Friday the 22nd and Saturday Sept. 23rd-
Well, things are definitely better. They weren't bad before, but I think that each day I've been happier and more confident than the previous day. I met Leone last night and I think we should get along just fine. He is about 5 feet tall with red hair. He mumbles a bit when he doesn't know the english words. We had a long drive back from picking him up and Alessandro, Leone and I talked the whole way in english. He wants me to teach him how to play chess and I will love to oblige. I talked some about my family and how we play games together often. Alessanndro was trying to convince Leone that if some computer games were bought it would be a good way for him to learn how to use the computer (with my help). That is another interesting difference between Italy and America. Everyone here is almost completely computer illiterate! It is quite a good feeling to have them call me a computer genius and hear them say things like “Jimmy is very clever with computers!” I restored the hard drive of a computer belonging to the vineyard and everybody was very impressed. It was easy to do and I'm glad that I could be so helpful. Alessandro hinted that perhaps I could work for the vineyard doing computer things, which is great because I aim to be as useful as I can. On Saturday I was left alone in the house because the rest of the family went to a birthday party for one of Virginia's friends in Venice. I took the car into Firenze and walked around a bit, found a nice pub where I met and ate with a cute girl from Scotland named Sarah. I tried this scottish beer called Bulldog that was mighty tasty. I could have done more in Firenze but for me this was mostly a trial run to see if I could get into town and park and navigate the city and find my way back to the autostrade and get home safely. I can! I'm happy to say that it all went without incident and I am finally getting used to driving in Italy. It's a bit crazy, but the secret is to avoid looking out your rearview mirror, for this will only frighten you. You should probably just tear it off when you first get into your car if you want that real italian driving experience. No italian has ever looked in his/her rearview mirror for any reason than to look indignantly at whoever is honking at him.
Leone:
Well, things are definitely better. They weren't bad before, but I think that each day I've been happier and more confident than the previous day. I met Leone last night and I think we should get along just fine. He is about 5 feet tall with red hair. He mumbles a bit when he doesn't know the english words. We had a long drive back from picking him up and Alessandro, Leone and I talked the whole way in english. He wants me to teach him how to play chess and I will love to oblige. I talked some about my family and how we play games together often. Alessanndro was trying to convince Leone that if some computer games were bought it would be a good way for him to learn how to use the computer (with my help). That is another interesting difference between Italy and America. Everyone here is almost completely computer illiterate! It is quite a good feeling to have them call me a computer genius and hear them say things like “Jimmy is very clever with computers!” I restored the hard drive of a computer belonging to the vineyard and everybody was very impressed. It was easy to do and I'm glad that I could be so helpful. Alessandro hinted that perhaps I could work for the vineyard doing computer things, which is great because I aim to be as useful as I can. On Saturday I was left alone in the house because the rest of the family went to a birthday party for one of Virginia's friends in Venice. I took the car into Firenze and walked around a bit, found a nice pub where I met and ate with a cute girl from Scotland named Sarah. I tried this scottish beer called Bulldog that was mighty tasty. I could have done more in Firenze but for me this was mostly a trial run to see if I could get into town and park and navigate the city and find my way back to the autostrade and get home safely. I can! I'm happy to say that it all went without incident and I am finally getting used to driving in Italy. It's a bit crazy, but the secret is to avoid looking out your rearview mirror, for this will only frighten you. You should probably just tear it off when you first get into your car if you want that real italian driving experience. No italian has ever looked in his/her rearview mirror for any reason than to look indignantly at whoever is honking at him.
Leone:
posted by J.B.K. at 5:31 PM
2 Comments:
How about some pictures of the rest of the family.
Agree with Matt--I'd like some more family pics!
Your narrative of Italian life, driving, feelings, etc. is fantastic. Keep it coming. Maybe you can publish this someday?
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