“Perfection is the enemy of progress.”

– Winston Churchill

Week one has wrapped up and I have to admit, I’m loving living the simple life in a small Tuscan village. I go to the supermarket almost daily, cook simple meals, and I am just enjoying being here. It’s weird when you are “living” someplace rather than “vacationing”. I feel zero pressure to be out exploring all day long, trying restaurants, or walking 20,000+ steps a day. It’s glorious.

Montepulciano is everything you see in the pictures. Narrow streets, lots of hills, tiny shops, restaurants, cafes, and wine shops every few feet. I’m at one end of town, my school is at the other end, and the supermarket is a few minutes from school outside the old town walls. It’s a downhill walk every morning, and unfortunately, an uphill walk when I have my groceries. It is quite steep in some areas so I quickly learned not to buy water and wine in the same purchase. With all this hill walking, I eat whatever I want.

Perfectionism. What a killer that can be. For months my cousin Maria told me to let go of trying to be perfect with my Italian, she said I just needed to speak. Being stubborn, and always the student striving for high grades, I didn’t listen. Well, I finally got the message.

I love the school, Il Sasso. It has many years of history, and students come from all over the world to study. Group classes are typically 3-8 people, and you are placed by your entrance exam scores. Group lessons begin at 9am, and we have two breaks in the morning before lunch recess at 1pm, then private lessons start at 2pm or later. My classes are going well, and I really enjoy my group lesson. It is total immersion. The classes, textbook, asking questions – they are all in Italian. When you ask “Che cosa vuol dire…?” or What does it mean…?”, the teacher responds in Italian “La significa…”. The structure of class is loose. Yes, they have a plan for what they want to cover that day, but that can change depending on the discussions we have, from politics, to shopping, to buying an eSIM card vs. a phone in Italy. Also, if you have a dog, it can come to class. They love their dogs here, they are family, not just pets. I love it!

My private lessons are difficult. All the attention, all the time, is on me. Trying to be perfect hindered my progress as I prepared myself for my time here. I self-studied all the material I learned many years ago in high school. Perfectionism stunted my ability to speak, although my comprehension is good. Give me a test to fill in the answers, I do well. I scored well on the placement exam, and they placed me in A2 level. The issue, when I open my mouth, the fear of not being perfect makes all my knowledge disappear. I know what I want to say, I know how to say it, but as soon as my mouth opens, everything is lost, even words I’ve know since childhood. Therefore, I’ve dumped perfection and am embracing imperfection. Using AI for research, I found this is very common when learning a new language, and it’s not my knowledge of the language, it’s the “instant recall” you need in conversation. When you can’t think of the exact word or verb tense immediately, fear sets in, and boom, everything is lost. Thankfully, there are “brain exercises” to help with this, and of course the number one task is let go of trying to be perfect.

The school offers after school events to continue practicing Italian with other students. This past week I went to the “aperitivo” hour to meet other students, and that is when the dropping of perfection truly set in. I also went to a cooking class with another student from France. He is at the intermediate level, and was patient with me while we conversed in Italian over the pasta and pizzas we made. These events are important as the environment is relaxed, and you realize your are not alone with your struggles.

Tramondo – the Italian word for sunset, and they are spectacular here, especially when you take a walk to the edge of town and overlook the beautiful Tuscan hills. After my classes on Tuesday, the sky was clear, and I knew it would be the perfect opportunity for some pictures. It was also the perfect opportunity to reflect on how fortunate I am to be here living my dream for a few weeks. While enjoying the views, a nun was sweeping the church entryway. She pulled out her cellphone and asked me to snap her photo with the beautiful sunset behind her. That was my good deed for the day!

To cap off my first week, I decided on Saturday to walk to Montefollonico. The small hill town about 7km away, and yes, part of your walk to and from is fairly steep, but thankfully in both directions you start going downhill first. You can see Montefollonico and the dirt road you walk to get there from Montepulciano. Very few cars take the dirt road, as there is a paved road from another direction; this makes the walk peaceful, and a wonderful opportunity for self-reflection.

Montefollonico is much smaller than Montepulciano. I only saw one or two shops, a small grocery store, a pharmacy, and two restaurants. I walked about the village for a bit, snapping some photos, and enjoying the peace and quiet of being in a small town that had very few tourists. This is a very different experience from what I’ve encountered in other cities.

I decided with all the walking I had done, plus what I still had ahead of me on my journey back, I deserved a delicious pasta lunch. I got to the restaurant about 10 minutes after they opened, and there was only one couple seated. In Italian I asked for a table for one, and luckily although most tables were large, there was a small one in the corner of this tiny establishment. The restaurant is owned by a couple, the husband waits tables, and the wife does the cooking. There was one other gentleman helping to serve food. Within 20 minutes after my arrival the place filled up with families. It was fun to listen to their conversations, and I realized I could understand much of what they were saying. I also noticed no one had out their cellphones. It was multiple generations sitting at tables, nonnas, nonnos, zias, zios, parents, children, all conversing, the entire two-plus hours I was there. What a stark contrast to what you typically witness back in the US where most people are engrossed with their phones while ignoring their meal companions. After my macchiato, it was time to head back. When I returned, my legs were a bit sore, but what a wonderful day, and the perfect way to wrap up my first week.

Would you be surprised if I told you I reserved my apartment in Montepulciano for three weeks in November so I can return for more classes?

Ciao! 413 Girl 💕