There is, however, a major problem with that ideology: I actually have to do work and do it ahead of time in a foreign country where all I want to do is just go and explore, using my free time to really see everything I can. It's not easy, you know.
But yes, Thursday after I got out of class, I napped and took it a bit easy; it was such an intense string of days with classes, papers, visitors, limited sleep, studying, and I was really just ready to kick back and relax for a night, which is what I did. Chad, Bert, and I watched Burn After Reading, which someone had on their computer. It was really funny, very twisty and odd, enjoyed it thoroughly. We started streaming Eagle Eye too, but we got about 20 minutes in and it died. Contrary to what the movie execs think, I would not have seen it before I saw this part, but now that I have had such a taste of it, I may end up seeing it when it comes out over here. We had a bunch of people over from the apartments around us and just all relaxed, hung out, and went to Art Cafe, which a really nice club here in Roma. We got in for free, and the group I went with was probably one of my favorites to date, just as it was all really good people I've known for a while and feel pretty comfortable around. I laughed pretty hard that night just at the sheer ridiculousness that Euro clubs evoke out of people. Dancing, hysterical music, and way too much unintentional comedy for one man to handle.
I got back and crashed, but it was pretty late, and we had to get up early to go to Celano, or this little town to the East of Roma in the Abruzzo region of Italy. Now, my professor is an Oxford alum Sociologist and Anthropologist, and he lives in this little village known for its very communist outskirts and rather outlandish people (side note: people in Italy think of the Celanese people as very backward and kind of hick-like, as they once beat the living tar out of a ref in a soccer match years back and got banned from their league for a while. Pretty much cemented this ideal).
Now, our professor is as Oxford as they come, complete with accent that is so easy to mock and completely loveable in an "I am so enthralled by these people that you can't possibly help but be too" kind of way. We got into the central town square and got a grand tour of different churches in the region that are patronized by people who probably wouldn't be classified as good Catholics, but still care about religion. It was really a pretty Hermiston-esque place in terms of country locations, and the scenery reminded me heavily of the gorge. Really, really nice.
There was also this beautiful castle, a mixture of Medieval and Renaissance work, and we spent a good while in there getting a local history lesson from a man who couldn't look more out of place if he tried, but he speaks flawless Celanese dialect and the people all seem to know him and look at us as if we were some sort of oddity. We are, though, I suppose. The only people that ever come through there are Italian and very, very few tourists ever venture out to that region, although everyone was very nice and I had a great time people watching. I tried out some Italian with a group of kids from a class, about 8-9 years old, trying to ask them where they were from and what they were doing there. They understood and talked to me for a minute, and besides one kid who I was informed didn't speak Italian, they were fun to talk to.
I like Italian. Especially when I'm doing ok with it.
There was a market set up, and this shop was there that sold supposedly the best biscotti (in Italy, biscotti is cookie) in all of Italy. I had to see this, as if you know anything about me, I am a cookie fan to the absolute limit. A few of us went into this shop and two old Celanese women helped us out. I spoke as much Italian as I could and they were very confused as to how I was an American who spoke Italian, for two months, no less. They were impressed and complimented us several times over, but I know they had an agenda.
The biscotti were amazing, by the way. Amaretto, or almond, biscotti are their specialty, and they were really very good. A+. And I understood what the people were saying, and once again: I like Italian. Especially when I'm doing ok with it.
From there, we went over to the middle of the drained lake, about 10 miles away from Celano the village, to this dust bowl style town, shanty-buildings and filled with nothing but about 5 native Italian, 20 migrant Moroccan and Tunisian workers, and us. My class has about 5 guys and 25 girls, who were all stared at frequently. They had never seen Americans before, apparently. They spoke broken Italian and African French, and I tried to talk with some of them for a while, but it was not easy.
Vincenzio, the proprietor of a bar / general store in that town (if that's what you can call it) set up a feast for us of sandwiches, wine, beer, coke, and Italian twinkie-like desserts. We feasted, attempted to talk with the migrant workers, and laughed hysterically about our professor's talking with the people and looking so out of place yet fit in so well. They had a soccer videogame there, which Phil (a guy who lives next door to us) and I played for about half an hour against each other with the migrant workers watching us curiously. I offered them to play, but they looked very intimidated.
We eventually left and I can't really convey to you how odd the day continued to get from here. We went out to as far from civilization is seems you can get in Italy to this farmhouse of a communist news publishing group who wants to have the freedom of the press here in Italy, something that currently doesn't exist. He showed us this movie he and his friend had made (an Iraqi expatriot) and it was so campy and corny in its attempt to be in English and appear American, but an "admirable" effort on their part. I'm all about freedom of the press, and the people were very earnest in their efforts, but it was an hour long about something we don't really understand being foreigners.
After it was over, there was an equally painful Q&A portion that I wish we could've avoided like the plague, not going to lie. After that though, there was a snack spread and I talked with Kirsten for a minute. In Cairo. It was amazing to hear about her first day in Cairo, but man, I'm so jealous. It's crazy. I mean, I'd had such an interesting day that I will remember for quite a long time, but the fact that she was in Cairo, seeing all of these amazing things, I was just blown away. It sound amazing, and in just a few days, I'll be there too; I just wish I could be there right now! It sounds so cool!
But yes, we rode the bus back after that, and Amber, Cara, and I discussed what we would do if we won a million Euro and had to spend it in a week over here. The answers were fun, and the rolling countryside out the window with a sunset was very fitting as an ending to our day. We rolled back in and many people wanted to go out, but Amber, myself, and a few others were a little over being up and about, so we made our way back to Candia.
Meg and Kelly came over again after I took a quick nap; they had just arrived back from Florence and came over for a simple dinner. It was really nice to see them again, and Phil (the same one from earlier) came over with us and went out to this fantastic donut shop with 30 cent donuts that will blow your mind; I only wish I could show you. On top of that, we went over to a gelato shop and chatted for over an hour outside about politics, the election, and people from high school. It was a really nice evening that ended pretty abruptly after Kelly and Meg left, as I had to get some sleep. Some people went to the chocolate festival today; I needed to get some work done so I passed on it and saved some money.
If you're wondering why I was short on pictures, I concede that I took hardly any since my battery in my camera was dead from almost the get-go. Heartbreak. I have permission from friends to use theirs at a later date, and I believe I'll post them when that occurs. Today it's off to go write and Ethnography, but I'm doing it with my eyes on Cairo, where I'll be in less than a week, Munich in 2 from right now, and Istanbul in 4. Awwww yeah.
Until next time,
Ciao.
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