Ciao da Italia.

I wish I could say I was more excited to be in Italy, but for some reason I'm just not. I know a lot of people would kill to be where I am now, and a lot of people will never have this opportunity; I never thought I would have this opportunity. But for some reason, especially today, I've just been sad. Today I missed home a lot. It's not something I ever expect to really happen, my family has never been especially close and I didn't actually get to know my dad until about a year ago (my mom and dad got divorced right before my 6th Birthday, and I didn't see him again until right before my 21st birthday), but I just want to go home. Today I seriously considered changing my plane ticket, but I talked myself out of it. I know this feeling will pass, or I certainly hope it does. I think it would be different if I were out meeting people, or trying to have a good time...but I don't want to really do that either. It's a weird emotion. I've never really liked people, and I'm constantly being shown that you can't really trust people, yet, today I felt more alone than I ever have. My goal of this journey is to become fluent in Italian and that's what I keep reminding myself. No matter how miserable I may be here, I have to do that, or coming here and spending all of the money I have will essentially be in vain. I spent most of the day today reading the dictionary I bought. I seriously regret not bring my Italian textbook with me. I need to ask my parents if they can mail it, or see if one of the students who is only staying a month happened to bring theirs.


I had a fairly good weekend, nothing too exciting but I did get out of the house finally. I'm not sure if I should be saddened by the fact that I enjoy hanging out with the older people in the group than the younger ones. I don't know, my partying days have passed (as sad as I am to say that) and I just don't see the appeal in going out and getting drunk every night....but sitting home alone isn't very fun either. I think I will find the balance soon, because I can't handle another day like today.


On Sunday we had a little "family" dinner and it was really nice. Most of the group got together and we just ate together, and the food was actually really good. Who knew I was around a bunch of people who could cook? You learn new things about people everyday.


Hopefully this week will get better. On Friday, my professor and his wife are taking the students who want to go on a trip to Firenze (Florence) to see the museums and to see the city. I'm excited to see it. In Siena, my professor's wife brought a whole new aspect to all of the art (she has her degree in Art History), so I'm excited to see what this trip brings. Then on Sunday I am going to Cinque Terre, but I think most of the other students are planning a trip to Venice. I plan on waiting to see Venice until later in the year, and it is cheaper to go from Milan. So, this weekend should be a good one.


I'm going to try to update this more often, and to document my experiences more. I feel like I have a really boring life here, but I think it will be interesting to look back and have everything documented...a lot more than once a month anyway. Apparently I have an assignment to keep a journal, but I don't actually know too much about it. I've had to miss a lot of my class meetings due to having class when my professor has them. and I haven't heard from him about any assignments yet.


Until next time.

When Life Hands You Lemons

Since my last update a lot has happened. I have spent almost another month in Europe and I will leave in exactly 6 months. I hope to learn a lot in the remaining HALF OF A YEAR that I will spend here.

Natalie and I are no longer friends, and maybe it is better off that way. They say everything happens for a reason, and I am a firm believer in that.

I spent most of my time in France in a town called Tours which I LOVED. I miss it terribly and I want to go back. I don't miss the town so much (it was a beautiful town though), but I miss the people I have met there that will forever have an impact on my life. I miss my little French family everyday. They were genuinely the nicest, kindest people I have EVER met in my life. But, I will see them again I plan on spending Christmas with them and one of them, Emmanuel wants to come spend some time with me in America. I am excited.

I spent a week in Northern Italy and it had it's highs and lows. I was more homesick there than I have been anywhere else, even though I was with my best friends family. It was my first experience of being surrounded by people who didn't speak my language at all, and the town Costa Masnaga was incredibly small.

While there I saw Lago di Como, Bellagio (one of the most beautiful places I have ever been in my life), Bergamo (where I will be attending school in the fall) Lecco and Milano. I wasn't actually that impressed with Milan. I expected it to be....more. And, it was just a let down. But, on the train from Milano - Lecco the train CAUGHT FIRE. Seriously...it caught fire. 

About the time I noticed something was wrong (two men went sprinting beside me outside with fire extinguishers) and I told Luca we should get off of the train, a man came and told us that maybe we would like to get off. Luca's mom came and got us...but apparently the solution to the caught on fire train was to wait for the next train (two hours later). Poor people who had to sit in the rain and wait.

After staying with Luca, I began yet another journey on a train to Perugia. I had stops in Milano, Bologna and Firenze. I made all of the without a problem and successfully made it to my apartment in Perugia. I love it. A lot of people looked at me strangely when I told them that I would be living with a 65 year old woman who doesn't speak any English, but it has worked out wonderfully for me so far. She cooks for me, cleans for me, does my laundry and helps me with my homework. Everyday I learn new words from her, so I think I am benefiting the most from my living arrangements. 

Perugia is a beautiful medieval city built in the middle of hills. No, literally. In the middle of hills. Most of the streets require a steep uphill walk, and my legs were killing me the first few days. To get to the center of town...I have to take an ESCALATOR up because the incline is so steep. It's definitely been an experience, but i love it and my classes so far. I seem to have a lot more work than everyone I have talked to, every night I go home with pages of homework. But, I am here to learn and learning is what i will do. Right now I'm quite bored of the class, it's really repetitive of my last semester of Italian, but I have faith it will become more difficult and I will a lot more Italian.

The first weekend we were in Perugia we went to Siena for the Palio di Siena. It was AMAZING. I have never seen anything like it in my life and it is definitely not something I will ever forget. It was amazing to see the passion that these people have for this event. I don't know if I will ever see anything like it again in my life.  Here is the youtube video : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBRSFulakdE. I am one of the 20,000 people there.

Sometimes I feel like I'm not getting the "full experience" of being out in an Italian "college" town, because I am always at home doing homework while everyone else i know is out partying. They skip classes to go on all of these adventures...and I stay home with my books and am terrified of missing a class. But, I can party in the states. I didn't party there, so why do I want to now? I came to Italy to live the Italian life-style, absorb the Italian language and culture and leave here fluent in Italian. I will reach that goal, even if I have to be "lame" and spend all of my nights at home doing homework.

Last night I did go out to the Umbria Jazz Festival and celebrated one of my classmates birthday with him. That was an interesting experience, and I woke up with a giant gash on my leg (I have NO idea where it came from or how it got there) and the worst headache I have ever had in my life. Definitely a fun night I suppose.

I will try to update this more regularly, until next time. 

Arrival and Paris

I have been in France for exactly one month. During my month here... a lot has happened, most of which I never thought would. Our original plans didn't work out (as they never do) and now I'm spending longer in a country where I have no understanding of the language, and most people have very little understanding of mine. 

Natalie and I arrived in Paris at 2 PM instead of 9 AM after a delayed flight in Texas. Natalie took some Tylenol PM so she could sleep on our flight...so during the entire delay she was drugged and out of it while I had to try and get her and our stuff on the plane. Originally...we were delayed for mechanical problems. That took about an hour to fix...we load the plane, get situation...go to take off and a generator blows on the runway. We sat on the plane for awhile while they decided what to do...and they had us de-board. 8:40 rolls around...and they tell us they have another plane, but we have to be on with the doors closed by 9 PM or we lose the flight staff. It was an interesting experience to say the least.

We get to Paris, finally. And all of my luggage is broken. Literally...all of my luggage. One bag has a giant rip in it...one bag is missing a wheel - it was a nightmare. We met Luca at the airport (THANK GOD) and he helped us with our luggage and getting on the subway. 

We stayed in the suburbs of Paris in an area called Robinson. Once we got to Robinson, we had more trouble. First..the subway passes are only valid for a certain amount of time so we couldn't exit the gate because we no longer had valid tickets. Luckily, we met some nice people and they used their card to get us and all of our luggage out. Then...the directions for the apartment were RIDICULOUS. It took us forever to find the apartment. We met a man who tried to help us and let his use his phone and waited with us until we met up with the lady who led me to the apartment. It was actually quite nice, and worked out better I think. The area was quiet and there was a grocery store (Carrefour) right next to the apartment...so we cooked dinner every night and just bought a subway pass to travel around. 

Shower in Paris.

The Louvre 

Eiffel Tower

Moulin Rouge

Eiffel Tower

arc de triomphe

sacre coeur

Luca, me, Natalie of us in front of the Eiffel Tower

Natalie and I...Notre Dame

Catacombs

Catacombs

Arc de Triomphe

Subway

Restaurant older than the US

Eiffel Tower by Day

Notre Dame

Catacombs

Eiffel Tower by night.

I actually really enjoyed my 4 days in Paris....and I would recommend everyone go at least once in their life if they are given the chance. After Paris..we went to a town called Tours.

TODAY

MY VISA ARRIVED TODAY! I have never been so excited for anything in my life. I officially leave for Europe in 12 days.


I successfully registered for all of my classes and met with my professor yesterday. I hope everything works out, as of now it seems like it will.


Sadly, that's it for now. The semester came to and end tonight (thank god) and I'm off to North Carolina next week to visit my grandparents.

And the drama continues

I haven't updated in awhile, but that's because there has been nothing to update on. I have learned through this process that I need patience, which is one thing I just don't have. I want something to happen, when I want it to happen, and if it doesn't I go into a panic. This needs to change for Italy, everything there is more of a go with the flow type of lifestyle, and I am definitely not used to that.


It is the last week of classes here in Colorado, and next week is finals week. I am definitely ready for this semester to be over. This semester has been the most challenging of my college career. My 13 page research paper (for my most difficult class) has been submitted, and I need to begin work on another 10-15 page paper due on Thursday. I'm just praying to make it through this class.


Back to Italy, I will say the most frustrating thing about this experience has been wire transfers so far. With the apartment and tuition, it's been a headache. I still have not been able to successfully complete a wire transfer for my apartment. Luckily, I am not the only one who has had trouble with this. Many different banks have been attempted, and all have been unsuccessful except for one. The lady, Laura, going to Perugia and Bergamo was able to complete hers, but no one else has been able to. So, now, my Professor is going to have it done through the school because there have been so many problems with all 14 of us trying to individually doing it.


Now...Perugia. I am already not excited to attend this school because of the problems I have had so far. I leave in 18 days, and I still do not have a visa. Why? Perugia refused to send my acceptance letter before they received the wire transfer. Understandable, too bad my University sent the money on the 12th, and as of the 28th they were saying they still hadn't received it. In Italy, EVERYTHING shuts down for Easter. Everything. The University was closed until Wednesday, and the Italian consulate was closed until Tuesday.


The Consulate called me on Wednesday and said they had received all of my necessary documents and were just waiting on my letter from Perugia to send me my visa. I had a friend of mine that lives in Milan call the University in Perugia for me, and the lady I needed to speak with was out of the office until Thursday. Just my luck, when my friend contacted her on Thursday, she claimed the money still hadn't arrived! I was shocked, I immediately emailed my Professor, who was also shocked, and he emailed the lady at the embassy and explained the urgency of my situation, as well as the fact that the money was sent 2 weeks prior. On Friday, I received word that the University in Perugia had faxed my letter to Chicago, so now I just wait for Chicago to contact me!


I leave next Sunday to go on vacation with my grandparents, so I hope I can receive my visa before then. When the consulate called me on Wednesday, I asked them if they thought I would have my passport back in time, and they said as long as they received my letter from Perugia, they would. So, I am trying not to stress out...for now at least.

When Life Hands You Lemons

I'm not sure why I thought any of this process would be easy for me, as I said last time Italians aren't exactly known for being prompt.

I went yesterday to meet with a lady in Denver to send off my Visa application. I believe that she is the vice consulate in my area, she went over everything, made sure I had the necessary documents and notarized everything and got it ready for me to mail it. Can I just say $40 to mail the application is absolutely ridiculous. This is her checklist of items needed for the visa application:

STUDENT VISAS

You will need to visit the Chicago web site, just Google “Italian Consulate Chicago” and navigate to “Forms” so that you may download the three necessary forms:

*Three page Application Form

*Affidavit of Support,

*Affidavit of Insurance

Your Application Form preferably should be notarized by a Notary Public at your current school (universities and colleges). However, if that’s not possible, than I can notarize. Besides their seal and signature the school notary only has to include “Study Abroad Staff or something with comparable wording that identifies them as a member of the school staff.

This is the only document that is notarized by your school. I can notarize all the others. DO NOT PLACE YOUR SS# ON THE APPLICATION!!

Please know that your passport must be mailed with your packet to Chicago; the Visa is applied on one of the blank pages of the booklet. Your passport must be valid ninety (90) days after your arrival date back into your home country and make sure you have at least 3 blank pages. If you need immediate US passport services please call me at 303-224-9927. 

CHECK LIST OF DOCUMENTS NEEDED FOR YOUR APPOINTMENT

Ø       Duly completed and signed Schengen Application Form with your signature notarized by your school’s Notary Public, most likely found at your Study Abroad office. #20 needs to contain name. address and PHONE number of your present school.

Ø        #31 #32 needs the same information from the school in Italy.

Ø       1 Passport photo (no copies) (2X2) glued to the Application form. Walgreens, Kinko’s, Costco or AAAs are the best providers. Thto must be different than your passport photo.

Ø       Valid passport plus photocopy of the pages with photo and the needed information. NO NOTARIZZATION NEEDED..

Ø       Photo copy Drivers License. I NOTARIZE

Ø       Photo copy student ID. I NOTARIZE

Ø       For non-US citizens, photocopy of F1 plus endorsed I-20, IAP-66, advanced parole document or any other document that allows you re-entry into the US. PLUS COPY.  B1 and B2 are not valid. I NOTARIZE

Ø       Affidavit of Support with proof of financial means PLUS COPY to support you while you are there. Please note; the Consulate will not accept declarations or acceptances of student loans. You must demonstrate that beyond what you are promised you must demonstrate one thousand dollars for every month of your stay either in your own or your parents, grandparents, or guardian’s bank, Money Market or portfolio accounts. If you are supporting yourself you must sign the Affidavit, which I NOTARIZE. If your parents or anyone else will, than one of them must sign it and have it notarized by their local Notary. If they are coming to my office with you I certainly can notarize their signature. The financial proof needs to show their names and balance only………….please be VERY careful and WHITEOUT,FRONT AND BACK whatever account numbers or SS # that you will find on any of these documents. Another avenue is to acquire a letter from their/your bank with just NAMES and BALANCES on bank letterhead and signed by bank personnel on their letterhead. If you are using on line banking please make sure it contains your name and the name of the institution.

Ø       Letter of enrollment at your current university/college/ high school on original letterhead with your complete name, school seal, etc. that you acquire from your study abroad office or registrar’s office PLUS COPY. Your school also needs to indicate your graduating date. If you have graduated then a copy of your degree/diploma will suffice. IF YOU ARE EMPLOYED INSTEAD, A LETTER ON COMPANY LETTERHEAD INDICATING YOUR CURRENT EMPLYOMENT STATUS WILL WORK AS WELL.

Ø       Letter of Enrollment from the institution in Italy PLUS COPY addressed to the Consulate General with your complete and correct name as it reads on your passport, exact period of study with start and end dates of your program, that you are fully enrolled, seal of the institution and that your tuition and room/board are covered. These are usually in Italian.

Your Visa will reflect the dates of your program only. If you wish to be in Italy before or after the semester you are considered to be a tourist and are able to be in Italy up to 90 days without a Visa.

Your Visa is also valid in all of the Shengen countries; Great Britain is not a Shengen member.

Ø       Affidavit of Insurance plus proof of US health insurance coverage, I NOTARIZE, regardless of your current insurance coverage, plus a copy of your current insurance card. Sometimes the Italian program sometimes has thert own insurance coverage and will provide to you a letter of your insurance coverage while you are in Italy. Your notarized Affidavit of Insurance (purchase of Assitalia in Italy) is a supplement and only costs about $49.00 for six months.

Ø       Flight Itinerary PLUS COPY of your ROUND TRIP ticket with your correct name. They must see that you are returning to the U.S..

Ø       Passport must be included with your packet.

Please note that copies are needed for every item except for what you downloaded from the Chicago site.

I will walk you through the mailing process and will provide the envelopes and preprinted labels needed. Please know that the Consulate only accepts US Postal Express Flat Rate mail (overnight), which will cost you $18.30 for each envelope to and from Chicago (total $36.60).

But, I sent the visa application off yesterday and to my surprise the Italian Consulate in Chicago actually CALLED me today. They told me that it was too early to submit my application because I only submitted my letter for Bergamo which starts September 1st and they only allow applications to be sent in a maximum of 90 days. I explained my situation to them and they said that they would hold my application for a week and I had to submit a letter from my school showing that the semesters don't line up, that I'm not taking exams in Italy, I am taking them when I return to America and that my University acknowledges this as well as my acceptance letter from Perugia.


Problem with Perugia is the same problem I have encountered the entire time. My University will only wire the money when everyone has paid their fees and we're still waiting on two people to pay. My professor says that he will wire the money at the end of this week and ask Perugia to fax a copy of the letter to the Italian Consulate for me so that they can process my application. If they do not want to fax a letter, hopefully they are willing to send it to a friend of mine who will then overnight it for me. Thank god I have friends in Italy.
This process has just been one nightmare after the next. Nothing is easy when studying abroad, obviously.

Until the next bump in the road.

Step 1

The professor that is coordinating my study abroad trip recommended that I start a blog to document/share my experiences. I've never been much of a blogger, but I figure it will be a great way for me to look back and remember things later, or maybe even provide help for someone else.


I plan on studying abroad in Italy for 6 months. I'm going to be studying at the Università per Stranieri di Perguia (University for Foreigners) in Perugia Italy from July 1st, 2011 until August 31, 2011. I will then move on to the Università degli studi di Bergamo in Bergamo Italy until the semester ends in December.


Thankfully, I don't have to take finals in Italy since their semesters do not correspond with America's and I need to be back for the Spring semester that begins in January to graduate in April. 


The one thing you have to know about Italy, is there is no rush for anything, ever. The Italian people are more of a go with the flow type of people and everything is really laid back. It's almost impossible to get an e-mail response from someone and everything seems to go painfully slow. Luckily, some of my best friends live in Bergamo, so I've made good contacts that way.


The trouble so far has been with finances. Isn't it always? In order to get a student visa for Italy you must have $1,000 in the bank for every month that you will be there. For me (I arrive in June and leave in January) that's $8,000. Now, I don't know about you, but I don't know many college students with that much money in their bank account. The Italian consulate also doesn't accept financial aid (grants, loans, scholarships, etc) as proof of that money, so you literally have to have the money into your account before you apply for the visa. Luckily, my mom was able to provide me with her bank statements to meet that requirement - I hope anyway. My visa appointment is on Tuesday!


The next issue has actually been wiring money. My Italian professor/trip coordinator has been extremely helpful and found me an apartment in Perugia. I will be living with a 65 year old Italian woman who doesn't speak any English. I know that seems crazy a 21 year old American student living with a 65 year old Italian woman, but it's exactly what I wanted. Okay, so maybe when I was thinking about a place to stay, I didn't picture living with a woman who is older than my grandparents, but the fact that she doesn't speak any English excites me. I think living with other students, you fall back on speaking English and I'd much rather immerse myself in the Italian culture. 


The problem has been wiring the money for the deposit from a US bank to the Italian bank. It literally has been a nightmare so far.  I first tried using the Federal Credit Union I've been a member with since birth, but they don't wire money internationally that isn't a US account. I'm sure it makes sense to someone, but since they were informing my mother of all of this (she's in Florida with the bank, and I'm in Colorado where the school is free) I'm not sure exactly what explanation they gave my mom other than they couldn't do it. Next, I went to Wells Fargo. Absolute nightmare. I went in the first time and they told me that I didn't have enough information to complete the transfer after sitting there with them for 30 minutes giving them all of the information I did have. Then the woman completing the application said she wasn't aware that it needed to be done electronically (seriously) and I would have to come back the next day with more information and she would do it electronically. Needless to say, I didn't go back to here. I emailed my professor and he said I should have all of the information I needed (I have the bank account number, routing number, name of the bank, addresses and who it was going to), apparently this still isn't good enough for Wells Fargo because I was told once again that I didn't have the proper information. I met with my professor who confirmed with the housing agency that all information was correct, so I'm going to try once more and see how that goes. Maybe I'll wait a few days and see if the Euro drops.


For Bergamo, they don't even release the application for housing until June 30th (we move in September 1st) and it's based on a first come, first serve basis. I really want a single room, call me crazy, but I don't want to share a small, Italian bedroom with someone I barely know for 4 months. 


I have a meeting in Denver Tuesday with a woman who used to work for the Italian consulate to send my application off and hopefully have it back in time since the US government is currently facing a shut down. I will update on my experience with the visa after my meeting Tuesday.