Otherwise known as ‘cianfrusaglie,’ which is a great word.
Internet went a little wonky again yesterday, so here’s the ultra-fast recap of Monday:
Went to Orsanmichele, a building that is (and indeed has traditionally been) confused about whether it is a grainery or a sculpture gallery or a kinda-sorta church. Spent about an hour and a half there listening to a lecture given by one of the professors — and since the lectures are actually interesting, we once again got random tourists stalking our group.
Not a great shot, but here’s the floor where we were spending most of our time looking at the sculptures:
Today, all we had scheduled was Italian class. Tomorrow is our third quiz (for which I still need to study), and after that we have just seven days of class until the month of intensive Italian is over and we’re off to Venice.
Doesn’t feel *at all* like we’ve been here two weeks already. Not to say that there haven’t been periods of stress (or hunger, hunger’s a big one) that have made everything drag, but apparently time is whipping forward in spite of that. Also it still feels like Monday.
Change of subject, but I’ve been keeping a list of everything that being in Italy makes me miss about the American/Iowan/non-study-abroader way of life, and I think I’m just going to throw it right here:
- FOOD:
- Peanut butter
- Sandwiches on soft bread (PB&J, turkey, etc.)
- Cereal that isn’t a strange granola-ish corn flake lookalike — and people who have heard of Froot Loops and/or Captain Crunch.
- Breakfast foods in general (toast, waffles, pancakes, eggs)
- Decent chips
- Tap water
- Milk. I don’t know what specifically is different about the milk here, but it’s…not right.
- AMENITIES:
- AIR CONDITIONING
- Television/movies
- Internet and cell plans that actually let you use your internet and cell phone
- Water bottles
- Ziploc bags
- Cheap tape
- Cheap post-its
- Cheap paper towels
- Cheap toiletries (shampoo, body wash, etc.)
- Uniformly sized outlets
- Doorknobs that turn
- Public bathrooms you don’t have to pay for
- Toilet paper holders that both hold onto the roll *and* let you change it
- OTHER:
- Sunsets (a flat horizon and a great view)
- Clouds
- Driving (i.e. not having to depend on an always-late bus)
- Walks/jogs where you can safely wear headphones
- Doing my own laundry
- Baking — or, more generally, having access to an oven, stove, and microwave
- Having a word for ‘pie,’ and for ‘cupcake’
- Walking around in socks
- Being able to criticize the Papacy without automatically offending someone
- A closer sense of community
- Non-polluted air and not being constantly surrounded by smokers
- Not having to keep windows shut/covered against traffic noise and potential delinquents
- Lack of tourist swarms
- Cheap books (and being able to read them)
- English
And, because fair’s fair, here’s everything I know I’m going to miss about Italy:
- FOOD:
- All of it. But specifically:
- Hard rolls
- Uber-fresh fruits and vegetables
- Thin pizzas
- Pasta done right
- Eggplant dishes
- Apricot spread on fresh croissants
- Tea with biscotti every morning
- Bigne (those cream puff pastry things, and vanilla please <3)
- Lots of other pastries I don’t know the names of
- Gelato (obviously)
- Excellent panini (as in big sandwiches with thick bread and meat and melty cheese)
- Open markets daily
- 3-course sit-down dinners with the whole ‘family’ (although I could approximate this at home)
- AMENITIES:
- Public fountains
- Public trash cans
- Public transportation
- OTHER:
- Hills
- Having everything in walking distance
- Beautiful buildings, artworks and museums absolutely everywhere
- Being in a place with such a long (and documented) history
- Having multiple options for places to go every day
- Riding the bus (especially when it picks up speed in the tunnel)
- Being surrounded by so many different kinds of people
- Having one word for *all* of one’s aunts and uncles, and for *all* of one’s nieces and nephews
- Every building warmly colored (red, gold, etc.)
- Being in a country whose inhabitants seem generally conscious that different countries and peoples are interconnected
- Being so close to to so many other countries
- Multi-language bookstores
- Italian music
- Italian
So there we are, and I’ll probably add on to these lists as the semester progresses. There won’t be a ‘winner,’ as it’s next to impossible to call one place objectively better or worse than the other…but I will admit that the lack of peanut butter has become a real sticking point ; )
Have to go start taking care of business, but should be back tomorrow. A domani : )
