shy carrie?

yeah i didn't think it was possible either..  

so i'm here in rome, getting settled.  rocio has been amazing taking me everywhere and whenever i get stuck on a word she's there to fix it.  i need to get a little thing we call patience, because instead of continually working on my language skills i get frustrated every time i slip up.  it's a whole different part of the brain, and although i like to think i am an aural learner, sometimes they are talking so dang fast i can't get but two words they said.  my brain literally shuts down at night and i can't do it anymore.  although, i suppose i should give myself a little credit, i have only been here 4 days.  but when i tell people i minored in italian at university they look at me like i'm joking.  seriously folks, the united states language learning system is not the best thing in the world.  even in college.  people here speak 2 or 3 languages, and i had a 17 yr. old italian girl explaining the basics of italian to me the other night because she thought i didn't know them.  there's one to kill your pride.  

perhaps that is what i need right now as well.  i need to be humbled into knowing that i have to work at this to make it work.  yes, it's hard work - but is that not the reason i came here?  rocio is fabulous at italian, but rocio also speaks spanish - so i guess that helps her.  

anyway, so now i'm the shy girl because every time i try to add something into a conversation it takes me a few seconds to form the phrase, and then they are already past what i've tried to add.  it's kind of funny anyway.  my face must look ridiculous with struggle.  take a mental picture...  we'll see how i feel by the end of this week.  i'm positive i will progress (i mean...i better dammit!).  so that is for today.  i slept pretty much all day today.  i'm SOOO not used to this schedule of rising early and going to bed late.  mamma mia.  

ciao for now tutti!