Buone Feste a Tutti!

Happy holidays everyone!! I hope Santra bought you everything you ever wanted and that you haven't givin up your new years resolutions yet... it has only been three days...

So I'll keep this organized. We'll start with Natale.

SO Christmas is in Italy eh? It came and went super fast like it seems to be doing these years. After I got home from Germany I had a week of school, which ended Saturday with a mass and a Christmas program thing. I decided I would help with the program, so I got to read a poem in German, a stanza in Italian, and sing in the english song with a group. It was pretty fun. So that weekend before Christmas I did my last minute shopping and was just excited to see how these Italians celebrated! Christmas eve, I woke up, and me and nonna had a date to make lasagna for the nights dinner. She taught me step-by-step how to make fabulous Italian lasagna! And dang it was good. After that nonna, sandra, and I walked around little Sanluri, buying our last last minute needs. Then at home we all went to the first floor (nonna's house) to prepare for the big dinner! Which, SURPRISE! was just like any other big dinner. Antipasta, pasta, meat, veggies and fruit, dessert. Oh and their is ALWAYS bread...that is never ending. Just like that every time. and the meat of course was that good ol' pig, shoved on a sward, roasted slowly in the fire. But, its all yummy all the same. Then Sandra's sister, Marcella, and their family, came to join us for the fest. We sat down to dinner, it was around 9 o clock at night. And ate and talked and ate and talked. Around 11:30 ish we were winding down with the eating, and exchanged gifts between the family. My "cousins" gave me really good perfume and a little purse. Grandma gave me a towel with italian buon natale written on it, as a good memory she said, and a necklace, bracelett, and makeup pallet. Oh so sweet of everyone:) really! SO after that at 12, we all gave/wished each other AUGURI. You do that by giving everyone two kisses and saying AUGURI! haha its just wishing everyone the best. After that, we sat down at the table, and I tought these people the wonderful game of spoons. It was a hit. They loved it. and then I taught them Scum which they also liked a like. Troppo bellini giochi laurie!! Molto bellini. So that was fun. Then we just hung out and talked some more.....around 3 o'clock in the morning is when the other family went home, and we went upstairs. Upstairs we then exchanged our gifts, and also opened the ones my family sent us in the pack. All of which I loved, and my host parents loved. So it was a merry christmas, or, buon natale. Now, on christmas day, we went to lunch with Pepuccio's sister Lina and her family. The same meal, same sit and chat the whole day. From them I got a sweet bracelett. THEN on the 26th, the last day of the fests, we had our close friends over (the ones with the little girls) at our second house for a big lunch (of the exact same food-again). That lasted from 11 in the morning to 11 at night, not kidding. You just sit down, eat, and REALLY TRULY enjoy eachothers company. Not the polite quit formal visits we tend to make, the real life friendship stuff. At first these extremely long meals would KILL ME! Now, I'm really seein the beauty of them. You don't think about any of the stuff you have to do, that you need to get to as fast as possible. Nope. You just enjoy every minute with your company, laugh, eat, and relax.
So that was Christmas! It is definatly not as big here at all, I think I only heard 3 Christmas songs throughout the season, but, it was a nice Christmas.

Capodanno!
New years! So my friends from school had invited me to the big party a few weeks before, but I was almost certain I wouldn't be able to go. It was in a whole different paese, the family my host parents didn't know really, and they had been telling me that its very dangerous to be out on this night. But I asked anyways..and it was an "oh I don't know Laurie" just like I expected. Alright, whatevs, not a big deal to me. But a few days before the big celebrations, my parents told me they are going to a party at Anna's with other adults, and that I should definatly go have fun with my friends! Yippy. So I went to the party. Ha it was so weird. I would say...about 30, 35 people were there. Most from school, so I knew pretty much everyone. And everyone was just getting the big dinner ready, boys roasting the meat, girls preparing other dishes.. It was so funny. It was just like a dinner you would have with your family, just this time it was with the teenagers. So we all sat down to the table, and BUON APPETITO! Can you guess what we ate? Well anyways, everyone was just sittin around the table, eating, drinkin their wine, smoking a few cigeretts... silly teenagers. After we finished, we cleared the tables, and ran outside for the new years! There were fireworks (lame ones) goin off, and the count down began. At 12 o clock bottles of spumante were shaken, corked, and sprayed everywhere, and drank. Then you wish everyone AUGURI again. We then went inside. I was hoping for a little DANCING I mean, come on! But no that didnt happen...the music was there..but not one really danced. The couples were kissing, everyone was smoking and drinkink, just hangin out. Not like any kind of american party I've been to.. it was interesting. But it was alright. Around 3 o'clock I went to the guest bedroom upstairs that the parents said was for me and slept until morning.
and that makes for my Happy new years!

SO now I am just enjoying my vacation...stayin up late, sleepin in... I have done some homework (which I actually have a lot of) made some resolutions, and even gone running a few times. We have this thing called sky, which is like super cable, and has good movies on all the time. So I watch them in Italian with the Italian sub titles, that helps me with me and also lets me enjoy a good movie here and there. And by the way my Italian is going great. Understanding everything is amazing. Talking is getting better also. I've also gone out with friends a lot, either in the piazza, or to cagliar, and even went bowling and to this big mall the other day. I won, gooo me. haha. I also killed everyone in airhockey, which if you know me, is just one of my things. Haha jk.

So other things in Italy? I could write a whole new blog just on the schooling system compared to America's. Its so different. I will explain another time. I love that here in Sardegna, clementines/mandrin oranges, pomegranates, and artichokes grow EVERYWHERE, three of my favorite things. Ha I also have this 94 year old grandpa, well cousins grandpa, who has no teeth and talks to me only in sard. Don't undestand a thing, but he really is the cutest old man. The weather is still brisk, but at least the sun shines. Life is going smooth and good, not much worries. The only worries and stresses I have are coming right from home! College, scholorships, and stuff like that. But it will happen, just gota stay calm. January is usually my least favorite month, so I will work especially hard to make it enjoyable. Volleyball is going great, we had a tournament over this break and I actually got playing time, scored a few points, and after we won they gave me the trophy to take home to remember this! I was like oh sweet....! Thanks. I am kind of nervous to go back to school, now that I undestand, a lot more is expected out of me. Ohh darn. haha. But its good for me:) Its funny, with my slow, calm, un pressing life, the american-ness inside me basically makes to do lists out of nothing, and trys to build stress anyway it can haha. OH NO Laurie you have to do your 5 problems of math homework tonight! DONT FORGET!!!!!!!!!!!! hahaha. I guess I just can't help my natural instinks.

Growing up is a crazy thing. I can really feel and see it. If any of you have comments or advice, just let me know! I hope your holidays have been great, and that your off to an amazing new year...2008 people! Crazy.

Well, tante auguri! Vi voglio bene!

Love
Laurie