another sigh of relief

i just subscribed to a podcast to help me learn some italian. the possibility of not being able to communicate with those around me has been weighing heavy on my mind as i try to envision what my time in italy will be like. though, i can't really say why. i did extremely well with foreign language in school, and when dealing with non-english-speaking customers at work i am never uneasy and feel like i can still communicate well. but, i suppose it's just my worrisome nature. anyway, the podcast is from learn italian pod and i have downloaded the five minutes a day series. after listening to a couple, i realized that i don't have anything to worry about. my knowledge of spanish is extremely handy- i recognized the meaning of many of the words and phrases due to their similarity to spanish. so, i believe that with some time spent just immersing myself in the language i will pick it up pretty well. with only three months there, i can't say i'll be coming back a fluent speaker of italian, but i feel confident that by the time august 12th rolls around i will be fairly comfortable in an italian-speaking situation.
wish me "buona fortuna"