A Dip in the Fountain

Last night was James' last night in Bologna...this morning he is currently on a flight home to America, the first of us all to leave. So that means...We had to do something special for his last night. We all met up at the Irish Pub, spent a bit of time toasting and chatting...

The UCSD gang :)

James' sexy pose

...and then moved on to Piazza Maggiore for the REAL festivities. You see, Mikaela and some of the others have always wanted to swim in the Fountain of Neptune at some point this year, and it turns out that last night was the night! By the time we arrive there from the pub, Mikaela's already in...Andrew's on his way...James is making a fuss because they didn't wait while stripping down to his speedo...everyone's laughing and wondering if anyone's going to come and break this party up...but it's Italy and they couldn't care less apparently...and everyone's snapping photos...and before you know it Shawn's stripped down and he's in the fountain...Katie's in her underwear and she's in too...Mikaela wants to go again and so she does...Ashley shows up and jumps in without a second thought...Julia and Gio are contemplating but don't want to ruin their dresses...Julia says if Kelly goes I'll go...and so I'm like what the hell...and so off come the shirt and the heels...and before I know it...I'M IN THE FOUNTAIN...and it's so cool...and kinda slimy...and all the mermaid's breasts are splashing water around me...and by then the girls have joined me...and Julia pulls me all the way in...and we're laughing and screaming and photos upon photos are snapped and it's incredible oh my god I can't believe I actually just jumped in the fountain what a feeling I'm going to be able to tell my kids about this one day...and then Charlotte decides she doesn't want to be left out of the fun and neither does Sarah so in they go too...and by the end of the night at least a baker's dozen of us had dipped in the fountain and MAMMA MIA was it glorious.

AND just to top it all off...Andrew finally lived up to his bet with Charlotte (which he lost) and did a naked lap around Maggiore! He said at one point he had to apologize to a policeman as he ran by! And then the night had to turn to the point where we all say our sappy goodbyes to James. He goes to UCSD with me, I'll see him lots next year, and yet I was pretty worked up about it. I can't imagine what it's like for the people who will probably never see him again. Let alone for him! Bologna will have lost some of its magic now that he's gone. And so this is what I face now...at almost every event someone says, this is probably the last time I'll see you here...and it's really difficult to be here while everyone's constantly up and leaving. But that's just the way it is...I guess we're all getting a little used to good-byes...and yet learning that they're always followed by hellos.