Our high school welcomed two visitors from Italy this September in Mrs. Certosimo’s Italian IV class.  Both spoke fluent Italian and were born and raised in Italy.  The students prepared questions for them to spark conversation and to learn as much as they could in the short 45 minute period.  The visitors names were Angela, a young adult only a little older than the seniors in the class, and Girma, her mother.  They had come with many family members to live with our teacher Signora Certosimo over the summer.  The class had conversations about kids and teenagers in Italy and the similarities and difference between food, culture, and general lifestyle on the two different continents.  Angela explained that the biggest problem for kids our age in Italy is finding jobs.  She finished high school, did not pursue college or concentrated classes, but was able to find a good job.  She has a commute every day and drives a small economic French car called a Citroen.  In high school she played volleyball and was good at gymnastics. 

Overall she was very much enjoying her trip in America.  She told us that she likes Italian food best, but enjoys all of the meat in American, especially Thuman’s hotdogs!  She was surprised about how much we really consume and how our serving sizes are just so big.  All though most Americans realize this, the class was surprised to hear it from someone outside our country who has only been here for a short time period.

When the bell rang the students were disappointed that the time had gone by so quickly.  Students felt that this experience was once in a life time and for many, the first time they had met someone from another country who spoke almost no English.  Angela and Girma were very appreciative of the school’s warm welcome and how polite everyone in the country had been.  Angela stated that overall as a population most Americans are more polite than the majority of people in other countries that she has visited, a nice compliment that Americans don’t often receive from foreigners.  The students hope to meet her again, maybe over the holidays and would like to thank Signora and the school for making this event possible.