Ciao, tutti!

I can't believe that I have survived my first week in Urbania!  It has been such a wonderful time so far.  My Italian has gotten so much better, because we're constantly speaking and studying it here.  (To prove this- I had a conversation with my host family about the energy reform here in Italy, which included discussions of nuclear, solar, wind, and water energy! I couldn't believe that I understood it all!).  The music is also coming along really well.  I'm learning so many wonderful tools that I plan on taking back to the States with me.  I can't wait to see how they improve my performances in the future once I leave here.

Last night, we had a "concerto lirico," a concert where several singers perform solo rep that they brought with them.  It was a great concert and it was wonderful to hear the singers that I'm working along side.  After, we all went out to a nearby bar and celebrated the concert and making it through our first week!  We had some great conversations with the Italians there (it started flowing out after I got more comfortable.  I even translated for some people.  It made me feel so good!), but we made sure to stear clear of "i tamarri" (the guidos) haha.

The group

Today, my friend Emily and I had a traditional Chinese lunch at our Chinese friends' house and it was delicious!  They're all from different parts of China and are studying at the Italian school for 3 months.  Out of the 4 of them, only 2 spoke any Italian or English.  Talking was a little difficult because we had to move in between broken Italian, broken English, and LOTS of talking with our hands.  Nevertheless, it was a wonderful time.  After, we all went to the river to watch the "boat" race.  The boats were all composed of different materials and were manned by teams that pushed them down the river like gondolas.  Later tonight, we have a master class we have to attend at 9 (so late for this morning bird!).  Some people are going to Firenze (Florence) tomorrow, but I'm going to hold down the fort here in Urbania and work on memorizing my music.

Ciao, cari!

Our Chinese Friends and Lunch

One of the "boats"