Love is like oxygen
You get too much you get too high
Not enough and you're gonna die
Love gets you high
--Sweet
The big news of yesterday was that my bike was home again after being away since the night of the Gran Fondo. A big change I've had in myself since I've been here is that I've really been able to let go. I'm really okay living with a very small closet of clothes (had to get the black leather-looking jacket to feel okay on the streets here) and I'm finally okay with not having my black leather boots. I was even able to be totally okay with my bike being out of my possession for a few days. This is an incredibly simple life. I like simple. I'd like to know if it's this simple for everyone, or is this an effect of just moving here, living as a college student. We'll see in a few more months.
It's hard to believe it's almost 2 months since I left the U.S. In fact, I saw the date today, Cinco de Mayo. It sounds weird to me in Spanish. "See-n-ko-de-Mai-O" (as it's pronounced in Spanish). "Chee-quay-di-Maj-O" as it's pronounced in Italian (not that it's anything other than the fifth day in May here). Spanish is officially not messing me up any more. I've converted completely to Italian. In fact, when I write in English, I accidentally write some Italian and misspell English words. Many of my thoughts are starting to come in Italian. I thought a lot in Italian in the last Gran Fondo. Clearly, I have simple thoughts as my vocabulary is so limited still. :) But it's a natural reaction as I'm talking and writing in English to think about the translation to Italian. And I find it upsetting when someone speaks English with me on the street (fortunately, that doesn't happen often).
Did I mention my new nickname? I was 15 minutes late to grammar class last week and when I came in, the professor rolled his eyes and asked if I had been on the bike. "Si." He said my name was henceforth "Bici" (pronounced bee-chee, it means bike). So when he calls on me in class, he says "Bici" instead of my name (which I don't think he ever knew to begin with).
Today during break, he asked me more about riding. I had the impression he had little tolerance for it and considering today I got back from riding 9 minutes before class started and I went to class (on-time) after a 2-second sink-bath (after getting rained on a bit in the last 1/2 hr of the ride), I was sure he was going to pick on me. But no, I told him about the Gran Fondo, my team, the roads here and he was sincerely interested. I even explained the thin air in Colorado and the oxygen-rich air here (difficult to do and I don't think I've explained it well enough to my cycling friends here). He then mentioned the song, "Love is Like Oxygen." I've never heard it before, but I looked it up tonight. Cute. The title, in particular, is true. There is a lot of both in Italy.
After the break, the topic for everyone to discuss was each person's passion. The reason for this was that the passion I have for cycling was clearly communicated in the conversation I had with him. Yes, I am very passionate about cycling because of the amazing experiences and people it has afforded me. It's bought me a lot of time, too, since I think it's a big factor in staying healthy and looking young. And since I have a solid community of great friends, I'm a wee-bit less driven to fall into the wrong relationship for the purposes of driving away loneliness or the need for love. These are good things, but when it happens for me, it'll be for the right reasons and will be real deal.
I'm a believer that when you've been through experiences that involve an adrenaline rush with others, there's a strong bond formed there that takes significantly longer to form by other means. (Pretty sure there's a study that backs this up as well.) It's a kind of love that definitely substitutes nicely for the romantic love that is significantly harder to obtain.
In other news, I had a great ride with my teammate, Roberta, this morning. We met up 1/2 way and got some good miles in. Spello was the final destination before returning. The road was the same one I was on last summer on the Ciclismo trip. Really cool to see how the roads are related to each other and how everything is connected. The area is only now really beginning to make sense to me.
These are truly the most confusing roads, though. Especially in Perugia. Remember the movie "Blair Witch Project"? Often when I'm riding down the huge hill to go on rides, I somehow get turned around and end up on the wrong road and end up taking 20 minutes making circles around the hill before I can find the right road to drop down on. I think of Blair Witch...just can't seem to get out and it's typical that I'm trying to meet up with someone and it's just stressful. The massive confusion has a lot to do with the one-way roads and the move I just made--I'm only a 10 minute walk from where I was living before, but it's like being on the opposite side of town.
Tomorrow will be a long day and not one for blogging. Pizza team dinner! Yea!
Thursday, May 06, 2010
Tuesday, May 04, 2010
The Monster Salami
Yesterday's wild leap was something most people take for granted... I haven't been home much since I moved in with Italians so I've only exchanged "ciao's" with my roommates. With so little time and so few words, I was pretty concerned they would have no tolerance for the odd American impinging upon their space. This apartment has a better common area than my last one and is small...it allows for a lot of face-time with roommates if I don't keep my bedroom door shut.
For someone who has lived alone for so long, I'm pretty pleased to say that I am thrilled to be living with others. I like it that there is noise coming from the other room. It's cool to hear conversations that I'm not necessarily involved in. I like to be around life. I don't care to live alone ever again. Two months of various hostels and apartments has all felt good. In some ways, I feel that I really am back in college, re-doing my younger years, but with the confidence of someone who has already survived that stage in life.
Back to the leap out of my comfort zone: the roommate who I've really had almost no communication with was home yesterday. I took a deep breath and asked, "Come stai?" (How are you?) Why so scary? Well, it means I need to try to understand the answer, which will be more than one word. I will see if she just rolls her eyes and walks away. I give her a lot of credit. She answered my question and we had a conversation. She spoke clearly so I could understand.
Tonight after class, my head hurt from thinking too hard. 6 hours of class in a day is a lot of Italian (not that there can be too much). In between class, I went home and watched Grey's Anatomy and the news in Italian. Active listening is truly a workout. It's easy to fudge real listening in one's native language. With another language, pretending isn't an option. My body was also super tired. The Gran Fondo really caught up with me today. I was hungry all day and the bruise from yesterday's crash was a little sore, too. Walking up stairs was hard with the tired muscles. A nice two hour nap tonight was essential.
After napping, it was time for dinner and time to dig into the salami. My roommates were home so I asked them how the salami should be consumed. They were so sweet, they cut off some pieces, brought out their bread and cheese, I offered up some sangiovese vino and we enjoyed the food together. They talked, I couldn't understand much. But it was fine with them that I was there. I really don't mind being in this sort of situation. I'm quite comfortable being the stranieri (foreigner). They had pizzas in the oven, they insisted I have two yummy slices. (I think they felt sorry for me, I was eating black beans that I made earlier today. I described them as "brutto" (ugly) which they were, but they're also fine with me.
Good thing there isn't a blender here, I'd be making green smoothies and really freaking people out. I don't miss the smoothies much or much other food from the U.S. Part of this is that it's a survival mechanism to not focus on the things that can't be obtained. It would only be super frustrating. Besides, the fresh kiwi fruits sitting next to me have asked to be savored and they substitute quite nicely for other things I used to enjoy.
Right now I await my laundry to finish. A 4-hour cycle is the "regular" mode. :)
One of the very nice guys at the race last weekend just shot me a picture that's pretty cool because it's so in the moment and candid. I had *no* idea there was a camera around. This was taken just moments after finishing Saturday's race:
Saturday, May 01, 2010
Italian Bike Racing -- My Dream Come True ... The Very, Very Long Story
Careful what you wish for. 2 1/2 - 4 years ago I trained like a maniac and had an end goal of being able to race (professionally) in Europe. Obviously, that never happened...very few American women get to Europe to race and they typically have to train for years or be that natural wonder...neither describes me in the least bit. I set this dream aside and haven't concerned myself with it for the past couple of years.
However, today I learned that Gran Fondo racing is the equivalent of the European racing I used to dream about. The difference between it and pro racing is simply that the prize list includes salami and wine instead of cash. This realization didn't occur to me until about 15 minutes after the race started today. I had heard that Gran Fondos are like big group rides with the guys in front actually racing it. Not sure exactly what I was thinking about going into the race today, but it had to do more with fear of the distance with the rollers and not the idea of it being an actual race.
As an aside, when I realized today was the culmination of the past 4-5 years of training, dreaming, others supporting me in my effort to get to Italy, the bike race became so much more. I thought about you all so much. I raced for the Italians here who believe in me after knowing me for such a short while, I raced for my family and friends who have helped me get here and are always there for me and I felt the hand of God on my shoulder...as it has been a lot lately. There's no way I'd be here if it weren't.
First, let me explain everything. (Sorry, this is a long story. Grab some coffee and settle in.) Daniele, the guy I met on the road probably close to 3 weeks ago now, told me about this Gran Fondo and I expressed interest in doing it. His cousin is the president of the bike team he races for so Daniele asked me to visit the sports doc and contact his cousin via Facebook to get everything squared away with getting a race license. Now mind you that a lot (I mean a lot) got lost in translation at first. One week ago, I didn't understand anything Daniele said. Now I understand him pretty well (note conversations are simple and there are a lot of details that I miss). Crazy how fast that happened. I didn't quite understand that his cousin was the president of the team, I thought he was organizing this Gran Fondo.
I've wanted to join a team, but didn't have the first clue as to how to go about getting on one and I didn't want to be too forward to ask about getting on a team, especially considering the language differences. This week, Daniele and his cousin, il Presidente, did a ton of work to get me set with clothes, race license and get me a spot in the race today. I am still in disbelief that I have ended up on such a cool squadra (team) in such a short period of time. I met the team today, they are really cool and fun. No English is spoken, either. I looked across the numerous racers everywhere and these guys really seem like the ones with the biggest smiles and warmest gestures (when I say guys, I'm including our other woman racer, too, she's awesome and I'm still shocked to have a female teammate considering she's the first woman cyclist I've met who lives here). One of our guys (who wasn't racing today) was at the feed zone handing up water and doing a lot of work to make life better for the rest of us pre- and post- race. He's racing next week, not sure what we'll do!
We met up early (I was up at 5:45 am) so they could get me race numbers and a timing chip. The line was long, but we were in the front of it. There was an issue, though, not quite sure how the guys knew there was a problem, but we had to return to the line a little later to get it fixed. Basically, no one here believes that my first name is not my last name. There are certain girl and boy names here that most people have and my name isn't one of them. At least they all spell it correctly (since my name is an Italian word). Thank goodness for the Italian last name. I didn't see one name that wasn't Italian on the entire start list (and there were hundreds out there between the long and short courses - 140 km long, 89 km short, I think).
The guys loaded me up with food and nutrition products (there's a big emphasis on BCAA--branched-chain amino acids here...I know when I used to race, I swore by them and no one ever believed me (except for my coach) that they really enhance performance. Basically I'm sold on them (again) after today. It was pretty funny, Daniele took the liberty of cleaning out my jersey pockets just before the race. Bye-bye wallet, camera, cell phone. Extra weight. I'm so glad he did since my pockets were the nastiest things ever by the end of the race with all of the water bottles (plastic screw-top ones w/o a top from feed zones), left-over gel wrappers, etc. Unfortunately, though, I don't have any team pics with us wearing our uniforms. A picture was taken, but it's on film, so it could be awhile before I get it.
There was a huge blow-up start/finish line banner (super awesome, like what they have at pro races in the U.S.) I understand that as a woman, I can start in front if I want. (5 total women from what I could see and gobs of men in my race. I need to get totals, not sure on those.) Today I started in the middle of the pack with my teammates and that was tough. It really only dawned on me that this was a real race in the realest sense of the term at the gun. The race started in town and it was a sketchy start. Jockeying for position was everywhere, potholes (an Umbrian thing) were everywhere, lots of squeaking carbon-fiber wheels/brakes (I hate that sound). The start was no different in intensity and feel than the start of the pro races I experienced in the U.S. I expected to see crashes considering the jockeying, but these guys handle their bikes really well. No one did anything all day to freak me out. Unfortunately, Fabio, our President (mentioned earlier), crashed at one point and his collarbone took the brunt of it. I hope to understand what happened. Right now, I don't know how to ask.
I was able to make up some positions after we got on the open road. I stayed back a little at the start since I didn't trust myself. I haven't had a big mass-start race in years (local CO races don't count considering the small pack sizes in the women's fields)...and this is the first race this season. Pretty funny to choose the longest race of my life (and with men) as a first one for the season. I'm glad I didn't know what it was all about going in, I might have decided not to do it considering my strength is more in criteriums (short 45 minute races), not road races and not with men.
The first 30 km were rolling, but not bad terrain-wise. They were fast, though. I can't remember these miles well at all. My heart rate was well above LT (urgh, I have been training in zone 2 for months now with short bursts above LT). It wasn't long before groups formed. Instructions from my team: today was about finishing. No being out in the wind, no pulling others, no riding solo. Make it across the finish line.
At 30km, the road went up. Up. And up. Over 1,000 feet in ~5-6kms. I dropped back some from the group, but caught up with everyone on or just after the descent. On we rode. Again, it was good that my camera wasn't in my back pocket. Some of the vistas were too amazing not to photograph. The countryside is ridiculously green right now. I took turns with the guys pulling, but I spent a little less time than they at the front since it was a long race and I had real concerns about finishing. It's been ages since I've done a ride this long, let alone a race.
Not once during the race did one guy have any issues with racing with me. They were great to work with me and I made it clear I was there to race. One made me start laughing when I took my turn at the front of the pack and he started yelling (friendly way) to go faster. So I yelled back and pulled off, offering him a chance at the front.
The group tended to go a bit slower than I'd like on the rolling portions during the middle of the race. It would have been nice to catch onto a really fast group and get dropped until I found a group that pushed me just to the limit. But, beggars can't be choosers. I wasn't offering to help us go any faster. Survival.
We worked together for a good long time and made it over tons of small rollers (hills). Easy when I'm sitting on someone's wheel. Much harder when I'm alone. My legs felt great all day, it was weird. I also ate a lot before and during the race. We flew through a few little towns. People were set up to watch. There weren't that many spectators, but it was nice to see the people out watching. Navigating the tiny city streets was cool--it was Euro Pro cool, very similar to what you'd see the pros riding in the Giro d'Italia. Speaking of which, that race is starting soon!
The next big climb (maybe? I forget.) was in Assisi. At the top was a feed zone. I was dying of thirst at this point and had to have 2 bottles of water. So I stopped to get the water and meanwhile the group sped down the hill. I didn't come this far to have these guys get away from me and no way did I care to wait for the next group to come up from behind. One of the bottles fell out of my jersey pocket. Very upsetting. An ambulance was following behind me...they stopped to pick up the bottle and drove up next to me to give it to me. Crazy nice! Then it was an all-out 7 km time-trial to jump back in with the guys. It worked, I made it back.
The adrenaline of the chase gave me a little more zip...it was time to start working harder. I figured finishing was in the cards and I was also plotting to contest the finish. Not okay to sprint for the line if I haven't worked much during the race. From then on out for the rest of the race (the last 60ish km), I worked just as hard as the guys. It was waaay more fun this way, though harder, of course. I had thought that CO altitude training had worn off...it hasn't yet. Recovery from efforts was really quick and it felt good to push it. There was another massive climb and I lost some ground on that one (made the mistake of going up the first part too fast and then discovering that it wasn't going to end for awhile). But after working with one guy, we made it back to most of everyone on the flat section and then were together with the group until the end. I knew I should have tried to attack a little distance from the finish line. The guys I was with all had a bit of leg muscle indicating sprint ability. But, I also wanted to see what would happen. It's not like I was competing with them for anything. I was only competing against the women, whom I hadn't seen after the race started. It was great, a real sprint finish! And I had legs to sprint, too. In fact, they felt fine after finishing. Definitely should have tried an attack just for fun (small chance it would have worked).
After we finished the race, it was nice to shake hands with some of the guys I'd worked with during the race. They were super sweet, very generous with kind words and I very much felt like one of them. When I say this, I mean I felt like one of the guys and I'm feeling more Italian every day that I understand more of the language and culture. There's a lot to this culture that isn't obvious to the casual observer. Remind me to blog on this another day. I'm understanding a lot more on why many Italians don't speak English, why they live in their home towns forever, live so long and appear so happy.
Post race with the team (a few people are missing from this shot), bummer! It was all smiles though there's a broken collarbone and lots of tired legs. Daniele is the one in the scarf. I'm next to il Presidente senza happy collarbone.
The race promoter sponsored a huge pasta feast after the race. Food served included macaroni with meat sauce, salad, neck of pig, pound cake, white and red wine. I've never eaten this well post-race and my legs really feel the difference.
Racers in line for the food.
Tutti mangiano il cibo buono (eating their good food)!
Roberta (my teammate) rocked it in her race--here she in on the podium. There were many more women in her race than in mine.
It's not every day I get a chance to stand on the podium with a world champ (woman on the right in the white shirt is Michela Gorini). Yes, I'm wearing my Bikes Belong shirt (thanks, Kate). Got a few questions about the organization yesterday. Oh yeah, the girls on the right and left are real podium girls. I had seen them earlier putting on makeup and doing girly things. Considering the jerseys, I thought they were racers, but was pretty confused since they couldn't possibly be racers if they care about their hair and makeup at a race.
I think this pic is just full of irony. I get third, am standing up there with a world champ, but I got the great vase and a lot of attention. I'm pretty sure it's because I traveled the furthest for the race or am foreign (only one there yesterday, I believe) or something. Can't translate yet, but it was a great way to wrap up the race. Other winnings included a very large salami and bottle of wine.
The meat.
A quick note about the swag bag (all racers received one). It included laundry detergent for 55 loads (awesome since I just moved and was about to go to the store for just that), a bottle of wine, pasta and a nice refrigerator-less large container of milk. If one registered for this Gran Fondo in advance, it was 25 euro. I'd say that's quite a good deal considering all of the support during the race, the great road control, timing system, pasta feast and huge swag bag. It costs $25-30ish US for a 45-minute crit and not much else. I'm not criticizing U.S. race promoters, they'd do it less expensively if it were possible, it's just the whole system (insurance, cost of patrols, etc, etc) and number of racers that makes the difference.
Daniele gave me a ride home (thank goodness), I wouldn't have been able to ride. Before he vanished, he made sure I had some gelato (chocolate cherry and what was called muffin). Now that was the perfect end to the day!
I've nicknamed Daniele Taz.
I explained this to him, I think he understands. The explanation was funny: Me: do you know the Tazmanian Devil? Him: No. Me: Do you know Mickey Mouse? Him: Ah yes. Me (in English): Okay, cartoon character. What about Bugs Bunny? Him: Yes. Me: Taz is a relative of Bugs similar to a tornado. Gotta get creative in explanations with my small Italian vocab.
This fits him so well. He is this flurry of Italian, everything he does is quick and deliberate; he wastes no time on anything. The very moment it's time to go, he wisks me away to whatever is next. Or he takes off to who knows where. Often I don't know exactly what is going on. I'm really glad my obligations are few and friends are few here. Much easier to not have to say that I'd like to, but I have to do this other thing...it's too complicated to express!
[Now it's Sunday morning and I'm finally posting yesterday's blog & including today in it.]
This morning I woke up at 8 and found a txt message saying that we'd be getting together at 8:10...so I flew to get ready and got out of the house at 8:20. People talk about Italian time (Italians are known to be chronically late to everything), but with bike riders, they seem to always be on time.
Daniele, Paolo and I had a nice 55km recovery ride (was supposed to be 100km), but a lot of rain made us turn around early. I slipped and crashed in a corner, I forget that braking is bad in rain. Wasn't any big deal considering the road was smooth and wet. It was sweet to see the guys super concerned. I wish I knew what they were saying--the Italian was flying rapidly between them. Afterwards, Daniele got me dry clothes and his mom made me tea and fed me. She was sweet and very welcoming. I spent some time talking to her. We understood each other well for the simple things we relayed to each other.
I know I mention Daniele a lot, he's sort of the center of my world here right now. There's nothing romantic going on, he is very kind with good intentions. I trust him and am very happy to have him in my life. He puts me at ease because I know he is taking care of me without expecting anything in return. I am trying to figure out how to repay his kindness...I hope to figure it out. At this point, he has refused anything I try to offer (which hasn't been a lot since I never know what to expect going in to any situation).
Off to hit the books, do laundry and figure out where to get my next meal. Town is closed today and all of the food I own has to be cooked (I don't know how to use a cigarette lighter to light the stove...trust me, I've tried).
However, today I learned that Gran Fondo racing is the equivalent of the European racing I used to dream about. The difference between it and pro racing is simply that the prize list includes salami and wine instead of cash. This realization didn't occur to me until about 15 minutes after the race started today. I had heard that Gran Fondos are like big group rides with the guys in front actually racing it. Not sure exactly what I was thinking about going into the race today, but it had to do more with fear of the distance with the rollers and not the idea of it being an actual race.
As an aside, when I realized today was the culmination of the past 4-5 years of training, dreaming, others supporting me in my effort to get to Italy, the bike race became so much more. I thought about you all so much. I raced for the Italians here who believe in me after knowing me for such a short while, I raced for my family and friends who have helped me get here and are always there for me and I felt the hand of God on my shoulder...as it has been a lot lately. There's no way I'd be here if it weren't.
First, let me explain everything. (Sorry, this is a long story. Grab some coffee and settle in.) Daniele, the guy I met on the road probably close to 3 weeks ago now, told me about this Gran Fondo and I expressed interest in doing it. His cousin is the president of the bike team he races for so Daniele asked me to visit the sports doc and contact his cousin via Facebook to get everything squared away with getting a race license. Now mind you that a lot (I mean a lot) got lost in translation at first. One week ago, I didn't understand anything Daniele said. Now I understand him pretty well (note conversations are simple and there are a lot of details that I miss). Crazy how fast that happened. I didn't quite understand that his cousin was the president of the team, I thought he was organizing this Gran Fondo.
I've wanted to join a team, but didn't have the first clue as to how to go about getting on one and I didn't want to be too forward to ask about getting on a team, especially considering the language differences. This week, Daniele and his cousin, il Presidente, did a ton of work to get me set with clothes, race license and get me a spot in the race today. I am still in disbelief that I have ended up on such a cool squadra (team) in such a short period of time. I met the team today, they are really cool and fun. No English is spoken, either. I looked across the numerous racers everywhere and these guys really seem like the ones with the biggest smiles and warmest gestures (when I say guys, I'm including our other woman racer, too, she's awesome and I'm still shocked to have a female teammate considering she's the first woman cyclist I've met who lives here). One of our guys (who wasn't racing today) was at the feed zone handing up water and doing a lot of work to make life better for the rest of us pre- and post- race. He's racing next week, not sure what we'll do!
We met up early (I was up at 5:45 am) so they could get me race numbers and a timing chip. The line was long, but we were in the front of it. There was an issue, though, not quite sure how the guys knew there was a problem, but we had to return to the line a little later to get it fixed. Basically, no one here believes that my first name is not my last name. There are certain girl and boy names here that most people have and my name isn't one of them. At least they all spell it correctly (since my name is an Italian word). Thank goodness for the Italian last name. I didn't see one name that wasn't Italian on the entire start list (and there were hundreds out there between the long and short courses - 140 km long, 89 km short, I think).
The guys loaded me up with food and nutrition products (there's a big emphasis on BCAA--branched-chain amino acids here...I know when I used to race, I swore by them and no one ever believed me (except for my coach) that they really enhance performance. Basically I'm sold on them (again) after today. It was pretty funny, Daniele took the liberty of cleaning out my jersey pockets just before the race. Bye-bye wallet, camera, cell phone. Extra weight. I'm so glad he did since my pockets were the nastiest things ever by the end of the race with all of the water bottles (plastic screw-top ones w/o a top from feed zones), left-over gel wrappers, etc. Unfortunately, though, I don't have any team pics with us wearing our uniforms. A picture was taken, but it's on film, so it could be awhile before I get it.
There was a huge blow-up start/finish line banner (super awesome, like what they have at pro races in the U.S.) I understand that as a woman, I can start in front if I want. (5 total women from what I could see and gobs of men in my race. I need to get totals, not sure on those.) Today I started in the middle of the pack with my teammates and that was tough. It really only dawned on me that this was a real race in the realest sense of the term at the gun. The race started in town and it was a sketchy start. Jockeying for position was everywhere, potholes (an Umbrian thing) were everywhere, lots of squeaking carbon-fiber wheels/brakes (I hate that sound). The start was no different in intensity and feel than the start of the pro races I experienced in the U.S. I expected to see crashes considering the jockeying, but these guys handle their bikes really well. No one did anything all day to freak me out. Unfortunately, Fabio, our President (mentioned earlier), crashed at one point and his collarbone took the brunt of it. I hope to understand what happened. Right now, I don't know how to ask.
I was able to make up some positions after we got on the open road. I stayed back a little at the start since I didn't trust myself. I haven't had a big mass-start race in years (local CO races don't count considering the small pack sizes in the women's fields)...and this is the first race this season. Pretty funny to choose the longest race of my life (and with men) as a first one for the season. I'm glad I didn't know what it was all about going in, I might have decided not to do it considering my strength is more in criteriums (short 45 minute races), not road races and not with men.
The first 30 km were rolling, but not bad terrain-wise. They were fast, though. I can't remember these miles well at all. My heart rate was well above LT (urgh, I have been training in zone 2 for months now with short bursts above LT). It wasn't long before groups formed. Instructions from my team: today was about finishing. No being out in the wind, no pulling others, no riding solo. Make it across the finish line.
At 30km, the road went up. Up. And up. Over 1,000 feet in ~5-6kms. I dropped back some from the group, but caught up with everyone on or just after the descent. On we rode. Again, it was good that my camera wasn't in my back pocket. Some of the vistas were too amazing not to photograph. The countryside is ridiculously green right now. I took turns with the guys pulling, but I spent a little less time than they at the front since it was a long race and I had real concerns about finishing. It's been ages since I've done a ride this long, let alone a race.
Not once during the race did one guy have any issues with racing with me. They were great to work with me and I made it clear I was there to race. One made me start laughing when I took my turn at the front of the pack and he started yelling (friendly way) to go faster. So I yelled back and pulled off, offering him a chance at the front.
The group tended to go a bit slower than I'd like on the rolling portions during the middle of the race. It would have been nice to catch onto a really fast group and get dropped until I found a group that pushed me just to the limit. But, beggars can't be choosers. I wasn't offering to help us go any faster. Survival.
We worked together for a good long time and made it over tons of small rollers (hills). Easy when I'm sitting on someone's wheel. Much harder when I'm alone. My legs felt great all day, it was weird. I also ate a lot before and during the race. We flew through a few little towns. People were set up to watch. There weren't that many spectators, but it was nice to see the people out watching. Navigating the tiny city streets was cool--it was Euro Pro cool, very similar to what you'd see the pros riding in the Giro d'Italia. Speaking of which, that race is starting soon!
The next big climb (maybe? I forget.) was in Assisi. At the top was a feed zone. I was dying of thirst at this point and had to have 2 bottles of water. So I stopped to get the water and meanwhile the group sped down the hill. I didn't come this far to have these guys get away from me and no way did I care to wait for the next group to come up from behind. One of the bottles fell out of my jersey pocket. Very upsetting. An ambulance was following behind me...they stopped to pick up the bottle and drove up next to me to give it to me. Crazy nice! Then it was an all-out 7 km time-trial to jump back in with the guys. It worked, I made it back.
The adrenaline of the chase gave me a little more zip...it was time to start working harder. I figured finishing was in the cards and I was also plotting to contest the finish. Not okay to sprint for the line if I haven't worked much during the race. From then on out for the rest of the race (the last 60ish km), I worked just as hard as the guys. It was waaay more fun this way, though harder, of course. I had thought that CO altitude training had worn off...it hasn't yet. Recovery from efforts was really quick and it felt good to push it. There was another massive climb and I lost some ground on that one (made the mistake of going up the first part too fast and then discovering that it wasn't going to end for awhile). But after working with one guy, we made it back to most of everyone on the flat section and then were together with the group until the end. I knew I should have tried to attack a little distance from the finish line. The guys I was with all had a bit of leg muscle indicating sprint ability. But, I also wanted to see what would happen. It's not like I was competing with them for anything. I was only competing against the women, whom I hadn't seen after the race started. It was great, a real sprint finish! And I had legs to sprint, too. In fact, they felt fine after finishing. Definitely should have tried an attack just for fun (small chance it would have worked).
After we finished the race, it was nice to shake hands with some of the guys I'd worked with during the race. They were super sweet, very generous with kind words and I very much felt like one of them. When I say this, I mean I felt like one of the guys and I'm feeling more Italian every day that I understand more of the language and culture. There's a lot to this culture that isn't obvious to the casual observer. Remind me to blog on this another day. I'm understanding a lot more on why many Italians don't speak English, why they live in their home towns forever, live so long and appear so happy.
The race promoter sponsored a huge pasta feast after the race. Food served included macaroni with meat sauce, salad, neck of pig, pound cake, white and red wine. I've never eaten this well post-race and my legs really feel the difference.
A quick note about the swag bag (all racers received one). It included laundry detergent for 55 loads (awesome since I just moved and was about to go to the store for just that), a bottle of wine, pasta and a nice refrigerator-less large container of milk. If one registered for this Gran Fondo in advance, it was 25 euro. I'd say that's quite a good deal considering all of the support during the race, the great road control, timing system, pasta feast and huge swag bag. It costs $25-30ish US for a 45-minute crit and not much else. I'm not criticizing U.S. race promoters, they'd do it less expensively if it were possible, it's just the whole system (insurance, cost of patrols, etc, etc) and number of racers that makes the difference.
Daniele gave me a ride home (thank goodness), I wouldn't have been able to ride. Before he vanished, he made sure I had some gelato (chocolate cherry and what was called muffin). Now that was the perfect end to the day!
I've nicknamed Daniele Taz.
This fits him so well. He is this flurry of Italian, everything he does is quick and deliberate; he wastes no time on anything. The very moment it's time to go, he wisks me away to whatever is next. Or he takes off to who knows where. Often I don't know exactly what is going on. I'm really glad my obligations are few and friends are few here. Much easier to not have to say that I'd like to, but I have to do this other thing...it's too complicated to express!
[Now it's Sunday morning and I'm finally posting yesterday's blog & including today in it.]
This morning I woke up at 8 and found a txt message saying that we'd be getting together at 8:10...so I flew to get ready and got out of the house at 8:20. People talk about Italian time (Italians are known to be chronically late to everything), but with bike riders, they seem to always be on time.
Daniele, Paolo and I had a nice 55km recovery ride (was supposed to be 100km), but a lot of rain made us turn around early. I slipped and crashed in a corner, I forget that braking is bad in rain. Wasn't any big deal considering the road was smooth and wet. It was sweet to see the guys super concerned. I wish I knew what they were saying--the Italian was flying rapidly between them. Afterwards, Daniele got me dry clothes and his mom made me tea and fed me. She was sweet and very welcoming. I spent some time talking to her. We understood each other well for the simple things we relayed to each other.
I know I mention Daniele a lot, he's sort of the center of my world here right now. There's nothing romantic going on, he is very kind with good intentions. I trust him and am very happy to have him in my life. He puts me at ease because I know he is taking care of me without expecting anything in return. I am trying to figure out how to repay his kindness...I hope to figure it out. At this point, he has refused anything I try to offer (which hasn't been a lot since I never know what to expect going in to any situation).
Off to hit the books, do laundry and figure out where to get my next meal. Town is closed today and all of the food I own has to be cooked (I don't know how to use a cigarette lighter to light the stove...trust me, I've tried).
Friday, April 30, 2010
Whirlwind (Figuratively similar to the wind in CO/NM right now)
Internet in my new place is significantly better than it was at the old place (actually I'm at the "old" place now). The girls (2), though there might be a 3rd, seem nice but I haven't been home there more than a few minutes yet so I don't know much. From what I can tell, cleaning isn't a huge priority to them (good and whew). They said there isn't a cleaning schedule and it sounds laid back. They both smoke and go to bed late, so it seems like the average Italian reality (totally fine with me). My camera (bedroom) is tiny compared with my last one. I will have to get creative with where to put the bike & monster bike bag. The view isn't any better or worse, but at least laundry can hang outside to dry (inside it takes close to forever...small problem when it comes to workout clothes).
Yesterday evening, the Japanese students in my class (28 students total) hosted a cool evening of Japanese food and culture. I'm guessing we have 5-6 Japanese students in the class. They wanted to share their culture with all of the other cultures (probably . Most of the class came! There were 24 of us by my count. One of the guys pointed out that it was the best party since we all knew each other...and we all spoke Italian with each other most of the night. It's the only language we all have in common and so many of us are getting to know each other better now that we have enough Italian to exchange more meaningful information. ("What do you like to drink? What's your favorite food?" Okay--I said more meaningful (we can't discuss our philosophies on life just yet...though in Italy, food and drink comprises a major part of that philosophy). My camera stayed at home, but everyone else had theirs. Will post pics as soon as they are available.
There have to be at least 13 different countries represented. People from 6 continents. Considering the major differences in our families and cultures, religions, native languages, appearances, etc., if we were all wearing a paper bag on our heads last night, you would think we were all from the same place, enjoying each other's company just as much (actually even more) than if we all were from the same town with the same background.
The picture at the top of this post was written by one of my friends in the class...it's my name written in Japanese two ways. (They have different alphabets, so I think each uses a different alphabet.) All I know is that I'm glad I was born English-speaking. I don't have the brain for complicated languages!
I talked with my language lab teacher after class yesterday. My ear is having a hard time picking up the different sounds in Italian. I can tell many of the other students aren't having as difficult of a time hearing the sounds. My guess is that it helps that they all have 2 or 3 languages, so their ears are trained a bit better. The professor promised me that in two months, I'll be "running" with the language. I can tell a huge difference since the first week of class in how I hear Italian, comprehend and talk--though I'm still at a 2-year-old level, noting this difference really helps give me energy to keep working at it and I know it's coming. Their teaching style is terrific, I think there's a lot the American school system could learn from it. Speaking of which, my 2nd homework assigned is due Monday. Write a letter to someone talking about the future.
The Future.
Yesterday in class, the teacher had us discuss what we will be doing in 5 years. I used to always be able to easily (and enthusiastically) answer the question of what I'd be doing in 5-10 years. When she asked us this, I was at a complete loss. I have finally gotten very comfortable with not knowing or trying to "engineer" my future. The feeling of letting go cannot be paralleled. There's no part of me that is concerned about the future, nor am I living like some crazy person who isn't concerned about the future (some people live for today in a reckless way). The future takes care of itself if the present is lived properly. This is my approach to things.
I don't know what the future holds, nor do I have any particular expectation for that future. Whatever happens will be for the best and I'm simply okay with that reality. Every day between now and my "future" so far has been an adventure and each great (or if not great, somehow needed) in its own way. Can't ask for much more than that.
On that note, time to get a lot accomplished today and get in a quick pre-race ride. More stories coming Sunday, probably. Tomorrow will be long and it's May 1 which is an Italian holiday (yet another reason for festivals, parties and food) as well as the Gran Fondo.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Friends
I decided to skip my first class (easier of the two to miss) to ride out and meet them in Bevagna. It was an early morning on the bike, but it was warm enough to be happy out there. This is a picture of all of us in the main piazza in Bevagna.
Back to the concern of the race license for the upcoming Gran Fondo...I swung by the bike shop on the way back home and got all of the info on what I need to do. It's a small world here--one of my new cycling friends stopped by to pick up some cycling stuff while I was there. Tomorrow I'll be visiting a sports doctor to get a checkup and approval to race. Thank goodness, I don't have to worry about getting the UCI license.
Tonight was a fun pizza dinner with cycling friends and my wonderful roommate who was happy to join and help with translation. She was a fun addition and she learned a bit about racing, too. I'm picking up basic conversation, but unable to say much of anything back. It was a really good time, but I'm a little self-conscious as to how long people will be patient with me and my expressions of confusion. (Turns out one of the guys talks faster than most Italians and has trouble slowing down...this describes me exactly with speaking English. Ha!)
Moving in with Italians can't happen soon enough (this Thursday, to be exact). I am really happy with my living situation now, but I have to be around the language constantly and practicing more than I am. It's super exciting to hear what fluency sounds like (ex: my roommate who I don't think was fluent not all that long ago, not sure, but she's good now).
When my roommate and I were talking tonight, she guessed that I'm a morning person. Yes, when one is happy with the prospect of the upcoming day, I think one is more likely to fly out of bed in the morning. If I'm still a "morning person" by the end of the summer, it'll be clear that I am on the right track to finding what I'm searching for. With any luck, when I arise early, I'll be awaking from a dream spoken entirely in beautiful Italian.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Navigating the System
There are so many things that have to be discovered anywhere when one moves someplace new. In my case this week, it's trying to figure out how to be properly licensed and registered for a Gran Fondo. It's not like there's a guide to this anywhere in existence. In Italy, 1/2 of the information seems to live on the internet. The other 1/2 is tribal knowledge: the information (appears) to exist in one person's head or a combination of a few people's heads and a paper flyer. The system here hasn't frustrated me like I hear other people being frustrated. (But I haven't tried to buy a house or do anything complicated yet, either.) Also, I don't think there's a system in the world that wouldn't be a little frustrating to someone totally new to it.
Tonight I visited the bike shop that I really like and talked to one of the mechanics who speaks English very well (my hope was that I could get by without the English, but not for this sort of information). I needed to apologize to him for not making the shop rides that he had told me about (and I had planned on attending prior to meeting the group of guys who I rode with this past weekend and last weekend). I was also hoping he could give me information about the upcoming Gran Fondo (which I absolutely can't wait for but in no way am physically ready for).
He was super friendly and he already knew that I had found this other group to ride with. To make a long story short, the cycling world is a very tight-knit, close community. It's a family of sorts and I could already feel it here (as I've mentioned in previous posts); but this was really nice, it was heart-warming to feel that I'm not as anonymous as I was when I first arrived.
The answer about the license is that I need to talk to some other people who will be around tomorrow, so that's a priority. There's a possibility that I'll need an International UCI license (which shouldn't be a problem to get). Hopefully an interesting post tomorrow night (though there might not be time to post anything until Wednesday).
Tonight I visited the bike shop that I really like and talked to one of the mechanics who speaks English very well (my hope was that I could get by without the English, but not for this sort of information). I needed to apologize to him for not making the shop rides that he had told me about (and I had planned on attending prior to meeting the group of guys who I rode with this past weekend and last weekend). I was also hoping he could give me information about the upcoming Gran Fondo (which I absolutely can't wait for but in no way am physically ready for).
He was super friendly and he already knew that I had found this other group to ride with. To make a long story short, the cycling world is a very tight-knit, close community. It's a family of sorts and I could already feel it here (as I've mentioned in previous posts); but this was really nice, it was heart-warming to feel that I'm not as anonymous as I was when I first arrived.
The answer about the license is that I need to talk to some other people who will be around tomorrow, so that's a priority. There's a possibility that I'll need an International UCI license (which shouldn't be a problem to get). Hopefully an interesting post tomorrow night (though there might not be time to post anything until Wednesday).
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Under the Tuscan Sun, On the Tuscan Road
This weekend was a wonderful combo of good food, wine and riding. I need to be significantly better in the language by Tuesday (going out with a friend who doesn't speak English), so I need to not be blogging and spend as much time as possible studying. Right, I know this is a losing proposition, but I gotta try!
Today was a fabulous ride to Toscana & Lake Trasimeno.This is a ride I've been itching to go on, but wasn't sure of the backroads to take to the lake. It's immense and gorgeous, Wiki it, I didn't take any pictures. I was too engrossed in trying to eat crackers smothered in honey (not easy to do cleanly, let me tell you!)
The red line is the route. Awesome that without bike lanes anywhere in this country, we can pedal two abreast and cars don't have a problem with it. Motorcycles sometimes lose patience, but they figure out a way around us. I rode with the same group of guys as last Sunday. They're so much fun! Daniele was racing a Gran Fondo, so it missed the dynamic he brings to it, but definitely a great group of guys. They keep a very constant pace (though they don't sprint for town signs of which there are many) and it's really a good time out there on the road. Total: 115 km, 4 1/2 hrs. It's not enough, I want to do a Gran Fondo next weekend and they are typically ~140 km in length. Sounds like I need a license, so tomorrow I'll do a little research on that.
On the good food front: one of my roommates had a dinner party Friday night and she made pasta with a bunch of spinach and veggies to go on top. There was a Northern Italian, two British girls, my two roommates and a guy from Brazil. I'm really enjoying the cross-pollination of countries and the discussions surrounding languages and cultures.
Yesterday, my other roommate, her boyfriend and I went to a wine tasting. It was full of Umbrian wines from various vineyards throughout the region & in a lovely courtyard area. 7 euros bought us all you can drink vino and a nice wine glasss...for yesterday and today. Totally unreal. A very small wine tasting back home would cost $30 U.S. and only last a short time.
After enough wine to get my roommate and I a bit tipsy, we came home to eat. She made zucchini risotto. Seriously amazing risotto! My roommates like to cook. I do the dishes. Seems like a fair trade.
Today after the ride, I returned to the wine tasting and stayed for more hours than I like to admit. Met up with a few other students learning Italian and we tried all of the wines we didn't try yesterday (okay, not all, that's not humanly possible). After that, I high-tailed it to church. Thank goodness for the late Sunday mass.
Off to study Italian and doing some homework (we haven't been assigned anything prior to now). Hope you all have a good week!!!
Today was a fabulous ride to Toscana & Lake Trasimeno.This is a ride I've been itching to go on, but wasn't sure of the backroads to take to the lake. It's immense and gorgeous, Wiki it, I didn't take any pictures. I was too engrossed in trying to eat crackers smothered in honey (not easy to do cleanly, let me tell you!)
On the good food front: one of my roommates had a dinner party Friday night and she made pasta with a bunch of spinach and veggies to go on top. There was a Northern Italian, two British girls, my two roommates and a guy from Brazil. I'm really enjoying the cross-pollination of countries and the discussions surrounding languages and cultures.
Yesterday, my other roommate, her boyfriend and I went to a wine tasting. It was full of Umbrian wines from various vineyards throughout the region & in a lovely courtyard area. 7 euros bought us all you can drink vino and a nice wine glasss...for yesterday and today. Totally unreal. A very small wine tasting back home would cost $30 U.S. and only last a short time.
After enough wine to get my roommate and I a bit tipsy, we came home to eat. She made zucchini risotto. Seriously amazing risotto! My roommates like to cook. I do the dishes. Seems like a fair trade.
Today after the ride, I returned to the wine tasting and stayed for more hours than I like to admit. Met up with a few other students learning Italian and we tried all of the wines we didn't try yesterday (okay, not all, that's not humanly possible). After that, I high-tailed it to church. Thank goodness for the late Sunday mass.
Off to study Italian and doing some homework (we haven't been assigned anything prior to now). Hope you all have a good week!!!
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Non Mi Annoio Mai in Umbria
The blog title (probably) translates to "I'm not bored in Umbria." My Italian is very elementary still so messing it all up is the norm. Here's a useful word: sbaglio. Mistake. :)
To add to the list of things I love about Italy (or at least this region) is that there are constantly fairs, markets, art, etc. going on. So much of these events are totally free and outside. I feel bad for everyone, though, the rainiest weather has been on the weekends. Yesterday and today included.
One week every year is Settimana della Cultura (Culture Week) where state-run museums, libraries, etc. are open free to all. Yesterday, one of my roommates (majored in art history) and I went to the Museo Archeologico Nazionale dell'Umbria (it's huge). They have an immense collection of urns, gold & ammulets amongst other things. Really great exhibits. Great activity for a brutto giorno (ugly day).
Courtyard of the museum--the building you see is the museum. Monstrous!
Graveyard of ancient urns.
View from the museum window.
The Umbrian Wine Festival is also this weekend...along with another wine tasting somewhere, I understand. How can one not attend such an event? The wine here is amazing (and this is coming from a beer lover). I don't think I've had any beer here (why? It's really expensive and it's hard to find the good microbrews.) The wine in the U.S. always made me feel weird (a heaviness in my legs and tiredness immediately after drinking). Not so with the wine here. It's awesome.
The Festival Internazionale del Giornalismo is yet another event happening this week, through the weekend. Al Gore is speaking this evening in town, not sure the topic. Staying away from U.S. politics has made me very, very happy. I will pass on tonight's talk.
There's a neat fair called "Pic & Nic" a Trevi in a nearby town (Trevi). Haven't been there, sounds nice...if it isn't raining.
Through next weekend is an amateur and pro kite flying event at yet another nearby town. With so much going on, it's hard to decide what to do and what to skip.
I'd like to understand why the incredible amount of things to do. My guesses are that it's one or a combination these: 1) Italian excuse to socialize, because Italians love to be together. 2) Excuse to eat, because Italians love good food. 3) Homes are small and possibly not where all fun things are happening, so it's important to people to get out of the house. 4) Very rural/farm-centric area. 5) TV isn't all that exciting here (I have no idea what TV is like here since mine doesn't work and I don't understand it. This definitely doesn't appear to be a TV culture, though, from what I've noticed from the homes I've been in.
Enough for now...hope you all have a fabulous weekend!!!
To add to the list of things I love about Italy (or at least this region) is that there are constantly fairs, markets, art, etc. going on. So much of these events are totally free and outside. I feel bad for everyone, though, the rainiest weather has been on the weekends. Yesterday and today included.
One week every year is Settimana della Cultura (Culture Week) where state-run museums, libraries, etc. are open free to all. Yesterday, one of my roommates (majored in art history) and I went to the Museo Archeologico Nazionale dell'Umbria (it's huge). They have an immense collection of urns, gold & ammulets amongst other things. Really great exhibits. Great activity for a brutto giorno (ugly day).
The Umbrian Wine Festival is also this weekend...along with another wine tasting somewhere, I understand. How can one not attend such an event? The wine here is amazing (and this is coming from a beer lover). I don't think I've had any beer here (why? It's really expensive and it's hard to find the good microbrews.) The wine in the U.S. always made me feel weird (a heaviness in my legs and tiredness immediately after drinking). Not so with the wine here. It's awesome.
The Festival Internazionale del Giornalismo is yet another event happening this week, through the weekend. Al Gore is speaking this evening in town, not sure the topic. Staying away from U.S. politics has made me very, very happy. I will pass on tonight's talk.
There's a neat fair called "Pic & Nic" a Trevi in a nearby town (Trevi). Haven't been there, sounds nice...if it isn't raining.
Through next weekend is an amateur and pro kite flying event at yet another nearby town. With so much going on, it's hard to decide what to do and what to skip.
I'd like to understand why the incredible amount of things to do. My guesses are that it's one or a combination these: 1) Italian excuse to socialize, because Italians love to be together. 2) Excuse to eat, because Italians love good food. 3) Homes are small and possibly not where all fun things are happening, so it's important to people to get out of the house. 4) Very rural/farm-centric area. 5) TV isn't all that exciting here (I have no idea what TV is like here since mine doesn't work and I don't understand it. This definitely doesn't appear to be a TV culture, though, from what I've noticed from the homes I've been in.
Enough for now...hope you all have a fabulous weekend!!!
Friday, April 23, 2010
Word of the Day: Bo
Bo. This is a fun word in Italian that doesn't translate to English, nor can I explain it very well. Basically, it's a word that has no meaning and is used to occupy empty space in a conversation. Possibly because Italians don't like any empty space in conversations? Non so. [I don't know.]
I'm not remotely tired (it's almost 2 am here), but also not interested in blogging much. The story of the day was that it was a very nice one in class and there was time after to get 4 hours and 100km on the road....yes, the weather was that lovely and the fields are a rich, incredible green. I was attempting to meet up with one of my new bike friends (who doesn't speak English) and I made a wrong turn so we didn't meet up. Darn it. But I did find a couple new roads in the process. Seriously, no good reason to ever repeat the same ride exactly.
I ran into a group of cyclists going the same way for a few minutes, they were all heading to Foligno. It sounds like that's the place where all of the cyclists have been hiding (since they are not in Perugia). They were very nice and friendly, too. I'm sure they're serious racers, their quads had "racer" written all over them.
At the 65th km, I stopped to refuel--pizza and water. That settled quite nicely and it was not hard to get home as it usually is. I really need to work on nutrition...sports drink is sort of necessary, but I'd love to get by without it. And with that, I realize that these blog posts are becoming increasingly uninteresting with each passing day. I might start skipping days here and there, don't be concerned, I just need to write when I'm inspired to do so and when there's time. I owe a lot of people emails, and many of them need to be written in Italian, so will take quite a bit of time! As always, I really enjoy getting the personal emails from you and am so blessed to have each of you in my life!!!!!! So sorry that I can't reply to everything, but know that you totally make my day with your wonderful news and happy thoughts. :)
Bo.
I'm not remotely tired (it's almost 2 am here), but also not interested in blogging much. The story of the day was that it was a very nice one in class and there was time after to get 4 hours and 100km on the road....yes, the weather was that lovely and the fields are a rich, incredible green. I was attempting to meet up with one of my new bike friends (who doesn't speak English) and I made a wrong turn so we didn't meet up. Darn it. But I did find a couple new roads in the process. Seriously, no good reason to ever repeat the same ride exactly.
I ran into a group of cyclists going the same way for a few minutes, they were all heading to Foligno. It sounds like that's the place where all of the cyclists have been hiding (since they are not in Perugia). They were very nice and friendly, too. I'm sure they're serious racers, their quads had "racer" written all over them.
At the 65th km, I stopped to refuel--pizza and water. That settled quite nicely and it was not hard to get home as it usually is. I really need to work on nutrition...sports drink is sort of necessary, but I'd love to get by without it. And with that, I realize that these blog posts are becoming increasingly uninteresting with each passing day. I might start skipping days here and there, don't be concerned, I just need to write when I'm inspired to do so and when there's time. I owe a lot of people emails, and many of them need to be written in Italian, so will take quite a bit of time! As always, I really enjoy getting the personal emails from you and am so blessed to have each of you in my life!!!!!! So sorry that I can't reply to everything, but know that you totally make my day with your wonderful news and happy thoughts. :)
Bo.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Technically this Post Shouldn't Exist
Nothing to blog today...got in a great 70 km ride before class, good class (reflexive verbs were the topic of the day) and I'm tired, need sleep. Also need the weekend. Lots to do learning-wise, the weekend will be a great time for that. Also need to start planning some trips on the weekends.
Monster Giro d'Italia party waaay up north Wed night from 11pm-4am, but too far to go for it (darn!) Will be great when the tour comes through here. I'm already starting to lean towards taking 5 months of classes instead of 3 (since I want to know this language and be fluent in it). Don't have to decide until the first week in June, however. This means not traveling around as much in Europe which is something I really do want to do...maybe next summer...
Monster Giro d'Italia party waaay up north Wed night from 11pm-4am, but too far to go for it (darn!) Will be great when the tour comes through here. I'm already starting to lean towards taking 5 months of classes instead of 3 (since I want to know this language and be fluent in it). Don't have to decide until the first week in June, however. This means not traveling around as much in Europe which is something I really do want to do...maybe next summer...
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