Uscire-ing

Today the weather did exactly what it’s done every day since we got here. In the morning it was beautiful and sunny and on the verge of getting warm. Then by 3 the clouds rolled in and it started to rain. And being a Seattleite I thought I knew rain. I was proved wrong in Rome, and now in Rogliano where it really, truly poured. This pattern has happened every day thus far, and all the locals swear it’s normally beautiful in May. We joke that it’s because we’re here. I’ve heard it should clear up by the end of the week, and I hope so because then we could go to the ocean over the weekend.

Alright, to finish up I have to write a little bit about tonight. First of all, we had hamburgers and fries for dinner, and yes I ate a hamburger. Didn’t particularly enjoy it, I prefer the veg ones, but I ate it. And they do ketchup way wrong here, it's so vinegary! Manuel has told me that Saturday nights they like to go out as a family and get McDonalds for dinner. I’m super pumped about that, yay American food once a week!! Then after dinner around 9 I went with Caitlin and her host sister Theresa to uscire. Uscire is a verb in Italian that means ‘to go out,’ which in Rome would have been to a pub or discotecca or gelato. Nope, here in Rogliano uscire means going to the center of town, and walking up and down the main street hoping to see someone you can talk to. It could be fun with a lot of people there to meet, like on a Saturday night, but tonight there was no one. Not a soul. Needless to say it was an early night for us…

I’ll leave you with a few more details about my Rogliano family. Fausto apparently leaves during the week to work in some different town. He’s only here on the weekends. I’m not sure but I think he works building railroads, because I knew he was construction and I heard something about rails. So right now it’s the boys, Marilena and me. She’s still half-yelling at me like I’m deaf when she talks, but less now. And she’s really worried about what to cook for me or if I’ll like it, even though I’ve “liked” and eaten everything she’s made thus far. Tomorrow we’re going to the store so I can show her foods I would like to eat. But I’ve heard I’m not the only one with a mom like this. She also likes to smoke… a lot. Whenever the boys are being annoying she breaks out a cigarette and goes to smoke it in the bathroom. She cracks a window, but the whole bathroom still stinks of tobacco at all times. While showering the other day I was worried I would smell like it too. But I’m actually getting used to cigarette smoke.

Kevin reminds me a little of my brother, they look a little similar in the face I think and every now and again I’ll see a familiar mannerism. I like Kevin, tonight I helped him with his English homework and then made him practice actual English by asking him simple questions and having him answer. For a little while he knew what it was like for me, what it’s like to not always understand. Then there’s Manuel, who is the cutest kid I have ever met. It’s sickening. He’s always bouncing around, and he has so much personality. It’s hard to describe, he’s just so entertaining!

Alright there it is. Again, sorry for the long posts, but at least I warned you the other day. As we say here all the time, ci vediamo dopo! (we’ll see each other later)