Update

Well hello all. Finally Ive found an internet that actually works, its taken me only two weeks of biking around the cobbled streets of lecce to find it. My bum is sore. So where to begin..
My location: I arrived last week into warm, California-ish weather, walked into an apartment (in the "moderna" section of the city) which is twice the size of my house and bedecked with leaopard-print furniture, green marble pillars and red leather. My host parents, Mary the hotel baroness (she and her sisters have been personally constructing a resort outside of the city), and Daniele, the tall, mafioso type 100% italian padre. Ludovica, the younger sister, is only ten but is tall for her age and has the energy of four people. And the son, Giammarco. Oh my god is he one italian stallion. Slighter even then I, tanned to a pulp, with an earring, long hair in the back, constantly popped collar, capris, obsessed with soccer and soccer relaed activities. All of these people make up the most italian family i can possibly imagine. Needless to say, flour-white Emmett Raymond feels a bit out of place...
The frst dinner i proceed to make a fool of myself, nervous as i was, bless me. I flop spaghetti into my lap, nearly drop a plate of cream-filled delicious treats.. I was a wreck. Violet i say unto you it will be murder trying to stay awake for the first week. Every time we sat down anywhere my eyes flapped shut and my head drooped. Well what the hell else was i supposed to do? Join in the conversation? Not possible. They shout and skeeze words out to each other with the speed of a Twista rap, complete with the stereotypical hand gestures. And they DO so say "Mamma Mia!" Every chance they bloody get. But, through dinner parties and four-course luncheons, i sit up straight and look as contrite as possible, and nod my head and say "si, ho capito" when spoken to. I think im getting a bit better with the language though. I hope so, as schoooool starts tomorrow. This will be quite interesting, though some stress has been removed at the fact that im taking similar courses to those at Tam, and i think they said id get credits for them. Take THAT, Ms. Hunt, you cunt.
The Pisano family also has a strange set of rules- i think im allowed out pretty much to my liking, and i can watch tv or eat whatever delicious thing i want, but any light in the home can absolutly not be left on for three seconds after leaving a room. Thus every time i leave the bathroom momentarily to get my toothbrush from my room, Marco comes in and shuts off the bathroom light. Ive taken to flossing in the dark.
But every night after flossing with difficulty, i stay awake, writing letters and thinking of friends at home. The only person ive hung out with has been this other AFS girl in Lecce, seeing as Giomarco has no desire to do anything socially that doesnt revolve around his beloved soccer, and he apparently has no intrest in the beautiful italian girls. Mike, theres only one word i can use in a minor sense to describe him "bitchnigga". We would neve hang out with him. He is quite spoiled and sounds like hes whining every time he speaks, and i get the feeling he doesnt appreciate my presence in the house. This will, i hope, pass with time. But, in the mean time, i trot around lecce with Kayla and eat gelato and look at incredible churches and enjoy talking in english. Kaylas host sister is far more the social italian teenager- one night i went out with them, and we met up with their friends in a park in the city and smoked cigarettes. Those kids are So entertaining... they jump around and make out with each other and yell obscene things. On hearing my californian origins, they made references to "doing the joints" and "da ganja." I think some of the dudes go to my school, so i hope ill get to hang with them instead of watching soccer talk shows in italian with Giamarco. Balls on THat shit. And, better still, theres rumor of a disco this weekend! Ill write about that afterwards also.
So, i survived the first week. Ill not say it was easy, but its all falling into place as they said it would, and at this point ive no idea how the year is going to turn out. But i miss all of you to death and ill try to write at least every week. Send me letters because ive been rereading the ones i have over and over and it makes me very very very happy.