best friends 4 ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My best best friend in Rome is in the same class with me, she lives really close to me and she is just like me. She has brown hair just like me, she has dark brown eyes just like me and she is basically as tall as me, we both love the same things like: websites, singers, movies, books, pens, diaries, bracelets,actors, actresses and sooo many other things, two of our favorite actresses are Vanessa Anne Hudgens and Ashley Tisdale who both starred in HSM ( high school musical, one of our favorite movies) Vanessa played the part of the main character, Gabriella Montez and Ash played the part of Sharpay Evans. We are going to do a concert together we are going to sing songs in English so I have to teach them to her I must say she is a really quick learner it takes her about a week or less to learn the songs and I know it seems like a long time but it is short for an Italian speaker. She helps me with my Italian when I need help with it, she really talked with me a lot my first months at that school everyone did but she was by far the most help to me .I learned a lot of Italian talking with her everyday she is a really really really really........(I could go on for ever) good friend I think I am going to be friends with her 4 ever.

What a weird teacher

We have this art teacher at school who is usualy very strict and serious and she also stays with us when we do homework after school beacause in my school you have the choice of doing your homework at school with a teacher waching you so when she was waching us the other day and me and my two other friends had finished are homework. While we were waiting for the others to finish their homework we played some clapping games and the teacher saw us and out of the blue took one of my friends hands and showed us a clapping game-dance kind of thing that she did when she was little. It was weird to see a strict and proper teacher like her just get up and dance we all laughed and tryed it out it was fun and it had mostly made up words but some of the words actually meant some thing this these are the words to the song: PIZZA RICOTTA ORESTE EBUM PIZZA RICOTTA ODESTE EBUM EBUM EBUM EBUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Here are the words to another clapping clapping game that is one of my favorites: fly sei ( clap 3 times) sikula ( clap 3 times) questa qui ( clap 3 times) fly sei ( clap 3 times) quando la sera ( clap 2 times) la luna malapena ( clap 2 times) acqua salata ( clap 2 times) zucchero filato ( clap 2 times) noi faremo ( clap 2 times) bum bum flash.

I was thinking about Santa Claus.....

I was thinking about Santa Claus and it made me wonder how they celebrate Christmas in different countries, so I did some research.

I learned that Santa Claus has different names in different countries:
Afghanistan -- Baba Chaghaloo
Armenia -- Gaghant Baba
Brazil -- Papai Noel
Czech Republic -- Jezisek
Denmark -- Julemanden
France and French Canada -- Le Pere Noel
Germany -- Weihnachtsmann
Iraq and South Africa -- Goosaleh
Ireland and Scottish Highlands -- Daidi na Nollag
Portugal -- Pai Natal
Romania -- Mos Craciun
Spain and Mexico -- Papa Noel
Netherlands and Belgium -- Sinterklaas
(www.worldofchristmas.net)

The character of Santa Claus is based on a real person. This person (according to history) was a bishop in Turkey. He gave presents to needy, poor and good kids to make them happy. So, many folktales were created about him. After a while he became Santa Claus as he is known today.

I also came across some nice stories of Santa Claus in different countries. For example, in France Pere Noel exchanges the hay and carrots the children put in their shoes for the reindeer with presents. (www.familycrafts.about.com/cs/santaprojects/l/blperenoel.htm)

In Russia Father Frost often travels in a traditional Russian sleigh ( troika) with his granddaughter, Snegurochka , the snow maiden. Now Christmas is celebrated on January 7 in Russia because after the October Revolution in 1917 they changed the dates so that Christmas came after (non-religious) New Year's to make New Year's more important. Because of that, in Russia, Father Frost is associated with New Year's rather than with Christmas. (www.familyofmann.tripod.com/rph016.htm)

I also found this one which I thought was funny. From www.infostarbase.com/tnr/xmas/santa.html: in Poland, "Swiety Mikolaj (Saint Nicholas) was a cardinal in the Catholic Church, he visits children on December 6th and he brings presents, mostly sweets, which he leaves in children clean (it is very important) shoes." The part I thought was funny was the part when they say "it is very important" that the shoes are clean. I wonder if he does not give presents if the shoes are not clean. They also forgot the "'s" on children's.

Piazza Navona for Befana

Here is a picture of Piazza Navona on January 6, 2007. The Piazza is filled with games and toys for the christmas celebration that ends on January 6, which is the Befana. Here is the story of the Befana as told by Kristin Thoennes in the book Christmas in Italy:

"Many Italian children believe in the Befana (bay-FAH-nah). Befana is a kind, old witch. Some Italians say that the three kings invited Befana to Bethlehem to honor Jesus. Befana said she was too busy.
Later, Befana changed her mind. She filled a sack with treats and toys for Jesus. Befana rode her broom looking for Jesus. But she did not find the newborn. Befana still looks for Jesus on Epiphany every year. Befana stops at every house with a child to see if the child is Jesus. She leavs a gift for each child."

Italian children believe in another character. His name is Babbo Natale.

more about me...

Italy is the third country I have lived in. I have lived in Turkey, the United States and now in Rome. I speak fluent Turkish, and obviously English and Italian..........I am trilingual. When we first moved to Italy I was in an international school. Then,in second grade, because I was not learning Italian, I went to a completely Italian school. I went there not knowing a word of Italian and all the teachers spoke Italian and all the kids spoke Italian. I could not communicate with anyone, so it was difficult. But look at me now (in third grade)! I speak fluently. I guess I learned faster because I basically had to learn in order to be able to survive that school, so I did. Actually now I am having problems because I am talking too much during class...and it's funny because when I first went to that school the teacher said that I didn't talk at all...and now she's complaining that I'm a chatterbox (chiacchierona).

Me!!!!!!

This is me in front of what I see when I look out my window. In my opinion it is the most beautiful building in Rome (lucky for me I have to see it every day)