More looking around

This week has gone fast and finally there is only one week to go. I think lessons went well this week. I had to give some of them a short test to see how they are all progressing. Everyone seemed to do well, in my opinion, so I hope they will be encouraged by what they have achieved so far.

I managed to get through subject/object questions without further confusing my intermediate group. They are nice, just three girls, one of whom turned out to be an excellent actress last week when I asked them to act out a phrase on a card. She was just brilliant and it was easy to guess what she was doing. This week we were talking about Britishness and they also did some quiz questions on Italy for me.

I actually had fun in the kids' class. I've made several trips to a local stationer's shop which is run by a woman and her two sons. The sons are helpful because they know I can't say much in Italian. It turns out "glitter" is the same word when used in the context of "glitter glue" which came in very handy for some reindeer the kids made. They drew around their hands so the fingers form the four reindeer legs and the thumb makes the head. Everyone found it hard cutting out antlers, so I ended up doing lots of them, but they all enjoyed decorating the reindeer bodies with glitter glue, even though it was in such quantities it did not dry in time for them to take the reindeer home. They're supposed to be tree decorations. We also sang Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer - well, I sang it to them and they made an attempt to sing what they could - I suppose we will do it again next lesson and they might pick up some more. We did actions, which they all followed very attentively. Yes, I've warmed to them a lot recently and had a bit of a soft moment when they were all calling for my attention as usual (Bet-han, Bet-han, because no one can pronounce the "th" properly). How nice it would be, I found myself thinking, to have someone calling for you like that. Except a kid of your own would hardly call you by your first name so that isn't quite right.

We went over to Darcy's flat yesterday and then on to Aci Trezza. I can't do the whole late night and drink thing any more so I was trying my best to drink as slowly as possible and it seemed to work. I am already missing the Australian woman being here, because she was nearer my age.

This morning, inspired by Deanna's exhortation to find things out for myself, I took her guide book

with me and headed into town to try to find the other amphitheatre. I found it in a spot that I have passed frequently and never realised it was there, beneath the level of the road, in a pit. It was huge in its day but is now just some arches and columns. I don't know what it is about Catania but even when you read or hear about things that are supposed to be good, they always seem a bit disappointing. Anyway - one thing that was just the opposite today was Etna. There is a long street where you can see Etna at the top - today she was clearer than I have ever seen her while I've been in Catania. She looked amazing - you can't see the top or the whole outline but just one slope and you could see the snow and it seemed like she was really near. It was so impressive I kept turning round to stare.  Ella and Beth went to town later and Ella knew of a hotel where you can get a panoramic view from the top - so she came back with an amazing photo of Etna over Catania's roofs.

the swordfish is on the table

I decided to check out the fish market, la pescheria, as this is a well known feature of Catania (we are right next to the sea). I did not realise but it's right behind the elephant square. It was quite impressive in a fish-markety sort of way - bearing in mind that I don't eat fish and inwardly was wholly unimpressed by the display of marine carnage. Seeing such beautiful creatures (including poor octopuses) set out on the ice is not my idea of a nice view, but I did want to experience this very Catanese thing. Poor swordfish, who are enormous, were on many stalls, with their heads there to look impressive or something - their swordlike noses are so long.  Luckily there was one nice thing to look at; the Catanese fishmongers weren't too bad looking, but you know I'm not obsessed - it is just nice to observe different looking people and some of them are quite arresting. It made me smile because Sophie and Rickard, who I met in Taormina, always joked I would marry a fisherman (or pescatore).

Next to the fish market are some meat stalls, which I hastened past. I had been warned by the guide book and I did see one of the things it mentioned, which I will spare you, because it was something out of a nightmare. There were also some more fruit and veg stalls - the produce is really fresh and always looks good.  I had the nicest avocado today, it was so creamy and delicious. I don't think it was Sicilian but it was lovely.

The idea was to get some Christmas presents today, but I have resorted to doing it all online and I can't even decide what to get some people. It doesn't get easier to think of things. I honestly can't wait now, it feels so close. I suppose coming back will be hard after going home but at least I have one or two students who I will feel motivated to come back to.  So this final week I am going to either finish giving tests or return the marked tests, and then sod work, we are going to do Christmassy things - learning about what we Brits do on Christmas Day (basically open our presents, eat sprouts, ignore the Queen, watch a film, squeeze in some trifle). It seems like they don't have a special meal they all eat here, they just have pasta or something. I was asking my student friend, who I met for a coffee and our Italian/English practise last weekend. He just gets a few days off, like most people, which is a shame as he seems stressed by work, so I am lucky to get two weeks off.  His class and I are going for a pizza on the last day (we have the last lesson on Monday 22nd) so that will be nice, before I go home on 23rd.

Hot water bottle cover

I have previously tried using the delightful font at Hinton Parva for inspiration for art, and so from initial trials in felt, I decided to make something bigger.

The creatures and patterns on fonts and tympanums, which we have seen in our travels, lend themselves perfectly to creating something new and artistic. I wanted to do a bag, but not being that sure what sort of bag to make, I settled for a hot water bottle cover, the instructions for which I found online.

First I looked for inspiration in my sketchbook, from all the places we have visited. One of my favourites is the font at Hinton Parva, with its happy snake, birds, fish and unspecific quadruped. It is perhaps he (or she) whose jaunty stance appeals to me most. So I had my main motif for the hot water bottle cover. I then wanted to use some of the symmetrical designs we have seen to decorate above and below.

The zigzags with circles in that we have seen around several arched Norman doors seemed perfect for the purpose, so I used the sketch from Whaddon. I also chose part of the design from our lovely font at Christian Malford, and also the shell shapes from Bremhill for the neck of the bottle.

Not wanting to overload the bottle with creatures, instead of a lamb of God, I chose a pattern for the bottom half of the back, adapted from the doorway decoration at South Stoke, back before the blog began.

Here is the finished result. I am quite pleased with it, and even more pleased to pass it on to my sister, because it is through her interest in these fabulous works of art, that we have both been inspired to create our own artwork.  She made the observation that no one will ever have made a hot water bottle cover with this design before!