_last day_

Well, it's my last day at the Politecnico in Torino. I'm really sad to leave. I'm excited to travel to Milano, Venice, etc, but I’m really sad to leave! Torino has been my home, if only for a month. But that month has been a longer period of time than any other stay here. Rome will be the longest, once we arrive in a week. But Torino has been more of a home because of the people. I was graciously adopted by a group of amazing down-to-earth Italian architecture students, who brought me to festivals, discotecas, their homes, their shops, markets and restaurants. I was shown Torino by the true Turinese. And I was part of a church, if only for a short while. A church that is so colorful and beautiful, so diverse and hospitable. To have so many people from so many different countries worship the same God with eagerness and above all, LOVE, it is truly a magnificent sight. I was given a chance to be included in almost every aspect of daily life within Torino, and for that I am truly grateful.

I love the market here more than any other market – though I need to discover a few in Rome I did not find previously. And I LOVE the parks. I remember really missing the grass and parks while in Rome – coming from Ireland, which was so green, to Rome, which was the heart of the city and rather grey and then back to the green of the parks of Torino. And tomorrow I will be going to the mountains!? I’m sooooo excited about that. I’ve been wanting for a long, long time to make it into the mountains here I’m right by the Alps! I could always see them, but never quite made it there. So perhaps tomorrow. Once again, the Italians are adopting us into their life, their friends, and their country, and bringing us to the mountains to hang out and drink some cioccolato caldo. What a way to say goodbye to the region.

And then we head to new cities, a break from work to travel for a week. And then back to Roma, a city I know, but also one I know will be very changed once I get there. It’s October in Italy, October in Roma. October in Roma is perfect from what I’ve heard – hence, all the tourists will flood the city, all the shops closed for Ferie will be open, all the restaurants that lulled in August will be bustling and loud in the fall, all the norms will have change. Which, for the most part, makes me excited. I love learning new cities. I just wish that didn’t mean I had to leave one I love! Torino, I will miss you. I will most definitely return J