What were you grateful for this week?I’m grateful for my support system back home; my friends and my family who have been supportive during this time in my life. 

What was the most difficult or challenging part of this week?Realizing big cultural differences. 

Tell us about a “wow” moment you had this week.I spent extra time with the kids this week. 

Tell us about your week! 

This week was good but it came with challenges of course. My host family didn’t get home until Wednesday this this week, so I only watched the kids on Thursday and Friday and then my host family left again Friday night and they weren’t back until Sunday night. So I had a lot of time to myself. I mostly just relaxed this week because it wasn’t the best weather outside; it was kind of gloomy and raining.

On Saturday I got my hair done by a girl who lives here in Rome as well; she lives about an hour and a half away from my house and for the first time I rode a bus back home by myself; I guess riding the bus and the trains has been a big fear of mine just because I’ve been so scared to get lost or get off at the wrong stop; so while I’ve been here all I’ve been doing is walking everywhere I want to go; which is still really nice because I get to see more of the city that way. But I was proud that I rode the bus and got off at the right stop as well. I depended on my mom a lot this week. I’ve been here for a month and I’m finally starting to feel homesick; and I’m so thankful for my family and friends who have been there for me through this journey. They keep me going everyday.