September 12th, 2012: Milan, Week Two!

Hello!

Just a quick update! Nothing too big has really happened here, it's mainly just little excitements that happen every day. I'm having a great week so far! It is SO much better now that more of my roommates have moved in, which is kind of unexpected but very much appreciated! 

This weekend I'm taking a trip to Lake Como with a bunch of girls from school, and I think that should be beautiful! And we'll be sitting down at a nice restaurant for dinner - I'm excited to go out with a group and figure out exactly how ordering food works at a sit-down restaurant. 

Some things I'm excited about this week: 

1. SHOPPING! I am doing a TON of shopping this week - Thursday I'll be going to the Navigli canal area where they apparently have great shopping, wonderful food and a beautiful view. Can't beat that, right? And then Saturday is the weekly flea market on St. Ambrogio, where they apparently have fresh food, vintage clothes, and all sorts of cute knick-knacks!

2. Today it rained. It has been so hot here the entire time I've been here that it was such a relief to get a little moisture! Our apartment has sufficiently cooled off, and we're all beaming over the fact that we get to break out the sweatpants.

3. I found a cannoli! I've been wanting to try one ever since I got here, and I found a little bakery right down the street that sells some really pretty ones - I haven't tried it yet because I'm trying not to spoil my dinner like a responsible adult, but we'll see if I make it that long. It's acceptable to eat dinner at 5 p.m., right? 

4. Today one of the girls in my class told me about a website where I can stream my TV shows for free! AKA I can watch How I Met Your Mother! I have two different half-seasons on my computer, so I've been watching those over and over again, but now I'm fortunate enough that I get to pick and choose! Hurrah for the Internet. What a wonderful thing. 

5. Going into the Duomo! I took a trip there earlier this week and got to see the outside, but I forgot about the no-wearing-shorts rule, so I wasn't allowed in. However, this weekend just might be the weekend that I put the proper clothes on and take a look inside!

Hope everyone is having a great week!

September 9th, 2012: Cinque Terre

This weekend was my very first away trip! My roommate Lauren and I decided spur of the moment last week that we were going to take a day trip to Cinque Terre, about a two hour train ride from Milan. So, at approximately 6 o'clock yesterday (Saturday) morning, I hauled myself out of bed and we hustled down to the train station to catch our train which would bring us right to the first town along the coast, Monterosso. Now, some people choose to hike between the five villages, which takes somewhere between five and seven hours - Lauren and I bought a train pass so that we could hike the short trips and take the train the rest of the time.

In Monterosso, we decided that it simply wouldn't do to start our monstrous journey without some sustenance, so we ordered some food at the local foccaria and ate our weight in Italian food. Lauren had a tasty slice of margherita pizza, and I chose a thick slice of foccacia bread smothered in green pesto and drizzled with light olive oil. It was probably the best thing I've eaten so far. I was still beaming about it when I woke up this morning. 

We walked along the shoreline for a while before deciding that it was time to move on, so we hopped on a train to the next town - Vernaza! Vernaza was equally beautiful, and had the added bonus of a long strip of cute boutiques and locally-owned shops. 

From there we took the train from Vernaza to Corniglia and then Corniglia to Manarola, both of which were equally stunning in views. We then decided we could probably pluck up the energy to hike from Manarola to Riomaggiore, the final town on the Cinque Terre coastline, and I was so glad we did! The walls of one of the pathways were lined with graffiti and I later learned that this was what the locals called "The Lover's Path" - couples had been scrawling their names and anniversaries along those walls for years. 

Once in Riomaggiore, we decided it was time to do some swimming, because you can't just walk around the Mediterranean for an entire afternoon and not think that's the best idea you've ever had. We climbed onto some rocks along the shoreline at the edge of the town and met two 12 or 13 year old girls named Marina and Antoinella, who encouraged us to come jump off some of the lower cliffs with them because "Don't worry, be happy!" Neither of the girls spoke any English, apart from that tiny phrase. With a little encouragement from them, Lauren popped right on into the water but I still wasn't sold on the idea. While all of this was going on, however, two French boys not much older than me had been watching the scene unfold and decided there was no way any of us were leaving without jumping in. So, with much poking and prodding (alright, let's be honest, it didn't take that much coaxing. They were two beautiful french guys, and had they been holding a baguette, I would've been in the water before they'd even said a word), I jumped in and was so glad I did. 

We had the best day in Cinque Terre and I was so exhausted by the time I got back that I took a shower, vegged out on the computer, and then dragged myself to bed where I had the most delicious nine hours of sleep I've had since I've been here. It was a beautiful day! The only thing that could've made it perfect would to have had my best friends there with me. I guess we'll just all have to come back someday soon!

Foccaceria in Monterosso.

Monterosso Beach

The entrance into Vernaza's main street

Graffiti along the hike from Manarola to Riomaggiore

Riomaggiore from the shoreline

The view of Riomaggiore from the sea.

Here's the little cove where we swam and went cliff diving! Some of the men were jumping from the highest peaks, but we stayed with the younger kids and played it safe.

Dinner was lasagna! The woman at the ristorante prepared it so hot that it practically burned, but every bite was worth it. 

September 6th, 2012: Milan, Week One!

We're onto day 4, kids! 

It is currently 4:16 p.m. and I am having a great day! I finally got a good night's sleep last night and I woke up this morning feeling not cranky or sad, so that was wonderful. I'm also almost done filling out the mountains of paperwork that come with being an international student. My Metro Pass and Residency Permit are both pending, I paid my massive credit card bill, I registered for my classes and I signed up for my school WiFi. Feeling groovy!

Some things that have been super exciting: 

1. MAKING TRAVEL PLANS. I am, so far, in the midst of planning day trips to Cinque Terre, Lake Como, and Verona, as well as a weekend trip to Florence and hopefully Naples and Venice as well. My BIG trip is going to be to Liverpool and maybe Glasgow where I'm thinking I'd like to go to a concert and do some of the Beatles tour stuff they have to offer.  I also have a friend studying in Oxford whom I'm hoping to get a chance to see while we're both here! Traveling is the best thing. 

2. Figuring out the grocery store. Yesterday my roommate and I did some heavy grocery shopping where I got an abundance of fruit and bread and chocolate. I'm still on the lookout for a bath towel, since I didn't know that I was supposed to bring one. Whatever, Italy, I guess I'll figure it out on my own. (Milan should get a Target.)

3. MILAN HAS AN ABUNDANCE OF COCKER SPANIEL PUPPIES. I don't know what it is about cocker spaniels, but they're everywhere and they are ADORABLE. I also found a small park a few blocks away from my apartment that doubles as a dog run. First thing tomorrow I'm asking my professor how to say, "May I please pet your dog?" in Italian. 

4. The weather here. It is beautiful 100% of the time here. If it's not 70 degrees and sunny with a light breeze, it's drizzling rain with the perfect amount of gloomy sky and crisp wind. It makes it so much easier to get around when you know that no matter what, the weather is going to behave itself.

5. Figuring out that the excessive number of bug bites that all of my roommates and I have discovered on our hands and feet are not, in fact, bed bug bites but are actually mosquito bites! At first we were worried it was from the linens. Now we're just annoyed that no matter how careful we are about keeping the doors closed, we still have to sleep completely under the covers in order to avoid more bites. 

Milan is a lot of things, including exhausting, dirty, and loud, but I'm in love with it. I am so lucky to be in such a great city.

(Thank god for globalization though. Sometimes you just want to Facebook chat your friends from home while eating a giant plate of Burger King fries, you know?)

September 4th, 2012: Milan, Week One!

Well, it is currently 8:29 p.m. here in Milan, and I can sufficiently say that so far this country is both exhausting and fantastic. After three separate flights in three different countries, a nearly missed connection, a three hour trip from the airport to my apartment, and the realization that I had no towels and no blankets in my bedroom, I nearly thought I was going to lose it. However, it only took a few hours of heavy sleep and a fantastically full day at my university's orientation for me to realize that things were going to be okay, and that I was going to continue to settle in as more and more hours passed by. (Plus, someone delivered some linens today. It's the little things.)

I haven't taken any pictures yet, because I keep forgetting to bring my camera anywhere, but here are a few things that I'm beaming about: 

1. Figuring out the Metro system. In fact, not only figuring it out but finding it to be a pretty relaxing way to get from place to place.

2. Ordering food at my first real Italian restaurant. Sure, it was more of an exchange of verbs with no subjects, words like "pasta" and "bolognese," and a million "grazie"s, but it was an exchange none the less! I am excited to get started on my language class later this week, because I'm pretty sure it will take away some of the everyday anxiety I have about communicating. 

3. Realizing that not only is my neighborhood quaint and quiet, it is also about six blocks away from one of the biggest shopping streets around. It's the best of both worlds!

4. Understanding that jet lag doesn't just mean constant fatigue during the day - it also means insomnia at weird hours of the night. I spent a wonderfully quiet 3 hours early in the morning watching How I Met Your Mother and coloring in a coloring book before falling asleep for a little while longer. 

5. WiFi. As much fun as I am having here, at the end of the day, all I want to do is log onto Facebook, check my email, and hear from my friends and family back home. Next week our connection is supposed to be drastically improved to allow for more Skype, but for now, I'm pretty content :) 

Tasks for this week include: Figuring out how to say "I'm sorry" in Italian so I can properly apologize when I am an idiot to everyday citizens. Listening to the mountain of music my friends gave me when I left. Planning my first trip since arriving. Paying my credit card bill. 

Hope everyone's having a great week!

Adrienne

Italy

Over the next few days, I'm going to be trying to move a lot of my Tumblr posts over to this site - don't be alarmed, I will still be updating my Tumblr exclusively, but this way I'll have all of my content in one place when I come back to the United States!

Summer Catchup

Well, goodness gracious, I have a LOT of catching up today! 

Summer has been really, really wonderful so far and I am happy to say that it looks like it can only get better from here. In July, we took a trip to Minnesota where we helped Grandma and Grandpa clean out the cabin and get it ready to sell. That was probably the most emotionally taxing part of the vacation for everyone involved - that cabin has been a part of my life since before I can remember, and without the calm waters and gentle birds to return to, I have felt a little lost the past few weeks. But I know it is for the best, and I know that Minnesota will always be there to welcome me home, whether the physical structure belongs to my family or not. 

After cleaning out the cabin, we spent some time in Minneapolis at the Mall of America and the Minnesota Zoo before Mom and I said our goodbyes and headed to CHICAGO! We had to apply for my visa in person, and luckily for us, it went wonderfully. The woman at the counter was sweet and patient and impressed that I had all of my paperwork in order, but the best part was sitting in the waiting room listening to two old men converse in rapid-fire Italian and finally feel a stirring of excitement about the adventure I was about to take. If I could've shook those men's hands and thanked them, I would have because it meant the world to me to feel confident that I could take this trip and be just fine. 

Upon returning to Nebraska, we started the frenzy of packing up my room and moving into my new apartment! Last night was my first night there, and while I'm not going to say that I was never overwhelmed, I had a great first night and it only keeps getting more exciting. Today I rolled out of bed and got ready for work, but this afternoon I think I'll mosey on down to the Haymarket and buy some coffee, and then make some lunch and maybe walk over to the library. I've forgotten how utterly easy it is to find everything I need within walking distance on campus. 

So summer has been crazy! But it has all been worth it, and I think the extensive travel and constant change has helped me really prepare to go abroad in a month. In the meantime, here are some of the little things that have stayed with me this month: 

Brothers and Sisters, a show that Mom and Dad and I have been watching on Netflix recently. The sassy characters and dramatic story lines have stuck with me like no TV show has stuck with me in a long time! My favorite character is Kevin, the sassy gay lawyer who always gets the best lines and always has the cutest facial expressions.

"All You Need Is Love" - Dad spent this summer planning and teaching a Beatles class at the university, so the British band has been echoing around our house pretty frequently lately. This is, and always will be, one of my favorite Beatles songs. 

Shel Silverstein's The Missing Piece:

"Are you anybody else's missing piece?"

"Not that I know of."

"Well maybe you want to be your own piece?"

"I can be someone's and still my own."

Hope everyone is having a great week!

Grateful

Sometimes it is just hard to remember to be thankful and happy. 

Here are the things that have been serving as a daily reminder this week!

1. Mumford and Sons

My friend Amy and I are getting ready for the Mumford and Sons concert here in Lincoln in August. I cannot wait! They are inspiring and talented and so folky that I think an outdoor amphitheater is probably the best possible venue.

2. Anthony Kiedis, Scar Tissue

I picked up this autobiography at the recommendation of Rachel, and though I couldn't name a Red Hot Chili Peppers song before a week ago, I am now fully infatuated with the band, and with Kiedis. His writing is honest and enlightened and just melodramatic enough to be moving. My favorite quote: "We used to be so at ease with supporting each other in the best possible way. The weird sense of competition that's always been present between us didn't interfere with our singular purpose at that time. We were just happy to have a spotlight and happy to share it. I guess symbiosis is something that fades in time for no good reason. It's sad." 

3. Online shopping. Yeah, sorry about it, I've been spending a little money on clothes. But let's be real, I need a new wardrobe for the fall, and it's not like I'm squandering away thousands of dollars on dresses and shoes. Most of my shopping is done at the Gap, and the most "high end" I get is buying a $32 headband at Anthropologie. 

4. The Fourth of July! I opted not to go to the big family shindig this year, simply because I really like having the whole house to myself and it doesn't happen very often. So my agenda for the 4th of July includes sleeping in, working out, going to see Moonrise Kingdom, baking some cookies and then going to shoot off fireworks with some of my best friends. I think it will be a delightful day.

5. My Mama. No matter how old I get, I still know that my mom is my biggest supporter and my best friend. The nicest nights are spent watching Brothers and Sisters on the couch and eating food that's not very good for us. I am not scared of many things concerning my upcoming study abroad trip, but the one thing I know is going to be terrifying will be saying goodbye to her at the airport and knowing I won't be able to demand that she "love me!!" whenever I feel needy in the next three months. 

Have a great week, and a fun Fourth!