the mountains and the sea. The last week has been absolutely crazy, so get ready for a huge blog post. Enjoy! :)
So let's start with orientations. I will separate it day to day, and give you a summary.
Wednesday: I arrived in New York City, and I met a ton of people I had talked to on Facebook as well as some I hadn't. It wasn't as bad as I expected, as far as orientations go. When I was moving my bags into my room, I dropped my phone and cracked the screen (for those of you who don't know, I had just cracked it a few days before I left and then I got it fixed, so it was especially frustrating) and ended up breaking the flash and the camera. So since I was planning on using my phone as my camera and I didn't bring a camera, I have been unable to take pictures, which is really really upsetting. But besides that, nothing really special happened, it was mostly traveling and orientation.
Thursday: I woke up instantly feeling sick. My throat felt like someone had run a razor on the inside, and I had pretty bad congestion. Plus, (this happened every day of orientation) I could barely eat. Now those of you who know me know that this is not like me. I can eat an entire house, but the entire time I was at orientations every time I would begin to eat I would immediately feel sick to my stomach. I tried my best to force down what I could, but it was still a lot less than usual. In the night, the Italy kids (who by the way were by far the loudest out of all the groups) got on the plane and we were off to Italy. Even though the lady next to me and my friends on the plane yelled at us for being too loud for 3 minutes straight, the flight was really fun, and although I only slept like 45 minutes I got really close to a lot of people! Nighttime plane rides are the perfect environment for deep conversations.
Friday: I arrived in Rome, feeling absolutely exhausted but running on adrenaline. My friends and I spent the night exploring the grounds of our orientation site, and we discovered some amazing places. We set off alarms and went into abandoned underground tunnels and up onto really high roofs that had beautiful views of Rome, and by the end of the night we were covered with sweat and dirt. At around 12:30 I went to sleep, and although I didn't have the best night (the beds might as well have been made out of bricks), I would still say this was one of the best days I've had in a while.
Saturday: I still felt pretty sick, and until the afternoon, we were at a nearby school doing orientation activities, but it was still pretty fun. The Intercultura volunteers were all very young and chill, so we got along well. Plus, two of my very good friends were in my group, which means I will get to see them more throughout the year so that's good! In the night my friends and I started adventuring, and we ended up on this hidden roof with a lot of people. I made friends with a lot of people from Denmark (who thought that I had the same smile as Demi Lovato), and we all just laughed, talked, watched that stars and just had a good time. I went to sleep at 1:00 but a lot of them brought out mattresses and stayed out there for the whole night. Needless to say, it was a very fun night as well.
Sunday: In the morning I watched old Italian movies with my friends and just hung out, and then in the afternoon I took a train to my host family. Francesca and Speranza (my sister and my mother) were at the station to greet me (their adorable little Fiat was obviously too small to fit 5 people plus luggage), and we drove from Naples to Sorrento, stopping on the way to take a few pictures and by some pastries. I met some of Antonio and Francesca's friends, unpacked, and had a delicious dinner that night (I felt bad I couldn't finish it because I felt sick). Then I went out with Francesca and one of her friends, and it was great. The town is beautiful, and we kept running into other friends. It was so chill, we would run into someone, spend some time with them, and then they would part ways and we would keep walking until we found someone else. I met lots of people, and although I only understood around 15% of what was being said, it was very fun.
Monday: In the morning Francesca and I went to the post office to get my residence permit and figure out what to do with my phone (here an iPhone 5s costs almost $1,000! It's insane. But luckily, a place in Napoli sells it for only 250 Euros, so we will go there soon.) And then we went home, hung out, started watching Burlesque, but then stopped and met up with some of her friends. I wanted some gelato so we got some and walked around, and I felt so happy walking through the narrow Italian streets, dodging zooming vespas, and just feeling quite Italian. However, Italians speak very very fast, so I was able to only understand a few words or phrases every now and then. We all went back to our home, and we hung out until it was time for Francesca to go to the gym. I was planning on going with her and then going out in the night, but I have a huge headache (thanks to jet lag and trying so hard to keep up with the Italian conversations) so I decided to stay home and go to sleep early. I think if I can get one nice, long night of sleep I will feel a lot better.
But overall, I am happy to be here and everyone is unbelievably kind and welcoming! Although at times it is hard to understand each other, we can usually figure it out through a mix of English, Italian and Spanish (While writing this I had a long conversation with one of Antonio's friends, Massi, and it was 50% English and 50% Italian, but we understood each other almost perfectly). It is exhausting and confusing, but I am very glad I decided to do this. Now I will post some pictures I stole from others since my camera is broken, and I will keep you guys updated on what's going on!
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| Alistair, me, and Jason having lunch at the school |
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| Again, Alistair, me, and Jason at the school |
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| All the AFS students making Italy in celebration of AFS's 100 year anniversary |
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| My delicious nutella and pistachio gelato earlier today |
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| The last night at the orientation, up on the roof (you can't tell but this is really high up) |
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| Meeting my host sister, Francesca, at the station <3 |
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| Another roof we went on at the orientation |
Ciao!! <3 Xoxo
-- Tami
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
One More Week!!
Ciao tutti!
So….ONE MORE WEEK UNTIL I LEAVE!!! WHAT IS THIS MADNESS?! It's so crazy that this experience that I have dreamed about and worked for and been counting down to since January is finally here!! It's so surreal, and it still feels like a dream. So here's what's in store for me for the next week and a half of my life:
Thursday: Basically just study Italian (AKA try to and then end up reading exchange blogs and flipping out with my fellow exchange students about the fact we only have a few days left), enjoy my last yoga class before I leave, and spend time relaxing at home.
Friday: My mom is planning a family dinner (that I am to know nothing about, but I'm very excited for) since Sunday and Monday morning my dad and brother will be gone for one of my brother's fencing competitions. It's probably our last dinner all together as a family before I leave, and I have a feeling there will be equal parts tears, laughter, and yummy food.
Saturday: My best friend is coming over to hang out and catch up, and then she's going to help me set up for my going away party in the night. I'm having a small get together (Only like 10 people or so) to say goodbye to them all one last time before I leave. We will eat, talk, and just chill until it's time for me to say goodbye.
Sunday/Monday: Doing all the last minute things I need to do before I leave, packing, saying goodbye to everyone, and all that jazz.
Tuesday: I am driving to Austin with my mom, because there were no non-stop flights to JFK from Houston that day and it's like half the price as the Houston ones, so we decided to be savvy and fly me out from there.
Wednesday: I will fly out in the morning to NYC, meet all the AFSers heading to Europe , and have an overnight orientation.
Thursday: NYC orientation in the day, and then at night all the Italy bound AFSers fly first to Switzerland (Zurich) for a layover, and then head to Romaaaa <3
Friday: Arrive (exhausted and super sleep-deprived probably) in the morning to Rome, go to the orientation site where I will get to meet all of my fellow Italy AFSers from all over the world!! ("The Originals" will finally get to meet! *cough cough* Nita, Axe, Kon, Elena)
Saturday: Orientation day in Rome!
Sunday: I will take a bus (or train? I'm not exactly sure) to meet my host family in Sorrento!!! I cannot wait to meet them!! They have been so kind and have been a huge help with getting ready to leave! It will be so nice to finally meet them!
As of now, I have bought everything I needed, packed my suitcase just to make sure everything fits (it did! 41 pounds!), and then unpacked because I am using those vacuum sealed bags and it seriously wrinkles your clothes so I want to wait until like Sunday to pack. And just doing all the typical pre-departure stuff!
*THIS IS A PSA FOR ALL EXCHANGE STUDENTS*
I have discovered this magical luggage in Marshall's that weighs only 5.68 pounds, and can easily fit all of your clothes!! It's by a UK company called "it", but in Marshall's you can get it for super cheap!
I also got my visa last week! Which is good since I applied late when I found out that my European passport wouldn't get here in time! :)
So I will keep you guys updated as the pace of my journey begins to pick up speed!! At least 3 times a day I kind of realize that this is not a dream and I have a mini internal (okay sometimes external if I'm alone) happy spaz attack (which ends in me getting hiccups like I always do when I get excited…)
So….ONE MORE WEEK UNTIL I LEAVE!!! WHAT IS THIS MADNESS?! It's so crazy that this experience that I have dreamed about and worked for and been counting down to since January is finally here!! It's so surreal, and it still feels like a dream. So here's what's in store for me for the next week and a half of my life:
Thursday: Basically just study Italian (AKA try to and then end up reading exchange blogs and flipping out with my fellow exchange students about the fact we only have a few days left), enjoy my last yoga class before I leave, and spend time relaxing at home.
Friday: My mom is planning a family dinner (that I am to know nothing about, but I'm very excited for) since Sunday and Monday morning my dad and brother will be gone for one of my brother's fencing competitions. It's probably our last dinner all together as a family before I leave, and I have a feeling there will be equal parts tears, laughter, and yummy food.
Saturday: My best friend is coming over to hang out and catch up, and then she's going to help me set up for my going away party in the night. I'm having a small get together (Only like 10 people or so) to say goodbye to them all one last time before I leave. We will eat, talk, and just chill until it's time for me to say goodbye.
Sunday/Monday: Doing all the last minute things I need to do before I leave, packing, saying goodbye to everyone, and all that jazz.
Tuesday: I am driving to Austin with my mom, because there were no non-stop flights to JFK from Houston that day and it's like half the price as the Houston ones, so we decided to be savvy and fly me out from there.
Wednesday: I will fly out in the morning to NYC, meet all the AFSers heading to Europe , and have an overnight orientation.
Thursday: NYC orientation in the day, and then at night all the Italy bound AFSers fly first to Switzerland (Zurich) for a layover, and then head to Romaaaa <3
Friday: Arrive (exhausted and super sleep-deprived probably) in the morning to Rome, go to the orientation site where I will get to meet all of my fellow Italy AFSers from all over the world!! ("The Originals" will finally get to meet! *cough cough* Nita, Axe, Kon, Elena)
Saturday: Orientation day in Rome!
Sunday: I will take a bus (or train? I'm not exactly sure) to meet my host family in Sorrento!!! I cannot wait to meet them!! They have been so kind and have been a huge help with getting ready to leave! It will be so nice to finally meet them!
As of now, I have bought everything I needed, packed my suitcase just to make sure everything fits (it did! 41 pounds!), and then unpacked because I am using those vacuum sealed bags and it seriously wrinkles your clothes so I want to wait until like Sunday to pack. And just doing all the typical pre-departure stuff!
*THIS IS A PSA FOR ALL EXCHANGE STUDENTS*
I have discovered this magical luggage in Marshall's that weighs only 5.68 pounds, and can easily fit all of your clothes!! It's by a UK company called "it", but in Marshall's you can get it for super cheap!
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| This luggage (gift from the gods) is super cute and only 5.68 pounds. No I am not kidding. |
I also got my visa last week! Which is good since I applied late when I found out that my European passport wouldn't get here in time! :)
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| I didn't blog about my trip to the visa, but here's a picture from when I went to the Consulate! Let's just say the man was less than friendly, but I met a few other exchange students there! :) |
So I will keep you guys updated as the pace of my journey begins to pick up speed!! At least 3 times a day I kind of realize that this is not a dream and I have a mini internal (okay sometimes external if I'm alone) happy spaz attack (which ends in me getting hiccups like I always do when I get excited…)
Ciao! Xoxo <3
-- Tami
Monday, July 28, 2014
How to Organize your Life
Ciao tutti!
I am currently sitting in the car driving home from Florida, and honestly I have been more productive during this drive than I have been in all of summer. I drove 18 hours there and now I'm driving 18 hours back and I have:
- Finished Rosetta Stone (YAY!)
- Thought of some ideas of what to get my host family
- Made like 10 new exchange friends going to Italy
- Made a to-do list of everything I have to do to prepare for Italy before I leave
So I thought I would share that to-do list in case it would help any of you exchange students!
I am currently sitting in the car driving home from Florida, and honestly I have been more productive during this drive than I have been in all of summer. I drove 18 hours there and now I'm driving 18 hours back and I have:
- Finished Rosetta Stone (YAY!)
- Thought of some ideas of what to get my host family
- Made like 10 new exchange friends going to Italy
- Made a to-do list of everything I have to do to prepare for Italy before I leave
So I thought I would share that to-do list in case it would help any of you exchange students!
- Figure out host family gifts
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Learn basics of Italian politics/government
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Learn more about US (or home country) politics/government
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Study Italian
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Write a “cheat sheet” of
commonly used phrases
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Make packing list
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Pack
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Get Visa
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Organize and throw going away party
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Figure out what to do with my phone
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Figure out what to do with my debit card
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Learn some recipes to cook for host family
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Learn about soccer (my host brother loves soccer)
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Buy new shoes
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Buy stuff that I need for Italy that I don’t
have
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Buy cosmetics
- Get health addendum form signed
- Get health addendum form signed
Other than that I'm just feeling pure excitement for Italy!! Only 37 more days, and minus my 10 day vacation in NYC, Boston, and Canada next week I only have 27 days left at home!! I can't believe this is all happening!! I can't wait to be in Italy :)
Ciao! Xoxo <3
-- Tami Moctezuma
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