I know that this is the least original title, but when you hear about this past week, you will have to agree that it is true. By the way, the translation is “The Sweet Life.”
On Tuesday I went to the first Spazio Conversione of the semester. Basically every Tuesday the school organizes this social for the students in my program to meet and talk with members of the Florence community, ranging in age and occupation. The point is for us to practice out Italian and for them to practice their English-it’s a lovely bilingual time. I went in with a good attitude and ready to speak Italian, and ended up speaking Italian, English and Spanish. Needless to say my brain was working overtime-crazy at least trilingual Italians. I actually lucked out and ending up at the table with four university students, two of which were in Law School and very cute. Niccolo and Giovani (the guys in Law School) were really great to talk with: when we couldn’t figure out the worlds, we’d just use wild hand gestures and sometimes Spanish (a good compromise between Italian and English). I have to go to these for the oral component of my Italian class, but I’d keep going even if I weren’t required to.
Wednesday was the day that a big group of us finally got out tickets and will be attending the Fiorentina v. Roma game this coming Wednesday. Yes, I am so excited and there will be a blog entry and lots of photos just about this game! More to come about said game very soon.
I’ve signed up to read books to elementary school students and we had our first training on Thursday. Basically, depending on the grade we get, we go to the school and teach the kids some words in English and then read a story to them, and then read it again with them helping us act it out. This semester the book is called, “Because a Little Bug Went Ka-Choo” written by Rosetta Stone. It’s really written by Dr. Seuss but he didn’t do the illustrations, so he used a nom de plum. I’m excited to get into the classroom and start reading with the kids. Earlier on Thursday, I went to the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo with my Art History class. We learned about the fundamentals of sculpture by seeing the process first hand, ie seeing how the sculpture has evolved through time. The best thing about the Museo dell’Opera is that it’s where all the original works of art are held. Many of the works in the Duomo are actually copies, and the more valuable and delicate originals are in the Museo dell’Opera. We saw Michelangelo’s “Pietà”, Donnatello’s “Maddalena”, and some of Ghiberti’s bronze panels for the doors of the Baptistery. I have to say that if had to choose a favorite it would be Ghiberti’s panels. After classes got out I took a cooking class, and it was fabulous! We learned how to make three different types of pasta: spinach ravioli (the best by far), taglatelle, and a sudo-angel hair; three sauces: butter-rosemary, red pepper (which was really sweet and not spicy like I thought it would be), and traditional tomato; and Tiramisu. I was on team Tiramisu which was so fun. I am going to admit it now, I was never a big fan of Tiramisu, but after making it the right way I am now in luv with it! It was really great to eat fresh, hand-made pasta, and the best part (aside from eating it) was getting all the recopies!! So now I can make this yummy food when I get back to the states.
And then the weekend began! On Friday, I set out early in the morning on the train to CINQUE TERRE with my friends Katie, Sarah, and Evi. We met up at the train station, and after figuring out which one was ours and where we were supposed to validate our ticket, we finally set out on our way. It was a nice ride there in a cabin that felt very Hogwarts Express-esque. But there were no chocolate frogs on the snack cart and we didn’t have any Slytherines trying to stuff us into our suitcases. We were all pleased to arrive at the station and find out that our hotel was right across the street (something that we really appreciated later on in this story). The first thing I learned is do not judge a building by it’s exterior. From the outside, the Hotel Mary looks super sketch, but once we got in it was actually quite nice. The hotel manager was very accommodating and even let us check in early. A good rule of thumb when traveling in a foreign country is to always start out speaking in their language and communicate as much as possible. People are much more willing to help you out once they have seen that you’re willing to speak their language and aren’t a stereotypical rude American. I am not fluent in Italian, but I did my best to speak with the locals, and ask our questions in Italian. Without fail, we were met with positive responses and got some great help, like when ordering food and trying to find transportation. So once we dropped off our bags and got situated we left La Spazia (where we were staying) and set out for Riomaggiore (the first city). The walk started out quite nice with amazing views from the Via dell’Amore. The Via dell’Amore is a weird tunnel, with arches that frame great views, but it also has all of these poems and drawings on the inner-walls of, what else?, love. It was kinda cute yet kinda lame. But there was a guy playing an accordion at the end, which really just put it over onto the cheesy side. Up next was Manarola, which was also lovely and picture-esque. We walked around the shops and marveled at the ocean. And then things got interesting on the way to Corniglia. Let’s just say, our path stopped being a path and became rocks in dirt and then came the stairs. To get to the elevated town of Corniglia there are these switchback stairs that seem to go on for days. But at the top there is a welcoming sign that says, “Congratulations, you have just climbed 382 stairs and have arrived in Corniglia. Good job!” And you just look at it with distain. We were smart and decided to stop there and have a bit of lunch, cause we needed at rest after the walk thus far (little did we know what was in store for us after Corniglia). We ate some lovely breads and cheeses in this tiny tratoria along the hillside. It was just the break we needed. And then we headed out for Vernazza. In order to get to Vernazza they decided to make the path, steeper, more narrow, more rocks and more stairs. Wait I lied, they decided to make more steps made out of jagged rocks that are not that stable and very steep so you feel like a dying goat trying to climb a mountain. And then you would look out and see the coast, but wouldn’t want to look down cause you were on the coast, and at times we were literally on the coast and there wasn’t much separating us from the water down below. Aren’t we proud of me for trecking in the hot, up high on crazy paths, right above the ocean? Well, I am! Needless to say we finally made it to Vernazza, and sat down on the ground. And then we looked up and saw the most perfectly placed gelateria. It’s apparently famous, and celebrities go there and love it. Personally after the hike thus far I was loving anything. But I have to admit I have had better gelato. We took the time to take in the town, looking into the shops. I got really excited when I saw all of the pesto, and was tempted to buy some but I decided it was too early to buy food to bring home. We saw a great ceramic shop and lots of wine. And then came another memorable experience, using the bathroom. The only public restroom we could find was at the train station, and it was basically a hole in the ground. Once again, this is me, the girl who carries hand sanitizer and shout wipes. So after much deliberation, and the peer pressure from the girls, I used the hole in the ground, and it really was an experience that I wish I could, but will never forget. After laying on the giant rocks by the ocean we had rested enough to continue onwards. The final leg took us to Monterosso and we thought that the worst was behind us. Let’s just say there were more rock stairs, but these were windy and deceiving. As in they would go around the corner, and you would hope that you’d hit a flat part, but there would just be more stairs. I’m just going to say as of Sunday night, my legs are still store. I have re-named it, Cinque Terre: The Stair-Master of Italy. After lots of water, tears/laugher, and a few Hail Mary’s we reached the end of our trek and arrived in Monterosso. We then had one of the longest dinners in the world, as a reward for our travels. We ate at a little, relatively well-priced restaurant on the patio, overlooking the ocean. As in we could have jumped down and walked two feet into the cool waters. Dinner was delicious and just a blast. After eating for a few hours, we made our way to the train station, and relaxed as the train made it’s way back to La Spezia. Unfortunately we got on the wrong train, it was a non-stop express and we did have to pay another 3 euro. But it was well worth it. The only sad part, was how quickly we made the trip (comparing it to how long it took us to walk it-basically all day).
On Saturday we slept in and enjoyed our lovely hotel’s free breakfast. After we checked out of the Hotel Mary we headed out on the train back to Monterosso. The trains were backed up, probably due to all the annoying tourists, but we finally made it to our destination and proceeded straight to the beach to layout and relax in classy European lounge chairs with the most ridiculous looking sun blinders. It was a nice break, just people watching, listening to music, and enjoying the refreshingly cold water. Once we got tired of laying out in the sun, which is tiring, we decided to train it back to another town before catching our train back to Florence. Unfortunately the trains were behind all day and there was a huge confusion about what platform the train we needed was coming in at. Also everyone and their mom was trying to get on the same train. So needless to say we changed platforms a few times, ended up not getting on the train, and having to get onto another one. That was really the only bad thing that happened to us while we were there, so no worries. We caught another train, quite a bit later, after listening to the annoying Italian recording announcing information that wasn’t that useful. After a long day of hanging around train stations, we made it back to Florence- all four of us with all of our stuff. Overall, it was a great trip with hilarious and unforgettable memories attached to it.
Sunday was the day of rest. I got up and went to Church again. And once again I was surprised by how fast they get through mass. 45 minutes and we’re done! A Catholic 45 minute mass just feels so weird to me. I mean, hey, I’m not complaining. I’ve gotten better at understanding what is being said, with the aid of the little booklet (it’s not in English) so I can see the words in front of me in Italian. Afterwards, I came back home and did my homework. We did have some yummy Tiramisu, made by my host-mom Franca. I spent a good amount of time just hanging out with Franca and her friend Marisa, and once again I became La Marisa so we wouldn’t get confused.
I am anxious to begin this week! The soccer game is on Wednesday and on Sunday I am participating in the Corri La Vita (race for breast cancer). More details to come. Alla prossima.
Monday, September 24, 2007
Monday, September 17, 2007
Fare Un’ Escursione
So far life has been good. I think I have finally adjusted to being here and am no longer getting sick (knock on wood that this continues). The main plus of not being sick, I get to eat delish food! Mi piace molto il cibo Italiano. Here’s what this past week has been like:
Classes: All and all they are going well. The first week of school is never really that demanding, but the syllabi lead me to believe that all the work will not be overwhelming. I’m in Intermediate Italian and I can understand everything that’s going on. The textbook is straightforward and I am not worried much about this class. I also get a lot of practice in listening and speaking by living with my host mom, who doesn’t speak a word of English, which is really the best thing that could have happened for me. Just living in a residential place, watching Italian tv (or American tv shows dubbed over in Italian, “lui si chiama Walker, e’ un Texas Ranger” and many more wonderful shows like Ugly Betty-which keeps the Spanish in Spanish so I feel like I’m at home). A History of Witchcraft is so great!! I love the readings, one of which is inspiring me on what I may want to write my thesis on (popular culture/mentality in medieval Italy, in regards to religious conflict between the Catholic church and older-pagan/fairytales/folklore/superstitions; but I’m still working on it). The proff is crazy knowledgeable, and really keeps the lectures interesting-they would be better if certain people would shut up and stop trying to be such show-offs. I’m going to try and ignore those two girls, seeing as how I only have to deal with them for a few months, plus deep down I know I am smarter than them. The end of that subject. Art History: Antiquity-Michelangelo is great. We spend one class in the classroom and the other class out in the city. This past week we walked around the centro and had site-visits to the oldest parts of the city. I love it! Classical Mythology is interesting. I decided I was in dire need to learn the true mythology seeing as how I’ve been basing my knowledge off of Disney’s Hercules and other animated shorts (highly amusing but I do need to know what really happened). Main point: I like my classes, not all the people in them, but the material is still fascinating.
Fieldtrips: one of the best things to do here is to go on the all school/class fieldtrips. On Friday I went to Assisi and had a blast! We obviously went into the church, and had a guided tour about St. Francis and the frescos on the wall. It was very interesting, but sometimes hard to hear because you could not speak above a whisper and our earpieces were not working that well. I sort of told myself the story of the frescos as we went along. Then we did a walking tour of the village of Assisi and oh boy was that tiring. Something most people do not know about Assisi, it’s on top of a hill/mountain, and many of the roads are at a steep incline, which means walking tour of the city was very tiring. It’s a beautiful place, making the trek worthwhile. I’d like to live in a little medieval town just like it. Also, it has the best gelato I’ve ever eaten. It was this vanilla frozen yogurt with berries mixed in! Yum! I know I will miss it when I leave and feel that I should look into getting it shipped to me in the states of opening up my own gelateria if the grad school thing doesn’t work out ☺ We then climbed to the top of the Rocca, which had a spectacular view!
Then on Sunday I went to Populonia, which is this archeological site in the middle of nowhere. We trekked around the site and then crawled into some of the old Etruscan tombs. Yes, I said crawled. Populonia is great because it is one of the best sites to see Etruscan life. After we saw the crazy cool graves, we hiked/climbed up the hill/mountain to see the quarry. It was very tiring but worth it. We got to see some more tombs that were just beginning to be excavated in the forest and the view from the top was very impressive. It was a bit too cloudy so I was unable to see the island of Elba across the sea. But the trek made me feel like Indiana Jones discovering lost worlds, minus the giant bolder chasing after me and no Nazis.
I’ve been making more travel plans and on the days when I have stayed in Florence I have been exploring the city. I’ve gotten better at navigating the bus system and getting around in general. The city is beautiful yet dirty, and the people are accommodating and interesting yet rude. In general, Florence is a one duality. Today after classes, I’m going to find soccer tickets to a game next week. I think that’s about it for now. Alla prossima.
Classes: All and all they are going well. The first week of school is never really that demanding, but the syllabi lead me to believe that all the work will not be overwhelming. I’m in Intermediate Italian and I can understand everything that’s going on. The textbook is straightforward and I am not worried much about this class. I also get a lot of practice in listening and speaking by living with my host mom, who doesn’t speak a word of English, which is really the best thing that could have happened for me. Just living in a residential place, watching Italian tv (or American tv shows dubbed over in Italian, “lui si chiama Walker, e’ un Texas Ranger” and many more wonderful shows like Ugly Betty-which keeps the Spanish in Spanish so I feel like I’m at home). A History of Witchcraft is so great!! I love the readings, one of which is inspiring me on what I may want to write my thesis on (popular culture/mentality in medieval Italy, in regards to religious conflict between the Catholic church and older-pagan/fairytales/folklore/superstitions; but I’m still working on it). The proff is crazy knowledgeable, and really keeps the lectures interesting-they would be better if certain people would shut up and stop trying to be such show-offs. I’m going to try and ignore those two girls, seeing as how I only have to deal with them for a few months, plus deep down I know I am smarter than them. The end of that subject. Art History: Antiquity-Michelangelo is great. We spend one class in the classroom and the other class out in the city. This past week we walked around the centro and had site-visits to the oldest parts of the city. I love it! Classical Mythology is interesting. I decided I was in dire need to learn the true mythology seeing as how I’ve been basing my knowledge off of Disney’s Hercules and other animated shorts (highly amusing but I do need to know what really happened). Main point: I like my classes, not all the people in them, but the material is still fascinating.
Fieldtrips: one of the best things to do here is to go on the all school/class fieldtrips. On Friday I went to Assisi and had a blast! We obviously went into the church, and had a guided tour about St. Francis and the frescos on the wall. It was very interesting, but sometimes hard to hear because you could not speak above a whisper and our earpieces were not working that well. I sort of told myself the story of the frescos as we went along. Then we did a walking tour of the village of Assisi and oh boy was that tiring. Something most people do not know about Assisi, it’s on top of a hill/mountain, and many of the roads are at a steep incline, which means walking tour of the city was very tiring. It’s a beautiful place, making the trek worthwhile. I’d like to live in a little medieval town just like it. Also, it has the best gelato I’ve ever eaten. It was this vanilla frozen yogurt with berries mixed in! Yum! I know I will miss it when I leave and feel that I should look into getting it shipped to me in the states of opening up my own gelateria if the grad school thing doesn’t work out ☺ We then climbed to the top of the Rocca, which had a spectacular view!
Then on Sunday I went to Populonia, which is this archeological site in the middle of nowhere. We trekked around the site and then crawled into some of the old Etruscan tombs. Yes, I said crawled. Populonia is great because it is one of the best sites to see Etruscan life. After we saw the crazy cool graves, we hiked/climbed up the hill/mountain to see the quarry. It was very tiring but worth it. We got to see some more tombs that were just beginning to be excavated in the forest and the view from the top was very impressive. It was a bit too cloudy so I was unable to see the island of Elba across the sea. But the trek made me feel like Indiana Jones discovering lost worlds, minus the giant bolder chasing after me and no Nazis.
I’ve been making more travel plans and on the days when I have stayed in Florence I have been exploring the city. I’ve gotten better at navigating the bus system and getting around in general. The city is beautiful yet dirty, and the people are accommodating and interesting yet rude. In general, Florence is a one duality. Today after classes, I’m going to find soccer tickets to a game next week. I think that’s about it for now. Alla prossima.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Orientation and Full Emersion
Orientation here was very similar to Pomona’s, with the slight difference of the language being spoken alternated between English and Italian: va bene. We were definitely spoiled in the Pomona way, with lectures in a historic and beautiful (well I think those two words always go to together, but that’s just me) theater house and dinner in a classy restaurant next to the Palazzo Vecchio. It was a good night with good food, jazz, and a great view.
Syracuse University in Florence is set in the Piazza Savonarola, and yes it is a nice as the name implies. We have courtyards with wireless (which is the only place I can use the internet for free) and some nice panoramic views of the city from the upper floors of the school. The rooms get a bit hot, but that’s why I have a portable fan shaped like an ipod, yes very motherly of me, but it helps beat the heat. My favorite place by far is the “Quiet Room” where they have couches, chairs, tables, plugs for to charge your electronics, and windows that open out to the main square and back garden. I would have to say the real reason why I love it in there, is because of the sign that says you can sleep in there. The sign said I could, so I did and it was the best nap I’ve had since I arrived in Florence. This room is going to be my new hide-away at the school, if for no other purpose, than to sleep during down time.
I registered for my classes, and for the first time was in the first group to register and subsequently got into all of my classes. I’m also living in a single in my home stay, so I’m hoping this trend will continue into next semester. My classes are Intermediate Italian, A History of Witchcraft, Art History: Antiquity to Michelangelo, and Classical Mythology. The best part is that there are no Friday classes, making it that much easier to travel around. We have field trips with our classes and the school practically every weekend, a great bonus. I’ve planned out my trips already, and this coming Friday I’m heading out for a day trip to Assisi.
My home stay is pretty awesome. I’m living a 15-minute walk/short bus ride away from the school. I have a single room in the apartment of an older widow named Franca. She speaks no English, which isn’t a problem at all and since I’ve been living with her my Italian has gotten so much better. She says I speak well, which makes me really excited and gives me hope of being amazing after 4 months of living with her. She enjoys the movies and television, so we’ve been watching a lot of TV during our down time. I’m very happy that I’m going to get to watch some of my favorite TV shows while I’m in Italy, dubbed over in Italian of course. Ugly Betty starts this week, along with Franca’s favorite show Il Dottor House! I can’t wait for House’s sass in Italian. And before these shows begin, there is a Pomona favorite, Chuck Norris è Walker: Texas Ranger. Basically, Italian TV is very amusing.
After Syracuse finished orienting us, we were set free on our full emersion weekend. On Saturday, Rody and I walked around exploring Florence. We met these really nice Alumni who guided us to a yummy and cheap restaurant for lunch. The food was pretty good, but it was really all about the fruit we had there. Rody will back me up on this. We also learned that Hugh Grant’s brother owns a sit down restaurant in the same area, I have vowed to go back, find it, and eat there, when I have more money. We then went to the centro and began taking lots of photos of the Duomo. I know I’m going to be here for a long time, and that Duomo is going to get so many photos taken of it, by me it’s going to be ridiculous. I know I look touristy doing it, but I have accepted it and have moved on. While walking around, I also saw my first designer stores/prices. I took photos of the D&G prices, cause I just needed proof of how ridic expensive these clothes are. After I came out of shock, we continued to walk around, burning off the calories from the delish Italian food. Then we came upon, the Uffizi Gallery. Well first we came upon the Palazzo with all of the huge statues and fountain with huge statues in it. Then we spotted the fake David, which was the sign that we were at the Uffizi Gallery. Art + history + museum with amazing panoramic views of the city = me in heaven. But the Uffizi is huge and we were tired so we didn’t stay long, plus we have a free museum pass so I’ll be back again in no time.
On Sunday, I woke up and did something I was excited for but still very nervous to do: I walked, on my own to church. Granted it was only a few blocks, but it was the first time I had gone out by myself to a place I wasn’t quite sure where it was. I got there with no problems, acting like a local and not speaking to sketch street vendors who called out to me. Then the next hard part, get through a Catholic Sunday mass entirely in Italian with strangers. I do know how the mass works; it just took a while to catch on to what was being said. I mean, the priest wasn’t just speaking Italian, he was speaking church Italian. Off the top of your head can you tell me the translation to “peace I bring you, my peace I give you. Lord look not on our faults and failings...” and so on? Yeah, I thought so. Also, the Creed is hard enough to remember in English, let alone another language. So I kinda faked it while I was there, I mean it’s the thought that counts. But on a plus side, cute boys go with their mothers to church. Afterwards I made it back to my apartment and had lunch with Franca, her daughter Piatricia, and her old friend Mariza. Trust me, it was confusing. She decided to call me La Marisa, and Mariza simply Mariza. It made sense in context. Then Piatricia and her husband, who are in their late 30s, took me on a trip to Chianti. In retrospect, traveling is fun, but getting there and back was difficult to say the least. The rodes in the countryside are steep, windy, and not really wide enough to fit to cars at once. There were several occasions where we had to pull over to the side ie the small amount of grass that separated the cliff from the rode, or back up so the other car could pass. But it was worth the fear and nausea. We went around some of the smaller towns in Chianti and stumbled upon a wine festival. It was very crowded with people tasting the vendors’ wine (I mean it is Chianti), cheese, and other products. I was glad to see that no one was selling any Fava beans….or liver. Hahaha, I crack myself up. Sorry guys, I just started school, I need some amusement. We had some gelato, and the decided that the place was way too crowded so we set off to explore another neighboring town. Then we came upon the most amazing place. Basically, long Italian name that you don’t care about the origin of, the main point is, is that it’s a really old medieval town, home to about 100 residents. I was thrilled to see, first hand, how people lived in the era that I am studying. The streets were worn down from centuries of traffic, and the outer stone wall still showed its’ battle scars. I felt transported back in time, and then I looked over and saw one of the inhabitants of this place open a shed and get into their Audi, and it kinda killed my daydream. We then took a rollercoaster of a car ride home and settled in for the evening.
That’s about it for now. The facebook album with photos from my travels is up, so you can look at it in conjunction with this post for the full effect. Alla prossima.
Syracuse University in Florence is set in the Piazza Savonarola, and yes it is a nice as the name implies. We have courtyards with wireless (which is the only place I can use the internet for free) and some nice panoramic views of the city from the upper floors of the school. The rooms get a bit hot, but that’s why I have a portable fan shaped like an ipod, yes very motherly of me, but it helps beat the heat. My favorite place by far is the “Quiet Room” where they have couches, chairs, tables, plugs for to charge your electronics, and windows that open out to the main square and back garden. I would have to say the real reason why I love it in there, is because of the sign that says you can sleep in there. The sign said I could, so I did and it was the best nap I’ve had since I arrived in Florence. This room is going to be my new hide-away at the school, if for no other purpose, than to sleep during down time.
I registered for my classes, and for the first time was in the first group to register and subsequently got into all of my classes. I’m also living in a single in my home stay, so I’m hoping this trend will continue into next semester. My classes are Intermediate Italian, A History of Witchcraft, Art History: Antiquity to Michelangelo, and Classical Mythology. The best part is that there are no Friday classes, making it that much easier to travel around. We have field trips with our classes and the school practically every weekend, a great bonus. I’ve planned out my trips already, and this coming Friday I’m heading out for a day trip to Assisi.
My home stay is pretty awesome. I’m living a 15-minute walk/short bus ride away from the school. I have a single room in the apartment of an older widow named Franca. She speaks no English, which isn’t a problem at all and since I’ve been living with her my Italian has gotten so much better. She says I speak well, which makes me really excited and gives me hope of being amazing after 4 months of living with her. She enjoys the movies and television, so we’ve been watching a lot of TV during our down time. I’m very happy that I’m going to get to watch some of my favorite TV shows while I’m in Italy, dubbed over in Italian of course. Ugly Betty starts this week, along with Franca’s favorite show Il Dottor House! I can’t wait for House’s sass in Italian. And before these shows begin, there is a Pomona favorite, Chuck Norris è Walker: Texas Ranger. Basically, Italian TV is very amusing.
After Syracuse finished orienting us, we were set free on our full emersion weekend. On Saturday, Rody and I walked around exploring Florence. We met these really nice Alumni who guided us to a yummy and cheap restaurant for lunch. The food was pretty good, but it was really all about the fruit we had there. Rody will back me up on this. We also learned that Hugh Grant’s brother owns a sit down restaurant in the same area, I have vowed to go back, find it, and eat there, when I have more money. We then went to the centro and began taking lots of photos of the Duomo. I know I’m going to be here for a long time, and that Duomo is going to get so many photos taken of it, by me it’s going to be ridiculous. I know I look touristy doing it, but I have accepted it and have moved on. While walking around, I also saw my first designer stores/prices. I took photos of the D&G prices, cause I just needed proof of how ridic expensive these clothes are. After I came out of shock, we continued to walk around, burning off the calories from the delish Italian food. Then we came upon, the Uffizi Gallery. Well first we came upon the Palazzo with all of the huge statues and fountain with huge statues in it. Then we spotted the fake David, which was the sign that we were at the Uffizi Gallery. Art + history + museum with amazing panoramic views of the city = me in heaven. But the Uffizi is huge and we were tired so we didn’t stay long, plus we have a free museum pass so I’ll be back again in no time.
On Sunday, I woke up and did something I was excited for but still very nervous to do: I walked, on my own to church. Granted it was only a few blocks, but it was the first time I had gone out by myself to a place I wasn’t quite sure where it was. I got there with no problems, acting like a local and not speaking to sketch street vendors who called out to me. Then the next hard part, get through a Catholic Sunday mass entirely in Italian with strangers. I do know how the mass works; it just took a while to catch on to what was being said. I mean, the priest wasn’t just speaking Italian, he was speaking church Italian. Off the top of your head can you tell me the translation to “peace I bring you, my peace I give you. Lord look not on our faults and failings...” and so on? Yeah, I thought so. Also, the Creed is hard enough to remember in English, let alone another language. So I kinda faked it while I was there, I mean it’s the thought that counts. But on a plus side, cute boys go with their mothers to church. Afterwards I made it back to my apartment and had lunch with Franca, her daughter Piatricia, and her old friend Mariza. Trust me, it was confusing. She decided to call me La Marisa, and Mariza simply Mariza. It made sense in context. Then Piatricia and her husband, who are in their late 30s, took me on a trip to Chianti. In retrospect, traveling is fun, but getting there and back was difficult to say the least. The rodes in the countryside are steep, windy, and not really wide enough to fit to cars at once. There were several occasions where we had to pull over to the side ie the small amount of grass that separated the cliff from the rode, or back up so the other car could pass. But it was worth the fear and nausea. We went around some of the smaller towns in Chianti and stumbled upon a wine festival. It was very crowded with people tasting the vendors’ wine (I mean it is Chianti), cheese, and other products. I was glad to see that no one was selling any Fava beans….or liver. Hahaha, I crack myself up. Sorry guys, I just started school, I need some amusement. We had some gelato, and the decided that the place was way too crowded so we set off to explore another neighboring town. Then we came upon the most amazing place. Basically, long Italian name that you don’t care about the origin of, the main point is, is that it’s a really old medieval town, home to about 100 residents. I was thrilled to see, first hand, how people lived in the era that I am studying. The streets were worn down from centuries of traffic, and the outer stone wall still showed its’ battle scars. I felt transported back in time, and then I looked over and saw one of the inhabitants of this place open a shed and get into their Audi, and it kinda killed my daydream. We then took a rollercoaster of a car ride home and settled in for the evening.
That’s about it for now. The facebook album with photos from my travels is up, so you can look at it in conjunction with this post for the full effect. Alla prossima.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Ho Arrivato!
Ok, so I know it's been a while, but I finally got wireless internet at the school and this is the first time I have been able to sit down and chill. Here goes....
I arrived in Florence on Tuesday, the 4th and then proceeded to get sick and be jet-lagged at the same time, in a country that doesn't speak english. I lie. It's actually really easy to just speak english, but I am doing my best not to. I am working on getting my italian back to where it was in may, slowly and surely. I just found out that I am living with an elderly widow names Franca, who lives alone, about a 20 minute walk from the university. I do not yet know if I have a roomate, but should know by the time I meet her this evening. So far, we've just been filling out paperwork and not really doing much. Lots of english, I'm sorry I can't fill out legal documents in Italian, yet. I stress yet! I'm going to fight it out and register for classes tomarrow. Until then, it's going to be a lot of sitting arround the plush Villa Rossa and trying to adjust to life here. I have no real ideas formed yet and am looking forward to seeing more of the city. More info and pictures to come (on facebook) when I charge up my battery.
Ciao.
I arrived in Florence on Tuesday, the 4th and then proceeded to get sick and be jet-lagged at the same time, in a country that doesn't speak english. I lie. It's actually really easy to just speak english, but I am doing my best not to. I am working on getting my italian back to where it was in may, slowly and surely. I just found out that I am living with an elderly widow names Franca, who lives alone, about a 20 minute walk from the university. I do not yet know if I have a roomate, but should know by the time I meet her this evening. So far, we've just been filling out paperwork and not really doing much. Lots of english, I'm sorry I can't fill out legal documents in Italian, yet. I stress yet! I'm going to fight it out and register for classes tomarrow. Until then, it's going to be a lot of sitting arround the plush Villa Rossa and trying to adjust to life here. I have no real ideas formed yet and am looking forward to seeing more of the city. More info and pictures to come (on facebook) when I charge up my battery.
Ciao.
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