Moving Over

At the suggestion of numerous friends, I am becoming a blogger! The temptation to vent about the frustrations (and also to share the touching insights from time to time) of an American adjusting to small-town Italian life was too much for me. So here we go...

We arrived on New Year's Eve, after living for three weeks out of our suitcases in various locales. Our dear friend Ali Safayan offered his home to us when our belongings were carted away on December 12, headed for a ship then to an Italian port sometime in late January. So we attempted to lightly pack :) and camped out with him on Capitol Hill until the 24th, when we headed south to Richmond. (Keep in mind we needed clothing for 4 dinner parties, 3 photo shoots, several days of ski camp, Christmas vacation and a week and a half in the Alps. Light packing was neither easy nor ultimately achievable.)

We stayed at my sister's place there for five days, and I was lucky enough to spend the time with Lynn, my dad, Mike, Becky and family, and also connect with close friends from college for a last good-bye before we returned to DC on the 30th. The next day we flew out to begin a new chapter in our lives....

After upgrading to Business Class, we managed to stay awake that evening until 1:00 AM Italian time for a lovely long family dinner (cenone) followed by fireworks up near the castello that we viewed from our window. Having already headed deep into sleep deprivation, we remained unconscious until almost noon, enjoyed breakfast in front of the fireplace, then straggled down in time for another large meal at lunch on New Year's Day (of course, with the family - this is, after all, Italy. You would be considered either eccentric or openly insane if you considered any kind of activity alone here. Eye-opening for an introverted WASP. More to follow on this.).

Since then our lives have consisted of trying to coordinate last-minute changes in renovation strategy (mine) and finalize a car purchase in time to drive to the Alps to ski (his). Neither has been totally successful to date.

We leave Friday for skiing, regardless, by which time our daughter will have experienced her first dose of the Italian educational system. (By way of hint, there is no PTA here.) At some point prior to mid-March we hope to be able to see our clothing and furniture again. I will keep you posted on this.

We miss all our dear friends in Washington and beyond!! And my family, scattered though they are. I hope that by launching this out into the blogosphere we will invite all to keep in touch with us! Happy New Year! Love, Liz