Busy Bees

March 19, 2007

Well, life is moving fast for us here in Milan. The weather has been warm and sunny (although not today) and I have been very busy with rehearsals. The situation with the company has become much better. After that first week, I haven't been very sore and I feel like I'm understanding the work better. Even so, being with these people 6 hours a day is stressful because I am trying to understand what they are saying and what is going on at all times and that takes a lot of energy. I now understand the ways they work and most of what is said, but there are still those cultural differences that I'm unsure of. Living in a foreign country makes you realize how disconcerting it is not knowing what to do in every situation, having to always be aware of what others are doing and try to figure out yourself.

I like my fellow dancers and they are being nice to me. Somedays they help me practice my Italian which I am getting much better at. This week is the last week of rehearsals and then we start performing March 27th until April 5.
After that, we are off to South Africa to visit my sister, Fiona at her beach house near Durban. Ben and I are so excited to go and relax with family (and people who speak english).

Last Saturday, we went to Bologna for the day. It was a great city and had a lot more interesting architecture and character than most other Italian cities we've been. We didn't do much that day, but sit in the main piazza and watch people and eat. But it was fun. After a while, doing the touristy things get old in these northern italian cities, so it was nice to just take it all in.
Being busy, for me, has really helped me be happier here, although sundays are the days that we miss home the most.

Marla and the New Job

March 3, 2007

Our friend, Marla, from New York came to visit us right as both Ben and I caught the terrible flu that is apparently going around the world. She was in town for Milan's fashion week and she walked the cat walk in about 12 shows while she was here. It was fun to get to see her when she returned from the shows, with crazy make up and hair. We loved having her here!
Ben and I recovered while she was still here and we got to spend time with her, including Carnivale. Her driver, Ricardo, took us to Varese, a town outside of Milan the day of Carnivale. All the children were dressed up in costumes and there was confetti and silly string littering all the streets. There were games and clowns in the streets and a parade here in Milan. Ricardo said that not a lot of people celebrate Carnivale anymore, except for kids.

After Marla left us, I started my new job dancing for Corte Sconta. It has been frustrating time so far. The language barrier is hard and it is just a different way of working than I'm used to. Everyone is allowed an opinion and I just want to go crazy when 5 people are telling me different things to do, most of them in Italian. And they talk so much and their concepts and ideas are sometimes impractical. The dancing itself is cool, but really hard on my body. I have been so sore this week, and it doesn't seem to be getting better. I think it's going to be a long, and confusing 3 weeks before the show.

It looks like spring has come to Milan and the weather is nice and warm. Ben's been riding his bike to school and continuing to work hard at his classes. Tonight he goes to the Milano Vipers hockey game to watch the league playoffs!