All Good (Great) Weeks Have to Come to an End

It is strange to be sitting here remembering last Sunday evening. It was my birthday party, and we were at this time heading over to the King Bar for pizza and cake and gifts. I knew that the week was going to be busy with Intercultura organized adventures and explorations, but I had no idea what I was in for. I remember going to sleep Sunday night really late, feeling strange, feeling like a new chapter wasn't beginning, but only an old chapter ending. I felt uneasy about it, and couldn't get my head around it. 

Monday started off like all the other weeks, being tired at school. I had been out late the night before, and really just wanted to go home to nap. It was a day of transition- I remember saying to Kaja that I felt scattered. That night I got everything into order, posted pictures on the blog, cleaned up my room, worked out. I was feeling more prepared for the week ahead.

Tuesday was amazing, very possibly the best day I have had my whole time here. We bussed to Palermo, a city both beautiful and exhilarating in that around every corner is another thing to see. I got to know the exchange kids that were here with Intercultura from around Italy better, making friends with kids from Chile, Brazil, Costa Rica, Turkey, Austria, China. We entertained ourselves by exchanging funny phrases in our native languages, teaching eachother games, talking about our experiences living in different parts of Italy. On the bus ride back I sat with Marilia, a Brazilian girl, and we exchanged music, talked about life in Brazil and the U.S., Barack Obama (of course, comes up in every conversation I have!), and life here in Italy. It was wonderful.

I felt the fatigue and exhausted of so much stimulation, so much to see, so much excitement in being with this global delegation of kids all in the same situation, all away from home, all in Italy. I slept so deep each night, and woke up each morning confused of where I was because I was snapping out of such a deep, deep rest.

This week I started the habit of eating a nice, normal American breakfast out on the balcony, usually alone. I stand drinking my tea, eating my cereal, looking out at the countryside and the ocean. I love when the horizon (orizzonte) is clear and crisp, when I can clearly define where the sky ends and the sea begins. It is chilly in the morning, but the tea is warm, and there is no better way to start off my day.

Wednesday we went to the "Valley of the Temples," and as if I wasn't overwhelmed enough with the amount of national diversity there was in our group, we were joined by about fifteen other Intercultura kids, all visiting Sicily with the week exchange program. I talked to some Americans which was interesting, they had both been here for the full year. It was interesting to see the different levels of capability there were in speaking Italian. I was lucky to have studied a little beforehand at Fox Lane, and I am proud to say that it is coming along well. 

The whole week I was thinking about how similar we all were in the group- the dynamics were exactly the same as those in a group of only Americans, only Italians. We laugh at the same things, are intrigued and excited by the same things, enjoy good music, get grumpy when we are hungry. It makes me feel good that there are kids just like me all over the world, literally from every corner. And some of them ended up in Sicily, with me, seeing the same things, tasting the same foods, laughing at the same jokes. It makes the world seem not so vast- in a good way.

By Thursday we were a team, the little sub-friendships that inevitably form in a group had formed, and we enjoyed a sense of comfort with each other. Exploring Agrigento, a city I had been to but not seen much of, was a wonderful experience, marked by some perfect moments; laying on my back half asleep in the courtyard of a convent, eating a panino overlooking the ocean in the sun, listening to a band play "the Girl from Ipanema," and hearing the history of the song from Marilia, eating gelato watching the sun set. A day doesn't end better than that.

Friday I became a legal immigrant in Favara.

Saturday we partied. At school there was a going away party for Kaja, which her class had threw in her honor. We ate pizza and talked and had fun. That night there was a party at Sergio's country house which was excellent. We danced and hung out and saw the moon rising. I saw a shooting star and got really excited. 

I was scared that today was going to be such a depressing day, my friends all leaving, Kaja leaving tomorrow, everyone bumming out. It turned out to be a great day, which is suggested in how tired I am writing this right now. 

Took a shower, but it was cold, now I am cold, and I want to go to bed. 

Buona notte!