Nearly Every Major City in the Country

When Sarah arrived, it was as if no time had passed. We had a sleepover at my host family's where we stayed up all night and caught up on the past few weeks. I was even first exposed to Sarah's creepily accurate Golem impression during the middle of the night. Frightening!

The next day was spent planning our week. We booked our hostels, wrote down train times, and called Alyssa, just to make sure we were still going to meet her in Firenze. The following day, we packed our bags and were on our way to Venezia!

We arrived at the train station, walked out of doors, and were greeted by the beautiful view of the sweet Venetian river. We dropped off our luggage in what was probably the smallest room in the city (I actually think our room was a cleaning closet before they shoved 2 beds in there. There was barely even any room for our suitcases!) We took a map and wondered on our way. Most of the day was spent taking photos and getting lost in the city, but we also found a beautiful Venetian mask shop, ran into some sailors by the cruise ships, and bargained our way to a 20 euro gondola ride (at least 30 euro cheaper than it should have been). While waiting for food, we played a game that Sarah called "MASH BUGS," which supposedly tells your future. According to the game, I'm a sexy pilot with 12 kids that lives in a love shack with Hugh Jackman and drives a red Ferrari. Not such a bad life :)

Masquerade Shop: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=it90zhcIGGg

Gondola Ride: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XBXtqDm4OU

Around dinner time, we realized that we had only about 20 euro left between the 2 of us, and in this expensive city, that's barely enough for a first course. We made our way down the main strip, checking each menu as we went. We made it to the last one, and to our disappointment, all we could afford on the menu was spaghetti without any kind of meat. We were about to walk back when the owner of the restaurant came outside and motioned for us to sit down. He signed him back that we didn't have enough money, and he told us to sit down anyway. He let us order what we wanted for our 23.something euro, and I was even given a free 1/2 bottle of wine.

We Have No "Money Food": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbWRKHx1wTQ

After dinner we headed back to Piazza S. Marco and sat down to listen to the music while Sarah sketched a bit. We encountered a magician who tried to steal a few pecks from Sarah, and then ended up getting a few drinks with 2 of the musicians after they finished their shift. The next day we wiggled our way out of our closet of a room and picked up the train to Firenze.

We met up with Alyssa at the train station, chatted there until we could check into our hotel, went to the hotel, and stayed inside the rest of the day catching up in our super king-sized bed. The next day we walked around my favorite city, and bought a few souvenirs (including items from this beautiful authentic leather shop). We spotted a little water rat along the river which we named Steve, and references to him ensued for the duration of our time together.

Ponte Vecchio: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSaPKLXl85U

Steve the Water Rat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5B608DYOTQ

One day we took the train to Lucca, where my Conformation saint, Gemma, lived. Actually, we had to run to the train. The last of us jumped on it right before it started moving. The other 2 like to blame it on me and the time it took me to get ready, but I knew we'd make it and led us there in just enough time. We all just happened to be wearing the same outfit that day, black shirt and kacki shorts, so we referred to ourselves as Charlie's Angels. One man even asked to get his picture taken with us. Of course we obliged, being such camera hogs.

It was like a treasure the entire day, trying to track down St. Gemma, and at every stop finding out so much more about her. We first saw the chapel that she attended everyday (which was closed and I was forced to climb up the wall to peek in the window), saw the outside of the house where she received stigmata, and then wandered into a church where her teacher was preserved under the alter. There we spoke to a nun and she told us some great stories about Gemma and her teacher, some extremely unique tales about the Church itself, and where we could find where Gemma's body was preserved. We tried to enter the Shrine where St. Gemma was buried, but unfortunately had already closed by the time we got there. It was a bit disappointing, but that gives me a reason to return at some point.

The next few days we stayed in Siena at an adorable Bed&Breakfast. At this point in time, we were getting really low on money that we were willing to spend. I was in the mood to eat Chinese, so we wandered around forever trying to find the only Chinese restaurant in the city. The food was so cheap and delicious, that we ordered a ton and pretty much bought out their stock of beer. We found a nice step on the side of a Church and feasted. The food was so good that we ended up doing the same thing the next night.

At the Plaza: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epJIlSobkA8

At this point, Alyssa was leaving for Alba, Sarah was going to Rome to catch her flight home, and I was SUPPOSED to be going down south to visit the family. They both left the B&B early in the morning and I was going to rent the room for one more night. However, the woman said that they were all booked, and I had nowhere to stay. I realized that Sarah's train wouldn't leave for another 20 minutes so I literally packed my bags in 5 and booked it down the hill. I had to hold on to my hat as I ran towards the station, and a few cars honked as I bolted by. I must have looked so silly, but thank goodness I had a 4-wheeler suitcase, or I might not have been able to make it. I bought my ticket, surprised Sarah, and had 4 minutes to spare before the train departed for Rome.

While in Rome, we found this really nice restaurant with live music. As we had almost finished our meals, we started talking to the 2 men sitting next to us. Apparently the one next to me was an Italian politician named Josef, and we bonded over our mutual friend Joe Biden. Josef gave me a photo of him and Biden and he even signed it for me. The following day I spent at least 7 hrs in lines and metros trying to get my bus ticket down to Villapiana. Utterly ridiculous - I have never been in a city where transportation was so unreliable.

Spent one more night with Sarah in our hotel, and then I began the 8 hr journey to Villapiana. Southern sun, here I come!

Castellavazzo

The morning of my travels, I woke up with a profound, burning in my eyes. I could barely open them, and they were red and watering like crazy. And then I realized that I accidentally slept in my contacts. So before my train departed, Marcella took me to the pharmacy to pick up eyedrops.

My new camp director and family must have thought that there was something wrong with me because they continually asked if I was OK. “Oh yeah…I’m fine…the food’s delicious!” as tears were streaming down my face and I was blowing my nose nonstop.

The next day, my eyes still felt like they were making me go blind, so my family took me to the emergency room. I’ve never been to an Italian hospital before, and they thought I was insane for being so excited to go.

I didn’t have to wait long at all before I was called. They asked for my symptoms, had me lay back on the recliner, and then put a drop in each eye. The first one burned so badly and made me feel like I instantly went blind. However, the 2^nd drop instantly cured everything. I swear, it was like a miracle. They sent me home with a prescription, and I was good to go.

This week is my final camp, and I was hoping for a nice, easy one. However, this was not the case. I had some of the most unruly children on the face of the planet. Individually, they 3 boys (Alessandro, Paolo, and Enea) were fine. But when placed together, all hell let loose.

Let’s start with Paolo. He would do the work just fine when I separated him from the other 2, but if one or both were in the room, it’s as if I became invisible to him. He had the loudest, most high pitched voice for a 12-year-old that I’ve ever heard. And he liked to talk. Even his older brother kept telling him to shut up. When he was on his rants, he would stare past me, even if I got directly in his face. When I was finally quieted him down, I’d take a breath to speak, and he’s start up again.

Then there was Enea. He was very bright and helpful when I asked him to be, but he had a mean streak. He and Alessandro were best friends, and on the first day they swapped their names just to mess with me. I later called them out on it.

But the worst of them all was Alessandro. This child would not participate in anything, would throw things when I turned my back, jumped out of windows, and would often run away for periods of time throughout the day.

I had to come up with different ways to calm them down (ex. Competitions against each other, letting them be class DJs, giving out chocolate for participation, etc.) but they were still manic.

One day the 3 of them caught a lizard and brought it into the classroom. “Cool, a lizard! What’s its name?” Enea gave me an evil look. “Jessica.” Well I was just about to strangle them right then and there. A glimpse of that scene from Mean Girls at the watering hole flashed through my mind. But instead I played it off as if I were flattered. “Aww, Little Jessica! How cute. We should make a house for her.” I grabbed some boxes, paints, scissors, markers, and glue, and plopped it in front of them. “What are the 5 rooms in a house?” As they numbered them off, I wrote them on the board. “Now Little Jessica needs things in her house. She wants a couch, a car, doors, etc…” The boys were so excited that I let them finish the house during the whole 2^nd lesson.

They started getting carried away with the project and decided that Little Jessica wanted friends. They went out and caught 3 more, and named them Alessandro, Paolo, and Stifler. Well what do you know, I guess it is a good thing to have a lizard named after you.

During lunch, Alessandro ran up to me with a frantic look. Little Jessica was gone! We looked around the classroom for her, but to no avail. After lunch, however, they restocked the box with a Little Jessica II. After that, they boys kept watch over the lizards like hawks, even barricading off the younger students so that they wouldn’t smush the class pets.

My brats

The final show this week sucked because my kids, for the life of them, would not memorize their lines. Of course my 4 youngest girls were great, but the older ones just wouldn’t do it.

It was a bittersweet moment packing up my desk on the last day. I don’t know if it’s because I realized that this could be the last ever camp with ACLE, or because I survived the week and was so happy to be rid of the brats.

Harry Potter Final Show

Angelica and I

Since I had no camp the next week, my host family offered to let me stay a few extra days to figure out my next move. They took me hiking in the mountains on Saturday, and because we wandered too far, we had to hitch-hike our way back to the car. Definitely a fun time.

Stranded on the side of the road: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QegsPXvAONo

Plans are still uncertain for the next few weeks. Sarah from Alba and Bistagno is coming up to my host family in Longorone, and we might meet up with Alyssa from Alba. As of right now, I’m just extremely looking forward to my first few weeks of vacation.

Remedello

Helen and I had an easy train ride on Saturday. Just 2 trains and we had made it to our next destination. We were greeted by our camp director, Marcella, and her husband and 1-year-old daughter Emma. We were taken to their house for some wonderful hordorves while we discussed plans for next week. Helen and I then went to stay with the same host family because my host family was unavailable for the first 2 days.

Such a cute little host kitten

On Sunday, we were taken to the pool where we took in the sun, did aerobic dancing, and got hit in the bum many times by free-falling volleyballs. This same family later took us salsa dancing. They threw me into the circle once they found out that I was a dancer, even though I’ve never done this style before. The instructor was shouting out directions in Italian for the circle dance, and I had no idea what was going on. They were spinning me around and passing me off to different dance partners...I barely had a chance to get my bearings. Eventually I was able to pick up on the steps, and I blended in with the rest of them.

Helen and I were a little nervous about the high number of students and diverse ages at this camp, but we started off the week with a bang. The students were fantastic and were so enthusiastic to learn. We also had a helper, Giuditta, who was terrific with the kids. And our camp director kept the fridge stocked with fruit, so we were able to replenish our lacking nutrients from the 2 weeks before of only canteen food.

The nights were also kept very busy. One night we went to Brescia with Helen’s 20-year-old host sister, Betsy, and her friend. Marilena. They both were so funny together. We went to get aperitivos at this high-end restaurant, and they showed us the best way to arrange the food so that you can squeeze as much as possible onto the plate.

The following night, Marcella and Giuditta took us to see the new Harry Potter film! It was shown in Italian, but we were still able to catch the jokes. The theater was completely sold out, and it was awesome experiencing the HP craze in another country.

Another night we went to a Chinese restaurant. In addition to spinach, Helen and I were craving ethnic food. It was so delicious, and I probably won’t get another food experience like that until I return to the states. After we finished eating, we took a walk around Lago di Garda and got a gelato.

For the final show, my class performed The Chronicles of Narnia. This was probably one of the best performances I’ve done for both summers – the students got really into it and were so animated with their characters. I also had background music for the different scenes (with awesome DJs), and creative costumes – ex. A centaur and a faun. These kids were some of the best, and I’ll really miss teaching them.

On the final night, my host family took Helen and me to Mantova. Got some cool night-time photos and it was a nice way to spend the night before Helen and I had to say goodbye.

I’m being sent back up into the mountains – AGAIN! Not quite sure where since I haven’t had a chance to look on a map. I’ll just be hopping from train to train, hoping that I’ll get there and there’ll be someone awaiting my arrival.

Cemmo - Week 2

On Saturday, Helen and I decided to go to Lake Iseo to lay out in the sun. We took the ferry over to Monte Isola and found a perfect spot right by the water. On Sunday, Sr. Roberta took us hiking in the mountains with her parents, sister, and nephew and niece. This mountain was so steep that it was completely exhausting. I felt like I was leaning forward too much, yet I never hit the ground. It was a beautiful but tiring day, and it made my allergies go crazy.







The students returned on Monday morning, along with Emanuele. During breakfast, my past host mom came downstairs and we both screamed out of excitement. I was smothered with kisses and she gave me a souvenir from Spain - a red bracelet that matches my tutor shirt. It was so thoughtful of them.

Reunited!

Helen and I continued to escape from the convent every night this week. This time we went to the same restaurant that we did the 1st night to get a side of spinach along with our liter of wine.

One night we went to go see a circus that came to town. It was advertised as a Winnie-the-Pooh Magic Circus. However, Winnie only came at the end and he himself didn't do any magic. But the rest of the show was entertaining and I got to hold a python after the ticket vendor dragged me into the center of the ring.

The next morning I had to get contact solution, so Sr. Roberta said that she would take me at 9am (the time that camp starts). Helen and I devised a plan to make a murder mystery game to explain my absence. We wrote a script for the kids the night before and assigned them their Fairy Tale characters later. That morning, I dressed as Henry VII and did my whole spiel before disappearing during morning circle. Sr. Roberta drove me to the optical store, and once I walked in, I was greeted by my former host dad from last year! I completely forgot that he owned an optical store! It was so coincidental.

The rest of the murder mystery fame was a success, and the kids came up with some extremely creative answers as to why they chose the characters as the murderer. One of my favorites was, "Cinderella. Because she's got an ugly face."

The final show was a bit stressful, but they all ended up doing very well. We said our goodbyes, and Helen and I are heading back to civilization next week - Remedello!

Cemmo - Capo di Ponte

I made it to Brescia just fine after transferring from 3 trains, but it was on the last league of my journey where things went wrong. I was told that once I arrive in Brescia, I had to buy a bus ticket to Capo di Ponte. I did so, and then stood out by the bus stop. I noticed after a few minutes that the bus that the man told me to take was directed instead towards Capo di Monte. I went bact into the Tabacchi to exchange my ticket and repeated my destination, putting an extra emphasis on "PONTE." "Ahh...I do not know." Well great. He asked another woman behind the counter for help, and she sold me a ticket for the correct bus. But the stop was a bit of a walk. Once I made it to the stop, there was no signdirecting me to the platform. I asked countless people, including bus drivers, and they all kept sending me in different directions. It appears that no one knows where Capo di Ponte is except for this creepy old man who kept following me and offering me a ride. I was shuffled around everywhere and the time for departure had passed, and I still couldn't find my ride.

I was just about to sit down and cry when a kind man named Stefano came up to me and asked if I needed help. He let me use his phone call my camp director, and he asked a different bus driver where I should be. Well apparently there's no bus running today to Capo di Ponte...Geez thanks ACLE. And why in the world was I sold a bus ticket when I clearly wanted to get there today!? Crazy Italians.

Stefano brought me back to the train staion, told me which ticket to buy, and made sure that I got on the correct train. After all that, I ended up in the same station where I started. Figures.

Once I arrived, I was met by a group of nuns and my fellow tutor, Helen. I felt a bit under-dressed as I exited the train in my shorts and tank top, while they were in their longs skirts and habits.

We were taken to the convent and were shown to our rooms. We ate pizza at a restaurant that night, and I immediately got a flashback - I had been here before! I ate at this restaurant last year with my host family from Cerveno! Once I realized how close I was to my past host family, I sent them a message, and my host mom ended up calling Sr. Roberta to speak to me on the phone. She was so excited that we could see each other again. She said that the family was on vacation in Spain this week, but Emanuele, my brother, would be attending camp for the 2nd week.

I decided on having the green book group this week. These kids knew a lot of English, so it was fun joking around with them.

Teaching a dance for the Final Show

Skateboarding Nun: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7A0ySp7pkPg

We went to the pool one afternoon with the kids, and they sang camp songs during the entire walk to the train station, on the train, walking to the pool, during the pool time, at dinner, and on the way back home. We couldn't escape! However, I had one coffee too many after dinner, so I was jumping around and singing with them. It started raining while we were waiting for the train, so Sr. Roberta met us once we arrived in Capo di Ponte, and we walked under 2 giant tents, all the way up the hill, back to the convent.

Bored on the train ride

Pool Parade: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFc6xZ5KA2I

At nights, Helen and I would "escape" (we actually had the key) to the onoly bar to get a gelato and drink a bottle of wine.

We ended the week with a Bin Bag Fashion Show. Each person had to dress up using garbage bags and perform a dance within their group. The tutors, Giovanna our helper, and Sr. Roberta performed the Spice Girls Wannabe. Sr. Roberta was Sporty Spice. I gave out American coins as the prizes for the best group.



The kids are going home for the weekend --they'll all be back next week!

Bistagno

It was a nice easy trip from Alba to Bistagno with Mandhir and Sarah. A very short journey...However, Mandhir lost his train ticket and we all had to play stupid tourists that didn't understand Italian so that he wouldn't get fined for losing it.

Once we arrived in the small town, our camp director Alessandra took us to a fancy restaurant where we had homemade ravioli and wine, while we discussed the camp details. Afterwards we were taken to our host families, all of which lived within close walking distance.

That night there a festival going on in Bistagno, so my family took me out for some kebobs, endless Spriz's (a popular Italian aperitivo), and house music. My host dad also bought me some wine and we got into this big discussion about the best types, so from that night on he had me try a different brand every night at dinner.

The camp itself was so well organized, that it felt wonderful to be there after the difficult weeks in Alba. Honestly, the week just flew by and I actually forgot to take photos because we had so much fun that week.

I had a Blue book group of 15 students (ages 11-13). They were all so well-behaved and were excited about every activity that I had prepared for them. They made the job so easy.

A Medley of Fairy-Tale Characters

Also our camp director was so relaxed about what we did on our break time. Almost every day, Mandhir and I (and sometimes Sarah) would sneak off to a coffee bar down the street and talk to some of the locals.

Break time at the Coffee bar: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwNQLn-Go2I

The Great Tower of Tutors

After camp the 3 of us would go for walks around the town. One time we went for a run, and my host sister and her fiance told us later that they saw us stopped by the old church stretching our muscles. As I said, this is a pretty small town.

This same host sister Alice and her fiance Matteo took me to Acqui Terme one night and we saw the Milano Ballet School perform on an outside stage. Afterwards they took me to see the famous hot springs, and then we went to get some gelato and fruit. At the gelato bar, we ran into Mandhir and Sarah and their host families, so we stopped to chat.

Hot springs

It was such a stress-free week that it flew by so quickly. My next camp assignment is somewhere up in the mountains --- at a convent! Oh God...pray for me.

Both Mandhir and Sarah are going sent together to a different camp, but I guess being the return tutor, I get the privilege of traveling alone for 12 hours up to the mountains. Our parting words to each other were singing to the song "My Heart will go On,"

as Mandhir piggy-backed me to the platform.

Alba

I have to say, I feel like Maria from The Sound of Music on travel days, with my giant sun hat and matching luggage, going to teach children. I've noticed that people stare more frequently, trying to get a glimpse of who's under the hat. It's just because they know that I'm a celebrity and prefer to travel inconspicuously as to attract as little attention as possible. No big deal.

I was sent to Alba for a 2-week camp (my first 2-weeker in ACLE) and it seemed very exciting. I read online that Alba was known for their Ferrero chocolates - the creator of Nutella! I died of pure happiness. If you remember from last year's blogs, I developed a sick, unhealthy obsession with Nutella. And the town didn't disappoint. It was everywhere - plus our camp director's husband worked at Ferreo, so we received endless amounts of chocolates everyday, including the kind that contained a little shot of espresso. hehe

I was with a Red Book (10-11 year-olds) for these 2 weeks - they're one of my favorite groups to teach because they're easily excited and can generally comprehend enough English to understand what you're saying. My kids were great and listened very well - especially when compared to the rest of the camp. The camp as a whole was a bit difficult to control, probably because everything was new: the camp, the directors, the children, and 4 of the tutors were brand new to ACLE. Basically the entire camp was in my hands and those of the other returning tutor, Alyssa. It was definitely challenging keeping an eye on everything at once.

The first week in Alba was a bit rough because the camp directors had a different idea of what an ACLE camp should be like, and every day a different problem arose, so that we constantly dreaded the after0camp staff meeting. However, by the time the 2nd week came around, mostly everything got cleared up and we were free to do whatever activities we wanted to plan.

My group performed Scooby Doo

There was one time during free play when the boys kicked a ball far up in a tree. They tried throwing objects to knock it down, but to no avail. There were no branches low enough to climb up, so it looked like a lost cause. However, the tree was growing right next to 2 other trees. So being crazy genius and mega-muscle woman, I pushed my bacxk against one tree, feet against another, and pulled a Mulan by shimmying my way to the top. I received a round of applause as I threw the ball to the kids, but then I realized that I didn't know how to get down. It was too far to jump and I lost my footing from the other tree to get to the ball. I felt like a cat stranded. "Call the fire department!" But I was able to tree-hug my way down far enough for 2 of the camp helpers to grab my feet, assisting me to readjust my footing and jump the rest of the way.

The next day or 2, the kids ran up to me during break time, paning and saying that the ball got stuck on the roof. "Per favore, la prenda! Ti prego!" I just laughed. "Sorry guys, game over."

My host family for this camp was too precious. My mom Nadia, dad Federico, 2 children Angelica (9yrs) and Michele (5yrs) wer so sweet. Angelicqa and I frequently played dress-up, danced to Mamma Mia songs, and watched Italian Disney Princess films like Enchanted. Michele was like a cute little monkey that only weighed about 40lbs, so you could easily throw him over your shoulder, which I frequently did. He learned the English word "strong" after a day or day of being with me.

Michele: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uH0McmxmmY

We also went bowling for Angelica's 9th birthday party. She and some of her friends who also went to camp met us at a casino/bowling alley and we got pizza and played a game of bowling. I showed off my major skills by getting strike after strike, and all of the girls kept asking me to bowl for them as well. When I got 3 strikes in a row, I yelled "TACCHINO!" and they all cheered. Thanks to Bowlerama Saturday-morning bowling league for tuning my skills.

Angelica in the Mountains: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O81MQZ6MkpY

I got an adorable photo with all of the girls and me holding the bowling balls in front of the alley, but unfortunately I accidentally deleted the photo before I downloaded it. I finished by scoring a 171, which I also took a photo of, but again that one got deleted. Figures right? Now no one will believe me...

The first few nights in Alba I went out with my host family's neighbor, Fabio, and his friends. He took me on his Vespa through the mountains before meeting up with his friends for pizza, drinks, and guitar music, which they played "Sweet Home Alabama" for me. I have to say, I never completely understood why Vespas were such a big deal, but after riding on one I will never doubt its amazingness again. It was such an exciting, sensual experience - staddling some Italian guy on a vibrating machine and holding on for dear life as you zoom through the winding, narrow streets past the flying cars; the whistling sound hitting your helmet, your nose gathering the scent of the boy in front of you. Brownies, for some reason. Advice from me, if you ever get the opportunity to ride on a motorbike, by all means do it. It's something you won't regret.

The weekend was spent with my family in the Aosta mountains. They had a house up there and they took me hiking to the top of a beautiful mountain. I had a lot of fun in the car ride, teaching Angelica some English handshakes, while she then taught me some Italian ones. On the ride back home, both kids fell asleep on my shoulder, and me on them.

Hiking up to the mountains

We found a playground and took a break

Tutors are being separated next week. I'll be working with Mandhir and Sarah in the small town of Bistagno!