The past week has had many ups and a few downs. If you've been wondering since last week if I have finally gotten culture shock, I have. But thankfully only to a small extent. Last Tuesday we had a writing workshop in class where we type nonstop for 30 minutes over our research topic. You aren't allowed to stop typing the entire time. The idea is that eventually you come up with some quality writing even if you stumble through the process (this seriously works!!). Anyway, during my 30 minutes I was listening to music and a song came on that my best friends and I always listen to when we're together. All of a sudden I stopped typing for my research topic and couldn't stop typing and thinking about how I will never be in college with my friends again (I'm graduating in May). I realized that the amazing times we've created are going to come to an end as we all enter the next phase of life. Although this is exciting, I couldn't help but be sad for a good part of the day. Luckily I had friends shower me with social support when they could tell I wasn't being my normal bubbly self. The thing that really made me feel better was when Kristen started watching "The Best Scenes from The Office" with me on Youtube (you will all be so sad to know that Italy's Netflix does not have The Office). I also kept my mind off of being homesick by traveling through the week, we went to Siena and Cinque Terre.
In Siena we started the day off by visiting St. Catherine's Cathedral. To be honest, I haven't been too interested in the church visits but this one stood out to me because it is the home of St. Catherine's head and one of her fingers. By her head, I don't mean just her skull. In this cathedral, you can literally see her head with her eyes, skin, and teeth. Before coming to Italy, I never heard of the incorruptible saints, but now I'm completely obsessed!! Saints are incorruptible, meaning they don't decay when they die- seriously how insane is that! The other saints I have seen during my time in Italy have all been preserved in glass boxes. But what's amazing about St. Catherine is that she was buried somewhere else for 3 years before her body was exhumed and her head and finger were removed and brought to the cathedral in Siena. I think it is absolutely insane that even after 3 years of being buried instead of preserved, her body was still in perfect condition.
After lunch a few of us decided to go get gelato and hang out in the Piazza del Campo. We have been to many different piazza's but this one is famous for its design of seashell shape. We tend to see people hanging out in piazzas, but never like this piazza. There were people everywhere eating lunch, relaxing, playing and even trying to sleep. I ended up getting creme flavored gelato which I absolutely loved because it tasted just like vanilla ice cream! We found a spot in the sun in the middle of the piazza and asked each other life questions like, "Where do you see yourself in 10 years?" while enjoying our cool dessert. Out of nowhere, someone pointed out that there was a couple kissing a few meters away from us. When I looked over I realized that this couple was not kissing but were SUCKING. THE. LIFE. out of each others faces. I could not stop staring (not in a creepy way) at them because I just couldn't believe how affectionate they were getting in a public area. I didn't take a picture because that would have definitely been creepy but the girl was sitting in the guy's lap and just imagine that they were reeeeally going at it. Proxemics is the concept of space and these people seemed to have absolutely none. More specifically, their romantic proxemics (0-10 inches away) were almost in the negative numbers. I'm telling ya'll, if you ever want to be uncomfortable with how much couples are touching each other in front of you, go to Italy (there are other things to do, too). Siena was really great I swear!!
This weekend Paige, Clara and I decided to take a little roomie trip to Cinque Terre. I had heard great things about CT but wasn't really sure what to expect. Let me tell you, AMAZING, it's an absolute must go when traveling to Europe. We stayed in a nearby town called Levanto because it was cheaper than staying in one of the five towns. The first night we explored our little town and even got to cook dinner together in our Airbnb! We got food to make pasta for dinner (don't forget the tasty $2 wine) and a loaf of fresh bread with nutella for our breakfast and each spent less than $5! It has been so nice having meals prepared for you everyday, but I miss cooking so much! Saturday morning we took the train to our first town, Vernazza. In Vernazza we got a cappuccino and headed to the water. I was at a loss for words! The area by the water reminded me of what Greece would look like or something you would see in a movie. We took pictures for about an hour and the weather was amazing, we didn't even need our jackets for the first time!! After hanging out for a while we traveled to what ended up being my favorite town, Riomaggiore. When we first got there we walked around for a while until we found the water. We walked to one side of the marina and took some pictures of the water and town then noticed across from us there was a couple sitting on a large rock by the water below the dock. As soon as we noticed them, they started packing up and left the rock. So of course the three of us sprinted to the other side of the marina and climbed down to the rock. Listening to the waves hit the rocks and shore was the most peaceful thing I've ever experienced. We ended up sitting on the water for over an hour and while doing absolutely nothing besides talking about life. I can't believe how much we have all confided in each other in just a month of knowing each other. I'm so excited because I think some of these people will be my forever friends. For lunch we headed up the hill in search of pesto (Cinque Terre is known for its pesto)! We found a tiny restaurant and decided to give it a try. The man who owned the restaurant came up to us and asked where we were from because he could tell that we were from the United States. After we told him we were from Texas we asked if he had ever visited the U.S. He proceeded to tell us that he never wanted to visit the U.S. because we were too fast paced and chaotic. The man mentioned that he will never leave Italy because it is always like vacation because everyone takes their time in everything they do, which is true. In Italy, people tend to be on p-time, meaning that they are polychronic, time is just time and living in the moment is the most important thing. Meanwhile in the United States, we are on m-time, meaning we are monochromatic, time is a commodity and schedules are very important. I found it very interesting that other people in the world view time this way, but it's actually kind of nice. I hope I can take more of the "living in the moment" mentality back to the U.S. with me.
In one short month I have learned so much about myself and the power I have over any troubling situation as long as I have the right mind set. Every morning I tell all of my friends, "It's a great day to have a great day!" and, "Let's attack the day!". These sayings are more for them but they have helped me keep a positive and now people are concerned if a morning goes by and I don't shout one of these phrases at them. I'm eager to see what other aspects of studying abroad change my life!!