Bitter Sweet

Sio visited this weekend and reminded me a lot of home. I was starting to forget about how much I miss home. In a way I guess that means I’ve been making the best out of my experience here- at the same time, now I can only think about what I’m missing – being surrounded by those I care about most. In some ways, I’m glad I haven’t made any really close friends because otherwise I wouldn’t be able to continue growing and becoming more independent, which is my ultimate goal. On the other hand it can get a little lonely, and I forget how nice it feels to be surrounded by close friends and family who know the real me. My entire life I have craved security and stability. Everything has always been dictated by what my parents want (granted they'd probably disagree), or what I do depends on if my friends will do it with me. Finally I’ve taken the leap and done something for myself. When I feel lonely, I try to remember that this trip is for me, and nothing can stop me from smiling and making the most out of my experience. These past few weeks have definitely been a roller coaster ride filled with highs and lows for all sorts of reasons. I’ve been managing well though and sometimes Florence even feels more and more like home. I’m constantly pushing myself to try new things- go to new places- take in as much as I can. I still have a lot to accomplish but I’m on my way.

Back to how my weekend was…

Sio and I had quite an eventful day on Saturday, going to see the David, going to my favorite Florentine bakery, climbing to the top of the duomo, hiking to the Piazzale Michaelangelo, sitting and devouring the most delicious mix of pinapple and coconut gelato, attending mass in the duomo, eating a delcious dinner that I made and experiencing a little bit of the nightlife.

Sunday I woke up early early and boarded the train to Cortona with 7 other girlfriends. I really wanted to go to Cortona because for all of you who are obsessed with Under the Tuscan Sun, like I am, this is the town that it takes place in. This was one of the greatest decisions of my life. So far, Cortona is my favorite place- it’s located on the side of a hill, with a central road that winds up and down one side.

It is such a homey type of village, and well kept. When we got off the train we purchased bus tickets, but realized afterwards that the bus wasn’t coming for 2 hours. My friend Kelly and I decided to take the lead and start the hike up to Cortona. The weather was warm and sunny- finally I could smell fresh green grass and hear birds chirping all around- this, I cannot find in the city. I can’t even describe how good it felt to be back around nature. It's the closest thing to vermont I've had in awhile. It was a long walk but completely worth it and we were all very glad we hiked rather than taking the bus.

Eventually we arrived to Cortona and found a place to stop for lunch. I had a cheese quiche, and chicken marsala. Both meals were different than what you would expect in the U.S. but my meal as a whole was one of the most delicious meals I’ve had here so far- and it was reasonably priced. * We stayed the entire day, exploring and hiking the rest of the steep, narrow roads to the fortress at the top of the hill.

I took a seat and had a moment to sit, breath and relax, taking in as much of the view as I could. It was truly breathtaking.

I can't wait to continue exploring the Tuscan country side. It will have to wait a little while though because next weekend we are off to Rome! Can't pass up an opportunity to see the Pope. I'll post after I return.

Carnival in Venice!

I've returned from Venezia! The weekend was by far my best yet and it only reminded me of how much I want to travel. Very busy but very exciting and nothing less striking than the last time I was there. Saturday we woke before dawn and drove, by bus, for 4 hours. When we arrived, we were escorted by a private boat to Venice.

All day was spent on the island, touring and pushing our way through the enormous crowds of people that stretched around every corner. Many could be spotted dressed in outrageous costumes for carnival. (see below for the most extravagant!)

We even spotted some of the most unlikely creatures. The majority of our time was spent in San Marco's square, (the most touristy spot), where everything is ridiculously expensive, and where the beautiful San Marco's Basilica can be seen. (I took a side shot of the cathedral because the other half was under construction*)
We also saw the most important palace in Venice known as the Doges Palace. Eventually we found our way through the alleyways, looking for masks in the spirit of carnival, browsing in the shops,

finding the cheapest places to eat, and walking over the famous Rialto bridge.

Of course we took some time to take pictures of ourselves too!

After exploring, I picked out a beautiful golden mask to give to my sister as a souvenir (but I made sure to wear it all night long first, hehe).

Eventually it was time to get back on the boat and check into our hotel in Bologna. At the hotel, we had just enough time to freshen up and make our way across the street to the McDonald's for dinner. It was by far the most unhealthy meal yet I couldn't help but savor every bite. It surely satisfied our hungry bellies. We boarded the train to venice once again for the nighttime festivities, masks and all. * Lights were hung everywhere and we made it in time to see a fire show. Afterwards we roamed around and made our way back to the hotel fairly early so we'd be well rested for the morning.

After a much needed 8 hours of sleep I woke, ate a hardy breakfast, and went in search of a pharmacy for motion sickness pills. I didn't find out until late the day before that we would be taking a boat tour of several of the venetian islands. Knowing my stomach all too well, I knew that the breakfast I just ate would not sit well once setting foot on the boat. When I walked to the nearest pharmacy in the morning, I was pleasantly surprised to find the shop closed. I hoped the for best, and decided to go on the tour with everyone. Luckily I didn't get sick because I sat on the top of the boat in the fresh air which helped the most. We stopped at two islands, Murano and Burano. (Side not: along the way our guide pointed out the vacation home of Elton John and told us that he was currently in Venice for the carnival.

Unfortunately we did not see him, but that is not surprising since every other person was wearing a mask! Sneaky sneaky man. Venice is famous for it's glass blowing so in Murano we watched how to blow glass. Later we had free time to peruse the shops selling glass jewelry, bowls, vases, etc. (Perfect for souvenirs, although you will be sad to know I did not get anything there). Our next stop was Burano which is known for it's brightly painted color houses (every adjacent house a different color). It was a quant little town but we didn't spend much time there because we had to make our way back to Venice for the last few hours of our trip. Back on venice we explored once more, and my roommate and I managed to sneak into San Marco Cathedral for a look. We weren't allowed to take pictures but decided we might as well continue with our devilish ways and take videos of the interior. That concluded the end of our trip and we just barely caught the boat back, boarded the bus and drove home to Florence.
Now I'm safe and sound back home, (weird to start calling it that, but for the first time it feels as such) and completely exhausted. I'm hopelessly trying to upload pictures for this post but I'm afraid this is going to come to an abrupt ending. I hope the photos will due it justice or at least add some flavor!

First I'll talk a little about my weekend. After staying up until 4 or 5 for 3 nights in a row since Thursday night, I can say that not much was accomplished. I did however succeed to wake up several hours before my roommates (who slept until 2 in the afternoon from friday to sunday). I really wanted to explore but couldn't do much all by myself. I went on a walk to find the nearest park, walked in the rain to the big supermarket because it's the only store I feel most comfortable shopping at (I like all of the brand options because it's most like home), I went for a run along the river arno on the most beautiful, sunny 52 degree day and finally found my way to the Uffizi museum with some friends I made. I also took two beautiful pictures of the river on the way back from the museum (see below).


Today was the longest day of my week. Glad to know it's done. I had printmaking studio art at nine, but due to my alarm clock not going off, I ended up being an hour and a half late. My overwhelming guilt for being late eventually subsided after I caught up, and my teacher complimented my work saying "molto bene" (which could only mean, freakin amazing), and showed my carved board to another student as an example of what it should look like. SCORE! Yah that's right, she loved it. But I have to admit, everyone here is amazing at art. It's a little bit of a reality check for me. During our lunch break I spent 45 minutes in line to sign up to take yoga on tuesday nights. Yeah, I was 15 minutes late to class AGAIN but I didn't want to miss out on any club opportunity. After printmaking, I had watercolor from 3 to 8:30. During our dinner break I made a new friend who is a senior in high school. We found out we have a lot in common, and she seems very mature for her age (she must be because I never would have imagined living in another country as a senior in high school!! She also goes to a boarding school at home and has traveled around a lot). After class, I came home and made the most delicious chicken that I've ever made (this, I'm becoming a pro at) with a balsamic vinegrette salad and potatoes. It was so good after such a long day. I'm looking forward to my classes this week because they are all very fascinating. At the end of the week I will be going to Venice for carnival with my study abroad program!! I will be sure to post when I return and tell all about it.

Everything's Different

Things have definitely been looking up since my last posts.

Living in an apartment is pretty cool. We have a small two bedroom place with a very small common space including a kitchenette, table, tv and mini sofa. I have my own bathroom, which is the best part, but showering is not very satisfying because the water temperature always changes and the water pressure is low. I’m really roughing it. Haha. All of our neighbors are other English kids from my program so it’s nice to have people we can talk to and share meals with. We have a really small clothes washer, and last night I got to experience wringing out all of the water in my clothes. We later found out that my roommate had pushed the wrong button, stopping the clothes from spinning to get the excess water out. Glad to know I don’t have to do that anymore. Regardless, we have to hang dry our clothes so laundry has to be planned out ahead of time.

Our refrigerator is very small. It is smaller than the mini fridges we normally buy for college. That makes stocking up on groceries difficult. It is necessary to go to the shop every other day for food. Cooking is another issue because my skills are limited. And eating all carbs for dinner is a tendency and the easiest to do because pasta is the easiest thing to cook. We had a cooking course as a part of orientation but everything we cooked required an oven- which we don’t have. We also don't have a dish washer, but that is something I'm used to. Last night I had the most substancial meal yet. I cooked some chicken with sprinkled herbs on the stove and it turned out to be a huge success.

I live right by the main river in Florence which is nice for two reasons, A. that I have access to the other side of the river where things tend to be cheaper and B. the view from the bridges is beautiful when it’s a sunny day. On the other hand, I have to walk between 10 to 20 minutes to class through a city. Usually I’m walking by myself, which isn’t too lonely because there are always people walking along the streets, even at 8:30 in the morning. So far classes have been good- other than I had both my studio art classes (Printmaking and Watercolor) on Monday and had to spend almost 400 euro for art supplies, which is equivalent to about 600 dollars. I shit a brick. The entire day I had a pit in my stomach because I couldn’t believe the expense, all for art supplies! Normally at SMC I have a set lab fee (around $65) and have to spend no more than $100 dollars for personal expenses. Not 300 dollars in total expenses! While I do think I will get much more out of these studio classes here- I have to wonder if it is worth the expense. I’m thinking about dropping watercolor, mainly because I wrote my name on all of my printmaking supplies so I couldn’t return those even if I wanted to. My parents on the other hand think I should stick with both. My tuition is the same even if I drop a class, so in my parents eyes, 300 dollars isn’t a huge deal in the big picture. I’m not sure if I agree, and even though they say it is okay, I feel terribly guilty about it, especially when that money is only for my art supplies. I still have two other classes that require 100 euros each, for books and museum trips that I will need to take over the semester. EEEEEEEKKK!

One of my major goals here is to get involved. The school has club sign ups but students can usually only sign up for one. I’m leaning towards the jogging club or the yoga club. It will be nice to get out and start some form of physical exercise, aside from walking throughout Florence daily. Luckily we have a couple of beautiful parks around that I've heard of- perfect places to jog or walk. My mom suggested I join a gym nearby but I’m not sure if I want to pay the extra money to do it. I also found out that I can join the American church here and do community service. That’s another thing I want to get myself into. I’m starting to plan my traveling, but unfortunately both my roommates are strapped for cash, and don’t want to travel to the places I do. Luckily I’ve talked with two girls who are interested in going to two of the places I have my heart set on, Prague and Poland, so I’m hoping I can plan those trips with those two girls instead.

As you could probably already tell from the expense of my art supplies, everything is expensive here. A lot of times we forget that 2 euro does not equal 2 dollars. Aside from food, internet, school supplies I haven’t bought anything other than this 11 euro green wool scarf that I purchased at the market which was the best decision of my life. It’s been pretty chilly here- Not as cold as Vermont but cold enough for me. I definitely need to limit what I spend and not buy more than I have to.

My moods switch from feeling really confident and independent, to vulnerable and lonely. Small things make me feel stressed and confused because I’m always in a state of uncomfortability- everything seems different here- like walking into a store and not finding what I need because everything is written in Italian, or asking for something but not being understood, and entering into a nice little game of charades. This will change with time, I’m sure. I also find that my mood changes based on the weather. On cloudy, rainy days I tend to have lower spirits. Yesterday however was a beautiful sunny day so I went exploring on my own. I had to make a few errands, but along the way I tried to take note of neat places I found. For example, I found a REAL bakery, the kind that smells like a bakery and picked up a fresh loaf of bread for dinner. I browsed some shops and came up with a great idea for souvenirs. I found the three level H&M in the heart of Florence and checked it out. I bargained with the market woman and bought my beautiful green scarf, and I took pictures and made two videos to post. It was a very successful day and I felt so much better about myself for being so independent.

Sometimes I think about my time here and can't believe how long it will be until I can come home. Other times I think about how short it will be and realize that I need to take as much advantage of this place as I can. It's a day to day thing, even hour to hour. I just have to learn to adjust.