Yesterday I had my first midterm (in Italian). I feel that it went well, but I still have a couple more coming up that I need to study for and papers that will be due soon, so it feels more like I'm going to school here, in Italy of all places. It still hasn't sunk in yet.
It's been rather cold here for the past few days - about 35 degrees. It's certainly a lot warmer than back home, but still surprising since I had gotten used to 45 degree weather. It actually snowed twice! The first time all I saw was about a 3 foot round area lightly dusted in snow in the piazza outside my window. The next time, which was actually just a couple of days ago, there was a little over a quarter inch of snow covering most of Perugia. It was funny to see all the native Perugians in their heavy winter gear in order to weather the deep snow while I was thinking about how it's probably 20 degrees plus wind chill back home and I'm sure it's snowed several times by now.
This morning we took another go at a tour of the Perugian chocolate factory. This time it was actually successful and we weren't thrown off the bus by the bus driver on the way there. I even came home with about 15 free samples of Baci and other assorted chocolates that I had stuffed in my jacket pockets before leaving. The tour was very interesting. They brought us along a raised walkway through the factory. Unfortunately much of the production line was closed for the season and we're not allowed to see the part where they make the chocolate before it gets poured into the moulds, however, we were able to see large amounts of chocolate riding along conveyor belts and being wrapped and boxed up and the entire factory smelled like a warm brownie, so it was fully worth the trek out there (plus all the free samples of course).
Friday, February 20, 2009
Friday, February 13, 2009
Chocolate
Classes are going well. Midterms and projects are starting to come in, though. I have my Italian midterm next week and a couple others soon after that. I'm not too worried about Italian. Most of the grammar is easy, so I'll just need to focus on memorizing more vocab. The other midterm in my history class should be interesting as he wants us to know a bunch of dates, but the material is interesting and the teacher is very nice. Yesterday I finished editing my pictures for my first photography project, so I'll have to see how she grades. Since we get to choose what our topics are for our future projects, hopefully it'll be more interesting than 200 pictures of the same object.
So today we decided to attempt to go on a tour of the Perugina chocolate factory, about a half hour from the city center. I called ahead a few days ago and made a reservation for a free English speaking tour today at 3:00. We found out that there's a bus, the R bus, that brings you relatively close to the factory and there was a bus that left at 2:10. We arrived at the bus station at 2:00 and waited for the bus to arrive. When it did, we got on and asked the driver politely in Italian if he knew which station we should get off at for the Perugina chocolate factory. He told us that we the bus doesn't go right to the factory, only near it, and he promptly left the bus. A little confused but assuming we'd figure things out, we went and took a seat. A few minutes later he came back on the bus and came over to us and angrily told us that if we were in a hurry we should take the H bus. We responded thank you, but we weren't in a hurry, so we'd just stay on this bus. He returned to the front of the bus and a few more minutes later, right before he was about to leave, he called me up to the front of the bus and started yelling that we should get off his bus and take the H bus. He wasn't leaving with us on it. Not knowing how to respond, we went over to the H bus stop and, right as the bus we were just on pulled away, we saw that the bus had left 10 minutes ago. I'm not sure if something was just lost in translation, but he seemed to be a very angry Italian man. I then went over to the small bus ticket booth and asked them if they knew which bus I should take to get to the Perugina chocolate factory, to which they responded the R bus, which is the one we were thrown off of. A bit distraught, I called the chocolate factory to try to explain and see if it would be all right if we were a few minutes late. It was not. We decided to try to go anyway since we had already swiped our bus ticket. Half an hour later, another R bus arrived, luckily with a different driver, and we headed off. About 20 minutes later, we realized that none of the stops were labeled and nothing was ever being announced, so I went over to the bus driver and asked him if he knew when we would arrive at the San Sista stop (the people on the phone had told me that would be the best stop). He said that we had passed it, but we would be looping around soon and would be back at that stop in about 15 minutes. He even said he would signal to us when to get off the bus. So we finally were able to get off at the San Sista stop and proceeded to walk, basically down a highway, in the direction of the Perugina factory. This was at 4:10. About 10 minute later, we arrived, 2 hours after we started our journey, at the factory. Right in front of the factory was an evidentally unknown bus stop, this one for the I buses. Inside we inquired if we were too late to catch a tour, in any language. Unfortunately, we were, the last tour was at 3:30, but the worker offered us some free chocolates and said we could watch a short movie in English about the factory. After eating our fill of free Baci and other assorted chocolates, we headed back out and caught the bus back to the city center 4 hours after we started. Now that we know what we're doing, we'll have to make a reservation for another weekend. Unfortunately no cameras are allowed in the factory.
So today we decided to attempt to go on a tour of the Perugina chocolate factory, about a half hour from the city center. I called ahead a few days ago and made a reservation for a free English speaking tour today at 3:00. We found out that there's a bus, the R bus, that brings you relatively close to the factory and there was a bus that left at 2:10. We arrived at the bus station at 2:00 and waited for the bus to arrive. When it did, we got on and asked the driver politely in Italian if he knew which station we should get off at for the Perugina chocolate factory. He told us that we the bus doesn't go right to the factory, only near it, and he promptly left the bus. A little confused but assuming we'd figure things out, we went and took a seat. A few minutes later he came back on the bus and came over to us and angrily told us that if we were in a hurry we should take the H bus. We responded thank you, but we weren't in a hurry, so we'd just stay on this bus. He returned to the front of the bus and a few more minutes later, right before he was about to leave, he called me up to the front of the bus and started yelling that we should get off his bus and take the H bus. He wasn't leaving with us on it. Not knowing how to respond, we went over to the H bus stop and, right as the bus we were just on pulled away, we saw that the bus had left 10 minutes ago. I'm not sure if something was just lost in translation, but he seemed to be a very angry Italian man. I then went over to the small bus ticket booth and asked them if they knew which bus I should take to get to the Perugina chocolate factory, to which they responded the R bus, which is the one we were thrown off of. A bit distraught, I called the chocolate factory to try to explain and see if it would be all right if we were a few minutes late. It was not. We decided to try to go anyway since we had already swiped our bus ticket. Half an hour later, another R bus arrived, luckily with a different driver, and we headed off. About 20 minutes later, we realized that none of the stops were labeled and nothing was ever being announced, so I went over to the bus driver and asked him if he knew when we would arrive at the San Sista stop (the people on the phone had told me that would be the best stop). He said that we had passed it, but we would be looping around soon and would be back at that stop in about 15 minutes. He even said he would signal to us when to get off the bus. So we finally were able to get off at the San Sista stop and proceeded to walk, basically down a highway, in the direction of the Perugina factory. This was at 4:10. About 10 minute later, we arrived, 2 hours after we started our journey, at the factory. Right in front of the factory was an evidentally unknown bus stop, this one for the I buses. Inside we inquired if we were too late to catch a tour, in any language. Unfortunately, we were, the last tour was at 3:30, but the worker offered us some free chocolates and said we could watch a short movie in English about the factory. After eating our fill of free Baci and other assorted chocolates, we headed back out and caught the bus back to the city center 4 hours after we started. Now that we know what we're doing, we'll have to make a reservation for another weekend. Unfortunately no cameras are allowed in the factory.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Last Friday Erin, Liz, Krista and I went to Assisi, which is just a 20 minute train ride followed by a 5 minute bus ride from Perguia. It was a beautiful city, a bit cleaner than Perugia, and there were churches basically on every street. Everywhere we looked we saw a sign pointing in the direction of a different church. It was a bit more touristy than Perugia, but still had a very small city feel. I believe it actually is a good bit smaller than Perguia. While we were outside of the Basilica of St. Francis, a nun, who later told us that she lived near by, came up to us and offered to take our picture. After taking one, she decided to move us around in attempt to get better pictures. It was quite a funny experience. From the top of a wall near the Basilica there were beautiful vistas of the surrounding countryside. Perguia is somewhere in the distance there.
A view of the countryside.
Another view.
The Basilica of St. Francis.
There was also a castle/fortress on the top of the hill that we didn't quite make it to. Hopefully we'll have a chance to go back and see if we can make it up there.
Something was a bit lost in translation (porcini mushrooms have become porky mushrooms).
A view of the countryside.
Another view.
The Basilica of St. Francis.
There was also a castle/fortress on the top of the hill that we didn't quite make it to. Hopefully we'll have a chance to go back and see if we can make it up there.
Something was a bit lost in translation (porcini mushrooms have become porky mushrooms).
I also had my first project for photography class, which was to take 200 pictures of one object. I chose a water spigot in the piazza near my apartment. Last class we put the pictures on the photography lab computers and we'll start working on our six favorites next week. Unfortunately the pictures look a lot more dull and less sharp after I have uploaded them, but there are a couple attached below.
I have a few papers to work on this weekend. One, my photography paper on Henri Cartier-Bresson, I have started and hope to mostly finish by this weekend. We also have to present an in-class presentation on the photographer, so I will get working on that. Neither paper is due soon, but I want to make sure to get them done so I have other weekends free. Next Saturday, my Contemporary Italy class is actually going to Sienna for the day. I will update more regarding that once it has happened.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Overdue
So my second week of classes is almost over. It’s a strange transition going from working for six months back to classes (and in Italy at that). I have much more “spare” time on my hands, but more things to actually do in that spare time. Classes are going well. My schedule changes nearly every day, so it’s hard to get into a routine of making lunches and dinners, etc., although I suppose I should be used to that after working in the hotel for 6 months.
Anyway, today I did laundry for the first time. I have heard some horror stories from people who have spent upwards of 4 hours in the laundromat attempting to get all their clothes clean, so I was a little worried going in as I had to get to class in a few hours, but I gathered up my dirty clothes along with a book and headed out. The laundromat is just up the street from my apartment, so it’s in a convenient location. Everything was going fine until I tried to put money into the machine. For some reason it was refusing to read my paper money and I only had €2.59 in coins on me, but a wash cost €3.00. I went out to a small grocery store nearby and asked (in somewhat broken Italian) if I could have change for a €5 bill. They refused. I checked with a few other places and received a similar response until, finally, I asked the owner of the café below my apartment who gladly exchanged the money with me. Getting that over with, I started my wash. Several minutes later, a couple of other people came into the laundromat and put their wash in as well. A wash is supposed to take about 25 minutes. By some magic the other people’s laundry finished first and they put their wash into the only two driers in the place, but I took solace in knowing that surely my clothes would be cleaner than theirs, having spent more time in the washing machine. My wash finished a few minutes later, leaving me to wait around for their load to finish before I could get my clothes dry (and by dry I mean slightly warm…Italian driers don’t seem to be very effective). Once my “drier” finished, I gathered up my clothes and brought them back to my apartment where I spread them all over the open areas in my room to give them a chance to actually dry. All-in-all it was a relatively smooth experience and I finally have clean clothes.
Anyway, today I did laundry for the first time. I have heard some horror stories from people who have spent upwards of 4 hours in the laundromat attempting to get all their clothes clean, so I was a little worried going in as I had to get to class in a few hours, but I gathered up my dirty clothes along with a book and headed out. The laundromat is just up the street from my apartment, so it’s in a convenient location. Everything was going fine until I tried to put money into the machine. For some reason it was refusing to read my paper money and I only had €2.59 in coins on me, but a wash cost €3.00. I went out to a small grocery store nearby and asked (in somewhat broken Italian) if I could have change for a €5 bill. They refused. I checked with a few other places and received a similar response until, finally, I asked the owner of the café below my apartment who gladly exchanged the money with me. Getting that over with, I started my wash. Several minutes later, a couple of other people came into the laundromat and put their wash in as well. A wash is supposed to take about 25 minutes. By some magic the other people’s laundry finished first and they put their wash into the only two driers in the place, but I took solace in knowing that surely my clothes would be cleaner than theirs, having spent more time in the washing machine. My wash finished a few minutes later, leaving me to wait around for their load to finish before I could get my clothes dry (and by dry I mean slightly warm…Italian driers don’t seem to be very effective). Once my “drier” finished, I gathered up my clothes and brought them back to my apartment where I spread them all over the open areas in my room to give them a chance to actually dry. All-in-all it was a relatively smooth experience and I finally have clean clothes.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
La Prima Settimana Pictures
Taken from inside the MiniMetro with another MiniMetro car coming at us.
Most of the people in Perugia seem very friendly, especially the people in the stores. Despite my broken Italian, the vast majority of the store workers try their best to understand me and help figure out what I'm after instead of just resorting to using English, which most of them seem to know pretty well.
Next week actual classes start. I'm looking forward to them and hope that I enjoy them, although how could I not considering where I am.
The view from out my window.
The military installation across the street.
It's been raining a bit in the past couple of days.
The view out my window down the street.
The military installation across the street.
It's been raining a bit in the past couple of days.
The view out my window down the street.
The walkway in the center of the picture is actually the top of an ancient aqueduct.
The view from the road right near my apartment.
More of said view.
The view from the road right near my apartment.
More of said view.
La Prima Settimana
The past week has been dedicated solely to Italian. We went to class for around 5 hours a day for four days and spoke Italian the whole time. It was a little mentally draining, but it definitely helped me to get back up to speed since I haven't taken Italian in well over a year. The teacher was very friendly and really helpful, even if he just keeps talking in Italian to explain grammar or vocab that you don't understand. During one of our classes, he took us on the MiniMetro, which is a bizarrely modern miniature subway system running from the center of Perugia to its outskirts, to a larger and cheaper grocery store than the ones here in the city center.
Today, Erin and I took the MiniMetro to the sixth stop, the very last one on the MiniMetro, to go to the huge outdoor market that takes place near the soccer stadium every Saturday morning. When we got there, we were a little surprised as it was a bit more chaotic and disorganized than we had imagined. They had everything from fruits and vegetables to clothes and toothbrushes all arranged on large tables. We ended up leaving pretty quickly as the produce didn't seem to be in very good condition and it wasn't that much cheaper than from the nearby grocery store. We hopped back on the MiniMetro and headed to the grocery store our Italian teacher had taken us to.
Pictures to follow...
Today, Erin and I took the MiniMetro to the sixth stop, the very last one on the MiniMetro, to go to the huge outdoor market that takes place near the soccer stadium every Saturday morning. When we got there, we were a little surprised as it was a bit more chaotic and disorganized than we had imagined. They had everything from fruits and vegetables to clothes and toothbrushes all arranged on large tables. We ended up leaving pretty quickly as the produce didn't seem to be in very good condition and it wasn't that much cheaper than from the nearby grocery store. We hopped back on the MiniMetro and headed to the grocery store our Italian teacher had taken us to.
Pictures to follow...
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Ho Arrivato
Finally! The long awaited moment has finally arrived. I am finally in Perugia to start my four month study abroad experience. Currently I am sitting in my room borrowing internet from the cafe below. My apartment is about a 10-15 minute walk from the main area of the city and where my classes will take place, which is a bit closer than I thought we were going to be based on the map that they gave us. The actual apartment is great. There are 5 of us in here and we all have single bedrooms. My bedroom has a view overlooking a small piazza with a cafe below. If I lean out a little I can also see up and down the streets. The furniture throughout the apartment is very nice. In addition to a bed, I also have a large desk with shelving above it, an armoire and two small end tables. The kitchen has granite counter tops and a granite table and even a small TV (granted all the channels are in Italian, I guess I'll eventually be able to understand somewhat). We even have two bathrooms with standing showers (and they don't drain into the middle of the bathroom!). I am very surprised at how good the apartment is. It definitely far exceeds my expectations.
At 2:00PM we had an orientation meeting in the city's town hall which was a gorgeous room with fresco paintings covering the ceilings and walls and, oddly enough, large, light blue, cushioned leather chairs. A good number of my questions were answered during the orientation, but there's still a bit to get done. At the orientation we got a heads up about a few things we need to get done still, received some practical information, and there was a humorous Italian police officer who gave us some safety advice. Once the orientation was over, a lot of the students went over to the nearby grocery store and got a bit of grocery shopping done since all the stores are closed tomorrow (Sunday).
Later on, Erin and I went to pick up our textbooks from the bookstore. I was surprised at how modern it was inside and seemed to have a decent selection of books, mostly in Italian of course, considering how small most of the shops in the area are. As a plus, as Umbra Institute students we receive a 10% discount on all purchases there.
One of my favorite parts of the city so far, not that I know much of it yet, is the panoramic view on the side of a curving part of the road just around the corner from my apartment. From there you can see the lower part of the city with a large staircase running underneath ancient aqueducts below, as well as rolling hills covered in stereotypical Italian buildings. Hopefully I'll have pictures of the view to put up soon, but I'm not sure if those will do it justice, though.
At 2:00PM we had an orientation meeting in the city's town hall which was a gorgeous room with fresco paintings covering the ceilings and walls and, oddly enough, large, light blue, cushioned leather chairs. A good number of my questions were answered during the orientation, but there's still a bit to get done. At the orientation we got a heads up about a few things we need to get done still, received some practical information, and there was a humorous Italian police officer who gave us some safety advice. Once the orientation was over, a lot of the students went over to the nearby grocery store and got a bit of grocery shopping done since all the stores are closed tomorrow (Sunday).
Later on, Erin and I went to pick up our textbooks from the bookstore. I was surprised at how modern it was inside and seemed to have a decent selection of books, mostly in Italian of course, considering how small most of the shops in the area are. As a plus, as Umbra Institute students we receive a 10% discount on all purchases there.
One of my favorite parts of the city so far, not that I know much of it yet, is the panoramic view on the side of a curving part of the road just around the corner from my apartment. From there you can see the lower part of the city with a large staircase running underneath ancient aqueducts below, as well as rolling hills covered in stereotypical Italian buildings. Hopefully I'll have pictures of the view to put up soon, but I'm not sure if those will do it justice, though.
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