Arrivederci Italy… Ciao, y’all!

March 11, 2008

4:00 p.m. Mobile time
who knows p.m. Italian time

I’m back to the “daily grind” of life… a routine I happen to really like and appreciate after 10 days of go-go-going in another country. Everything is pretty much back to normal…

…And then there are the questions that people ask. (And answers).

“How was your visit to Italy?”

“Life-changing, a monumental time, different, wonderful, a great decision, a learning experience, a challenge and one of my greatest memories of college.”

“What was your favorite part of the trip?”

“Experiencing a new place, culture and lifestyle with some of UM’s finest students. And, the Sistine Chapel was pretty great too.”

“Did you have jetlag?”

“Miraculously, no. When I got back to Mobile, I went to sleep at midnight after being awake for over 24 hours and woke up the next morning at 7:15 a.m. for work and class. I’ve been fine ever since.”

“What did you buy?”

“I bought lots of food while I was over there! For gifts, I bought my mom a pair of beautiful, red lambskin gloves (that fit her perfectly!) and an Italian cashmere scarf. I gave my dad and brother some Italian snacks from the gas station (because I knew they would like them!). I bought many lace products from a lace store in Venice that our Italian tour guide showed us. I also bought myself some Italian leather high heels from Florence, a ring, and some pictures of scenes from one of my favorite movies, Roman Holiday. The rest I can’t say because I haven’t handed them all out yet!”

“What did you learn from the trip?”

“I learned that I am capable of handling more than I thought I could. I was constantly reminded of the support and love I receive from my family and friends, even across the world. This trip also brought on a thirst for experiencing more countries and cultures…Costa Rica, here I come!”

Other things I learned or concluded from my European experience:

• Americans live more for the convenience; while Italians live more for the social living (ask me later if this doesn’t make sense).
• Toilets are really different in Italy.
• The bidet… that’s all I have to say.
• You pay a Euro or more to use a public, often unisex, bathroom.
• You tip, tip, and tip some more.
• Cars are much smaller in Europe…it seems like a good way to conserve energy and save money.
• Italians don’t use Italian dressing (that I know of!).
• Almost everyone wears dark clothing. Any bright colors seem to be worn as accessories.
• Many Italians can speak English but don’t let on that they can.
• No one has told the people of Europe that smoking kills.
• Not everyone is as welcoming as a Southerner.
• Italian guys…‘nough said.
• There is a rich abundance of history in Italy.
• Nudity in advertisements doesn’t seem to be a big deal.
• Don’t try to bring home raw meat (I didn’t!) or New York’s airport agriculture crew will getcha!
• I love America!

Thank you for reading my blog. I hope it was entertaining and insightful. Here are some more pictures of the trip and a video or two. (I only took about 700 pictures… but here I will share about 70 of them) YAY!

My final “ciao,”

Rebecca

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