Chicken Pie

I made pie for tea so I've decided to share it with you all :)

Avezzano

I'm not how much I've told you about the town but here's what I know...it was built at the beginning of the 1900's and the farm land on one side used to be a lake that got drained 50 years ago, it's mainly farmed by 'north african immigrants that refuse to intergrate and therefore cause problems' a nice bit of Italian racism for you!
There's a theatre and a cinema and about a million gyms, everyone here is sporty but there's not much else, there's a tiny patch of grass in the centre of town and that's all they have with regards to a park.
I live in a street of blocks of flats called 'palazzi' there's a bar (cafe/bar/tabacconist/gelateria/stamp seller), a butcher, a corner shop, a bakers and a hairdressers. I live 10 minutes from the nearest supermarket, it's tiny and doesn't have much variety in the way of food, it sells pasta, chocolate and wine mainly. The Italians seem very opposed to foreign food! There's a larger supermarket 20 minutes away and the only difference is that it sells some electrical and household items and has more fruit and veg. There's a hypermarket in the outskirts of town but it's about an hours walk from where I live but it's like shopping centre.
That's all I can think to tell you at the moment.
Bye xxx

School

So this week I've had to teach part of two lessons, they were both on the English education system, which by the way is impossible to explain when one of the teacher's you're working with worked in a grammer school and was really confused when I said you would study anything at A-level and he scoffed and said sarcastically even sewing? And I was like yes actually even sewing...that showed him hehe.
I was also in two new classes this week with Lucia we did lessons on the environment and body parts so not very interesting but easy vocab to teach, I'm going to be alternating each week in these classes and the others.
Next week we have tuesday off for a national holiday so I might be going to Florence to meet up with some of the girls I met in Turin.
Also next friday there is a student election they get to vote for all the important people in the school and also a student is elected for each year group, this takes up the whole day but I will be in Nottingham anyway so it doesn't affect me.
For anyone that wants the dates for me being England they are:
3rd november: flight at 7pm and coach from Stansted to Nottingham at 10pm
7th november coach to Stansted 8.30am and flight at 3pm
xxx

This week...

Okay I have decided that the top two oddest questions I have received since arriving in Italy are:
Do you like squirrels?
And is ganja legal in your country? Which is a quite an inappropriate question haha
I managed to teach the crazy class for 15 minutes alone in the classroom and get maybe 5 students to listen so an improvement on last week! The oldies are easier to teach as they actually want to learn!
Next week I have to do a 30 minute lesson in a year 2 class...on the english school system and then a whole lesson on the same with another teacher...
The weather here is crazy...it flooded in Rome and we had a storm but today it was boiling hot! I was wearing a coat for most of last week and today I could've worn shorts silly global warming!
Bye!
xxx

Thursday 20/10/11

Today Carmine asked if I was from Bristol, I said nearish and he told me it shows when I speak!!
We did pronounciation in Lucia's lessons today and the students are copying the way I slightly over pronounce 's' at the end of words...it's not good they all sound really silly!

I found out that the Christmas Market in Rome doesn't start until 26th Nov. but that it's the best in the country! So I'm excited but I have to wait a month!
I also found a few exhibitions I like the sound of...I just need to get to Rome and figure out how to get around...there's absolutely nothing to do in this town so I'm pretty bored especially as one of my housemates never leaves her room and the other is never in :( also I got given house rules today regarding cleaning!!

Here's a photo of the duvet cover I bought the other week...it's really horrible! hehe

 

Also it rained and it rained and it rained today!! And there was thunder and lightening and the electricity died in the 'containers' it wasn't so fun but everyone was like georgia's happy cos it's raining it's like being in england haha

Thursday

Today I met someone at the school that was under the age of 40!! She's a student studying history and philosophy and doing her placement year at the school I know this from osmosis, we haven't said more than ciao to each other but I'm determined to make her my friend haha
Today was a little stressful there's a boy in one of my classes that can stay sat down or shut up and is just a general disturbance so it makes it impossible to get the class to concentrate, also my teacher wants me to teach the whole class?! He thinks we study teaching methods at school and that I have experience at taching I was like NO! but he didn't pay any attention! He says it will be good for when I'm a teacher...I don't want to teach! ever! It's just too stressful! So anyways now I've decided I don't like him which is going to make those lessons a tricky two hours to cope with :(
xxx

Tuesday..

Went to the supermarket today and the checkout lady rememebered me and spoke in English, it's not helping my language learning at all haha
At school today I had to read aloud from Robinson Crusoe, teach nationalities and airport vocab which we've been working on for 3 weeks, next week we progress to hotel vocab :)
xxx

Class 5D

I found my favourite class today, it's full of geeks and they've promised to take me to Rome and to the cinema and to the best pizzeria in Avezzano...

Monday...

I got my first bit of post today so now I've decided you have to all send me letters!!

I tried to work out how to get into the town centre today and failed...
I also went to a 'bigger' supermarket today cos Tiz said it would be better it wasn't just a longer walk with heavy bags! I was planning on making chilli for tea but I couldn't figure out the vegetable section and then I couldn't find chilli and then I couldn't find kidney beans but on the plus side I got 1 kilo of arborio rice for 1 euro!! but no stock cubes...hmm not a very successful day...
I found some pilates lessons at a gym but it's half an hour walk away and I don't know how much they are, I might ask someone at school if they know a good place to go...
xxx

My new mug so I can have decent sized cups of tea...

First hints of winter! The view from my kitchen this morning :)

My flat and my room at Emi's house

 

Some photos...

The first photo is the garden in the first house I was in and the last two are photos of the school or containers I'm working in.

Market

Today I went to the market with Morena and bought a hideous duvet cover and a bath mat, because apparently we can't share! I also went to a shop called Acqua and Sapone, soap and water I think...I love it it's like a giant Boots haha I got some fantastically terrible slippers with ears and a tail but at least now I have warm feet!
My internet is working a bit better today, but I have to use it by the back door which really isn't practical...also I met Marta today, my other housemate but only for about 5 seconds to say Ciao and that was it.
I don't think I have anything to say so bye for now :) xxx

Internet

I have the internet now but it's not very good, it only works it certain places in the flat...

Turin

Turin was good, it's surprisingly nice for a city mainly known for it's industry.
I met some really lovely girls, Lucy from Nottingham, Steph from Essex, Lucy from somewhere else...I can't remember where hehe and Lilliah whose half Dutch and from Bournemouth, it's mainly girls that do the asstistantship there was about 4 boys.
I met Lilliah at the airport so we could get lost together, not many people figured out the confusing bus system so we all took taxis everywhere. The first day was introductions, then Lilliah and I went to do some shopping and to McDonalds, it was cheaper than getting a taxi back to the school for our free food. On saturday, we did learning activities like role play and listening then had our free school dinner. We visited the cinema museum which was really interesting with all it's old movie sets and films were played everywhere on random screens and then we headed to one of the piazza's for live music, ice cream and cocktails, by the time the other assistants were heading out we were heading home so we didn't really meet many people.
The actual training wasn't that useful, most people are teaching 14 to 19's and most of the activities seemed more suitable for younger students. But at least I get to visit Florence and Sicily hopefully at some point :)
xxx

First proper week...

Ciao,
I'm borrowing Maurizio's computer and internet...
I haven't been up to much this week, I moved into my flat on monday. And didn't have work on monday and tuesday. My flat is nice, it's cold all the time but boiling outside it's so strange and annoying.
So far I've taught weather, talked a lot about myself and english life and that's pretty much all we've been up to in school, I'm being used mainly as an excuse for the teachers to plan lessons haha.
I'm living off pasta and pesto and toast as usual, the nearest supermarket doesn't sell much but there's one about 10 minutes from the school so I might go check it out after lessons today. I still haven't found the post office...well I have but I don't understand where the actual post office bit of it is, it's more like a depot or sorting office or something.
My flatmate Morena is engaged and is studying education, she wants to be a primary school teacher. My other flatmate is called Marta and she stumbles in at 1 or 2 in the morning and sleeps all day so I have yet to meet her.
On saturday there's a market in the town centre, Morena says she'll take me so I can buy stuff for my room.
I'm a little bored here what with the lack of internet and being so far from town, which doesn't even have decent shops...