First Report from Italia

Hello everyone!

I just wanted to give a little update about my new life here in Italy in case anyone was wondering if I was still alive. (Especially after spending that wild week with Blair in London!) We arrived in London about two weeks ago and I arrived in Treviso airport about a week ago. Blair and I had a great time together- did the pub thing quite a few times, the art and history museums a lot, and of course we managed to see a play at Shakespeare's Globe Theater, A Winter's Tale. Oh and of course there was the very strange, dark play starring Val Kilmer, which we couldn't resist. It was called the Postman Always Rings Twice, but we don't remember seeing any postman. However, after missing the check in gate for my flight to Treviso by 4 minutes, London no longer looked so inviting and fun to me. I had to fork up 200 bucks for a new flight the next morning, sleep in the airport, and miss my first day at the new job which definitely didnt go over so well with the new boss because he no longer was willing to pick me up at the airport. Normally, I would no problem taking a train a few hours in the lovely Italian countryside, but this new home was not exactly on most maps- it involved taking three different buses into the very tiny village of Legnaro, two hours outside of Treviso airport (Venice is about an hour closer but I had taken Ryan Air in an unsuccessful attempt to save money.) The only upside to report is that I met two very nice Croatian guys and a wild Argentinian girl, living in Barcelona. We stayed up at the airport playing football (soccer for all you Americans) until a guard threatened to throw us out if we did not try to sleep on the comfy and spacious folding chairs with all the other poor travelers.
So, I finally arrived in my new home Thursday morning- a very large, but very unfinished and quite messy house on a beautiful street just a few blocks from the school I will be working at. At present, I am living in a room in the basement with a very cool Japanese girl who doesn't speak one word of English, my boss, an Italian guy who thinks he is a hippie at age 31, and his wife, a kind and welcoming Japanese turned Italian, who will be taking my English class. Though I have certainly not fully adjusted to this new experience, I am gradually learning to find the comfort and excitment in this seemingly strange and mundane environment. Despite the language barrier, my roomate and I have connected quite nicely using our combined knowledge of the Italian language. We have found comfort in each other's company, especially when we start to feel embarassed having long conversations in not so perfect Italian with our boss who's native language is Italian. For most meals, the four of us eat together, watching Italian television and speaking only in Italian. I have already started buying and cooking some of my own meals for the family, even though I don't think I have to, nor do i really have the money. But it's an ackward feeling at times, having strangers house you and feed you constantly. I feel like I owe them something. Perhaps when i start working for 200 euro a month I will feel differently.

I have had a few private italian lessons at school with my boss and started work today. This weekend actually went very well. I am a little shocked by how much my boss and his wife drink and actually do a good job of finding the party scene in this small, family-oriented village. Friday night they sponsored a Japanese cultural event where students studying traditional Japanese swordsmanship put on a show in the piazza outside of school. In return, the Italians provided them with a taste of typical Veneto cuisine- sliced horse meat with arugula and radicchio. Yes, I was compelled to try it and yes, it was good, but no I doubt i will be trying it again any time soon. Saturday night was particularly good for me, as we were able to get to know each other much better over many drinks and many long hours. When I went to bed a 6 am, I finally felt a small sence of belonging and comfort in this strange, new home. Nevertheless, things are stll strange between my boss and I when we are at school, but i think it is his way of trying to maintain a sense of professionalism in an environment that begs itself to be anything but.