La Bellissima Cresima

This Sunday, my host sister had her Confirmation. I was so honored to be here for such an amazing event, and the festivities were unlike any I had experienced before.

On Thursday afternoon, I came home from school to find my host grandparents on the couch with the family hanging around. They swung by to give Ele a gift nice and early - a wonderful family heirloom from Sardegna. I legitimately could not stop staring at the beautiful gift, and I'm so jealous. Following, the godparents came by and have her a brand new camera! Besides the material gifts, I was in awe at the excitement of it all. In the USA, this isn't a big deal for most besides the spiritual decision. As grand as the sentiments might be, I never experienced this emotion, the planned festivities, and showering of gifts in the USA when my Catholic friends had the same ceremony.

Friday after school, I came home to warm smiles of Phebe, my American-Italian host sister ( ;) ) and her dad. We chatted the night away, and when we woke up Saturday morning it never stopped. Our host dad took us to Villa Lante, a beautiful medieval garden in the small town of Bagnaia 10 minutes away. It was such a nice surprise. I couldn't believe I had never seen it! We also had perfect weather. It was the ideal way to spend a sunny Saturday morning. After a nice and big lunch, we walked around the center I've gotten to know so well and allowed Phebe some time for her nostalgia to settle in. It was so lovely to compare experiences, and its safe to say she made the best of her time here in Italy as I am aspiring to do.

Sunday was the amazing cresima. We sat through a lovely mass and supported all of the people participating. It was super sweet and followed by endless pictures. After a solid two hours at the church, we all headed in our separate cars up into the mountains to a scenic restaurant for endless amounts of food. It was great- my host sister AND cousin were being celebrated, so there was double the excitement in the air. A solid five course italian meal never disappoints and the family love was overwhelming. Can we fa la cresima every weekend!?

Phebe, thank you for being so awesome. We without a doubt have the best host family ever, and I'm so glad I've finally met my second host sister. We'll meet up shortly in the USA, but hopefully again in Italia!
                 



















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