May 21, 2011 Arriving in Italy

Ciao! I am sitting in my Italian hotel room that we will be staying at tonight until we move into our apartment tomorrow. I was able to sleep a little on the plane but not much….it was mostly dozing in and out due to how uncomfortable planes are. When I landed I got my passport stamped and picked up my luggage (so glad it arrived) and was able to find the rest of the Umbria Institute students. We soon boarded a bus to take us from Rome to Perugia.

It was about a 2 hour drive which I dozed in an out of. I was so tired at that point….I hadn’t slept since the 4 hours of sleep I got Thursday night before starting my travels.
Italy is surprisingly lush. There are so many different trees and everything is so green and full. I am not sure what I was expecting but this is very different from the picture in my mind. Driving to the most of the sights went: field, forest, field with hay bales, large community, tunnel, repeat. I think once I get to the more historic places it will be what I pictured. Right now we are in a very city like section of Italy and the drivers are insane haha.
I have met 3 new people. Jill, who goes to school with me, Anya, who lives in Hawaii and Jess from Boston. We formed a little group (Jill is rooming with me along with Ashley, who isn’t here eat and Liz, someone else from my school). Jill and I went down to a little shop and got a cappuccino. It was so good and was only one euro. This was my first experience ordering in Italian (Un cappuccino isn’t hard) and using euros. I guess I should figure out what all the different coins mean….
I felt so cultured sitting at a sidewalk table, drinking a cappuccino from a cup and saucer and chatting while the busy Italian life passed us by. Jess and Anya met up with us and processes to explore. We went to the market and ooed and ahhhed over the amazing food and wine. We then explored the hotel (which was like a maze) and somehow ended up on the roof. There was a pool and a hot tub not to mention a breathtaking view.
Tomorrow we will be moving into our apartments and touring the town. It is almost 8 pm and time for the welcome dinner (I will have to get used to different meal schedules). I haven’t eaten in 24 hours and haven’t slept in 48….so I plan on dinner and then bed.
Dinner was to die for and the best part? It just kept coming. We started with pasta and sauce. The pasta was twisted in a cool way and it had a hint of cheese on the inside. Everyone wasn’t sure if that was the whole meal but then they brought out salad, then chicken (which smelled like heaven to this starving girl) and then potatoes (my favorite part). I’m not sure if it was the food or because I was so hungry but everything was great. And for dessert? Chocolate mousse with chocolate on top. Mmmmmm
The hotel is giving us breakfast in the morning and I am getting up to take advantage of it….free Italian food! It is 11:00pm in Italy and I am going to finally get some sleep. Thank you God for this wonderful experience.