I am so sorry I have not updated since last week but my classes are starting to get hectic. We have to start thinking about our final papers for many of our classes and it's crazy to think about finals already. And midterms are just two weeks away(crazy!). But this past week has been a lot of fun and it was nice to stay around Perugia for a weekend.
As I mentioned in my last post I had to go to the police station (called the Questura in Italian) last Wednesday to finish my permit of stay duties so that I am a legal citizen of Perugia until December. My appointment at the Questura was scheduled for 8:30 in the morning, since my Italian class doesn't begin until 11:00 am everyday it was hard to get up at 7 am for once. But I got there early so I could be one of the first people in line so I could make it to Italian on time. When I got to the first person at the immigration office in the police building I realized that only one man spoke English (and he spoke very little English). He told me to go to get my fingerprints taken in a separate building and that the building opened at 8:45 am. Well, that building didn't open until 9:30 am and so I had to wait outside in the cold for awhile.
It was an interesting experience to have my fingerprints taken. The man spoke no English and he asked for my parents names and since my parents do not have Italian names it was hard for him to understand the spelling. So I had to spell the names in Italian, luckily he realized I don't speak much Italian and he let me write it down. He then put my information into a computer (hair color, eye color, height, etc.). It's kind of unnerving to know the Italian government now has all of my information. But I got done at the Questura around 10:30 am and I made it to Italian on time. Now, I am free to live in Perugia until December, woohoo!
I didn't have plans for the weekend because I wanted to plan some trips for later in the semester so on Friday I decided to go hiking with my roommate Jessica. Umbra organized a trip to visit Spoleto to hike Mt. Monteluco. A group of five of us and one Umbra staff member traveled to Spoleto by train (remembering to validate our tickets of course) and met with one of the professors and we hiked to the top of Monteluco! The hike took a little more than an hour and it was uphill the entire way! We were all very sweaty and tired by the time we got to the top but the views were incredible! As these pictures show the views were well worth the hike to the top....
After taking in the amazing views of Spoleto we headed to lunch. The restaurant we ate at was at the top of this mountain and it was the best meal ever (I realize I say this on every blog post but I cannot get over the food in Italy, so yummy!). I had pasta with red sauce and mushrooms and this brownie custard dessert. And of course we had red wine to drink, the Italians say that wine is their gasoline, and I agree :) We hiked down the mountain after lunch and enjoyed some free time in Spoleto while we waited for our train back to Perugia.
On Saturday morning I met up with two of my fellow LVCers, Matt and Kaitlin and their roommates and we all went to the Saturday market in Perugia. We didn't buy anything but it is just fun to walk around seeing everything the market has to offer. For lunch we were all craving American food so we went to McDonald's! I'm not sure if the fries tasted better because of my lack of fries or because they are just better but I had the best french fries ever! Sometimes, you just need a little McDonald's in your diet I guess :)
Afterwards, we went back to Matt and Kaitlin's apartment to plan a weekend trip we are taking in November. And yesterday we booked our flight to London for November 18-21! We are leaving that Thursday night from Rome and heading to London for three nights! I am so excited (and for those of you who are not aware of what that weekend is I will explain)....
November 19th is the release date for the first part of the final movie of the Harry Potter series! Being a Harry Potter nerd I cannot wait for this movie! Before I came to Italy it was my dream to go to London for this movie release and now that I am definitely going I am so anxious for this trip. We might not be able to see the movie because you cannot book tickets for the movie this early in advance but we will still do Harry Potter nerdy stuff all weekend long. And hopefully see the movie :)
This coming weekend I have a field trip to Siena on Saturday with my Contemporary Italy: Culture and Society class. I am not sure what we will be seeing yet but I will update as soon as I can. This weekend is also a preparation weekend for my upcoming trips. The weekend of October 15-17 I am going to Rome for three days! And Fall break is coming up very quickly and I am planning on going to Venice, Vienna, Prague, and Munich! I cannot wait for all of my excursions and I am so excited to share them all with you when I return to Perugia.
I hope everyone has a wonderful week and I will update as soon as I can!
Italian word of the post:
viaggiare - to travel
Morgan :)
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