To Pack or Not to Pack

I leave for NYC in 2 weeks! Then 2 days later I fly to Zurich then to Rome. Ahh! I haven't even started packing. What clothes should I pack? What gifts should I bring my host families? Do I bring a hair dryer?... And how am I supposed to NOT wear sweats out in public? It's basically the only things I wear here.And then we get to the big problem of the fact that I don't speak ANY Italian...that's going to be a problem. There's absolutely no time left and I am totally unprepared but I am sooo  excited!