Arrival

These first two weeks in Milan have been interesting. I left my home in Washougal at 5:30 in the morning Sunday September 5, had a layover in Chicago, a second layover in London, and finally arrived in Milan at noon the day after, Monday September 6. I flew over London right at sunrise and can verify that they do in fact drive on the left side of the road. Weird!! I also think I caught a glimpse of London Bridge.
Our Apartment in Milan is really large and has very tall ceilings. It is also very close to downtown and the University. My roommates are three girls, two from New York and one from Brazil. All speak much more Italian than I do which has been very very helpful. Our internet in our apartment did not work for the entire first week, which made communicating to people back home difficult.
I have had a week and a half of my intensive Italian course and have learned so much. I am now able to order at restaurants in Italian, very important! Prendo un Vino Rosso per favore. My roommate Nicole and I are now regulars at a little espresso bar on the way to school each morning. The gentlemen that run it are so friendly and its fun watching them slice eggplant and zuchinni each morning for paninis. Nicole and I attempt to make conversation with them but its still a little difficult...but we were able to tell them where we were from and order cappucinos of course.
One thing I MUST mention about Italy is the gelato!! I had heard it was good but never imagined that it would be sssoooo good. There is a gelateria on the way home from school called Chocolat that is amazing. Their must-haves are: Tiramisu, Hazelnut, milk chocolate, and nutella.You must always get two flavors or they look at you weird and someone that works there has already noticed how often we stop by.
Last weekend, Nicole, Morgan and I took a train to Lecco on Lake Como. It was a beautiful day and we took a boat tour. Not a bad place to have a villa.
At the moment, I am stuck at home because I have a cold. I just hope I get over it soon because it is really detrimental to my social life...all my roommates are out on the town without me :-( There have been thunderstorms and rain all day so our scheduled trip to the Cinque Terre has been postponed to next weekend. Crossing my fingers for good weather, I can't wait to get some mediterrenean sunlight!!!