independence day

we are now in Maremma for the summer, Saturday Giova had his big birthday party- hundreds of people! They had a mini petting zoo with animals from their farm and surrounding ones, two huge blow up bouncy slides one with water, a pool, a caterer, someone who brought mini gelatos a whip cream machine and a ice cream cake. This party was insane! Everywhere you turn there was wild children. Some of the presents he received were incredible like one family gave him a tackle box with lures as well as a new reel and two new fishing poles, one that is probably 12 feet long and collapsible. I was awed at the obvious expense these guests spent on presents.
     The next few days were full of more bouncy house and pool and a friend Carlo's pool. One day at Carlo's, the other two little boys (Giova and Cesaere) turned against Carlo and Ceseare was in a fist fight in the pool with Carlo- the punishment? a few moments time out. The next day at Carlo's pool he decided it would be funny to pull down my swim bottoms in the water, totally unacceptable! his punishment? none of course. I know its not my place to say but these kids would be so much better behaved if they knew that they couldn't get away with what they are doing!
     I bought my plane ticket to Switzerland!! I will be there from July 14-18. My friend Raphi from Switzerland will pick me up at the airport and I'll stay with his family for my time there. I'm suuper excited! and the weather is not so hot there.
     Today is the 4th of July, America's day to celebrate its independence, so I did a little of my own too! First I painted my nails red white and blue to support :) and then I left Maremma early in the morning with nona (grandma) and went to Firenze to get some clothes that'd be better to take to Switzerland. In Florence I packed my bag and was ready to catch the Rama bus to Grosetto (close to Maremma). I vaguely knew where the train station was and I knew the bus area was nearby so off I went. Past the Duomo, which I use as a reference to everything, if you can find the Duomo you can get anywhere in Florence! and from there on, it was much closer to Santa Maria Novella then I had thought! So i walked around and eventually found the bus station and bought my ticket, then I walked around some more till it was time to board the bus! 2 hours later I was in Grosetto and on my way back to the house. For dinner we "barbequed" in celebration of the 4th of July! we had burgers (just the patty because hamburger buns are hard to find), mashed potatoes ( turned into soup and was potato soup but tasted really yummy), cooked zucchini, and some small steaks from the barby! Finished off with a fruit salad, homemade gelato (AMAZING) and some white wine! made for a great independence day even if I couldn't celebrate it at home on a tube in Devils Lake!

two weeks in

Well, leaving my family and Sydney at the airport was much more difficult then I had expected, I definitely hadn't planned on crying and all of a sudden I was blubbering like a baby. Eventually I made it through security and put everything back on, took a couple deep breaths, and started out on my own. Each step felt stronger and stronger and a huge smile spread across my face, MY ADVENTURE BEGINS! :D getting into Italy was a pain though, they took us above Florence, said the air was too rough to land so we were flown to Bologna and had to get our bags and take a bus ride to Florence. When we got there, I had no way to contact anyone, I searched the airport but couldn't find the woman I came to meet. With the extreme help of my mom she was able to let me know to sit tight and she'd be there soon. After her arrival and our happy first meeting we started on our way into town, she hits another car. I sit in the car and wait quite awhile while that all gets sorted out. Eventually we get to the house and I meet Giova, the little boy I will be taking care of. He is shy at first but soon I will learn that he is anything but. The first night I was here, I slept for 15 hours! woke up at 2:30 in the afternoon.. terrible. Since then I have done so much and seen even more. We went to the country house and the Mediterranean sea, both are breathtaking. the country house has tons of cows and chickens as the family runs a brand of milk and eggs called Latte Maremma. The sea is beautiful and crystal clear, I did learn that large people feel perfectly comfortable being here in the nude though!

     Anyways, the gelato is way better then any ice cream we have in the states, it has a much lighter feeling when you eat it and the flavors are great, riso(rice) is a very popular flavor. If you go to Florence the streets are lined with gelato shops but the one you want is Vivoli! older and better then any other I've tried. The mosquitos here are rather insane, I get a few new bites every day- my legs look like they're polka-dotted. I've climbed the tower in Palazzo Vechio and the views from there are great- unfortunately they have about a 3 foot border around the edges inside the tower lookout so you cant get nearly close to the edge. The heat here is never ending, I'm hoping for a day of rain! On average it's about 95 degrees every day and that's just too hot! When you got out you've got to stay in the shade. The markets in Florence are full of leather products, t-shirts, trinkets, and scarves. I'm trying not to buy much until closer to when I will be leaving but it's so hard! 

     Many differences between here and home, here they don't eat peanut butter or salad dressing. Italian salad dressing at home is all commercial marketing because Italian's don't use dressing, they use olive oil and balsamic vinegar along with salt and pepper. Yes, we eat a lot of pasta but also plenty of fruits and vegetables! Breakfast is not big here, it's a time for mainly coffee but we do also have cereals and things to eat like that. Cars here are crazy! I'm so surprised I haven't seen tons of accidents, cars don't use turn signals and they drive half way in between lanes and don't seem to be paying too much attention to what they're doing but somehow it works for them! Many many Italian's are quite ehh lazy, they close their shops mid day to have naps, being on time is unimportant, and many raise their children to be very spoiled. But Italian's are also great workers and have made such beautiful art in many forms that they deserve massive credit. 

     Oh! Vespa means wasp in Italian, so the scooter Vespa was named by its sound, like a wasp!

Ciao!!