I'm home.

Hello everyone.

I just wanted to let you all know that I am home. I made it safely. I landed at JFK airport around 12:15 pm Sunday, July 5th.

Since being home, I have realized many differences between the culture I was living in and the culutre I was born in. It has really opened my eyes even more to the diversity and cultures around the world.

At the final orientation in Rome, someone told us: "Your experience isn't over; it is just beginning." And now I see what he meant by that.

I have jumped out of my (american) shoes for 10 months, choosing to use those of the italians... I saw their point of view on the world and many other things.. and now that I am in my shoes again, I can see the world like I used to but I can live in a different manner. I can now choose to live in my shoes but keeping in mind the diversity of the world and the different points of view/thought.

This experience has truely been amazing and a once in a lifetime thing.

Thank you to all those who made it possible!!!

Ciao for now,
Heather

2 weeks

Hey,

So, I officially leave in 2 weeks from today. My friends threw me a surprise party yesterday so that was fun!

I can't wait to see you all and tell some stories.

These last 2 weeks will be hard, but memorable as well.

If feels like just yesterday i got here...oh well

Ciao for now!

Heather

its almost over... :(

Hey guys,

well school finishes tomorrow and i leave for the USA in about 26 days.. this month will be a real roller-coaster of emotions. im happy to be going home, to see my family and friends, and sad at the same time cause i dont want to leave my other friends and family here. in fact, i showed my class a powerpoint that i made of the past 9 or so months and most of us started crying as it marks the beginning of the goodbyes for us..im about 99.999 % sure i will cry tomorrow at the end of school, then as well at the party my friends are planning to throw me, and when i actually leave.

I have truely had the time of my life here in Italy and i will remember this experience for the rest of my life. i have made so many amazing friends and we are sure to keep in touch, as most of them are planning to come next summer to visit me!!! =D

i have learned so many things about cultural differences, the world, and myself.. i can now say that i view the world with new and different eyes. this view of the world is so cool and diverse i cant put it into words.. its something you can see only when you experience this cultural exchange i have done.

i dont know what else to say other than the fact that, i will see you all very soon!

ciao for now,
Heather

Photos of Croatia

Here are some random photos of my day trip to Croatia.
I hope you all like them.

Ciao for now,

Heather

things going on in my life

Hey,

Tomorrow I'm going to Croatia with my host family! Although, we have to be at Trieste around 5:50am to catch the bus, so we have to leave the house around 5. Which means I have to get up at 4am.. ewww. lol anyway I'm looking forward to that. Next Saturday, is my host sister's birthday, so we'll be celebrating that. Then the week after that, thursday to sunday (28-31), I have my last orientation with AFS. It's going to be sad, cause some of the kids are leaving early cause they have signed contracts to work this summer, so they need to leave earlier. So, this is the last time I'll be able to see all AFSers (in my area atleast)... :(

My school ends June 10th!!!! I've already taken my last spanish test of the year. Math, Italian and chemistry I only have 1 more to take. We don't have finals or midterms here!!!!! I've heard the last week of school we don't really do anything!! lol NICE.

I finally finished all the Italian lessons after school. I took the final test yesterday, so I'll find out the results next week. I can't believe everything is coming to an end. It's sad and exciting at the same time.

Well I'll see you all soon (i think about 50 days till I come home)

Ciao for now,
Heather

recent news

So I think I got confused. May 2nd isn't a holiday, so I don't know when there "july 4th" is for them. I'm thinking it could be April 25th like I thought.

This past weekend (friday-saturday) I had a lot of fun. I slept over a friend's house. We played AMERICAN FOOTBALL!!! My friend knows some missionaries (who are American), so we got some friends together and the missionaries and played some football. Of course the Americans crushed the others, but it was a lot of fun. Then we moved to basketball, where the Americans crushed the other AGAIN. I think its just in our blood. lol.

Then yesterday, Sunday, there was the 16th Bavisela in Trieste. It is a marathon from Gradisca to Trieste which is competitive, then there is the non-competitive which is from Miramare to Trieste center (about 8km, which is 5 miles) which about 50 of us from AFS did. All the other people had a pink t-shirt on (which we got) but we wanted to represent AFS, so we are wore a bright yellow AFS t-shirt and handed out AFS flyers. it was fun.

i think thats it for now,

ciao for now,
heather

info on a few holidays..

Hello,

so i messed up before. April 25 is celebrated because it is when Italy was freed from WW2, so they celebrate it as the ending of the war for them. "il giorno di liberazione".

This friday, May 1, is also a holiday. it is the day of workers or something like that. and also May 2 is a holiday, which is there holiday like our July 4th.

so this weekend i have a 3 day weekend!!!!!!! this past weekend i had a 2 day weekend!!! (which is normal for USA i know.. but i havent had one in a long time).

i think thats it for now

ciao for now,
heather

recent trips/news

Austria was a lot of fun and very interesting. We stayed in Slazburg, Austria 11/4 to 13/3. We visited the castle and lots of other cool things (Mozart's birth house) etc. It was really cool to learn more about Mozart, because of my interest in piano now.

Two days ago, (22/4) I went to Mantua (Mantova in italian) with my class. which was a lot of fun hanging out with all my friends for the day outside of school. It was one of my favorite day trips ever, because of being with my friends and of course touring a city in ITALY!! hahaha

I have a favorite tv show now also. its funny cause its actually an american show but ive never seen it before coming here. Its called JAG. Its dubbed in italian though. but oh well i understand just the same. :)

My piano teacher (cousin of my host mom) said that she might bring me to Milan in june after school. Because she travels often to Milan for work. Which is exciting, i just hope it works out. I already owe her so much, cause shes giving me the piano lessons for free. but she seems to love me anyway, reminds me of one of my families back home (tortlands) haha.

thats about all for now. oh! tomorrow there isnt school because it is the "giorno di liberazione" (april 25, 1945). basically independence day. Italy celebrates 64 years tomorrow so believe it or not, technically USA is older than Italy by a lot.. this year is our 229th year of independence.

hope all is well with you!

ciao for now,
Heather

Easter Weekend

Hey,

This weekend, I'm going to Austria for a couple days. I leave Saturday morning and I think I come back Monday or Tuesday. I'm going with my host family :)

Tomorrow is my last day of school before Easter vacation. I return to school next Wednesday.

Today is the official date that I've been here for 7 months!!

Just an update.

Wish you all a wonderful Easter!

Ciao for now,
Heather

pics of Germany

my first beer in germany! the only Starbucks I've seen in about 7 months.

my friend, Ilaria, and me after she straightened my hair.

a really beautiful gothic styled church

famous brewery, where I drank beer with a friend and 2 teachers. Also, where Hitler once made a speech I believe. my nice ride. haha.

a great view of Munich from the tower the tower with the nice view :)

us in the back garden of the "Residence" (I don't know if thats what its called in English)

the Deutsches Museum

Germany

In summary, Germany was amazing!! I had a lot of fun hanging out with my friends while touring a city (also country) that i've never been to before. We left at 6 am Sunday morning (March 15) and we arrived in Munich around 1 or 1:30. We went straight to the Alte Pinakothek, where we looked at a lot of paintings, some of which I actually did like. After that, we went to the hostel. My room consisted of 5 of my friends and me, which throughout the week was really fun sharing a bathroom with 5 other girls. I don't know how, but we managed to get all 6 of us ready in less than 45 min every morning. Anyway after that we went to diner and then for a little walk around part of Munich. The next morning was the first day of school. Each weekday we had a German class for 3 hours in the morning from 8:30- 11:30. After that we went to the Deutsches Museum, where I was attracted to the chemistry part. I think I pressed just about every button for the experiments. hahaha :) Then a few of us went to the Planetarium. That was fun, because out of the 3 teachers that came with us, only 2 knew German. The other teacher, who teaches Latin, and I didn't understand anything. Then came dinner again and another walk through part of Munich. The next day started with school and then we went to a city outside of Munich, Augsburg (I don't know what it is called in English). There we visited the city center and a place called the Fuggerei, a residence built for people who couldn't afford to live on their own. At the Fuggerei there was someone interviewing people why they came there, and of course we were a group of about 40 so she stopped us. One of the teachers talked in German, but she preferred English, so the teacher told me to speak. I had no idea what to say, I ended up making something good up, cause I had just read the reason behind the Fuggerei. I realized though that my English has gotten worse, it took me a while to think of what to say and then I made lots of mistakes while saying it. OH well... Next day, Wednesday (18) we went to school and then we went to Olympia Park, the tower (I forget what it was called), and the BMW Museum. That was a lot of fun. At the top of the tower, there was a Rock Museum inside. It had a piano of Elton John when he played in Germany, which was cool. In the BMW Museum we asked if we could sit in one of the cars, everyone was taking pictures in a convertable. There were also video games that we could play, but I used a program they had to create a car which was cool. Thursday was school and then we went to the Dachau Concentration Camp. As much as I knew that what happened was really bad, being there and seeing the place and reading the info at the same time was really hard. I won't hold back from saying that I did cry and felt very depressed, and I can tell you that I wasn't the only one. As soon as I walked into the camp I felt it. I don't know what or why, but I just remember thinking that it happend here, people died here, I was standing in a place where thousands of muders and deaths occurred less than 60 years ago. There's not even a word to describe the feelings, you would have to go to one to find out for yourself. Friday was the last day of school and then we went to a beer factory, where they told us how and where the beer was made. I forget which nights, but we all went to 2 pubs (I guess you can say.. in italian it's called birreria), where some of us drank beer. And then another night, 2 teachers, a friend named Raffaele and I went to another "birreria", one of the more famous ones, and drank beer. At this "birreria", Hitler did something (I don't remember what he did), and also it is famous for the typical Munich lifestyle, with a band and the (funny) clothes. Friday night was the last night so of course we tried to party (tried being a key word). One time the teacher told us to go to our own rooms so we did. Then of course I'm the innocent American who won't get in trouble, so my roommates made me open the door so we could sneak out into the other room. When I opened the door, the teacher was standing right there, looking at me. I was shocked and afraid at the same time :) We were able to eventually sneak out when she went to bed, but then she found us in the other room. We didn't really get in trouble, we just had to go to our own room. Saturday morning we went to the Neue Pinakothek, where I saw a lot more paintings that I actually liked. Oh yeah and I found a Starbucks in Munich!!! let me explain why I was so excited before you think I'm crazy.. Starbucks doesn't exist in Italy, so I haven't gone to a Starbucks or even seen one in a little more than 6 months. Luckily, I found one there and ended up drinking 4 coffees in 2 days. I introduced my friends to Starbucks as well, and they all liked it :) We left around 12:30 Saturday and arrived around 8 or 8:30.

So that was my Germany trip!!! I had a lot of fun! Hope everythings going well for all of you!!

Ciao for now,
Heather

interagation...

Instead of last week I was interagated today. Basically the teacher asked me questions of the chapter we were working on (Unit 9, learning about apartments and that stuff.. along with a verb tense of the past, 1 of the many). Of course, I am always the lucky one so I got to do the interagation all by myslef (usually there are atleast 2 or 3 students at the same time). So, I'm sitting in my seat, the whole class looking at me and it begins. (The person who sits next to me, Elisabetta, when she is interagated she usually rubs her hands together really hard and I always think she's going to rub them raw, because of the nerves). I preferred using a pen to help me get through my nerves, I think I heard a crack in the pen cause I was bending it so hard. So, the teacher asked the first question, "Give me a summary of the dialogue". I am glad I studied that last night, cause I couldn't look at the text. I was able to give a pretty good summary. Then the teacher said, "Tell me what you've done this morning". Again, I was able to actually remember what I did this morning through the nerves and say it. Then, the teacher asked me to translate some sentences from Italian to Spanish and I could do it!! You have to know that all of the questions were asked in Spanish and I responded to all of them in Spanish. The class itself is only is mainly in Spanish with some Italian (no English!!). So, after all of that, the teacher asked the class how they think I did (like they usually do). The class was looking at me in disbelief and amazement, cause in the end I did better than about 3/4 the class. I ended up getting a 9 out of 10!!!! Which is considered really good in Italy. My nerves were so high, that tears came to my eyes when I realized I was done and how well I did. So, that is my first every interagation...

I leave for Munich, Germany this Sunday at 6am. An 8 hour bus ride. Looking forward to it!!

Ciao for now,
Heather

6th month mark!

I've done it!! I have gotten through 6 months of being in Italy!! I still can't believe the time has gone by so fast, seems like it's flying. I still remember when I was terrified the first day I arrived at my host family's house, I just wanted to go home, but I've made it!! Only 4 months to go! Miss you all and CT, can't wait to see you all in July!!

Ciao for now,
Heather

jan, feb, beg. of march

Hey,

So, the 24th of February was a holiday, no school!! It was Fat Tuesday, and the ending of "Carnevale" here in Italy. For Carnevale, people dress up like we do for Halloween. One of the most famous places for Carnevale is Venice, and I had the pleasure of going there for a day! It was really beautiful and interesting. The masks they wore were very creative and it was amazing how people went all out for Carnevale!

Since the end of January, I have been taking piano lessons once a week for one hour. So, I finally get to learn the piano!! which is really cool!!

I am in the process of asking and finding a place to do Track and Field. I have found a place, and now I'm waiting to see if I can play.

School is the same, boring just like school in USA but 6 days instead of 5. Oh the joy of going to school on Saturday. You really haven't lived until you've gone to school on Saturday and only having a 1-day weekend.

In 10 days, I am going to Munich, Germany with my class for one week!!! I'm really excited for that and I can't wait. The only thing is I don't really know German, but I am learning in school.

I actually look forward to Italian classes now, because I have some friends from Cuba, Romania, Russia, Bosnia (in english i dont know, ive forgotten a little english), Argentina, some from Africa, and more.

I have started reading the Twilight saga, i know, i know.. what could i have been thinking... I just wanted something to read. hahaha

Next week, I have an interagation of Spanish... ugh... (In Italy, they use regular tests and interagations, which are when the teacher questions to a few students for usually the whole period about the subject they've been doing). This will be my first interagation and I'm really nervous, because a lot of the interagations that i've seen have ended up with the student crying.. and i'm not looking forward to it. Why couldn't I be interagated in math or english or something that i'm good at... oh well.

Some of my favorite Italian songs are:
-I Believe
-Io e Te
-Salvami
-La Forza Mia
-Ti scatterò una foto
-Come in ogni ora

That seems to be all I can think of for now... hopefully i'll remember to write again soon. its almost the 6th month mark (in 2 days)!!

ciao for now,
Heather

5 months!

Hey everyone!!

Yesterday the 7th of feb. was the official day of being with my host family for 5 months!! i still can't believe that the year is half way over :( I am having so much fun over here with all of my friends and learning a lot!!! one of my friends said to me, "ti vogliamo bene anche! e sarà triste quando tu tornerai negli Stati Uniti :(" -translation: we love you too! and it will be sad when you return to the United States :( .. something like that. :) but I'm also looking forward to seeing all of you!! :)

A little bit of the lifestyle and my life here in Italy:

in italy the lifestyle is generally very relaxed, everynight we eat together as a family, and their dinners are usually atleast an hour long.. when there is a holiday the meal can be anywhere from 2-3 or 4 hours depends on how long they talk for .... i go to school from 8:25-1:40.. in italy the students stay in one classroom and the teachers switch classrooms... when the teacher comes in, we stand up for them, because the student-teacher relationship is generally pretty formal... italians love shopping, but not the exact kind of shopping we like.. they like window shopping, they'll stop at generally every window and if something catches their eye they'll go into the store... one time we went into a store "just to stay warm" but then they started shopping..i thought it was funny... Venice is amazing! its a city built on water and there aren't any roads, only canals and bridges... so instead of cars they use boats.. its one of the most unique cities in the world!! generally USA is know for skyscrapers, but Italy is know for churches or basilicas..i have been in some of the most amazing churches ever!! one for example is the basilica of Saint Mark (in Venice).. it was amazing!!

when i have more time, i'll hopefully write some more of what i've done in the past 5 months!

Ciao for now,
Heather

time flys

I just looked at this today and realized a month has gone by since the last time I wrote on my blog.. I still can't believe that 4 and 1/2 months have gone by already. Time just keeps flying along..

I left for my skiing trip Tuesday morning and arrived around 10. There was a lot of snow, but there was also pouring rain. Needless to say, we couldn't go skiing tuesday. Instead, we went ice skating, which was really fun! Then the next day it was pouring again. We lost two days of skiing with the possibility of losing a third. So, we made the decision to come back and just save as much money as we could.. So, I still haven't been skiing yet :(

Christmas vacation went by well, it was fun and full with food! I don't know if I've ever eaten that much before in my life!!! hahaha

I spent New Year's in Gorizia (the city where I go to school) center! That was a lot of fun!!! Carlo Pastore a famous Italian DJ and co-host of the Italian TRL was one of the DJs there for New Year's!!! and after he finished, with my luck, I got to meet him and take a picture with him, that was really fun!!

Not much else has been going on. I finished an Italian course!! Now, I only have Italian classes 2 times a week, instead of 4!!!

I got my "report card" this past week. In Italy, they grade 1-10 (10 being the best, which are very rare). I got a 10 in oral English !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was so proud of myself!!!!!! hahahaha.. but for real, I'm doing good in school.

I may start a sport soon, since I only have 2 classes of Italian a week. I don't know what it is, but I just can't live without doing a sport hahaha.. not true, but it has been so weird not doing any sport for 4 months now... oh well we'll see what happens.

All is well with me!!!! I hope everything is going well with all of you!!

Ciao for now,
Heather