Our hangout is in....

ROME?!?!?!?!?

This morning we had to get up and going pretty early.  Marina, Nick's other teacher, was going to be picking us up at 9 to take us to the station for the 9:40ish train.  I made breakfast for us, so we had eggs and cheese grits! It was yummy!  So, we gathered all of my things, lugged it up a small hill, and then got in the car with Marina.  We had not been able to spend much time with her this trip because she was in Portugal for something.  She is really sweet!  We talked about mountains, skiing, some things that happen in the mountains around Gubbio, and how somewhere in Northern Italy, their nickname or something is, mangia gat, which really means "eat cat" (mangia gatto).  Umm...disturbing to me?? Yes...juuuust a bit! 

So then she dropped us off.  With kisses, hugs, and promises to hang out when we all come to Gubbio for the Cheri, she left us.  Nick was going to wait with me, and then poor guy would have to sit at the station until like 12:30 waiting for the next bus back to Gubbio!  So, we went in, bought my ticket, and got Nick a cappuccino and cornetto.  He was feeling MUCH better, and therefore wanting to eat everything.  So, while we were sitting there, Nick decided that he was going to take the train to Rome with me, just to spend the extra time with me!

Buying his ticket

Omg, I was SO INCREDIBLY EXCITED!! I was dreading the moment of leaving, but this made me feel better!  So, sweet boy checked train and bus schedules, and decided to come with me! 

When the train came, we BOTH boarded, settled in, and spent the next two hours talking, laughing, and enjoying our extra time together.  I was not feeling GREAT at first, but then started feeling better towards the end.  It was so nice to have that extra time with him.  When we got off the train, we headed to get some lunch at Mr. Panino in the station, and then went outside to the front of the station to eat in the SUNSHINE and WARMTH!! 

It was a beautiful day in Rome.  SO, what is our life when Nick can say, "hey...I have nothing to do today...I think I'll go to Rome with you!"  It was amazing!  He spoils me with the thoughtful things that he does!  However, shortly after we finished eating, I had to go catch my train!  I was so sad, and I definitely cried...He was able to stand on the train for a bit...and then we could talk for a few minutes while I stood on the train and he stood on the platform, but then I definitely cried when I had to actually go sit down and they closed the doors.  Let us be real....I cried for the first ...10ish minutes of the train ride!  However, in the meantime, I captured these pictures of my Nick:

 

Silly boy ran after the train!  So adorable, and therefore I think I will keep him! 

The train ride was rather uneventful!  I was in first class, which is always nice, but it was more crowded than normal because my actual train car was out of service.  I was able to sit back and relax for the first part of the trip!  Someone sat down behind me later and I had to (well, chose to) let my seat up!  I worked on blogs and watched "Enchanted".  I was able to talk to Nick a few times, and he sent me some pictures of him "upside down" in ROme.  Holy cow the weather was gorgeous in Rome that day! 

 

He is so cute! 

SO, I sent Rosina a text message asking her if she could pick me up from the station, and she said yes!  YAY!!!

The sunset as we got closer to Paola was beautiful as usual!  These pictures do NOT do it justice AT ALL! No, really!  It was a beautiful, colorful sunset, and my camera was just not picking up the colors today!  Nonetheless, here is some evidence of God's beautiful artwork!

 

I changed trains in Paola, and then while I was on the train, I called Lila and Ernesto to make sure that I was able to use the heat when I returned to the apartment, and they told me that there was a second roommate..  WHY DO YOU PEOPLE NOT TELL ANYONE THESE THINGS!?!?!? I was LIVID! I was doing my best not to cry! 

Rosina and her sweet husband were waiting on me at the station, where we ran into a former colleague of hers, and she rode with us as well!  When they dropped me off, Rosina gave me a bag full of food for dinner and such!  She had some fruit, yogurt, meat, veggies, etc.  Meat/Veggies were already cooked, and I was so incredibly touched by her kindness!  She is so good to me and I do love her very much!  SHe is so incredibly kind and thoughtful! 

SO, I got my stuff upstairs, met the new roommate, cried about it to my mom, went in my room, eventually ate some dinner, and then went to bed....

NOT happy with the Italians right now and their lack of communication!  In the U.S. you would NEVER move someone into an apartment with current roommates without them meeting each other, getting approval, etc. etc.  At this moment, i was SOOOOOOOOOOOO ready to be in the U.S.