Happy 4th of July, Everyone!! (It’s a day late,
but it still counts) While everyone at home spent their days fending off
Hurricane Arthur, here in Italy we spent our day soaking up the sun at San Benedetto
on the beach on the Adriatic Coast! I could not take a picture that could
capture the beauty of this place, with its clear waters and beautiful beach; it
is a sight you have to see all on your own. (Well, I have a picture but it
doesn’t do justice) That morning we woke up with adventure on the mind and we
trekked out to the train station and all on our own we figured out the entire
system and how to book our round trip tickets. The ride is only about one half
hour from Ascoli Piceno, which isn’t bad at all. As soon as we got to the beach
we set up camp right next to the private section of the beach and got right
down to business. The weather was beautiful, we couldn’t have asked for a
better 4th of July day.
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Me, Erica |
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San Benedetto Beach - Adriatic Coast |
We got home from the beach around 5 in the afternoon and on
our way home we stopped at the local grocery store to pick up some wine and
cheese (so casual) for an aperitivo before we headed out for our big night! The
day before, while we were at the University one of the Italian students came up
to us and invited us out to dinner with him and a few of his friends so that
they could practice their English, we could practice our Italian, and they
could show us what “Italy” is really like. (To my family: don’t worry, the
professors approved of the boys). So that night we had a few girls over to our
apartment where we drank the wine, ate the cheese, and prepared ourselves for
the culture shock we were about to experience!
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Dancing on Our Terrace |
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Me, Garlande, Kate, Kasey, Rachel, Erica, Emily, Kristina, Kelly |
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Cliche funny photo |
We showed up to the restaurant a few minutes early and
anxiously awaited the arrival of Giorgio (the Italian student). He finally appeared
with a few of his friends in toe and we could tell immediately how much fun
this night was going to be. Giorgio had a group of about 8 of his friends and
we had a group of around 12 so we split up between two tables mixing Americans
and Italians. As soon as we sat down to our table we noticed the language
barrier proved to be tougher than we thought it was going to be. Not one of us
(Americans) could speak Italian and most of the Italians could barely speak
English. So, like any true American tourist, our handy-dandy phrase book came
out to play. A few of the girls at my table seemed a little shy to talk at
first so in true Lombardo style I began to just blurt out any random phrase I
read from my book. Topic of conversation included, ‘Do you have any pets?’
‘What is your favorite hobby?’ ‘What do you study?’ Typical conversation for
any person reading out of an American phrase book. The Italians seemed to find
it amusing and appreciated our attempt at conversation but it was still a
little awkward. Meanwhile the table next to us is erupting in laughter and
yelling out Italian phrases. So naturally, I listened to what they were saying,
memorized it, and then turned to the man sitting next to me (Matteo) and
blurted out what I heard. In return to what I said, he gave me the most shocked
and confused face I had ever seen and I immediately started blushing. Turns
out, the table next to us was learning all the Italian swears and apparently I
shouted “F-you!” at my new Italian friend. Oops … But as the night went on we
all warmed up to each other and it turned out to be the best night of my life!
This is definitely the way to go about learning Italian culture and immersing
yourself in it.
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Italian/American Dinner! |
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Garlande, Alessandro, John Franco, Simone, Rachel |
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Garlande, Josef, Simone, John Fanco, Alessandro |
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Me, John Franco |
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Emily, Alessandro, Me, Josef, John Franco |
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Italian/American Group Photo! |
After dinner, we refused to part ways so the boys took us
out to a local bar where we shared a few drinks, a few laughs, and a few
unforgettable memories. All of the Italian students were extremely nice and
definitely could be life long friends! OH! And, one of the girls said my
Italian was very good and I have a very good accent. So dad, don’t worry, I’m
learning something!!
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