Allison's Wonderland

Christmas Eve started out wonderful for me this year. Just wonderful. I got on Facebook at about 2:00pm my time in Italy and about 8:00 in the morning East Coast time to find out via Facebook that my Grandpa Harvey died. Can you hear the sarcasm in the first line? There was nothing more I wanted then to be in New York with my family. I love my family so very much and especially when there's a loss I just want to be with them. So that was difficult.

We ended up moving everything up to Prato Nevoso the morning of Christmas Eve. Although there's no snow, there is still one run open so Simona is able to work with the ski school and teach ski lessons. Everyone here is pretty down about the snow factor so I think everybody isn't feeling very Christmasy this year either. In Italy, Christmas is definitely not as big as the states. At the house in Villanova the only decoration was the Christmas Tree. In Virginia we have like the whole house decked out with one tree upstairs and one tree downstairs. On Christmas Eve, Mattia and I tried to set up the little baby tree in the house on the mountain. We also hung stockings and lights. Later in the evening I met up with the other three Au Pairs and we had dinner at Hotel Mondole'. It was actually very good, but most of the dishes were fish. And I'm not a big fish eater. Plus there was a lot of them where the fish looked the same dead as alive and I just can't eat that. As you can see in the pictures. All four of us had a fun night.

Simona and Gianluca both work seasonal jobs, so they really don't have Christmas off. We woke up in the morning and opened gifts and then they both set off for work and Mattia and I chilled in the house. Simona got me a shirt and a mouse pad from this Italian designer who has a line that uses just maps. I like them a lot. It was a very very different Christmas then I'm use to. But it was still Christmas and no matter where I am in the world, Baby Jesus still came, so whatevs. :) I did receive a package from Dad and Jeanne that I waited to open just so I could have something to look forward to in the evening. I was surprised with ski pants, coffee, tea, Resee's Egg's (my favorite), slippers, iTunes and Amazon gift cards, and hmm...I feel like I'm forgetting something, but oh well. :) Oh and did I mention that with Italian taxes it was 50 bucks for Dad and Jeanne to ship from the states and another 46 Euros to actually receive the package!?!? Thank you Italian government! Gianluca was kinda enough to pay the sum, but I felt so bad! Yikes. I quickly warned everyone who said they were going to send me a package to NOT just because 46 euros is half my pay check for the week! Anyway, that was Christmas for me!