culture shock

blows.
Yesterday I went for an audition for the Civici Cori di Milano (the civic Choir of Milan), and was confronted with the unexpected. We were told that it was just a "community" choir, and most of us didn't expect much. I think it went badly and I'm not sure if I'm going to be in it. Hopefully tomorrow's (mandatory) culture shock seminar will help me with my frustration. Milan is great, but I'm hankering for New York like one craves a steak after being at Mount Holyoke for a while (vegetarians/vegans if any, try to understand my passion for a filet mignon?).

Don't get me wrong, I love Milan. It's beautiful. When I look at the Duomo, I think that maybe that's where my grandma went last week--it looks like pure heaven when I look up at it. Then I look down at the boots that some woman is wearing whilst standing next to me and I think, yep, "I've seen God--did you get those at Prada? Or are they from Zara?"
You can't really tell here in Milan, but everybody looks good (I can see my mother shaking her head because I'm only talking about clothing here--but I swear! There kind of culture that subsists in Milan is that of clothes, gastronomic pleasures, architecture, and churches. Your typical museum like the MoMA or the MET doesn't really exist here...).

Everyday I try to make my way around the city. It's hard. I pride myself on being a pushy, fast-paced New Yorker who knows everything. I feel like a bumbling idiot here sometimes, but I suppose its necessary to be humbled, isn't it? I struggle with the lanugage everyday and sometimes wish that nobody knew english so I'd really be forced to speak the language. When I get tired of trying I just say "do you speak english?" and Tada! Easy-peasy.
All my rommates are fluent--one is Italian and the other two are Americans. I am incredibly jealous of their mad linguistic skillz (yo).

However, I'm in intensive language class for 2 1/2 hours a day, and I'm regaining some of what I lost so far. My Italian teacher is fantastic, I saw her on the metro the other day and burst into a smile. I've made many friends and I'm having a lot of fun with them.
I promise that my next posts will reflect more positivity!