July 13.

"I wanted to write a little more about last night since I was tired and didn't write much. My first impression of the family is great. Maura is very timid due to the language barrier but kept saying in Italian, "My Home is Your Home" and was eager to show me the house. They gave me Marta's room to stay in (which is a half floor in the house, like a loft with steep stairs, and her bathroom). In Italy (and Europe as well), everything is smaller than in the States...but I like it. It is a small country. Massimo has a very kind spirit and eagerly wants his children to learn English. He says it is necessary for the business world if they want to travel."

"Last night we had meat stuffed with cheese, ham and egg with zucchini for a side . After that, we ate insulate with fresh tomatoes and cheese with balsamic, olive oil and salt. I had a birra (beer) Moretti. Maura likes Moretti because it is her last name. It was a malt or darker beer which I like. The family was full of laughter while trying to speak in English. It is nice that they are basing the conversation around me and including me."

"Breakfast is quite different. This morning I woke up at 9 and unpacked an organized my things. When I came downstairs, breakfast was layed out on the table with a million different options to choose from. Marta and Mattia were very thoughtful of me and were eager for me to try everything. I chose to eat cereal (they had a version of special k) with milk. The milk here is layed out in the morning to reach room temperature for breakfast. I'll have to get used to that. I also ate nutella on a biscuit and espresso."

"Oh! I almost forgot to say what we ate for lunch today. Massimo comes home from work for lunch everyday for a few hours. Lunch is a big deal here. He made pasta (spaghetti) with pesto!!! We picked fresh tomatoes out of the garden and ate them with olive oil. Bread as well. Then a peach for dessert. What was eye opening for me was that Massimo asked Marta to brush her teeth. I asked him if they brush their teeth after meal and he said..."Oh yeah. Yes. Of Course!" I said "Oh!" then quietly brushed mine. I guess morning and night is not sufficient. He probably thinks Americans are unsanitary."

"Tomorrow we are going to the pool. We have to wear swimming caps in order to enter the water. Should be interesting! Off to listen to American music. Till tomorrow. Ciao!"