Living in a country where you don't speak the language can be problematic at times. I tried to order a beer the other day and to the waiter's(and my own) frustration, we couldn't seem to accomplish the simple task of communicating. Turns out that after I order un bierre that I was then called upon to decide bottle or draft, not exactly the first lesson in my Italian phrase book. Sometimes just saying the Spanish word with the right inflection works well--like for directions. I'm a pro at asking directions. I do it just because I can even when I know where I'm going.
With most other things, Spanish helps a little but there is a reason that Italian is a different language. It also helps that Italian is the first accent that we learn to imitate and to the untrained ear, it actually sounds a lot like the sterotype. There are also suprising things in Italian, like a lot more 'g's in places I wouldn't expect them. Gli is an actual word that I'm supposed to be able to pronouce. So, I'm muddling through with a little help from Gianpietro, my Italian tutor.
Luckily, Gianpietro is the only Italian I've actually met so far. Almost everyone I work with is from somewhere else. The store owners, internet cafe operators, money changers, and just about every random person on the street is a foreigner. Italian is the common language, but even I recognize when it is spoken with an accent. Ah, Rome, the international city. Che bella sono.
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Hey Jodi! I couldn't look at your blog and not leave a comment, especially when it comes to speaking Italian or something close. I remember my own trip to Italy some years back (not to Rome, unfortunately--that will have to wait for another time). Being one who has always talked with my hands, I felt right at home. I didn't know any Spanish and the only Italian I could speak were musical terms, which the Italians seemed to enjoy, music being the international language that it is. But I found I could do a lot with gestures and a big smile, especially coming from something other than the typical Ugly American. Bush actually came to Wichita, but there weren't nearly enough people to say NAY! Good luck with your studies and keep us posted on the gelato report. My adventure of coming upon the setting up of the fish market in Venice on a very early morning will live with me forever, as well as my own gelato research. In spite of the lack of vegetables and fruit, I had the single best spinach-noodle lasagna and pinot noir of my life in Florence. Happy studies and happier adventures! Rob's Mom
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