Posted by ERiCA on Apr 6, 2009 in
Europe,
Italy There was an earthquake this morning around 3:30. The worst one in recent history (or possibly ever) for Italy.
AFAIK, I didn’t feel anything (I did wake up, check my email, and go back to bed right around that time, but that could easily be coincidence) but the poor inhabitants of Abruzzo and the neighboring areas definitely felt the quake. Many centuries-old buildings are completely destroyed. So far, the death toll is nearing 100, and they’re not yet done searching for survivors.
The Italians went to help en masse from all over Italy to the point where the announcements on the radio and news are advising people to stay home because the roads to Abruzzo are completely impassable.
Tags: daily life, news, random facts & history
Posted by ERiCA on Apr 6, 2009 in
Europe,
Italy …I just wanna bang on the drums all day chill out in Tuscany all day…
Even though Mondays are filled with school and client work, at least I can still procrastolate by staring out the big window behind my desk at the sunny city I’m busy not exploring… Pauverina io.
P.S.
I have no idea what plants are on my balcony. I think she might be trying to grow… dandelions?
Tags: daily life
Posted by ERiCA on Apr 4, 2009 in
Europe,
Italy I ran out of clean clothes (technically, I ran out of clean *winter* clothes, since I still have a drawer full of perfectly clean tank tops and shorts) and asked the lady I live with to recommend a laundromat. The ones she knew about were kind of a hike from the apartment, so she was nice enough to let me use her washing machine, which she keeps under cover on the kitchen balcony.
My clothes (and everyone else’s, apparently!) are now hanging out to dry… I hope. The weather forecast is threatening rain!
…which, for me, would only be par for the course. Even the signora calls me “la frana”, which is Italian slang for “walking disaster”. Heheheheh.
Tags: daily life
Posted by ERiCA on Apr 3, 2009 in
Europe,
Italy Here are a couple snaps of the main hallway when you first enter the apartment. And by “apartment”, let me just say this place is easily 3x the size of my house! I doubt I’ve been in half the rooms, and have no clue where most of the doors lead.
One nice thing about being on the fifth floor–and having balcony access in virtually every room except the bathrooms–is that no matter where I go, there’s always a great window view.
Tags: daily life
Posted by ERiCA on Apr 2, 2009 in
Europe,
Italy So far, every bathroom I’ve been in has also had a bidet. In fact, the women’s bathroom in my school not only has a bidet, but also a tub! (Although as far as I know, nobody randomly takes a bath in it.)
Tags: daily life
Posted by ERiCA on Apr 1, 2009 in
Europe,
Italy First of all, let me just say: Mmmmmmm!
I love Italian food, and as it turns out, there’s no better place to get it than in Italy. I’ve eaten tons of pasta so far, and snack on a different panini (technically panino) or its ilk every day after school.
Breakfast is included with my rent, so every morning I have coffee and some type of bread with the lady who shares the apartment with me. Today her daughter had to pick her up early to run some kind of errands, but when I woke up, she had everything set out and even left me a little note to say good morning!
Tags: daily life, food
