Snow day....

minus the snow!

So, I fully appreciate the day off from school, but there was no more snow today! It was nice to not wake up to an alarm this morning! Nick still had to go to work, so I talked to him before he left and then tried to stay warm in my bed!  I got up and did some packing stuff for Reggio, and then I decided to go out for a walk.  It was sunny and nice outside!  I walked around for about 2 hours.  I walked down a street that gives me a better view of the mountains because they are all covered in snow.  I stopped in a few stores looking for boots and such...found nothing, but I did see this cute kid:

Then I decided that I wanted to walk towards the historical center to see the snow.  Most of it was melting, and water was dripping off of every building, and sometimes it felt like it was raining.  I got a decent view of the historical center, but the snow was almost gone!  So, I tried, but did not see too much of the snow!  I got a few pictures, and it was pretty, but not as much as snow as I'd hoped for!  It was a nice 2 hour walk though.

Snow on the mountains!!!

You can KIND OF see the snow....

 

Soooo much water in the rivers...finally!

In the historical center...how have I never noticed it??

Tree made out of different types of bottles

 

 The corso had a lot of people on it, and it was nice outside! 
It was nice to just be out and about!  I took my time walking back, and it was getting close to lunch time, and I was hungry.  So, I went to my fruit and veggie place to get some tomatoes and then to one of the bakeries to get some wheat bread.  

Nick called me on his break while I was out walking, and he made this snow art for me because it was snowing in Gubbio!

 
I came home and prepared my lunch, talked to Nick some, and then I talked to my momma!  Afterwards I worked on blogs, lesson planning, and such...but not too much today!  I did get a lot of stuff together for Reggio, so that was good!  I talked to Nick until he had to leave for a Carnivale thing with some of the teachers he works with. 

Today I looked at the email Tiffany sent again, and they let you make a postcard out of your chosen picture.  So, they are sending it to my house, but they also give you an electronic copy, so here it is:

When he left, I went out to walk around a bit, go to the bank, and see if anything was going on for Carnivale.  I enjoyed the lights they have put up for Carnivale...the pics do not do the colors justics, but I'll try!

I was headed to the bank to get money for Lila and Ernesto, who were supposed to call me tonight with a price for the gas.  I also needed a bit of money for Reggio.  On my way to the bank, I got sidetracked into Zara. But FIRST I went into the store where I bought my coat and saw these shirts:

Shock...and confusion do not even describe it!!  First...why?? Second...where is Alabama?!?!?!?

I have been searching for some warmer (dressier) tops to take to Reggio.  My nice confrencey (yes, I made this word up) type clothing is not that warm!  In Alabama we just dress relatively warm, get in a car (with heat), and go to a building (also with heat).  So, I have been on the hunt.  I can't really buy pants here in Italy because they are all too short, so I will just have to do with the pants I have.

Zara- I spent WAYY too much time in there trying on shirts, but I did eventually find two I liked.  One was a thin sweater that you layer, so I think it will work really well as a nice top that can also be layered and will not feel too bulky!  I also bought a shirt that will go really well with my khaki pants, but can also be casual.  They can both be dressy or casual..and they are warmer...and I got them both for the original price of the sweater.  I like when this happens, and I like that I should be warmer.  So, after a ridiculous amount of time, I made the decision and went to pay.  Oh, in the dressing room, I saw this girl that kept waving at me, but I swear I've never seen her in a million years!  I suppose she must be a student at Fermi, but I have no idea!  She definitely is not one of my students.

After Zara I went to the bank, and then headed back to my apartment.  By this time it was getting late, and I was getting hungry!  It was just after 7 when I started cutting up veggies for dinner.  As I was putting them in the hot oil, Lila called and said that they were coming in about 10 minutes.  So, I kept cooking my veggies, and they arrived just as they were finishing.  From here, the night was a bit downhill. 

So, they sat me down, and IN ITALIAN Ernesto started explaining the bills.  I followed all of it...and so that was good.  Then he got to the gas bill.  He said that we have been using WAY too much gas.  Then he started breaking it down, and bottom line is that from October 6th until February 5th, my SHARE of the gas is 550 euros.  I thought I was going to be sick.  The total for my bills I owed was 606 euros.  I was so anxious for them to leave so that I could cry, and I thought I was going to throw up.  The whole time I was just praying for peace...I'd been praying before they got here.  I know it is just money, and I cannot worship both money and God.  It isn't that.  It just made me sick.  Then he looked at the thing and told me that since Friday I had used too much.  I said, "but I have not been using the heat except at night!" They said, "all night??" I said, "well, while I sleep.  So maybe 7 or 8 hours!"  They were both SHOCKED.  They said, "that's too much.  You can't use the heat that much in a day!"  I looked at them like they were from outer space.  They told me that they use their heat for maybe an hour in the morning, an hour at night, and if it is really cold they use it at lunch time when they are home.  EXCUSE ME WHAT?!?!?!? You use your heat for maybe 3 hours a day????  These radiators do not produce heat that quickly and the apartment certainly does NOT maintain it.  The tile/marble floors and very little furniture, etc. do NOT maintain ANY heat.  So at this point I was freaking out on the inside and having a hard time keeping it together. They asked me how it worked in the U.S., and I explained that I always have heat.  The heat stays on and it cuts on and off depending on the temperature, but you always have it.  I know that not every American has this, but in the south radiators are outdated and not that common.  So, how was I supposed to know that you could not use the heat?? I have central heating at home...always have...this right here is ABSURD.  So, I told them that had I known, I would not have used so much heat.  I told them that I was cold, but it doesn't matter...the bottom line is...NO HEAT FOR ME...well, very little of it.

Needless to say, the moment I heard them get on the elevator, I lost it.  I started praying and telling God that I KNOW He is in control, and I know that nothing has come to me that has not passed through His hands.  I know these things to be true, and I KNOW that this is no different.  The money makes me sick, but the idea of being cold makes me sicker.  I am already in pain from being so cold (my fingers and feet hurt sooooooooooooo much, and my knees hurt more in the winter too...so this cold is not cool!).

Then I called my momma and melted down on her.   When I hung up with her I went to cry some more because I was already cold...and now I was feeling sick and could not stand the thought of eating my dinner.  However, I did eat some of my vegetables.  Not too long after I ate, Nick called and I talked to him for a while.  Naturally, I was crying.

A great part of my day:

I talked to April for a few minutes on skype before I was supposed to talk to Maria.  At this point I was having some peace about the money part of the situation, but still very unhappy about having to be cold. 

The next hour and 45 minutes was one of the BEST parts of my day!! I LOVE talking to Maria.  It is something missing from my life these days!  She is so kind, sweet, knowledgeable, comforting, wonderful, amazing, loving, and I miss her!  She is excited to meet Nick...I told him that he must FIRST have my momma and daddy's approval, then Erin/April/Meagan/Brooke/Maria/Malissa/Kelly, the girls, and Tony, and then others.  Now of course he has MY approval...and my momma loved him...so now I cannot wait for everyone else to meet him.  I told him that there are a lot of people "watching" him...and he has people "watching me"...but I think my army is bigger! ;)  Anyway, I had so much fun talking to Maria.   We talked about the Italian schools and so much!  She was excited to know that I REALLY wanted her to meet Nick and that she WILL meet him when he comes to Alabama.  I told her my plan is just to try and get everyone together at once and be like, "okay guys...here's Nick.  And go!"  haha...no really!  Nick and I joke about the scene from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" where the family meets Ian and they all scream, "Iaaan!!!!" and push Tulah out of the way!  I miss my Maria.  So, she had to go write a midterm, and it was nearing midnight here, so we hung up!  With "I love yous" and "talk to you soon"s...we hung up! 

I talked to my momma briefly and then to Nick until we fell asleep on skype!

So, overall...the day was...umm..okay!

There were amazing parts though, and that is God's mercy...even when there are bad things, there is always good too! 

Christmas Eve Eve

So, I always love to say, "Merry Christmas Eve Eve", but this year I don't think anyone in Italy appreciates it as much as I do!  However, that is because they focus on Christmas Eve, and they do not even focus on Christmas Day as much as we do!  Nonetheless, "Merry Christmas Eve Eve!!"

This morning started out with the weirdest breakfast because I am trying not to buy too many groceries because I know that I will be leaving soon to go to Rome/Gubbio/Rome.  So, I had an apple...normal; and left over pasta with...wait for it...honey drizzled over it (after it was heated up of course!).  Judge me all you want, but it was actually pretty good!  So, with that, I got dressed and ran to the grocery store to get something...I dont remember what, but it was necessary.    I came home and looked at some things about Reggio (SOOOOO EXCITED!!!!!!).   I also checked some emails about some important things I am considering doing (stay tuned in the coming months for details...and if you already know what I am talking about...shut it! ;)  ).

I was already dressed for church, so all I had to do was grab my coat and go!  So, I walked back to Piazza Europa, which is also where my grocery store is, and waited on Francisco to come pick me up!  While I was waiting, I saw this other girl that appeared to be waiting on something, and I had a feeling that she too was waiting on Francisco, but I was afraid to approach her.  However, when Francisco's dad pulled up, we both went for the car!  She got in without noticing that I did too, and then his dad introduced us (in Italian of course).  She is from Cuba, and when he told her that I was from The United States, she immediately shut down, and in Italian said, "I do not speak English!!"  He told her that I understand Italian, and I can speak it (well, you know...as much as I can!).  She barely said a word to me the rest of the day (I'll explain more in a minute).  So, we were off.  She was speaking to him in Italian, and I could follow some of it, but not all.  So, he also gave me the Kari Jobe cd that Francisco made for me, but I forgot to get it from him the other night.  I was so excited to have it, and friend still was not speaking to me.  Even when Francisco's dad tried to include me in the conversation, and I would speak, she would just change the subject and/or not address me at all.  So, I was a little curious about this, but tried to ignore it.

We arrived at church, and Francisco and Sofia came to give me welcoming kisses and such!  They are so sweet; so welcoming.  Some of the other early birds came up and hugged/kissed me as well!  This is how church is supposed to be...this is how we are all supposed to be...welcoming, warm, kind, loving.  I love that here in Italy, I have found this!  What an answered prayer...so thanks to all who were praying with me/for me on this one!  God is good!  So, I sat down to watch them warm up, and then Francisco came down to talk to me for a bit before we got started.  He told me that they wanted to take me to some castle that is about a 2 hour drive from here, but is amazing and totally worth the drive!  Ummmm...YES!!

We also talked about some differences between churches here in Cosenza/Italy.    One thing that I did not realize was that a lot of the Italians that Francisco has met in his 10 years of living here, believe that when he says he is not Catholic, that this means he is Jehovah Witness and/or not a Christian.  So, this actually puts a few things into perspective for me; a few reactions that I have received from some Italians I have met!  I am a little shocked that they are so unaware of other Christians...I know that Italy is a Catholic country, and I know that Southern Italy is less exposed to these things (according to them...not me!!!), but I guess I just assumed that they would understand that being protestant does not make you a non-christian!  Americans are often accused of being ignorant and unaware of others, but I have to say that I have been SHOCKED at some of the assumptions the Italians make/stereotypes they have of other countries/cultures (NOT just Americans).  Please do not misunderstand me here.  I am not trying to get Americans off the hook for being uninformed about other cultures, but rather I am just pointing out that we are not the only ones! 

So, it was about time to start, and even when Graziella (I think is how you spell the mom's name) tried to introduce me to my new Cuban friend (not realizing that we had already "met"), the girl still would not address me!  I was NOT okay with this!  If for no other reason than the fact that we are standing in church, and you know that even if we are not fluent in each other's languages, we are both Christians, and this gives us a link.  Not cool...not cool!

So, the service was great!  I picked up a lot of the songs finally; with the help of the lyrics that Francisco provided me with of course!  It was an AWESOME hour of worship!  Now that I know the words, and looked up a few of the ones I did not know, everything has more meaning and I can sing just as if I were singing in English!  This was the moment when I realized, worship truly is worship, no matter the language!  Is the sentence structure the same? No.  Are the words different for some songs that have been translated from English? Yes.  Do they make as much sense? Yes and no.  Are they still being used to worship an amazing, almighty, loving, wonderful, gracious God?? YES! Therefore, they are the same!  Worship is not about the words anyway; worship is about what you feel in your heart and what you are bringing to the feet of Jesus!  Praise God for worship in all languages...and that I have been able to find meaning in this other language!  Today especially, I was in awe of the fact that I do still struggle to understand some Italian, and some individuals when they speak in Italian, but when I walk into church, I understand about 90-95% of what they are saying.  I think a few things contribute to this: 1. God 2. Exodus 4:11-12 which says, "Then the Lord asked Moses, 'Who makes a person's mouth?  Who decides whether people speak or do not speak hear or do not hear, see or do not see?  Is it not I, the Lord?  Now go! I will instruct you in what to say!'"  3. THe fact that these are not native speakers, thus their Italian is a bit simpler, and clearer to understand because they are not speaking any dialect and such.  The message, given by the mom today, was about how God sent his Son for us.  We read:  John 3:16; Luke 2:10-11; 1 John 5:14; 2 Corinthians 5:17-21, and of course I am using my English Bible for now, but I am going to ask Francisco where I can buy an Italian Bible (not the Catholic one) soon.  The whole time we were in church, the sun was shining brightly outside.  It was beautiful to see!  I was so glad that it was sunny and beautiful because it just helps lift your spirits.

So, when the service was over, a few of us were standing around talking.  We were speaking half in English and half in Italian, with a little bit of Spanish thrown in there!  A lot of the people at this church are from South America.  I know for sure that Argentina, Uruguay, Peru, and then Cuba (yes I know that is not South America) are represented, and I am pretty sure that I a missing a few countries.  How awesome is it to be worshiping with people from so many different places, in the common language that we have, and loving every minute of it? So, Cuban friend walked up and heard us speaking a little bit in English, and then immediately walked away.  Well, her loss I suppose!  Another girl that I have seen a bit of was disappointed that I did not speak Spanish, but was very sweet and spoke in Italian with me!  She also wanted a picture with me and some of the others.  Her exact words were, "Vorrei fare una foto con Barbie!!" Guys...I do NOT look like Barbie, and while I suppose it is a compliment, it's not true.  Devorah, from Rome, was right about the fact that we are now the mysterious foreigners (well, she added the word sexy in there...but IIII dont know about that!   So, we took a few pictures, and even took a few with the Christmas tree.  I did not like the picture of me on my camera...so I will share the one they took with theirs. I'm still not crazy about this pic of me, but oh well...I want everyone to see Francisco. 

Francisco, Me, Armando, friend who called me Barbie, girl who would not speak to me

Tree at Church

I did tell them that after my birthday, I would start using Italian only...well, I suppose those are going to be some silent days!  Armando was there today too!  He agreed to go to the castle with us, though he had never heard of it!

So, after that it was time to go home.  Cuban girl, whose name I never really caught, was still not speaking to me, but she got in the car with me...so that was good at least.  So, Francisco and Sofia took us home.  So, starting this morning as I was getting ready to go to church, Francesca (teacher was calling me).  I could not answer immediately, but I tried calling her as I walked to the Piazza.  I had to leave a message, but then, in true Italian fashion, she called me like 6 or 7 times while I was in church!  When I got home, I was able to Skype with Nick while I ate lunch...YAY!! I called Francesca back while he had to go do something, and she was just calling to see if she could come by to bring me a small gift and some treats!  All that phone calling for that...ooh the Italians!  This is a rather consistent thing around here; remember the 35 phone calls from creeper??? Turns out that while that is excessive, they all call multiple times until you answer the phone.  So anyway, I spent about 2 hours total skyping with Nick because he was up really early his time, trying to adjust to Seattle time.  It was fun to see his face while talking; not something we can do here in Italy!

So, knowing that Francesca would be at my apartment around 6:30, and Nick was off to spend time with his family, I decided to head out for a walk on the Corso.  I got dressed, headed out, and walked a slightly different path tonight.  I found this big store that had so many different things.  It had clothing, household items, Christmas decor, make up, etc.  I guess it is the closest I have seen to an all-purpose store such as Wal-Mart, but without the food of course!  I was able to find some Napoletane cards for 1 euro vs. the 4 or 5 euros that some of the tabacchi places were wanting to charge!  So, feeling good about my deal, I headed out to walk some more!  I walked into random stores loking at things I did not need, but it was nice.  I also went down to the river and took some pictures as the sun was setting.

Sunsets are gorgeous anywhere, and they are a work of art created by God, but there is something so special about sunsets in places other than your home; there is something that makes you appreciate them that much more! So, then I started making my way back to my apartment!  I stopped in a few stores, watched some kids playing on the Corso, and then across the street from my apartment, I stopped in this music store that I have never been to!  I found Nick two more things for Christmas! I had to come back for them though because I did not have cash with me!

By this point, I had made my way back soooo slowly that it was just after 6:30 when I ran up the stairs. I had been in my apartment for like 2 minutes when my doorbell rang.  Francesca was here.  I felt bad that my room was a HOT MESS, and the garbage needed to go out, but whatever.  She was so sweet to bring me some homemade goodies (soooooooo yummy)

and a small gift to be opened on Christmas Eve.  She stayed for a little bit to talk, and to tell me all about how to play Bingo in England, which is how she plays it, and how she plays it with the students.  She seemed a little weird about the fact that I let the students teach me how to play Tombola, and that I had not taught them to teach them how to play American Bingo.  First of all, we would not have been able to use Tombola cards for American Bingo, and second of all...this is cultural exchange...I've given them lessons on the U.S., and I wanted this to be their opportunity to share something with me!  So, I was still satisfied with my way.  She also told me that I was coming to her house for Christmas Eve lunch, but that I would have to ride the bus.  She called her son to find out which bus, and which stop!

Once she left, I headed back out with my big Canon camera in hand, and the cash to buy Nick's other gifts.  I did that first, and the sweet guy even gift wrapped it for me!  Then I headed towards the Corso to take pictures of Christmas lights.  I walked down a few different streets, and went in this one store that I have been eyeing for a while now!  It had REALLY nice jewelry and such!  They were serving wine that Nick and I actually bought one day, which made me feel even better about our wine choice.  This store was SOOOOO incredibly crowded.  I looked around for a little bit, and then headed back out to take more pictures.  The Croso was SOO croweded with people, but it was really nice to be out with everyone.  I got a few strange looks for taking pictures, but I do not care!  I wanted to remember everything.  I saw a few of my students as well!  I love seeing familiar faces...again, it makes me feel like I belong here.  I took a TON of pictures, and I will post some here, but all of them will be on facebook for sure!

Tree in Piazza Loreto

Piazza Loreto

Ice skating rink

Some of the words hanging over Corso Mazzini

Tree in Piazza Kennedy

Me

One way to say it...not the way I say it though

The way I learned to say it! 

In a store...writing a letter to Santa

Entrance to my grocery store

I cleaned my room some after this, putting away a bunch of clothes, and cleaned some other things. All of this in anticipation of my mom being here soon!  YAY!!!!!!!! I ate dinner...relaxed...worked on blogs...and cleaned! 

Private Tour

Saturday morning started a little earlier than a Saturday should, but it was fine!  We had arranged to meet my student, C., at the Duomo around 4.  We first requested 11, and she reminded us that she would be in schools!  Oops, we forgot about the Italians going to school on Saturdays!

So, our morning consisted of breakfast, and getting ready to go out for a walk.  I wanted to walk a different way today and learn how some of these streets connect.  So, we headed out and walked for a while! We stopped at my fruit/veggie guy just to grab a clementine each; the sweet lady was so excited to see me, and I, her!  The guy gave us the clementines for free!  So sweet! I think it was good for me to see how things are closer than I even thought they were!  It was nice to see what was actually walkable and such.  The Italians that I have met here would NOT think that these things are walkable, but I do!  I showed Nick where the "Blockbuster" was, but is now something different, but still a movie store.  We found the really tall modern building here in Cosenza that I can see from just about everywhere.  It does not look like anything the Italians would approve of, but I guess someone did.

I took him in a cafe that Lilla took me to for good gelato, but we were not hungry, so we just peeked in.  We walked for a while!  Then we came across my path to school.  So, I stopped in the shoe store that Rosina told me about the other day, and THEN we found a bookstore that I had seen a sign for, but did not see the actual store until today!  I was SO excited to find this small book that is a collection of Italian Children's fables.  It is also by Nick's favorite Italian author.  He felt so bad about not remembering that this existed.  Apparently the author, Italo Calvino, went around Italy collecting children's fables in the dialects.  His life was spent translating them, as well as writing other books and such.  So, I had FINALLY found my collection of uniquely Italian children's stories!  I was so giddy with excitement!!

By this time, it was nearing lunch time.  We had been walking for a while.  We decided that we would stop at the grocery store to get some more turkey and mozzarella, then at the bread place for some bread, and then at the fruit/veggie guy to get some more tomatoes.  After we had collected our "ingredients" we headed to the apartment to eat!  The lunch was SO good!  We had sliced tomatoes, fresh turkey, fresh mozzarella, fresh whole wheat bread, and olive oil. YUMMY!! We just ate and enjoyed talking for a while!  We sat around talking, listening to music, and relaxing until it was time to go meet C. at the Duomo.  I was wrong, THIS was the day that we chatted with April on skype for a bit!!  Yay for my love!

Then we started walking!  I stopped and looked at a few coats, but did not find anything.  We were on Italian time getting to the Duomo to meet C.  When we arrived there was some sort of children's rehearsal going on inside the church.  We text her to let her know we were there.  She met us outside, and we walked to a bus stop to meet two other students from the class, S. and.....ughh I cannot think of the other sweet girl's name right this minute.  Anyway, I was so excited that all 3 of them were there!  S. lives in a smaller village outside of Cosenza, so this was her first time to see the Cosenza Duomo.  I will not lie, I was pretty excited for a private tour!  We got to see so much of the Duomo that the average person does not get to see!  She explained some of the paintings and such, but then she took us to the bell tower!  We got to climb to the very top, not something normally done!  Like Nick said, "this is once in a lifetime!"  I am hoping to make it twice because I am going to see if she can take me, my momma, and Barbara!  Nick reminded me that I would have to be the translator...uh oh, no pressure there!  :/  I was so excited for the view of Cosenza we got...the bell in the church is from like 1020 or something CRAZY like that!  We were in one hallway looking at where they are preparing for the Live Nativity.  This lady was yelling at Carmen telling her that we were not supposed to be in there, and Carmen started arguing back about how we had come all the way from America to see this!  After a little back and forth about us needing to see this and how it would only take us a few minutes, we saw what she wanted us to see, and then we left.  As we were preparing to leave, they were starting Mass.  We saw so much, and it was so beautiful.  I'll now let the pictures do the talking.

Mary in the middle; 6 Apostles on each side

Gorgeous view

The Castel lit up at night 

Amazing view

Nick and me near the top!

Friend of students, C., S, & ___ with me at the top!

The REALLY OLD bell

LOVE IT!!

When our tour was over, we walked up to where the theatre is, and there was a mercatino.  There was not really anything we wanted to buy or anything, but I did like that the theatre had lights on it!  The Italian girls did not like it, but I love Christmas lights.  S. and my other student left to go catch the bus to get home.  We all kissed and parted ways!  They tried to get us into the theatre, but there was a show going on!  C. argued with the guys!  I did not have the heart to tell her that we had seen it before.  They started telling the guys working there that we traveled 16 hours to see it, etc. etc.  I felt really bad that they were trying so hard, and were so upset when they would not let us in!  Then, this bus came by that C. got on and then motioned for us to get on.  Apparently this is the "Santa bus".  It has Christmas lights inside, and decals on the outside.  It went for a short loop, and it was really fun to see C. interact with the bus driver.  We got a good laugh out of all of this!!  It was...umm...something you cannot find in the United States!

Rione (small narrow street in Historical center)

Teatro Rendano

After our Christmas bus ride, C. walked us back towards the church, and then she went to meet the Christmas bus driver.  Nick and I started making our way back towards the apartment because we were supposed to meet Rosina's sons at my apartment.  Rosina had invited us to her home for dinner.  We took some more pictures of lights in the historical center,

and took pictures with the lights over the parking lot.  I LOVE the thing of lights hanging over the parking lot...it seems so magical!  

Also on the way home, I FINALLY found a coat I liked.  However, it was expensive (which I eventually accepted the price), but the black one was my favorite and they did not have it in my size!!  They had this other one, but I REALLY wanted the black one!  I also hate how in Italian stores they smother you and do not let you have a minute alone to think about things.  It makes me so anxious and makes me NOT want to buy anything from them!  I could not take the pressure, so I just left.  I thought about it more..and will go back tomorrow to make sure that I do not want the one that was not black!  

We met them downstairs just after 8 o'clock, and they drove us to her home.  She had gathered about 10 other people.  Her husband was sooooo sweet, and I just loved him.  She had some nieces and nephews there; one girl is an actress in soap operas here in Italy!  Everyone was soooo very sweet and welcoming.  Rosina showed me around at all of the cool pictures.  They poured this spritzer and had different kinds of nuts for an appetizer.  It was the first time I'd ever had an actual hazelnut.  Rosina pulled me away to look at more art.  She has an awesome art collection!!  Her son, friend Angela, and some others came and sat down with Nick and I to talk.  Angela speaks English really well, and her mom is from Canada.  We talked to them some in English and some in Italian.  It was fun to just sit and talk and get to know them.  Then it was time for dinner.  The first course was a pasta with chickpeas on it!  It was REALLY good actually!  She said it is a piatto povero, or a poor dish...poor man's dish!  It was yummy though!  The second course was SPEZZATINO!!!!!!!!!! I was so excited! It was a little different than Signora Gabriella's in Florence, but it was SO good!  We also had these amazing potatoes with it!  Then we had some of the local traditional food of "broccoli" (which was actually spinach) and sausages.  I did not like it!!  The wine was amazing...the company was good...there was a lot of laughing...a lot of joking around!  It was just a lot of fun!  It was so sweet of her to set this dinner up for us!  After we finished the main courses, Rosina and her husband sent us all out of the room to set up dessert.  We went in the tv room and played this Italian trivia game! Most of it was hard for me to follow, but I got some questions and answers.  It was fun nonetheless.  When they came to get us for dessert we were in for a surprise... A LOT of sweets and liquores to try!  We had a few small chocolates, but we ended up taking some susumelli (dialect treat) home with us.  They talked Nick into trying this Rum that was 80 proof, but still REALLY strong.  I tried a vodka e melone thing, and also the pistacchio one.  It was all really good!  We just sat around talking some more and enjoying the company!  Close to midnight, we decided to head out!  Her sons drove us home!  I was so grateful that she organized this dinner for us!  It was so thoughtful and sweet!  The food was amazing, and we even took leftovers home.  I have a ton of chickpeas and some spezzatino to eat later.  The people here are so warm and welcoming.  I love my people here!!