The Beginning

So I am sitting in my new apartment getting wireless from the cafe below because one of my roommates went down to get coffee and got the password. I'm not sure how long the password will work for, but it would be fantastic if they don't change it everyday. I can't connect to in my actual bedroom, as my bedroom is on the opposite side of everyone else's, but I really can't complain. There are five people and we each have a single. We have granite counter tops, really big armoires and desks in each room, two full bathrooms, and even a small little television in the kitchen. My bedroom has stairs because there are two levels (I'm the only one with this random luxury). It's crazy. I walked in the room and couldn't believe it. It's like having two rooms to myself. The other rooms have a view of a little piazza and I'm sure it will be great for people watching, as with the cafe below there are little tables and people walk by often to get to the center of town. My view is of another building, but is charming all the same, if not as active.

After being warned about showers that just had a drain in the floor of the actual bathroom and that we should expect small places with not many amenities I am so happy to be so lucky to get this apartment instead of one of the others.

It is rather chilly in here, as we are only allowed heat for a certain period of time during the day because the government regulates it. We don't have an oven, which really stinks, but some girls I met and liked a good bit said that I could use their's. So maybe sometimes I will pop over there to make cookies or something. We don't have a washing machine so that expense will add up and, depending on where the laundromat is, could be a pain. Still, considering what I could have had, I am so incredibly lucky.

The city is absolutely gorgeous. The first night we stayed at a hotel on the outskirts of the city and I was worried that perhaps all of the pictures we had seen were just the best areas of Perugia and that a lot of it was rather run down or more like a typical city. I was so happy when we were driven to the historic center on top of the hill to see that it is actually often prettier than the pictures. There are breathtaking views of rolling hills and mountains randomly around corners. The houses are all stones and there is an Etruscan aqueduct and huge stone arches all around. It's really quite surreal. Walking around is like something from a movie, as we are usually either going up or down very steep inclines (we are, after all, situated on the top of a hill) and there are little covered stone alleyways that pop up or small little piazzas with churches or fountains. I can't wait to see more of the city.

The first day I found myself already using Italian, as Chris and I went out with Jamie and some other girls because they needed to find an ATM and we all wanted to get something to eat, since dinner at the hotel wasn't until much later. I should also mention that Friday basically consisted entirely of waiting, whether for our delayed plane, enough people to fill a bus, the three hour plus trip to Perugia, or for anything to go on while we were in the hotel. Anyways, Jamie and the other girl who needed the ATM went into a place that the hotel had said had an ATM, while the rest of us were standing outside and all of a sudden I heard Jamie calling for me and realized I would have to start using Italian right out of the gate. I talked to a few more people along the way because everyone was unsure about where it was but we eventually found it and I was pleased that the people were so friendly when I asked them questions. I was surprised that I didn't feel shy about using Italian. I'm sure the level of shyness will vary with the experiences I have with different people, as I know that certain people will be far more helpful than others.

Today, after waiting until noon or so to actually get to our apartment, and then finally getting to settle in, we had our orientation meeting at two. It was in the town hall in this beautiful and elaborately frescoed room with arched windows and out of place seats that looked like the ones in the movie theater. I was glad to finally have some things explained to us, as the day and night before they bascially told us nothing and I was feeling overwhelmed. There is still so much to do and so many new and confusing things to figure out but at least now I know a bit more. They also had an Italian police officer speak to us and he was very stereotypically Italian so it was amusing. He told us that the national sport in Italy is not soccer, but women, and showed us how to hold our purses by modeling it himself. He also talked about really serious stuff so I hope it knocked some sense into people.

After the orientation most of the students went to the grocery store right near by, as it is one of the bigger ones (but really not big at all), and we all needed to get stuff because the stores are closed on Sundays (also from 1-4 every day). I got some pasta, sauce, bread, olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic and will have to figure out a way to get chicken, since I believe we have to go to a butcher to get that. I didn't try that today because I had no idea how to ask for an amount of it. Just now Chris and I went to get our books at the bookstore because we figured everyone is going to try to go tomorrow and it will be really crowded. I'm glad to have that done with. Each time I get to cross something off of the huge list of things to do I feel a bit more relieved.

Tomorrow I have a walking tour with a small group of people. It should be really helpful as we have no idea where anything is. Even with that, it's going to take a long time for me to figure out this place. The streets are winding and break off at random times and everything looks the same since it's all stone buildings.

On Monday we begin our intensive week of Italian, which is five hours of Italian every day. I'm not looking forward to that because it will probably be stressful, as well as quite long, but ah well. I really can't wait until I've started all my classes and begun to establish a routine. Once things are settled it will be wonderful to get to fully appreciate how amazing it is to live in a city like this.

Cavin suggested that I post a video of my apartment so I will try to do that at some point. I will also post pictures when I get a chance. For now, I'm just surprised that I was able to get on the internet. Hopefully that password will last for a while!