Personal Peregrinations

Slowly but surely, I'm becoming American once more

2010-05-28T03:03:00.000-07:00

I have a small confession to make...

I've been back in the US for over 2 weeks. I came back as planned on May 10, thankfully dodging any interference from the volcanic ash that I was so worried about.

No longer can I use the lack of internet as an excuse to not update my blog. I am constantly connected to the internet - even more so than before due to my new Blackberry.

So my updates will become more regular and I will bring this blog up to date on all my traveling that transpired over the last 6 months or so.

Until then, I'm planning on making a half-hearted effort to find a summer job and readjusting to life in my native country.

I've already been made painfully aware of the fact that I am no longer in Italy by many different events. I miss the blunt approach the Italians have to life - when I spoke to my friends here, they initially found me to be brutally honest. Needless to say both parties had some adjusting to do.
I can't look at the "Italian food" served in the US, let alone eat it. No pizza for the next few months until I can forget what authentic pizza tastes like. And don't get me started on how dismayed I am that I can't buy alcohol for myself yet. How am I supposed to get my wine?!

But for all the cultural differences, I love my home country. And I can't complain that I no longer have to worry about communication errors when going to the doctors or ordering at restaurants. Plus, seeing my friends and family again continues to be a treat each day.

Now that I'm back I can clearly see huge changes in who I am and what I want out of life - all for the better, I think. But more on that later. And more pictures and stories of my travels.

I'm back on blogger but who knows when I'll be back in the US...

2010-04-20T10:01:00.001-07:00

It has been 4 months since I've posted - I must apologize profusely for my absence from the web...

To bring you all up to speed with my life in Europe, here is a quick summary of where I am now:

I am still studying in Siena, Italy (Tuscany). The differences between this semester and last are staggering - I am no longer living in an apartment with American room mates, but in a homestay with an Italian family (and none of them speak a word of English). Unfortunately this means I have no internet access at home, thus making it a real challenge to post here. Other than that, it is warm outside (FINALLY!) which means I no longer have to wear 3 layers when I leave the house!

I've been on the move a lot, traveling across the country. In the near future I intend to post pictures and stories about all the places I've been (including places like Prague, Vienna, Northern Italy, etc.).

But sadly I will be leaving in 3 weeks to return to the US. Or at least, that's when my flight is scheduled - my flight that will be going through London's Heathrow airport. If you've been following the global news, you may have noticed a little hitch in European travel as of late...

For those of you who haven't heard, a volcano erupted last week in southern Iceland. The ash from this has been causing flight delays for almost a week now - especially in London - with no definite end in sight. The volcano is still spewing ash and scientists fear another eruption down the road (in a few weeks or a few months, no one really knows).

Some airports reopened (at least some of their flights) today, but a new ash cloud that is moving in could set all progress back to square one again. This may mean that I could end up stuck in Rome if my flight is canceled.

I know, poor Taylor, stranded in one of the most amazing cities on Earth...
I have to admit, I'll use any excuse I can to spend more time in Italy - but unfortunately doing so wouldn't bode well for my dwindling bank account.

But for now, there's nothing I can do except stay optimistic and enjoy my last few weeks in beautiful (and mostly sunny) Siena.

Happy Holidays!

2009-12-18T06:12:00.001-08:00

It’s Christmas time in Siena! Lights are up, an ice skating rink has been placed in the Piazza nearby, as well as multiple Christmas trees throughout town.

The best treat was a few nights ago, as I was walking to a friends how, it began to lightly snow. White flakes clung to my coat and eyelashes and I listened to Christmas music on my iPod and soaked up the beautiful lights. It was nothing short of magical.

Christmas time in Europe seems to be treated with a sort of reverence – more so than in America. It’s truly amazing.

I’m leaving this weekend and will be starting my month of traveling (my finals are all done and this semester is over) before returning to Siena in late January for next semester. I’ll be traveling to Berlin, Bologna, Nice, Bordeaux, Dublin, Rome, Florence, Montepulciano, and Holland. I’ll try to update while I’m on the move, but can’t guarantee it…

So until next time, Happy Holidays to everyone! I hope you’re all finding joy in every moment.

20th birthday in Paris!!!

2009-12-18T06:10:00.000-08:00

I recently celebrated my 20th birthday (about a week ago) in Paris, France! I have to say that this was absolutely the best birthday I’ve ever had and a fantastic way to say goodbye to my teenage years.
About 20 of my friends from my study abroad program accompanied me and my friend Sabrina (who was turning 21 the day before my birthday) to a 4 star hotel in the business district of Paris. The whole weekend was magnificent – I ate nutella crepes nonstop, drank French wine and champagne, and saw all my favorite places in France!

I started my birthday off by going to Notre Dame, one of my favorite places in the world. The architecture conveys so much passion and devotion that must have gone into constructing this church. Standing there, looking at the breathtaking stained glass gives me a sense of tranquility and clarity. If I lived in Paris, I would be in Notre Dame every day just drinking in the beauty.

I also went to the Champs Elysees where there is a Christmas market and the Arc de Triumph where the Christmas spirit is nearly palpable.

I went to Montmartre – one of my favorite areas of Paris – and sat inside the Sacre-Coeur for a while.

On the way back to dinner, we encountered a band playing in a metro station. There was a huge crowd and a ton of strangers started dancing together. It was so much fun and there was so much positive energy. I felt as though it was my own personal dance party in the metro. I couldn’t stop smiling. :)

The best part of my birthday though was the evening. On 9:20 all my friends and I jumped on the metro and got to the Eiffel tower just at 9:54pm (the time I was born). I stood under the Eiffel tower and turned 20 there. I popped a bottle of champagne under the tower as a fantastic light show began and music played. My friends and I all watched the light show with awe – it was fantastic. We danced under the tower until we got too cold to stay any longer and went off in search of some other place to dance.

Upon returning to Italy, I had so many birthday wishes from my friends and family back in the US. My brother even wrote a special blog for my birthday :) check it out here:

The whole experience was so memorable – I feel so lucky to have celebrated my 20th birthday in the city of lights and have received so much love from the people in my life. Thank you to everyone for making it so special.

The Immaculate Conception in Spain

2009-12-18T05:28:00.000-08:00

Living in Italy has many perks, one of which is the holidays I receive due to the Catholic dominance in this country. I myself and not Catholic, but if the Italians want to give me a five day weekend to travel in order to celebrate the Immaculate Conception, then I'm a happy camper.

So a few weeks ago I went to Spain with some close friends. The plan was to spend a few days in Valencia and a day or two in Madrid, but honestly, I could have stayed a few months (or more) in Valencia.
Valencia is Spain's third largest city (after Madrid and Barcelona) but in my opinion is the best. Now, I haven't been to Barcelona and I understand it's quite interesting, but Valencia is located on the South Eastern coast of Spain. This means that in the dead of winter the temperature hovers around 65 degrees Fahrenheit. So much warmer than the 30 degree weather I'm currently having in Siena...

Valencia is also incredibly beautiful. The historical center is similar to Siena due to its winding cobblestone streets, preserved buildings, and busy plazas. The inner city is beautiful with churches and fortresses. But there is also a fantastic amount of night life there with tons of bars and dance clubs. Valencia is also incredibly clean and safe. I stayed in a hostel near one of the main plazas (Plaza de la virgen). Here are some pictures of the city center.

Here you can see that Valencia really outdoes itself when decorating for Christmas. Look how beautiful!

There is also a park that used to be a river (which flooded out) that runs through Valencia. There are skate parks, mini golf courses, a park shaped like Jesus, lots of grass and fountains there as well.

If you walk a bit out of the city center, there are sky scrapers and modern office buildings. Keep walking down the river/park Turia from the city center and you'll find the City of Arts and Sciences (designed by Santiago Calatrava and Félix Candela). This is a cluster of incredibly futuristic looking buildings that house museums and laboratories and aquariums.

Past the City of Arts and Sciences is the beach with lovely long stretches of soft, white sand.

While out at night, I drank only Aigua de Valencia - a specialty alcoholic drink of Valencia containing Oranges and a ridiculous amount of different hard alcohols. Delicious, but deadly.

Upon arriving in Madrid after being in the paradise of Valencia, I couldn't enjoy myself with all the throngs of tourists and pickpockets. Something about Valencia enchanted me. I am now seriously considering studying for a year during graduate school in Valencia if possible. Valencia was quite possibly my favorite city in Europe that I've visited so far.

Thanksgiving in Paris

2009-12-18T04:42:00.001-08:00

Ok, so I know I'm almost a month late on the update, but I finally have a few hours to catch up on all I've been up to these past few weeks!

This is the first holiday season that I have not spent with my family (being in Europe, its a bit difficult to celebrate with everyone in America). This last Thanksgiving, I went with a few friends to Paris for a long weekend. While I didn't have any turkey in honor of the holiday, I did eat some pretty delicious foods: crepes, duck, rabbit, and French wine were just some of the delicious French dishes I enjoyed.

Here's a picture of my Thanksgiving dinner: Duck and potatoes - so delicious!

The Thanksgiving trip to Paris was my second time in the city (the first being over three years ago). I hit up all the normal touristy areas and re-visited some of my favorite places in Paris such as the Louvre, L'arc de triumphe, Les Champs Elysees, and of course the Eiffel Tower. While walking down the Chaps Elysees one evening (which is beautiful - all lit up for Christmas), my friends and I stumbled upon a special event with a famous French singer who I had never heard about before named Sliimy. We got to hear him sing a bit and snapped a few photos.

Here is my favorite sculpture at the Louvre: Psyche and Cupid. I just think the lines are so beautiful and there's a feeling of pure and innocent love to it.

I also visited the Musee d'Orsay for the first time and spent a few hours admiring all the Van Gogh paintings and Rodin sculptures.

I stayed in the Quatier Latin (Latin Quarter) near St. Michel. The Latin Quarter is crammed with fantastic crepe and gyros/kebab stands as well as a fun variety of bars and little dance clubs.

Now, with any big city, there are bound to be con-artists and Paris does not disappoint. There are gypsy women who have English speakers read letters that tell these women's supposed sob stories and then beg you for money. There are men who offer to spin you a bracelet from thread, but even when you refuse, they offer to show you and begin weaving thread around your wrist. When they've finished they hold on to your wrist by the bracelet and refuse to let go until you've paid them five euro. The scam that I personally encountered was one where a man bends down to the ground and appears to pick up a ring (typically a gold band) and then asks if its yours. When you say no, they say (in French or broken English) "Oh, have it, it's a gift from the angels...but I haven't eaten in days. Please give me some money for this ring". They refuse to leave you alone until you give them money or their friend has picked your pocket. I, however, having no patience for these things, eventually threw the ring on the ground at the mans feet before anything could be taken from me.

Apart from the frustrating scams, I felt so at home in Paris -I felt so at home in Paris. My French is still leaps and bounds ahead of my Italian and I loved being in a country where I can effectively communicate with the locals.

I'm aware this entry is a short one, but I will be following this post with another one about my 20th birthday in Paris!

Rome, Florence, and Siena within 2 days...

2009-12-01T10:39:00.000-08:00

About 2 weeks ago my Italian Cinema class went on a field trip to Rome (Roma in Italian) to see a movie at the Casa del Cinema there and then chat with some influential Italian directors and writers. We watched “The Conformist” (with English subtitles, thank god – my Italian isn’t that good yet). Afterward we had a round table discussion with Dacia Maraini (an Italian writer), Adriano Apra (Italian film specialist in film history and director), and Giuliano Montaldo (Italian director). It was a treat to hear them discuss “The Conformist”. Here’s the best photo I was able to secretively snap of them:

The day after Rome, my entire study abroad program went on our last excursion together to Florence (Firenze in Italian). Florence isn’t too far from Siena – only an hour and a half on the bus. There we went to the Uffizi museum as well as the museum that houses The David statue. Florence was gorgeous, especially it’s duomo.

Upon returning to Siena, I decided to finally take photos of my apartment that I’ve been living in for the past 2 and a half months…
My apartment is more spacious and newer than your typical Italian apartment. I also have a fantastic view of a Piazza. I often sit on my windowsill and watch as contrada’s parade by, people converse in Italian, and vespas zoom all over the place. Oh, one thing about Italian bathrooms – each and every one has a toilet and a bidet. So European.

So here's what I've been up to in Siena for the past few months...

2009-11-15T05:46:00.000-08:00

Aside from my travels to other part of Italy, I’ve been having some small adventures here in Siena. A few weeks ago, I went to my first European football (soccer) game. The game was Siena vs. Lazio and it was played here in Siena. In Siena, women pay 6 or so euro less (almost 10 dollars) then men for football tickets. That, plus the fact that the football stadium is only a two minute walk from my apartment, meant that I had no reason not to go to the game.

It was a good game that ended up in a 1-1 tie. I particularly enjoyed the diehard Sienese fans that yelled at the refs when they made questionable calls. Here are some photos from my first football game in Italy.

My class recently took a small field trip to one of the many contrada’s (neighborhoods) of Siena. There, in the Tortuga (tortoise) contrada, we visited the contrada’s church and museum. Each contrada has its own church, museum, and fountain. Tortuga, being one of the winners of this summer’s Palio, has their current Palio painting (which the winners of the Palio receive each year) on display in the church. The museum holds many artifacts and past Palios from the contrada. Here are some photos of it all:

In my free time a few weeks ago, I ventured outside the walls of Siena to a nearby middle school where I tutored some 7th graders in English. I prepared a game about American pop culture in which they guessed the names of American celebrities. I was surprised how much of American culture is present in Italy, seeing as they not only knew who Beyonce and Lady Gaga were, but they were also very familiar with figures such as Obama and George Clooney. There is so little Italian pop culture that I see in America. This makes me feel a little guilty – why is America so isolated and seemingly unwilling to learn from other countries?

About 2 weeks ago I headed down to the center of Siena at the Piazza del Campo to find that there was a huge outdoor market taking place there. I’ve never seen this in the two months I’ve been here, but it was so exciting to see so many people out in this colder weather. The stalls at the market had a huge variety of merchandise including contrada memorabilia, knick-knacks, clothing, accessories, food and wine. I purchased a slightly pricey bottle of Chianti wine (my personal favorite). In the evening, I returned to the Campo and was surprised that the market was still in full swing, now accompanied by beautiful sparkling lights lining all the rooftops of the Campo. It was a very gorgeous sight. Unfortunately I left my nice camera at home so I couldn’t capture the extent of the beauty with my little point-and-shoot, but here are some photos anyways.

My Italian class took a day off from language learning to learn how to cook traditional Italian food! We learned to make rice stuffed tomatoes, a tomato and bread soup, pici (thick traditional Sienese pasta that we rolled by hand!), a tomato sauce, and tiramisu! Then we ate everything we made. So good!

Update (part 2): Autumn and Sicily

2009-11-15T03:15:00.000-08:00

Alrighty, part two of my blog update…

First of all, I’d like to point out that up until now, I have spent my entire life in Southern California. Therefore, I do not know what cold weather really is. Due to my belief that winter consists of a couple rain showers and temperatures in the low 60’s, the last few weeks have been a cold shock to my system. Despite my slow acclamation to the autumn weather, I managed to get myself out of the house and take some pictures of the beautiful autumn leaves at La Fortezza (the fortress) near my apartment.

This is also where I go to exercise when I’m feeling fat from all the food I’ve been eating here. I love the beautiful views from La Fortezza. It almost makes running fun. Almost.

So due to my inability to cope with the cold, I was quite glad to escape to the south of Italy last weekend where the temperatures are considerably warmer. I met up with a friend I know from the US who is currently studying in Florence and we flew from Pisa to Palermo (in Sicily). From Palermo, we ventured across Sicily to the city of Catania, then back to Palermo before returning home.

On my way to Sicily, I managed to snap some nice photos from the plane. I believe this is the Amalfi coast (but I could be wrong). Look at the beautiful blue water!

I think the best way I can describe Sicily is this: when you picture Italy and all the stereotypes that come along with it, you are imagining Sicily. Now I say this in a good way, because Sicily truly completes one’s experience in Italy. They have amazing foods (especially pizza and baked goods), gorgeous buildings (some antiquated and dilapidated), handsome men, hectic drivers, and Italians yelling, gesturing and swearing at each other in Italian. The Sicilians speak far less English than the north of Italy, but they are infinitely more helpful and warm when tourists ask for directions.

There are other stark differences between Sicilians and Tuscans. First of all, the Italian spoke in Sicily can almost be considered its own dialect of Italian. While northern Italians pride themselves on having a more “pure” form of Italian, Sicilians have a very different way of speaking.

Another huge difference is the nightlife. In every other Italian city I have visited, the majority of people go out around 10 or 11 at night and party until about 2 or 3 in the morning. However, the Sicilians do it very, very differently. In Sicily, people go to a bar around 11 or 12, then go to a different bar/dance club until 2 or 3, then head over to another bar for a few hours, then another club. Most people seem to stay out until 6 or 7 in the morning. While the nightlife in Sicily (especially Palermo) is exciting, I had an incredibly exhausting night full of dancing and drinking on my Saturday in Palermo.

Catania is a beautiful city that seems elegant and sophisticated, but is also incredibly colorful with huge outdoor markets of fresh meats, cheeses, fruits, and of course seafood.

The Sicilian countryside is absolutely beautiful with lots of greenery, hills, and palm trees due to the more tropical climate of the south.

In Palermo, my friend and I did some exploring and saw some beautiful sights. Here are some statues, parks, cathedrals, and theaters we found.

We were also directed (by the owners of our hostel) to a delicious bakery that serves the most delicious chocolate cake I have ever tasted.

We also went to a huge seafood dinner. Sicily, being on the water, has a great amount of fresh, delicious fish. Here are some shots I snapped of my dinner before I devoured it.

Although I was not allowed to photograph it, we did go to the Cappuccini Catacombs in Palermo, where years ago some monks began mummifying people once they had died. In the catacombs, there were hundreds of dead bodies on display, all dressed in the clothes they were mummified in. Some corpses had flesh and hair while others were only bone. It was a haunting, yet interesting experience.

Overall, Sicily was beautiful and seemed to be the quintessential Italian experience. I wouldn’t be surprised if I find myself there in search of good food and a little bit of warmth in some of the colder winter months.

Update (Part 1): Bologna and Halloween

2009-11-15T01:54:00.000-08:00

It has been far too long since I last updated this blog! My utmost apologies! Needless to say, life has been hectic and busy in Italy, but nonetheless exciting.

Classes have been getting more demanding and I begin to learn more and more complexities of the Italian language and parties/travels have been taking over the rest of my time.

To bring you up to speed with what I've been up to here in Italy, I'll quickly sum it all up here before going into detail about each adventure I've been on.

Three weeks ago I stayed in Bologna for three days with my study abroad program.
Two weeks ago I celebrated Halloween here in Siena.
Last weekend I went to Sicily with a friend from back home who is currently studying in Florence.
This weekend I relaxed in Siena (making this my last full weekend in Siena this semester before all of my crazy traveling starts).

Alright, so first off: Bologna.
Bologna is a big city full of university students, most of which attend the University of Bologna (the oldest university that is still in use in the world). Needless to say, the nightlife in Bologna is exciting and varied due to all the students living there. Even though it was raining half the time my friends and I were there, we still had an amazing time exploring the city and sampling the food and night clubs.
The architecture of Bologna is simply beautiful, with high arches and porticos everywhere. A portico is almost like an overhang that covers the sidewalk so that the people of Bologna can go about their everyday lives and move from one place to another, even when its raining. We were infinitely grateful for these porticos as we toured the city in the rain.
Here are some pictures of the architecture and porticos of Bologna:

Bologna is not only beautiful and full of night life, but it happens to be the gastronomic capital of Italy. The food is unbelievable! Each of the three days we were in Bologna, our study abroad program took us to a different restaurant for lunch and fed us 7 course meals. I think I gained five pounds from that weekend in Bologna alone, but it was all so delicious. We had delicious appetizers of prosciutto and quiche, amazing pumpkin gnocchi, tender pig cheek (which was really good), and fantastic desserts such as creme brule. Tortellini was first created in Bologna, so naturally we had some of that as well.
Here's a picture of the appetizer I had at the last restaurant we ate at (a winery outside of Bologna). Egg quiche and prosciutto with a flowery seasoning. So good.

There were also some fun outdoor fruit and vegetable vendors in Bologna. Check it out.

Our program also took us on tours of both a Parmesan cheese factory and a Balsamic Vinegar factory.
At the balsamic vinegar factory, we tasted 4 different kinds of vinegar - some of them aged over 20 years. They were surprisingly sweet and delicious on their own, but incredibly expensive. Here's the currently fermenting vinegar at the factory, stored in barrels until its ready to be bottled.

At the Parmesan cheese factory, we were walked through the entire process that goes into making authentic Parmesan cheese. These huge vats are used to mix the cheese:

There were hundreds and hundreds wheels of cheese stored at the factory.

Bologna was a fantastic experience, and I will probably return before the end of my stay in Italy - especially for the food, if nothing else.

Now, about Halloween...
Halloween isn't too widely celebrated in Europe, but over the years Europe has slowly warmed up to the idea of dressing up on October 31. I don't think I saw any children trick-or-treating in the streets of Siena, but the students of Siena definitely partied hard in honor of Hallows Eve. Many of my fellow American students (including myself) spent the majority of our Halloween at a dance party at La Fortezza (the fortress) near my house. There was a huge party with a DJ and free drinks. I was surprised at how many Italians actually came out in costume. I also get a kick out of being able to say that I celebrated Halloween in a fortress in Italy...

Opera a Firenze!

2009-10-20T13:54:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday I went to see an opera in Florence. The opera was Verdi's "Rigoletto" - this opera was adapted from Victor Hugo's "Le roi s'amuse" original play. While I had never heard of this opera, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I had already heard a few of the songs from it. "Rigoletto" contains the song "La Donna E Mobile", which I have heard as performed by Pavarotti.

Now, while I thoroughly enjoyed dressing up and sipping on wine before the opera began, I have to say that I was thoroughly disappointed in the performance that I saw. Perhaps the most off-putting aspect of this production of "Rigoletto" was the set that was used. It did not look like a Duke's court with jesters and nobles as the time period of the story would have you imagine. Instead, the set consisted of a fake Rolls Royce that the Duke rode around in, a dog house that the main character (Rigoletto) and his daughter (Gilda) lived in, a boat, and a giant rotating black wall that didn't seem to serve much of any purpose. It is possible that the director was going for a modern spin on the antiquated story of Rigoletto, but it appeared as though the set was thrown together using leftover props from previous productions.

Aside from the aesthetics, I was not moved by the singing. While the singing was not bad, it was not what I would expect from a professional opera in Italy. But in all fairness, I had listened to Pavarotti's rendition of "Questa o Quella" earlier and the day, and Pavarotti sets a pretty high bar.

Luckily, the music itself was amazing - I really do have a lot of respect for the orchestra that performed that evening.

Aside from the opera, not much else is new. Except that it is now COLD here. Fa freddo! It literally happened overnight. Luckily it has been sunny and clear - though the locals tell me it will only get colder over the next few months, and you can bet it will start raining more frequently. I've had to go out and buy new sweaters and boots so that I don't freeze to death on the ten minute walk to class in the morning.
Today I could see my breath, despite the shining sun and bright blue sky. This did not sit well with me. I am a southern Californian girl - I am not familiar with cold weather.
This will be an adventure...albeit, a very cold one.

Wine Tasting in Tuscany

2009-10-10T08:40:00.000-07:00

My apologies for lagging on the blog updates!

I never seem to have enough time to just sit down and do an entry - but thats a good thing! I am absolutely loving Siena.

Over a week ago I went wine tasting at Dievole winery in the Chianti region of Tuscany. This is where they make Chianti wine (among tons of other types of wine), which is my favorite red wine. There the director of my program (who happens to be a sommelier) in Siena gave a group tour of the winery and taught us how to hold wine glasses and analyze every aspect of a wine. We sampled four different wines. The white wine was accompanied by some bread and olive oil, the Chianti was complemented by prosciutto, we ate heavenly goat cheese with some red wine, and nibbled on biscotti while drinking a desert wine in an old chapel. I left the winery with 2 bottles of wine - I'm saving the nice Chianti for a special occasion - maybe my birthday?

The winery itself was absolutely stunning. It is a beautiful, mid-sized winery that sits atop a hill from which you can see the rolling hills of Tuscany. Here are some photos from Dievole.

My Italian classes are coming along pretty well. I feel that Italian is an easy language for me to learn after studying French for so long, but I freeze up whenever anyone outside of class starts to speak rapidly in Italian. Non capisco! I wish I could speak to the locals more easily, but learning a language (unfortunately) takes time. I'm impatient and want to speak it NOW! Ho voglie di parlare italiano adesso!

Exploring Siena and Lucca

2009-09-26T09:58:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting in my room, listening to the chatter of Italian in the piazza below my window. There is an unusual amount of people out in the streets of Siena this evening. I'm not sure why, but my guess would be that there is going to be a contrada (one of any of the neighborhoods in Siena) party tonight. That's part of the intrigue of Siena... there's always a lot going on here but only the local Sienese seem to be sure of what it all means. The tourists and students here are left to observe and figure it out for themselves.

A friend recently took me to the botanical gardens here in Siena, located in the Tortuga (tortoise) contrada - one of my favorite parts of Siena. The plants there give off a very relaxing scent and I could see some beautiful views of the Tuscan hills from there.

Not far from the gardens is a charming park that was once a farm. It overlooks part of Siena, a villa owned by a rich family, and more of the shadowy blue hills of Tuscany.

Yesterday my study abroad program took a bunch of us students to Lucca - a small, walled city in Tuscany. Lucca is about 2 hours from Siena and very similar, only with more greenery and less tourists. We took a tour on top of the city walls of Lucca, and then into the town center. It was absolutely beautiful there and the weather was undeniably perfect.

We then went to Villa Reale a little bit outside of Lucca (where my camera battery unfortunately died) which was the villa of Napoleon's sister. It was so incredibly gorgeous and peaceful there. I especially loved the grotto where the inhabitants of the villa used to spend hot summer days (before air conditioning came along). There they had water that sprayed in thin streams out of the ground and statues and ceiling.

I would gladly live in either Siena or Lucca for the rest of my life. The walled cities are so medieval and beautiful, with everything concentrated and within walking distance. I think I'll have to make a trip on my own to Lucca in the upcoming month so that I have more time to explore the city and get to know it better.

I'm going to get fat eating all this food - and I really don't mind

2009-09-20T03:52:00.000-07:00

My apologies for going so long without posting here!

Life in Siena has been crazy (but good) and I don't even know where to start explaining it all!

I think perhaps the most important thing I need to write about is the food in Italy seeing as it is what my life revolves around here. I picked up a bit of Italian before classes started and it was all about how to order food. "Vorrei una fetta" is "I'd like a slice of pizza". Or "Vorrei uno piccolo cono di Limone" is "I'd like a small cone of lemon gelato". (Please forgive any spelling/grammatical errors in my Italian...I am still learning).

For the first week or so that I was here, I was on a strict pizza and gelato only diet. In Siena there is at least 3 pizzerias and 5 gelato bars on each street.

Now I don't really know how to describe the pizza here other than to say it is AMAZING. It is thin, but not too crunchy and it always tastes good. I don't think I'll ever get sick of the pizza here - and honestly I will probably never eat pizza in America again because now I've been exposed to the superiority of Italian pizza.

Gelato is going to be the death of me - I love it even more than the pizza here. Gelato is the Italian version of ice cream,and like the pizza here, it is infinitely better than its American equivalent. I'm lactose intolerant but I can't stop eating gelato! There are tons of different flavors at each gelateria and while each gelato flavor I've tried has been amazing, I think my favorite combination is Rose Petal (petali di rosa) with Chocolate (cioccolata) or Strawberry (fragola). I haven't had gelato in two days now (I'm trying to avoid getting too fat right away), but I feel that in another day's time I will be indulging in some Nutella flavored gelato.

(Gelato at a gelateria on one of the main streets of Siena)

After eating too much pizza and gelato (if there is even such a thing as "too much pizza and gelato"), I've branched out and sampled various Italian dishes. I love running into a bakery and buying a panino with Tuscan salami and cheese. I tried gnocchi with ragu in Florence and wanted to buy two more orders of it. I've had risotto (with some beef in it - just delicious) and an unbelievable tomato soup with bread in it (I'm told I will learn to cook this in my upcoming cooking class). I keep my kitchen stocked with bread and brie cheese at all times and often prepare a simple past dish wish pesto sauce for a light dinner when I'm not eating out.

The other item I've become enamored with is the wine here. The region of Tuscany is famous for their Chianti, so I have been drinking a glass (or two...) with dinner every evening.

There really is no way to describe how fantastic the food is here - everyone really must try it for themselves.

Ciao Bella!

2009-09-12T09:15:00.000-07:00

So I arrived in Siena a little under a week ago and have been far too busy to get around to posting! I apologize for the putting this off since I know a lot of you have been curious as to how my new life in Italy is going! Here is the explanation of how I got to Siena. Soon I'll post more about eating and living in Italy! :)

So to start off, I have to tell you about my journey from San Diego to Siena.
Last Sunday, my family drove me to LAX. I got through security and found my gate without a problem. At the gate I met with 8 other students who were all traveling to Siena to study in the same program as myself. We all boarded the plane right on time. Almost 11 hours later we touched down in Zurich where we all easily found our way to the next gate for our flight to Florence. Everything was going unbelievably well until we got the the baggage claim at Florence. Everyone got all their bags except for one girl who was missing one of her bags. We waited for 30 minutes for the lost and found department to give her the appropriate paperwork.

This delay caused us to miss the 8:00pm shuttle bus from the Florence airport to the bus station. So we took the 8:30 shuttle, which put us at the bus station at 9:00pm. At this point, 3 of girls we were traveling with left us and went to their hostel they had reserved for that evening in Florence. The remaining 6 of us frantically tried to find the bus stop (which is adjacent to the huge train station we had been dropped off at) in order to catch the last bus to Siena at 9:15pm. Unfortunately we missed the bus due to the fact that we couldn't find anyone to give us clear instructions (in English) to the bus station.

At this point we decided to buy an open train ticket to go to Siena. A train was departing from platform 2 in 15 minutes. We hurry over to platform 2 but there is no on on the train. We then hear an announcement informing us that the train on platform 2 is a non-passenger train. At this point we believe we have no way to get to Siena and make our hostel reservation for the evening. But we soon find out that a train is leaving for Empoli (where we can get a connection to Siena) in 3 minutes from the opposite end of the train staion. We sprint for the train and barely haul all our luggage onto the train before it takes off.

At this point, a nice Italian man named Luchio (please excuse any incorrect Italian spelling) helps us put all our luggage overhead and explains to us (in very good English) that some trains and workers are on strike so some trains are unavailable even though you can buy tickets for them. This explains why we couldn't take the train from platform 2. As the train sped along, I realized that we had not validated (stamped) our ticket before jumping on the train - this can result in a heavy fine in Italy. So two girls go to get our ticket validated by a train staff member who tells them to get off the train at Empoli and get a bus there that will take us to Siena.

We start to realize that there are no signs or announcements informing passengers where to get off. I find a man who speaks only French and ask him where the stop for Empoli is. He informs me that we are about to arrive in Empoli in 2 minutes. There is a frantic rush as the 6 of us students all heave our bags to the doors and jump off the train. We are left alone at Empoli at 10:50 in the evening.

Empoli is a very sketchy place to be in the evening time. We pull our bags up and down stairs until we make our way out of the train station and onto the street. We can't find the bus stop so we ask some people at a cafe across the street. They point us to the bus stop but explain that the bus won't be there for an hour.

For some reason, Empoli is full of creepy old men who just stared at us as we waited nervously for the bus. At this point we had been traveling for somewhere around 20 hours. The bus to Siena arrives at 11:55pm. We board it and sigh with relief. We arrive at the train station in Siena at 1:30am. But we are not anywhere near the city center (inside the protective walls of Siena on the hill). So we all wait for a taxi. The only taxis running at this hour are tiny little cars that only have room for 2 people plus their luggage. So we split into pairs and arrive at the Pizza Gramsci.

We try to find a hotel (since we've missed our check in time for the hostel) but all are too expensive and we can't navigate the twisting cobblestone streets with our luggage. We find our way to the Piazza del Campo (Pictures at end of this post) at 2am, which is the heart of Siena's social scene. Unfortunately all the bars and cafes were closing. We all put our luggage down and decided to give it up and spend the night there.

In the Piazza del Campo we meet some interesting (and drunk) locals who offer us their apartments for the evening - but we, being paranoid and sleep deprived, decline.

We spent the evening talking there - no sleep. And when the sun finally rises, we go to check in with our program and undergo hours of waiting through orientation and paper work. Finally we are shown to our apartments and dorms at which point I shower and then reluctantly climb into bed (after discovering I was running a fever and was dizzy from the exhaustion) and then fall asleep for 8 hours.

When I woke up, I looked out my bedroom window and and could see a busy piazza full of people speaking Italian and riding vespas. "I'm in Italy," I thought, smiling. "Finally."

The frantic packing is well underway

2009-09-05T11:52:00.001-07:00

I leave for Italy tomorrow. I can't seem to wrap my mind around that. In a few days I will be moved into my place and starting my adventure in Siena.

This is mind-boggling!

I don't have much time for a post here because my packing has now become frantic as I rip my room apart in search of various items that seem to have eluded me whilst packing earlier.

I have yet to learn much Italian and I find it to be a bit late in the game to try to learn much more...I suppose my lack of Italian fluency will allow for a more interesting adventure en route to Siena.

I'll be flying into Florence (with a layover in Zurich beforehand) and from there I will be haphazardly attempting to make it from the airport to the bus station in order to make the last bus to Siena for the evening. I have little faith that I'll make it to Siena (where I have a hostel room booked) the same night that I arrive in Florence, but luckily I'm traveling with a few other people from the UC schools who are in my program so I won't be alone in a country where I don't speak the language.

I must return to my packing now! My next blog post will be from Italy!

Ciao!

A serendipitous mistake

2009-08-27T13:04:00.001-07:00

Who wants to go to the race track with me? Or buy a lotto ticket? Or go to Vegas?

I have made a recent discovery - I am (at least for the time being) very lucky. I went to the horse races yesterday with my friend, mother, and brother. I won at least 3 dollars or more on 5 out of 7 of the races we bet on. But best of all...on the second race I bet a Trifecta Box (picked 3 horses and they had to come in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in any order), which totaled to a $12 bet, on Oliver, Ginello, and Riviera Cocktail.

I was screaming at the end of the race when horses 1, 6 and 7 (the horses in my trifecta) were a good deal ahead of the rest. There was no question - I'd won that bet. But how much had I won?

The huge electronic board at the track said that with a $6 trifecta box bet, one would win $355. That was impossible. I couldn't have won that much.

My brother and friend accompanied me to the electronic betting both to see how much I had won. I put the slip into the machine which promptly spit it back out while telling me to report to an IRS table.

Now my hands were shaking with anticipation as I walked over to the nearest IRS booth and handed my ticket to the man behind the counter. "Oh boy" he said as he examined the ticket. I was anxious to find out how much I had won, but I had to fill out some paper work and fork over my drivers license before he finally ran my ticket through the machine.

My heart skipped a beat and $710.40 popped up on the screen.

I had just won back more than half of what I had recently spent on my new computer. I was so shocked that I almost walked away from the counter without my money.

This was unquestionably a fantastic day at the races for me.

What I find the most fascinating about this whole experience is that one could say I won that money by mistake. When I had placed my bet, I did a $2 Trifecta box. I thought I would only be spending two dollars on that bet - but I had no idea that a Trifecta box put $2 on each of the six possible outcomes of that bet (all the different orders those three horses had come in), causing me to spend $12 of my self-imposed $30 limit. Had I known ahead of time how much that bet was going to cost me, I would not have made that bet - meaning I would not have won that 700 dollars.
I was mentally kicking myself upon placing that bet, but after that race, I could not have been more excited.

Just goes to show that there is something to gain from making mistakes.

:)

New Computer!

2009-08-24T23:17:00.000-07:00

So I haven't posted in a while because my laptop died...again. This was possibly the 6th time I have encountered a problem with my HP laptop and I am sick of putting more and more money into repairing it. Enough was enough. Time for a new computer!

My good friend Anna is in town visiting so today we went to the Apple store and I bought a MacBook! I've wanted a Mac for a long time and finally made the switch from a PC.

I absolutely love my new MacBook. Its so nice. But what is even nicer is that my laptop came with a free (after rebate) Ipod Touch. Oh my goodness, I had no idea how amusing those things are! I've been more fixated on finding apps and accessing the internet with that thing than actually using my new computer!

Lets see...what else is new in the world of Taylor?

My family has been hosting a few pool parties over the past few weeks - all have been very enjoyable.

I leave in less than two weeks for Siena, Italy! :)
I'm so excited! I wish I could say I've been vigorously studying Italian in preparation for my trip, but I've been so occupied with more immediate errands I must run before my departure.

I'll be heading off to the race tracks again this coming Wednesday - I hope to win even bigger than before! Tomorrow evening Anna, my brother and I are going to a performance of 39 Steps - I'll have to let you know how it all goes!

Capisco!

2009-08-11T17:35:00.000-07:00

I'm leaving for Italy in less than a month!

I'm so excited and can't wait. :)

So in preparation, I've finally begun to learn un po' (a little) Italian. I do so in hopes that I won't be completely helpless when I reach Siena. However, the best I can say yet is "parlo inglese, non capisco italiano" which translates to "I speak english, I don't understand Italian".

Being the linguist that I am, I can't help breaking apart and analyzing Italian as I learn it. For example, I can see that the majority of words have stress that falls on the penultimate (second to last syllable) and there appear to be very few different diphthongs.

I feel much more comfortable learning Italian than I ever did while learning German. I believe this is because Italian is so similar to French (which, after long years of studying it, has become quite easy for me to speak).

Needless to say, I do love learning and studying languages. But I do favor certain languages. For example, I do not care for German - it is harsh and (in my opinion) linguistically confusing. And while I think French is by far one of the most beautiful languages, the singing quality of Italian makes it the most fun to speak.

I am excited to get to Italy where I'll be entombed in this amusing language.

A day at the races

2009-08-08T13:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to the horse races at the Del Mar Racetrack with two of my friends. I hardly ever bet, but I've been going to the races every year with my family since I was little. So I gave myself a 20 dollar limit, and didn't plan on leaving with much money - on the rare occasion I place a winning bet, I typically don't win more than 80 cents. This may be because I pay little attention to the odds of each horse and base all my bets on the horses with the coolest sounding names - yeah, I know...it's a foolproof system.

By the fifth race, I was down to 8 dollars. Imagine my surprise when I won on three different horses! I ended up winning 35 dollars off a 4 dollar bet. Now, I'm aware this isn't a huge winning, but for me, its the most money I've ever won off anything. Needless to say, my friend and I were jumping up and down while yelling with excitement. I do have to thank the following horses: Kiss the Cooke, Snow on Christmas, and Heavenly n' Free (the long shot).

Unfortunately, I did bet a bit more after that, but I did leave with 22 dollars...2 more than I had started with! In my opinion, it was an incredibly successful day at the races.

See fish...photograph fish...eat fish...

2009-08-02T23:46:00.000-07:00

The other day my friends and I ventured to the San Diego Zoo as a birthday celebration for my friend. Its been years since I've been to the zoo, so I was eagerly taking pictures of every animal I saw. Here are just a few pictures of the awesome animals I saw while there.

The giraffes were more active than most of the other animals in the heat.

Cool display of butterflies found in the bug exhibit...I was none too happy to enter the exhibit though (I really do not like bugs). Believe me, this was the only part of it that didn't send shivers down my spine.

Some meerkats taking a snooze.

Turtles!

Polar bear lounging about in the sun.

Afterward, we met up with more of our friends at a new sushi bar in town called Zenbu. The dim lighting, cushy chairs, and aquarium full of interesting fish (like small sting rays) made for a very cool atmosphere. And the food was great (but expensive)!

I felt somewhat guilty eating fish right after I just saw and photographed a bunch of them at the zoo...but the shrimp tempura and tuna was so good, that I quickly got over it and dug in. :)

Yosemite!

2009-07-28T15:51:00.001-07:00

I've been back in San Diego since Sunday and it's so nice to be back in lovely 80 degree weather. :)

I've been enjoying myself and have committed myself to waking up every morning before 10 and then going out for a run along the bluffs along the beach here. It's great to get all those endorphins going and talk to interesting people on the beach when I go down there to run along the water. I'm feeling good about myself, physically and mentally - I've resolved to try to either run or do yoga every day until I leave for Siena, which is just over a month from now.

Before I left northern California, we took a trip to Yosemite - I had never been before and had a photo-taking frenzy... there were just too many beautiful things to photograph there!

The first photo is a photo of Bridalveil Falls where you can see a beautiful rainbow.
This was the last place we stopped in Yosemite and it is undoubtedbly my favorite place I saw there. I was in awe as I watched the water slowly fall down the rocks. Beautiful.

The key to deep thinking is lack of sleep

2009-07-23T10:16:00.000-07:00

I'm still in Nor Cal and don't want to leave (my flight is booked for Sunday)!

Today I woke up at 5 am and, no, I have not gone back to sleep. For me, this is nothing short of miraculous - I love to sleep late. But there's something enticing about the early morning when the sun is still making its way into the sky. Everything is so peaceful because the neighborhood is still sound asleep but I know everyone will be waking up soon to partake in whatever life has to throw at them for the day.

(what the world looks like at 5:00 am)

So during my extra time today, I have been reflecting on life and all the challenges I have been facing over the past 2 months or so. I think I have gotten lost in all the confusion and excitement that this summer holds; and in doing so, I have forgotten the importance of living in the present and seeking happiness in every moment.

This isn't to say that I am unhappy. I have been incredibly happy of late. But that happiness, I fear, may be fleeting. I have spent the last hour looking at articles by happiness gurus (such as Thich Naht Hahn, the Dalai Lama, and Eckhart Tolle). After reading, and much meditation, I have come to realize that I am planing to make my future a happy one and focusing less on the present. I also see now that I am looking for my own personal nirvana, rather than accepting I already have all the happiness I need in this moment - I just need to tap into it.

I have some changes to make in my mental state over the next couple of days. But for now, I think I may have to nap...

I am a stranger to real heat

2009-07-21T12:51:00.000-07:00

So I'm currently on vacation and visiting my boyfriend in a small town called Copperopolis (part of Calaveras County) where it is HOT! I, having only lived in San Diego and Santa Barbara, am not equipped to handle heat - chapstick and ice-cold water have become my two most valued necessities here.

Nevertheless, I have been thoroughly enjoying myself. This last Saturday we went hiking down to a river which was absolutely breathtaking. Here are a few pictures.

The hike there was exhausting for a lil city girl like me, but swimming in the refreshing river water was so rewarding! I had no idea there was poison oak on the path, but I lucked out and apparently avoided it.

On Sunday (when it was 108 degrees!) we took a boat out on Lake Tulloch and went for a swim in the lake to cool down. I even got to drive the boat for a bit! So much fun!

I had never gone swimming in a river or a lake, let alone driven a boat, so the weekend was full of adventure for me! Plus, last night, we drove some quads around - yet another thing I had never done before!

Oh, and one of the most incredible things about being out in the country... one can actually see stars at night! And I mean lots and lots of stars! So out of the ordinary for me!

Anyways, I'm gonna go try to stay cool. Hopefully it's not too hot where you are!

Stuck in the middle with you...

2009-07-16T18:33:00.001-07:00

I'm very, very excited because tomorrow I'm flying to Northern California to visit someone very special! I will be there for about 10 days and can't wait!

So today has been a pretty laid back day, just packing and lounging around the pool.

I did go to the store today to pick up a few items... on my way back home, as I was about to pull into my driveway, The song "Stuck In The Middle With You" came on the radio. I really had no other choice than to pass my house and take an extra lap around the block with the volume turned all the way up so that I could enjoy the song. It put me in such a good mood. And now I'm on a Beatles kick and have been listening to their music all afternoon.

Ah, dinner time! Au revoir! I'll blog from Nor Cal soon!

Italian visa applications use too much paper

2009-07-15T00:46:00.000-07:00

This will be a short post because I am positively exhausted.

I don't have a very good reason for being exhausted - I only left the house once today to swing by the post office for 10 minutes...

I spent all of today organizing and copying my forms for my visa appointment with the Italian Consulate tomorrow. I'm going to have to drive 2 hours to get to LA for my 15 minute appointment (where I will turn in the 2,000 copies of application forms and passport pages that I had to make today). Then I'll have to drive back. Ugh.

So I spent all day doing that and laundry. I haven't done laundry in a month so it's taken me all day to finally wash everything (it's almost 1 in the morning and my last load is washing now).

So visa papers and laundry took up most of my day. And video games. That too. My brothers and our friend played hours of video games on our Wii - I can already feel my brain rotting. But it was good fun.

Now I'm sitting here, exhausted, waiting for my last laundry load to finish, and exuding bitterness because I don't get to see the new Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince movie this evening because I have to get up to drive to LA tomorrow...stupid Italian visa.

Tech support employees rub me the wrong way

2009-07-09T23:06:00.000-07:00

I understand that some jobs, particularly ones that deal with customer service, can be demanding and difficult. I get that. But I now have a problem with tech support employees.

UGH!

I called my laptop manufacturer today in an attempt to fix my wireless internet. I was on hold for a good while, then explained my problem (which is being UNABLE to connect to the internet) to a tech support employee, who then asked for all of my information and the computer's information. I spent 30 minutes talking with this man about my problem and listening to him repeat my email address 3 times to make sure he had the correct spelling before he finally says: "Well ma'am, the warranty has run out on your computer, so if you want to receive any further assistance from us today, you will need to buy a 14 day warranty for $49.99."

Ok.
1. Don't you think he should have told me that I could not receive any help from him after he already had my warranty information after 10 minutes of talking to me?
2. I am not going to pay $49.99 for him to tell me that I possibly have one silly little setting switched off.
3. What "further assistance" is he offering? I received absolutely NO HELP from him. To offer "further assistance" implies that I had somehow been assisted already.

So in response to this I politely say: "Alright, well I think I'd rather take my computer into a repair shop near me, but thank you."

He then has the balls to say: "Alright ma'am, if you like, you can always visit our website for troubleshooting."

Is that a joke? The whole reason I'm calling is because I CANNOT CONNECT TO THE INTERNET - which he is fully aware of.

"Well, I can't do that seeing as I can't connect to the internet," I say, in a suddenly less cheery and less polite tone.

"Oh, yes and I understand that ma'am. Is there anything else I can do for you today?"

"No, thank you."

Damn it, Taylor! Don't thank the man for doing absolutely nothing to help you and wasting your time!

I really have a problem being rude to others - especially people I don't know at all. Typically I think this is a good trait, because most things aren't worth getting into an argument. However, its times like these when I am frustrated and irritated that I wish I could be just a little more forceful.

Hopefully the Italians will teach me that.

C'est la vie

2009-07-08T23:01:00.000-07:00

Today some family friends from France came to our house for dinner and catch up. We had some amazing discussions about Europe. I am now itching to get to Italy. They were describing all the amazing things to do and see throughout Italy and Europe.

Aside from seeing all the beauty that Europe has to offer, I am so excited to meet the people there. All the people I have met and spoken to from Europe are just so cultured and aware of the world around them. I cannot wait to be absorbed into that lifestyle!

More specifically, I adore some of the French mentality about life. Today, we were discussing how good things can come from bad, and our French guest made a comment along the lines "ah yes, well you know...sometimes thats just life." Now put a lackadaisical French accent on that and you have the key to my esoteric heart. It's true, everything can really be that simple - when something bad happens, thats just life. And when something great happens, well thats just life too. I love the complexity one can derive and apply from that simple statement.

I also got to exercise my French. I am glad that after 5 or so months without French practice, I'm still able to hold my own with a native French speaker.

Oh! An important note - my laptop is broken. Well, the wireless internet refuses to work (I'm using my family's computer). So tomorrow I plan to spend a good hour or two on the phone with tech support. Oh and my cell phone never wants to send or receive picture messages. On top of that, I must spend a few hours sorting out all my papers I need for my visa appointment with the Italian consulate - this includes spending a while on hold with my school's financial aid office as they attempt to sort out what money they will decide to give me for the school year.

I will also be planning a trip or two up to northern California to visit a special someone. :)
So that requires some travel arrangements.

So much to do! And all I want to do is laze around on the beach...c'est la vie, non?

Mom! I want candy for breakfast!!

2009-07-01T12:53:00.001-07:00

I went to bed hungry and I woke up hungry. In between I had dreams of delicious foods galore...but I could not eat them. So when I woke up and finally had the chance to eat, I got my hands on the first food-item available - Sour Straws.

Whenever I start my morning off by eating candy (it happens more often than you'd think), the rest of the day is usually a slow and unproductive day for me. I think it puts me in a mindset where I feel like I don't have to achieve anything, because I sure didn't achieve a well-rounded breakfast.

So despite my long list of errands and things to do for today, I am already feeling lethargic and unmotivated to get out of the house.

Damn you Sour Straws. Damn your deliciousness.

I hate cleaning...for good reason.

2009-06-26T18:55:00.000-07:00

Today as I slid into my boiling hot car, and my legs were burned by the hot leather seat, I thought to myself "Summer weather has definitely started".

So in preparation for the summer, I cleaned out my dresser and closet in hopes of finding bathing suits from summers past so that I wouldn't need to spend money on a new one this summer. While I did discover 4 perfectly good bathing suits, I also discovered a lot of my clothes from high school when I had absolutely no body fat and could squeeze into a size 3. Now let me say, I am skinny and small and have a good body. I am confident in my image. BUT pretty much all women can find something they don't like about themselves or some excuse to hate their body; and for me, trying on those size 3 jeans again didn't do anything for my self-esteem. I just hope that one day, when I'm older, I don't find my current size 5's - that would most likely throw me into a mid-life crisis.

So here I am, boxing up my jeans that remind me of a...skinnier time... Soon they will be given away to some girl who will also, one day, grow up to hate those awful size 3's for reminding her of the effects of time.

Hello summer time.

I have an aversion to being productive during the summer...

2009-06-23T12:05:00.000-07:00

I have been far too lazy over the past few days - laying around the house while the 20 or so boxes and suitcases I have from moving back to San Diego for the summer sit, unpacked, in my room.

But instead of achieving productivity through unpacking, I have decided to focus on my upcoming trip to Italy. Which brings me to the main point of this post:I need to start learning some Italian.

You know, just a few key words to get me around the airport and the bus station before I get to Tuscany in a few months. While the whole point of my studying abroad is to learn the language, I am still a bit apprehensive about dropping myself in the middle of a foreign country without knowing how to say anything aside from "Ciao!".

I have an interactive Italian language CD/DVD (something similar to Rosetta Stone) that has been sitting on my desk since Christmas time. Every time I look at it, the linguist in me wakes up and I get a rush of excitement at the thought of learning Italian, but then comes this feeling of extreme guilt because in all honesty I know I probably won't ever break from my lazy summer routine to use the CD...

Oh well, even if I don't start learning the language now, I'll just have to use the country of Italy as my classroom - which is really one of the best ways to learn a language.

Alright, the sun is shining outside and I best go enjoy it.

Ciao!

Travel Tip: Cheap Flights

2009-06-22T01:27:00.000-07:00

So as of late, I've been doing a lot of searching for cheap flights to various places: Italy, Sacramento, San Francisco, Tahoe, etc. Now, after spending much time trying to find good deals on flights, I've found a few (logical but sometimes overlooked) tips that I'd like to share here to help you out.

1. USE MULTIPLE TRAVEL SITES

Now if there's one thing I've learned about finding the cheapest flights on the web, its this: search the same trip through as many different flight search engines you can find. Not all the prices are the same on each website - certain websites list more flights and airlines than others, thus offering you a bigger price range.

2. TRAVEL DURING THE WEEK

You can save a good chunk of money if you can manage to travel during the middle of the week, rather than the weekend when a considerably larger amount of people are traveling so prices for flights are higher.

3. DON'T BE PICKY

If you're on a budget, you can't afford to be picky and write off extremely cheap flights. So what if the airplane is uncomfortable and the service is mediocre? If it's cheap and gets you safely from Point A to Point B, suck it up and save some money.

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-21T20:18:00.001-07:00

Today was a relatively sunny day in a string of cloudy, overcast days here in (supposedly sunny) San Diego. And it is also Father's Day!

It's been a pretty low-key day and my father (who never takes a day to stop working because there's always something to clean or fix around our house) has - hopefully - been enjoying himself.

Here are some chocolate covered strawberries I made today to celebrate the holiday!

My dad plays a very unique role in my life. Sometimes I feel most similar to my father than anyone else in my family. Its from him that I think I get my appreciation for things such as classical music and art. I'm more inclined toward creativity, such as my father, rather than methodical and calculated approaches towards situations.

But the trait I most enjoy that I've inherited from my father is my natural pessimism. Now, If I had to classify myself as an optimist or pessimist, I would say optimist. But underlying that cheery outlook on life, is my natural negativity that causes me to always see the worst case scenario that can arise from specific situations. For example, what if I fail my German class? Or, if I'm going on a trip, what happens if I lose a contact lens?
When making plans, I always identify these negatives. And then I worry about these negatives.

Now why would this be a good trait for my father and myself?

I see it as an asset. Because of this natural, underlying pessimism, my dad and I never rush headlong into situations without first assessing all the negatives - and then preparing for them. We clear the path before sprinting ahead. So if I fear I may fail my German class - I study harder. Or, if I'm afraid of loosing a contact lens, I pack extra.

Don't get me wrong. Spontaneity is great, but so is planning ahead (at least within reason).

I'm glad to be my father's daughter. Aside from the excellent parenting he has provided to me over the years, I would be nowhere without this healthy dose of natural pessimism that I learned from him. Love you, Dad!

Busy Busy Busy!

2009-06-16T13:29:00.000-07:00

The night I finished my last final (Thursday), I came back home to San Diego.

Ever since then, I have had a non-stop agenda. I don't have to start my summer job until next week (at the earliest)so the past few days have been filled with family events - my brother's high school graduation, my other brother's birthday party - and catching up with all my friends from high school who have returned home for the summer.

Here's the thing about going away for months on end and then returning home and trying to pick up right where you left off: people change. Obviously, strong friendships endure the passing of time and the personal developments that accompany it. But even those strong friendships need to adjust to the shock of change.

While I can see that my friends are growing and changing for the better (as am I), it is sometimes a shock to the system that our old relationship needs to be modified a bit before we can be fully comfortable with one another again.

People never cease to intrigue me.

FINALS WEEK: The Final Hurtle

2009-06-06T19:39:00.001-07:00

Finals are in full swing now so it's been a while since I posted.

I'm currently sitting in the library, taking a break from a huge take-home final for my Teaching English as a Second Language class (TESOL). I just wrote 6 pages (of pure brilliance constructed from bullshit) and am now chugging an energy drink in an attempt to gain back enough energy to write at least another 3 pages.

There's no question that the library is the least distracting place for me to study (no TV, no beds to nap in, no food to eat) and I am at the peak of my productivity here...but it is so depressing. At least around finals time.

The stress from all the students cramming for finals is palpable. The person beside me is nervously typing away at the computer and some people across the room are frantically flipping through pages of textbooks that look like they have to be at least 500 pages thick.

Alright, back to discussing the importance of motivation in language students and how one can incorporate the internet into lesson plans.
Wish me luck - I need it.

One is silver and the other gold...

2009-05-27T19:06:00.000-07:00

Took my camera out again this weekend. Here's a cool shot I got.

I normally hate bugs - whenever I hear anything buzzing near my ear, I automatically jerk my head away from the noise in a very awkward and ungraceful manner - but I was able to get close and capture this bumble bee with the (unintentional) help of my friend.

This weekend, my brother, his friend, and two of my friends came from San Diego to visit me. One of my best friends, who also loves photography, is not a sissy little baby when it comes to bugs and other creepy-crawlers. In fact, I remember going to the beach with her when we were little kids and running away in sheer terror as she picked up a handful of sand crabs like they were as harmless as jelly beans.

So the other day, when I was taking pictures with her (she also has a fancy SLR), she was photographing this bee. I saw the potential for a beautiful photograph and because my friend was able to take a picture of the bee without flinching away from it, I found the courage to do the same.

While my ability to photography this bumble bee demonstrates only the tiniest personal victory for me, I think it says a lot about the worth of a good friendship. If my friend can encourage me (without knowing it) to approach something that scares the crap out of me, I believe that's someone who is worth having around.

I love my friends because they bring out the best in me and cause me to take risks and experience more of life.

Going to Italy!

2009-05-24T12:39:00.001-07:00

I finally bought my plane ticket to go to Italy the other day!

I am so incredibly excited to study there for the entirety of next year. I will be flying into Florence and then taking a bus to Siena (about a 30 minute ride).

Now I speak absolutely no Italian - that is the whole point of me going there: to learn the language. All my classes there will be Italian language and culture classes. While this doesn't fulfill anything for my GE's or degree requirements, I am far enough ahead in my studies that I can afford to essentially take a year off my real studies and still graduate on time.

I am, however, a little apprehensive about flying into a country where I don't know the language and then finding my way to Siena. But I have been in contact with other people from my program and we will meet up in Florence after my flight and then combat the language barrier together.

Now starts all the list making.

I love love love to make lists. So here is a quick list of all the lists I am going to need to make before I go:

1. What clothes to bring
2. What cosmetics to bring
3. What toiletries to bring
4. Stuff I need to buy once I'm there
5. Important papers/documents to bring
6. Which shoes to bring
7. All the places in Europe I want to travel to
8. What electronics to bring
9. Contact info for emergency situations
10. Useful Italian phrases
11. Miscellaneous items to bring

So much to do, so little time.

Pictures! (finally)

2009-05-20T23:28:00.001-07:00

Alrighty, so I finally took my new Canon Rebel XS for a test run. I love this camera so much, but I'm still a newbie when it comes to Digital SLR's. So here are some photos my friend and I captured while walking around IV.

Peace signs and such things crop up all over IV

Love the ocean

Downtown IV

A pretty wall painting and some bougainvillea

And what better represents IV than the public's general attitude toward the infamous IV Foot Patrol? (it says "calling cops pigs is an insult to the animal")

Don't question my drinking habits (or lack thereof...)

2009-05-20T23:04:00.001-07:00

I haven't posted a new blog in a while, and I have a very good reason: school and study abroad forms are slowly sucking my soul right out of me.

Aside from running around trying to get all my school work done, I've been frantically trying to turn in all necessary paper work to my Education Abroad Program (EAP) office. I will be studying abroad in Siena (Tuscany) in Italy for the entire next school year. As excited as I am to go, I am not excited by the crazy amounts of paper work I have to do.

Today I had to go into the doctor's office on campus to get my health clearance. Basically I just had to fill out a health questionnaire and have them take my vital signs so they can make sure I'm healthy enough to travel.

I didn't think this would be a problem at all, but upon filling out the questionnaire, I came across the question "How many alcoholic beverages do you consume on average per week?" I answered zero.

Now this is a completely honest answer. I may go to the biggest party school in southern California, but I do not drink. There are multiple reasons as to why I don't, but the main reason is that I suspect I have an allergy to alcohol. I get sick almost every time I try to drink any sort of alcoholic beverage. So i tend to avoid the stuff.

But, this being Santa Barbara, the nurse takes one look at my questionnaire and says to me "and you're sure you filled out everything truthfully?" ...like its not obvious what she's hinting at.

"Yes, I'm sure," I say. Do they want me to say I drink copious amounts of alcohol? I would imagine that would create more problems for them.

She looks at my paper again and says "so, you haven't suffered any severe illnesses in the past year?"
"No."
"And you drink...how many drinks per week?"
"None."
"...Alright. Lets go take your vitals then."

I know this isn't a huge problem, but its just so disheartening that due to my surroundings, people don't believe me when I say I don't drink.

Anyways, my new camera finally got to see some daylight today! I'll post some pictures soon! :)

Slowing Down

2009-05-14T21:45:00.000-07:00

I am sick.

UGH.

I have been so busy running from place to place, doing various activities that when I contracted this cough a few days ago, it hit me hard. Now, I love to be lazy. Isn't that the usual nature of college students? But I cannot be properly lazy and relaxed if I feel there is work that needs to be done and places I need to go.

This week I have had to constantly remind myself that if I don't show up for a class one day or I end up canceling some plans with a friend, it will not be the end of the world.

Also, I finally received my long-awaited lens yesterday for my new camera - but I have been unable to go outside and take some lovely pictures due to this icky cough. So depressing.

I like to think that the universe is trying to tell me something. It's trying to say "Slow down, Taylor. For heavens sake, SLOW DOWN!"

I'm trying to listen, Universe, I promise.

Beautifully Chaotic

2009-05-12T20:37:00.000-07:00

Patience seemed to be the theme for today.
I cannot tell you how many times I had to mentally remind myself to be patient.

"Be patient Taylor, class will be over in 30 minutes."
"This line won't move toooo slow, just be patient."
"Stop demanding so much of people and just be patient with them."
"If you keep beating yourself up over nothing and stressing out you're going to give yourself a heart attack before you turn 20. Be patient with yourself and with life."

I swear, it was like one test of patience after another today. Things that are generally free from stress became painfully tedious and irritating today.

After I identified my extreme lack of tolerance and patience (about half way through my day), I tried desperately to turn it around. I didn't have much luck getting my mind off of the things that I was having difficulty with so I decided I needed to start making some changes in my routine so that today would seem less trivial and more interesting. Here's a list of stuff I did in order to shake things up.

1. Put my iPod on shuffle and forbade myself from skipping songs I didn't want to hear.
2. Took the long route to and from class.
3. Started a conversation with a random person in a lecture class today (but this resulted in the guy giving me a creepy pick up line so I moved seats).
4. Discussed the pros and cons of being old with a 73 year old woman.
5. Skipped a class in favor of reading in the sun.
6. Switched phones with a friend a few minutes ago so that I no longer have access to my contacts (at least for this evening).

Surprisingly, #6 has been the most amusing and liberating thing I've done in a while. Its interesting to see how I operate when I don't have any way to text or call my friends.

When I go through these spurts of spontaneity, one of my best friends laughs and tells me that by mixing things up I'm making the world "beautifully chaotic". Life really is about opportunities and experiences. I try to do something (even little things) different every day and then appreciate the consequences of it.

Routine is a boring way to waste life away.

New dress...same old routine

2009-05-11T20:28:00.000-07:00

I cracked today. I cracked and I bought a relatively expensive (by the standards of a college student) dress that I've been wanting since I first tried it on 2 days ago. I have never looked better than how I look in this dress.

Unfortunately I have absolutely no where - no special, fancy occasion - to wear this dress.

Yes, yes. I know, to many people this would seem frivolous. But I know some women must be able to understand why I HAD to buy this dress. The unwritten law of shopping says that if you find a dress that makes you look absolutely gorgeous and it is not horribly overpriced, you must buy it. Not purchasing such an item would be a crime against oneself.

So I have a lovely new dress, now I just need to find a gala to go to.

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-10T11:15:00.000-07:00

Upon waking up this morning I was contemplating what I should do for mothers day to express to my Mom my love and admiration for her. I decided that I wanted to post here about how amazing she is and perhaps provide a small anecdote that would illustrate the fact that she is the best mom in the world.

Unfortunately I've been sitting, staring at a blank screen for 10 minutes now.

Don't get me wrong, I love my mom to death. It's not like I don't have anything wonderful to say about her, because I do. Its just that there are too many wonderful things I could say about her and I can't even decide where to start. Its like when you walk into a See's Candy, or some other equally delicious candy store or bakery, and you are virtually blinded by the assortment of delectable treats - unable to make any sort of selection.

I guess one of the best ways for me to express how impressive my mom is, would be for me to talk about myself. I say this because I am a product of my mom's hard work to raise me and her love for me (and my dad's work and love as well - but this is mother's day. Dad, you'll get your own father's day post...).

You know when people say "like mother, like daughter"? They have good reason to say that. As I've grown up and gone away to college I have seen myself become more and more like my mother. I've seen myself grow into a person who values her family and friends, someone who believes that happiness is always attainable, someone who appreciates intelligence and creativity, someone who cares for others' happiness to the point where they forget to care about their own at times, and someone who has more than enough love to give. I even make some of the same lame jokes and say the same silly things my mother does.

Mom, you've turned me into the person I am today and I couldn't be more happy about that. I am honored to be your daughter and I love you.

Happy Mother's day!

The early bird gets the cake...or something like that

2009-05-08T14:20:00.000-07:00

I woke up early this morning - which is nothing short of miraculous - and the sunlight streaming into my room was pink. Looking outside, the sun looked like a red ball, obscured by the smoky clouds covering the entire sky.

I attempted to photograph this to share with you because it looked so surreal. Unfortunately, my wimpy little point-and-shoot camera is old and refuses to filter light properly. Soon I'll have a Digital SLR, and when that happens I'll be posting tons of photos here to add some color to this blog.

Anyways, the sky is now clear and blue - but ash is falling down and coating everything. My bright blue bike, which is locked up outside, looks like its been spray-painted white.

Aside from me getting up early this morning, something else amazing happened. Are you ready for this? I don't think you are, but I'll tell you anyways: I cleaned my desk.

Now my desk has been piling up with papers and books since the beginning of my school year. For the last 2 months I have not been able to sit at my desk because there have been tons of clothes and notebooks stacked on my chair. I've been doing all my work while siting on my bed (which makes work hard to do, seeing as all I want to do is take a nap). But now, I am proud to announce to you that I am writing this blog post from my desk!

One last bit of interesting news: I had chocolate cake for breakfast this morning! Oh, the joy of being an independent, lazy college student.

I don't know why I felt compelled to eat cake for breakfast... Perhaps it was a way for me to validate my autonomy. Maybe it was to rebel against the monotony of breakfast bagels and cereals. Or I could have been reveling in the uncertain and adventurous side of life. But it is quite possible that it was solely due to the fact that this delicious cake has been siting on my desk for a few days and is the first thing I see when I wake up in the morning.

Life is full of a million opportunities to break free of the ordinary, and by doing so you can find joy and excitement every day. So enjoy your freedom - eat some cake for breakfast.

I don't do well in heat. Or in the cold. Or in humidity or dry air. Thank you San Diego for ruining all extreme weather for me.

2009-05-06T14:47:00.000-07:00

It is ungodly hot here. According to the internet, it is now 94 degrees here. NINETY-FOUR! That is 94 degrees of hell.

This heat is a product of the Santa Ana winds that are blowing through here, a fire nearby, and the quickening approach of summer.

I've compiled a list of the things I've been doing to cool down over the past day or so. This list is organized by the level of ridiculous behavior that is required to execute each action (normal person behavior to crazy person behavior).

1. Turning on my fan
2. Drinking extra water
3. Pulling my hair back in a ponytail
4. Wearing shorts and tank tops
5. Not wearing make up that will clump and/or melt in the sun
6. Wearing a dress
7. Standing in front of the freezer with the door open while moaning "It's toooooo hot..." over and over to my room mate.
8. Contemplating leaving German class early in order to organize a water balloon fight.
9. Contemplating leaving Linguistics class early in order to organize a water gun war.
10. Making it a point to ride my bike through all the sprinklers I can find on my way home from class.

Obviously number 10 is the most effective and fun method of cooling down that I've discovered so far - its made even more fun by all the weird looks I get (they're all jealous that they aren't adventurous enough to do the same). Now that I know when people's sprinklers are on, I'll be sure to schedule my day around that.

Even in trying to study for midterms I manage to attract the oddest people to me

2009-05-04T14:54:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, with the threat of a nasty German midterm looming over my head, I went to the library to study. As I walked into the library, a little old man looked at me and said something. I couldn’t hear him because I had my headphones on. I turned off my music and he repeated what he had said: “What are you smiling about?”
Now, I love spontaneously talking to random people about random things - it makes life more interesting - so it's no surprise that this simple question spurred on a 15 minute conversation near the entrance of the building. It went something like this:

“What are you smiling about?”
“Oh, I don’t really know. Today is just a good day.”
With a knowing smile he says “and by that, you mean your boyfriend is being good to you.”
“No…I don’t have a boyfriend.”
“Good! A girl like you doesn’t want a boyfriend. You want a male companion. And I should know. I’m a marriage counselor. Take it from me. My wife and I just got married…55 years ago!”
(At this point in my head I’m thinking what the hell constitutes a ‘male companion’.)
The old man continues on and says "Let me ask you something, hun. What do you want out of life?"
I gave him the most honest answer I could think of. "I just want to be happy."
He laughs and says "Well with your personality, you'll get far in life. Here take, my card."
(this is where it gets creepy)
He reaches into his pocket while saying "send me an email and my wife and I will take you and some of your girlfriends out to dinner one night and I can teach you everything I know. Oh but don't let the staff here see you take this card from me. I've been thrown out of three churches for this sort of thing. They don't like me telling people they can be happy."
At this point I'm incredibly intrigued as to what could be on his card that would result in him being thrown out of churches, but if there hadn't been a ton of students walking past us I would have felt somewhat apprehensive about talking to this man.
He hands me his card and continues talking to me like he's not some creepy old guy hanging out on a college campus, preying on unsuspecting young women: "Believe me, its my personality and love for God that got me this far in life. I retired at 45!"
Oooh, this makes sense now. He's trying to sell his faith.
I take his card and put it in my pocket.
"I'm a christian man," he says. "How about you? Are you Christian? or Jewish?"
Damn, is my Jewish ancestry really THAT obvious?
"I'm spiritual, but I don't follow any religion."
He laughs and says "well I can teach you everything you need to know to succeed in life. Just send me an email. Bless you hun, I love ya."
"Alright...bye." I say, nervously backing away.

As soon as I'm a safe distance away from him, I take his card out of my pocket and read it. It has some short poems and lines on it concerning "True Love" and "Abstinence". Basically its a card full of Christian propaganda. I laugh to myself, making note to NEVER email this man. But that's when I realize...there's no email (or phone number or address or any sort of way to contact the guy) on this business card.
What the hell?

Tetris is the first step towards enlightenment

2009-05-01T14:40:00.001-07:00

Oh my goodness. It is almost 3:00pm and I have yet to leave the house today. What have I been doing!? I'm still sitting around in my sweatpants and baggy shirt. I suppose I shouldn't feel too bad, I hardly ever let myself have a day where I do nothing - but I'm not being productive in the slightest! Youtube is far too time consuming.

And do you know what really makes me feel like I've wasted the day away? When I've spent a straight hour and a half playing Tetris.

So I'm on this new mission to find inner-peace and happiness through meditation, exercise, drinking a lot of water, yoga, and positive thinking. Well, this isn't really new. Its something I'm revisiting for the fiftieth time. Every few months I get really into meditation and start practicing my yoga more often. Soon after I start attempting to find nirvana I start loosing sight of what I want and fall back into the stressful buzz of everyday life.

So what is inspiring this latest bout of self-healing? I think it has to do with a number of things. Mainly it is due to the realization that there are some specific people in my life who are no good for me and I need to let them go. This realization has also been paired with an old friend reappearing in my life and opening my eyes to the wonderful people there are in the world and the amazing experiences that can be had with such individuals.

It is sad when someone who is your "friend" is the source a large amount of suffering in your life. It is even more sad when you realize you need to separate yourself from them if either one of you is going to have a shot at happiness.

So I recently went to the library and checked out some books on meditation and living a peaceful life. Needless to say, most of these books are written by Buddhist monks. I've only gotten trough a few pages of this little pocket book simply entitled "Meditation", but its already proving to be very helpful. I feel more at peace and aware of myself and my surroundings.

But now I really must get out of the house.

Who knew Tuesday nights could be so fun?

2009-04-29T20:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I made sure to get my paper edited and printed out before 6 and all my assigned reading for the evening had already been completed. Now if you should know anything about me, it is this: I hate the majority of school work and am an expert at procrastination.

While I felt somewhat dirty finishing work with time to spare, it was for a good purpose. Death Cab for Cutie was playing here (RaRa Riot was opening), I had a wristband to get in, and I was going to sing and dance so much that I knew I would not be able to properly function afterwards.

Have you ever been to a concert and, in a soul-crushing moment of clarity, realize that the band doesn’t sound nearly as good as they do on their CD? Well, that wasn’t the case with DCFC. The concert was amazing. They played a good amount of my favorite songs (Summer Skin, Soul meets Body, Crooked Teeth, etc) and did justice to some of their bigger hits – especially “I will possess your heart”.

I have a problem when it comes to going to concerts –I’m short. At concerts such as this where there is a large crowd between me and the band, it is always a struggle for me to see the concert. Girls, this is where having three extremely tall guy friends comes in handy. The three guys I went to the concert with are all at least a good 8 inches taller than me (one of them is over a foot taller than me). This was such a blessing because they were able to lift me up to better see the stage from time to time.

One thing I don’t understand about people at concerts is how they can just stand still, arms crossed, and only listen to the music. I remember looking around the crowd and seeing very few people even tapping their toes or nodding their head along to the music. I screamed over the music to my friend “HOW CAN THESE PEOPLE STAND STILL?” as I danced, probably looking like a complete idiot, but loving every second of it. Albeit, some of DCFC’s tunes are a little slow and depressing, so I excuse people from not dancing to those. But come on people! How can you not want to dance with all the energy on stage when the band is playing “No Sunlight”? Do you know how ridiculous you look when you just stand there? What are you doing? Absorbing the music? Try FEELING it!

One really surprising thing about the concert was the crowd that it drew. Of course, more of the emo and indie kids were there, but I was pleasantly surprised at how very few people were smoking weed. At almost every huge concert I’ve been to, there has been an ample amount of ganja going around – so the fact that very few people attempted to smuggle in some pot was a point of interest for me. Its more than likely that many of them drank and/or smoked before coming to the concert, but I was glad to see that a good amount of people were there to actually enjoy the music and could do so while being sober.

I think my favorite thing about going to concerts is the connection you feel with a band’s music after hearing them perform it live. I felt this way after seeing Aerosmith a few years back – all their songs are much more appealing and meaningful to me. The same goes for Cake, Jon McLaughlin, Hellogoodbye, and all the other bands I’ve seen. Now I most definitely feel that way about Death Cab for Cutie. Before the concert I wasn’t very partial to their sadder sounding stuff (which is the majority of their music), often skipping over tracks such as “Transatlanticism”, in favor of songs like “All is Full of Love”. But now all of their stuff sounds amazing and all day I’ve been delving into all their music with enthusiasm.

Alright, this post has gone on for too long – I’m going to go chill out to some DCFC. :)

Soldiers in the Congo

2009-04-27T16:53:00.001-07:00

Today I attended a presentation given by a former child solider from the Congo and a man that works with her to spread awareness of the topic. Of course, I’ve heard of other countries and their uses of child armies, but I had never heard of girls being forced to serve in the army.

The speakers’ stories, and the two short films that were played, were both fascinating and heartbreaking. The girl who spoke today was kidnapped at the age of eleven and forced to serve in the army. But there are other young girls who decide, on their own, to go. This was shocking to me – why would any young girl feel that she needs or even wants to join an army?

I plan on doing some research in the new future and finding out how I can become involved in putting an end to this nightmarish situation.

Languages are my passion

2009-04-25T22:23:00.001-07:00

I have a goal to learn 7 languages by the time I’m 30. I know, I know…that seems like a bit of a lofty goal, but I’m part way there!

If I put a lot of effort into it (but knowing me and my lazy ways, I won’t) I could quite possibly have those 7 languages down by the time I’m 25.

I’ve studied French since freshman year of high school and am now conversationally fluent, I’m currently taking German classes, I’m in the process of learning American Sign Language (which does count as a language in my mind), and next year I’ll be learning Italian. So there’s 4 languages. Add my native language, English, and you have 5. After returning from Italy next year, I plan on taking some Spanish classes (language #6). Finally I’ll attempt to pick Portuguese or Japanese – I’m still undecided about which one to learn – to achieve my goal of 7 languages.
Now many people ask, as you may, what I plan on doing with all these languages. To that question I reply: I have no idea.

How do people ever get anything done when there is gelato and sorbet to be eaten?

2009-04-25T10:13:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness. It’s as if the universe decided to drop a little miracle in the downtown area. I must have done something really good and racked up some good karma points because I just experienced the best sorbet ever. My friend and I ventured into a little Gelato shop last night that neither of us had ever been to. When we walked in my eyes must have bulged out of my head because the ice cream looked surreal – there were so many colors and exciting flavors lined up behind the glass counter that it looked like something out of Willy Wonka’s factory.

I’m lactose intolerant (and very bitter about the fact, especially when I find myself in the gelato shop from heaven) so I only focused on their sorbets. They had mango, lemon, raspberry, chocolate, and pear flavored sorbets. So amazing! I must have sampled all the sorbets 3 times each before finally deciding on raspberry. It was perhaps the most satisfying thing I’ve eaten in a year.

Last night I dreamt of the sorbet…I woke up this morning craving some chocolate sorbet, but was thoroughly disappointed when I opened my freezer only to find a box of frozen chicken breasts and four microwave dinners. I have a feeling I’ll be making a trip downtown this evening….

Enligtenment is just a couple reincarnations away

2009-04-24T18:06:00.000-07:00

I remain unconvinced that the Dalai Lama is just a person like me. Contrary to what he said in his talks that I listened to today, I think that when someone reaches enlightenment, they cease to be different from the normal human being. Being able to feel only compassion for people who want to kill you seems a little God-like to me.

Regardless of whether the Dalai Lama is human or not, I do think everyone could learn a lot from his teachings. I’ve been a fan of his philosophies for years and hearing him speak this morning was a treat. If only everyone were willing to put aside their trivial differences, open their hearts to their fellow human beings, and feel compassion for others, the world would most definitely be a better place…is an overnight spiritual revolution too much to ask of humanity?

I must say, I was pleasantly surprised when I found out that thousands of students here were interested in hearing him speak. Perhaps there is more common sense and decency here than meets the eye.

After his speeches were done, I sat in meditation for a few minutes in an attempt to sort out some of my own emotional issues and hopefully get a little bit closer to nirvana. Needless to say I remain unenlightened, but I think I’m making some progress.

One midterm short of a heart attack

2009-04-23T14:46:00.000-07:00

In an hour I have a midterm that counts for 25% of my grade in the class. I feel horribly unprepared even though I have studied to the best of my ability for it. I don’t think I’ve ever felt confident going into a test of any sort – I always fear for the worst. More often than not this fear has served me well. I study more than I need to for tests, always feeling like I could have a better grasp on the material ; as a result I end up with A’s and B’s.

However, I can feel this habitual stress wearing down on my body and my health. My stomach does flip-flops before any sort of exam. However, I don’t mind giving presentations or writing term papers because those tasks are designed to let me plan ahead and perfect the assignment before it is actually due. But tests challenge me to think of the spot and recall from memory. I don’t have the comfort and luxury of referring back to notes or a textbook.

In a way I envy the majority of the students around me who studied for an hour or so and, upon sitting down in class before a test, don’t seem at all intimidated by the fact that very shortly they’ll be expected to answer 100 questions in 50 minutes. Of course in these situations I want to do well and am glad I studied, but the idea that someone could actually feel prepared for a test and not have a nervous stomach ache just seems too surreal for an over achiever like me.

After this test, I’m done with class for the week. Finally…I am in serious need of some relaxation.

Party Town

2009-04-20T20:39:00.001-07:00

This town is a noisy one. Friday evening rolls around and you can forget about having a quiet evening in and watching a movie in the peace of your own apartment because outside – not only in your apartment complex but for a quarter of a mile radius – all hell is breaking loose. A twenty person game of beer pong is taking place next-door, a techno dance party from the floor above causes your head to pound with the unnecessarily loud bass, and drunken students in the street break out into a fight below your window, all the while screaming obscenities and smashing empty beer bottles on the ground. After somehow finding a way to relax and fall asleep amongst all this mayhem, you awake in the morning to see that the usual beer cans floating in the pool are accompanied by three bikes and a lawn chair. Weekends like this force me to ask myself the question: what the hell am I doing at this school?

I’m not the typical college girl. At least not the kind of girl you’d find here at one of the biggest party schools in the nation. I’m full of these ridiculous things called “morals” and would rather read a book than go out to a party and drink until I pass out, throw up, or lose all my common sense. That’s not to say I don’t enjoy going out and being social, but this backdrop of a carefree life of alcohol and sex isn’t exactly my scene.

So what am I doing at this school? Wouldn’t I be better off at a school where the student body places more importance on intellect than how many shots of vodka one can take? Yes and no. I originally came here because I did not get into Stanford or Berkeley. This was a safety school for me. I often find myself thinking that had I applied to other schools or gone to a university that was in a more cultured and diverse city I would be happier and have more mental stimulation. But, against all odds, I have come to love this school and the life I have created for myself here. I have friends I love and an exciting life I am proud of. Had it not been for the extreme environment here, I doubt that I would have become the person I am today.

So even though the partiers in the street disturb my sleep multiple times a week, I have to love them for teaching me exactly who I am and who I don’t want to be.