Questa è la mia vita: McDonald's????

We got up, ate breakfast, got dressed, and walked to school.

First up is Valeria's class. This morning while I was getting ready for school, I had an epiphany. I decided that in order to get the "famous people" conversation going, I would have them play the "game" of, "If you could have dinner with one famous (American) person, who would it be? Why are they famous? What would you talk to them about?/Why would you like to have dinner with them?" I was pretty excited about this, and I figured it was a better way to stimulate conversation!

Valeria's class responded REALLY WELL to this activity! It was so much fun, and I was impressed with some of the people that they came up with! It was hard to get through all 30 of them in the 1 hour, but I was just so excited that it went so well that I did not care! My favorite part of this activity is that EVERYONE has to participate!

So when this class was over, we were headed to Patrizia's class in the other building. We were a little late because we talked to Valeria for a few minutes, and I had to ask Patrizia if my mom could come in. So, we spent the class time talking about Christmas, New Year's Eve, the gifts they received for Christmas (money and cell phones). They said that they primarily slept and ate over the break. Then we talked a little bit about how American and Italian cities are different; the set up...so the idea of the Piazza and such does not exist in America. We do not always have "town centers" either. This all led to just random conversation, but it was a great class. I was just excited that they all participated and responded.

Next we had a 1 hour break, so we went to the bar near the school. My momma and Barbara had cappuccinos while I tried a new kind of hot chocolate. I tried the orange/cinnamon one, and it was sooo good! The barista gave us some free cookies to have with our drinks; pays to be American sometimes! :) No, this guy is always really sweet and kind to me! After we had our snacks, we went to my favorite little flower/candle shop near the school! We looked at the Yankee Candle candles and just killed some time! Then we went in one of the "chinese" stores (Italians terms not mine!).

So, we went back to the school and I was really excited for Linda's class to meet my momma! I love this group; this is the group that gave me the beautiful earrings! When the door opened, they all came out excited and saying, "EEEly!!!" I love getting that greeting, and I am always so excited to see this group! Some of them are struggling to understand English, but they are always attentive, engaged, and doing their best. You cannot ask for more than that; at least I cannot ask for more than that! Linda was not going to be there today, so it was just me and the students. We talked about Christmas, New Year's Eve, what they received for Christmas, etc. It was funny to tell them about my New Year's and stuff because I waited to mention Nick's name and right before I did, I turned to my momma and said, "wait for it...!" Then I said, "Nick met me in Rome for New Year's!" It took half a second to register with them, but then they started cheering! I thought it was so incredibly sweet! At some point my little fashionista in this class mentioned seeing Tiffany & Co. in Rome and I whispered in her ear that Nick gave me a beautiful bracelet from there for Christmas! She got so excited and word quickly spread around the room! They talked to my momma and Barbara, which I was really proud of them for doing! They told me that they were still working on their books in English, and I urged them to ask me for help if they needed it! I would love to read a book with them, but it does not look like that will happen! We talked about Calabrese food, and had random conversation! It was a very successful class, and I love spending time with them! It ended with a lot of hugs, kisses, and conversation afterwards! I cannot say enough how much it means to me that my students are allowed to be affectionate, and that they are affectionate. This was one of the things that I was nervous about with high school students; I was afraid of missing that warmth that I get with young children! God is so good to answer even the seemingly insignificant prayers! He knows our every need!

Next up, we walked to the bus station. My momma was finally going to get her Italian McDonald's. So, I went and bought our tickets for the trip there and return! The bus came quickly, and in no time we were there. I had forgotten exactly where the food court was, so we got a quick tour of the mall while searching for food! Haha.

We got in line at McDonald's and it did not appear that they had the Calabrese anymore, which made me sad because I wanted my momma to try it! Instead, she decided on the Focaccino, which is also something unique to Italian McDonald's! SO, they went to get a table, and I ordered her food! Then, Barbara and I went to a different place and I got a sandwich, while Barbara got some pizza! I was surprised at how busy the food court was, and especially the McDonald's! I think I know more Italians who love McDonald's than Americans, but yet they think that the only thing we Americans eat is McDonald's, and hamburgers in general! We sat and ate our lunch, doing a little bit of people watching. Afterwards we had the really good gelato from the mall. THen we went to the big grocery store that is in the mall! We bought a few things that I needed, and Barbara found some cookies that she wanted to take home with her!

Then we went outside to catch the bus back to Cosenza. WHen we got back my momma and Barbara took a nap while I talked to Nick. Then I ran to the store to get some "hamburger" meat for dinner. Lilla called and said that she would have to bring us pizza and not go get it with us because her mom did not feel well. SO, Lilla came by and delivered the pizza and stayed to talk for a while! We talked about civil rights, MLK Jr., and my momma and Barbara were able to tell her stories about their school being the first one to be integrated and such. Lilla was really interested, and I think she really enjoyed talking to them! Lilla eventually had to go, and so hugs were given all around.

A bit later, I made hamburger patties with some cheese on it, bread with oil, and some leftover pasta. We spent the evening hanging out, packing, and solving a hotel issue where I had the wrong hotel and so I had to book the hotel again in ROme...ughh...oh well...problem was solved quickly, so it was okay! We also took some pictures in my Ruby Red Slipper socks that my momma bought me!