6 Days left in Firenze!

Ciao! Today was a beautiful day in Florence! Normally, the weather has been cold, wet and a little windy. BUT, today was generally sunny and warm, so I decided to start my "last" adventures. I went to my favorite spot in Florence, that I've spoken about numerous times, that all of you loyal readers should know by now, Piazza Michaelangelo. By far the most beautiful view of Florence, especially when the sun is out, and the sky is blue...LOVE IT! I just sat on the steps and sat for about an hour, brought my trusty journal and my ipod and just took it in, especially since this could be the last nice day to make it up there. It's across the Arno river and up about 400 steps, so it's not a trip we make every day to say the least! Normally the steps are full of people eating, drinking wine and just sitting, but today there were only about five of us, so it was even more peaceful than normal! During the Christmas season, I'm guessing it doesn't get too busy up there because everyone is doing their shopping and holiday celebrating in Piazza Republica, Ponte Vecchio and places close to the Duomo. The streets are SO BUSY on the weekends, because everyone is out feelin' the Christmas spirit in Florence. I've seen about two Santa Clauses, both of which were drinking beers, and no children asking for gifts in sight...it must be an American thing, haha.

So, it was more of a quiet weekend. My roommates and I made dinner on Friday night, which was DELICIOUS. And...there was no pasta at all, weird huh? We made chicken, potatoes, salad and bought bread from our favorite, The Forno, right downstairs. It was delicious and a lot of fun to cook together. It was a pretty quiet weekend besides that. We've all got finals to study for, and we're all getting ready to leave. It's so weird because I won't be home for three weeks still, but I have to leave here on Saturday! I'm SO excited for Scotland though, and really excited to celebrate Christmas with my friends from home. From what they've saying, Christmas and New Year's is a pretty big deal there, so I'm really excited! There's going to be lots of Christmas markets, and ice rink and a big carnival that we'll get to go to. I think we're going to go to a midnight Christmas Eve service and Christmas Day celebrations are still in the process of being planned. Two days before Christmas, we'll be going to a town called Aviemore, which is supposed to be a really beautiful town in Scotland, and we'll be staying in a cute little bunkhouse. We're all getting really excited to see each other, and getting excited to go home! It keeps me up at night, for real. I was telling my dad the other day that I have insomnia. I go to bed and I lay awake FOREVER because I can't stop thinking! I think about Scotland, about home, and about having to leave Florence, just SO MUCH AND IT NEVER GOES AWAY! Lately, all my roommates and I have been sleeping until noon or 1 o'clock on the weekends because we're all in that mode...I have not slept that late since freshman year, SO CRAZY!

So, only six more days to be in Firenze, my home away from home, literally. I can't believe I have lived here for four months! It'll be strange leaving it, because it all feels so normal to me, and I'm so used to the way of life here. I'm almost afraid going home will be more of a shock than coming here! I'm going to miss so much of the culture and the way of living here, it'll be an adjustment coming home. Not in a bad way, just in small ways that set living in Italy apart from Minnesota. There are just so many cute shops owned by the cutest Italian men, our favorites being the bakeries, gelaterias, and paint shops :) Italy is kind of like Minnesota, in the sense that everyone says hi to each other, but instead of "hi" we say "ciao" and it's so fun! I'm really going to miss saying that back in the states. It's probably good that I'm going to Scotland before going back home, because I'll probably treat everyone like I do in Italy, by saying "ciao" "grazie" and numbers and simple questions...it'll be a strange adjustment! It's just been so fascinating living in a culture with a foreign language, living in it definitely helps you learn it more, it's really fun. Not only do I hear Italian, I hear so many other languages as well from people all over the world. Europe is so awesome in that aspect. So many Europeans travel around and if I have any advice for anyone is would be...GET OUT AND SEE THE WORLD AND ALL OF GOD'S BEAUTIFUL CREATION!! I've seriously been so amazed by all the places I've visited and have just realized how much more I want to travel and see other countries. So yeah...I have this feeling that Italy will always be with me, just because it has truly opened my eyes to so many new places and adventures and although it is cliche to say, it has definitely been life-changing experience. Needless to say however, I am excited and ready to be home! I have a really good feeling about this next year and I'm excited to get back and see where life takes me! See you all soon!

Cute men and even cuter dogs

Ciao. So...something I'm really going to miss are all the cute men and cute dogs, and all the cute men who have the cute dogs. I'm not talking about the super attractive 20-some year olds who are gorgeous and fashionable (although they will be missed), I'm talking about the cute little old men, who play violins and walk their dogs. Example: every day on my way to school there is this little art shop, where a cute little man paints. He has the cutest dog ever who follows him around the shop, that is full of all of his paintings. SOMETIMES, we're lucky enough to walk by when he is playing the violin inside and make sure to slow down and listen in on the goods :) It's just fun because everyone here has a dog and they take them EVERYWHERE. Inside stores, inside the grocery stores, into clothing stores...everywhere, so fun. Anyways, it's just another piece of Italy I'm taking home with me and less than three weeks until Scotland! Ciao Ciao!

ONLY THREE WEEKS LEFT!

As of this last Saturday, I will only be in Florence for three more weeks! That is so crazy! I feel like it was just yesterday that it was the day before I left and I was rushing all around Edina getting stuff for my trip and saying good-bye to Bethel the night before. These three weeks will go extremely fast, and this is why: I have a seven page paper to write for Friday, so I'll be doin that all week, I have a project due next week that I'll be doing all weekend, and then it's finals and packing the last week! It's nuts! Having final papers and tests really sucks in the last weeks here!! But, I will work my butt off to be able to do my favorite things before I leave, believe me!

Well, Thanksgiving was last Thursday, obviously, and since the Italians don't quite celebrate it, it was a quiet day. A lot of people had classes during the day, so my roommates and I went out to dinner to our favorite restaurant down the street called "El Gato e la Vope" (the cat and the fox), and it was soooo good. We definitely stuffed ourselves, but this time with Italian food :) I got an order of bruschetta and one of my favorite pastas, pasta carbonara, YUM! After dinner, we made our way back to the apartment because we all wanted to talk with our families, which was SOOOO GOOD!!! I got to talk FOR FREE on skype with Brendon and Emily who were celebrating in Pittsburgh with friends, and I haven't spoken with them over the phone this whole time! It was so so so good! I also got to speak with dad and Linds earlier, before dinner, and dad and Nance were getting ready for hosting at our house and Linds was on her way to the Pietrini's; man us Kirkbrides are just all over the WORLD! I definitely missed being together though, it'll just make next year's holidays that much better. THEN, to top it all off, I got to talk with the Andersons! I got to say hi to grandma and grandpa, almost all the aunties and of course, uncle joe :) It was just sooo sooo good! Love them so much and can't wait to see them when I get home.

This weekend was very wet and has not stopped raining since Friday morning. Rain boots would be nice to have. tThe sweet Puma's I got before I left are nice, but the "breathable" material on the shoe does NOT help in the rain :) Haha, it wouldn't be a problem, but today I had to walk 20 minutes in the rain/hail after class, it was nuts! Hopefully the weather gets brighter because I don't know how much more rain I can handle these next three weeks! I'm getting excited because this Wednesday they open the German markets in the piazza by my apartment, and it will be so fun and so Christmasy, and hopefully start making it feel like the holidays over here. Also, the lights I talked about that they were putting up like two weeks ago, are FINALLY ON! It's really fun walking the streets when they're on, so pretty! Well, it's like one o'clock in the morning here, I should probably go to bed. I've been having a hard time falling asleep lately because when I decide to go to bed is when my mind decides to day dream-about coming home, going back to Bethel, seeing dad and Nancy, seeing family and friends...it's all starting to seem bittersweet, because I can't wait to be home, but I'm getting really sad to think about leaving Florence after it being my HOME for four months. Anyways...lots of thoughts on that, so I'll cut it short for now. Ciao ciao!!!

Days trips this weekend to Pisa, Siena and Lucca!

Ciao! It was quite the busy weekend for me! My roommate Roxanne and I took two day trips on Friday and Saturday and then our program took us to the small town of Lucca and then headed to an olive oil tasting! It was a really good weekend, because all of these were places that I wanted to see, and they were just a short train ride away, which made it very convenient! The weather here is cooling down...a lot. It is still beautiful out most days, with the sun shinning, but...it can be deceiving because the wind and temperature can be more harsh than expecting...nonetheless, we had a great weekend seeing other parts of Tuscany!

The first trip, to Pisa was a blast. That was the only day in terms of weather that was cloudy, but Roxanne and I had a really great time together, taking pictures with the Leaning Tower and walking around the small town. There were a lot of fun shops to walk through, and of course, we had to get gelato, which was delicious. One of the most entertaining part of the trip was, in a non-offensive way of course was seeing all of the Asian tourists! Seriously, Pisa was just packed, and it was just so entertaining watch everyone pose with the Leaning Tower, because everyone just looks so ridiculous. The pictures hopefully prove the points I am trying to make! So, despite the weather, it was still really fun to be with Roxanne and seeing this part of the country!

Our second day trip was to Siena. It is sooo beautiful there! The weather was sunny, but bitterly cold, both her and I could barely move by the end of the day. Plus, the sun goes down at like 5, so it gets even more cold when that happens. Anyways, Siena is so nice, the architecture is beautiful, and it just has a really clean, quaint feel to it. Like Pisa, there were so many cute shops to walk through and my favorite part was sitting in Piazza del Campo, a pretty well known Piazza in Italy. We just ate some lunch, got gelato, and sat in the Piazza for about 2 hours, because the sun shinning down on us felt sooo good. It's definitely an Italian "thing" to just sit in piazzas, which has become my favorite thing here. People just sit, listen to music, read, journal, drink wine and enjoy the beautiful scenery and realize that Italy is probably the most amazing place they've ever been to :) So, we saw a lot of churches and buildings that were very classic. Besides the cold weather it was a great city to see!

And finally: Lucca. A small town about an hour away from Florence. It's a walled in, quaint little town, with a ton of churches! They call it the town of 1,000 churches (not actually that many) but there are a ton and it made me think of Minnesota-The Land of 10,000 Lakes...MINNESOTA PRIDE BABY! Haha, but it was cute, the only thing is that a lot of things are closed on Sundays, so we weren't able to enjoy browsing through the shops like the other two towns. After visiting Lucca, we went to an oil farm and had an oil tasting! It was so cool! Did you know that it takes 1,000 olives to make ONE BOTTLE?! Only like one drop is used from the olive because more than 50% of the olive is actually water. Also, black and green olives grow on the same tree! WHO KNEW?! I should probably work for them, because I'm so knowledgeable now ;) Then we got to taste the oil the farm produces and it was so so good! We got lots of bread, olive oil, salami and olives...DELICIOUS and my kind of meal :) Again, the sun was out and beautiful, it was just a little chilly!

Great weekend, so glad I got to see these places! This week, I've got to start some final papers that are due in the next two weeks and start the "beginning of the end" of visiting all my favorite places one last time like, especially St. Miniato and Piazza Michaelangelo. Can't believe I only have a month left! Ciao!

Holidays are just around the corner!

Ciao! So me and my roommate Casey were on our way to class today and we witnessed the first sightings of Christmas decorations in the streets! WOO HOO! They're hanging lots of lights up and down the streets by our apartment, I'm so excited to see it at night! Christmas festivities will start up soon here...there are LOTS of Christmas markets to go to, one that is right by our apartment in Piazza Santa Croce, and they do a huge lighting of a Christmas Tree in Piazza de Republica! (Linds-your fave) Can't wait for Thanksgiving to come, because then it means I can officially start listening to Christmas music 24/7 :) I've got my playlist set and ready to go, haha, sad but I am so ready for Mariah.

Speaking of which...that is something I am going to miss next week :( Setting up the Christmas tree Thanksgiving weekend at home. Dad always does his part by bringing the tree up from the basement and putting the lights on-perfect every time I might say, and the last two years, Linds and I have been in charge of the beads and ornaments. All of this is done by blasting Mariah Carey's Christmas cd over and over again until we're done. So...needless to say, I'm going to miss that this year. It'll ALSO be weird not having snow! It's November 18, and I'm still wearing sandals every other day! So...on Thanksgiving, I have class, but at night, so I can celebrate all day before then! I think the closest thing I can get to an American Thanksgiving meal is going to a restaurant that has American brunch...that'll do I suppose! Listen up...please eat lots of potatoes and stuffing for me because those are my favorite!!!!!!!!! I wish we had an oven in our kitchen, but we don't so I can't cook OR bake any of the holiday treats I crraaaavvvve. Anyways, more on holidays to come I'm sure!

This weekend I'm going to go to Siena on Friday with Roxanne. We've heard it's pretty beautiful there, so I'm excited! Then on Saturday, we're going with our program to another Fiorentina soccer game and on Sunday, we go to Lucca! It'll be a fun weekend, hopefully the weather stays beautiful, ciao!

The Last Visitors :(

Just had another AMAZING time with Jennifer and Kristin!! They stayed with me from this past Thursday to this morning, and it was just the best. Like I said about Leah and Linds coming, nothing beats spending time in Italy with friends and family from home. Jennifer and Kristin are studying in Edinburgh, Scotland and came over for the weekend. The place they are staying and studying is where me and a couple other friends, Kelly, Vanessa and Danielle are going to go for Christmas and New Year's, and judging from their experience and pictures, it'll be amazing and I can't wait! Our time together, like I said, was great. The weather was beautiful! It was sunny from Friday morning to last night, so we were really able to enjoy the sights and activities in Florence. Obviously, I took them to my favorite spots: to St. Miniato (the pictures that are shown are from there), Piazza Michaelangelo, El Gato for dinner, and all over for gelato :) We made some great home cooked meals, and I made sure they got to eat the best Italian food possible, meaning bread from The Forno :) We climbed the Duomo, did some shopping in the markets, or "bazaars" as Jennifer would call them, and even got to experience another wine tasting. The weather was amazing, kind of like the beginning of fall in Minnesota...which is my favorite! Since we hadn't seen each other in so long, we were up pretty late every night talking and catching up...pretty sure the earliest we went to bed was about1, every other night being around 3 or 4! Life is to short to sleep though, right? One of the nights we went to the "secret bakery." I had never been there, but my roommate Roxanne wanted to take us, so we went! It opens at 3 in the morning, and it's fresh pastries right from the oven. BEST PASTRIES EVA! And super cheap, which is even better. It's the secret bakery because technically they aren't a bakery, they just distribute to other places, so I don't think they are really supposed to sell it to us...OH WELL! It was totally worth it! It was SO good to see them and I can't wait to spend Christmas and New Year's with them in Scotland!

Coming up: hopefully some day trips to Pisa, Lucca, Fiesole and Siena...I probably mentioned that before, just refreshing the mem. I'm excited to see more towns close to Florence, I love the small town feel of this country. Not to mention the beauty of it all! I'm really enjoying my roommates Casey and Roxanne. We always have a good time together in the apartment and going around town and it's making me a little sad to think we only have a few more weeks together. At the end of our trip, we're all gunna go out and get the biggest gelato ever. Favorite flavors: cookies and cheesecake, nothing can beat it! It's one of the many activities all enjoy together, so we're gunna splurge on our last day together!

Well, that's about it for now...just have a week of classes and catching up on some sleep! If you're looking for something to do, just come to Florence, I'll show ya around.

Visitors welcome anytime!

Ciao! I realize it's been like 2 weeks or something since my last blog...however...life has just been nuts!! I experienced mid-terms in Italy...and let's just say I won't be studying for finals if they are anything like the mid-terms. Haha...just kidding mostly. Well, Leah was here two weeks ago and it was AWESOME! Nothing like spending time with your best friend in Firenze. I made sure to take her to all of my favorite places for dinner and gelato, and then we did some fun things like climbing the cathedral Duomo, in the center of Firenze, which was 463 steps to the top! Pretty amazing stuff. We also climbed to a church called St. Miniato, which really has a beautiful city view of Florence. We made sure to hit up the markets, and we made a lot of delicious home-made meals in my apartment. It was sad to see her go back to London, buuuuut, I'll see her soon and we talk a lot, so I'll make it through :)

The morning Leah left, LINDSEY CAME! It was SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GOOOD!! She actually just left about two hours ago, and let me tell you, tears were present. She got here last Saturday, and we didn't stop until the minute she left! She got to see all of Florence. And like Leah, I made sure to take her to all my favorite spots, like: climbing the Duomo and the hike to St. Miniato, dinner at El Gato and Open Bar, gelato every day, the San Lorenzo market, Ponte Veccio, etc. Her fave was the Piazza de Republica. It's the most modern piazza in Florence, has all the nicest stores and is just really fun to be at. All the time we spent together was AMAZING, the one thing I would've changed was the weather. Out of the 7 days she was here...one was with sun :( Honestly, I was a little embarrassed. Haha, I just haven't seen any clouds or rain since I've been here, so the fact that the day she comes it all changed was a little upsetting. Along with seeing all of Florence, we made a trip to Rome for two days, which was AWESOME! I'm so glad I had been there before, because I kinda knew the way around and knew the general direction of the big things to see. Thankfully we brought our umbrellas because it rained hard-core the first day we were there! We got to stay in a hostel one night and then we saw the Vatican city the second day. We got to walk through St. Peter's and see the Sistine Chapel. Linds being the sneaky and determined little thing she is, snuck a pic, even though they aren't allowed. She got caught the first time, and then when the guard came up to her, she pretended she didn't speak English, or Italian....haha. Then she got a great pic and a couple minutes later we made our exit. We took a train back and I had the privilege of making her my routine dinner: noodles, red sauce and bread. Now she was able to experience what I do EVERY NIGHT. Haha...but for real, I'm bringing back the tradition of olive oil and salt, forget butter it sucks, O.O. all the way! The next day we went to Cinque Terre, because we were hoping that the weather would change for the better, but it didn't :( It was windy and cloudy and we couldn't ride the fairy boats and see all the pretty villages from the sea. However, we made the best of it, made it to three of the five villages and got some great pictures, thanks to Linds. She found some great spots that I didn't find last time. Like I said earlier, she's determined to make the best of wherever she is, and I love it. We had fun on the trains and def. made the most of our trip there, despite the weather.

Last but not least, because Linds has got the hook-ups wherever she goes, we got to stay in the Four Seasons in Firenze last night!!! It was absolutely amazing, there are no words to describe. It was an old palace owned by one of the richest families in Florence and it has been restored into the hotel. Lindsey's old co-worker, Christiano, gave us a tour of the entire hotel, which included seeing a suite that costs 16,000 Euro for ONE NIGHT. Think of that in American money and you may want to die. It was so great, we ordered in room service for dinner and ate a traditional Tuscan breakfast, which was AMAZING. Our beds were considered twins, but to me it felt like a king, soooo great. Both Linds and I loved staying there and were SO thankful that we were able to see the hotel and experience a new aspect of Florence.

Well, that about sums up the time I've had in the last two weeks! It's so crazy to think I've only been here for two months and that I still have TWO MONTHS TO GO!!!! Seeing Linds made me a little homesick for people, so I'm really excited to see YOU (reader) when I get back. Still have lots to do while I'm here. I'm hoping to make some day trips to places close to Florence, like Pisa (as in Leaning Tower) and Siena, and then a small town called Lucca. The more time I'm here, the more I realize how much I love Italy, and how much I love where I am. I am really getting to know places here, and I love all the cute shops and food places, and my favorite, the views from the Duomo and St. Miniato. All of these things make me love this experience and I always think to myself, "I still can't believe I'm here!" God is teaching me so much, and SHOWING me so much, by experiencing a new culture and seeing a new part of His creation. It truly is amazing to be in another part of the world and learning more about Him in so many different ways. I've been stretched in my faith more than I ever thought possible, and I love it, especially since it's all in Italy...what could be better?! This last week, Linds and I talked a lot about mom, and how much we wish she was able to come on this trip with her to see me. We talked about our favorite things about her, and different memories we had of her, and it was just really great having conversation center around her :) Having Linds here was the best, it was so nice to spend a whole week with her...miss her already!!

That's about it for now, and instead of what the Italians would say, I'll say in the words of mom, "Peace, love, and Bobby Sherman!!"

Wanna make-out in public?

Because most people in Italy would say yes, and look at you strange for even asking. "Don't think, just do," is their moto ;) But seriously...people make out EVERY WHERE!! So instead of looking away like we did at the beginning, me and my roommate Roxanne take pictures of them, and will even take a chance and be in it with them. If they can make out in public, taking a picture of them is totally not a big deal. I mean, I knew Italy was a romantic place, but man, I have never seen PDA like this. Sometimes it's really awkward, like yesterday, we were in line to see Michaelangelo's David at the Academia in Florence, which by the way is AMAZING and HUGE and I snuck a picture, however, there was a nasty couple in front of us full-on making out. I understand making out under a tree in park, but when people are standing inches away from you, how do they not feel awkward?! Lately, we've been trying to make comments, with loud giggling and laughing in the back, because it can honestly be hard to hold it in. It's every where: bridges, on the trains, walking down the streets, the list goes on...So the point of all of this is to inform you of the most common thing you will find in Italy. Not gelato, not spaghetti, but couples who have no consideration for the people that are around them, "the other ones" as we like to call them :) Pictures posted are just a few examples of our best work. Ciao!

Verona, Wine Tasting and Gondolas

It was a pretty big weekend! It started off on Friday when I discovered the closest thing to Chipotle that can be found in Florence! It's called Mesopotamia Kebob. It's not a burrito, it's more a wrap, but it's SOOOOO GOOOD. It's got lots of meat, cheese, lettuce, cabbage, tomato, and ranch dressing....so it's not necessarily Chipotle, but it was really really good. It's nice to get a break from the pizza, pasta and paninis every once in a while.

We headed out VERY early Saturday morning to Verona. It's the hometown of Romeo and Juliet, so we were able to see the Capulets Castle along with the Montagues as well. We even got to see Juliet's balcony. Pretty cool stuff. There is a bronze statue of her in the courtyard and tradition says that if you touch her, excuse my language, boob, you will have good luck in love. Unfortunately, the line was about a million people long, obviously, so I figured I would take my chance in love and pass ;) Verona was a really nice and quaint town and we got some free time to just walk around and explore a little bit. After our tours and free time around Verona we went to another wine tasting! Now if you remember one of last posts on it...forget it because this one was SO MUCH BETTER. This time, we got to walk through the vineyards and I had SO MANY grapes off the vine it was out of control! They were the best grapes I've ever had...it was sad to leave them behind knowing what I have to eat back in the states. So that was really fun, then we got the tours of the cellar and then we had the tasting. This one seemed much more professional and informative. The last time, I didn't really learn anything, and the four steps I told you in the other post was second-hand from the girl next to me. Haha...but this time, somebody actually walked us through the tasting and now I REALLY understand what is good about wine tasting, what kind of foods go with what wine AND how to tell a difference between regular wine and dessert wine...all because there was a lot more useful and beneficial info. We tried three different kinds of red...I was hoping for a little white...but at this farm they don't really make it. PLUS, I learned that white is not as healthy for you because it has a lot of chemicals in it. So...don't drink it, okay? Needless to say though, it was really fun and I loved being able to walk through the vineyards...it was just so fun. Then we headed to our hotel for dinner, which was interesting...when we got to the hotel we got to our rooms before they cleaned it, and it's safe to say that this wasn't a four star by any means. Three words: stains, hair and smelly. That's what we saw on our mattresses when we walked in. It was SICK. They cleaned it up and we just tried to forget the images we saw when we first got there. We left to go to dinner and afterwards we went to Lake Garda. I think it's one of the biggest lakes in Italy, and coming from the Land of 10,000 it felt super nice to be by the lake again :) We just hung out and I got the biggest serving of gelato since I've been here for only 2.60. AMAZING. It was really fun just hanging by the lake and eating our gelato and treats. The next morning, the water didn't work which was great because all of us needed to shower. But...whatevs...we clean up well ;) NOW. Forget about the hotel because the day got much better...

So VENICE IS AMAZING. It's pretty full of tourists though, so it was hard to get around at times. We got a guided tour throughout the city, walking through the town and my favorite, Piazza San Marco...the famous place that is always in movies. We then had a few hours on our own, so we got some delicious pizza at a cute restaurant, walked through some markets, sat by the water, and then of course...went on a Gondola ride! Six of us went and it was realllly fun. Unfortunately, I didn't fall in love because our gondalear was about 50 years older than me...and he didn't sing for us...so two things that held me back ;) Haha, anyways...Venice is a pretty amazing city and I'm really glad I was able to experience it!

This week is me just getting ready for mid-terms next week. I've actually got schoolwork to do...surprising huh? So I'll be doing my studying and everything this week and weekend to get ready for it! I'll be going on a day trip to Perugia on Saturday that I'm pretty excited about. I'll be going with my roommate Roxanne and her parents actually, who are visiting this week, and we're going to head to the CHOCOLATE FESTIVAL that Perugia is famous for. YUM! CAN'T WAIT!!

That's the update for now...I'm off to make pasta for din din...again :) Ciao!

Fiorentina!!

Went to my first soccer game tonight! Fiorentina is the team that plays for Florence, and we played AC Milano. It was technically considered a "nice game" because one of Fiorentina's previous players has been diagnosed with ASL, so all proceeds went to funds for continued research for a cure! It was SO FUN! The fans were amazing, I've never heard so many chants at a sporting event before! I was bummed though because they were all in Italian, so it's not like I could learn them, join in and not feel like an outsider American coming into one of the biggest events in Italy! Haha...it was fun to be in the middle of it all, you can just imagine me making weird noises and clapping every once in a while to feel like a true Fiorentina fan :) But it was just nuts, and Fiorentina won 4-1, so it was fun to be part of that! I'll be going to another soccer game in November...hopefully I can squeeze another one in before that though, because they are too fun to pass up!

Other than the game tonight, the week has been busy with classes and running around Florence. The week started off great when we were woken up 8 am Monday morning to jackhammers outside our apartment. Literally...so loud that had I not opened my eyes, I would've thought they were in our bedroom. We tried to be optimistic about it, until we found out today that they will be drilling and doing construction until NOVEMBER 31!! It'll be a great Thanksgiving gift since I won't be eating turkey :( Speaking of gifts, I received a delicious one in the mail! Dad and Nancy sent me all my favorite chocolates and snacks...which all taste amazing! I LOVE Peanut and Peanut Butter M&M's-like all-time-favorite, but in Italy, they are like $3 for 20 pieces...rip off! Needless to say...I was very thankful when I opened the package :)

Another trip coming up this weekend! We're going to Verona on Saturday (where Romeo and Juliet takes place) and Venice on Sunday. Hopefully I'll go on a gondola and fall in love with the MAN rowing it ;) I'm really really excited though, Venice has always been a place I've wanted to see, so hopefully only one day there will be enough!

Cinque Terre-God's most beautiful creation!

So...I think it is safe to say that Cinque Terre is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been and my favorite trip so far in Italy! On the way there on Saturday, we stopped in Genova, which is one of the worst cities in Italy. Haha, but really, you could ask anyone out of the 140 students that went and you would get the same reaction. It was just really dirty, and there was no place to eat or sit and there wasn't much to see, many of us wonder why our program took us there...but oh well. We then headed to our hotel for the night where they provided an amazing four-course meal for us! We started with bruschetta, followed by pasta and meat sauce. Our main dish was chicken and potatoes, and we topped it all off with a cream pie! YUM! It was just sooo nice because we never have four course meals...it's always pasta and bread, over and over again! So it was a definite treat that's for sure. The next day we left for Cinque Terre pretty early so we could be there during the most beautiful parts of the day! So, Cinque Terre is also known as "Five Villages" that are all close to each other on the coast of the Golfo dei Poeti. We got to visit each of them for about an hour or so, and it was amazing! We started in the village of Porto Venere, which is also where many people start the six hour hike through all of the villages, which is something I would LOVE to go back and do someday...maybe even before I leave. Anyways, it was ABSOLUTELY beautiful. The weather was perfect too, a little windy on top of the CASTLES, but nothing to complain about :) The other four villages we visited are called Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, and Vernazza Monterosso. We walked along a path from Manarola to Riomaggiore called "Lovers Lane" and it was beautiful and fun to see all the couples ;) One day, me and my husband are going to go there and write our names on the walls in the tunnel...I've already decided. So we ate lunch on the coast and had some delicious bruschetta and spaghetti, and then in the village of Riomaggiore I had the best gelato I've had since I've been here and it was super cheap! I got three scoops for 2 euro! That's like, usually the price for a small, so the fact that we got a large for it was sooo nice. The only thing I would've changed would be for us to stay longer, because after the gelato we had to leave and head back to Florence. A few hours in the Cinque Terre is NEVER ENOUGH! Honestly though, one of the most beautiful places EVER and I really hope I can go back again! In other extremely exciting news...I have many visitors coming in the next month and a half!!! Leah will be the first...in about three weeks! Woo hoo! First visitor and I can't wait! Then Ci-Ci Boo who I cannot wait to see! I haven't see her since Dad and Nancy's wedding...TOO LONG! But how cool is it to say I get to meet up with my sister when she comes to see me in ITALY!? I can't wait to show her around Florence! And...as of about 15 minutes ago...Jennifer and Kristin are coming from Scotland to come see me in November! THIS IS THE BEST! I LOVE FAMILY AND FRIENDS! In other news, I have discovered the best bread ever. It's from this bakery called, "The Forno," which is right by our apartment and I stop there every day on my way home to get bread for dinner, to go with the noodles and red sauce I make EVERY. DAY. But it's called schiacciata, which is flat bread that they put olive oil and cheese on...SO GOOD! My fave for sure. This upcoming weekend will be the first weekend I'm not traveling...weird huh?? I'm actually looking forward to it because I might go to a soccer game, or I'll just explore a little bit of Florence that I haven't seen! No matter what though, it should be nice and relaxing! Until next time...ciao!

Wine Tasting in Chianti!

Today was my first experience in Tuscany that was outside downtown Florence. Our school took four buses to a Chianti farm in the outskirts of Florence and we got to have a tour of a Tuscan castle and see the vineyards surrounding, along with the cellar inside, which was full of barrels of wine! So, we all went into this thinking we were just going to take a dixie cup and take a sip of wine, however, it was not like that at all! It felt like we were all sitting down to a banquet meal, and there were three different wines for us to try! One white, and two reds. They also gave us bread, amazing cheese and salami, yummmmy. So, for all of you wine drinkers at home, here is how the professionals "taste" wine. The first step is to lightly sniff the wine. This pretty much means you just run the glass across your nose and breath in. The second step is to take a biiig sniff of the wine. They said to basically stick your nose in the glass and breath it all in! The third step is to take a tiny sip and smack your lips together to "lightly taste it." The fourth and final step is to take a biiig gulp and breath in when you do it, to really get the full experience. Haha, and of course there's the swirling of the wine which I didn't quite catch, but it has something to do with the alcohol content...I think. It was interesting to learn about the wine making process and how to be able to really tell the difference between wines by doing the "four-step process." It was a fun day...up until 15 minutes before we left. For those of you who know my fear and loathing of throw-up, pay attention. We were all standing in line to go to the bathroom before we left the vineyard, and all of a sudden a girl behind me THROWS UP AND IT GETS ON MY SWEATER AND IN MY HAIR! Okay, so it wasn't a lot, but a few speckles is enough to make me shiver. I wasn't the only one who had wine leftovers on me, so that was nice that she didn't just aim for me...but still! I just bought this sweater and I really liked and now it's vomit-infected :( Barf! Well, that's the most exciting news of the day. We've got to get up early tomorrow for Cinque Terre, so we're going to make pasta for dinner, per normal, and hang around the apartment!!

3 weeks and counting!

It has officially been three weeks since I've been in Italy! I can't believe it, because it truly feels like I have been here for TWO MONTHS! Maybe it's just the amount of activity going on that makes the time seem more drawn out than it actually is....well, here we go. I got back from London VERY LATE Sunday night! Luckily my roommates got back from Lake Como around the same time, so we were able to treck 25 minutes together back to our apartment. LONDON IS SO AMAZING! It was SO FUN to be with Leah for four days, SO GOOD. Leah was a wonderful host and was super savy when she was showing me around Regent's Park, where she lives, which is SO BEAUTIFUL. Her college campus is really cute, and it's nice because everything is close together, and the parks surrounding the college are really nice and a good place to go and relax...and see millions of couples making out...but anyways....so when I got there on Thursday we walked around Regent's Park and then we went to Picadilly Circus, which Leah describes as the Times Square of London. It was my first ride on "The Underground" so it was fun! We ended up going to a Chinese restaurant for dinner and it was SO GOOD, and it reminded us of the Village Wok by the U. Friday was a big day for us...we went to Westminister and we got to see the Parliament building, Big Ben, the London Eye and Westminister Abbey. It was so fun and the weather was BEAUTIFUL, so being outside was perf. We then did a little shopping at Primark and headed back to the school. For dinner, we went to Notting Hill! It was at night so we couldn't really see the town that much, but we got a good vibe from it and enjoyed our Italian meal of pizza and pasta :) Saturday we went to Warwick Castle and Startford-the home of Shakespeare! It was a very scenic day and we got to experience a lot of neat things. In memory of making our pilgrimage to Notting Hill, we rented it and watched it Saturday night and it was SO GOOD. I know I'd seen it before, but I think being in London made it so much better :) By the time Sunday rolled around we were a little tired, so we went back to Picadilly and ate at our chinese restaurant and then I headed back to Florence. It was really great to be able to see where Leah goes to school, to meet her friends and to experience a little bit of London! I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to go back someday, because it's a really great city.
Yesterday was a day that I was missing home a bit. I just saw Leah, and then when I checked my mail for the first time I got two letters from Kelly and Vanessa! It was so fun to hear from them via mail, and made me miss friends from home a lot. THEN, I got to talk with my dad for a while and it was SO GOOD and made me miss my family a lot too! It was just a jam-packed day full of people from home, but I loved it. The weather is finally cooling down here which I'm super thankful for, now we can all go to bed underneath our covers. I did my grocery shopping, buying my typical noodles and sauce, with bonus Oreos to fix my chocolate craving. The rest is pretty quiet besides class, but I'll be starting the weekend off with a wine-tasting in Tuscany and then Saturday morning, my program heads of to Cinque Terre and Genova! I've heard Cinque Terre is one of the most beautiful places in Italy, so I'm SUPER EXCITED!
For all ma peeps back at home, hope you're loving the fall weather and PLEASE, go to an apple orchard, listen to Nickel Creek on the way and eat lots of apple crisp and apple cider for me!!!

Roma Roma

Ciao! Well, Rome was absolutely amazing! I couldn't believe I was in such a monumental place! Not only is it historical, but it just has a completely different feeling than Florence. Florence is SO MUCH SMALLER than Rome, and I never realized it until this weekend. Rome is just much more spread out and "roomy," while Florence is super condensed and smaller. I think that's why tourists and tourist attractions stick out more because it's much smaller than Rome. Anyways! We left VERY EARLY on Friday morning. It was about a four hour bus ride from Florence so we got there around 10:45. The main spots we hit on Friday were: the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, and the Pantheon(the picture above)! It was SO AMAZING to be in all of those places, knowing that they were so important in Ancient Rome. The rest of Friday we had off, so we walked around, got some lunch and took a very long nap before eating some delicious Margherita pizza and hanging out later that night. The weather was the first "bad" weather I've experienced since being here. It was rainy and a little chilly almost all weekend. On Saturday, we toured St. Peter's Basilica, an old castle and the Vatican city. It was all SO BEAUTIFUL! Seriously, the artwork was some of the most amazing pieces and monuments I've ever seen. To actually describe these places in words is nearly impossible. It was pretty cool walking through all of these places, especially the Sistine Chapel! And our last day, Sunday, was mostly free time for us all. Some of us that live on Ghibellina walked to a market nearby and enjoyed a delicious lunch that consisted of my favorite kind of panini-buffalo mozarella and tomato, and then a huge scoop of gelato! yum! Then, all the students from API met and we got our final tour, of the Colosseum! It was SO amazing, I couldn't believe I was in there! It is just so crazy to think of all of these places in Rome I got to see that has so much impact, history and meaning to the Italian culture. SO GLAD I got to go there. My roommates and I think that Rome FEELS more like Italy, so we really enjoyed that aspect, even though it's hard to explain. But ultimately, we all like living in Florence and once we were on our way home from Rome, it was a comforting feeling knowing we were going "home to Florence." Right now I'm just in between classes, working on some homework and running errands-per normal. Gotta finish my Italian homework now, ciao!

In one week from today...

I'LL BE IN LONDON!!! It was a very last minute decision, but I'm going to go visit Leah!! It's one of the only times our schedules don't conflict throughout the semester, so I figured, why not?! I'll be there from Thursday morning until Sunday night! I just booked the tickets, and there is so much adrenaline running through my body, it's unbelievable! My roommate Roxanne is also going to go and visit her friends, so we'll be taking the train to the Pisa airport and then flying to London from there :) You wouldn't believe how many people around me right now are booking flights, it's nuts how many people travel over here! I'm SO excited!
Something that could interrupt that happiness could happen today, when I go buy my books and pay extra classroom fees. Some of my roommates and I have the same classes, so we're going to try and share, so the cost isn't so high. We're all desperate to save money in any way possible!
Just a few random things. I did laundry for the first time yesterday and realized how lightly I actually packed. Good, but not that good because I may or may not be wearing the same clothes over and over, week after week after week...haha oh well. Italy also doesn't believe in dryers, so we hang all of our clothes to dry, which isn't too bad, just a longer process. Also, as if the streets of Florence aren't loud enough with all of the scooters and cars, they started construction on the road outside of our apartment, so I get to wake up to the lovely sounds of jack hammers :) But, I can't complain cause I'm in Florence, and life is so good! Until next week, after Roma, ciao!

La Dulce Vita

I learned today that that means "The Sweet Life" in Italian, kinda fun to say huh? Well, it's been about a week since I've been here in Florence, and I'm really starting to get familiar with the area, I've started classes AND I am a never-ending victim to second-hand smoke! There are SO MANY smokers here in Italy...I wouldn't be surprised if I started before I left! JUST KIDDING DAD! Well, like I said, classes have started! So far so good. I really think I'm going to enjoy my Italian class, the professor is really fun and interactive. The other classes I'm taking are broadcasting, journalism, and an Italian Renaissance art history class, so we'll be able to go and visit many museums and locations to check it all out! Some not so good news...the clubs I wanted to join already have waiting lists...so if any of the other college students decide they don't want to drink wine, I'm in! Oh well, I think our program will be taking us to a couple vineyards in Venice and Verona when we go there for our excursion in October, so I guess that'll do ;) Speaking of excursions...this weekend will be my first one! We will be leaving for Rome VERY early on Friday morning and we'll be there until Sunday night, so three days to see all the beautiful history, can't wait!
Not too much else besides class this week...I don't know if I've mentioned this, but school is about a 25 minute walk, so you can say I'm getting my excercise around this city!! I felt pretty cool the other night because an American was walking around the piazza near our apartment, and she needed to get directions to the river, and I totally knew where it was. I guess that means I'm pretty much settled ;) Well, our program is treating us to a free meal tonight, and with the dang Euro being so high, I'm taking it! Until next time, ciao!

97 Degrees!

IT IS SO HOT HERE! The last couple of days have actually almost been unbearable! Friday and Saturday were both around 97/98 degrees and super humid! I told all my roommates that I want Minnesota weather to come here...kinda sad huh? haha...but seriously, it has been so hot. I think being right in the city and walking everywhere and NOT having air conditioning adds to the frustration a bit, so hopefully it'll cool off soon!! Saturday we went over and explored the Boboli Gardens, which were beautiful! Unfortunately we went in the middle of the day so we were sweatin' buckets! We then made spaghetti for the third night in a row and for the second time our sink clogged and flooded the floor. So the repair man road his bike over today and fixed it for us :) Today we were feelin' ambitious despite the heat and explored the Cathedral of Santa Croce...which is in the piazza close to our apartment! I'm trying to figure out how to put pictures up on here, so once that happens, hopefully you can see some of these places I'm talking about... There is also a market close to our apartment that is open every day that we went to for the first time yesterday. We all bought fresh fruit and it was nice, cheap and delicious! Not much more for the rest of the day...we're all hanging out in the apartment, and we WERE going to go out to eat for dinner to toast before our first day of classes tomorrow, but almost EVERYTHING is closed on Sundays...so it looks like it could be a home cooked meal once again :)

Piazza del Lorenzo

Today we had orientation for school, which starts next Monday. I'm not sure if I'm mentioned this yet, but my school is called Lorenzo de' Medici, and as I have learned, Medici is a very famous Italian name/family. The orientation was pretty interesting, and we learned about school clubs that we can join and extra activities that are available to us through school and other places throughout Florence. I think my roommates and I are are going to join the Volunteer club. We'll be able to volunteer in homeless shelters and other areas around the city. Taylor (my fellow Bethel friend) and I are hopefully going to be able to volunteer at the local churches in Florence. On that note, I'm also thinking of joining the "Slow Drink Club." Haha, now don't get any ideas here, it's an educational club on wine, with two wine tastings throughout different parts of Italy. That way, I can bring back tons of useful information to the vino drinkers in my life :) But we'll see...
Alright, now the title of this entry is Piazza del Lorenzo, and you may be asking yourself, "what the heck is a piazza?" Well, I'll tell you. All throughout Florence, you'll find piazzas, and they are like centers of each neighborhood, where events happen, restaurants are found, and my favorite, markets! It is also and Italian law that noise level in apartments go down after 10:30, and if you would like to continue to "party" you have to take it to the piazza. Capishe? (do you understand?) Well, I think I've discovered one of my favorite piazzas! It is right by school, which is perfect because I'll get to go through it everyday to and from class. And, it is called Piazza del Lorenzo, and I just really think I'm going to spend a lot of time there, which is exciting.
A few minor details...my roommates and I made our first meal last night in the apartment, spaghetti, which was wonderful; however after doing the dishes and draining the water, it started to leak and flood into the kitchen! So I mopped it up, and we're crossing out fingers that it won't happen again :( It has also taken me a long time to get adjusted to the locks in Italy. It's pretty sad actually. It took me until last night to be able to get into my apartment without help. But, okay, in Italy, when locking/unlocking a door, you have to turn everything like two or three times, and EVERY LOCK IS DIFFERENT. So, naturally, I get confused because we have to unlock three doors to get into our apartment. But yeah, I'm getting it, finally. So the rest of today will consist of us going to the food market in our neighborhood and getting some things for the apartment, like tp, and then we're going to attempt to make dinner in the apt. again...ciao!

Via Ghibellina, 57, Apt. B

That, my family and friends, is the place I now call home :) We moved into our apartments today, and there are about 40 students living in my building. Everyone is spread our throughout the city, and we'll all have about 15-20 walking minutes to school. One of our guides yesterday was saying that Florence is a small city, and I thought to myself, "False." but, the more we walk around, the more familiar streets become and I'm realizing that it's really not as big and intimidating as I thought it would be, which I like! Our apartments have three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a fully furnished kitchen, so we can cook! I turned on Jack Johnson first thing when I got settled in the room and listened to "Bella," which totally put me in the Italian mood :) We walked around our neighborhood, and it can be said that we have found our trusty Gelateria (gelato place to the non-Italian) and Panini shop. The Italians that work there are so cute and love to help us with our Italian. One of my favorite things to say is "Ciao!" or "Buongiorno!" because even if you can't speak Italian, or really even understand it, it makes you feel a little more part of the city. So I'm like pretty much Italian ;) After touring our neighborhood, we had a cooking class and our instructors name was Fabrizio, so fun. We made from scratch, tiramisu, caprese salad, and potato gnocchi which was AMAZING! They gave us the recipe, so I will definitely be making these meals when I get back to the states, in four months. On the way to the cooking class, my roommate Roxanne and I were walking the cobblestone roads, and this Italian man walked by and said, "Yesss, madame, I am here, I loooooovvve youuuu." Haha it was very funny, but unfortunately, he was undesirable. It can also be said that I am one of the only mid-westerners on the trip. All of my roommates go to school and are from the east coast, along with the rest of the people from the trip. But I don't mind because I love talking about good old Minny. Tomorrow we have more "survival tours" as they call it here, so we'll be learning more about our neighborhood and we'll meet our landlord. More time to learn and explore, can't wait!

Buongiorno!

After many MANY hours of traveling...I'M HERE!! The ride over to Amsterdam was very relaxing and I was able to sit next to a lady who was VERY travel savy and answered all my questions, and we were so close at the end of the 7 hours and 15 minutes that we swapped magazines for the next plane ride we each had! Amsterdam is where I met more API students and a few us had connecting flights to Florence, so it was nice to be with people going to the same destination. Once we got to Florence we went back to the hotel, named, "Grand Hotel Baglioni." Sounds pretty classy huh? We'll be here until tomorrow when we move into our apartments! After a couple hour nap and meeting my direct roommate Roxanne we went to the first orientation and had dinner on the roof of our hotel! It was soooooo beautiful and romantic...I was super happy to share that with complete strangers ;) But the food was delicous...I will definitely enjoy the Italian food and bevs! This morning at like 5:30 a.m. (9:30 p.m. U.S. time) both Roxanne and I were wide awake! Excitement came later when I tried to blow dry my hair and it blew out on me :( Not the funnest thing when you get your haircut the day before you leave and can't do anything to it, including putting in in a pony tail :(Oh well...THEN we went on our first tour around the city! WOW IT IS SO BEAUTIFUL! The streets are all coblestone and each window is decorated with beautiful flowers and furnishings. We walked through many markets, walked over many bridges and a few us of ate at a Trattoria, which is like a small dining cafe, where I had my first and delicous plate of spaghetti. Tonight we'll be eating out at a Pizzeria and then tomorrow we move into the apartments! Ciao!