My mother was born in Sicily, came to the USA as an adult and never really learned to speak English very well. I grew up hearing her speak Sicilian (definitely a different language than Italian) with her friends and a fragmented Sicinglish (her Sicilian version of Spanglish) with me. I could discern what she was saying (in both of her “languages”), but I couldn’t verbally produce any semblance of Italian. Many decades ago, I enrolled in an introductory course in Italian at University of Pittsburgh. I picked up some basic vocabulary and grammar but life got in the way and I never really could achieve my dream of being able to carry on a conversation in Italian.
Well, the kids are grown and on their own, and I now have the luxury of being able to afford, both financially and time-wise, to check off one more thing on the bucket list. I am sitting at Gate E7 at Logan Airport in Boston, waiting to board an Alitalia flight to Rome. 
With my trusty backpack containing several changes of clothing ( yes, I have had the dubious honor of experiencing a suitcase not making it to my destination!) and a bag checked through to Rome, I am embarking on the next adventure – a four-week course at L’Accademia Italiana language school in Salerno (south of Naples). I will spend the next two nights in Rome, getting over jet lag and visiting with my cousin’s daughter who I last saw 20 years ago, before taking the train to Salerno. I will be staying with a host family to totally immerse myself in the language and culture.
I have quite a long layover at Logan, so a trip to Legal Seafood was on the docket for my last American meal for a while.
A crab cake and a Sam Adams seasonal brew, of course! Sitting next to me was a Ph.D physicist and we had a lovely conversation about his upcoming trip to Valencia, Spain (he works in radiation oncology at Rhode Island Hospital), the propensity of his three teenagers to communicate almost exclusively by texting, and the joys of learning another language.
I arrive in Rome around noon and will be staying in the historic center at Hotel Smeraldo, near the Campo dei Fiori. I last stayed there eight years ago while visiting my daughter who was spending a semester abroad. I have a food tour scheduled for the evening and will be meeting my cousin’s daughter on Saturday for lunch (il pranzo). You may be learning some Italian by reading this blog, but I have to say that “autocorrect” is a pain in the ass as it changes Italian words into nonsensical English ones!
So ciao for now! Fino a domani (until tomorrow)!
Camino Musings 