So, as many already know, I have a host family! And today, I actually got to TALK to them! :D! How crazy is that? So, today after church, I finally sent a couple facebook messages to my host sisters, as well as an email to my host parents. I didn't expect any response right away, but to my pleasant surprise, I got an email back from one of my host sisters within minutes! i was so shocked I had to check my phone screen a couple times to see if I read it right. But sure enough, right there in black and white, was a response! I think I scared my little sister by shrieking. Ooops. :P I feel kinda bad, I was asking her so many questions, and in english no less! I was kinda of afraid to speak to her italian, afraid that I might make a big mistake or something. Let me warn you now, just because you took the language in school does NOT mean you will be prepared be detailed conversations in that language. I am going into my 5th year of studying Italian and I have to say, I have absolutely NO idea what my host family is saying half the time. And I am still in America! God, when I go to Italy, am I going to have just as a hard time speaking in Italian? Hopefully the Rosetta Stone course I have to take and talking to my host family will help! After all, I don't want to be completely clueless when I get to Italy!
Ok, so back to my conversation. My host sister and I chatted for a bit, asking each other questions. I learned that Italain teen have the basically same style as Americans, they're just a bit more put together, which is comforting, to say the least! I also learned that she and her sister are pretty athletic. She plays vollyball 3 times a week at the towns local sports center and her older sister does athletics, the italian equivalent of track and field. Maybe I can do a sport after school, like my host sisters! They told me that there are dance classes in Montebelluna. If I could take a dance class in Italy, I would be so happy! I have been dancing for 13 years now. I have taken classes in jazz, tap, modern, ballet, and street funk. In December I am going to start going into New York City at the Broadway Dance Center, I am so excited! Just to dance abroad would be...amazing.
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| Montebelluna is located in Northern Italy, in the province of Treviso, in the Veneto region. I wonder if I should learn how to ski. :) |
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| Che bella, no? |
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| Those mountains....gosh, isn't it breathtaking? |
Today, it just occurred to me that this is actually happening. It's not some fantasy I'm holding onto, or a dream that I'm about to wake up from. No, it's REAL. I am going to become a part of the italian culture, I'm going to study in Italy, I'm going to be exploring what the world has to offer me on my own. I feel like when I step on that plane bound for Rome, I will be letting go of so many things. The safe haven of my family and the town I have spent nearly 17 year growing up in. Familiar faces. And yet, I will be embracing so many things at the same time. Independence. Responsibility. A huge culture shock. Friendships I hope to keep for a life time. For most teenagers, their lives start when they turn 18, get that driver's license, and go to college. For me, I am going to be freshly 17, just a junior in high school in a small town in New Jersey, and I'll be in Italy experiencing the biggest and most fulling challenge of my life. And I wouldn't have it any other way. :)
La Vita รจ Bella
Jacki
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