first beach day in Italia! today me, hayley, cristina and chesley went to Amanusa beach. we took the subway there, which wasn't that bad because it probably only took a half hour to 45 minutes to get there. it wasn't the nicest beach around but it was definitely worth going for the day (it was much needed). the mediterranean is absolutely beautiful and swimming in it felt amazing. afterwards, we took the subway back and sat near the most interesting Italian family. The parents were fairly young and had 5 kids, 4 boys and one baby girl who was the cutest little nugget. however, every time they picked her up, she was so fussy, all she wanted was to stand up and walk around the subway. she had curly blonde hair and would smile every time her father played his ABBA's playlist on his cell phone. her youngest little brother was all over the place too. he hopped into her sister's carriage when they pulled her out and sat there chewing his sister's pink zip up sweater. for about 5 minutes straight, he would put his hands in his pants and sniff his finger tips right after. it was incredibly disgusting but me and hayley were cracking up. the 3 other boys behaved much better since they were conscious of all the attention their younger siblings were causing. you could tell through their mother's face how relieved she was when we arrived at the last stop. taking care of such a large family is obviously ver difficult and time consuming and exhausting, but i would honestly love a huge family like that. the kids will always have someone to play with or talk to and the parents create such a strong and close family circle. everyone's there for each other. i for one would love to have 4 kids. four sounds like a good number, for me at least. moral of the story, i love babies :) and the beach is awesome we're definitely going back. also, i would like to share some cultural differences i've noticed the past few weeks since i've been here. So ONE, italian men have a serious staring problem. they literally gawk at you as if you're a different species. It's actually kind of uncomfortable. TWO, there are literally nuns everywhere. It makes me question why I've never seen any at home. it's weird. THREE, italians have two different menu's in their cafes and restaurants. i mean some vary, but there are some cafes where they literally just serve cocktails, wine or beer. i believe if you order more than one drink, they bring you chips, olives, or peanuts, or a combination of all 3 (and sometimes 2). you rarely ever see that in the states. i just thought it was interesting. FOUR, a lot of homeless people. i mean yes, i've seen many in new york city, but it seems more common here. you see many sleeping in parks and benches, a lot are on the street as beggers, and the rest put up some kind of performance to earn their money (which is also another form of begging). ALSO, tons of indian people constantly trying to sell you shit. at the beach, every 5 minutes some guy would be trying to sell us shit. from jewerly, to scarfs, to sunglasses, to kits, to fucking body massages. It's absolutely insane. yes i understand that's how most of them make their money, but it gets on my nerves. i just wanted to relax on the beach for a solid 10 minutes without someone coming up to me for money. FIVE, many speak english surprisingly and they're really nice about it. except our security guard here in Gianicolo, Eddy, who doesn't speak that well in english. but i love him, he's the cutest. anyway, SIX, italian mean dress weird. they love their jorts, low cut and tight tshirts. and they are very persistent once they start talking to you. they ask for your number and facebook right away. and believe me, they will follow up with you. guaranteed. so i should really consider not giving out my number drunkly to very italian guy that asks. SEVEN, italia has the freshest peaches! my favvvv. I bought green tea thinking it was just that, nope. green tea with peach flavor. GENIUS. AND NINE, guys actually wear speedos to the beach. and i can't take me seriously. i really can't. so that's it for now. i'll share some more funny cultural differences and stories as next week approaches. i'm exhausted so i'll probably knock out soon. i'll post some pictures from today later on. nightynight