a car ride and cappuccino!

Earlier this week I had a GREAT start to my day!

I was walking to the bus stop... carrying my air pump for the bicycle that I bought off a returning teacher, which was at school. ...As I was getting to the main road (near the bus stop), the bus that I needed was just driving by. ...D'OH!

I knew I'd have about 10 or 12 minutes to wait for another to come along... but no big deal.

As I was sitting on the bus stop's bench, a little car drove by, slowed down, and reversed.

The window went down... and then I realized that it was Tina! ...The HR person from my school. She's the most amazing woman... nice, genuine, and helped me a TON with my paperwork to get here!

She gave me a ride in to school, which was great... AND we stopped on the way for a cappuccino at a small cafe near school.

Now THAT is how I picture living in Italy to be.

...A wonderful start to the day.

I have had a wonderful beginning to my time here. The school I am at seems great. It will be a lot of work but the people here have been incredibly welcoming and many of them say that they love the library! So far so good...  : )

aperitivo

My first night in Milan we went to a returning teacher's apartment for an aperitivo. It was really nice of her to have everyone over. There was a variety of dishes to pick and choose from. Mmmmm the olives... prosciutto around cantaloupe... mmmmmm.

The next night, we were in the city and went to a bar for an aperitivo. You buy a drink and then can eat as much as you want... usually around 9 or 10 euro. It's great... my kind of eating! I like a smorgasbord of foods to snack on.

I ordered a Pimm's Cup.

Refreshing and delicious!

A spread of snacks...

On the weekend we went up to Belaggio... a small mountain town on Lake Como.

We ate in a wine cellar and some of us shared a cheese and cold-cut plate.

workin' on the prefettura

Before coming to Italy, I had a lot of paperwork to get done in order to get a work visa. That part of the paperwork was called the nullaosta.

Now that I am in Italy, there is more to do! A group of us from school went to an office in the city the other day... now working for the prefettura.

The office was in a gorgeous building... (I hope I never get tired of the pretty styles and great architecture in this country).

Then a couple days later we went to the post office to send this part of the paperwork to Rome.

...Getting there ...getting there.

sunset and cornfields

Since I have been staying late at school to get things done before the year begins (students come Monday!)... I was walking home as the sun began to set the other day... below are some photos of my walk home. I like the sky with the cornfield in front...

my apartment in Opera!

Below are some photos of my apartment...

It had a bunch of furniture, posters, and things that I've put downstairs in my cantina (like a storage closet)... but overall I really like it! My shipment of things arrives tomorrow morning from the States! Whoohoo! ...We'll see how different (more crowded) the apartment looks after all of that stuff is inside too.

I feel really lucking to have air conditioning AND a washer and dryer! Not all apartments have them. I do wish my balcony/windows had screens on them... as the mosquitoes are killer right now.

my walk/ride to school

School set me up in a great one-bedroom apartment in the small town one over from school. It is about a 30-minute walk... or a 10-ish minute bike ride. The way to school is nice, as it's on a path along corn fields! So far I've seen... 3 rabbits, a giant snail, and a wild cat catch a mouse (or something).

Here are some photos of my walk to school:

HERE!

I did not think that it would take me this long to post to the blog! ...but I've been extremely busy with school. Today is Friday... and students come on Monday! The library is looking pretty good (still a ton I feel I want to do) and I think I will love living here.  : )

After a 4-hour delay for my flight from Denver to Newark, I missed my connection... was put in a hotel for the night in Newark... and THEN was on my way to Milan the following evening. It was pretty crappy missing my first day of work and not being there when all the other new teachers met one another... but really, all is well.

This school seems wonderful. Everyone is not only nice and welcoming... but also not afraid to give positive feedback. I like that.

In this first blog post since being in Milan... I'm going to post some photos of the beautiful view from my balcony  : D

This one is looking to the right... which is the direction of school.

AND the direction of the Alps! On a clear day I should be able to see them  : )

GOT IT!

Thankfully, all worked out in Chicago with my appointment at the Italian Consulate for the work visa. I now have a one-year visa in my passport and I'm ready to leave Denver for Milan... tomorrow!! I'm even checked in for my flight and tomorrow at this time... will be in the air!

Well... I'm actually not ready to leave Denver... but it's happening still... and I'm excited.   : )

Yesterday was my 29th birthday... and tomorrow I move to Italy. Living in Italy has been a dream of mine since I was a little girl. I'm going without any specific expectations (trying to at least)... but am hoping to love my time and experiences there.

A great friend of mine in Denver --Julie-- was so sweet to bring over beautiful flowers and pizza the night I returned from Chicago... as a way to congratulate me on making it through the process and being able to really move to Italy! YEAH! She's so sweet.