So I turned 21 on Monday. I don’t think it’s really hit me yet because a) my driver’s license still says “under 21″ b) the only way people knew it was my birthday was because they checked Facebook before coming to class and c) for Italians, there is no reason to celebrate your 21st birthday–wait, I could drink wine before Monday? Since my bank account was (is) still hurting slightly from travel fees and even a small little getaway to the Med, I didn’t really do anything special to celebrate (other than, you know, spend the big day in Italy) except drink maybe a litre of water and go to class (maybe next month I’ll just make a little detour into that Missoni store).
Classes here have been incredibly interesting–in more ways than one. First of all, for the University class I chose on Monday, the professor didn’t show. For the other one I tried to go to, they decided not to have it start until October. Thus, I apparently got up at 6:30 AM to catch the bus for no reason. Although, I very much enjoyed watching the Italian students. For the most part, they’re actually older than American students when they start school so I’m actually young for the the level I’m at. Weird. Also, I was the only girl wearing a skirt. I was seriously paranoid all morning that there was some dresscode disclaimer (“Skinny jeans, chucks and designer purse required”) that I missed.
My Middlebury classes, though also interesting, are just that–Middlebury Classes, with one exam in the middle, one exam at the end, one major paper and a bunch of reading, with participation taking up most of your grade. My class on the European Union I think is the one I’m going to enjoy the most (read: Future Career Possibility). However, the professor for literature is ottimo, amazing. He may spit a little when he gets really excited about a work, but his teaching style is otherwise absolutely beautiful. And then there’s my art history class. I think we (all six of us) are all a little afriad of that class mainly because they professor looks very much like he belongs to the mafia (thus, I don’t really want to ask where he learned so much about art) and speaks in very elevated Italian. However, it is the class with the newest material for me and I find it incredibly interesting to have everything I’ve ever seen about art finally explained.
In other news, my newest music obsession is this song. It’s not Italian (I haven’t really heard much Italian because all the stores seem to have Kate Perry on infinite repeat) and it currently has no real music video, but I want it.
The Kills, “Sour Cherry”
