Forgive me, I know these posts have become fewer and fewer recently. Just know that right now is a difficult time for me. I would not be surprised if I have lost half of my readers by now, and for that I am sorry. Hopefully, as this new chapter of my life unfolds I will create another worth while blog that people will enjoy reading.
My last weeked in England was wonderful. Lynne woke up and immediately started preparing a special Easter dinner complete with Turkey and stuffing. There was so much food, it was no wonder we did not finish it all. Ann, Lynne's mother came over, and we broke out the bubbly. Earlier in the day, while the turkey had been slowly cooking in the oven, Lynne, Ann and I went on a two and a half hour walk. It was really a perfect day. Sunny and warm, I shed my coat almost instantly. We walked over to the other town across the road, Ashley, and had a look at their famous church. Afterwards we proceeded to stop in a local pub for a quick drink and have a quick rest before heading home. England was everything I imagined it would be. Lovely, green, and peaceful. Almost the whole time we were on our walk I was thinking I would have been more appropriately dressed in some outfit out of a Jane Austen film. It is no wonder those women were always told to walk for their health. You can really get a work out walking in England. Who knew? I thought, before I walked in the English countryside that it was just a convient way to get women out of the house for a few hours. I mean how much help could walking actually do for your health, I would think. But now I know. Just walking I would get tired after about an hour, and by the time we got back to the house I would always feel well worn out. It was a good thing we had plenty of food to revive my spirit! For Easter we actually sat in the dinning room and ate off of the nice Wedgewood china. Lynne use to work for Wedgewood in the accounting department, and they would give super special discounts to their workers one pieces they considered imperfect. Often it might be a slight flaw in the glaze or a little dribble of paint outside the lines, but had she have not told me this, I would have never known they were imperfect pieces. As a result of this super discount she had a full set down to the salt shakers for herself, and had also bought one for her mother and sister in law (I believe). Of course we finished the evening infront of the TV. All in all I felt wonderful. It is so nice to sit is a warm din on sofas, watching the TV, on a cold night with the comfort of family.
Monday, my last full day in England, we went to the monkey park. It was really an amazing place. It is a preserve for Barbary Macaques. I guess they are a dwindling population of monkeys and the goal of the preserve is to save some of the spieces, get them to mate, and then return as many as they can to the wild. I think they have returned thousands back to their homes so far. It was really amazing because the only walls in the whole place were around the perimeter of the preserve. There were very low fences to keep people on the path, but the monkeys could weave in between the people as they liked. Of course there was a working about every ten feet to make sure no one actually touched the monkeys, but most people did not try to anyway. There were tons of people at the park because Easter monday is still a holiday in England. Still I learned a lot about monkeys. It was one of the coolest zoos I have ever been to. Right up there with Fossil Rim.
After the monkey park we got back in the car and wandered over to the Trentham Gardens shops for some tea and cake. I decided to pick this one up as well since I was feeling like such a mooch. We took a quick stroll around the shops, but I didn't find anything worth buying. On our way out we did stop to get some pies from PieMinister. If you have never had a savory pie, or only ever eatten a Chicken Pot Pie, I highly recommend you seek one out (especially if you are ever in England). I really enjoyed mine. It was called "The Matador" and stuffed with green olives, beef, little onions, peas, and potato. Yummmmmm. Of course we did not eat these until Tuesday night, but I thought I would give you the skinny upfront. Monday night was dinner out at a somewhat local restraunt and pub called "The Swan With Two Necks". Don't you just love the name?? Most everyone got pasta, but since I had been in Italy for three months I decided on the burger. It was a very swanky burger, and I don't know if it was the best of my life, but I do know that it was sure good. I was just happy to be out on the town. It is so much different when you go out to eat with people as opposed to when you go out alone. Sometimes it is nice to have the solitude, but I was glad to have the company.
Tuesday was our last day of sight seeing. Unfortunately, Dave had to go back to work, but Lynne and Jess were still off for another week. We headed over the shrusburry for a quick day trip. This little place was wonderful. We stoped in a really lovely tea shop for even more tea and cake, and I finally bought an english tea pot, two cups and saucers, as well as a tea tin. I am really crossing my fingers and hoping they do not break on the flight home!!! I was glad I had waited because the tea pot I bought I loved and everything I bought was 50% off!! So, I only paid half what I would have at some other store.
Wednesday, I did not have to leave until the afternoon. Lynne and I went to the grocery store so I could buy a few things to take back with me to Italy (Mustard, Peanut butter, etc) and then we were off to the airport. What I really loved was that once we got to the airport Lynne waited with me a whole hour before she left. We just sat in a coffee bar outside the restricted area and let some time pass before I made my way to my gate. Part of the time we were silent, part of the time we chatted about what all we had done. It was a wonderful experience all in all, and I am hoping to get back there as soon as I can. It might not be this year, but I know that Lynne will be my friend for a long time and it was not my last time to see her.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
England, part 4
The day before Easter there was a local cricket match. Now, being American, I always assumed that "cricket" was a simple chirping house bug, but of course, I was mistaken. Dave, Lynne's husband, is a big cricketer. I think it must be like football to the south. Everyone in England is into cricket. It reminded me of a game dad use to call "blue jay" which was basically baseball with only two bases instead of four. I can't tell you much more than that honestly. All I know is that it was clearly a gentleman's game since it lasts for hours upon end, and they even break for tea in the middle of the game. This isn't America apparently. Still, it was a beautiful, warm, blue, sunny day and perfect for leisurely watching a nice game of cricket from the club house porch. Had someone offered me an iced tea and cake, I might not have been able to leave. Fortunately, Lynne saved me. She is not very interested in Cricket, but supports it since her husband loves the game. She introduced me to some of her friends, and then we shuffled right out of there. The area where Lynne lives is called "The Potteries" since it was here were famous china makers first opened shop. Makers like Wedgewood, and smaller businesses alike flooded the area. Since there is a lot of burning involved in pottery making (remember you have to fire a piece of pottery at least once?), the sky during that time became black with coal dust. Even in mid day, it was black as night, which I am sure was not pleasant to live in. What I was amazed to find, was that bone china had to be fired at least two times, if not more, depending on how decorated it was. Of course, now all of that work is done in china, and nothing is hand done in England any more. And if you can find a hand painted piece it will run you about 800 dollars and up. It was really interesting being inside the museum. Actually, it was once a local pottery shop that made fine china and pottery, but was never internationally known. It was scheduled for demolition and then at the last minute, the government decided to preserve it and turn it into a museum.
Lynne's community alloment. Where people can grow their own "veg" (as Lynne likes to call it)
The museum parking lot
Inside the old china factory
Inside the kilns. This is where they would heat the pottery.
An outside view of the kilns.
We spent so long at the potteries that one of the docents had to tell us to leave. It was a wonderful museum. We actually did not even make it all the way through. Although, true to British form, we stopped for a leisurely tea in the middle of the day. It was here, at this pottery museum, that I first tasted, and have since become infatuated with, Coffee and Walnut Cake. The woman behind the counter cut a huge slice for me. It was clearly homemade with tons of coffee butter cream frosting in the layers and slathered all over the top. England really inspired me to get back into cake making. There are tons of sweets recipes on BBCGOODFOOD.COM, and I intend to try out many of them once I get back home. Of course, I will be taking all of my creations up to mom and dad's offices so I will not have to be tempted with cakes all around me. Still, I think this could turn into a fun hobby.
After the museum, we drove back to the cricket match, which was not even close to finishing. We had left Jess there because Dave's team pays Jess to score each game they play. So, she unfortunately had to work while we went to the museum. She seemed to enjoy it though.
Since Jess was not able to leave yet, we all bundled back into the car and drove to the local Loggerheads grocery where we picked up salmon fillets, coleslaw, salad stuff (including avocados), and PHISH FOOD. Okay, so those of you who are already acquainted with Ben and Jerry’s know what I am talking about. For those of you who don't, it is a heavenly chocolate ice cream with marshmallows, caramel, chocolate, with dark chocolate fishes swimming throughout. It was really addictive. I had never before tried it, but it was on sale, and so we bought a small pint. YUMM. I am going to have to try to stay clear of that in the grocery stores back home. While enjoying our lovely meal and heavenly ice cream in front of the living room TV, we were entertained by Simon Cowell in "Britain's Got Talent". One woman actually stripped on the show and got through to the next round. And people, she was neither thin, nor young. She had all of her big flab-a-lab shaking all over the place, and was not taken off stage or anything. They just censored her with little bars. British TV is certainly something different.
Lynne's community alloment. Where people can grow their own "veg" (as Lynne likes to call it)
The museum parking lot
Inside the old china factory
Inside the kilns. This is where they would heat the pottery.
An outside view of the kilns.
We spent so long at the potteries that one of the docents had to tell us to leave. It was a wonderful museum. We actually did not even make it all the way through. Although, true to British form, we stopped for a leisurely tea in the middle of the day. It was here, at this pottery museum, that I first tasted, and have since become infatuated with, Coffee and Walnut Cake. The woman behind the counter cut a huge slice for me. It was clearly homemade with tons of coffee butter cream frosting in the layers and slathered all over the top. England really inspired me to get back into cake making. There are tons of sweets recipes on BBCGOODFOOD.COM, and I intend to try out many of them once I get back home. Of course, I will be taking all of my creations up to mom and dad's offices so I will not have to be tempted with cakes all around me. Still, I think this could turn into a fun hobby.
After the museum, we drove back to the cricket match, which was not even close to finishing. We had left Jess there because Dave's team pays Jess to score each game they play. So, she unfortunately had to work while we went to the museum. She seemed to enjoy it though.
Since Jess was not able to leave yet, we all bundled back into the car and drove to the local Loggerheads grocery where we picked up salmon fillets, coleslaw, salad stuff (including avocados), and PHISH FOOD. Okay, so those of you who are already acquainted with Ben and Jerry’s know what I am talking about. For those of you who don't, it is a heavenly chocolate ice cream with marshmallows, caramel, chocolate, with dark chocolate fishes swimming throughout. It was really addictive. I had never before tried it, but it was on sale, and so we bought a small pint. YUMM. I am going to have to try to stay clear of that in the grocery stores back home. While enjoying our lovely meal and heavenly ice cream in front of the living room TV, we were entertained by Simon Cowell in "Britain's Got Talent". One woman actually stripped on the show and got through to the next round. And people, she was neither thin, nor young. She had all of her big flab-a-lab shaking all over the place, and was not taken off stage or anything. They just censored her with little bars. British TV is certainly something different.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
England, part 3
Good Friday started out with the traditional Hot Cross Buns. For those of you who have never seen a "hot cross bun" and only know the name because you had to memorize "hot cross buns" on the recorder in Elementary school (yes, this was me), I have posted a picture below.
Superstitions surrounding the Hot Cross Bun (from Wikipedia):
English folklore includes many superstitions surrounding hot cross buns. One of them says that buns baked and served on Good Friday will not spoil or become moldy during the subsequent year. Another encourages keeping such a bun for medicinal purposes. A piece of it given to someone who is ill is said to help them recover.
Sharing a hot cross bun with another is supposed to ensure friendship throughout the coming year, particularly if "Half for you and half for me, Between us two shall goodwill be" is said at the time. Because of the cross on the buns, some say they should be kissed before being eaten. If taken on a sea voyage, hot cross buns are said to protect against shipwreck. If hung in the kitchen, they are said to protect against fires and ensure that all breads turn out perfectly. The hanging bun is replaced each year.
I had thought the cross was going to be icing, but I was sorely disappointed when it turned out to be only some tasteless flour paste. Still, I managed to cut my bun in the correct fashion, and slathered it with butter. Of course we had several cups of tea before we could be off for the day, but we did eventually make it to the car and we were on our way to Chester. The medieval town of Chester was strikingly beautiful. It did rain on and off, so it was very overcast, but even still, the buildings were luminous. What makes Chester so remarkable is the way it is laid out. There are two levels of shopping before you reach what use to be merchants homes above the shops. All throughout the interconnected buildings there are the smallest little staircases and I often missed them before Lynne started pointing them out to me. Of course there are larger stairs at the end of each row of buildings, but in between lye the tiny ones where you can make a quick escape to the grown level. We walked around a lot, but I did not buy much of anything. Another thing that is unique about this city is that you can walk the entire perimeter of the old city walls. It took us about two hours to do, but it was really amazing getting to see the old city from every angle.
After our walk around the city walls we were both cold and tired, and stopped at an open air tea shop on the second level of one of the main buildings to have some tea. It was a great spot because we were also able to people watch. Unfortunately, the muffins we ordered were not made there and had been frozen. Lynne’s did not get completely thawed and when she tried to bite into it, she got a big hunk of frozen blue berry muffin. Jessica and I were at least lucky enough to have ordered chocolate muffins that were only mildly cool in the center.
After the tea we all decided to go. I am sure there was much more to see and do. I had even spotted a Starbucks down the way, but we were so chilled and exhausted, we did not want to stay. So, we bundled back into Lynne's light blue Citroen and headed home. Except, we made a detour on the way. We stopped in Market Drayton, the closest town to Loggerheads, where there was an excellent fish and chip shop. Oh. My. God. I think I died and went to heaven that evening. The chip shop smelt of grease and salt. The people working behind the counters looked hot, but amazingly, all the tables and the counter were impeccably clean. We ordered 5 fishes, and 3 large chips. The fish was huge. I mean, you order fish and chips in the USA and you get some measly piece of fish compared to what you get in England. The fish was so big; both ends were hanging off my dinner plate. And the fries, oh god, let me tell you about the fries. They were soft! I mean, they had a slight crisp to them, but they were in not way crunchy, and being that I like soft fries, I was in heaven. Everyone ate their fish and chips differently. Lynne ate hers with vinegar, David ate his with tartar sauce, Ann ate hers plain, and Jess and I ate ours with ketchup. It was by far my favorite thing I ate in England. I love the fried food.
And, as if the all the pounds of fried fish and potato were not enough, we topped the whole meal off with Cadbury Cream Egg ice cream. Then we all settled in the living room to watch the results of American Idol. Now, I know this might sound really wrong, but you know the blind guy who was on American Idol? Well, I have no idea why I did not remember him, but I didn't and so when he came up to sing I started saying how freaky his eyes looked, and how he seemed just a little creepy. Pretty soon we were all saying how creepy he looked, until I suddenly remembered. Holy Crap! He is the blind guy. When I came to this realization, everyone else felt immediately horrible for having agreed with me, but oh well. I mean I feel bad I did not remember, but how are just suppose to know he is blind. Okay, well I think that might be obvious to most people, but somehow I just missed it.
Photos of Chester:
This is the dominant style seen in Chester.
Notice the two levels of shopping.
Entrance to Chester.
A view of Chester from the city wall.
The Churches of Chester.
Superstitions surrounding the Hot Cross Bun (from Wikipedia):
English folklore includes many superstitions surrounding hot cross buns. One of them says that buns baked and served on Good Friday will not spoil or become moldy during the subsequent year. Another encourages keeping such a bun for medicinal purposes. A piece of it given to someone who is ill is said to help them recover.
Sharing a hot cross bun with another is supposed to ensure friendship throughout the coming year, particularly if "Half for you and half for me, Between us two shall goodwill be" is said at the time. Because of the cross on the buns, some say they should be kissed before being eaten. If taken on a sea voyage, hot cross buns are said to protect against shipwreck. If hung in the kitchen, they are said to protect against fires and ensure that all breads turn out perfectly. The hanging bun is replaced each year.
I had thought the cross was going to be icing, but I was sorely disappointed when it turned out to be only some tasteless flour paste. Still, I managed to cut my bun in the correct fashion, and slathered it with butter. Of course we had several cups of tea before we could be off for the day, but we did eventually make it to the car and we were on our way to Chester. The medieval town of Chester was strikingly beautiful. It did rain on and off, so it was very overcast, but even still, the buildings were luminous. What makes Chester so remarkable is the way it is laid out. There are two levels of shopping before you reach what use to be merchants homes above the shops. All throughout the interconnected buildings there are the smallest little staircases and I often missed them before Lynne started pointing them out to me. Of course there are larger stairs at the end of each row of buildings, but in between lye the tiny ones where you can make a quick escape to the grown level. We walked around a lot, but I did not buy much of anything. Another thing that is unique about this city is that you can walk the entire perimeter of the old city walls. It took us about two hours to do, but it was really amazing getting to see the old city from every angle.
After our walk around the city walls we were both cold and tired, and stopped at an open air tea shop on the second level of one of the main buildings to have some tea. It was a great spot because we were also able to people watch. Unfortunately, the muffins we ordered were not made there and had been frozen. Lynne’s did not get completely thawed and when she tried to bite into it, she got a big hunk of frozen blue berry muffin. Jessica and I were at least lucky enough to have ordered chocolate muffins that were only mildly cool in the center.
After the tea we all decided to go. I am sure there was much more to see and do. I had even spotted a Starbucks down the way, but we were so chilled and exhausted, we did not want to stay. So, we bundled back into Lynne's light blue Citroen and headed home. Except, we made a detour on the way. We stopped in Market Drayton, the closest town to Loggerheads, where there was an excellent fish and chip shop. Oh. My. God. I think I died and went to heaven that evening. The chip shop smelt of grease and salt. The people working behind the counters looked hot, but amazingly, all the tables and the counter were impeccably clean. We ordered 5 fishes, and 3 large chips. The fish was huge. I mean, you order fish and chips in the USA and you get some measly piece of fish compared to what you get in England. The fish was so big; both ends were hanging off my dinner plate. And the fries, oh god, let me tell you about the fries. They were soft! I mean, they had a slight crisp to them, but they were in not way crunchy, and being that I like soft fries, I was in heaven. Everyone ate their fish and chips differently. Lynne ate hers with vinegar, David ate his with tartar sauce, Ann ate hers plain, and Jess and I ate ours with ketchup. It was by far my favorite thing I ate in England. I love the fried food.
And, as if the all the pounds of fried fish and potato were not enough, we topped the whole meal off with Cadbury Cream Egg ice cream. Then we all settled in the living room to watch the results of American Idol. Now, I know this might sound really wrong, but you know the blind guy who was on American Idol? Well, I have no idea why I did not remember him, but I didn't and so when he came up to sing I started saying how freaky his eyes looked, and how he seemed just a little creepy. Pretty soon we were all saying how creepy he looked, until I suddenly remembered. Holy Crap! He is the blind guy. When I came to this realization, everyone else felt immediately horrible for having agreed with me, but oh well. I mean I feel bad I did not remember, but how are just suppose to know he is blind. Okay, well I think that might be obvious to most people, but somehow I just missed it.
Photos of Chester:
This is the dominant style seen in Chester.
Notice the two levels of shopping.
Entrance to Chester.
A view of Chester from the city wall.
The Churches of Chester.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
England, Part 2
The morning after my arrival was gray and there was a ever so slight drizzle falling from the sky. Still, it might as well have been sunny to me. Surprising the weather did not effect me the way it does when it rains here in Italy. I did not find gray England dreary at all. Mornings were always slow for the family. Friday was the first day of "bank holiday" where all of the banks and post offices are closed for the Easter weekend. People did not start working until the following Tuesday. So, everyone woke up somewhere around eight or eight thirty. Lynne was always up before I was and the moment I walk into the kitchen, the first place I thought of every morning, she would make me a fresh cup of tea. In England people use electric tea kettles. I told her I was surprised to see such a think since we have always had a kettle that you place on the stove. She looked at me with a little shock, and told me that no one has used that kind of kettle for ages and that most all Englanders use an electric kettle now. When I came back from England I started researching electric tea kettles and found that the reason why most people use them is because they filter out excess lime (which is a big problem here in Italy) and they heat up faster as well as conserve more of your water. I am planning on going to look for one in Siena on Monday, I just hope they are not outrageously expensive.
Tea was always the first thing you made yourself in the morning. About an hour after you had two cups of tea, Lynne would come back into the kitchen and make breakfast for everyone. We had poached eggs that morning, and almost every morning there after. I would always ask for two poached eggs and three slices of toast. She opened this fabulous bottle of fig jam while I was there and one of my favorite breakfast things was a slice of toast covered in melted butter with the sweet fig jam on top. Of course we had some more tea or juice with our breakfast. Afterwards, we all changed clothes, cleaned up the kitchen and left for Newcastle-under-Lyme. The people of the area just call it Newcastle for short, but if you say "Newcastle" to someone from another area, they will think you mean the large city that is much further north.
In Newcastle Lynne bought a gift for her sister-in-law as it was her birthday the following day, and then we went to a local jewelery pawn shop where I exchanged 100 euros for pounds. We took a quick walk around the city, just window shopping mainly, and then decided to stop in a local tea shop for a rest and a bit of tea. I posted a picture of this tea in my last post.
I loved the name and look of this building.
A view of the tea room in Newcastle where I had my first English tea time.
The public garden in Newcastle.
A statue of the queen in the Newcastle gardens.
One of the main streets in Newcastle.
The "Womble In"
The "Golden Lion"
Another main street in Newcastle.
A tulip blooming at the first sign of spring
A final view of the Newcastle gardens.
It was not the prettiest of days, but I was so excited just to be in England that it didn't matter. After we exchanged my money, we headed off to the grocery store where we bought the essentials, including freshly baked Hot Cross Buns. They are a traditional Good friday treat, and so we bought enough for snack time as well as for the next morning for breakfast. I was in love with the grocery store. It was just like back home. You could get anything you might ever want, including pancake mix, and made up meals sold by the grocery. Lynne bought the things to make "bangers and mash" as well as some Cadburry Cream Egg Ice Cream.
By the time we got home we were hungry and decided to make some tea and toast the hot cross buns. Lynne toasted mine for me and then told me to just cut it in half. Now, if you have never seen a hot cross bun before, it is basically in the shape of a dinner roll and has to white perpendicular lines across it. I thought, when she told me to cut it in half, that she ment for me to cut the bun in half along the line. So, that's exactly what I did. Lynne turned around, she had gone back to the oven for the rest of the buns, and for the briefest of moments, had a look of terror in her eyes. "Oh, you cut it the wrong way" she told me. I was really confused at this point and said "How do you know which way you are suppose to cut it" I asked her, thinking she meant I was suppose to cut down the other line. Then I see her slice her own like a bagel, and I understand what she means. We all had a little laught and Lynne assured me that there was no wrong way to eat it, and that I could eat mine however I liked.
After our buns Lynne and I decided to take a walk. Since they live in the country, there are all these hidden walking trails that many people seem to use whenever it is not raining outside. Even if there is a threat of rain, people will still walk if they think they can get out and back in before the rains come. It was pretty muddy when Lynne and I first took off. We headed down a trail that was behind her house, out to the main road and then off behind an old farm that someone had converted into a large home. Unfortunately, it was a little more wet that we anticipated and my feet sunk in the mud at the end of the dell. The good part is that I only got a little of one shoe wet so, I was able to keep going. We walked for two hours that day. The country side can be vast, but they were not at all disconnect from the main cities. It was nice because they got the chance to walk everyday and still could work close by.
Photos of the Loggerheads Country Side:
A baby fern slowly opeing its leaves.
The old farm house I was talking about that was converted to a modern home.
Flowers in the dell.
That's Lynne just ahead of me.
One thing that I was really struck by was the design of the homes. Lynne's home was built in the 80s and still it was a great design. All of the windows are deeply set into the walls. In the Living room there was a bay window with a little curtain that fitted directly over it. Then there was another curtain David and Lynne had hung which would cover the whole area of the bay window on nights when it was really cold. Of course there was no ventiallation system in the home because people do not have air conditioning. Lynne said they only turn the heat off from May to mid-September. Also, when Lynne had her kitchen redone, she installed heated tile flooring so that it was always pleasant on your feet in the morning. The ceilings were low, more characteristic of older homes, but still in a place that is so cold, you want your ceilings to be lower. Still, the house never felt or looked cramped. It was so comfortable that even though it got down to the 30s at night, I could still sit in the living room with wet hair and be perfectly comfortable. The one thing I thought odd was that no one had mail boxes. You have to go to a post box to mail your letters. Although everyone has a mail slot in their door so the mail does atlease come to you.
And finally, there was Sky TV. Oh bless you! I got to watch American Idol for the first time since I left the states, and it was wonderful. Sky TV is like a form of cable television where you get all sorts of channels in all sorts of languages. American Idol is so popular even in Britain, that the BBC airs each new episode every Thursday, and the results show on Fridays. That night we ate "bangers and mash", aka 'sausage and mashed potatoes' with brown sauce (like a vinegary ketchup) in front of the TV while watching American Idol. To finish it all off, we each had a bowl of Cadburry Cream Egg Ice Cream.
Now, some people might ask why I did not go to London. Well, the truth of the matter is, no one knew how expensive the tickets were going to be until we started looking it up. It was going to cost us almost 100 pounds for a roundtrip train ticket to London. We were all so astounded, and agreed that it would be something to do next time I came to visit them.
It was a wonderful day. Relaxing, pleasant, and I even got a little exercise in. I was so happy.
Tea was always the first thing you made yourself in the morning. About an hour after you had two cups of tea, Lynne would come back into the kitchen and make breakfast for everyone. We had poached eggs that morning, and almost every morning there after. I would always ask for two poached eggs and three slices of toast. She opened this fabulous bottle of fig jam while I was there and one of my favorite breakfast things was a slice of toast covered in melted butter with the sweet fig jam on top. Of course we had some more tea or juice with our breakfast. Afterwards, we all changed clothes, cleaned up the kitchen and left for Newcastle-under-Lyme. The people of the area just call it Newcastle for short, but if you say "Newcastle" to someone from another area, they will think you mean the large city that is much further north.
In Newcastle Lynne bought a gift for her sister-in-law as it was her birthday the following day, and then we went to a local jewelery pawn shop where I exchanged 100 euros for pounds. We took a quick walk around the city, just window shopping mainly, and then decided to stop in a local tea shop for a rest and a bit of tea. I posted a picture of this tea in my last post.
I loved the name and look of this building.
A view of the tea room in Newcastle where I had my first English tea time.
The public garden in Newcastle.
A statue of the queen in the Newcastle gardens.
One of the main streets in Newcastle.
The "Womble In"
The "Golden Lion"
Another main street in Newcastle.
A tulip blooming at the first sign of spring
A final view of the Newcastle gardens.
It was not the prettiest of days, but I was so excited just to be in England that it didn't matter. After we exchanged my money, we headed off to the grocery store where we bought the essentials, including freshly baked Hot Cross Buns. They are a traditional Good friday treat, and so we bought enough for snack time as well as for the next morning for breakfast. I was in love with the grocery store. It was just like back home. You could get anything you might ever want, including pancake mix, and made up meals sold by the grocery. Lynne bought the things to make "bangers and mash" as well as some Cadburry Cream Egg Ice Cream.
By the time we got home we were hungry and decided to make some tea and toast the hot cross buns. Lynne toasted mine for me and then told me to just cut it in half. Now, if you have never seen a hot cross bun before, it is basically in the shape of a dinner roll and has to white perpendicular lines across it. I thought, when she told me to cut it in half, that she ment for me to cut the bun in half along the line. So, that's exactly what I did. Lynne turned around, she had gone back to the oven for the rest of the buns, and for the briefest of moments, had a look of terror in her eyes. "Oh, you cut it the wrong way" she told me. I was really confused at this point and said "How do you know which way you are suppose to cut it" I asked her, thinking she meant I was suppose to cut down the other line. Then I see her slice her own like a bagel, and I understand what she means. We all had a little laught and Lynne assured me that there was no wrong way to eat it, and that I could eat mine however I liked.
After our buns Lynne and I decided to take a walk. Since they live in the country, there are all these hidden walking trails that many people seem to use whenever it is not raining outside. Even if there is a threat of rain, people will still walk if they think they can get out and back in before the rains come. It was pretty muddy when Lynne and I first took off. We headed down a trail that was behind her house, out to the main road and then off behind an old farm that someone had converted into a large home. Unfortunately, it was a little more wet that we anticipated and my feet sunk in the mud at the end of the dell. The good part is that I only got a little of one shoe wet so, I was able to keep going. We walked for two hours that day. The country side can be vast, but they were not at all disconnect from the main cities. It was nice because they got the chance to walk everyday and still could work close by.
Photos of the Loggerheads Country Side:
A baby fern slowly opeing its leaves.
The old farm house I was talking about that was converted to a modern home.
Flowers in the dell.
That's Lynne just ahead of me.
One thing that I was really struck by was the design of the homes. Lynne's home was built in the 80s and still it was a great design. All of the windows are deeply set into the walls. In the Living room there was a bay window with a little curtain that fitted directly over it. Then there was another curtain David and Lynne had hung which would cover the whole area of the bay window on nights when it was really cold. Of course there was no ventiallation system in the home because people do not have air conditioning. Lynne said they only turn the heat off from May to mid-September. Also, when Lynne had her kitchen redone, she installed heated tile flooring so that it was always pleasant on your feet in the morning. The ceilings were low, more characteristic of older homes, but still in a place that is so cold, you want your ceilings to be lower. Still, the house never felt or looked cramped. It was so comfortable that even though it got down to the 30s at night, I could still sit in the living room with wet hair and be perfectly comfortable. The one thing I thought odd was that no one had mail boxes. You have to go to a post box to mail your letters. Although everyone has a mail slot in their door so the mail does atlease come to you.
And finally, there was Sky TV. Oh bless you! I got to watch American Idol for the first time since I left the states, and it was wonderful. Sky TV is like a form of cable television where you get all sorts of channels in all sorts of languages. American Idol is so popular even in Britain, that the BBC airs each new episode every Thursday, and the results show on Fridays. That night we ate "bangers and mash", aka 'sausage and mashed potatoes' with brown sauce (like a vinegary ketchup) in front of the TV while watching American Idol. To finish it all off, we each had a bowl of Cadburry Cream Egg Ice Cream.
Now, some people might ask why I did not go to London. Well, the truth of the matter is, no one knew how expensive the tickets were going to be until we started looking it up. It was going to cost us almost 100 pounds for a roundtrip train ticket to London. We were all so astounded, and agreed that it would be something to do next time I came to visit them.
It was a wonderful day. Relaxing, pleasant, and I even got a little exercise in. I was so happy.
Friday, April 17, 2009
England, Just What the Doctor Ordered
So, let's start from the beginning shall we? The date is April 8, 2009. The time is 8:00am. The place? Well, San Gusme of course. So, here we go!
I woke up bright and early last Wednesday morning, and was out the door at 8am sharp. With my blue suite case in hand (borrowed from P&S), and my carry-on strapped to me, I headed off for the big house. Everything went very smoothly. Sam and Emma were out the door on time, we dropped Emma off at school and then Sam drove straight to the Siena train station. I was really appreciative when he got out of the car and walked into the station with me. I had thought, and I guess he had too, that there was one of the modern ticket machines at the train station, but once we were inside it was obvious there were none. So, we headed to the ticket counter. I asked the man for a ticket to Pisa Airport, and he turned and did some fiddling on his computer. Then, he turned back to me and began speaking. The only problem was I could not hear him at all. There was no microphone behind the thick glass partition, only a few little slits, and what with trains taking off and arriving in the background I could only make out a few mumbles here or there. Thankfully Sam was able to catch more than I was, and eventually I had my ticket in hand.
He gave me a quick hug, and wished me well before I turned to make my way to my platform. The train was already pulled up when I reached the platform, and I was a little suspicious that this was not my train at all. Sometimes, trains will park at a platform for a while to ensure that they are on schedule. I could see many others around me with suitcases looking a little perplexed as well, so I decided to hang back and see what everyone did. With ten minutes left before the train was scheduled to take off, everyone eventually came to the conclusion that this was in face the correct train, and we all made our way on board. I was sitting on the train, staring out the window, when I saw three young people racing up the stairs. They were all about to get on when one of them, the lone male, realized they had forgotten to stamp their tickets (if you do not do this to every ticket you have before you get on a train you could get a HUGE fine), so he hopped back down, raced over to the little yellow stamping machine by the stairs they had rushed up, and as quickly as he could stamped all three tickets. Now, you might think that since the trains are still operated by humans, that if you are late or running up to dash onboard at the last minute, that the train will wait for you, but you would be wrong. I have seen a lady bang on the doors of a train while it is moving and try to even stick her arm through the closed door to open it, and the train never stopped. The trains are the only thing that runs on any resemblance of a schedule in Italy and if you miss your train it is like missing the subway, it is not stopping for you. Fortunately though, the guy was able to stamp all the tickets and make it on to the train in plenty of time. I knew they spoke English when I heard the guy talking as he was running up to the train carriage. Funny enough, the three of them, ended up taking the three seats around me, and I listened to them chatter away for a while.
Eventually, I asked them where they were from. Turns out the two girls were from Germany, but spoke perfect English, and the guy said he was from South Caroline. I told him I was from Texas, and he asked whereabouts. I told him Fort Worth, and he looked at me a little funny, and he asked me, "You don't by any chance happen to know the Reids do you?" Of course, this was a little vague and I said, maybe, since the name did sound familiar. He listed off the parents names, but that did me no good. I asked for their kids names, and the final one he listed was William Reid. Well, I knew THAT name. We went to choir when we were younger, and although he really enjoyed it, it was the bane of my existence. When I confirmed that I did know William, he said "Oh my god, that's so funny. William is my boyfriend." I was shocked. I mean, what a small world. We could not believe that we had met in Italy, on a train going to Florence. I mean, it was fate. We talked and talked until we could talk no more. It was so nice to talk with someone who was from home, or at least knew the area. We talked a little about Italy, and they said they were there doing their master’s thesis, but on their way to Venice for a vacation. Unfortunately, I had to get off the train at Empoli and switch directions so that I could make it to the Pisa Airport. I told him how glad I was to meet him, and to add me on facebook whenever he got the chance. It was really comforting to be among friendly people who speak English.
I waited in Empoli for an hour for my next train. I could have taken another train that went much quicker, but it would have meant that I would have had to make another switch at the main Pisa station and get on a smaller train to the airport. I did not want to take the chance of getting lost so I just took the train that would take me directly to the airport after my wait in Empoli. What with my bags and all, I did not want to be racing up and down a continuous amount of stairs trying to reach my destination. I arrived at the airport in one piece, and made my way to the Ryan Air desk. In case you have not heard of Ryan Air, it is an airline based out of England that is super cheap (the seats do not even recline, and you have to pay to use the bathroom on board); many people fly it though because they will go to the little airports. Had I have not flown Ryan air, I would have had to fly into London and then get another plane flying into Liverpool. All in all it would have taken me about six hours, where as with Ryan Air, it only took me 2.5 hours. I knew there would be problems from the start since I had decided to take a checked bag and had not indicated so much when I checked in online. I tried to call the Ryan Air office but they told me they could do nothing for me since I had already checked in online, and that I would need to pay for my bag when I checked it at the desk at the airport. So, I stood waiting for about 40 minutes for my Liverpool flight to open. People were crowded all over the place waiting to get in line, and once the sign flicked up saying that the Liverpool desk was open, it was what I imagine the Red Sea looked like after all the Jews had crossed it. Imagine, if you will, a massive wave of people each trying to nonchalantly slip in front of the other. I did not worry about it too much, but ended up getting in the upper middle of the line. Once I reached the desk, I told the woman I needed to check a bag. Ryan Air is full of weight and dimension restrictions. I could only take 22 pounds on board in a small carryon, and my checked bag could be no more than 35 pounds. And you are only allowed to take one small carry-on on the plane. Nothing else. So, if you have a purse, you better be able to fit it in your bag, because it counts as a second item. Also, Ryan Air does not assign seats. It is first come, first serve. You can pay for priority boarding, which I think I will do next time, but I did not bother with it this time. So, back to my checked bag. The woman gave me a receipt and told me I had to go inside the other building and pay for my bag (22 Euros), then come back and bring her the ticket and that she would give me my boarding pass. She also told me to not wait in the line, but just to come up and she would give me my ticket. I was a little skeptical about this, but did as I was told. I waited in the line to pay my bag, and returned to the other building cautiously making my way up the line. I was worried someone was going to stab me in the back or something because people are never meaner than when they are at the airport, and what with the line still being out the door, I knew some people were going to think that I was cutting. Actually, as I was waiting for a chance to slip in somewhere between the people checking in, I looked over at the line to find a lot of people my age giving me the evil eye. "I promise I am not cutting" I said, "They told me to not wait in line after I paid for my checked bag." I think some of them were a little embarrassed to have been called out on their staring but one of the guys made a joke and told me he would believe me for now. There were two desks dedicated to the Liverpool flight, both out the door and I finally got to slip in to ask one of the attendants about my ticket. Immediately, she told me that I needed to ask the other woman. Damn just when I had made my way to her, then I had to wait to get in to see the other woman. As I was waiting, all of the old people kept cutting me off and giving me the cold shoulder as I tried to get the other attendants attention, the other attendant just said "No, just ask her" and coaxed me. Eventually, I just interrupted her, and she quickly handed me my boarding pass. I was finally on my way.
Security was a nightmare of course. I had to go through the metal detector three times. After the third time the woman who was watching my line just said that it was probably my hair clip and told me to go on. When I came to the passport desk, I simply handed my book over to the man behind the partition and waited. He did some fiddling on his computer, and I was so hot from going through security so many times, that my face must have looked beet red. After what seemed like ages, he gave me back my passport. Then, just as I thought I was in the clear, he called to me just as I was walking behind the partition. He asked to see my passport once again, did a little more fiddling and then just handed it back to me and let me go. At this point, I was really hot and tired. I still had to wait another forty minutes before we could get on board. They boarded the priority people first, and then it was time for everyone else. Once they checked my ticket for a final time, we were lead out to the tarmac and had to board the plane using stairs. Unfortunately, I was not a good judge when it came to where to sit. I only realized there was a two year old sitting directly behind me when the flight took off and it start screaming bloody murder. Not only did it scream, but it kicked my seat as if it was possessed. It was a long flight. In a nutshell, the child did not like be in a seat belt and would therefore scream whenever she had to sit down. When the plane was landing was the worse, because the parents kept taking her out of the seat to comfort her, and then she would scream whenever they tried to put her back. I was really exhausted at this point. All I had had to eat was an apple at 7am, and now there was an infant kicking my chair and screaming in my ear. Jesus.
Arriving in England was a little different. There was only one line for all other non European citizens and it was completely empty, where as the line for the EU citizen was jam packed. I had to fill out a little information card for the passport man, but was stumped when it came to "address where you will be staying". In my rush to get going I had completely forgot to print Lynne's address, and so I had nothing to tell the man other than Lynne Redfern and Loggerheads. He asked me for the address and I had nothing to give him. I told him I didn't know her address but that she lived in Loggerheads. He asked me where that was and I told him I had no idea. He asked where we met; I told him we met last October while on vacation in Venice. He asked me if she was picking me up, and I told him she was. He asked me if I was a student in Italy, and I told him I was. "Just one of those semester things huh?" he asked. "Yes" I answered. He stamped my passport and bid me good day. Finally, I was in England. My bag seemed to be waiting for me, and I rolled out into the main area of the airport.
My goodness it was so nice to see Lynne. A friendly face is always welcome. Jessica, her daughter, was with her as well, and she was very fun and bubbly. We were out the door in minutes. As we reached her car I moved to get into the passenger side when Lynne said "Oh, this is England dear. Passenger side is the other side." My mind did a whole "HOLY CRAP!" thing, before it registered, and I made my way around the other side of the car. I did not make that mistake again.
I think the most amazing thing at that time was that it was so pleasant and sunny. There was a strong wind in Liverpool, but that died out as we made our way into the country side. There were big white clouds, and bright bits of blue sky. It was a very pleasant day. And I was so happy to be there. So grateful for a vacation.
We arrived at their house in about an hour. We dropped off my bags, I was given a quick tour of the house, shown my room, and then we made our way over to Ann's house (Lynne's mother, who we also met on our vacation). She was ready and waiting with traditional English tea. She even got out the super nice china, and three different types of tea cakes were ready and waiting for me. I had one of each since I told them I had only had an apple all day, I think they understood. After I had two cups of tea, and felt a little more replenished, we looked over the Chinese take-out menu. Yumm. I don't even remember what all we ate; I just know it was good. The take out place was only a few minutes from her house, so while Lynne went in to order, Ann, Jess and I headed over to "The Loggerheads", the local pub where we got a few glasses of white wine and a juice for Jess. I really love the English pubs. All are kept in their original style, and have the traditional super low ceilings, no doubt sealing in warmth during the winter, and have tons of exposed beams everywhere. The furniture has that old worn in quality. Maybe it does not look old, but it feels like every chair is welcoming, like each bit of furniture has been waiting for you for years ready and willing to make you as comfortable as possible. Traditionally the fabrics in these places seem to be of the dark nature, making the space feel even more cozy and comforting. Yes, I think it would be safe to say it was love at first sight.
Our food was ready immediately and we scurried back home to eat and drink and be merry. We watched 'America's got Talent' (Yay!!!! American TV!!), and had more wine that should be allotted for any one person. I went to bed thoroughly full and pleased. Completely happy and satiated for the first time in a long time, I drifted to sleep in their large double bed with soft white sheets and welcoming down comforter.
Now, of course I know you want pictures, and believe me, I have plenty, but I did not take any pictures on my first day, so I will give you a sneak peak of England, part 2.
My first cup of English tea at a tea shop in Newcastle-under-Lyme. It was wonderful.
I woke up bright and early last Wednesday morning, and was out the door at 8am sharp. With my blue suite case in hand (borrowed from P&S), and my carry-on strapped to me, I headed off for the big house. Everything went very smoothly. Sam and Emma were out the door on time, we dropped Emma off at school and then Sam drove straight to the Siena train station. I was really appreciative when he got out of the car and walked into the station with me. I had thought, and I guess he had too, that there was one of the modern ticket machines at the train station, but once we were inside it was obvious there were none. So, we headed to the ticket counter. I asked the man for a ticket to Pisa Airport, and he turned and did some fiddling on his computer. Then, he turned back to me and began speaking. The only problem was I could not hear him at all. There was no microphone behind the thick glass partition, only a few little slits, and what with trains taking off and arriving in the background I could only make out a few mumbles here or there. Thankfully Sam was able to catch more than I was, and eventually I had my ticket in hand.
He gave me a quick hug, and wished me well before I turned to make my way to my platform. The train was already pulled up when I reached the platform, and I was a little suspicious that this was not my train at all. Sometimes, trains will park at a platform for a while to ensure that they are on schedule. I could see many others around me with suitcases looking a little perplexed as well, so I decided to hang back and see what everyone did. With ten minutes left before the train was scheduled to take off, everyone eventually came to the conclusion that this was in face the correct train, and we all made our way on board. I was sitting on the train, staring out the window, when I saw three young people racing up the stairs. They were all about to get on when one of them, the lone male, realized they had forgotten to stamp their tickets (if you do not do this to every ticket you have before you get on a train you could get a HUGE fine), so he hopped back down, raced over to the little yellow stamping machine by the stairs they had rushed up, and as quickly as he could stamped all three tickets. Now, you might think that since the trains are still operated by humans, that if you are late or running up to dash onboard at the last minute, that the train will wait for you, but you would be wrong. I have seen a lady bang on the doors of a train while it is moving and try to even stick her arm through the closed door to open it, and the train never stopped. The trains are the only thing that runs on any resemblance of a schedule in Italy and if you miss your train it is like missing the subway, it is not stopping for you. Fortunately though, the guy was able to stamp all the tickets and make it on to the train in plenty of time. I knew they spoke English when I heard the guy talking as he was running up to the train carriage. Funny enough, the three of them, ended up taking the three seats around me, and I listened to them chatter away for a while.
Eventually, I asked them where they were from. Turns out the two girls were from Germany, but spoke perfect English, and the guy said he was from South Caroline. I told him I was from Texas, and he asked whereabouts. I told him Fort Worth, and he looked at me a little funny, and he asked me, "You don't by any chance happen to know the Reids do you?" Of course, this was a little vague and I said, maybe, since the name did sound familiar. He listed off the parents names, but that did me no good. I asked for their kids names, and the final one he listed was William Reid. Well, I knew THAT name. We went to choir when we were younger, and although he really enjoyed it, it was the bane of my existence. When I confirmed that I did know William, he said "Oh my god, that's so funny. William is my boyfriend." I was shocked. I mean, what a small world. We could not believe that we had met in Italy, on a train going to Florence. I mean, it was fate. We talked and talked until we could talk no more. It was so nice to talk with someone who was from home, or at least knew the area. We talked a little about Italy, and they said they were there doing their master’s thesis, but on their way to Venice for a vacation. Unfortunately, I had to get off the train at Empoli and switch directions so that I could make it to the Pisa Airport. I told him how glad I was to meet him, and to add me on facebook whenever he got the chance. It was really comforting to be among friendly people who speak English.
I waited in Empoli for an hour for my next train. I could have taken another train that went much quicker, but it would have meant that I would have had to make another switch at the main Pisa station and get on a smaller train to the airport. I did not want to take the chance of getting lost so I just took the train that would take me directly to the airport after my wait in Empoli. What with my bags and all, I did not want to be racing up and down a continuous amount of stairs trying to reach my destination. I arrived at the airport in one piece, and made my way to the Ryan Air desk. In case you have not heard of Ryan Air, it is an airline based out of England that is super cheap (the seats do not even recline, and you have to pay to use the bathroom on board); many people fly it though because they will go to the little airports. Had I have not flown Ryan air, I would have had to fly into London and then get another plane flying into Liverpool. All in all it would have taken me about six hours, where as with Ryan Air, it only took me 2.5 hours. I knew there would be problems from the start since I had decided to take a checked bag and had not indicated so much when I checked in online. I tried to call the Ryan Air office but they told me they could do nothing for me since I had already checked in online, and that I would need to pay for my bag when I checked it at the desk at the airport. So, I stood waiting for about 40 minutes for my Liverpool flight to open. People were crowded all over the place waiting to get in line, and once the sign flicked up saying that the Liverpool desk was open, it was what I imagine the Red Sea looked like after all the Jews had crossed it. Imagine, if you will, a massive wave of people each trying to nonchalantly slip in front of the other. I did not worry about it too much, but ended up getting in the upper middle of the line. Once I reached the desk, I told the woman I needed to check a bag. Ryan Air is full of weight and dimension restrictions. I could only take 22 pounds on board in a small carryon, and my checked bag could be no more than 35 pounds. And you are only allowed to take one small carry-on on the plane. Nothing else. So, if you have a purse, you better be able to fit it in your bag, because it counts as a second item. Also, Ryan Air does not assign seats. It is first come, first serve. You can pay for priority boarding, which I think I will do next time, but I did not bother with it this time. So, back to my checked bag. The woman gave me a receipt and told me I had to go inside the other building and pay for my bag (22 Euros), then come back and bring her the ticket and that she would give me my boarding pass. She also told me to not wait in the line, but just to come up and she would give me my ticket. I was a little skeptical about this, but did as I was told. I waited in the line to pay my bag, and returned to the other building cautiously making my way up the line. I was worried someone was going to stab me in the back or something because people are never meaner than when they are at the airport, and what with the line still being out the door, I knew some people were going to think that I was cutting. Actually, as I was waiting for a chance to slip in somewhere between the people checking in, I looked over at the line to find a lot of people my age giving me the evil eye. "I promise I am not cutting" I said, "They told me to not wait in line after I paid for my checked bag." I think some of them were a little embarrassed to have been called out on their staring but one of the guys made a joke and told me he would believe me for now. There were two desks dedicated to the Liverpool flight, both out the door and I finally got to slip in to ask one of the attendants about my ticket. Immediately, she told me that I needed to ask the other woman. Damn just when I had made my way to her, then I had to wait to get in to see the other woman. As I was waiting, all of the old people kept cutting me off and giving me the cold shoulder as I tried to get the other attendants attention, the other attendant just said "No, just ask her" and coaxed me. Eventually, I just interrupted her, and she quickly handed me my boarding pass. I was finally on my way.
Security was a nightmare of course. I had to go through the metal detector three times. After the third time the woman who was watching my line just said that it was probably my hair clip and told me to go on. When I came to the passport desk, I simply handed my book over to the man behind the partition and waited. He did some fiddling on his computer, and I was so hot from going through security so many times, that my face must have looked beet red. After what seemed like ages, he gave me back my passport. Then, just as I thought I was in the clear, he called to me just as I was walking behind the partition. He asked to see my passport once again, did a little more fiddling and then just handed it back to me and let me go. At this point, I was really hot and tired. I still had to wait another forty minutes before we could get on board. They boarded the priority people first, and then it was time for everyone else. Once they checked my ticket for a final time, we were lead out to the tarmac and had to board the plane using stairs. Unfortunately, I was not a good judge when it came to where to sit. I only realized there was a two year old sitting directly behind me when the flight took off and it start screaming bloody murder. Not only did it scream, but it kicked my seat as if it was possessed. It was a long flight. In a nutshell, the child did not like be in a seat belt and would therefore scream whenever she had to sit down. When the plane was landing was the worse, because the parents kept taking her out of the seat to comfort her, and then she would scream whenever they tried to put her back. I was really exhausted at this point. All I had had to eat was an apple at 7am, and now there was an infant kicking my chair and screaming in my ear. Jesus.
Arriving in England was a little different. There was only one line for all other non European citizens and it was completely empty, where as the line for the EU citizen was jam packed. I had to fill out a little information card for the passport man, but was stumped when it came to "address where you will be staying". In my rush to get going I had completely forgot to print Lynne's address, and so I had nothing to tell the man other than Lynne Redfern and Loggerheads. He asked me for the address and I had nothing to give him. I told him I didn't know her address but that she lived in Loggerheads. He asked me where that was and I told him I had no idea. He asked where we met; I told him we met last October while on vacation in Venice. He asked me if she was picking me up, and I told him she was. He asked me if I was a student in Italy, and I told him I was. "Just one of those semester things huh?" he asked. "Yes" I answered. He stamped my passport and bid me good day. Finally, I was in England. My bag seemed to be waiting for me, and I rolled out into the main area of the airport.
My goodness it was so nice to see Lynne. A friendly face is always welcome. Jessica, her daughter, was with her as well, and she was very fun and bubbly. We were out the door in minutes. As we reached her car I moved to get into the passenger side when Lynne said "Oh, this is England dear. Passenger side is the other side." My mind did a whole "HOLY CRAP!" thing, before it registered, and I made my way around the other side of the car. I did not make that mistake again.
I think the most amazing thing at that time was that it was so pleasant and sunny. There was a strong wind in Liverpool, but that died out as we made our way into the country side. There were big white clouds, and bright bits of blue sky. It was a very pleasant day. And I was so happy to be there. So grateful for a vacation.
We arrived at their house in about an hour. We dropped off my bags, I was given a quick tour of the house, shown my room, and then we made our way over to Ann's house (Lynne's mother, who we also met on our vacation). She was ready and waiting with traditional English tea. She even got out the super nice china, and three different types of tea cakes were ready and waiting for me. I had one of each since I told them I had only had an apple all day, I think they understood. After I had two cups of tea, and felt a little more replenished, we looked over the Chinese take-out menu. Yumm. I don't even remember what all we ate; I just know it was good. The take out place was only a few minutes from her house, so while Lynne went in to order, Ann, Jess and I headed over to "The Loggerheads", the local pub where we got a few glasses of white wine and a juice for Jess. I really love the English pubs. All are kept in their original style, and have the traditional super low ceilings, no doubt sealing in warmth during the winter, and have tons of exposed beams everywhere. The furniture has that old worn in quality. Maybe it does not look old, but it feels like every chair is welcoming, like each bit of furniture has been waiting for you for years ready and willing to make you as comfortable as possible. Traditionally the fabrics in these places seem to be of the dark nature, making the space feel even more cozy and comforting. Yes, I think it would be safe to say it was love at first sight.
Our food was ready immediately and we scurried back home to eat and drink and be merry. We watched 'America's got Talent' (Yay!!!! American TV!!), and had more wine that should be allotted for any one person. I went to bed thoroughly full and pleased. Completely happy and satiated for the first time in a long time, I drifted to sleep in their large double bed with soft white sheets and welcoming down comforter.
Now, of course I know you want pictures, and believe me, I have plenty, but I did not take any pictures on my first day, so I will give you a sneak peak of England, part 2.
My first cup of English tea at a tea shop in Newcastle-under-Lyme. It was wonderful.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Hi Ho Cherie-O!
I AM GOING TO ENGLAND!!!!!!!!!
Feel free to be jealous now.
So, as you can see, I am very excited to be venturing to England. After all, I have only ever seen Italy, and I know it has to get a little better than this. I will be gone for eight whole days if you can believe that! I am excited to sip tea and eat a crumpet (okay, can someone please tell me WHAT a crumpet is first??). I am so happy to be finally GOING somewhere new. I get bored up here in my little apartment and doing the daily grind (of course, who doesn't?). So, it is almost 11 at night here and I have to wake up early so I am going to make this short and sweet. I hope to post to my blog at least a few times while I am in England... perhaps even upload some photos. However, if I do not do this, please expect a post sometime in the early afternoon on the 16th of April.
I seriously hope we get to go to the movies. I am so desperate to sit in a movie theatre and watch a movie in English. Maybe the daughter, Jessica, will say something. Oh dear lord, please let me go to the movies!!
Wet, cold, mud, who cares when you are on vacation?!
Feel free to be jealous now.
So, as you can see, I am very excited to be venturing to England. After all, I have only ever seen Italy, and I know it has to get a little better than this. I will be gone for eight whole days if you can believe that! I am excited to sip tea and eat a crumpet (okay, can someone please tell me WHAT a crumpet is first??). I am so happy to be finally GOING somewhere new. I get bored up here in my little apartment and doing the daily grind (of course, who doesn't?). So, it is almost 11 at night here and I have to wake up early so I am going to make this short and sweet. I hope to post to my blog at least a few times while I am in England... perhaps even upload some photos. However, if I do not do this, please expect a post sometime in the early afternoon on the 16th of April.
I seriously hope we get to go to the movies. I am so desperate to sit in a movie theatre and watch a movie in English. Maybe the daughter, Jessica, will say something. Oh dear lord, please let me go to the movies!!
Wet, cold, mud, who cares when you are on vacation?!
Friday, April 3, 2009
The Good And The Bad
Let's start out with the good news shall we?
First of all, I got 10 hours of sleep last night, and I am feeling much better today. Even thought I am still moving a little slow, I guess it is not all together inappropriate being that I am in Italy.
Second, Pam decided to come home tonight and sleep. I do not really know why she decided to do this, but I am glad she did because I was not really looking forward to sleeping in their bed again. Okay, I was not looking forward to changing the sheets and making a new bed. What can I say; I guess I have gotten a little lazy.
Third, the sun is out today and it a very pleasant weather.
The Bad...
Well, the soup did not turn out quite like I had planned. Actually, I never had a full bowl of it. Around six the girls headed off to swim practice and I trudged back to the apartment to read a little. I was so dead; I just was not even hungry. I went down to the office and told Sam that I was just going to skip dinner and go to bed because I was dragging. He told me this was fine, and I fell asleep around 9:30pm. I don't know if they actually ate any of the soup or not, but I can tell you, it did not taste all that good to me. Now, I did find it bland so perhaps they really liked it, who knows. Then, this morning Pam comes to tell me that she is coming home in the evening and is going to bring a pizza for us all. I am pretty happy about that. I really love pizza night because there is hardly any mess to clean up, and of course, I love the pizza here.
The worst is that I think it is starting to show just how much I need a vacation. I just don't do much of anything anymore. When I first came, as all of you know, I wanted to do everything for this family. Then when they would not help me keep their place orderly, it kind of hurt my feelings and made me feel like they did not care what I did, like my hard work meant nothing to them. I still do the laundry, and pick up a little, but it is nothing like it once was because I just got burned out. Burned out and tired. I have even stopped cooking all that much. I just know that they do not like much of the food I cook and therefore, I just cook whatever is convenient. Their disorderliness has really gotten to me these past few weeks. If know me well, you know I am not very accepting of other's flaws. Even though I am plenty flawed myself, and I realize this, I have a hard time accepting the flaws of others when they are things I find important, like living an orderly life, etc. I guess, well, I guess I am pretty judgmental when it comes right down to it (another wonderful flaw to add to my list), but hopefully, I can change this with time.
Today I came to this realization. For a while now, I have been talking to Mom, and thinking, and trying to figure out what I do not like about it here, why I am not just overjoyed to be in Italy. And today, it suddenly dawned on me. I just don't like the lifestyle. Of course it probably doesn't help that the family I work for pushes my buttons a little, but still, I know it is mostly the lifestyle. I am just not an Italian at heart. I don't want to wait two years to get an electric bill, or never be able to find a ham hock, never eat another Oreo again. Even though life here of slow, and therefore the claim is that the quality of life is better, I would rather be in a faster society where I can have the luxuries of this world. That is just who I am. And, even if I come back from Italy not knowing how to speak Italian fluently, and even if I decide to not come back to work in Europe, I say that coming to Italy was still a good decision in the long run because it taught me that the life back home may not be perfect, but it is the life I want for myself. Now, all I have to do is learn how to find happiness here, and accept my surroundings. I think if I can do that, I will be much happier. I just have to think of it as 'roughing it' for a few more months because after the summer is over. I am only coming back for three months. Not nearly as long as my first stay here. So, I am glad I recognized this, finally, and I hope my next few months here go a lot more smoothly.
Did you know I have to boil 200 eggs and then help dye them in time for Easter this year? I think I might have mentioned this in my last post. Well, I started working on them today. I can do about twelve at a time so hopefully, it will be a fairly quick process. If you did not have to wait twenty minutes after you boiled them, it would be even better. It is really interesting how Italians celebrate Easter. I think most of them have some sort of past dish along with lamb, and the children receive huge, I mean huge, like the size of your face, chocolate Easter eggs. They are wrapped either in fancy paper or child themed paper (like Barbie or Batman). I am actually very interested to know how the British celebrate Easter. I imagine it must be pretty similar to the way Americans celebrate the holiday, but who knows. After this holiday, I don't think I will be missing any other American holidays at hom....crap; I will miss the 4th of July. Well, I will only be home five days late so that has to count for something. Obviously, the people here do not celebrate the 4th of July, so I guess I will be missing that holiday also. Although, I never much cared about the 4th of July the way I care about Thanksgiving and Christmas.
On Monday, I am planning on going into Siena one more time before I leave, I want to get birthday presents for both of the girls (Siena's is not for a few months yet, but I figure it is best to be prepared), as well as check out some shops I have had my eye one for a while now. Then, on Tuesday, I will be packing like a mad woman. Wednesday, I will be off (My flight leaves 7:40 am Fort Worth time), so you can be thinking of my as you are getting up next Wednesday morning.
My French lessons are going well. I am already able to speak a little bit, and mostly my grammar is not incorrect, just my pronunciation, which slows down our lessons a lot, but what can you do eh? I will be trying to practice more now that I am out of Italian school, and of course, I need to get back to practicing my Italian and drilling myself on vocabulary for both languages. Also, I have started working on my writing again. I try to do whatever feels natural to me, and so we will see where that leads me. Several people have said they enjoy my writing in the blog, and so I am trying to translate that into a story and use my Italian surroundings to influence me a little. Maybe all is starting to get on track again...or maybe I haven't even found my train car yet, who knows? (Or as the Italians would say: Chissa?)
First of all, I got 10 hours of sleep last night, and I am feeling much better today. Even thought I am still moving a little slow, I guess it is not all together inappropriate being that I am in Italy.
Second, Pam decided to come home tonight and sleep. I do not really know why she decided to do this, but I am glad she did because I was not really looking forward to sleeping in their bed again. Okay, I was not looking forward to changing the sheets and making a new bed. What can I say; I guess I have gotten a little lazy.
Third, the sun is out today and it a very pleasant weather.
The Bad...
Well, the soup did not turn out quite like I had planned. Actually, I never had a full bowl of it. Around six the girls headed off to swim practice and I trudged back to the apartment to read a little. I was so dead; I just was not even hungry. I went down to the office and told Sam that I was just going to skip dinner and go to bed because I was dragging. He told me this was fine, and I fell asleep around 9:30pm. I don't know if they actually ate any of the soup or not, but I can tell you, it did not taste all that good to me. Now, I did find it bland so perhaps they really liked it, who knows. Then, this morning Pam comes to tell me that she is coming home in the evening and is going to bring a pizza for us all. I am pretty happy about that. I really love pizza night because there is hardly any mess to clean up, and of course, I love the pizza here.
The worst is that I think it is starting to show just how much I need a vacation. I just don't do much of anything anymore. When I first came, as all of you know, I wanted to do everything for this family. Then when they would not help me keep their place orderly, it kind of hurt my feelings and made me feel like they did not care what I did, like my hard work meant nothing to them. I still do the laundry, and pick up a little, but it is nothing like it once was because I just got burned out. Burned out and tired. I have even stopped cooking all that much. I just know that they do not like much of the food I cook and therefore, I just cook whatever is convenient. Their disorderliness has really gotten to me these past few weeks. If know me well, you know I am not very accepting of other's flaws. Even though I am plenty flawed myself, and I realize this, I have a hard time accepting the flaws of others when they are things I find important, like living an orderly life, etc. I guess, well, I guess I am pretty judgmental when it comes right down to it (another wonderful flaw to add to my list), but hopefully, I can change this with time.
Today I came to this realization. For a while now, I have been talking to Mom, and thinking, and trying to figure out what I do not like about it here, why I am not just overjoyed to be in Italy. And today, it suddenly dawned on me. I just don't like the lifestyle. Of course it probably doesn't help that the family I work for pushes my buttons a little, but still, I know it is mostly the lifestyle. I am just not an Italian at heart. I don't want to wait two years to get an electric bill, or never be able to find a ham hock, never eat another Oreo again. Even though life here of slow, and therefore the claim is that the quality of life is better, I would rather be in a faster society where I can have the luxuries of this world. That is just who I am. And, even if I come back from Italy not knowing how to speak Italian fluently, and even if I decide to not come back to work in Europe, I say that coming to Italy was still a good decision in the long run because it taught me that the life back home may not be perfect, but it is the life I want for myself. Now, all I have to do is learn how to find happiness here, and accept my surroundings. I think if I can do that, I will be much happier. I just have to think of it as 'roughing it' for a few more months because after the summer is over. I am only coming back for three months. Not nearly as long as my first stay here. So, I am glad I recognized this, finally, and I hope my next few months here go a lot more smoothly.
Did you know I have to boil 200 eggs and then help dye them in time for Easter this year? I think I might have mentioned this in my last post. Well, I started working on them today. I can do about twelve at a time so hopefully, it will be a fairly quick process. If you did not have to wait twenty minutes after you boiled them, it would be even better. It is really interesting how Italians celebrate Easter. I think most of them have some sort of past dish along with lamb, and the children receive huge, I mean huge, like the size of your face, chocolate Easter eggs. They are wrapped either in fancy paper or child themed paper (like Barbie or Batman). I am actually very interested to know how the British celebrate Easter. I imagine it must be pretty similar to the way Americans celebrate the holiday, but who knows. After this holiday, I don't think I will be missing any other American holidays at hom....crap; I will miss the 4th of July. Well, I will only be home five days late so that has to count for something. Obviously, the people here do not celebrate the 4th of July, so I guess I will be missing that holiday also. Although, I never much cared about the 4th of July the way I care about Thanksgiving and Christmas.
On Monday, I am planning on going into Siena one more time before I leave, I want to get birthday presents for both of the girls (Siena's is not for a few months yet, but I figure it is best to be prepared), as well as check out some shops I have had my eye one for a while now. Then, on Tuesday, I will be packing like a mad woman. Wednesday, I will be off (My flight leaves 7:40 am Fort Worth time), so you can be thinking of my as you are getting up next Wednesday morning.
My French lessons are going well. I am already able to speak a little bit, and mostly my grammar is not incorrect, just my pronunciation, which slows down our lessons a lot, but what can you do eh? I will be trying to practice more now that I am out of Italian school, and of course, I need to get back to practicing my Italian and drilling myself on vocabulary for both languages. Also, I have started working on my writing again. I try to do whatever feels natural to me, and so we will see where that leads me. Several people have said they enjoy my writing in the blog, and so I am trying to translate that into a story and use my Italian surroundings to influence me a little. Maybe all is starting to get on track again...or maybe I haven't even found my train car yet, who knows? (Or as the Italians would say: Chissa?)
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Time's A Killer
I don't know about the rest of you, but for some reason Spring Forward this year has been like a death sentence for me. In case any of you do not know, Italy Springs forward at the end of March, while the United States springs forward at the beginning of March. So, for almost a whole month I was six hours closer to home, and I was naturally waking up around 6:40am getting work done, and just generally enjoying my natural early rising. Then, the time change hit, and I have been like a zombie for these past few days. I have not been able to get up out of bed until 8:30am or later, and in so doing, miss my morning yoga routine, and generally just do not get much accomplished. This morning was no different. I woke up, and just rolled over. I guess it does not help that I am staying up later as well. With the time change, I have to wait until even later in the evening to talk to Mom, which puts me in bed an hour to two hours later than normal. I swear tomorrow, I am going to wake up and get over this lethargy. I hope.
In other news, I am going to try to make a Ribollita soup tonight. It is a Tuscan soup that uses old bread, veggies, and that's about it. I am adding some pork fat to my soup in hopes to give it a little flavor. You know, you would not think it would be too hard to find some things. Even if you don't know the proper word for them, you would think you could still describe them, and people would know what you are talking about. Not true. I have talked to at least three people now who have no idea what I am talking about when I try to explain a "ham hock". Everyone looks at me like I am from Mars instead of the USA. Sam says that even butchers just don't sell the bones here, very weird, and I have to wonder, 'where do they all go?' So, this morning I went to the local market and asked Johnny, who is very nice, for a piece of meat maybe prosciutto or pancetta, that I could use to give a flavor to a soup. He also looked at me like I was a little crazy, but what are you going to do eh? He was helpful though, and said I should probably use the pancetta, a lighter bacon, and I asked him to cut me a sizeable hunk I probably will not use all of it, but freeze it and use it again. I told him, while he was cutting, that in the good ol' USA we normally use a bone, but that here it did not seem possible to find such a thing. He shook his head ferverently and said no. Oh well, at least I have something now.
Also, I have taken down the spider web curtains that hang over my kitchen area, and threw them in the wash this morning. I was amazed at the gaps in the windows I had thought I filled with aluminum foil (by the way, thanks Jeff for the recommendation to use dryer sheets to keep out the bugs. Unfortunately, since there are no dryers in Italy, dryer sheets are not available here). I mean, Batman could fit through those gaps. So, I filled them, completely this time, with almuminum foil, and once the curtains are dry, I will hang them over the window in hopes to insulate the apartment a little more.
And, of course, I am going to England in six days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Think I am excited?? I was telling Mom the other night how happy I was to be spending Easter with a family this year. I mean, sure I could be with the family I work for, but as it turns out, Emma's birthday will be the day after easter, so they are celebrating it all together this year and there will be something like forty kids running in and out of this apartment. It isn't even really the kids that bothers me, but who do you think would have cleaned up that mess afterwards. Certainly not Mom or Dad.... Yeah, cleaning up after forty kids is no way to spend a holiday. I am glad I am going to be welcomed as someones guest for Easter. I don't care if we just sit in the livining room eating Chinese food; I will just be happy to be with a family. I think Thanksgiving might be really hard for me, and I might really put an effort towards going to one of my pen pals homes for that period of time. The weather says it is suppose to be raining for the first three days after I arrive in England, but I figure this is normal, and I am not too worried about it.
Last night it rained here like crazy. Fortunately, it stoped by the time Pam and Sam got home, so I did not have to walk back to the apartment in the rain. It was the first night of their first tour of the year last night, and they were out until around 11:15pm. This Friday, Saturday, and part of Sunday, they will be gone so I will have a little relaxation this weekend, which I am happy about. Oh, and did I mention something early about going to Paris with P&S in June?? Well, if I did, please know that it is officially off... for me. Pam decided to take just Siena after Emma complained about going, and so it was decided that I would stay here and watch Emma while everyone else went to Paris. Damn. Well, I guess it is my job, but from now on, I will just know to not count on anyhting Pam says we are doing. Still, I can go to Paris on my own if I want, so I guess that is some comfort.
I am really missing home this week, but I am excited to be going to England, and I am trying to keep that in mind.
Finally, I am very very sorry I have not posted pictures lately. I know those are the posts everyone loves the best. My plan is to do a little walking maybe on Saturday and post some photos after my walk around San Gusme. However if this does not happen, please know that some time after April 15th this blog will be loaded down with pictures of England. Perhaps I will take a picture of the soup a make tonight as well and post the recipe to my blog if it tastes good.
Missing you all.
In other news, I am going to try to make a Ribollita soup tonight. It is a Tuscan soup that uses old bread, veggies, and that's about it. I am adding some pork fat to my soup in hopes to give it a little flavor. You know, you would not think it would be too hard to find some things. Even if you don't know the proper word for them, you would think you could still describe them, and people would know what you are talking about. Not true. I have talked to at least three people now who have no idea what I am talking about when I try to explain a "ham hock". Everyone looks at me like I am from Mars instead of the USA. Sam says that even butchers just don't sell the bones here, very weird, and I have to wonder, 'where do they all go?' So, this morning I went to the local market and asked Johnny, who is very nice, for a piece of meat maybe prosciutto or pancetta, that I could use to give a flavor to a soup. He also looked at me like I was a little crazy, but what are you going to do eh? He was helpful though, and said I should probably use the pancetta, a lighter bacon, and I asked him to cut me a sizeable hunk I probably will not use all of it, but freeze it and use it again. I told him, while he was cutting, that in the good ol' USA we normally use a bone, but that here it did not seem possible to find such a thing. He shook his head ferverently and said no. Oh well, at least I have something now.
Also, I have taken down the spider web curtains that hang over my kitchen area, and threw them in the wash this morning. I was amazed at the gaps in the windows I had thought I filled with aluminum foil (by the way, thanks Jeff for the recommendation to use dryer sheets to keep out the bugs. Unfortunately, since there are no dryers in Italy, dryer sheets are not available here). I mean, Batman could fit through those gaps. So, I filled them, completely this time, with almuminum foil, and once the curtains are dry, I will hang them over the window in hopes to insulate the apartment a little more.
And, of course, I am going to England in six days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Think I am excited?? I was telling Mom the other night how happy I was to be spending Easter with a family this year. I mean, sure I could be with the family I work for, but as it turns out, Emma's birthday will be the day after easter, so they are celebrating it all together this year and there will be something like forty kids running in and out of this apartment. It isn't even really the kids that bothers me, but who do you think would have cleaned up that mess afterwards. Certainly not Mom or Dad.... Yeah, cleaning up after forty kids is no way to spend a holiday. I am glad I am going to be welcomed as someones guest for Easter. I don't care if we just sit in the livining room eating Chinese food; I will just be happy to be with a family. I think Thanksgiving might be really hard for me, and I might really put an effort towards going to one of my pen pals homes for that period of time. The weather says it is suppose to be raining for the first three days after I arrive in England, but I figure this is normal, and I am not too worried about it.
Last night it rained here like crazy. Fortunately, it stoped by the time Pam and Sam got home, so I did not have to walk back to the apartment in the rain. It was the first night of their first tour of the year last night, and they were out until around 11:15pm. This Friday, Saturday, and part of Sunday, they will be gone so I will have a little relaxation this weekend, which I am happy about. Oh, and did I mention something early about going to Paris with P&S in June?? Well, if I did, please know that it is officially off... for me. Pam decided to take just Siena after Emma complained about going, and so it was decided that I would stay here and watch Emma while everyone else went to Paris. Damn. Well, I guess it is my job, but from now on, I will just know to not count on anyhting Pam says we are doing. Still, I can go to Paris on my own if I want, so I guess that is some comfort.
I am really missing home this week, but I am excited to be going to England, and I am trying to keep that in mind.
Finally, I am very very sorry I have not posted pictures lately. I know those are the posts everyone loves the best. My plan is to do a little walking maybe on Saturday and post some photos after my walk around San Gusme. However if this does not happen, please know that some time after April 15th this blog will be loaded down with pictures of England. Perhaps I will take a picture of the soup a make tonight as well and post the recipe to my blog if it tastes good.
Missing you all.
Monday, March 30, 2009
What are dreams made of?
Lately I have been wondering about dreams. When I was in school, I use to dream about being a filmmaker, until the harsh reality hit me, and I let that dream die. Oh, I finished school with a degree in film mind you, but I did it just because I didn’t want to veer off course. I didn’t want to be one of those people who just gave up, who stopped doing what they had set out to because it got hard. Of course, what I did not realize at the time was that it did not get hard, well it wasn’t easy, but mostly it just stopped being fun. I guess I should have known better, and switched to my focus on something that interested me more, but well, I didn’t want to stay in Austin any longer than I had to. .. Okay, so I guess what it amounts to is: I should have transferred to a school back home where I could be happy, and switched my focus to something that was fun to me.
In the end, I gave it up anyway. I just did enough to graduate and then became a landman, and promptly forgot about my film school past. But, was this a bad thing? Certainly, you do not want to force yourself to do something you do not like, especially if that something is a job for peanuts. Then, I hated my job as a landman, so I decided to be an Au Pair in Italy, wanting to experience the life of a normal Italian family. Well, that did not work out quite the way I had planned it. So, now I am living in Italy, somewhat disenchanted with the lifestyle, and working for peanuts. I wonder if I want to come back to Europe, do I like it enough to come back (of course, keep in mind I have only ever seen Italy, and I think of all the European countries, Italy is the most behind the times), do I want to study languages, if I don’t study languages, what on earth will I do? Sure I can always be a secretary somewhere, but that is not what I think I should be doing. After all, I have a college degree, shouldn’t I be doing something more with my life? In the end, I think I will come back to Europe, but I wonder if it would not be better to take a break first. Do I come back and go to school for a while, pay as I go so I don’t gain anymore debt, and learn to speak French, German and Russian??? Or, do I try to find a job back in Europe? Although I would not say my experience as a nanny has been the worst experience of my life, I would not want to do it again. I guess if I got desperate enough, I would come back as a nanny again, but only for a six month period.
To be quite honest, I think I am a teacher. I just think that is where my life seems to be leading me right now. Of course, in eight months, when I am home, and possibly substitute teaching on the side to earn a little money, I might be thinking, dang I hate bratty little kids! But, right now, I just feel like that is going to be the next step. I am just not an office chick (although, let’s face it, who is?) No one grows up thinking, ‘Oh YES!!!! I get to sit and type at a keyboard all day while I make OTHER PEOPLE RICH!!! HOT DAMN!!!’ I mean, no one thinks that. Everyone feels they have some purpose to their life, and in reality, most people (maybe me too?) just have a small purpose with no real significance in the scheme of things.
Mostly, a great cloud of fear is clouding my mind these days. I certainly do not want to come home and turn into some kind of ‘beatnik’, living off my parent’s good graces. I know I do not want to go back to school because I feel like I have no other options. If I go back to school I want to have a plan, and to be really excited about it, otherwise, school is 24 hour stress for me. I want to make sure that coming back to Europe is something I really want. The problem is one, there are not a lot of jobs out there for people with limited qualifications, like myself, and two, I do not know what I want to do. I feel like I should know by now. I mean, dang, my sister was MARRIED at my age! Dear Lord, I could really use a bit of light right about now!!
And of course, the little tid bits. The weather is so much warmer today, I cannot even tell you how good it feels. It is the first day I have just worn a simple black long sleeved t-shirt and felt completely comfortable. The weather actually forecasted rain for the rest of the week, but hey, the sun is shining out of my window, so I guess someone goofed. Spring has finally arrived.
My trip to England is less than nine days away, and I cannot tell you how excited I am about it. I am excited to see some place other than Italy in Europe, I am excited to drink real English tea, and I am excited to be on vacation!!! I promise to take my camera everywhere I go, and to upload some amazing photos when I get back.
And, last but not least, I am officially an Aunt. Yes, Aunt. Not Auntie, not Aunty, and certainly not AntC (or Antsy, as my sister liked to joke). Plain old Aunt Casey will do just fine. He looks like both Monty and Ashley to me, but who knows how he will turn out. I am anxious to see him once he has finally taken shape. He’s the cutest little pink lump, and since he is a Sabbath child, I expect a lot of good to come his way.
In the end, I gave it up anyway. I just did enough to graduate and then became a landman, and promptly forgot about my film school past. But, was this a bad thing? Certainly, you do not want to force yourself to do something you do not like, especially if that something is a job for peanuts. Then, I hated my job as a landman, so I decided to be an Au Pair in Italy, wanting to experience the life of a normal Italian family. Well, that did not work out quite the way I had planned it. So, now I am living in Italy, somewhat disenchanted with the lifestyle, and working for peanuts. I wonder if I want to come back to Europe, do I like it enough to come back (of course, keep in mind I have only ever seen Italy, and I think of all the European countries, Italy is the most behind the times), do I want to study languages, if I don’t study languages, what on earth will I do? Sure I can always be a secretary somewhere, but that is not what I think I should be doing. After all, I have a college degree, shouldn’t I be doing something more with my life? In the end, I think I will come back to Europe, but I wonder if it would not be better to take a break first. Do I come back and go to school for a while, pay as I go so I don’t gain anymore debt, and learn to speak French, German and Russian??? Or, do I try to find a job back in Europe? Although I would not say my experience as a nanny has been the worst experience of my life, I would not want to do it again. I guess if I got desperate enough, I would come back as a nanny again, but only for a six month period.
To be quite honest, I think I am a teacher. I just think that is where my life seems to be leading me right now. Of course, in eight months, when I am home, and possibly substitute teaching on the side to earn a little money, I might be thinking, dang I hate bratty little kids! But, right now, I just feel like that is going to be the next step. I am just not an office chick (although, let’s face it, who is?) No one grows up thinking, ‘Oh YES!!!! I get to sit and type at a keyboard all day while I make OTHER PEOPLE RICH!!! HOT DAMN!!!’ I mean, no one thinks that. Everyone feels they have some purpose to their life, and in reality, most people (maybe me too?) just have a small purpose with no real significance in the scheme of things.
Mostly, a great cloud of fear is clouding my mind these days. I certainly do not want to come home and turn into some kind of ‘beatnik’, living off my parent’s good graces. I know I do not want to go back to school because I feel like I have no other options. If I go back to school I want to have a plan, and to be really excited about it, otherwise, school is 24 hour stress for me. I want to make sure that coming back to Europe is something I really want. The problem is one, there are not a lot of jobs out there for people with limited qualifications, like myself, and two, I do not know what I want to do. I feel like I should know by now. I mean, dang, my sister was MARRIED at my age! Dear Lord, I could really use a bit of light right about now!!
And of course, the little tid bits. The weather is so much warmer today, I cannot even tell you how good it feels. It is the first day I have just worn a simple black long sleeved t-shirt and felt completely comfortable. The weather actually forecasted rain for the rest of the week, but hey, the sun is shining out of my window, so I guess someone goofed. Spring has finally arrived.
My trip to England is less than nine days away, and I cannot tell you how excited I am about it. I am excited to see some place other than Italy in Europe, I am excited to drink real English tea, and I am excited to be on vacation!!! I promise to take my camera everywhere I go, and to upload some amazing photos when I get back.
And, last but not least, I am officially an Aunt. Yes, Aunt. Not Auntie, not Aunty, and certainly not AntC (or Antsy, as my sister liked to joke). Plain old Aunt Casey will do just fine. He looks like both Monty and Ashley to me, but who knows how he will turn out. I am anxious to see him once he has finally taken shape. He’s the cutest little pink lump, and since he is a Sabbath child, I expect a lot of good to come his way.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Missed the Bus, and My Last Day of Class
I swear I set my alarm last night. Of course, when I woke up this morning, two minutes before the bus was suppose to leave for Siena, the alarm on my phone showed no sign of ever being turned on. Honestly, I am pretty sad to miss the last day of class because today we going to play Taboo in Italian. I think it would have been really fun, but I guess I really needed the sleep. I could take a later bus into the city and get to class just before 10am, but by that time, Taboo would almost be over with. Honestly, I think I really needed the sleep. These past three days have been some of the most stressful since I have been in Italy, and I can safely say I was completely exhausted. I even asked Mom yesterday if we could go to Vegas or Reno when I come home, and just live in the spa for a weekend. Not that I do not, in some ways, love the simple Italian life, but I miss the luxury a lot. Still, I guess the Tuscan life has sunk in little by little. I remember walking through Siena to the bus the other day, when I decided that I wanted to have a vegetable garden and started thinking about where I might be able to put one at the new house. This coupled along with want to learn how to play the piano and the cello, learn German, Russian, and French. Well, I guess Italy has got me feeling kind of arty. Good thing most of these goals are obtainable. Plus, I have already started learning French.
All in all, I think the Italian class was very useful. I learned a whole lot of new vocabulary, and was able to review some of the everyday grammar I had forgotten. The biggest downside to the whole experience was that it sucked away all my free time, and was quite honestly, exhausting. Every morning I would wake up at 6am, be in Siena by 7:50am, and walk around the town aimlessly for one hour, until class started at 9am. Then we would have class until 12:15, with a 15 minute break somewhere around 10:30am. I would then have 45 minutes to either rush to the grocery or run some errand and then huff back to the bus stop just outside of the old city walls. The bus ride was a good 40 minutes, and so I would not get home until close to 2pm. I would rush upstairs, make lunch, talk to mom, get ready for the next day, clean my dishes, and then head over to the big house where I would hang laundry, and make/clean up dinner, then rush back to the apartment so I could be in bed at 9pm and start the whole process over again. By the end of the two weeks I think I was just too tired. It was not the class but the constant running that wore me down. Still, I am glad I had the time to travel Siena because now I really know the city center well. I know where to find bedding, office supply stuff, kitchen supply stuff, everything, just by walking in the mornings. It was not always pleasant, and keep in mind none of these stores were ever open (opening generally starts around 9 or 9:30am for the Italians). Some mornings the wind would be so cold and so strong, that I would come home and my whole face would be red and wind burned. Still, I feel much more comfortable with Siena now, so I think it was a good experience all in all.
One thing I recommend to anyone planning to live abroad is to walk as often as possible in the city you either live in or close to. I never want to seem like too much of a tourist, and I always thought that if I turned around in the middle of a street, I would surely be spotted. So, my plan of action has always been this (and it has worked pretty well so far) never turn around. Even if you find yourself going into what looks like a residential area, just keep walking and keep your bearings. You will eventually either make it back to the tourist area you were in, or you will end up somewhere you recognize and can start you trek all over again. In my opinion, this is the best way to explore because you always end up finding some shop you would have never known existed. Like how I found a shop that sold little egg timers one day in Siena and I thought, well that would be nice to have, and now I know where to get it. I mean, if you are just a tourist, then I guess this is not really quite as important, but if you are going to be a resident somewhere, even for just three months, I have found that walking without turning around, is the best way to discover where the things you want are sold. Of course, you might know someone who knows the city better than you, and can give you advice on where to find what you are looking for. But, if you are like me, and living with people who don't really know much about their local big city, then it is just you and your feet.
It is suppose to start raining again tomorrow, and is not forecasted to stop until next Friday. So, I guess this just about kills my plans to start running in the mornings. Still, I do have a backup plan. Since I did finally find a workout/yoga mat in Siena, I started looking for free yoga classes via YouTube. Most of the "classes" offered were about five minutes long. Basically the instructors gave you all the poses and then said it should take you so and so many minutes to go through each of the poses. Well, I just do not work very well that way. I kept looking for a full length class, and then I finally found one. They were listed by the user: yogayak.com. So, I decided to check out the website. What I really like is that the classes are just posted on the site, and I think they do keep them updated, but you can do them at your own pace, and on your own schedule. Then I saw the price. 15 dollars for one month, 30 dollars for three, and 100 for a whole year (be careful, the subscription automatically renews), and I think I am just going to have to join for a three month period. That will cover me until it is about time to go home, and this way, I will have a way to get in a bit of exercise even when it is raining. I would seriously check this site out if you are interested in doing yoga but do not have the time to make it to a gym or do not want to go to the gym, this might just be the site you are looking for. You know, I will never cease to be amazed by what you can find on the internet when you just start looking. I found a French teacher; I found full length yoga lessons... who knows what I will find next!
I guess I should take a minute to go over some of the good things, since this blog seems to be swinging to the negative. First of all, a cold front blew in at the first of the week, and it got COLD yet again. So, on the first day the front blew in (at 30mph...no joke), coated the interior edges of my big window with what they call "parafreddo" (basically this sticky on one side, foamy stuff which fills any gaps between your wall and window. Then I realized that there was a serious gap in my kitchen window keeping everything super cold still in the apartment, I had no idea what to do since I could not open the window and the gap was too big to caulk. Then Mom suggested tin foil, and it has worked beautifully. I have not finished the whole window because I want to take down the back curtains first since I think there is a little family of spiders living behind there. Still, the apartment has been much much warmer. The only thing I want now is a throw because I do still get cold sometimes when I am just sitting around. I guess I will look for that one later. I am not planning on going into Siena next week since it is suppose to be raining, but I guess I might, who knows?
Besides the apartment situation, I must say this about Pam and Sam, they do at least always say thank you every evening when I leave to go back to the apartment. Even if I just folded clothes that day, they always say thank you, and so I must give them that. Pam might be one of those rude people, who just say whatever they are thinking, but she does at least say thank you.
So, here is what you missed that spurred my bad past couple of days. I made dinner on Tuesday night. It was a swim night (Tuesdays and Thursdays) for the girls, and so Pam asked me to get dinner ready. I had no problem with that, and decided to make lentil soup. Because there is no chicken broth here, I have to use one cube of veggie bouillon and one cube of mushroom bouillon. I have had problems with salt in this soup the past few times I made it, so this time I made the soup with no salt at all. I was really happy with how it turned out. It was just salty enough and quite mellow compared to the other lentil soups I had made. So, everyone gets home from swimming. Sam is complaining, or talking, about something when Pam interrupts him, looks over and me and says "Casey, this soup is just too salty". I was really floored, fired and brimstone did not start shooting from my eyes until I had thought about it some more, but when she first confronted me, I was just stunned, one, that someone would even say such a thing to a person who made their dinner, and two, because I had put no salt in the dang soup. I asked Sam if he thought the soup was salty and he said that he thought it was a little and that the family generally errs on the side of bland. All I could say was "okay". Pam started trying to tell me all the ways she thought I could "fix" the soup, but to be quite honest, I would never take cooking advice from her because I think her food sucks. I just kept getting madder and madder about it all, plus that had not yet set up the wifi in the apartment, and I was really mad about that (Now, Sam has just bought a 50 ft Ethernet cable and I am finally connect in my apartment, Yay!). I was so mad, I thought about slapping her with a raw chicken breast and asking her if that was bland enough for her.
Now I know what it is like to cook for a picky eater. In this since, the girls have much better manners than their parents. Whenever it is just me and them, if they do not like something in the food I make, they at least just pick around it and never say "I don't like this". Well, I guess from now on, I will just never salt or pepper their food. Pam likes to eat food with no seasoning, and so I will just salt and pepper my own. And, of course, I will probably not be making the lentil soup again. I guess my feelings are still a little hurt, but I will just know that when it is my night to cook, I will just make something special for myself.
All in all, I think the Italian class was very useful. I learned a whole lot of new vocabulary, and was able to review some of the everyday grammar I had forgotten. The biggest downside to the whole experience was that it sucked away all my free time, and was quite honestly, exhausting. Every morning I would wake up at 6am, be in Siena by 7:50am, and walk around the town aimlessly for one hour, until class started at 9am. Then we would have class until 12:15, with a 15 minute break somewhere around 10:30am. I would then have 45 minutes to either rush to the grocery or run some errand and then huff back to the bus stop just outside of the old city walls. The bus ride was a good 40 minutes, and so I would not get home until close to 2pm. I would rush upstairs, make lunch, talk to mom, get ready for the next day, clean my dishes, and then head over to the big house where I would hang laundry, and make/clean up dinner, then rush back to the apartment so I could be in bed at 9pm and start the whole process over again. By the end of the two weeks I think I was just too tired. It was not the class but the constant running that wore me down. Still, I am glad I had the time to travel Siena because now I really know the city center well. I know where to find bedding, office supply stuff, kitchen supply stuff, everything, just by walking in the mornings. It was not always pleasant, and keep in mind none of these stores were ever open (opening generally starts around 9 or 9:30am for the Italians). Some mornings the wind would be so cold and so strong, that I would come home and my whole face would be red and wind burned. Still, I feel much more comfortable with Siena now, so I think it was a good experience all in all.
One thing I recommend to anyone planning to live abroad is to walk as often as possible in the city you either live in or close to. I never want to seem like too much of a tourist, and I always thought that if I turned around in the middle of a street, I would surely be spotted. So, my plan of action has always been this (and it has worked pretty well so far) never turn around. Even if you find yourself going into what looks like a residential area, just keep walking and keep your bearings. You will eventually either make it back to the tourist area you were in, or you will end up somewhere you recognize and can start you trek all over again. In my opinion, this is the best way to explore because you always end up finding some shop you would have never known existed. Like how I found a shop that sold little egg timers one day in Siena and I thought, well that would be nice to have, and now I know where to get it. I mean, if you are just a tourist, then I guess this is not really quite as important, but if you are going to be a resident somewhere, even for just three months, I have found that walking without turning around, is the best way to discover where the things you want are sold. Of course, you might know someone who knows the city better than you, and can give you advice on where to find what you are looking for. But, if you are like me, and living with people who don't really know much about their local big city, then it is just you and your feet.
It is suppose to start raining again tomorrow, and is not forecasted to stop until next Friday. So, I guess this just about kills my plans to start running in the mornings. Still, I do have a backup plan. Since I did finally find a workout/yoga mat in Siena, I started looking for free yoga classes via YouTube. Most of the "classes" offered were about five minutes long. Basically the instructors gave you all the poses and then said it should take you so and so many minutes to go through each of the poses. Well, I just do not work very well that way. I kept looking for a full length class, and then I finally found one. They were listed by the user: yogayak.com. So, I decided to check out the website. What I really like is that the classes are just posted on the site, and I think they do keep them updated, but you can do them at your own pace, and on your own schedule. Then I saw the price. 15 dollars for one month, 30 dollars for three, and 100 for a whole year (be careful, the subscription automatically renews), and I think I am just going to have to join for a three month period. That will cover me until it is about time to go home, and this way, I will have a way to get in a bit of exercise even when it is raining. I would seriously check this site out if you are interested in doing yoga but do not have the time to make it to a gym or do not want to go to the gym, this might just be the site you are looking for. You know, I will never cease to be amazed by what you can find on the internet when you just start looking. I found a French teacher; I found full length yoga lessons... who knows what I will find next!
I guess I should take a minute to go over some of the good things, since this blog seems to be swinging to the negative. First of all, a cold front blew in at the first of the week, and it got COLD yet again. So, on the first day the front blew in (at 30mph...no joke), coated the interior edges of my big window with what they call "parafreddo" (basically this sticky on one side, foamy stuff which fills any gaps between your wall and window. Then I realized that there was a serious gap in my kitchen window keeping everything super cold still in the apartment, I had no idea what to do since I could not open the window and the gap was too big to caulk. Then Mom suggested tin foil, and it has worked beautifully. I have not finished the whole window because I want to take down the back curtains first since I think there is a little family of spiders living behind there. Still, the apartment has been much much warmer. The only thing I want now is a throw because I do still get cold sometimes when I am just sitting around. I guess I will look for that one later. I am not planning on going into Siena next week since it is suppose to be raining, but I guess I might, who knows?
Besides the apartment situation, I must say this about Pam and Sam, they do at least always say thank you every evening when I leave to go back to the apartment. Even if I just folded clothes that day, they always say thank you, and so I must give them that. Pam might be one of those rude people, who just say whatever they are thinking, but she does at least say thank you.
So, here is what you missed that spurred my bad past couple of days. I made dinner on Tuesday night. It was a swim night (Tuesdays and Thursdays) for the girls, and so Pam asked me to get dinner ready. I had no problem with that, and decided to make lentil soup. Because there is no chicken broth here, I have to use one cube of veggie bouillon and one cube of mushroom bouillon. I have had problems with salt in this soup the past few times I made it, so this time I made the soup with no salt at all. I was really happy with how it turned out. It was just salty enough and quite mellow compared to the other lentil soups I had made. So, everyone gets home from swimming. Sam is complaining, or talking, about something when Pam interrupts him, looks over and me and says "Casey, this soup is just too salty". I was really floored, fired and brimstone did not start shooting from my eyes until I had thought about it some more, but when she first confronted me, I was just stunned, one, that someone would even say such a thing to a person who made their dinner, and two, because I had put no salt in the dang soup. I asked Sam if he thought the soup was salty and he said that he thought it was a little and that the family generally errs on the side of bland. All I could say was "okay". Pam started trying to tell me all the ways she thought I could "fix" the soup, but to be quite honest, I would never take cooking advice from her because I think her food sucks. I just kept getting madder and madder about it all, plus that had not yet set up the wifi in the apartment, and I was really mad about that (Now, Sam has just bought a 50 ft Ethernet cable and I am finally connect in my apartment, Yay!). I was so mad, I thought about slapping her with a raw chicken breast and asking her if that was bland enough for her.
Now I know what it is like to cook for a picky eater. In this since, the girls have much better manners than their parents. Whenever it is just me and them, if they do not like something in the food I make, they at least just pick around it and never say "I don't like this". Well, I guess from now on, I will just never salt or pepper their food. Pam likes to eat food with no seasoning, and so I will just salt and pepper my own. And, of course, I will probably not be making the lentil soup again. I guess my feelings are still a little hurt, but I will just know that when it is my night to cook, I will just make something special for myself.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
A Long Week
A Long Week
In some ways, it feels like this week has been forever and a day long, and yet, it seems to have flown by. I think this is going to be a long post; so prepare yourself.
First and foremost, I started school this week. Every day, I wake up at 6am to get ready, eat breakfast and be out the door in time to catch the 7:10am bus. This puts me into Siena about an hour and ten minutes before class starts. I have absolutely nothing to do, and mostly I just wander the main streets, looking in shop windows, and finding my way around the city. Please do not forget that it is still cold in the morning here, usually somewhere in the low thirties, and so I think my face has become pretty wind burned this week. Friday, it was just too windy. The wind speed was something like 25mph, and so I just waited for the school to open and sat in the stairwell. Class has been wonderful. I am learning tons and tons of new words, and even though I have not memorized them all yet, I will have plenty of time to do so after class ends. I am reviewing a lot of the grammar I had forgotten about, and so I feel like this was a good use of my money. I really like my teacher, and I think I will be sad when classes finish. The school is located right off of one of the main piazzas in Siena, where the big post office sits. Everything you could ever want seems to be in, or right off of, this square. For example, the city supermarket, Conad, is stocked with goodies you just cannot find in Castelnuovo. Like, for example, dried apricots. I nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw the little pack. I do not even look at the price, I know I want them, and I buy them. I have been searching high and low for dried apricots after I ran through the supply mom sent with me. All I ever succeeded in finding was raisins… Well, at least now I know where to get my fix. Also, I learned from my professor the other day that Italy does in fact know what sour cream is. They call it “panna acida”, or acidic cream. No one really eats it here, and my teacher says not only is it hard to find, but also, if you do find it, most likely you will have only one option. No fat free Daisy here I guess. I have also located the place to buy my Clinique stuff, I found a paper store that happened to sell cork boards, and bought one instantly for my room (YAY!) so now I can display all of the post cards and photos people send to me.
Wednesdays are the best day because that is the day of the market. When I arrive in Siena at 8am, the market is already in full swing, so I can spend my hour browsing the stalls for this and that. Last week I bought some more “parafreddo”, which I can only describe as a type of removable caulk. It is very thick, thin strips of foam that is ultra sticky on one side. They are made to stick on the inside of your window to make them more airtight. I did this with the big window, the one where the crooked curtain hangs, because I felt it was leaking the most air, only to find that the window over the sink was in even worse shape. At first, I thought I could buy some caulk and caulk the cracks of the window closed, but after messing with the big blue curtain this morning, I noticed that there is a sizable gap between the window and the frame that you just could not fill with caulk. I think what I am going to do is take down the curtains, wash them, and then put them back up on the wall but in such a way that they actually cover the open area of the window. Maybe this will help. I do not know what I am going to do, but I am certainly going to need to figure it out before summer hits because the gap is certainly big enough for a bee or wasp to fly in and out of. If worst come to worst, I might just stuff some fabric down into the gaps! I cannot use duct tape, because Pam says it takes the paint off the wall (oh what a tragedy!)
Well, while we are on the subject of windows. I think I am just going to break down and buy some new fabric for them. First of all, both of the curtains are dirty dirty dirty. I do not think they have ever been washed; second, they are not all that nice. I am going to try to look up how to make curtains by hand on the internet to see if I can easily sew together some curtains. I figure they cannot look much worse that these do. However, for the curtains over the sink will have to be nailed to the wall, like they are now. The only difference I am going to make is I am going to nail them directly above the window, so I can hopefully make the place a little more airtight. I go back and forth on this. I do not know if I want to put the time and money into making curtains by hand, buying the fabric, etc. But, it is going to get cold here again before I leave, and I am going to have to do something I think. It is better since I arrived, but some more things could be done. Of course, there is no hope for the window in the bathroom. All I can do is try to keep the window closed, since the walls on either side of it are angled, and there is no way to even nail a curtain up since the window goes all the way up the wall. Well, anyway. I might get bored with the whole sewing curtains by hand bit, but for now it seems like a plan.
French lessons are also going well. I told you all I started taking French lessons via Skype right? Well, they are going pretty well. I actually have one today in a few hours, so I guess I should be studying, but I really wanted to upload to my blog, so here I am. Right now, I am learning how to count to one hundred, which is actually rather complicated in French. Like to say “80”, in French it is “40, 40”, or to say “90” it is “sixty, twenty, ten”, crazy I know. Of course, when Pam asked me how things were going in French, and I was trying to tell her some of the numbers I had learned just yesterday. I made a mistake and Sam was quick to jump in tell me, “No Casey, you are wrong it is ….blah blah blah”. Ass. I really do not like him. I think he is quite rude most of the time, and too old to do anything other than plop his butt down in front of the computer all day and check email. I mean, how much effort does it take to shoot down a beginning language student? None, that’s how much. It’s like taking candy from a baby. So, I said, as Sam was still rambling on about French numbers, “wow, thanks for shooting me down”. Everyone at the table laughed, except Sam, who continued trying to demonstrate how smart he was to everyone else. He may have a PhD in Renaissance art, but he is an Ass who will not set up my wireless internet!
Well, what can I say? I like it much better when the two of them are gone. I mean, the house is so messy, but I try not to be over there too much. The only plus is that I can get on the wireless over there, so I always eventually make my way over to the big house. Well, only one more week, and then they will be gone on tour, and then directly after that, I am leaving for England. Then I come back, and they are gone again. I think things will work out okay, and time is going to start flying by even faster than it is now. I have already started looking for work for next year. I was really thinking I wanted to come back to Italy or go to France, but I do not know what will happen. I know that what I am looking for now is a job that will pay enough for me to find my own apartment so I do not have to live in a barn. Actually, if I wanted, I could go to Prague or Russia for a pretty good deal. In Prague, they do not pay for your housing, but you get a thousand dollars a week for 25 hours of work, and so I am sure I could find a decent place on that kind of salary. Also, in Russia they pay for the whole kit and caboodle. They pay for a whole winter wardrobe. I am sure you would need it! They pay for your housing, your flight over, they take care of getting your visa, and you get free Russian classes as well as 1000 dollars a week on top of all this. Of course, this means you would be living in Russia, so I think it would be pretty freaking cold, but if you had modern living conditions, I do not think the cold would be such a problem. Well, these are just the things I have found so far. I would also like to try getting on with an American company in Europe as well. I do not really know what I am going to end up doing, but I am glad I started looking now. What with the economy in the shape it is in, I guess you just have to get a head start on everything.
Finally, I have to tell you about the Waxer from hell. Okay, so I know this is probably TIM (too much information), but I have to tell you so you understand the story. See, I have not shaved my legs since I have been in Italy. Mostly it has been so cold, and I just did not see the point. Well, thought I might just go and have it waxed so I did not have to fool with hours in the shower shaving. There was an ad posted on the board at my school for a nail salon/waxing place, which gave discounts to students. Well, I decided to make my way over to the place after school on Friday to check out the prices and the facility. I finally found the place; it was almost hidden down this angled hallway off of the main streets of the city. When I walked in, it was small and cramped, and all of the ladies immediately stopped and stared at me. I said, in my broken Italian, that I had seen their paper at Scuola Leonardo, and was wondering if they had a price list I could look at. One of the women said, “no, come with me”. I followed her, and she said “ok, there is no price list; I just have to tell you. What do you want?” I told her I wanted to do my legs and she said “ok, 26 euros. When do you want to come. Today at 3pm.” This was not a question. I told her no, that three was not good for me. Then she flipped the page, “Monday at 3pm”, no I could not do that either. The telephone rang and she answered it, telling her friend to hold on. “Tuesday at 3pm”. “No, I cannot do three”, she let out a very loud, exasperated sigh. I asked her if I could come around noon, and she said they were closed. She seemed very upset with me, so I just told her I would come back. She made a slight attempt to stop me, but when I told her again, that I would just come back, so said “fine” and turned to talk to her friend on the phone, someone clearly more important than I was. Well, after that I just thought, ‘oh hell, I will just shave my legs and for Christmas this year I am giving myself laser hair removal.’ And that is exactly what I am going to do.
It is funny how most people think of Italians as these really jolly people ready to invite you into their homes to have dinner and talk about this and that. I guess some small group of Italians made a really good impression on the world, because this seems to be the stereotype all over the world. And yet, I think the Italians are not nearly as friendly or courteous as the people I know back home. Men shove in front of old women to get on the bus, people are just downright rude to foreigners half the time, and I can see how, if you do not speak the language, you could be very overwhelmed by the people and the country almost immediately. It is funny because as a foreigner, I always expect people to be especially nice to me. I mean, I certainly am to every foreigner I meet, but here, it is just not that way. I cannot understand why people are rude to foreigners and tourists. These people keep the economy going when times get rough, but I guess to each his own.
In some ways, it feels like this week has been forever and a day long, and yet, it seems to have flown by. I think this is going to be a long post; so prepare yourself.
First and foremost, I started school this week. Every day, I wake up at 6am to get ready, eat breakfast and be out the door in time to catch the 7:10am bus. This puts me into Siena about an hour and ten minutes before class starts. I have absolutely nothing to do, and mostly I just wander the main streets, looking in shop windows, and finding my way around the city. Please do not forget that it is still cold in the morning here, usually somewhere in the low thirties, and so I think my face has become pretty wind burned this week. Friday, it was just too windy. The wind speed was something like 25mph, and so I just waited for the school to open and sat in the stairwell. Class has been wonderful. I am learning tons and tons of new words, and even though I have not memorized them all yet, I will have plenty of time to do so after class ends. I am reviewing a lot of the grammar I had forgotten about, and so I feel like this was a good use of my money. I really like my teacher, and I think I will be sad when classes finish. The school is located right off of one of the main piazzas in Siena, where the big post office sits. Everything you could ever want seems to be in, or right off of, this square. For example, the city supermarket, Conad, is stocked with goodies you just cannot find in Castelnuovo. Like, for example, dried apricots. I nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw the little pack. I do not even look at the price, I know I want them, and I buy them. I have been searching high and low for dried apricots after I ran through the supply mom sent with me. All I ever succeeded in finding was raisins… Well, at least now I know where to get my fix. Also, I learned from my professor the other day that Italy does in fact know what sour cream is. They call it “panna acida”, or acidic cream. No one really eats it here, and my teacher says not only is it hard to find, but also, if you do find it, most likely you will have only one option. No fat free Daisy here I guess. I have also located the place to buy my Clinique stuff, I found a paper store that happened to sell cork boards, and bought one instantly for my room (YAY!) so now I can display all of the post cards and photos people send to me.
Wednesdays are the best day because that is the day of the market. When I arrive in Siena at 8am, the market is already in full swing, so I can spend my hour browsing the stalls for this and that. Last week I bought some more “parafreddo”, which I can only describe as a type of removable caulk. It is very thick, thin strips of foam that is ultra sticky on one side. They are made to stick on the inside of your window to make them more airtight. I did this with the big window, the one where the crooked curtain hangs, because I felt it was leaking the most air, only to find that the window over the sink was in even worse shape. At first, I thought I could buy some caulk and caulk the cracks of the window closed, but after messing with the big blue curtain this morning, I noticed that there is a sizable gap between the window and the frame that you just could not fill with caulk. I think what I am going to do is take down the curtains, wash them, and then put them back up on the wall but in such a way that they actually cover the open area of the window. Maybe this will help. I do not know what I am going to do, but I am certainly going to need to figure it out before summer hits because the gap is certainly big enough for a bee or wasp to fly in and out of. If worst come to worst, I might just stuff some fabric down into the gaps! I cannot use duct tape, because Pam says it takes the paint off the wall (oh what a tragedy!)
Well, while we are on the subject of windows. I think I am just going to break down and buy some new fabric for them. First of all, both of the curtains are dirty dirty dirty. I do not think they have ever been washed; second, they are not all that nice. I am going to try to look up how to make curtains by hand on the internet to see if I can easily sew together some curtains. I figure they cannot look much worse that these do. However, for the curtains over the sink will have to be nailed to the wall, like they are now. The only difference I am going to make is I am going to nail them directly above the window, so I can hopefully make the place a little more airtight. I go back and forth on this. I do not know if I want to put the time and money into making curtains by hand, buying the fabric, etc. But, it is going to get cold here again before I leave, and I am going to have to do something I think. It is better since I arrived, but some more things could be done. Of course, there is no hope for the window in the bathroom. All I can do is try to keep the window closed, since the walls on either side of it are angled, and there is no way to even nail a curtain up since the window goes all the way up the wall. Well, anyway. I might get bored with the whole sewing curtains by hand bit, but for now it seems like a plan.
French lessons are also going well. I told you all I started taking French lessons via Skype right? Well, they are going pretty well. I actually have one today in a few hours, so I guess I should be studying, but I really wanted to upload to my blog, so here I am. Right now, I am learning how to count to one hundred, which is actually rather complicated in French. Like to say “80”, in French it is “40, 40”, or to say “90” it is “sixty, twenty, ten”, crazy I know. Of course, when Pam asked me how things were going in French, and I was trying to tell her some of the numbers I had learned just yesterday. I made a mistake and Sam was quick to jump in tell me, “No Casey, you are wrong it is ….blah blah blah”. Ass. I really do not like him. I think he is quite rude most of the time, and too old to do anything other than plop his butt down in front of the computer all day and check email. I mean, how much effort does it take to shoot down a beginning language student? None, that’s how much. It’s like taking candy from a baby. So, I said, as Sam was still rambling on about French numbers, “wow, thanks for shooting me down”. Everyone at the table laughed, except Sam, who continued trying to demonstrate how smart he was to everyone else. He may have a PhD in Renaissance art, but he is an Ass who will not set up my wireless internet!
Well, what can I say? I like it much better when the two of them are gone. I mean, the house is so messy, but I try not to be over there too much. The only plus is that I can get on the wireless over there, so I always eventually make my way over to the big house. Well, only one more week, and then they will be gone on tour, and then directly after that, I am leaving for England. Then I come back, and they are gone again. I think things will work out okay, and time is going to start flying by even faster than it is now. I have already started looking for work for next year. I was really thinking I wanted to come back to Italy or go to France, but I do not know what will happen. I know that what I am looking for now is a job that will pay enough for me to find my own apartment so I do not have to live in a barn. Actually, if I wanted, I could go to Prague or Russia for a pretty good deal. In Prague, they do not pay for your housing, but you get a thousand dollars a week for 25 hours of work, and so I am sure I could find a decent place on that kind of salary. Also, in Russia they pay for the whole kit and caboodle. They pay for a whole winter wardrobe. I am sure you would need it! They pay for your housing, your flight over, they take care of getting your visa, and you get free Russian classes as well as 1000 dollars a week on top of all this. Of course, this means you would be living in Russia, so I think it would be pretty freaking cold, but if you had modern living conditions, I do not think the cold would be such a problem. Well, these are just the things I have found so far. I would also like to try getting on with an American company in Europe as well. I do not really know what I am going to end up doing, but I am glad I started looking now. What with the economy in the shape it is in, I guess you just have to get a head start on everything.
Finally, I have to tell you about the Waxer from hell. Okay, so I know this is probably TIM (too much information), but I have to tell you so you understand the story. See, I have not shaved my legs since I have been in Italy. Mostly it has been so cold, and I just did not see the point. Well, thought I might just go and have it waxed so I did not have to fool with hours in the shower shaving. There was an ad posted on the board at my school for a nail salon/waxing place, which gave discounts to students. Well, I decided to make my way over to the place after school on Friday to check out the prices and the facility. I finally found the place; it was almost hidden down this angled hallway off of the main streets of the city. When I walked in, it was small and cramped, and all of the ladies immediately stopped and stared at me. I said, in my broken Italian, that I had seen their paper at Scuola Leonardo, and was wondering if they had a price list I could look at. One of the women said, “no, come with me”. I followed her, and she said “ok, there is no price list; I just have to tell you. What do you want?” I told her I wanted to do my legs and she said “ok, 26 euros. When do you want to come. Today at 3pm.” This was not a question. I told her no, that three was not good for me. Then she flipped the page, “Monday at 3pm”, no I could not do that either. The telephone rang and she answered it, telling her friend to hold on. “Tuesday at 3pm”. “No, I cannot do three”, she let out a very loud, exasperated sigh. I asked her if I could come around noon, and she said they were closed. She seemed very upset with me, so I just told her I would come back. She made a slight attempt to stop me, but when I told her again, that I would just come back, so said “fine” and turned to talk to her friend on the phone, someone clearly more important than I was. Well, after that I just thought, ‘oh hell, I will just shave my legs and for Christmas this year I am giving myself laser hair removal.’ And that is exactly what I am going to do.
It is funny how most people think of Italians as these really jolly people ready to invite you into their homes to have dinner and talk about this and that. I guess some small group of Italians made a really good impression on the world, because this seems to be the stereotype all over the world. And yet, I think the Italians are not nearly as friendly or courteous as the people I know back home. Men shove in front of old women to get on the bus, people are just downright rude to foreigners half the time, and I can see how, if you do not speak the language, you could be very overwhelmed by the people and the country almost immediately. It is funny because as a foreigner, I always expect people to be especially nice to me. I mean, I certainly am to every foreigner I meet, but here, it is just not that way. I cannot understand why people are rude to foreigners and tourists. These people keep the economy going when times get rough, but I guess to each his own.
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