Describe Milan in 1 word???...INSANE!

SO now I'm up at 1 a.m typing this....why you may ask?? 3 reasons. #1. I spent the last hour and a half typing up this entire post, only to, as I hit spell check have the entire browser close, and 2 page long blog post, fall somewhere into outer space never to be returned again. Lessoned learned though! This one was typed in Microsoft Word! #2 reason why I am up at 1 a.m, I can't sleep because it's the middle of the day in the U.S and clearly my body isn't quite adjusted to Milan time. It better hurry up though or I'm gonna start drinking Benadryl through a straw until I chemically induce myself to sleep so I can function. And reason #3. My oh so lovely brother can't sleep either and is playing Angry Birds with the volume as load as it can go, so I can hear Birds, chirping and being flung through sling shots across a screen...gotta love that noise.  

Alright, more about Italy I know! Let's start with the people..everyone dresses very nice to say the least, all the time! Men (including teenagers) dress in sport coats and button ups, and Ladies in, heels, nice blouses, jackets, and perfect make-up and hair. It's actually quite refreshing other than the heels...you walk miles a day and yet you have to wear heels! My feet hate me! I might as well tear each tendon in my feet apart one at a time.

However it’s probably a good thing! Unless I want to return home 50 pounds heavier! The food is..amazinggg!! For someone who once didn't like Spaghetti, moving to Italy was exactly what I needed! However, Americans destroy Spaghetti. For all of you spaghetti lovers, it isn't served with ground beef mixed in with 5 year old canned tomato sauce. It's freshly blanched tomatoes served with fresh pasta, served with fresh seasonings, served with fresh ____ fill in the blank! Everything is fresh! It's soooo good! Gelato, is nothing like Americanized Gelato, it's beyond words! Decadent. Absolutely, heavenly! If the world ended today and all I had left was triple chocolate gelato and the people I love, I would be just fine! Okay think breakfast......Bacon? Eggs? Toast? (or as Italians call it..tossed..yes like you toss a baseball.). Think again! Think more along the lines of dessert. Pastries, and croissants with chocolate, powdered sugar, nutella, jelly, etc. It's litterally beyond words! You would have to try to even begin to comprehend! It gets better with each bite!

Alright, I know all you girls, "are Italian guys really as hot as the movies portray????" Uhm....that's a yes! (But I do miss my blonde hair, blue eyed American boyssss.<3)

As I stated a minute ago..Italians always dress very nice, you must be seen in the right places, at the right time, in the right clothes! Oh right..with the right dogs! All Italians have dogs, little dogs, poodles, etc.  So as an Italian you either walk, drive a vespa, or a smart car..no pick-up trucks, diesels, dualies, you know, American vehicles (; I want you all to picture something..Italian women, in business attire, pencil skirts, nice jackets, 6 inch heels, with a pink helmet..swerving through traffic on a Vespa (cross between a moped and a motorcylce). Got a nice visual?? It's even funnier than you are picturing!

 Hmm...that brings us to the driving!! I don't know how many of you have been to NY..crazy right?!!? Think again! and times it by 7,000! There are NO lanes. No seriously, it's just one big mob of smart cars, bmws, mercedes, etc. all swerving through traffic attempting to get to their location more efficiently than the car next to them! And motorcycles and Vespa's don't even pay attention to which way the road is supposed to go, they just drive wherever they want, including sidewalks, train tracks, in your lane, on the medians wherever they can squeeze through! Oh and cars can just drive along train tracks, trains and metros stop for cars. Cars ALWAYS have the right of way. Whether you are a train, a pedestrian, a subway, a metro, a dog, a horse and carriage, or the president of Italy, they will not stop for you and they will likely just run you over..!  It's not like the U.S..Oh and cars park anywhere!! Wherever they want! on sidewalks..on train tracks..on medians, in the middle of the road with their flashers on...oh and of course parallel parking! But not parallel parking like we know it, they fit cars in spots that Americans wouldn't even park a bicylcle. They just use the bumpers, to literally bump and scoot the car in front and behind of them until they have enough room to move in or out of the spot. So yes, even the nice Mercedes, Jaquars, Lamborghinis, and BMW's have dints and dings, and that just normal! Oh you hit my car? No big deal!! Sorry I was in your way!! Hope you have a nice day! Ciao, Ciao, Ciao, arrivederchi! Yes I haven’t quite figured out if they say Ciao 32 and a half or 33 times before walking away…

Italians are interesting people...to say the least! They stare, not like in America though not the look for a second or two and look away. or check you out head to toe and look away. Nope. Not even close. They will drop whatever they are doing, stop they're conversation, and break their neck to stare at you the entire time you are in eye site. And it's not even slightly frowned upon here! So yes, when you see an attractive Italian boy, you can stare too! ;) But no seriously, though as a blonde in Italty, they stare like you are the only blonde on the face of the universe! The phrase "take a picture it lasts longer" really doesn't apply with how long they stare!! The picture would fade before they stop staring! Granted it was a little awkward at first, but you get used to it, it really doesn't bother me anymore, I just stare back and keep their eye contact.

Italian's actually keep eye contact with you, what an interesting concept, they look you straight in the eye and talk very directly, it's quite refreshing. As Americans, avoid eye contact, look away, and beat around the bush when speaking!

Oh that brings me to the Italian, it's actually coming right along!! I'm sure this would come as quite a surprise to my Spanish Tutor (Emma) who spent two years teaching me Spanish, and to this day I can barely manage a simple, Hola. But Italian has come more natural and I can get my point across whenever needed and understand most of what they say to me! It's very exciting! My Dad on the other hand just adds "O" to the end of everything assuming that makes it Italian. "Whereo-o exactly-o would-o I-o find-o a...ah...bathroom-o per favore?? He does have the per favore down. :) We're all taking the journey very differently, but thats not a bad thing. It'll be interesting to see how we have all changed at the end of this. Still not quite sure if this is going to literally drive me to insanity or only shape me into a new me. Time will tell. But if I had to guess, it'll be a lil' of both. As less than 48 hours here has already given me a greater appreciation for Europe as well as Italians, however has also brought me nearly on the edge of complete and utter insanity. Ah, time for bed...before I continuing rambling on and driving you all into the depths of insanity along with me. Miss'n everyone back home! ***hugs*** Buonanotte.