Amazing!

Wow, what an amazing weekend!! I really ended up having such a great birthday and I am so happy! There wasn't a dinner party after all, so I just went to a pub to grab dinner with Andrea and another friend, before going to the party. I went to the party at about 10 and it was not what I was thinking at all. I was thinking it was going to be this huge party but instead it was about 20 people, which I actually enjoyed a lot better. We were all standing around listening to Erica (who the party was for) read her poem...

Let me first explain the Veneto tradition when you graduate from University. University in Italy is not the same as it is in America, so not everyone graduates together at one time. So when you graduate from University and get your degree you are considered a dottore( or dottoressa) no matter what your degree is in. So you are now considered to be a professional. So basically, your friends have a party for you and the whole point is to make you look like a complete idiot! They dress you up in a costume. They also write out this huge poster with pictures of you and a poem about your life. But since it is from your friends, it is usually not neccessarily good things that happen in your life. Then at the party you have to read the poem out loud and everytime you make a mistake you have to drink, so by the end of the night you are pretty drunk.

Anyway, so Erica likes pink so they dressed her up like Paris Hilton and she was reading her poem when I got there so we had to wait until she finished, and then we talked and ate and drank for a while, cut the cake for her (it was just like an American cake because my Canadian friends made it, SOO GOOD!!), at which point they all also sang Happy Birthday to me. It was a lot of fun because everyone spoke English and was really nice to me.

So then the disco opened to the public at midnight so more people started coming and everyone was dancing and it was just a really good time. Andrea and his friends came so I felt cool because I actually knew quite a few people at that point, and could do some introductions. Anyway, overall it was a very good time and a very late night. I went to bed at about 7 am!!!

I spent most of early Sunday recovering but had a really great afternoon and evening on Sunday too, so overall it was just one big amazing weekend!! :)

We didn't end up having Thanksgiving on Sunday because it turned out that we couldn't find a whole turkey after all. Everyone says they will start coming in soon. So if we can get one we will attempt our own Thanksgiving but who knows when that will be. Meanwhile, Manuela and I bought the ingredients to make my mom's famous ice cream pie that she always makes me for my birthday, so we will make that for this weekend!! :)

I am also getting excited because I will be home in just over 3 weeks!!! :) And before that, in about 2 weeks we are having Chicco's 2nd birthday party, so I am excited for that too! :) Overall, I am one very happy girl!! :)