And I didn't set on fire.

This week, though I didn't travel outside of Florence again, went extremely well. I'm starting to feel like a real Florence local and was even asked directions by some Asian tourists (which means I clearly look like an English speaker...but at least I look like I know where I'm going!). Though I'm quite homesick for Marist right now because of Alumni Weekend, I had a great time this week to ease the pain a bit. Shout out to all my friends and alumni who are there this weekend. I miss you all! <3

On  Monday in cooking class, I had one of the best genuine Italian meals ever. Everything we cook is low in sugar and fat, yet somehow, it always comes out amazing. We had chicken with mushrooms, penne with a bell pepper cream sauce, eggplant with pesto, cheese, and tomatoes, and finally, crepes with fresh cream and strawberries. My group was assigned the crepes, and I was thrilled. I seem to excel most in making the desserts because I prefer baking to actual cooking. I was mostly in charge of the whipped cream, which was only three ingredients, but proper whipping technique was key. That's right. Proper whipping technique. ANYWAY. My friends made the crepes while another girl and I did the cream and prepared the strawberries, and when they were complete, they turned into a beautiful masterpiece. We put the cream in the middle of the crepes, rolled them up, then garnished them with a dollop of cream, a single strawberry, a mint leaf, and powdered sugar. Everything that day was so good. I came back so happy and bragged to all my housemates about our tasty endeavors. They always hate me on Monday nights. :) I wish I'd brought a camera so you could see our delightful creations. :(

The next couple days were spent in class, I continued to struggle with learning Italian, and then the weekend finally came. On Thursday, most of my housemates and I decided to attend a block party that was thrown for all of the American students studying in Florence, which was located outside of San Lorenzo Church...which is supposedly the oldest church in Italy...so logically that's where the raging party should be held. Drinks were served, snacks were available, and students from all different programs were able to meet up, talk, and dance to our favorite American jams. We had the whole area gated off, so people were stopping and staring and even taking pictures. I'm pretty sure we were also filmed by tourists when "Wanna Be" by the Spice Girls came on, and everyone started screaming at the top of their lungs.  While I was there, I met a ton of new friends who attend Lorenzo de' Medici and other schools as well, but I particularly bonded with two of them. I told one of them, whose name is Kalani, at the end of the night that we were going to be best friends. And you know what? That may actually happen. I got to hang out with him and his roommate, Josh, today, and we really bonded. It just goes to show if you're bold and friendly and forward...you may come off a little scary at first, but it may work out in the end. :-p

 My housemates and some of the great people we met in front of the church. 

On Friday, Aimee and I made my first adventure to the central market in Florence so I could pick up some produce. Going to that market is an experience everyone needs to have when in Italy. There is everything from hunks of raw meat (that fill the building with the smell of dog food), fresh vegetables and fruit, mini grocery stores, dried fruits, bakeries, fresh bread, and more. I had so much fun just looking around, even though it was a little stressful due to the seemingly endless choices. I ended up picking up some peppers, lettuce, and cucumbers for very reasonable prices, but my favorite purchase was my dried mango. I went to the dried fruit stand, which is set up like a candy store with little scoops for all the different types of fruit. I got a bag of dried cherries and mangoes for when I crave something sweet and shouldn't have candy. Best life choice ever. I was sitting there at the kitchen table with my eyes rolling into the back of my head when I was eating the mango. My friends were a little concerned, but it's fine. I need to go back Monday. I'm already out...I may have a new addiction.

And now we arrive to today. Guess what I did? I WENT TO MASS IN THE DUOMO. Those who know me very well know that I am one of the least religious people you will ever meet, but I figured it would be a good experience to see inside the beautiful cathedral and redeem myself a little bit. Hence the album title. I went in, sat through mass, and didn't set on fire. You can now sleep easy knowing I was not smited. I was a little nervous, to be honest, but all is well. I also went to hang out with Kalani and Josh, and we got to relax, chat, and have interesting conversations with my roommates. At one point, I was pretty sure Josh and Aimee were going to thrown down. Just saying. 

I have one more day left of the weekend, and I wish I'd taken more pictures documenting my experiences this week, but sadly, I did not. I also want to let you know that I may end up having a column in the LDM newspaper about the culture shock I've experienced so far. I'm going to try to make it a bit satirical, as long as the stuffy advisers allow it. I will definitely post them to my blog if I do go through with it so keep an eye out for that. And last but not least, I am counting down the days until my  boyfriend and his friends make their way out to visit. :) Their trip is officially booked, and I cannot wait to see familiar faces. Next time you hear from me, I will be off to Switzerland for the weekend. Arrivederci, amici!

Central Park & Narnia: Successful Weekend Journeys

I know I usually do a blog every five days or so, but I just feel like this weekend needs its own post to properly explain my adventures. Otherwise, next week's would be out of control. Or maybe nothing exciting will happen, and I'll regret having posted this on its own...but eh. If worst comes to worst, I'll just make up a really cool story involving mythical creatures and highly unlikely scenarios. We'll just have to see.

 On Thursday evening, Aimee, Carly, and I decided we'd go for a stroll and went exploring a bit. We hit up all the normal spots, such as the main piazza and the duomo. While we were strolling, we decided to investigate some of the menus at the restaurants around the city's hot spots just out of curiosity. Well, there was a bowl of cornflakes for 6 euro, pizza for 8, and oh yeah, a hamburger and fries for 18, which is roughly 26 dollars or so. Clearly, pizza and other Italian specialties are so common in this area that they have to charge picky tourists outrageous prices for a taste of their homeland. Ohhh, those cooky Italians. I also got my second cannoli from a different shop than my original mouth-watering confection, and this one was subpar in comparison. I was spoiled by the first one for sure. We continued walking and found a really out-of-the-way piazza that was actually quite pretty even though it was completely deserted and saw an adorable puppy who looked kind of lost...then just went for it and peed on someone's doorstep. It was a rather bold move, I must say.

On Friday, my six housemates and I decided we needed a housemates' night out and hit up my second club of all time, Central Park. We did not fly to New York (though I know that is ever so plausible, and it is exactly what you were thinking). We were able to walk just 10 minutes from our apartment to this very well-decorated and interesting outdoor club. There was an area with a live band (and randomly some girls in slutty outfits modeling in the middle of the set), a mini waterfall, sofas and little awnings everywhere, and obviously, a dance floor. My housemates and I were some of the first on the dance floor, and soon enough, it was crowded like no other. Unlike my last club experience, though, the guys there were way too aggressive. They didn't understand the concept that friends just may want to dance together and not find a gang of drunken, hair gel covered, too tight pants wearing, possibly gay men to dance with. I know. It's so hard to believe that we may not be interested in that. I was pretty much living the Dane Cook joke. So eventually, the whole act of trying to get rid of the guys trying to sneak up and dance with my friends got a little old so we decided to head out after about 2 hours or so of dancing. OH. And I forgot to mention the greased up shirtless hipster who was paid to dance and do ab exercises on a little platform above the dance floor. He was actually hilarious to watch. I probably would have wanted to leave earlier if I hadn't got to witness him impersonating Michael Jackson while looking like Ben Gibbard.

So after our late evening out, we slept in, and then Aimee, Carly, and I decided to take a walk to Piazzale Michelangelo and a nearby church where the views of the entire city of Florence were rumored to be unbelievable. My friend, Lina, from Marist studied here and lived in my apartment last fall, and she told me when I got up there, I would fall in love with Florence for good. And I certainly did. Though Google Maps deceived me and told me the walk would be thirty minutes, and it turned out to be an hour and a half (mostly uphill), it was completely worth it. It was basically Narnia, but it's cool. We took pictures up at the church and actually saw two couples who'd just gotten married taking pictures (and I totally creeped and snuck a few, which you can see below).

We saw some beautifully decorated shrines, tombs, and graves, and even heard the monks chanting within the church. It was an unbelievable experience. We then walked a little ways up to the the actual Piazzale Michelangelo, which was very touristy but still offered beautiful views. After snapping a few more pictures, we caught a bus back then decided to relax and eat dinner. But our day didn't end there. Of course, we had to go out and get gelato. :) So far I've tried pistacchio, cookies, and banana spignoli with chocolate pieces, and they all have been utterly delicious...though cookies definitely takes the cake thus far (ahaha. Cookies. Cake.).

I now plan on crashing for the rest of the evening and perhaps watching something online with my roommate as we wind down. I stayed in Florence this weekend, but I feel like I still was able to branch out and explore. I still have tomorrow and half of Monday to relax and maybe even do a little bit more adventuring to the foreign lands within Florence, but we shall see what happens. Thanks for reading, and hopefully at the end of this week, I'll have some true tales to tell, but like I said...I could always just make something up for your entertainment if need be. Ciao. :)

Torture, TV, and Tiramisu

Well, compared to many other people who are abroad, I don't seem to be doing as many exciting, crazy things just yet. I had one trip already, but I don't have another until October...but October is chock full of adventures, so I think I have a legit reason to chill for now. I'll be off to Switzerland the first weekend, the Amalfi Coast the next weekend, then I have a break, and finally, we'll be hitting up the Northern Loop (Berlin, Prague, Amsterdam, and Paris) for our fall break the last week! I'm using this month to adjust and settle into my class schedule and life here in general. I shall now fill you in on how this past week has gone in this wonderful, confusing world that we like to call Florence.

Last weekend, Aimee and I had the house to ourselves since the rest of our roommates had booked a trip. I have to say, an apartment meant for seven people is pretty empty when there only two of you there. On Saturday, we decided to be productive and find the free shuttle to IKEA (I know. So cultural.) so we could find a few things for the apartment. We ended up with some dish towels, tupperware, and throw pillows for 7 Euro. What up? We then decided we'd try to get to the large grocery store known as Coop so we could get some snacks  because there are barely any available at the small local shops around us. We miss snacks. And candy. and television (but I'll get into that later). You know, the important things. Anyway, we got our bus tickets and went to the stop our school adviser told us to go to. However, when we were looking at the lines and stops on the sign, we realized ours was not listed on any of them. We proceeded to ask every bus driver we could as the buses stopped to see if they knew which bus went to Coop. And they all looked at us like we were...well, Americans. And maybe idiots. I don't want to jump the gun on that one, but I think it's pretty safe to assume.

So basically, we never ended up getting to the grocery store and wasted 2.4 Euro, so that was clearly an overall success. To quell the sadness, however, I purchased the best thing I have ever consumed to this day. A real Italian cannolo (THAT'S RIGHT. CANNOLI IS PLURAL. Fun fact.) from a bakery down the street from my apartment. I died. It was so delicious. I've tried them before in America, but I never really enjoyed the outer shell so I was weary I would waste my money. Oh my. I was so, so wrong. The shell was amazing. It was lined with chocolate along the inside, either end was decorated with small orange peel candies, and then when I got to the middle...there were surprise chocolate chips. Drooling, yet? Well, if you're not, I am. And I just told my roommate I now want a cannoli (I like the sound of that better anyway so screw Italian grammar in this case).

We then decided that on Sunday, we'd take a day trip to Siena. It's a 7 Euro bus ride from Florence to Siena and 7 Euro back, so we figured that wasn't bad for the chance to see a whole new city. I have to say, it was beautiful. There were narrow cobblestone streets,  intricate light fixtures along the buildings, and extravagant churches and piazzas. Unfortunately, because it was Sunday, most of the shops were closed so there wasn't a whole lot to do.

BUT FORTUNATELY, the Museum of Torture was open! We hit that up the second we saw the sign to say the least. I was so pumped, which probably sounds really bizarre, but I just find murder and torture really interesting. Don't worry, I'm not about to go on a crazy homicidal spree. Though if I were going to, I'd have gotten some pretty good ideas from the museum. We saw shoulder dislocaters, testicle removers, stretch tables, iron maidens, gallows, and my personal favorite, the structure where a person had to stick their feet through and have them licked to the bone by goats. It was, overall, a very educational experience.

 

After our walk around the museum, we headed home and just relaxed the rest of the weekend. This week, I had classes, signed up to be on the team for the Lorenzo de' Medici magazine this semester, dropped a ton of money on books and lab fees, and watched Gilmore Girls on DVD in the evenings with Aimee because we miss American television. We don't get any American stations here, we can't use her Netflix account, and we can't access Hulu. It's pretty much bull shit, but hey. I guess I have better things to do here. :-p

OH. I never told you about Anna. Well, there's this old woman who lives below us in the apartment building. She's been coming up every few days, asking us to keep it down at night (in Italian. She brings the owner of the bed & breakfast in the building to translate)...especially Aimee & I because (lucky us) our room is right above hers. We pretty much don't even make noise to breathe at night, yet somehow she still finds a reason to come and lecture us on how we are supposedly keeping her up. I was like...okay. Those are LIES because we're always sure not to make any noise. However, I was told by friends who lived here previously that she  is doing it to train us...and will start bringing us food to reward us. And they were correct! WOOHOO. Today, she brought us a large, homemade tiramisu. I'm so excited to have some authentic treats made by the hands of an adorable old Italian woman. The only downside would be if she poisoned it...but I'm going to be optimistic and say that didn't happen.

  How precious is that butterfly?

Ciao, amici! Look for a new post next week chronicling my second bar/club experience of all time that will be going down this weekend  and the week in general. :)

The Situation: I went to an Italian club.

After an adventurous previous weekend of hiking in the Alps and traveling all over Northern Italy, this week seemed pretty low-key. I'm surviving on pasta and cereal on a day to day basis, but hey, I'm walking around enough to burn off the copious amounts of carbohydrates. You trudge everywhere in Florence...even when it's ninety five degrees, and you are sweating way too much to be considered even somewhat attractive on your way to class. Speaking of class, let me fill you in on mine for the semester.

My schedule is so clutch. Nothing starts before noon, and I am done on Thursdays! What's even better is that my only class on Monday is my Italian cooking class, which doesn't start until 6, so I practically have 4 day weekends. Divine. But yes, starting on Monday, I began my training to become a master Italian chef (slash fill in a science requirement by making and eating delicious food).  It's a nutrition and cooking course so whatever we make is low in calories and fat, but high in mouth-watering goodness. We made our own pasta the first day by making the dough, cutting it into thick spaghetti, and sauteing it in our own tomato and mushroom sauce. My group, however, was in charge of the dessert, which was a dark chocolate tart with strawberries drizzled in lemon juice and powdered sugar. The best part is that when we were done cooking it in our teams, we all got to sit down together and try our masterpiece. It was amazing...and the best part is, I don't need groceries for Monday night dinners! Wallet: 1, Italy: 0 (except that is the biggest lie known to man).

My other classes are a lot less exciting and a lot less tasty, but there is nothing better than having professors who all have either Italian or British accents. Since it's an international institute,  I could have gotten American professors too...but I am so pumped that I didn't. Trust me when I say it's so much easier to concentrate on a lecture when the professor has a fun accent. So other than cooking, I have Italian classes (which I keep accidentally speaking Spanish in), Art History, Intercultural Communications, and Public Relations. I did not take bull shit electives. All of my classes actually count towards my degree, which makes being here so much easier to enjoy.

So classes, homework, and hunting down books took up the majority of this week, but last night, I was finally able to relax with friends and enjoy Florence to its fullest. After a long day of dealing with paperwork for my Permit to Stay, Italian class, and buying books, my housemates, Aimee, Carly, Aislinne, and I decided to try a local spaghetteria down the street from our apartment and had the best meal we've had since we've gotten here. I ordered a sausage calzone and salad, thinking it was going to be a small portion for the price, but instead, I got this monster below...and I was not even a little upset. 

After dinner, we decided to go get gelato at this cute little gelateria across the River Arno for dessert. We took a lovely stroll through all the lit up piazzas of Florence to get there, purchased our ice cream, then sat along the edge of the bridge looking out over the river. I had a gelato called 'cookies'...so add Italian vanilla ice cream and all different kinds of cookies, friends, and a beautiful view, and you get a perfect evening.

 

And now the part you've all been waiting for. Yes. I did. I went to a real life Italian club with my housemates after I consumed my delicious food. I was reluctant at first, but I decided to man up and see what all the fuss was about. There was an opening party at Club 21, which was apparently featured on the Jersey Shore. Yes. I walked and danced on the floors that those disgraces to society walked and danced upon. And I have to say...it was actually pretty fun. Though a few guys shared a striking resemblance to Ronnie and the Situation, I looked past that.. My housemates and I got there before anyone else and got to see the club in all its empty, not sweaty glory. There were benches and couches and gates with chains and cool lighting, and I pretty much had sensory overload. Since we were pretty much first, we had a whole section of the dance floor to ourselves that we kind of claimed for the hour and a half we were there. I danced just to dance, but don't worry, I still didn't drink. :-p There was no cover charge to get in so I was like, sweet! I can actually go and not feel like it was a total waste, even if it sucks. I hope everyone's proud of me. I was a trooper. 

Hopefully someone will put up some pictures soon, so I can share them as photographic evidence since it's pretty much guaranteed no one will believe me. But for now, enjoy the pictures of my housemates below before we left!

As for this weekend, I believe Aimee and I are going to hit up Ikea and a huge supermarket outside of Florence since we're deprived of the luxury of having more than one towel and any familiar snack foods of any kind. It's obviously going to be really exciting. We may visit Siena for a day trip too, but we will see what happens! Keep an eye out for my next post chronicling even more anti-climactic Italian adventures!

P.s. Rumor has it I may have some visitors from the states in November of the boyfriend and friend variety. Fingers crossed.  :)

Apparently, Italians don't pee.

 So. There are many interesting cultural differences I have noticed between Italy and the good ol' U.S. of A since I've been here for the past week. However, the two that infuriate and baffle me the most are a) Nobody seems to ever need to pee and b) you have to pay for water when you go to restaurants. Now, you may be wondering if Italians just lack the proper biological equipment to relieve themselves or if they just choose not to go. And honestly, it is too early for me to give you a definitive answer either way. All I know is that there are no public restrooms that are all that easy to find in most places, and at the ones you do find, you're required to pay .5 Euro on average to pee. When you have to PAY to perform a normal bodily function, there are some serious issues and questions that are raised. I'm beginning to become suspicious. I did find a link between my two discoveries, though. I have a theory. I believe that Italians do not need to pee because they have to pay for the water when they eat out. If they are as frugal as I am, that would link the two...showing that because Italian people refuse to pay for said water, they never have to pee. The end. Enjoy that little nugget of completely made-up knowledge.

Anyway, since I last posted, I had the opportunity to FINALLY  find a reasonably priced straightener and hair dryer at a small electronics store in the center of town (...and get completely, utterly lost on the way home), attend the Lorenzo de' Medici Welcome dinner (...which I ended up being late for because of getting lost), and take my first weekend trip with my school here in Florence to a few beautiful locations in Northern Italy.

Saturday: We had to wake up at the crack of dawn after already being jet lagged from just being in Florence for a few days. Aimee, my roommate, and I were lying in bed just whining about how we couldn't fall asleep until 3:30am...and then we got up at 5am.  At that time, two of our housemates came in from the free pub crawl that we were unable to attend (though I probably would have been miserable anyway). It was kind of a slap in the face to be waking up as people were just getting home from a night of shenanigans.

Aimee, Carly (another housemate), and I then headed towards the bus in the center of Florence in the dark, early hours of the morning.We got on the bus and, anticipating a nice day walking around Garda Lake & Verona then hiking the Alps on Sunday, found out that we were swapping the two days because of weather. This changed the 3 hour bus ride to Verona to a near 6 hour bus ride all the way to the Italian alps. However, that time flew by simply because of the amazing views I witnessed during the drive. Though the changing altitudes every 30 seconds caused my ears to nearly explode, it was worth it.
See the pictures below from the drive.

 

OH. I totally forgot to mention how pissed I was that there was no bathroom on the bus. Apparently, one stop at a highway rest stop is totally okay for a 6 hour drive (supporting my theory...). 

When we arrived at the Alps, the town looked like it was plucked straight out of a story book. The architecture looked like that from a Disney film, and the views of the mountains were breathtaking. The group of about 40 students who attended the trip then set out on our 4 hour hiking extravaganza with 3 Alpine guides. I expected it to be scenic the entire way, but after about a half hour of staring at trees and sticks, I kind of felt like I was back in Connecticut, which is truly tragic. However, after all the tedious, boring hiking, we arrived at an incredible waterfall where we were able to take a break, take in the view, and have a snack. I was so happy to see that near the waterfall, there was actually a little restaurant...WITH A BATHROOM. I almost peed myself with excitement, but that wouldn't make any sense since there was a bathroom right there and all. After our nice little break, however, we encountered some SERIOUS slopes that pretty much none of us were prepared for. I pretty much threw in the towel after that. Though it wasn't sweaty and disgusting like Florence temperature-wise, I was bascially hyperventilating... so I headed back about halfway through to grab an actual lunch since I hadn't eaten a real meal in days with a few new friends in the cute little storybook town until everyone got back. 

After that trip, we had an hour long ride to Trento where, ironically, we stayed in a hotel called Hotel America. In the middle of Italy (thanks for securing those stereotypes for us, LDM). It was actually really nice, and wait for it...HAD AIR CONDITIONING. It was a truly delightful treat. We were able to enjoy a free four course meal of salad, risotto, saltimbocca, and gelato with fruit. I pretty much died of happiness. Free and delicious? Such a winning combination. Aimee, Carly, and I ended up walking (or shall I say waddling from soreness) to the mini duomo in the middle of the town and saw some very ornately painted buildings and a couple street performers. For a city I'd never heard of, I really enjoyed visiting it, if only briefly. 

Sunday: We then woke up at 7am the next day to begin the second part of our weekend adventure. We had a quick free breakfast from the hotel (croissants + nutella=so. good.),  and then we drove about an hour to Sirmione, which is the location of Garda Lake. It was a very scenic, almost tropical town. There were palm trees everywhere, brightly colored buildings, a gorgeous lake, and oh yeah...a castle with a MOAT. No big deal. Those actually exist. There wasn't a whole lot to do if you didn't want to spend money, so the three of us ended up just walking by the lake, taking pictures, and browsing outside of the shops. It was another unexpected treat since I'd never heard of it. However, I was not in the least bit surprised that to pee, I had to pay half a Euro. Thanks, Italy...like you're not getting enough of my hard earned nannying money already.

Finally, we arrived in Verona, which I was so excited about. We first went to the historical center and saw the coliseum/arena. We were able to go inside and walk around. We were daring enough to walk to the very top of the giant, slippery stone steps, and I was seriously concerned that the slightest gust of wind would send me to my demise. It offered a beautiful view of the city, though, and some fantastic photo opportunities, as you can see. 

We then took a walking tour and were able to see Juliet's house from none other than Romeo & Juliet. Of course, it was only crafted to look like the house described in the play. Some people did not understand why it was the "so-called" Juliet house. I had to tell them it was because she was a fictional character...so she couldn't actually have a house in Verona. We'll pretend that didn't happen, though. Shortly following this visit, we got stuck in a torrential downpour in the middle of Verona. 40 of us were huddled under store canopies, laughing hysterically at how shitty it felt to get covered in rain after being sore all day and having to sit on a bus for 3 hours shortly after. It was a real bonding moment. I even stopped caring about how my hair looked. You know it had to be serious then. 

The final step in Verona was to travel up to the very top of a nearby  hill to look over the entire city. It was incredible. I got tons of great shots, but none of them could do any justice to the sight in person. After that, I had a chance to pee before the trek home...and oh...there goes another half a Euro. Maybe if there had been a BATHROOM ON THE BUS IN THE FIRST PLACE, THIS WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN A PROBLEM.

Annnnnd then I came home after the long bus ride to find out the fuse had been blown in my apartment by having the washing machine and oven on at the same time. Italy is just full of fun-filled surprises!

So overall, I am getting slightly more used to being here, though the culture shock is still somewhat prevalent. I am still convinced that Italians don't pee, think restaurants should just offer tap water, and am looking forward to my classes starting tomorrow! Expect a new post on my adventures in this wonderful world of confusion and carbohydrates in the next week. Ciao. :)

Where the f*@# do you find a cheap hair straightener?

So today is officially my third day here in Firenze, Italia. These past three days have been a whirlwind of confusion, awe, and a whole lot of frustration. Don't get me wrong, I am absolutely thrilled to have this opportunity to go abroad, but let me tell you, culture shock is not some made-up phenomenon. That shit is REAL.

Day 1: So I arrived at JFK after a three and a half hour drive from CT after having to stop to pee about 700 times due to my immense nerves. We easily checked my baggage, and praise the lord, both were under the weight limit (which is probably because I neurotically used a luggage scale to weigh them 6 times a day prior to my departure). After having lunch with my parents, I had to shuffle my way through the insanely long security line, and after that, it was a blur. I threw my stuff in bins and was herded through the line until somehow, I ended up on the other side, and found my gate. I met up with my friend, Aislinne, who I am living with here, and we passed the time until boarding chatting and praying we got to sit near each other.

However, when I got on the plane, a Marist girl decided she didn't feel like sitting next to me and would rather find a seat with her friends. So, apparently, it was fine to have me sit with a random old guy instead. Luckily, after awkward silence for awhile, we bonded, and he told me about how he was flying to Rome to see his wife and daughter who he had been unable to see in over 6 months. We joked about how long it took to get the 8 hour flight in motion. Alas, the plane took off, and the journey officially began. I spent the entire 8 hours not sleeping a wink. I did watch two movies, though. Props to Alitalia for offering those for free. When we got into the airport in Rome around 3am in the U.S./9am there, we had to go through security AGAIN, and the lady at the gate decided to check my freaking carry-on bag, even though it was under the weight limit...because the plane was full. I was about to flip a shit because that was where I'd put all my essentials and clothes in case my bags were to arrive late to Florence, but thank god, all of my baggage arrived on time. Anyway, I sat down on the plane (and talk about culture shock), and an Italian woman sat down with her crying child, whipped out her boob, and just started breast feeding...right there...while the baby kicked me for literally the entire flight. I mean, I knew Italians were open, but that was pretty awkward. So I survived the flights, got a taxi with Kate & Aislinne, my housemates, and made it to our lovely apartment in Firenze!
When we got there, instead of an LDM/Marist staff member greeting us, an Italian kid with dreads and a cigarette, tried to carry our bags up. I had to be kind of rude and tell him no...because all I needed was a theft on the first day there. Once we made it up to the apt, all of the housemates decided to take a walk around, try to find some toiletries, and of course, the coveted blow dryers and straighteners we had to leave behind. Well, funny thing was, it was siesta time in Firenze....and nothing was open. So we wandered the streets in 95 degree weather aimlessly.

That night, we found a small trattoria down the street, where we we were able to have our first real Italian meal outdoors by candlelight. We had a waiter who actually spoke really good English, told us that if we pronounced penne wrong, that meant penis, and gave us free drinks...even though I don't drink, that was exciting because we're actually legal here. And after that...we crashed.

Day 2: Orientation! We had  to sit through some awkward speakers, some good ones, and some just trying to sell us things, but all the information was overall quite valuable. We learned about the dangers of gypsies for the millionth time, the risks of public intoxication, and the LDM's policy for trying to scare you shitless into never missing class.

Then again, we went on a hunt for hair supplies. Straighteners and blowdryers are a) impossible to find and b) really outrageously expensive. Where the hell is the Italian Wal-Mart? That's what I'm wondering. We pretty much decided you need to be in an exclusive club to have access to the underground hair supply layer underneath the city.

We did get a chance to see the area in Florence with the designer stores, such as Gucci and Prada, which is equivalent to 5th Ave. in NYC. Then we saw the beautiful duomo and got to wander around the main plaza for a bit to take in the scenery. Then, exhausted and sweating after walking around all day in nearly 100 degree heat, we got home and pretty much ate dinner...then collapsed. Aimee, my roommate, and I stayed in and just caught up on rest while the rest of the house went out. I should probably go out at some point and attempt visiting a bar or club just to take in the night life culture, even though it totally isn't my thing. It may be a good idea to try every now and again, though I'm not super thrilled about it.

Today: I slept. And wrote this blog. We'll hopefully be going out to just buy a freaking blowdryer and straightener to share so it's just done with then go find the River Arno and enjoy the view. I miss everyone from home, especially my boyfriend, and am looking forward to my first weekend of traveling to Verona & the Alps. :)