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?