So this is my fifth day in Monza.
Was feeling a bit down yesterday. I have tried plugging in the Play Station 3 and the Wii U to the Samsung TV but we still get the message "modo non suppportato." :/
I brought a hard drive full of English-language kids' movies and TV shows but there was no USB plug in the Samsung TV, either.
The only kids' tv channel on cable is Boing TV which mostly shows Cartoon Network stuff in Italian. This will probably be for the best in the long run since N. said that at his orientation day at school the teachers mixed in some Italian along with English and the cartoon shows should probably help with him picking up basic Italian.
Our landlords have been very gracious and I don't really want to impose on them further.
It's enough that the dishwasher and built-in oven are new. Though is sucks completely that there is no dryer. The clothes I put out to dry in the laundry room take longer than a day to dry and some haven't completely dried even after that.
Also Mrs. C.'s son came by the other day and brought in a plug-in "modem" that I think would support a tourist's Italian sim card for a week and not a home's internet usage. (It lasted us literally TWO days between my normal browsing - no downloading - and my son's non-excessive downloading of iPad games.)
Problems aside (that I still hope that I will find a solution to) me and the kids went around the block, so to speak, and reached a Carrefour market. It's kind of funny that this European supermarket branch reminds us of "home."
The kids were amused with how many dogs they saw being walked. We saw this strange red ominous headless statue near the supermarket.
I was pleasantly surprised to find that inside the supermarket you weigh your vegetables/fruit yourself. It was easy enough to follow with the number code and it gives you the nifty sticker to put on your bag.
On the first day we arrived in Monza we went down to Auchan on L's recommendation and were surprised by all the kids dressing up in costume. L said that it's a carnival to celebrate joy. It was pretty joyous and I'm guessing these cookies I've found at C4 are somehow related.
One thing I've noticed is how many old people I encounter in this town. I stick out like a sore thumb (well with the hijab I stick out, anyway) this way and in many others. I've yet to meet any people walking with three children in tow. The most I've met is two kids and in a country known for its low childbirth rates I don't think I ought to be surprised.
When Mrs. C. came by later at 2pm with the handyman in tow she sat down to play with my baby and then told me a bit about her sons. It was really nice and she offered to stay longer seeing as she's somehow aware that as a Muslim woman I'm not supposed to be alone with foreign men but I told her it was okay and she left.
The handyman took a while and he had to leave and come back with a part. Because he worked so hard and actually left to get a part I tried to tip him 10 euros but he wouldn't have it. I actually think he looked offended. :/ I'm sorry, Mr. Handyman.
After the handyman left we went to the nearby park. Famed for being one of the biggest parks in Europe we were flabbergasted by the entrance near our home being an inlet for car traffic. I immediately turned to the side to encounter a long biking/walking/running track with markers on it for every traversed 100 meters.
We didn't stay long as it was late and was very cold even with it being sunny yesterday and I was nervous that it was going to turn dark while I was outside with my kids. I'm not in the UAE anymore.
I'm going to explore the park in-depth in the coming days, I hope. I plan to buy a ball for my two sons to play with while I gather ideas for my book that I hope to finish this year.
Was feeling a bit down yesterday. I have tried plugging in the Play Station 3 and the Wii U to the Samsung TV but we still get the message "modo non suppportato." :/
I brought a hard drive full of English-language kids' movies and TV shows but there was no USB plug in the Samsung TV, either.
The only kids' tv channel on cable is Boing TV which mostly shows Cartoon Network stuff in Italian. This will probably be for the best in the long run since N. said that at his orientation day at school the teachers mixed in some Italian along with English and the cartoon shows should probably help with him picking up basic Italian.
Our landlords have been very gracious and I don't really want to impose on them further.
It's enough that the dishwasher and built-in oven are new. Though is sucks completely that there is no dryer. The clothes I put out to dry in the laundry room take longer than a day to dry and some haven't completely dried even after that.
Also Mrs. C.'s son came by the other day and brought in a plug-in "modem" that I think would support a tourist's Italian sim card for a week and not a home's internet usage. (It lasted us literally TWO days between my normal browsing - no downloading - and my son's non-excessive downloading of iPad games.)
Problems aside (that I still hope that I will find a solution to) me and the kids went around the block, so to speak, and reached a Carrefour market. It's kind of funny that this European supermarket branch reminds us of "home."
The kids were amused with how many dogs they saw being walked. We saw this strange red ominous headless statue near the supermarket.
On the first day we arrived in Monza we went down to Auchan on L's recommendation and were surprised by all the kids dressing up in costume. L said that it's a carnival to celebrate joy. It was pretty joyous and I'm guessing these cookies I've found at C4 are somehow related.
One thing I've noticed is how many old people I encounter in this town. I stick out like a sore thumb (well with the hijab I stick out, anyway) this way and in many others. I've yet to meet any people walking with three children in tow. The most I've met is two kids and in a country known for its low childbirth rates I don't think I ought to be surprised.
When Mrs. C. came by later at 2pm with the handyman in tow she sat down to play with my baby and then told me a bit about her sons. It was really nice and she offered to stay longer seeing as she's somehow aware that as a Muslim woman I'm not supposed to be alone with foreign men but I told her it was okay and she left.
The handyman took a while and he had to leave and come back with a part. Because he worked so hard and actually left to get a part I tried to tip him 10 euros but he wouldn't have it. I actually think he looked offended. :/ I'm sorry, Mr. Handyman.
After the handyman left we went to the nearby park. Famed for being one of the biggest parks in Europe we were flabbergasted by the entrance near our home being an inlet for car traffic. I immediately turned to the side to encounter a long biking/walking/running track with markers on it for every traversed 100 meters.
We didn't stay long as it was late and was very cold even with it being sunny yesterday and I was nervous that it was going to turn dark while I was outside with my kids. I'm not in the UAE anymore.
I'm going to explore the park in-depth in the coming days, I hope. I plan to buy a ball for my two sons to play with while I gather ideas for my book that I hope to finish this year.
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