by Kai Deniri

Created on: April 06, 2009

For the summer of 2008, I was sent to Sicily with two Italian children whom I cared for. We'd be living in their Nonna Tina's old family home in rural Trapani, surrounded by olive orchards and vinyards, a stone's throw from Marsala. The first thing that enchanted me was the smell. For one thing, it flawlessly matched a Dolce and Gabbana perfume called 'Sicily' that I'd tried at the airport's duty-free - except it wasn't like anything found in any bottle. It was wild and calming, peaceful and captivating; I was drunk on it; I couldn't get enough. This sweet intoxication came from a type of jasmine that only blooms at night and grows in abundance over Nonna Tina's garden wall. I was retired to the late grandfather's library as my sleeping quarters, a screened-off alcove off the living room that was wall-to-wall books, a ceiling-to-floor window, an ancient grand piano, a single bed, and some dressers for storing my things. It was the most beautiful room I'd ever slept in.

From then on, I'd speak as much Italian as possible, and live like a local. Every morning, I went for a run at 7am, although on the traditional Sicilian diet I gained 30 pounds anyway and often couldn't resist stopping at Bar Antony for the BEST chocolate-filled croissants (coronetto cioccolatto) I've ever had anywhere in Europe or anywhere else. For just 2.10 Euro I'd have that and a caffe. I'd listen to Sicilian radio on my cell phone because I had no working iPod. My favorite song was 'Dicono di Me' by Cesare Cremonini, but much of what they played was American - 'American Boy,' 'Sweet Home Alabama All Summer Long,' 'I'm Yours,' and 'In Love With a Girl Who Knows Me Better' came on a lot. Most unusual to hear was Katy Perry's 'I Kissed a Girl.' In Sicily I would become used to kissing girls and girls kissing me, because the baccino - kissing on each cheek - culturally equated to a handshake over there. The song was popular back home because same-sex kissing is supposed to be so taboo...why the popularity where girls are always kissing girls, in a way that simply means 'ciao?' But I also noticed that Sicilians - many Europeans, actually - don't have to understand the words to like the song. Their 13-year-old neighbor played old Blink-182 songs a lot, and I'd guess he knew as much English as the average white American 9th grader knows Spanish.

Nonna Tina's garden had been the subject of much yearning amongst the family I worked for. For wintery, rainy month after wintery, rainy month, all I'd

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