Italia...

Sitting in tech tonight for Man of La Mancha at the Hangar, I kept finding myself thinking about Italy. Yes, I was only there for three weeks, but man did they make an impact.

It's funny, the three weeks I was in Italy were definitely fantastic, I just don't think I realized how fantastic until about a week or two ago. It's hard to comprehend the difference in experience between actually being there and looking back on the trip after its been over.

I don't feel like I regret not doing anything in Italy. In fact, I feel like I experienced more in the 20 days I was there than I have in the entire rest of my year.

I guess you could say that the famed "travel bug" has bitten me. I understand now why someone like Dr. Lees, who took us, for those of you that don't know, wants to go back every year: to relive all the experiences I will just cherish in memory for now and not know when I'll make new ones like that. The food, the wine, the amazing places older than any building in the U.S., and of course, the people who treated us so well. I want to go out again with the friends that I made, especially because I feel like I just got to know them right before we left.

I discovered last summer, before I knew that I was coming back to the Hangar again that one of the hardest things to do is to leave something or someone behind without knowing when you'll have those experiences again.

Right now, I'm having those feelings about Italy, especially the towns and people of Perugia and Montagnana. I don't know when my finances will be at the point where I can make the trek back to Italy again, but I will be back, and I can't wait.

Meanwhile, once again, I'm trying my best in Ithaca for another summer. It's fun, pretty different than last year, but still fun. The living situation has made it harder to make new friends besides the ones I already have, but I am still doing it. its just taking a little longer than last year. However, my summer antics are a topic for another post.

I promise to post part two of my future ambitions later in the week. The italy stuff was on my mind so I decided to write it down before I forgot. Until next time...