You speak English too??? YES!!!!

So another weekend has pretty much come and gone, and again, Luca has shown us some incredible things. But, although the things that we are seeing are incredible, I cannot believe how many people we are meeting....and actually speaking in Italian with!!! Our crash course has proven to be VERY helpful, but mainly because our teacher, Barbara, is amazing. 

And, in the midst of meeting and conversing with all of these Italians, we are meeting other students from here and there across the States and having a GREAT time with them as well. It just so happens, that on Friday night, we were out in the Piazza where a lot of the University of Genoa students hang out. We were passing through, trying to meet up with Luca, and I had to use the bathroom VERY badly (I had had a LOT of water while at dinner). So Jonathan, Drew, Leslee, and myself TREKED through the madness that was (I have NEVER seen THAT many people in one gathering area....we were PACKED like sardines, and could barley move 2 inches) until we reached the other side of the Piazza, thinking there was a bathroom in a café we had previously been to with Luca. Well, no go. 

So we're standing around, about to go on ourselves, when we think we overhear a group nearby speaking in English, who are also looking for a bathroom. We chat it over, "You go....No, you go ask....Are they speaking English???", when I finally just walk over, poke my head into their group, and say (in what I am sure was very Southern English), "Ya'll lookin' for a bathroom too??" Ha!! They immediately perked up and started exclaiming, "YES!! YES!! ....You speak English????" It was AWESOME!!! 

Their names are Marilyn, Denise, Alexis, Laura, and Andrea and they're from Miami studying abroad with the University of Genoa, but they're students of FIU in Miami. You can't imagine how great it was to meet them, at that particular time and place. We ended up venturing off with them to find a bathroom, get some gelato (my first REAL, Italian gelato....unbelievable.), and then we hung out with them for the rest of the night!! We even met up with them Saturday (last) night for dinner as well. They are SO nice, and there are only 6 of them in their program (1 was away traveling to Barcelona for the weekend). We hope to possibly plan a trip with them, and will DEFINITELY hang out with them often!! :) :) 

Yay for new friends, new experiences, and this amazing life God has given me....I'm trying to live it to the fullest, every day!!! :)