La Fine

Well, not quite. Even though tomorrow is our last day in Florence and I will be home in 5 days (wow that's sad) I still have so much ahead of me. Being in Italy and traveling to Barcelona have made me itch for more foreign experiences, and I have a feeling France and England will add to the feeling. Every town has different customs and norms, and every country feels like an entirely different world. I have been so fortunate to be able to experience so many cultures and I feel like it really has changed me, though exactly how it has I'm not quite sure yet. But I guess that's the amazing part--you absorb different aspects of different cultures and the more you experience the more you grow, which then feeds your desire to want to experience and learn more. There are definitely aspects of this trip I wish would have been different and sometimes that I need not remember (for example, getting water poured on us on the bus last night for no reason other than we are American girls), but that's all part of the experience too, realizing that nowhere is going to be perfect and no experience is going to be flawless. I feel like I'm getting very sentimental and reflective, but that was the whole point of this trip. I just hope (and will try as much as I can) that I can take every experience home with me and use them to continue learning about myself and others and the world around me.

Venezia

I seem to only write about my weekends, but that's because the exciting things only happen on weekends. During the week it's a lot of working and studying, with a bit of lounging and eating scattered around. We really don't have much time to do anything during the days, and it gets a bit suffocating being trapped in the Villa. I know, it's a gorgeous huge castle, I don't mean to complain, it's just when there's a whole exciting foreign city outside the villa walls, you get a little restless when you're stuck inside studying all day.

But this weekend was definitely a cure. After a nice night out in Florence we woke up super early and took a bus to Venice. I've been to Venice before when I went on the orchestra trip 5 years ago, but I was SO excited to go back. Venice is unlike any other place in the world and is so incredible. Plus I love water, and I know some people say Venice smells but I personally love the smell (even though it is polluted water, it's still water and it is beautiful).

Our first stop was the island of Murano where we saw a glass blowing demonstration that also blew my mind. He made this incredible horse in about two minutes and made it look like the easiest thing ever.

After about an hour of free time we made our way (by boat, of course) to our hotel on the main island. From there we toured St. Mark's Basilica, for which I am lost for words. The entire ceiling was gold mosaic and incredibly detailed. I kept thinking about my mom and considering sneaking a photo in for her because I know how much she loves mosaics and this one was absolutely stunning. Our tour was a bit more interesting than the last ones, but I still only paid attention to bits and pieces. But when I was paying attention it was great! After touring a semi-interesting museum we were all beat and went back to the hotel and napped. The tour guide had told us to go to Campo Santa Margherita, which was the place to be for young Venetians, so we decided to try it out. The dinner was a bit pricy and seemed to be full of older tourists so we were a little confused but then we sat outside a bar and had a couple drinks and suddenly the place was full of people just talking, drinking, smoking, and hanging out. It was really cool and so much fun to be able to talk to everyone there. We had some really interesting conversations and met a dog whose back is as high as my hips, and then went back to the hotel around 2 or so.

Saturday started off at the Academia, and bless her soul, our Italian teacher got us out of the guided tour so we were able to meander on our own. It was perfect. We had about 6 hours before we had to leave so we made our way to Ponte Rialto, but as soon as we got there it started POURING. We took cover in a little restaurant and ate, went back to our hotel to change and get umbrellas, and then spent the rest of the day wandering around Venice, shopping, and eating gelato on a pier. I definitely would have loved more time in Venice but the weekend was absolutely perfect.

This week is about to drive me insane. We have an essay due tomorrow, our last test Wednesday, our oral exam Thursday, and our final exam next Monday. So I don't know how much more I'll have about Italy to post on...so strange. But luckily I'll have London and Paris to get me through the last stretch of this class! I've literally had dreams about the Eiffel Tower--yes, I am that excited.

Here are a couple more photos for your entertainment:

Cinque TERROR!

But not really. We went on a day trip to Riomaggiore, one of the towns of Cinque Terre, and it was breathtaking. Everything about that day was perfect, and the views were incredible. I just learned that you can upload pictures to your posts (cool!) so now I don't have to direct you to facebook to look at the beauty of Cinque Terre.

I don't have much else to report on, I can't believe there are only 2 weeks of class left--and still so much to do. 2 tests, 2 essays, an oral exam, and the final exam stand between me and freedom from Italian. It still seems so far away, but I can't imagine the time not speeding past. The more I don't want this trip to end, the more it seems to speed up; but I guess most things are like that. So, to counteract this phenomenon I am going to create a list of things I miss from home and reasons why I am excited to come back to the States:

-Friends and family (obviously)
-ICE. I don't know why Europeans don't believe in ice, but I miss it more than anything
-Fellow blondies. It's like a lonely spotlight out there.
-The freedom to wear shorts and not be criticized and judged.
-The freedom to walk outside and not be stared at/glared at/hit on
-Sweatpants. I don't know why I didn't bring any.
-Sweatshirts. See above confusion.
-Copper and Fluffy!
-Silver Beach/Tiscornia (though it's not as nice as Cinque, it's home)
-English
-Free water at restaurants
-My phone! I forgot what it's like to have one! (hence its place on the list)
-Reeces. That sounds delicious right now and apparently Italians don't like chocolate with peanut butter? I thought they were supposed to have good tastes in food...
-No more Italian sirens! Those things are annoying.

And I'm out. As you can see, that list is neither long nor does it contain anything of real importance (minus the people and the ice). For all of you back at home, I can't wait to see you again! Especially if you're from/in St. Joe and will be from the 24-2, I MUST see you! It seems weird to think about my internship and econ class in Philadelphia; my real life feels worlds away. It will be extremely weird to come back, but luckily I still have my trips to Venice, probably a return to Cinque, London, and Paris to look forward to! How did I get so lucky?

Barca! (Warning: LONG post ahead)

This weekend in Barcelona, Spain was the best of my life. And I say that without hesitation because I cannot imagine how it could have been any better. Flying out of Pisa at 6:30am instead of pm turned out to be a huge blessing. If we hadn’t have had that extra full day, I would have felt even worse leaving so soon. We crashed as soon as we got to the hostel but were up and ready to explore later in the afternoon. I had absolutely no idea what to expect—I didn’t know much about Spain, much less Barcelona. So it was a fantastic surprise to discover how amazing it is. Everything is gorgeously decorated and the city is an incredible mix of old and modern. Even the apartment buildings were gorgeous, and the sidewalks were decorated! Incredible. We spent that first afternoon wandering around, not knowing where we were or where we were going, and it was perfect. We stumbled upon a huge old church, and you would think I would be sick of pretty churches by now, but this one was so different. It was gothic style and every window was stained glass to perfection.

That’s another thing about Barcelona—it is so colorful! Every insignificant building is a sight to see, all the balconies are covered in flowers and plants, and the people are just as vibrant. I didn’t feel nearly as isolated in Barcelona. I didn’t have to endure any painfully blatant stares and people were much friendlier and more welcoming than the Italians we’ve gotten used to. I wish I could speak even a little Spanish, and felt bad having to point to everything on the menu because I couldn’t even to begin to pronounce the words. The word for chocolate starts with an x. And that is an important word to know!

After wandering aimlessly for a couple hours we decided to find two landmarks we had heard about. The first was a house designed by Gaudi. And oh my gosh. I know it’s my job to explain this house for you, but I can’t. The best I can do is say it looked like something out of Alice in Wonderland, and definitely not anything designed in the real world. And then we went to the Sagrada Family Church, also designed by Gaudi. I couldn’t do anything but stare. It. Was. Incredible. After we took thousands of pictures that won’t do the minor basilica justice, we were able to sneak inside through an open gate. Again, words are failing me to describe the church, besides, well, Alice in Wonderland-esque. My mind was so blown that after we returned to the hostel I did some research on the church to find out that it was started in 1882 and won’t be complete until 2026—the 100 year anniversary of Gaudi’s death. Construction was halted for the Spanish Civil War, and a lot of the plans were destroyed, as well as the original model. Construction was resumed in 1950 and as of last year passed the half-way point. It is only a little over half-way complete and it left me speechless! I can’t imagine how outstanding it is going to be when it’s finally finished. What is in place now is the core of the church and so much more still has to be added. I guess I’ll just have to come back in 2026!

Thursday night we went out to a club on the marina and had a great time, met some interesting people and walked down to the ocean to dip our feet in the Mediterranean after we had enough of the club. Then we found our way back to the hostel and crashed after the long, long day.

Friday was spent on the beach, and because I couldn’t bring sunscreen on the plane with me, I was planning on buying some there. Nope! Guess Spainards don’t get as burned as I do because I am RED. Definitely worth it though, it was a gorgeous view and the sea was amazing. In the evening we ventured to a new part of town to check into our other hostel and meet up with Laurel. It was great seeing a familiar face! We all went out for dinner then, and let me take this opportunity to tell you how AMAZING Spanish food is. Molly and I had no idea what to expect, and we weren’t expecting much. And man, were we mistaken. Tapas is not only the most brilliant dinning idea ever, they are also delicious. My two favorite from the weekend were the fried stuffed muscles I had the first night and the seafood paella from Friday night. And the sangria was delicious as well. Molly and I were absolutely beat after a day of frying on the beach, so we all three went for drinks at a place near our hostel and went to bed around 1—definitely a good idea.

Saturday was another day of sightseeing and wandering. We went to the Gaudi Park and marveled at his other works and the beauty of the park itself after visiting La Boqueria— Barcelona’s main food market. The market was, again, amazing. Everything was so fresh, the food all looked beautiful, and it was HUGE! Molly and I ate lunch around 2:30 and Laurel headed back to the hostel to meet up for her boyfriend to go to a music festival for the rest of the day. After another amazing meal (seafood spaghetti, crochettas (sp?), and sangria) we meandered back to the market, got food for the flight, and hung out at the hostel for about an hour before beginning our journey back to the Boot. I don’t have the desire to relive it, so I will just give you this headline: our flight was one hour. We spent 12 hours traveling. And it was all Italy’s fault.

All in all, Barcelona was amazing! Everything was so vibrant and full of life. It was exactly what we needed after working our asses off in Italian class. It’s weird that we needed a vacation from our vacation, but it was perfect. Meeting people and seeing the different culture has made me want to experience even more and branch out even further! But we only have 3 weekends left! What?! That seems crazy—the time has absolutely flown past.

Dov'è Snooki?

Highlight of the trip: we shopped with the girls from Jersey Shore today. And by shopped I mean followed, took pictures, and basically stalked. We've been hunting them down ever since they got here, and even though we've been at all the same clubs it's never been on the same night. Until tonight! hahaha it's funny because I can't stand the show and the Italians are not pleased they're here, but it's still fun and a great story.

On to more important things, I am leaving for Barcelona in ONE HOUR!!! Not remembering about the whole 24-hour clock thing, we accidentally got a flight out of Pisa for 6:30am, not pm. Whooops. We did it right for the reservations back though, so I'm still a little confused about how that happened, but it just means we'll have more time in Barca! (and less time in class!). Tonight will certainly be an adventure though, we're taking the last train from Florence to Pisa at 12:38 and are then going to hang out in the airport until 6:30 and arrive in Barcelona around 8am. And of course, we can't check into our hostel until noon so we'll probably pass out on the beach. Which I am totally ok with. We've talked to friends and have compiled a list of sights, bars, restaurants, and clubs, and are going to pack as much into the 58 hours we have in Barcelona as we can.

And Barca won't be the end of my adventures! 4 girls are going to Paris for a few days after our program ends, and because I'm going to be in London from the 21-24, I booked a ticket on the Chunnel (a train that goes under the English Channel) and will be joining them in Paris from the 22-23! I'll still have plenty of time in London since my train doesn't leave until 3pm the 22 and arrives back around 7pm the 23. I can't wait, it's going to be AMAZING!!!

Tonight was the first time Amelia and I met with Chiara, our "conversation partner." Basically, the Villa finds Sestians (the name I just made up for people from Sesto) who want to come and struggle though an Italian conversation with us for an hour or so per week. She was great though--super sweet, super nice, and very helpful. I wasn't really looking forward to it before but after our 45 minute conversation I was really glad I had signed up! Next week we're probably going to go to a bar or cafe (they are essentially the same thing to Italians) which will be good because it will be a more relaxed, natural environment.

That's all for now, expect pictures and another post soon detailing my adventures in Spain!

Birthdays, Museums, and Beaches

I feel like I need to post more often because otherwise I have too much to write about and remember, and it turns into a novel-long post. So I'll try to prevent that from happening.

Wednesday was Blake's birthday and unfortunately Wednesday nights are about as fun and exciting as they sound. No one was out, and a club we wanted to go to was closed. Strangely enough, the same thing happened on my birthday--which was a Friday. I'm still confused about that one. It was still a great birthday, I mean I was in Italy! It's not possible not to have an amazing time when you stop and think about where you are and what you're doing.

During the day on Friday we took a day trip up to Siena which was organized by the Villa. Siena is BEAUTIFUL, we climbed to the top of, something, and were met with a gorgeous panoramic view of the city. It was breathtaking. After that we visited the Cathedral at the Museo del Opera which again, was breathtaking. Our tour guide was less than fabulous though. She was the same women who toured us around Florence, but because we were with the Art History students who arrived on Monday she spoke English and was very focused on details I wasn't too interested in. So I unplugged my headphones and wandered around the church, marveling at everything to my satisfaction. After lunch and a little freetime we visited the Palazzo Publico, the government building in Siena that also houses a very important, very beautiful art museum. However, again, I wasn't interested in hardly anything our tour guide was saying. I would be great if I could wander around the museum, look at the paintings, read some information, and be good. Or having an interesting tour. We also visited a ceramics museum on Thursday. For two hours. The works were gorgeous, but if I ever see another ceramic plate I will have to smash it.

Saturday we took a day trip to Viareggio. After a couple travel-plan mishaps, we made it to the beach around 2pm and spent the rest of the day relaxing in the sun, swimming in the Tyrrhenian Sea, and collecting seashells. I decided to take the night off last night and went to sleep around 12:30 in preparation for today--another jam-packed day of studying for our test on Tuesday (our last one was last Tuesday). I'm looking forward to tomorrow, I have my elementary school internship again and get to spend the morning hanging out with local 3rd graders! So cute!

Ciao!

Observations

This is going to be a quick post, party because I don't have a ton of battery on my computer, but mostly because it's 12:35 and I'm exhausted. So instead of writing an entire, thought-out post, I'm going to give you a quick list of things I've noticed after a little over a week in Italia.

1. This class is HARD. And 8 credits. Yikes.
2. I'm going to come back and obnoxiously use Italian phrases out of habit
3. Skyping is complicated with a 6 hour time difference
4. I'm eating a lot of carbs
5. Dollar to Euro exchange will be the death of me
6. There is so much I want to do
7. There is not enough time
8. The Villa is creepy at night and probably haunted
9. I still want to ride on a vespa
10. I am the only blonde in all of Italy
11. I'm not short in Italy
12. My Italian has gotten better, my test taking skills have not
13. Italian children are ADORABLE
13 a) I still love the game "Heads Up, 7 Up"
14. There is so much history everywhere you go in Europe
15. It's hard to balance work with play when you're in a foreign country having the time of your life

Alright. Bedtime. Buona notte!

**Addition: Sesto is chill, Florence is fun. Sesto is grumpy, Florence is friendly.

Half the Fun is Getting Lost

Not that we've gotten lost, so much as spent a lot of time wandering around Florence. And I love every second of it. Sesto is about a 30 minute bus ride from Florence, and while that is quite annoying, I've managed to get to Florence every night since Wednesday. It's like Welcome Week, Italy style. We have kind of a go-to bar now that is right by the Duomo with cheap drinks, a pretty bartender, and an amazing view. It's already been a week, and I can tell time is going to fly by.

So, an update since my last post. Thursday night we went to our first Italian club, and it was definitely an experience. We met a group of Americans who had been here since January, so we ended up chatting with them and following them to the club they were going to. It was tons of fun, but not somewhere I want to go back to. Friday we spent the day in Florence. We got food at a cafe outside of the touristy part of town, walked down to a bridge and ate alongside the river. After hanging out there for an hour or so we made our way to the Ponte Vecchio and looked around the markets. I bought two shot glasses to continue my collection (that was started in Peru), and found some other things I might buy later if my bank accounts allow for it. We came back to the Villa completely exhausted, ate a delicious meal (the food they serve us is incredible), took a power nap, and went out into Florence for another night of adventures. Not wanting to pay for a cab, we took the last bus back to Sesto.

Yesterday (Saturday) was amazing. Every Saturday there is a HUGE market in Sesto, with meat, fresh fruit, shoes, bags, clothes, and everything else you can imagine. We ate some fresh food and marveled at the super-cheap, super-cute, super-Italian shoes, and almost everyone bought a pair (Mom, I know I was saying I don't need any more shoes, but they were 5 euro. And you can borrow them :) ). After we exhausted the market (slash didn't want to risk staying longer and buying more things) we took the bus up to Florence and navigated the train station to find our way into Pisa. The tower is absolutely crazy. You see pictures and say "hey, that's funny. A tower that leans. Cool," but seeing it is completely different. It's just so bizarre. It doesn't look real at all and I couldn't stop staring. The cathedral next to it is also breathtaking, but we didn't go inside because it cost money, and that is not something any of us have in abundance. We then made our way back to Florence and ate at a really cute, really delicious restaurant off the beaten track. I got margarita pizza--my first pizza of the trip--and it was incredible. On our way back we stopped at the bridge right across from the Ponte Vecchio and went down onto this little ledge that sticks out from the bridge. Maybe not the safest thing in the world, but definitely one of the most gorgeous views. My eyes can hardly handle everything they take in here. It is all so different and so amazing. It will never, ever get old. As for last night, well, we thought it'd be fun and economical to stay out until the first bus in the morning--aka 5:45 am. Let's just say it's 4:45pm now and I'm still beat.

Today is a homework and studying-filled day. We have a paper due tomorrow and our first test on Tuesday. Over 3 chapters. Yikes. Tomorrow I'll probably go to the National Library in Florence to study, but for today it's the Villa's library, which strangely resembles the Ref Room back in Ann Arbor.

Ciao for now,

Alison

Felicità

I just finished my last class of the week, and let's just say four hours of Italian class every day is quite overwhelming. Sabina, my teacher, doesn't speak English to us at all, and it takes full concentration to completely understand what she is saying--something that gets tiring after four hours. The Villa is amazing though, even our classroom is gorgeous. I definitely don't mind the insane workload that comes along with packing an entire years worth of class into 6 weeks because the experience is so amazing. A few of us went into Florence last night and just walked around, and the Duomo is even more magnificent at night, when there aren't hundreds of people around, and when you turn a corner and BAM. Duomo. It's a completely different feeling seeing it when you're just walking around and hanging out with friends than seeing it on a tour. We must have stood around marveling at it for 20 minutes. We didn't do much else, but it was a GREAT night. We were all still caught up in the incredibleness of everything and got so excited about everything and were so happy the whole time. It was a completely amazing and indescribable feeling and I just feel so lucky to be here and be having the experience of a lifetime.

I'm realizing now how fast this trip is going to go. There is so much to do, we have so much planned, and there is so much more I want to do. The weekends are going to be AMAZING! Tonight most of us are going to go out in Florence, and tomorrow since we don't have class we're going to spend the day in Florence going to the museums, doing some shopping, and enjoying the incredible city. Saturday we're going to take a train to Pisa and spend the day there. We have our first test already on Tuesday, and as much work and studying that needs to be done, it is so much more important to enjoy the time I have here and embrace the experience. On my birthday we are taking a day trip to Siena and are thinking about possibly staying longer. The next weekend a couple of us are going to BARCELONA!!! The plane ticket was 50 euro roundtrip. Amazing. We also have trips planned to Venice and Cinque Terre. I can hardly contain my excitement and happiness when I think about the next few weeks.

For now, I am going to go outside, enjoy the CASTLE I live in, do some studying, and marvel at how awesome my life is.

The Beginning

Ciao i miei amici e la mia famiglia! I have only been in Italy for a couple of days and I can already tell it is going to be an experience of a lifetime. So much has already happened and has already exceeded the extreme expectations I’ve had, and I cannot wait to see what the next 7 weeks have in store for me.

I have to say, I’m not a huge fan of blogging (not that I’ve ever done it before), but I am going to do my best to stick through it and keep this up. Mostly because I have heard from experienced travelers that it is worth it, and because family members have expressed interest in keep updated on my experiences. And because of the 6 hour time difference and the thousands of amazing stories I will have at the end of this trip, I figure I can bear through the pain of knowing people are reading my writing, because ultimately, I know I will look back and be happy I documented everything.

So. To begin. I got a little emotional saying bye to my mom at the security gate in Chicago, and that was the first time I experienced any emotion other than excitement. I suppose I was scared; scared of going to a foreign country by myself where I only sort of speak the language, scared of not really knowing anyone else going, scared of failing the class (a full year’s worth of material jam-packed into 6 weeks still scares me a bit), but mostly scared that the trip wouldn’t live up to the life-changing-experience expectations that I had attached to the trip since day one. And I can happily say, that fear is no longer with me. For the whole 2 and a half hour wait I had at the terminal, an IU student who is also studying for 6 weeks in Florence pleasantly distracted me with casual conversation, travel tips, and a jiu-jitsu lesson (theoretical, not practical). As soon as I got on the plane I took Tylenol PM, watched the first half of No Strings Attached, and passed out. It wasn’t the most comfortable sleep, but it was sleep. I had a short layover in Switzerland (I wished it had been longer so I could go out an explore the beautiful countryside), chatted with a Brazilian who had apparently sat near me on the plane, and boarded a short flight to Florence. I was able to meet up with Matt and we took a taxi to the Villa. He dropped us off on the side of a street alongside an old wall—surely having taken us to the wrong place, I questioned him and apparently, it was correct. It certainly didn’t look anything like I had imagined a 600-year-old Villa to look. However, as soon as we walked inside I knew it was the right place. I was ecstatic at the sight of an impressive lawn, but I about died when I looked through the iron gates into the formal gardens. I am certainly not talented enough with words to explain the grounds—look at my pictures on Facebook and keep in mind they don’t do the place justice. I am living in a 600-year-old castle and surrounded by gardens and grounds that go on forever. That first afternoon we spent a good couple hours exploring the grounds and the inside of the never-ending Villa. At night we explored around a little, but because it was a Sunday evening not much was open. A few of us did manage to sniff out the local gelateria and enjoyed the first of many gelato stops. That first day was all I could have hoped for—and we hadn’t even had orientation yet.

Yesterday (Monday) was even more incredible. We started off the day with a delicious breakfast of Italian bread and Nutella. Yum! We then had a quick program orientation, after which a couple of us went into town to a café to try some authentic Italian coffee. I had a shot of espresso, which was strong but delicious! After coffee we had a walking tour of Sesto Fiorentino (Sesto is the town we’re actually staying in—it’s right outside of Florence). The cool part? Our tour guide didn’t speak a word of English. It was a little hard to understand him because he talked super fast, but I was able to catch the main points. After the tour we got another incredible meal—I am going to be eating VERY well these next few weeks—and then got ready for our tour of Florence. We caught the train and met up with our tour guide outside the station. We all have unlimited bus passes and it’s only about a 20 minute ride into Florence so we plan to go back and forth a lot. Our tour guide for Florence spoke English, but gave most of the tour in Italian which was very cool. She was much easier to understand, so when I wasn’t marveling at my surroundings I was able to comprehend most of the tour. Our first stop was Chiesa San Miniato, a stunning church with an even more miraculous view overlooking all of Florence. After a history lesson and some marveling we walked into the heart of Firenze. The whole tour lasted about 5 hours, so we were all happy to sit down and enjoy the sun in a small piazza after. After another delicious meal we all sat down to plan our weekends. Nothing is set in stone yet, but the ideas that were thrown around were Cinque Terre, Capri, Rome, Barcelona, and Pisa on top of our already planned trips to Siena (on my birthday!) and Venice.

Today will be a little bit of a reality shock since we actually start class—four hours a day four days a week. Yikes. Plus I have an internship at an elementary school with two other girls for an hour every Monday morning. It will be a lot, but these past couple days have gotten me really excited to really improve my Italian and speak it and just learn.

Sorry this was such a long post! I don’t know proper blogging etiquette so if this was long and exhaustive, I apologize. I will [try] to update as things happen. Until then, have un bello giorno (a beautiful day)!

Lots of love,
Alison