So last night was my first Italian class. Thank god I had Katie as my buddy because I think otherwise I would have been eaten alive by the Argentine mean girls who think they're better than everyone else just because they already know 5 words of Italian. Or I would have just hid myself in the corner of the classroom begging not to get called on. But it was actually kind of fun, if not just plain hilarious, and I am thinking this will be quite the semester ....
First of all, our classes are held in this colegio that looks like it was modeled after some Eastern Bloc military hospital from the 1950s or something -- lots of concrete, trough sinks in the bathrooms, barebones EVERYTHING .... I feel like I'm in a mental institution/prison/parking garage all at once. Our class has about 20 people in it, a few old ladies who seem pretty cool, lots of annoying Argie girls who work in HR but still have zero people skills (mystifies me), and some random girl from Belgium who everyone likes because she is a translator. Boo. Our teacher is really friendly, speaks only in Italian, and limps around because she has a giant knee brace on. I am thinking that the new Spring trend is a leg or foot injury. I can't tell you how many people I have seen on the street with those big boot-cast things that make you walk like a pirate in slow-motion. Maybe I missed that runway show at Fashion Week ....
Class was basic enough, of course it was almost completely unstructured which was a little unsettling. I'm a nerd and I actually do want to learn Italian ! And I haven't taken any kind of language class, let alone a beginner class, in about 9 years. I hope next week Professore will actually write a fraction of the words on the lavagna (?) so I learn how to spell, and therefore, pronounce them correctly.
Katie and I stood out as the American freaks who have names that no one knows how to say. I can't get a break ! I also crashed into one of the desks trying to look cool as I walked to the back row. Great first impression. We wonder if the people in our class think we're dating, and we have decided that it might not be so boring if we decide to go along with it. It will make the next 3 months pass by less painfully.
When the teacher was passing around a sheet for us to fill in our names, email addresses, etc, I witnessed something that is so indicative, so typical of Argentine behavior, that it was a mini-"lightbulb" moment in my quest to understand these insane people. Rather than pass the paper around the class in orderly rows -- the most efficient, organized way, of course -- these people ( adults ! who have been in school and have therefore, learned how to THINK you would suppose ), just passed the paper around in this random circle without any rhyme or reason. It would be like passing the paper to the 3rd neighbor to the left of the person behind you, instead of just to the person behind you. It took 3 times as long to get the sheet passed around and filled out, and no one seemed to care. Le sigh.
I am excited to become an Italian speaking machine and then go to Italy to practice my fabulous skills. I am also in search of an Italian name. Pilar is perfect for Argentina. What will Paige be called in Italia ? Hmmm ...
In other news, Spring has officially sprung and it will be 80 degrees today. Now I remember why I live here, despite the insanity, disorganization, inefficiency, and corruption. ONE MONTH OF WINTER PER YEAR ! Amazing. Fabulous. That's what I am talking about folks.
Looking forward to a big curry dinner at Bengal tonight and then gearing up for the weekend ...
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