Bug bites and language barriers

Although Italy is AMAZING (I have no other words to describe it!), there have still been a couple of interesting situations. Haha. I have these incredibly huge bug bites: one on my arm, the others on my two legs. The one on my arm has swollen up to the size of a huge orange! It's not enjoyable at all, and I'm not sure what to do about it except ice it.

The language barrier makes it harder to communicate. I'm not sure why I wasn't expecting for it to be so hard, but this experience will definitely help me be more compassionate to those who don't speak my language. I've been trying to pick up Italian as quickly as possible, and the Italians who do know that we can't speak Italian are really helpful. Haha. I'm definitely learning a lot about everything!

But onto the AMAZING things....

We've been exploring our neighborhood. It's everything you think Italy would be! We've also made amazing new friends from all over the world: Brazil, France, Hungary just to name a few. They're awesome people and have definitely made the language barrier a lot easier.

Our school is beautiful. They have these gorgeous courtyards with the greenest grass I've ever seen. We've also found that for this Italian intensive course we're taking, we only have school on Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays. And for the regular semester classes, we don't have school on Fridays, so you know what that means....HAHA!

We also went to the Duomo the other day. We were supposed to meet up with some friends that day, but we couldn't find them when we got to our meeting place, so Jade and I decided to walk to the Duomo. It was amazing! When we turned the corner and saw it, we were speechless. We have nothing like that in Hawai'i. NOTHING! Haha.

Ciao!

Oh my goodness. Europe has been beyond amazing so far. I don't even know where to begin, so I'll do what I usually do when I'm overwhelmed...make a list. Haha.

• French sunsets at 36,000 feet in the air
• Amazing buildings and cobblestoned roads
• The beautiful scenery covered in graffitied walls...literally! But it just makes Milan so much more charming.
• Not having to worry about driving
• EATING...As Thomas calls it, E A T A L Y
• Spending the night with a group of amazing Brazilian people
• Buying our own groceries and eating what we made.
• Buying 'things' in a foreign language
• Our beautiful apartment with its old-school elevator and its black cat
• Our sore feet from walking EVERYWHERE!
• Quiet Milan mornings
• Hot, sweaty, humid days and nights! It's like Hawai'i but hotter!
• Oh yeah...we shorted out our electricity on the first night by using too many things at once. Haha. A bad situation turned hilarious because the problem was fixed.

The Thrill

OH EM GEE! That's all that's pretty much going on in my head right now. After all this time talking about leaving to study abroad, I'm finally doing it. I leave for Milan, Italy tomorrow. I'm nervous yet definitely excited!!! I mean...how can I not be? After going from bringing only one fifty pound bag, I'm officially bringing two forty-something pound bags. I'm not even sure if I have everything I need, but I definitely have enough shoes. Haha. JK...Dad!!! A girl could never have too many shoes anyway :)

AHHHHH!!!!! I can't believe this. I'm leaving for the airport at 4:15 this morning. I'm also planning to stay up all night. I would never be able to sleep anyway. I'm way to STOKED for this semester!

I leave in less than a week: three days to be exact. I'm feeling nostalgic not only about this summer but about my family, friends, and Hawai'i. This is the first time I'll be living away from Hawai'i, let alone home. It's only four months....I'm not expecting to get home sick, but everyone keeps telling me I'll eventually get home sick. We shall see...

I haven't really started packing yet. I guess I should start doing that. Hmmm....what to pack. I want to bring everything including my three adorably, naughty dogs! Haha.

There's so much to do, yet so little time. I'm not worried....yet!

It's finally starting to hit me! Well, maybe...

University of Hawaii started school today, and my brother leaves for Oregon tomorrow. What in the world?! I guess it really is time to get back on track for school. This summer has by far been one of the best summer's I can ever remember. I didn't have to worry about work or school :) It was nice to have probably one of the last "real" summers before the "real world" actually hits. And to think...this summer started off with one of the most amazing shoots I've been to all thanks to Kori at Little Darlings Hawaii!

I'm leaving for M I L A N next week! WHAT?!! Someone pinch me!

Model Brooklyn Clayton

Film Kodak Portra 400bw

I've been shooting quite a bit recently. It's been a great learning experience. I'm very new to film, but I've been learning each time I shoot. This has definitely been my best roll to date, but I know I still have much to learn.

I leave for Milan in a little less than two weeks. C R A Z Y ! I can't even believe it. I finally got my VISA, so that's a big relief. It actually came in earlier than expected, so I'm very grateful, although I did have a little bit of trouble when it came to calling the San Francisco Italian consulate asking about the status of my VISA. He was just very vague, but it all worked out, so I'm relieved.

I've been ordering quite a bit of things online recently like a coat (which wasn't really a coat, but a sweater) and a Quiksilver Women's backpack. Let me tell you, I had the hardest time with Quiksilver's customer service. They seemed very disorganized. My first order got rejected, which I'm still rather confused about because my order through Roxy went through fine after I ordered from Quiksilver first. It seemed like I wasn't going to get my money back, but I eventually got refunded in another giftcard they sent a week later after hounding their customer service twice a day for a good week. I just ordered the same backpack again, and I got an email saying it went though, but I'm still crossing my fingers.

On the flip side, AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! I leave in less than two weeks. I'm nervous, but it hasn't quite hit me yet. I'm definitely unsure of what to pack. I don't want to pack too much, but I want my comforts like my S H O E S! Haha. What to do...What to do...

And the countdown begins...

It's officially August, which means that I leave in exactly thirty days! The fact that I'll be in Italy for four months is finally starting to settle in. Whoa! A wave of nervousness just hit me. What do I bring? What can I buy there? And what won't I need? Even then, how am I going to fit four months of my life into one suitcase? Nonetheless, I'm still excited!

Alyssa Wooten for Reverie Jewelry

Finally Moving

It's almost August which either means that it's time to get excited for my study abroad in Italy, or it's time to get worried because I haven't finished everything I have to do before I leave! It's a little of both to be honest. Between waiting anxiously for my VISA or buying a coat for the trip, I've been just a little on edge. I mean, I live in beautiful Hawai'i. The only time, if any, we need a coat is almost never, and I know the transition from going to summer all the time (Hawai'i weather) to way colder weather shall be interesting. Nevertheless, I'm definitely excited!

If you don't know, I'll be studying abroad in Milan, Italy for a semester (4 months). I've never been out of the country, so EVERYTHING will be foreign to me. I'll also be attending school with one of my most awesome friends, Jade. We've pretty much got all the big stuff down. We got our beautiful apartment in a safe neighborhood. (Mom, this ones for you!) We of course bought our "round-trip" plane tickets. The only thing we're really waiting for is our VISA, which we sent in last week. Apparently all the Italian consulates are on vacation until August (great for them, but not so much for us.)

The rest of the things we have to do aren't as big but are still of importance. Here's our list so far:

• Get traveler's check/figure out the money situation
• Unlock our phones
• Buy US to EU converters/Adapters
• Get physicals
• Go to the swap meet for gifts for future friends
• Government travel registration
• Sign up for miles

Pretty important stuff. There's more, but these are the more important of those things. Arrivederci!