Language

I haven't really talked about the Italian language much, and I thought I'd fill you in.

Italian is beautiful, I've always thought so. But it's also very complicated, most specifically, verbs. In English, verbs are in general very simple, almost always the same: We ARE, You ARE, He IS, She IS, I AM, in Italian, not so much. I'll use "to be" as an example:

Io sono
Tu sei
Lui/Lei  è
Noi Siamo
Voi Siete
Loro Sono

....And that's just the present tense. Then after that there in future tense, past tense, irregular past tense, and on and on. To say the least, it's a tad bit complicated. 

And on top of that, when you first learn a language (any language), when it's being spoken to you, an entire sentence blends into what sounds like a single word.
So coming here with little to no experience with the language is definitely stressful, and there were no doubt days where I just wanted to have a pity party and block out any Italian spoken to me. Headaches were common, almost to the point where I forgot what it was like NOT to have a headache. Those first few months were terrible. (Not the experience, the language).

And no doubt, there are still difficulties with the language, grammatical errors are consistent in every conversation and my head still feels like it is going to explode sometimes, but it's gotten better. Every single day it gets a little easier. Every single day English gets harder. I love it.

So whether you're on exchange, or going on exchange, or just a random person reading this, don't give up on learning another language. It's so rewarding when I get complimented on my Italian, or when I can easily express myself.

And with my progress at this point, I can easily talk, and don't really have troubles expressing myself, though my grammar could use some work. I often find myself thinking in Italian, or replying in Italian when I don't mean to. I have dreams in Italian pretty often, and I apparently even talked in Italian in my sleep the other day .....awkward.... and even though I was extremely embarrassed when they told me, I was also really happy with myself.

P.S. I am so extremely happy in my new situation. I haven't felt this happy, really actually happy in a while, but I do now. I can't stop smiling. Thank you again for all that supported me :)

Love you all
Arrivederci-
Rachael 

And totally remember that if you ever want me to talk about something specific PLEASE email me or facebook me or comment on this, it makes it so much easier to write.

Oh and I felt like sharing this, I can relate.