lago de garda and firenze!

SO much has been going on here I am way behind on the updates, but here are some highlights: my friends host dad took my friend lena and I to Garda Lake. Its right at the foot of the Alps and is so beautiful. Here is a picture of her and I at the top of a hill by a church looking over the city and the lake.
For the final weekend of our school program we went to Florence (Firenze) for 3 days. Of any where I have been so far I think Florence has been by far my favorite. I think I like it so much because the city and the countryside are so close together you can get a feel for both. There is no blending of the hillside and the crazy city--it just stops and starts. We spent a day up in the hills hiking and cooking and taking a tour of a vineyard and doing a wine tasting. It was so culturally interesting and relaxing. On the way home we climbed to Michelangelos point that over looks the entire city of Florence on one side and the country on the other, it was incredible. In the pictures we were just walking though the city and climbed to the top of the campanile in the city center. Italy has been awesome but I will give an "Hola from Barcelona, Espana" soon! Ciao for now!

Working Out and the Children's Town

Hi! The other day we went to this little village totally designed by children. The designers spent 3 years asking kids what they wanted in a home and had them design all these things for this little village home for about 20 families. It was really cool to learn about the process and see the place. It's the only place in the world like this-you will have to see more pictures as it was fabulous. The stay was cut short by a huge thunderstorm. We took about a 15 min bus ride to get there but naturally we rode our bikes to the bus station. Needlesstosay, when we got back to the bus station,it was a full-on downpour! Of course we were all dressed in shorts and tank tops because it has been about 100 degrees. So we are left with two options, a. ride home in the rain or b. get a ride home and come back later for your bike. Well, the group consensus was option c. drink 2 bottles of wine inside the bus station THEN ride your bike home in the rain. This was actually a very comical event to say the least. When we got back we were the wet Americans, like dogs, so wet we couldn't even go inside the house without getting a towel and some new clothes first. It was pretty funny. Yesterday I made my first attempt at going to a run. To make a long story short, I have never been so STARED at so much in my entire life. Here is a list of reasons I believe everyone was staring at me: one, I have not seen one person jogging here or anywhere in Italy in the 3 weeks I've been here. Everyone always walks or rides their bikes and are not lazy like Americans on a daily basis so there is really no need to exercise. To them I was one of those real life-slow motion Nike commericals you see on tv-Nike shoes, bright short shorts, head band and ipod strapped to my arm (so stereotypical)! I was running so slow and breathing so hard they thought something was wrong with me (it's been awhile since I've taken a run, but I'm going to blame it on the altitude). And finally, they were staring at me because they saw me 6 times in 5 minutes because I ran such a tight circle because I was scared to death of getting lost! Ha! But,a strange American female jogger made quite a scene. So after the experiment with jogging outdoors, I decide I am going to see what an Italian gym is all about and asked to tag along with my mom to the gym today. For starters, we were there for, not kidding, 3 hours and I'm so sore I can't move right now. She's about 5 ft and weighs about 85 lbs and goes to the gym for this long everyday. I was having a semi-normal work out and I was doing well and about to sneak out and go home when my mom comes out and finds me and drags me into this step class (pretty much literally drags me because i don't know what she's trying to tell me because she speaks no Engligh mind you), to an all Italian step class at the gym---oh boy! I have never wished more that there was a video tape of an event in my life more than this high energy, intense, hour long step class, all in Italian. And, as if I don't stand out at this gym enough, (by clearly not knowing what is going on and being about a foot taller than everyone), she throws me into a step class. I would have a hard time following along a step class in America in English for the firt time. Imagine this! I really had to dig deep for my ex-cheerleading, dancing skills and coordination, because this was a major challenge! But 3 hours later I came home after stopping at the store for some gatorade and water and laid down. This lady wore me out! Tonight is our end of the program party at this really cool outdoor villa where a lot people get married so that should be really nice. Everyone's families, siblings, and teachers from school are coming and I think all of us students are going out to some bar afterwards so I'm looking forward to that. I am going to Garda Lake tomorrow all day with a friend and her host dad. It's a beautiful lake resort near the foot of the alps. Then Sunday it's off to Florence, and later to Rome and Barcelona. I have lots to do but I'll be home soon!

Love and miss. Ciao! Oh,lastly, this picture is of my friend Ashley at this school orchestra performance last night. Her sister was in it and my class was preforming. The theater was amazing!

it's hot!

well i don’t know how to read Celsius, but native nebraskan roots tells me it’s about 94-97 degrees outside. this is not a good combo when you put together a lack of air conditioning, riding your bike everywhere, being told to always wear clothes that cover your knees and shoulders, and the disappearance of the invention of ice-there is no real story behind this, just complaining mostly. but seriously it’s really really hot. even the locals are saying this is not normal. the pictures are from the other day at the beach, it was so fun. Well, also dealing with the heat a few of us hit up the local pool after we were done with our school stuff for the day. let me just say public pool etiquette in a foreign country is a serious challenge. i will go ahead and say trying to figure out the public pool system in a foreign country is more difficult than eating, traveling, or any other cultural difference. ha- well it first started out in the "locker room" area. there are like a million of these little stall things you go in to change your clothes before the pool. they highly resemble the look and size of the stalls of horses starting gates before a race, enough said. next you are required to go through this "rinsing" process before getting into the pool (in the states this is merely a suggestion, and i know personally i have never once actually showered before getting into a pool-ya right!) well i guess this is not taken lightly. so picture me in my suit holding all my stuff and towel and getting ready to pass the final stage trying to get to the pool and perplexed by this passageway of shower heads leading to the pool. well being american and taking the “do not enter without showering thing lightly”, i make my way through. to my surprise this little passageway turns on water from all angles, full power! and super soaks me and all my belongings like a full-fledged fantasy carwash. i mean honestly, italy barely has functioning sinks and this sketchy community pool has a freaking motion sensor on the outdoor shower?! and finally the last leg of the adventure came the required swim cap you need to get into the water- you must be thinking oh what a funny picture you and all your friends in swim caps at a creepy italian swimming pool! –no, we broke this rule, americans are way too cool for that. then came a series of other mishaps but it was all good. but besides that, my classroom and teaching has been stellar and the kids seem to really like me. they thought the little rubbery things you put at the end of your pencils i brought them today were really cool. also saturday i am going to Garda Lake with my friend and her family so I’m really excited about that. ill check back soon and post more pics soon. Ciao!

rimini and the disco

this is just a few of my american friends at one of our favorite cafès in the piatzza having lunch. we usually meet there or just hangout and have a drink. on the left is my american friend lena and my host sister kate. we were at her american themed bday party at the disco.
saturday afternoon, I and 3 of my friends took a trip to the beach. we went to a town called rimini and spent the day. it took us about 2 hours by train and it was so awesome. we had lunch right off the beach at the little restaurant with misting fans and well, good fresh salads and buckets of chilled wine. it was awesome. we just relaxed on the beach of the adriadic sea all day just sunning and reading and listening to music. it was much needed after many days of constantly going and walking and always having to be somewhere. note to self: mediterranian sun is much more powerful than omaha-lay-in-your-backyard in the grass sun, wow! i am a little burned but it's all good. i didn't want to come home and be behind all my friends on the tanning scale. ha. but it was more than awesome and i will post some pics soon. italy is a lot smaller than i originally thought and it does not take that long to travel to the coast or other cities. that same night we and a couple other friends went out to the disco with our host sisters. my sister kate was one of a few people at the disco celebrating a bday. to sum up the night think of about 1,500 people in one small area, dancing to techno music with strobe lights, and an episode of mtv's my super sweet 16--you can only imagine. but this coming week is going to be full of school and afternoon activites with my american group. there is a ww2 concentration camp near and i think we might be able to go to it. carpi is a pretty small town so i am excited to be traveling to florance next weekend! i will write back later. love and miss! te amo!

hello from italia!
i'm trying out this blog thing. one of my friends here is doing it and i think i can manage it. i just got done eating lunch (plain salad, cheese, salami and crackers, and fruit) a very good lunch that i really enjoyed. this morning i went to one of the local high schools and sat through 4 classes of english. the teacher i was with was very nice and really excited to have me along to help out and talk to the class. i came in handy when i took about 15 minutes explaining that and essentially mean the opposite thing in american english. it was rough. here is a pic of some of the younger kids i work with at the middle school.
i have really enjoyed travling outside of carpi. so far we have spent a day in verona (home to romeo and juliet's balcony) and a weekend in venice! venice was unbelievable. i will definitely go back there in my lifetime. but i will try and keep this upated as much as i can. ciao! te amo!