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I'm updating the blog!  Soon to feature not only recipes and baking tips and random rants, but ALSO all the Italian stories of adventures and struggles, insights, and tips and tricks of survival! Yay! 

Ever wonder what it's actually like to live in Italy?  What you should pack for your Italian vacation?  What delicacies you shouldn't miss while here?  What it feels like to almost ask for something inappropriate instead of a canvas at your local art shop?  All that and more coming your way! 

Because, somebody has to chronicle all the crazy things that happen here. 

Having now spent roughly 20 months of my life in Italy, (is that all? it feels like way longer) some as tourist, some as student/missionary, some as vagabond, and soon to be worker, I've had my fair share of experiences and have gleaned plenty more from people who have lived here for wayyyy longer than I have, Italians and not.  Although I am still learning, I think it's about time to start getting some things off my shoulder.  I do not in any way confess to be an expert on any of the above categories, but if these new Italian posts serve in any way to entertain, enlighten, or help you in a future Italian vacation/study abroad/living experience, then that is all I could hope for.  

Please note, everyone's experience here will be slightly different, especially depending on the region and time of year you are here.  In the posts to come, I will try to accumulate general information about Italy, nevertheless, some of it will be Tuscan-specific and may not completely mirror your experiences because that is the region where I live and learned the culture, which will differ at times than say, Calabria or Milan.  And it will always come from an American perspective!  That said, here's to dispelling some of the over-exaggerated information peddled by Rick Steves and other guide book authors! ;) 

See you next time, alla prossima! 

Springing Forward While Looking Back

Happy Pi day!  More accurately, happy gray, rainy, slightly sleepy Monday!  What a perfect day for coffee, snuggling up on the couch and reading a good book.  Too bad my near future doesn't include any of those things.  Because, coffee is already in my past. Tear drop.  I have no excuse for being tired, though, I accidentally got so much sleep last night.  By accidentally I mean I went to bed at 10:45, thinking it was "actually" 11:45 with the recent time change, not realizing it would've "really" been 9:45.  Time change, the struggle is real.  Just don't go down that road of "but it's REALLY..." Embrace that new time, we're only prolonging our adjustment.  Wow, this could get really deep really fast. 

Anyway, why am I moving to Italy?  To be a missionary volunteering with Gallery 4, using dance, art, and music to share the Gospel.  Two big events shaped my life that helped prepare me for Italy.  One was the first mission trip I ever went on when I was dancing with Ballet Magnificat.  Before that, missions never appealed to me.  I thought it was great that people were painting houses in Haiti and holding children in Africa, but it didn't seem right for me.  In my second year with Ballet Mag, I went with the Events Company to Honduras, where we used ballet, performing and teaching, to share the Good News of Jesus.  Using a skill set I had trained many years for, to bring glory to the Lord and as a first stepping stone to talk about Jesus?  Yes please.  Not only that, but to see a people who love Jesus like I do and how their culture shapes the way they worship and interact with each other, different strengths and weaknesses than American churches, was eye-opening to me.  Having only traveled within America, the country where I was born, I suddenly wanted to learn more about different cultures, to try and understand how their world-views were formed, and for them to know Jesus.  I realized on the plane ride home that if the Lord ever called me to missions, for the first time, I was open to it.    

Events Company performing at a school in Honduras for over 1,000 students

The second event was when my parents, JohnPaul, and I took a 3 week vacation to Europe.  We were able to go to London, Paris, Bologna, Florence, Cinque Terre, Orvieto, and Rome.  I loved every second of it, (except leaving Paris, I shed a tear or two) but I left a part of my heart in Florence.  I wanted to go back so badly.  I love my home in Michigan, but the only two times I have not wanted to go back was flying home from Honduras and flying home from Italy. 

Happy family in the Louvre

My mom and I at Vernazza

About the same time we got back from Europe two friends of mine were heading to Florence, Italy, to work with a ministry called Gallery 4.  Naturally I started talking to them about it, and soon I had decided to go see if it was something I might like to do.  September-December of 2015 I spent with Gallery 4 as a vision trip.  I was hoping three months would be enough, that I would have my fill of Italy and that would be it, but no.  I came home shortly before Christmas and took several weeks to pray about returning longer term, but I think I knew that was where God was leading me even before I had left Italy.  And so, on December 31, 2015, I made the decision to pursue moving back to Italy. 

If you made it this far, thanks for reading, I feel pretty special.  Coming soon, the process of moving to Italy and what's ahead!