We're really doing it!

Ciao friends & family!

Sorry for the delay in posting but we don't have wi-fi in our apartment yet! We are currently sitting in a Barnes & Noble type book store using their free internet! Hooray! Oh my goodness . . . where to start?! So much has happened in the 6 short days that we've been here!

Our apartment:

Our apartment is very nice! It's like a studio apartment and it's fully furnished! Jordan and I call it 'the dungeon' becuase it's in the bottom level of the building that we live in! We need 3 keys to get in to our apartment . . . so it's really safe :) We cooked our first meal (pasta!) and we can watch American music videos on our tv!
Oh, and did I mention that we have a mosquito problem??

Jordan and I have killed about 50 mosquitos to date . . . our walls look like a war zone with all of the blood. Apparently they prey on us in the night - Jordan has quite the collection of bites on his chest, but most of mine are on my face and hands! Who knew the mosquitos would follow us from Texas to Sicily!



Food:
The food in Sicily is 'molto buona' or 'very good' for those of you back home that don't speak Italian! The only problem with food is finding it . . . we all know how hungry Jordan gets, so finding enough food for him has been a challenge. There are plenty of restaurants and bars on the street, but once we get inside, it's a whole nother ball game! We've had gnocci, spaghetti carbonara, pizza!, calamari, nutella crepes, hamburgers, gelato, kebabs, and lots of VINO! All in all, we're loving it! Here's Jordan after our first trip to the supermarket!

Our car:

If you thought Houston/Dallas/Austin traffic was bad . . . whoa buddy, you have no idea what bad is!!! Driving in Sicily is C-R-A-Z-Y!! Basically there are no traffic rules, which you can imagine provides for an interesting driving environment! Our car is a little standard, grey, Nissan and it's super cute! Jordan drove it (even though he doesn't drive standard!) and did an excellent job, which is quite impressive considering every time you get in a car, you feel like it might be your last.
The driving game in Sicily goes like this:
1) Inch into traffic until someone lets you in
2) Park wherever you want! The curb, the sidewalk, in a no parking zones, who cares!?
3) Honk A LOT so that everyone knows you're there
and finally . . .
4) 'Arrows are for Indians - we don't use them here' :)

Football:
The Catania Elephants football team is full of wonderful people! Jordan and Nate are the only Americans, but plenty of the players speak English, and even if they don't, we have a lot of fun trying to understand what they're saying! The field is a bit rough . . . Here's a pic

We've enjoyed hanging out with Jordan's new teammates and getting to know them a little better. 5 months is going to fly by with nice people, good food, and fun times! Oh, and an Italian Superbowl ring to top it all off :)

Love & miss you all! Ciao from Sicily for now!