itinerary

Ho ricevuto il mio passaporto stamattina, con il visto!

This morning I got my passport, with my visa! I am that much closer to packing up and leaving, and it's exciting, but yesterday, my friend Carrie texted me from JFK in New York that she was nervous about flying alone for the first time (to China, where she'll be for the next several months). This got me thinking. I'm nervous to fly alone, too. So I plotted exactly what I had to figure out and accomplish on my own from the moment I leave my parent's house until I'm safely at my house in Perugia.

1. Leave Edinburg, presumably with a parent, to be dropped off at a bus stop in Washington, D.C.
2. Catch my bus, arrive at bus stop in New York City, where I have never been without a chaperone.
3. Find Bea, the lovely young lady who is kind enough to take me in for a night.
4. Get to one of the subway stations from which the shuttle to JFK runs. Get on that shuttle!
5. Arrive at JFK. Navigate an airport I've never been to in the busiest city in America, on my own, and catch my flight.
6. 1 hour layover in Dublin! I'm unclear as to whether I'll have to find or recheck baggage. I hope not.
7. Again, navigate an airport I've never been to and catch my flight.
8. Arrive at Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport in Rome. Find my stuff, get to the "Sulga" bus!
9. Arrive in Perugia. Find a taxi. Tell them where I need to go (point to my address on the piece of paper I will be carrying for this exact purpose).
10. Final destination: Via Cialdini 3. Hopefully, meet Cinzia at my front door, so I can get in.

In short, make my way, alone, from D.C. to Perugia, through New York, Dublin, and Rome. This is scary to me.

I've also stumbled across my itinerary for most of my stay! It looks something like this:

• July 1, arrive in Perugia
• July 2, orientation with Cinzia
• July 3-4, free weekend
• July 5-9, first week of classes
• July 10-11, trip to Napoli (Naples), Pompeii, and Capri
• July 12-16, second week of classes
• July 17-18, trip to Venezia (Venice)
• July 19-23, third week of classes
• July 24-25, free weekend, possible trip to Firenze (Florence) or somewhere else nearby
• July 26-27, last days of class and trip to Assisi
• July 28, final exam
• July 29-30, trip to Roma (Rome)
• July 31-August 7, ???

visa/Via Cialdini 3

I'm already neglecting my blog. Craaaap.

I'm still studying, still trying to read. Everything is difficult, and I'm really scared, but I'm also getting really, really excited. I love looking at my little yellow house at Via Enrico Cialdini 3! And you should, too!

View Larger Map

I've also started checking out a few of the places that were recommended to me by people who went on the trip last year: such as La Tana, a popular and supposedly fun restaurant/bar. For those curious, it's actually called La Tana dell'Orso--The Bear's Den.

In other news, my visa is in Richmond, so close to being within my reach! The study abroad office is supposed to mail it to me. They aren't comfortable allowing someone else to pick it up for me, even if I tell them who's coming and give them permission. Nasha Lewis also sounded unhappy about sending it via UPS and said it would be best if I could come pick it up in person, but I'm really not thrilled with the prospect of driving five hours and spending about 35 bucks in gas to walk into a building for less than five minutes and then turn around. Maybe I'm wrong in feeling this way, but the Education Abroad office really doesn't seem flexible or understanding in interacting with students. I'm just praying, after they send me my passport, not to have to correspond with Nasha Lewis any more.

Today, I plan to:

• pay my credit card bill with my plane ticket on it
• pay the balance on my student account (which I believe is the tuition charge, at this point)
• pay my rent (this has nothing to do with Perugia, but I don't want to forget it)

Which means that in a few hours, I will be worth several thousand dollars less than I am right now. Which makes me feel like this guy:

Comincia...

Ciao, Blog!

Oggi, scrivo la mia prima annotazione. Sono sicuro che uso le parole incorrette e la grammatica terribile, ma sono negli Stati Uniti per 41 giorni più, e poi, in Italia!

Today, I'm writing my first Blog entry. I'm sure I'm using the wrong words and terrible grammar, but I'm in the United States for 41 more days, and then, to Italy!

No, my blog will not be in Italian, but it will be interspersed with some. Also, I'm starting this blog with the intention of posting at least once a week, or hopefully something short every few days while I am in Perugia or traveling through Italy, but I cannot guarantee the time or (free) internet access. I do, however, intend to use it until I leave, as well. It's mostly for my own amusement. It would be cool if someone read it, though.

I don't want this post to be boring, so I'm gonna keep it short. I have 41 days left to read my textbook, watch Italian movies, read Italian books, practice Rosetta Stone, and talk to myself in a language that no one around me understands. I've been studying Italian for several hours today, going over vocab lists in my textbook (I'm only up to Chapter 3), and I'm on Chapter 4 of Harry Potter e la Pietra Filosofale. My vocabulary, I'm realizing, is going to be so skewed by the books and movies I read and watch. For example, I know how to say owl (gufo), scar (cicatrice), and cloak (mantella), but I'm not sure I know how to do things like, oh, I don't know, buy food, or get from one place to another. If my ability to understand the movie I watched last night, La stanza del figlio (The Son's Room), serves as any indication, I am going to die alone in Italy.

Things I need to do before I depart:

• buy an outlet and voltage adapter
• rent a cell phone
• get my passport from the Education Abroad office

Beh, buona giornata!