Pictures are worth a thousand words but, i still managed to write a thousand words

I was just beginning to get the idea that you guys might want some pictures. Don't know where i got that idea :) These are only pictures of people. I'll put the pictures of the Citties up in another one. I want more of them first. These are only a few.

Lucrezia and Me.

Me, Giuseppe's sister-Piera, Michele, Cosimo, Lucrezia, Maria

Finlay in my new hat :)

Riccardo and Eduardo

Where's the missing twin? (That's what Douglas said i should call this picture)

Scott, Bianca, Douglas, and minnie and pluto.

This was the funniest thing ever. Scott and Finlay were exchanging their pants. It was hillarious. I got a film of it. Of course the films aren't working on here but, this is a picture. It was great I'll give you "ben ten" for two "mr. men" Their bargaining skills were impressive. These guys don't really share anything they just have one for each of them. It's amazing how they tell the difference. So, anyway i captured a rare historic moment in which Finlay actually found something that was worth not one but TWO green pants. (green is his favorite)

Scott with the beloved chew-chew that no baby or toddler can live without. Even when they go to a famous tree in Switzerland just to give them up. :)

These aren't even a part of the pictures i've taken since i got the camera last week. I take so many in Sicily that it seems silly to put them up yet. 

Sicilia

Ciao Everyone,

I made it to Sicily alive. Just so you know, the weather and the sea are beautiful. I'm cheerfully enjoying my warm winter and thinking lovingly of everyone back home :) If it makes you feel any better, while it is a costal city, there are no beaches in Marsala so, I'm not sunbathing or anything.

I was going to do my homework before i wrote but, of course i did make this blog to avoid such things. I'm staying with Giuseppe's sister. Everyone was really worried that she would be "too much" as Bianca puts it, like Giuseppe. No worries. She's not at all. She's a lot how I think my mom would be if we moved to Sicily. She's really nice and she's a fantastic cook. Her husband is a doctor. It was his birthday today. We have pictures. Cosimo is 15 and he knows more grammatical things about english than I do. Lucrezia is the real reason I'm avoiding my homework right now. She's 9 and she's a wonderful girl but, she doesn't leave me alone even when I'm being really boring like reading scriptures or blowdrying my hair or eating carrots. She just stares at me while I do it and it's really hard to concentrate. She didn't go to school today but, she'll go tomorrow so I figure my homework can wait until she is no longer trying to read over my shoulder. Also in the pictures is Giuseppe's mom. I don't know any of  the adults names. You can pick up kids names because they are said so often but, only mama, papa, and nona for the adults so, it's more difficult.

Funny stories from home Bergamo.  When I say prayers at dinner Scott and Finlay can't understand everything I say but, they pick up their names so, I've had to start naming everyone in the prayer. It's really difficult to remember to say something for everyone but, Scott and Finlay get angry if I don't so, I'm learning quickly. On Saturday I left right before lunch and Bianca texted me to tell me that Scott and Finlay said the prayer since I was not there. She told me that they've been doing it at every meal since. I bought a camera about a week ago. Aparently it's are really nice camera. I just bought the cheapest one I could find but, everyone says it's really great so, huzzah to my purchasing skills. Anyway, I've been going crazy making videos of Scott and Finlay. They are so so adorable. Bianca says that me going to sicily for so long will be good for the boys because they can get used to the fact that i'm not always there but, I think I need it more than they do.

The family here is really a ton of fun. Lucrezia is really sweet even though I can't do my homework-hey that's a blessing right? If we all spoke the same language I think we'd all be great friends. I am learning more italian and quickly which is good. I have a dictionary and so does Lucrezia so we try to make things work.

Sicilia is so full of history. It was taken over by everyone. Greeks, Romans, and a ton of people so there is a ton of history and cool monuments in this little town. It's really cool to learn everything. I'm developing a bit of an Italian accent. It's not that i can't speak normal, it's just that i tend to speak the same as them. I think they understand it better when i stress the same vowels they do.

AWE! and Sicilia

Alright so life is about to go at a much faster speed. I don't know what to think about it. I'm really excited and at the same time, when I look at the calendar I think, "Oh no! Where has Italy gone?" I know, I know i'm only halfway throught but, IM HALFWAY THROUGH.

What if I never come back? What if the next time I see Eduardo is when he's 17 and comes to be an exchange student in America? One thing that has seriously changed in me since coming here is the way I view travelling the world. It's not just an idea anymore. It's real. Tomorrow I'm going to post pictures of the reality. Bianca and Douglas live their lives going anywhere and everywhere just because it's there. They took Scott and Finlay to a tree in Sweden where all the babies place their pacifiers as a way of growing up. They are supposed to put them on the tree and then leave them. (It didn't work, Scott and Finlay put their old ones on and grabbed new ones off the tree) The way of life is just incredible. Granted, when you think about it, everything in Europe is about as far away from our house as California, but even still! I don't think I can possibly NOT come back at this point. Maybe I can't every winter but, wow, everyone, seriously, if you get a chance to see the world take it. Stop rationalizing out of it, take a chance. It's amazing.

Anyway, I wasn't planning to go on that spill. I just wanted to get on and say "I'm going to Sicily on Saturday" And it got me thinking. That's so weird to say "I'm going to Sicily on Saturday." I dunno, I'm just constantly in a state of awe at my actually being here. Anyway, I'm never going to get through this simple little blog if I keep talking about how wowed i am about life.

Schedule for the rest of Italy
Feb 14-19 (Happy Valentines Day EVERYONE by the way) La Citta Alta and Bergamo (Pictures for real. Even though it's raining)
Feb 19-Mar 1- Sicilia. I'll be in Marsala. Clear on the western end of Sicilia.
Mar 18-20- Rome
Mar 25-27-London
Mar 31- Going home

Venicia Verona Piza Milano are all somewhere in the middle. Hopefully. Those are a bit difficult since I have to find someone to go with. Still, I'm not leaving Italia without seeing Venice.

Let me tell you what I know about the people I'm staying with in Sicilia. It's Giuseppe's sister's family and they have teenage boys. So, Camilla, for your birthday I'll give you a Sicilian penpal. ;) and then you can get married when you're older. They don't speak very much English.  fun, fun.

Speaking of Birthdays. There are several that are coming up and I'm just wondering whatcha want? In fact if anyone wants to tell me some cool Italian thing they want let me know because you're all getting presents anyway. It may as well be something you actually want. no?

Okay, I just realized that I switch off between Italian names and English names a lot. That's a good sign I suppose. Everyone keep smiling. Life is purely awesome. Love ya lots.

Address to a Haggis

It's not that the last few days have been really eventful, it's just that i've been sick so, I have spent lots of time doing my homework and just lying around so i figure i may as well write.

I had a really high fever yesterday. 39! I had no idea how to respond when Bianca told me. I seriously need to figure out celsius but, aparently it was really bad. The worst thing about it was i think i made the babies at Raffaella's sick. Or they made me sick. Either way we're all sick. But, i'm getting better. I hope the babies do too and that Giuseppe doesn't hate me forever. It wasn't until Friday afternoon that I was really not feeling good but, i spent all of Friday at Raffaella's.

Today is a National Scottish Holiday "Robbie Burns Day." Actually I think that was on the 25th of January but, we're celebrating it today. No, unfortunately Douglas wouldn't go all out and wear his kilt and sing a poem to the haggis. They actually sing a poem to the food. That's because Robbie Burns is a famous poet that wrote a poem to the haggis. Why did he write the address? Douglas thinks it was a joke. I'm with him. If i'm ever a famous poet i'm doing something like that.

Address to a Haggis
1.
Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o' the puddin-race!
Aboon them a' ye tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye wordy of a grace
As lang's my arm.
2.
The groaning trencher there ye fill,
Your hudies like a distant hill,
Your pin wad help to mend a mill
In time o' need,
While thro' your pores the dews distil
Like amber bead.
3.
His knife see rustic Labour dight,
An' cut ye up wi' ready slight,
Trenching your gushing entrails bright,
Like onie ditch;
And then, O what a glorious sight,
Warm-reeking, rich!
4.
Then horn for horn, they stretch an' strive:
Deil tak the hindmost, on they drive,
Till a' their weel-swall'd kytes belyve
Are bent like drums;
Then auld Guidman, maist like to rive,
'Bethankit!' hums.
5.
Is there that owre his French ragout,
Or olio that wad staw a sow,
Or fricassee wad mak her spew
Wi perfect scunner,
Looks down wi' sneering, scornfu' view
On sic a dinner?
6.
Poor devil! see him owre his trash,
As fecl;ess as a wither'd rash,
His spindle shank a guid whip-lash,
His nieve a nit;
Tho' bluidy flood or field to dash,
O how unfit.
7.
But mark the Rustic, haggis-fed,
The trembling earth resounds his tread,
Clap in his walie nieve a blade,
He'll make it whistle;
An' legs, an' arms, an' heads will sned
Like taps o' thrissle.
8.
Ye pow'rs, wha mak mankind your care,
And dish them out their bill o' fare,
Auld Scotland wants nae skinking ware,
That jaups in luggies;
But if ye wish her gratfu' prayer,
Gie her a Haggis!

Anyway, I didn't get to actually hear the poem and Douglas' scottish friends didn't come because, Bianca and I are both not feeling well. I don't have a temperature or anything anymore, it's just recovering I suppose. Next time, they will come though, and i'm going to beg for a performance. :) I was too easy letting Douglas off the hook.

Anyway, do you guys want to know what Haggis is? It actually doesn't taste that bad but, it's disgusting. It's basically meatloaf.

Here's the recipe: Take the liver, lungs, and heart of a sheep and boil. Mince the meats and mix with chopped onions, toasted oatmeal, salt, pepper, and spices. Take one properly cleaned sheep's stomach. Stuff the cleaned stomach with the prepared contents. Sew up the stomach (leaving enough room for expansion to avoid a large messy explosion) and boil. Serve and eat. Lovely!

They didn't tell me what it was until after i ate but, they were so nervous and always saying "now if you don't like it, please don't eat it" Scott and Finlay, like true scotsmen love it. I don't think that is the actual recipe anyway. That's how it was in old times but, now it's just any meat in the cooked in the stomach of a lamb. Okay, fine, it's a disgusting idea. We didn't eat the outside.

Anyway, that's all to report. That, and I'm either going to Sicilia on Wednesday or in March. Times had to change because the family is going on vacation. I just can't decide when to go. March is so busy and February isn't but, next week is midterms for my online classes. Still, I think i'm going to study hard and go on Wednesday. I'll keep you posted.

Persevera e presta attenzione

I know it's been a while since the last post but, everyone kept telling me how much they loved it and i thought 'dang, my next one's gotta be good' So i kept waiting for some inspiration but, we'll see how it goes

Well last week the sister missionaries came over and taught me a lesson. The Marshals weren't here so we were basically just chatting. It was fun though. Then I went with them to teach a lesson, and the person didn't show up so, we went knocking on doors. It was pretty sweet being a missionary. 'cept it's not like i could understand anything. One guy was interested. More in us then the Book of Mormon but, he still took it. There was a baptism Saturday night. i had a meeting for school so i didn't go but, it was pretty cool because i realized that, that was the same day i was baptized.

I spent a lot of time getting lost this week. I had a vow that I  was never going to tell my mom or Douglas that I got lost if I could help it. At least not until I was back home. Because, it's not like i was really lost. Okay, I was on the other side of the city. I wasn't even in the city. BUT there are signs pointing to the Center everywhere and I live by the Center so it was easy enough.

Don't worry about it though, there are plenty of people already worried. Raffaella's husband comes home to make lunch a lot and he told me that he was following me one day. He was following me to make sure that nobody else followed me. I had no idea what to say to him when he told me that. Thank you for stalking me?

When I told Douglas I got lost I was afraid I'd be under house arrest. He took it well. He told me that getting lost was good for me. I hope my mom feels the same way :).

Institute has been getting better. It was getting really annoying the way nobody would talk to me even though they could. And i felt like i was just being annoying because i was just there, needing a translator and a ride home. So, it was a little better this week. there are two people that live kind of by me and they don't speak english but, they're friendly so, it all works.

There is a scottish holiday coming up that we're celebrating. Douglas is going to sing to the food for us. Only if we beg though. Everyone does in Scotland. I'm going to Sicily in two weeks and i'll be there for about 10 days. I'm going with a relative of Raffaella's. Ever since i knew of the existence of Sicily i've really wanted to go and the way Bianca and Douglas talk, its a chance i can't pass up.

Things have been going so fast. I've officially been here just over a month! I only have 7 1/2 weeks left. I heard by family went and bought some Nuttella. I think that's going to have to be something I only eat in Italy. If I eat it back home too, there'll be no hope for me. I've eaten lots of different types of prosciuto this week, and that's only funny because Karolyn warned me not to eat it. It's getting warmer and the Gelato shops are opening longer, which is totally fine with me :)

I have been having a lot of fun with this question book mum bought me for my birthday. It teaches you how to ask questions i guess. It's turning me into an even worse psychologist then i already am but, It's really cool and I've spent a lot of time just reading it outside because I love the way it makes me think. It's too difficult to explain it in a broad perspective but it basically suggests asking questions that make you see life in a different, better  way and I've been playing around with it, and it's so cool! I'm learning a ton about myself and while a major part of that is probably throwing myself into this adventure, it's been really cool having this book. Thanks Mom!

I can't think of anything else. The Italian is coming. I don't know if faster is the right word but, I understand a lot of what Scott and Finlay say. I dont know if that's a good thing because they make up words. So do i speak Italian or the language Scott and Finlay make up?

Eduardo and Riccardo have been lots of fun this week. I was trying to put Riccardo to sleep and I was singing him Primary songs. He was totally out but, every time i stopped singing he cried. Every time i tried to put him down, he cried. That wasn't very fun at the time but, it was really sweet. I was feeding both of the babies sometime in the middle of the week and they started giggling. And i don't know what was so funny, but it was hillarious because they couldn't stop laughing. I also taught them pat-a-cake and they are in love. (I've been trying to teach games to Scott and Finlay, and trust me there have been some great tries. So far the only ones they've got are hide and seek and dead man. I have no idea why they took to dead man so well.) At Raffaellas  There are two walkers now, so that the  babies can race. They also have blocks. Eduardo knocks them down instantly. He's becoming a super fast crawler and so, even if i set them up across the room, it's down in a second. Riccardo is much more calm about them. Leone just barks at them.
I was trying to make a video of Leone this week but, my camera's battery died. This dog is like a cartoon. He picks up things with his front paws and walks on his back legs. He's the smartest dog i've ever met. (no offense bella)

As i've gotten lost i've seen a lot of cool buildings and monuments this week. I love Italian Architecture, it's so beautiful and detailed. There are lots of cool churches right out my front door with bell towers and coolness.

Anyway, I'm being boring to Scott and Finlay so I'm going to go.

ps There are chocolates here that have notes like fortune cookies in them. I don't know what it means but, the title of my blog is what it said in my little chocolate.
I think maybe it says persevere and pay attention but, I didn't feel like checking.