Journey

This semester has been one of the most difficult ones I have ever endured. There is so much to say but instead of doing that I had decided to travel somewhere important to me. I decided to go to Worcester, MA. Okay, its a known fact that Worcester sucks. Really badly. There is nothing beautiful to see and a majority of it run down. My father is from Worcester, born and raised and he definitely acts like it too. Recently, my cousin passed away. He died of a rare cancer of the blood plasma. I did not even know that was possible. My cousin opened his business Light Lab and never wanted to leave Worcester. He found so much potential in a place like this. I always avoided being there at all costs. I have discovered lately that I wish I could approach life in the way that Joey did, very optimistic.  I went to this restaurant called Dino's. My family has been eating there for years and when I sat in the booth it felt right. Like coming home after a long trip away. I ordered Joey's favorite meal, eggplant parmesan. I felt so comforted from knowing I could in a way, be with him. As I was driving through the streets of Worcester, I started realizing that the place that my father had tried to run away from for so long, was a part of me. I grew up here.

When Italy Meets Lebanon

So for this blog, I have decided to discuss the meeting of cultures between my boyfriend and I. Before I jump into this, I want to provide some background about myself. I am 100% full-blooded Italian. My parents call 400 times a day, and my house constantly smells like homemade sauce and basil. My family talks entirely too loud in social settings and when we all get together... we need two houses to fit everyone. Oh, and my second cousins removed know everything about your life and yes, there are a ton of Vinny's, Anthony's and Emilios. Phew okay. I hate to say it but yes, my family has rubbed off on my entirely too much, and when I was bringing my boyfriend Alex home to meet them for the first time, intimidation would be an understatement. Alex is Lebanese, very Lebanese to be exact, he speaks it to his family all the time. When my family meet him for the first time, there was about 30 of us at my grandmother's house and everyone pulled him in for a hug and kiss like they knew him for 10 years. His face of happiness and confusion was priceless. He knew he was in it for the long haul. It finally came time for me to meet his family. Deep breath. Okay, don't let your loud mouth freak them out. Of course, my mom send me over with a box of canoles, God we're such a stereotype. The moment I walked in I felt like I was transported to another country. EVERYONE was speaking Arabic. They greeted me much like my family, would just less intense. Everyone smoked cigarettes and looked like they just jumped off the runway. Their clothes were amazing! How do people dress like this all the time?? We sat down to eat and the food was amazing, grape leaves ,taboule. They ate deer which freaked me out a bit but hey, I knew something would. But I realized one thing, I loved it. There was nothing to be afraid of, I was totally fine.

Spring Break

So needless to say, Spring Break was not what I expected at all. As I scrolled through my Facebook newsfeed, all I saw was people smiling from ear to ear in their bathing suits with crystal clear blue water in the background. During my break I decided to get in touch with some places I have never visited in Rhode Island since my work schedule prevented me from traveling very far. I decided to visit a place the Audubon Society in Bristol, RI. It happened to be abnormally warm weather that day. My boyfriend and I came equipped with our sunglasses, water bottles and sneakers. The walk was beautiful. Eventually we cam across something that looked something like a boardwalk where people were walking and others were bikeriding down.  I have never been much of a hiker or a lover of nature trails. My family is not exactly the outdoorsy type and have never exposed me to much of it. However, over the past few years, I have been so intrigued by outdoor activities and this really catered to that. There are also a lot of people who volunteer here to keep the Audubon Society clean and taken care of. Even though I may not have been lying in the pink sand of the Caribbean, I was able to find my own beauty 30 minutes away.

I'll see you again my friend

Exhaustion. Just looking at the word just made me tired. If I had to think of a trip that made me depleted I would have to say it was my trip to Bermuda. I know what you're thinking.. stop complaining, you went to Bermuda, it screams ultimate relaxation. To be honest, I would say that too. The pink sand and crystal blue water was something was a something I would only enjoy for about 10 minutes. The reason I chose this trip as my most exhausting is because it was the most emotionally exhausting trip I have ever taken. 

I was 15 and immature. I already did not want to go because spending a week with my parents when I was 15 was probably the closest thing to a death sentence for me. This trip however, was not something that was planned for months and everyone was crossing off the days on their calendar for. My family and I booked this trip last minute so we could spread my uncle's ashes in Bermuda's ocean. Why Bermuda? It's a place where my uncle who was tormented with mental illness his whole life, felt most at peace. It's a place where he wanted his family to come together and remember him. My uncle was one of my best friends, when he passed away the shock and anger was something I was not ready to let go of, or face. When we arrived at the airport, the heartache was not the only obstacle we were about to face. 

We arrived at T.F Green Airport in Warwick. Due to my mother’s constant and helpful need to be three hours early to everything, we made it on time with a lot of time to spare. Then in true Murphy’s Law fashion, everything bad that could happen, did. The attendant came on the intercom at the terminal and told us our plane was not able to take flight due to severe engine issues, and the next flight would not be for another 6 hours. I don’t need to explain the the pain, complaining, and irritation that ensued when this bomb dropped. My brother was 8 years old at the time, so instantly he became the worst child to ever live. We took turns taking shifts around the airport to keep him occupied. Eventually as time move at a glacial pace, the plane arrived. When we got off the plane in Bermuda it was beautiful, I have never seen such crystal blue water. Then 20 minutes after we get there, it starts raining. Not just normal rainfall, it was the torrential tropical rain that can either last 5 minutes to 5 days. Needless to say it rained 80% of the time we were in Bermuda. Aside from the rain, we had a motive. To get to Horseshoe Beach and give my uncle a good-bye he wanted. We took the bus to beach since there is a shuttle that takes you to all of the beaches.  The day we went to spread his ashes, it was sunny all day. It was an extremely emotional, and certainly exhausting trip. The motive of this trip in the end, surpassed the bad qualities of the journey there. When we were done saying goodbye to my uncle and standing around recalling fond memories of him, we knew it was a trip we would never forget and not change one thing. The picture above is the place on the island where we spread his ashes. 

This is photo of me at Southwick's Zoo located in Mendon, MA.