All these thoughts and realizations have come to my mind from just being in another country, seeing how others interact, and truly observing a different culture and entity than what I am used to.
At school on Friday, my friends and I passed what looked like a Greek party, but we came to a conclusion that it was graduation. We thought it was Greek because for graduation here they wear a leaf crown on their head instead of a cap like we do in the states. I tried to get a picture without looking too much like a creep, so as you can see my friend Michelle tried to conceal the fact that I was taking a picture of them by making them think I was taking a picture of her :P
As you can tell by the pictures, it was just weird to see them wearing leaves on their head like they were a Greek goddess, but I guess graduating college is like being a Greek goddess in Italy! Congrats to them, and I just thought I would share some cultural stuff with you! Now back to food...
Wow, the food here is unbelievable. I probably have gained like 5 pounds being here but I try to exercise and walk a lot as well, but I just do not know how the Italians do it. They have all this amazing and tasty food and CARBS and yet they are still stick thin!? It must be that they walk everywhere, but still, the carbs have to get to you somehow! Anyway last night I made some zucchini, onions, garlic, and peas along with garlic bread pizza!
And again, today, we went to the flea market that they have every Saturday and I fell in love again. It was soooo much better the second time because I was prepared to push people out of the way and to speak Italian to the vendors. I got so much fresh fruit and veggies all for, let me tell you, 7 euro!!! I got a pound of potatoes for 1 euro, a pound of tomatoes for a euro, and a pound of zucchini for a euro. I then got some mozzarella cheese, nectarines (2 pounds for 1.50 euro), and more onions (a pound for 60 cents!!) We then went to this bakery down the street with the best pizza and fresh bread, and I got pizza and a loaf of foccacia bread, it was heaven. I cant tell you why I love flea markets so much here. Maybe its the excitement of a new setting, a new language, and new people. But let me tell you the people there are so kind, sure they are trying to get you to buy their stuff, but they truly are interested in knowing you for future business. One guy actually proposed to my friend, that was a bit creepy and funny all at the same time, but one little older man was so kind to me. He got all my stuff together and just looked like a kind soul, so I gave him a little extra money and pointed to him and said per ti, "for you", and I will never forget that smile that was on his face not because I gave him a couple cents extra, but because I made his day a little happier letting him know that he was doing a great job, and that he was very kind to me. I am sure I will be back to his little stand to get some more stuff, but it is so nice to meet the people that will be there every Saturday...who knows, maybe one time they will throw in a little surprise for me. I truly believe in Karma, and you get what you give, good things will always come out of other good things. So next time you see that homeless person on the side of the street or that waiter that busts their butt at work, let them know that it is all worth it by giving them something as simple as a smile or something as generous as some spare change or even just a couple words showing them that they are doing something right and that it will all be okay!
That is what life is all about, making the world a little bit better one person at a time, one smile at a time, and one moment at a time. Anyway, here are some more pics of the amazing and wonderful flea market:
After the market, I got home and unpacked all my goodies and had a glass of wine with lots of fruit in it. After that, my friends and I went for a run in the park, that was nice. We got back and I showered and then made dinner, which was potatoes, zucchini, garlic, and onions. I also had the last piece of my pizza from earlier in the day. It was out of this world! SOO yummy!
After dinner, my roomies were getting ready to go out, and I wanted to stay in to have a little ME time because we all need that every now and then. It is quite eerie how silent it is in here. I love my roommates and all, but I am still getting adjusted to living with 5 other girls! The only person I have lived with is Meshul and we are like 2 peas in a pod, so it is hard living with so many other people because like they say 3 is a crowd, and its hard to accommodate everyone's wants and needs. Luckily we are all laid back and there has not been any problems to date.
So I am sure that at this point you have either stopped reading so you will never know what I said right at this line, but at least you thought about me and about reading my blog, and for that I thank you. For those who are reading this, thank you and thank you for dealing with my ramblingness! Love you all, night night!
Ciao tutti,
<3 Lauren
Lauren, you are such an amazing person. All the beautiful ideas and love that is contained in your heart and mind is so special!! You can be anything you want to be because you are kind to others and know who you are!!! The writing that you share comes so easily and believe me, no one is tired or bored reading your blog. I am so happy that you can be by yourself and are learning how to interact with so many other people from different backgrounds, that is what makes the world go round!! Don't get too dizzy!! Miss and love you!!
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