Adventures of Living in Italy

On a train to Rome, I traveled with my family, which included my grandparents. We were excited to see the vivid paintings on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel because they are some of the most renown pieces of art in the world. To get there we had to take a train and then a crowded subway. While on the subway, a man tried to steal my grandfather’s wallet out of his pocket. My grandfather and my daddy ended up pushing the guy off the train! Living in in a foreign country can be full of new experiences but full of challenges too. My family and I lived in Italy for Mommy and Daddy’s ministry, which is to tell college students about Jesus. We lived there for 2 years from 2014-2016 in a city called Bologna. When we lived in Bologna, we had many opportunities to explore the country, such as seeing various works of art and going to an amusement park that was a short train ride away. I liked learning Italian while we lived there, but speaking to people was difficult at times. There were many other obstacles along the way, but also we made good friends.

Because Bologna is close to Milan and Florence, living there allowed us to see many pieces of art. In Florence, we explored the museums and saw a painting called the Primavera, which was painted by Botticelli and personifies winter and spring. We observed The Last Supper, which resides in a small obscure church in Milan. We took a train to Rome, and then we walked to the Sistine chapel where we beheld the ceiling that was beautifully painted by Michelangelo. I like seeing art because I like to paint. Thankfully Milan and Florence are close to Bologna, so we ended up seeing many wonderful works of art.

Because in Bologna most people don’t speak English, we learned to speak a bit of Italian and became good friends with people who spoke English. Learning Italian was interesting because it was new and different. To learn Italian, I diligently memorized the basics on the computer, rode busses to Italian class, and even did CC (Classical Conversations homeschool program) with an Italian family. Once during CC, I did my presentation in Italian. I became close friends with an English speaking girl named Sophia who also did CC with us. There were sweet ladies at our new church, and they made us feel welcome. There were also other Americans who traveled to Italy with us. They became our very dear friends because we were a team and saw them all the time. We learned some Italian and made English speaking friends. 

Eating at an Italian restaurant 

One of my favorite memories with our team was when we took a train to an amusement park called Gardaland. While there, we hopped onto a wide variety of rides including roller coasters. They were high. They were speedy. They were thrilling! We also visited a ride called The Magic House, which is where our entire team squeezed onto one bench and pulled a bar down over our legs. Then the floor started rocking back and forth, and the walls presented crazy illusions that looked like we were upside down when we weren’t. Lights flashed, and there was smoke with a voice laughing evilly the whole time. Because of our friends, and the Magic House, Gardaland was certainly a memorable experience.  

On top of the Magic House at Gardaland with our team

There are also several things that I did not like about living in Italy. Because Italian takes a long time to learn, it was sometimes difficult to make friends. In addition, old ladies would walk up to us and speak quickly in Italian. We would say “Non capito,” which means “I didn’t understand,” but they would still stroll up closely and almost smother us. They were trying to be sweet, but I didn't like being touched by strangers. Also I would miss Texas. I would miss family, friends, and the church we used to attend. In our new Italian church, our pastor taught in Italian. I couldn’t understand the sermon! The church service was 2 hours long. Sometimes I sat and listened, and sometimes I would color quietly. There also weren’t any girls my age who spoke English at church, so I had no one to talk to, but there were also many nice ladies there. To get there, we had to walk for half an hour even if it was raining and then take a bus. The busses were full and fetid. Challenges surprised me by being prevalent.

Walking to church in the rain

                 

Though there were difficult things about living in Italy, such as pick-pockets on trains, there were also interesting things to experience. Fun things are packaged with responsibilities, just like if you want to have a good time viewing different pieces of art and learn about them, you have to know a bit of the language. Attending church in Italian was certainly trying at times, but there were other various activities to do, such as enjoying Gardaland with our dear friends. While we lived in Italy, a college student named Isabella, who was also our friend, asked Jesus in her heart. This was one of the most valuable surprises we had while we were there because she can now go to heaven. Life in Italy held many challenges and rewards.