14 July 2009

Continuation of Rome+Trevi+Napoli

Oh so I forgot the best part of the end of the Rome story. You know how I said my host mom told me to find my own way home? Well, Liam said he couldn't, because his whole host family was going to a festival in a nearby town that was supposed to be really awesome. (Josephine ended up driving me home.) Well, guess who Liam saw at the festival? That's right. My entire host family. Without me.
Anyway, I need to fill you in on what happened during week two in Trevi. Well, the most evil of all the evil children was asked to stay home on Monday, and when he returned on Tuesday, he was moved to a different class. It actually helped quite a bit, but the two boys left in my class were still pretty awful. It turned out that the girls in the class were all really, really awesome though. Three of the girls were more or less geniuses, two of the girls were so sweet and helpful, and the other was a little crazy, but really funny.
On Monday or Tuesday we started planning for our show. I'd decided that I wanted to do another Michael Jackson tribute, and no one could deter me from that plan. It was called 'The King of Pop: A Tribute,' and it starred Riccardo as MJ. I held tryouts and everything. I would do a dance move, and then have them replicate it one by one. We also did vocal tryouts, with me yelling 'Ow!' and seeing who could imitate it best. In the end, there were several girls who were better than Riccardo, but I wanted it to be a guy, even though Giulia actually looked quite a bit like Michael Jackson in his later years, and it couldn't be Lorenzo, because the poor boy had absolutely no coordination.
Here's the plot: MJ is out on a date with his girl and asks her to be his girlfriend. Then a couple of gangstas (Giulia and Sharon) come up to them and rob them. MJ's gf asks 'What just happened?!' and he says 'You've been hit by a smooth criminal' aaaaaaaaaand cue music!
Giulia, Sharon, and Riccardo then proceed to do this sweet little dance featuring MJ moves, a little something I learned from America's Best Dance Crew, and a ten second breakdancing solo from Riccardo (no, he can't breakdance to save his life, and when he did the worm he looked like a dying orca, but that's what made it hilarious). At the end, the girls laid down on the floor and each of them grabbed one of Riccardo's ankles so that he could do the famous lean from the Smooth Criminal video.
After that, MJ's gf insists that he hunt down the robbers and get her purse back. Just at that moment, the robbers conveniently return, ready for a showdown. Cue 'Beat It,' and a dance-fight inspired by West Side Story and Zoolander.
Then MJ's gf is all like 'Michael, you are my perfect man. You have no flaws.' The moment is ruined, however, by the appearance of Billie Jean, who informs Michael that they have a son together. MJ's all like, 'The kid is NOT my son,' but then when he sees the picture that Billie Jean holds up, he says, 'His eyes. . . they are like mine!' and they do a tango together, finished off by a brief and comically horrendous moonwalk.
Obviously, this turn of events displeases MJ's gf, and she tells him, 'There's something weird about you. . .' just as a teen wolf and a couple of zombies show up. They say things like 'Holla at a playa' and 'Word, g-money' (yep, we taught the kids urban slang). When Michael's gf gets even more suspicious, one of the zombies says, 'He's not like other guys. . . he's different,' Thriller plays, and that's basically the grand finale. (Yep, I recycled the dance I used at the Modena camp).
Anyway, our days were spent rehearsing heavily for the final show on Friday. In the end, the dances went really well, but we weren't able to run lines as much as we needed to, and the kids giggled through the whole thing. Everyone still loved it, though.
What else happened. . . we went out with our camp director and host families on Sunday to an island, and then we hit up Assisi. It was so lovely. If my internet connection were stronger I would totally post video and pics. . . you know I want to.
We went to the pool one day. . . best quote from that day- Liam: "Liz, the lifeguard just punched one of our kids in the chest." (Should give you an idea of how awful these kids were.)
One of the nights we visited Perugia, and on another night, I finally got to see that festival that everyone had been going to all week. It was basically a county fair with a roller skating show, I kid you not. They had farm equipment out on display (I find that highly comforting in a totally unsarcastic way) and a big flat area where children skated to Dancing Queen, Mamma Mia, the Mickey Mouse Club theme, and then heavy metal (not joking). A heavy metal band literally took the stage and started playing while three girls were skating around to the music. Then the skaters left and the band kept playing. They even played Iron Man, and we all fake-moshed to it.
I saw a billion species of bugs in my room. There were the long, gangly wall spiders that generally just hung out in the corners of the wall, the tiny black ones with fur, the creepy brown ones, and the other black ones. Oh and then there was the massive garden spider that got inside. Then there were the centipedes, which are like massive mutated versions of the ones I was previously familiar with. I also saw a few beetles and quite a few flies. Not to complain, just informing you. It was nice to have all that space to myself, though, and be able to play music at night and shower when I wanted to and watch dvd's after camp.
On Friday, some of the really sweet girls in my class gave me a gift that they'd bought me- a mini backpack with rhinestones and Winnie the Pooh on it. It's the sort of thing an Italian girl their age would wear, which is why I love it. I feel as though I've now been initiated into their club. I was so, so touched by that.
Remember how I said that my kids would steal anything not nailed down? Well, on Friday, after the show, my tutor shirt was not nailed down (one of the younger girls had been wearing it because she was playing me in her class's show). Basically, I haven't seen the shirt since, and I'm pretty sure I know which of the kids took it, but there's nothing I can do about it now. I will just have to keep wearing the same shirt every day for the rest of the summer and hope I don't go to a camp in a Catholic school, because then the nuns will apparently make me cover my shoulders and my one remaining shirt is a tank top (or a singlet, depending on which part of the world you're from.
Anyway, on Tuesday or Wednesday one of the directors of the entire program called to ask us how we were holding up and where we would prefer to go for a weeklong break. He gave us the option of Rome or Naples, and I had no preference. There's a lot I still need to see in Rome, but then again, I'd seen none of Naples.
So now I am in Naples. More on that later. However, I will give you a rough rundown: Herculaneum and Sorrento yesterday, Amalfi today, Pompeii and Sorrento tomorrow, Capri Thursday, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. My back got burned today out on the beach, and I'm totally pumped. Anyway. Good night!

2 comments:

Aunt Nanette said...

I'm so happy you got to see Assisi. It was one of my favorite places!

Hope you are having a great time.

Love you,

Aunt Nanette

Mark said...

you have no idea how much this one made me laugh. and then probably look stupid if someone heard me sitting alone in my tent cracking up. please tell me i'll be able to see videos of all these shows.