Tu gardes le rhythme, tu me mets en transe.

I cannot believe I only have 6 weeks left of this semester. I have been constructing my schedule for next semester and it is going to be ridiculously intense. 18 hours of science classes- I am going to be a hysterical kook living in the science building, I already can see it. So I will try not to think about that and enjoy what time I have left in Europe. All last week was fall break. My mom came to visit me and it was simply divine. I showed her around Florence, and then we visited Venice, the Tuscan towns of Lucca and Siena, and then jetted off to Paris for 4 days. I loved Venice. It is an incredibly enchanting GEM of a city. I felt more like I was in an amusement park then an actual city. To quickly sum up our day: We munched on fresh strawberries & peaches, just wandering the city. We also took a gondola ride through the canals. I felt so relaxed, I nearly fell asleep. It reminded me immensely of the latest Brideshead Revisted film. We also had some great pasta tossed with shrimp, mussels, and octopus at a restaurant next to the Rialto Bridge.

As for Paris...I cannot express how ardently I adore Paris. This was the second time Ive been, which was grand because I was able to just focus on a few key things I wanted to see and do there without feeling overwhelmed with trying to accomplish everything Paris has to offer. My itinerary for my stay there went something like this:

-stayed in a lovely hotel nestled in a truly more Parisien neighborhood. Our small street was lined with markets selling fresh produce, bakeries, pastry shops, cheese shops, and delis. In the morning we had some amazing pastries- chocolate eclairs and one pastry filled with a sort of almond paste- it was heavenly.

-sat in a Parisien cafe and indulged in apple pie

-visited Musee D Orsay- I loved this museum so much last time that I wanted to go back

-walked around St. Germain, down the Champs-Elysees, along the Seine, through jardin des Tuilleries & Jardin de Luxembourg

-Wandered around Montmartre/Sacre Coeur. I love this area of Paris. I love the atmosphere, the view of Paris below from in front of Montmartre and watching the artists trying to sell their work. We sat at a cafe for a chunk of our time and people watched

-visited Versailles. This was the most disappointing. Versailles was gorgeous, but they were exhibited Jeff Koons' work throughout the museum and it just completely destroyed the splendor of Versailles. I actually really like contemporary art, but when I am expecting to see grand rooms, feeding fantasies of 16th and 17th French royal life, I really dont want the images spoiled with kitsch art. The Frenchies were all eating it up though, and the thick crowds made it difficult to take your time to enjoy ones surroundings. Also, there was little display of furniture and just household and personal items, that's what I enjoy seeing. The bulk of the tour was portraits of the French royal line- a complete bore except for the ones of Marie Antoinette. On top of the aforementioned points, it was raining quite badly and so we had to skip the gardens of Versailles, something that could have really redeemed the museum. All in all though, I was mesmerized by the hall of mirrors, and the queen's bedchamber was also wonderful.

-I also was intent on seeing an exhibition that was taking place at Musee de Luxembourg called From Miro to Warhol. It was fabulous. It was a collection of surrealism, nouveau realisme, abstract and pop art. It was seriously a really great exhibit and was the perfect way to start my last morning in Paris.

Honestly I could rave on forever about this trip- we did and saw plenty despite the short duration. Basically I believe Paris was made for me. I am now scheming a way for me to live there. Anyway, must run

Love me do!

Ah, it's been a while! I have been super occupied with life here, but I will briefly try and update everyone. I can't say school has been hectic b/c it's practically a joke. Although, next week will be particularly busy due to midterms. My midterms for my classes go along the lines of "design your own fashion line", "have 6 digital photo prints ready", and "pick an artist you like and know something about their background". So preparing for them has been anything but tedious.

In terms of traveling, I went to San Gimignano one day. It's a small medieval town in Siena. It's walled in like a medieval town would be and has some incredible views of Tuscany. I bought a few watercolor paintings there. Also, last weekend I went to Pisa & then Cinque terre (translated- 5 lands). It's these 5 towns embedded in the rocky hills off the coast of the Italian riviera. It's incredibly beautiful. We napped on the rocky beach during the late afternoon, indulged in pesto pizza (pesto is a specialty of this area), and the next day we hiked through 4 out of the 5 towns (Starting at Riomaggiore, going through via dell'amore ["lover's lane"], and arriving several hours later with jelly for legs in Vernazza). Vernazza is the biggest of the towns, and after more pesto with pasta for lunch, we hung out on the sea wall facing towards the town, overlooking a lagoon where people were swimming. Generally just soaked in the atmosphere before heading on a train back home to Florence.

Also, I went out to a music club last Tuesday night that had a Beatles tribute band playing. The band was cute- British boys dressed in early Beatles style playing all the early Beatles music. They have several gigs at this particular club. I enjoyed their performance so I'm hoping to catch them again one of these nights. I'm curious to see if at other gigs they dress up/play differently (lonely hearts club Beatles anyone?). Oh, also found another awesome coffee shop around the corner from me. It's actually more like a library/coffee shop/bar that plays lives music in the evenings. Plenty of interesting books, free internet, and fun atmosphere. So glad it's so close. I am always baffled out the new things I find in our neighborhood.

Okay well I had a few more things to update about, but I need a nap now. Ciiaaooo

Tuesday

I can not seem to shake this weariness that has taken control of my body. I am constantly sleepy, no matter how much sleep I get. I think I have a bit of a cold that is contributing to this problem, but I hope it goes away and not descend into a worse state. Well last night I went out to a restaurant with Cait, Christi, and Andrew near the train station for dinner. I had a pizza with gorgonzola cheese on it. It was impeccable. I love pizza, I had a slice of NY style pizza earlier that day for lunch with Cait as we were heading back from the central market. I am pleased to be a fatty here with no consequences to my figure- depending on your feet and not a vehicle to get around does that to a person. After dinner we went to the movies and saw Burn After Reading, the new Coen brothers film with Clooney and Brad Pitt. It was hilarious- I thoroughly enjoyed it and recommend everyone to go see it! Brad Pitt's character was by far my favorite. The movie theater was cool. It was converted from a old theater (think Angelika in Houston x10), and we sat up in the balcony seats.

This morning I had digital photography at 9 am. My class and I sat around until 10:30, waiting for our professor to show up. Never did, so we left. I have plausible suspicion that he was at home, hungover. Slightly irritating because the class is enjoyable. We discuss different photographer's work and play with photoshop for about 5 hours, but I got to take a long nap so that was pleasant. The plans for this evening seem to just be Italian at 6, and then squeezing in studio time for a small painting I need to work on. Anyways, I miss and love everyone back in Texas. I love love love Florence, but it doesn't stop one from getting lonely every now and then. xoxo!

Sitting on a Rainbow

Okay some recent notable events:
-Last Wednesday night I went out to Hemingway. Let me tell you that this is perhaps the most curiously adorable coffee shop to exist in this world. I am not being dramatic, this place is fabulous. As the name implies, the theme is Earnest Hemingway, and the atmosphere is warm & cozy- with tones of blue and brown. They have a vast selection of coffees, teas, and desserts, and with quaint tableware etched with Hemingway's signature & such cutlery like solid chocolate spoons. I indulged in a chinese black tea and a chocolate cheesecake smothered in melted chocolate. It was simply amazing, and seeing as how this place is on a quiet street 5 minutes walking from my apartment- it will def. be a place the girls & I will frequent often, and miss terribly next semester.
-Thursday: I went shopping! Found a few great pieces to add to my wardrobe, and then spent the majority of the evening divided between Dublin Pub & the Jazz Bar with our friends (and my new sweater!). We anticipated karoke, and I was a little disappointed when it turned out there was no karoke that night. There was a band playing Frank Sinatra covers, and it took me a while (hehe!) to realize the singer was not a amateur karaoke singer- I nearly went up and joined him for a duet (Oh, the pleasures of hard cider!).
-Friday:: Fieldtrip with my History of Italian Renaissance class to the small Tuscan town of Pienza. I had to wake up at 7. That did not go over well considering I passed out around 4:30 the night before. It is a 1.5 hour bus ride. I slept the way there, which annoyed me. I tried to stay awake to enjoy the view of the countryside, but exhaustion won. When we got there I had a cup of tea and a nutella filled pastry at a nearby cafe to pick me up. The town was really sweet, and we visited a palace. I absolutely love visiting old home/castles/palaces, etc. so I thoroughly enjoyed this. There is a spectacular view of the Tuscan countryside from the palace- just gorgeous. And at lunch I had a taste of a Pienza goat cheese, a savory strong cheese (heck yes!). Umm, yeah on the way back I managed to stay awake and got to enjoy the view back. Friday night was relatively quiet because the past 24 hours were so tiring.

Oi with the poodles already.

Great fun last night- I went out to Dublin Pub and spent the twilight hours there engrossed in conversation and making friends.
Today was spent lazily in my apartment- I only changed out of my pajamas to change into fresh pajamas. And in keeping with the theme of the day, I am too lazy to write much else. Until later...

Simple Update

Okay so update: Lake Como was absolutely gorgeous. Last Friday (not today), We took a train from Florence to Milan & then to Milan to Varenna, one of the sleepy lakeside towns fitting snuggly in the mountains that surround the lake. On the latter train, as we were nearing Varenna, we were sitting and chatting when out of know where a glimpse of the shimmering lake with the mountains in the backdrop was, for the lack of a better word, extraordinary. It felt more like we had taken a train to a different dimension where things are ideal and romantic and beautiful, but apparently we were, in fact, in this world so huh, go figure. SO we took a ferry across the lake (in the middle of the lake, you are encased by mountains- amazing view) to the town where we were residing in for the weekend- Menaggio. The Ostello (hostel) we stayed at was run by a interesting Italian man who never removed himself from his uniform of camouflage cargo shorts and a black smashing pumpkins t-shirt. He was always blaring a great selection of music (Muse, Brazilian lounge, Portishead, etc.) and he ended up giving us some recommendations of great Italian musicians. Our hostel had an impeccable view of the shimmery water/mountains, so the evenings were spent sitting out on the patio and gabbing to our hearts content. We took a ferry to Bellagio on Saturday. All the towns around Lake Como are similar- Bellagio is slightly more touristy than the others, and is basically a nesting ground for the Brits. The architecture of Bellagio (and all of them, really) is very 1920's Paris-esque, which pretty much suits me well. Our original intentions in Lake Como was to kayak in the lake and go hiking, but the weather that weekend turned towards a colder climate, and it ending up raining all Saturday while we were in Bellagio. After getting soaked walking around town, we stayed cooped up in a cafe for the length of the afternoon, drinking tea and eating sandwiches & croissants. All in all, the weekend was enjoyable. We met some interesting people, locals & fellow hostel guests, but in other news, this week has been great. I need to remember to update on a more daily basis because too many little things happen day to day that I mean to update about. Today was Friday which means no classes which means the beginning of a fabulously easy going weekend. Woke up around noon and we (& by we here I really mean Christina and Caitlin) whipped up some crepes. I, on the other hand, woke up to eat them. Spent the day in our pjs, and in the evening we went to Kellen's. He made us a delicious dinner, and then afterwards us girls went to the Duomo to here a Gregorian chant concert. I really enjoyed it. A female group went first, followed by a male group. I prefered the female group. Their voices were so airy, and I especially loved the way their voices carried throughout the interior of the Duomo. Afterwards we headed to a a cellar jazz club, and spent the rest of the night there. That was really enjoyable. I love live music and the band (aka The Bogarts, a funky-soul inspired group of musicians) was great. Now I'm too tired to go into too much else so this will suffice.

The weekend has begun.

I have been so super busy with school and living la dolce vita in this beautiful city, but I will attempt a more thorough update hopefully on Sunday. I am leaving for Menaggio this weekend to hang out on Lake Como before Fall weather starts to kick in. Apparently it is suppose to be rainy this weekend though, so we are crossing our fingers that the sun will shine it's bright self for just a few more days. Mennagio is a small Italian town not maybe more than 5 min. walking distance from the Lake. We hope to kayak and bask in the pleasures of water and sandy shores. Alright, I'm out- I hope you enjoy Friday and your weekend!

You've dropped something...

Events of the day:

-Woke up around 11:30 & headed to central market for some fresh grocery shopping. We bought bread, fresh turkey, Asiago & Parmesan, strawberries & grapes, and homemade GNOCCHI!! I love that we are eating such wholesome foods, and cheaply at that. On the way back from the market a vendor shouted after us that we accidently dropped something... apparently it was his heart. Oh, soo cheesy.
-Margherita pizza for lunch in front of the Santa Croce. Cheesy, but of the desirable variety.
-First class of the day @ 3 pm-5:30: History of Italian Renaissance- I dig my professor. She has a British accent for having grown up in London, but was born in Germany. They're about 10 students total (me included), all girls. She's invited us for afternoon sometime at your home with her little dog.
-Next class was @ 6:15-7:15: Beginning Italian- Awesome professor!! He's from/lives in Pisa and soo goofy. I have this twice a week- score, I want to speak Italian already!
-Got out around 8, hadn't eaten since that piece of pizza so I was famished. Tonight we cooked our homemade gnocchi with pesto sauce, and our fresh fruit for dessert. The gnocchi was beyond amazing.
-Heard about a jazz + gypsy band playing in one of the Piazza's just a bridge down from us so we went to check it out. I love live music. The atmosphere is always one of comradery. The crowd is just having a good time listening to a bunch of guys who are having a good time playing for you. Genius. So 2 guitars, stand-up bass, and a violin making lovely music for the packed audience to relish in the cool night air (about 63 F tonight- it's getting chilly quick!)
-Walked along the river and heard more music coming from the Ponte Vechio so we let our ears carry us over there and just sat and enjoyed for a while.

Saturday Night

Alright so last night Cait, Christi, and I went up to the Palazzo Michelangelo around dusk for a a spectacular view of the city below. We sat on the steps in order to watch the city ease into the night. There were a lot of people about, and it was really enjoyable for us three to sit, talk, and relish the view. We are seriously spoiling our eyes with all this beauty around us. Then our friend Andrew called and we met up with him and 2 of his roommates at Dublin Pub, a bar in the historic part of Florence, around 10:45 We spent a good deal of time there, and we heard about a music festival called the Festival of Democracy. We head over there and music is going on everywhere. We watched a group of older men playing a instrumental rock set, as well as watched a group of dancers dancing a sort of salsa/merengue/samba mix. There were also several outdoor discotheques with lots of people dancing. Around 1:00 am, we realized Christi, Cait, and I had not had dinner yet and grabbed some kebob sandwiches at one of the stands at the festival. All 6 of us sat down for a while and the guys smoked hookah. Around 2 am the festival was over and we all decided to call it a night. We left the boys at there street and continued to walk alone to our apartment all the way across the city. The streets were completely empty except for drunken American students. I remember at one point we were walking and some American boys were being loud in the street. An Italian woman pops out of her window and threatens to call the police so they start screaming and cursing at her. Another time we were about to go down a particular street, but we saw more drunken American guys just shove over a moped so we back-tracked and looked for an alternative route. We got lost at some point and so a man approached us asking if we needed any help. Initially, I was weary of him, but he turned out to be a good-natured person. He introduced himself as Meeno. He is originally Egyptian, but resides in Italy. He knew an adequate amount of English and walked with us for a short distance until he thought we could figure out the rest of the way ourselves. He apologized for not being able to walk with us the whole way, but he had to meet his friend at the Duomo, which seemed funny considering it was 2:30 am by this point. He also told us if he ever saw us in the street, he would be sure to say hello. So his directions were gold and we managed to get home at 3 am. We went to bed around 5:30 am and woke up at 4 pm today. 

This has been a lazy Sunday in our flat- we just lounged around and then we made dinner. Pasta with tomatoe sauce and a fresh salad. We have a stellar gelato shop down the street from us right next to the Ponte Alla Carraia, so around 10:30 tonight we indulged ourselves and sat on our Ponte. 

1rst week in Florence

Last Tuesday, Sept. 2 I arrived in Florence at 6:20 pm. My first impression of Italy was when I woke up 5 minutes before landing and looked out my airplane window and saw the rich, green Tuscan terrain below me. I am so happy to be here, and this first week has been an eventful one. SO much has happened that it is hard to know where to start really in describing some of my initial experiences. Here is a brief synopsis of some of the week's events:

Christina, Caitlin, and I share a lovely apartment on Via de Serragli in the Oltrano neighborhood of Florence. This means we are south of the Arno river. Our area is one where tourists venture little to so we feel we are getting a more accurate depiction of the Florentine lifestyle. We also do not live in a student apartment building. Our neighbor next door is a Korean woman, and the family who occupies the two floors above us are an Italian one. The father is apparently the Kung-Fu master of Florence- which we find pretty amusing. Our landlords are Patricia and Roberto. I have not yet had the chance to be acquainted with them, but Christi and Cait have. Apparently they are really nice, and upon hearing we were from Texas, Roberto formed his fingers into imaginary guns and started shouting "pow, pow, pow!". It seems that Italians are incredibly interested in all things that relate to the Old West. 

We often like to sit on the Ponte Alla Carraia, the bridge that connects our street in Oltrano to the other side of Florence (North & South Centro), and that is indeed what we did our very first night here. It is such a pleasant view, with the Ponte Vechio to the East and Tuscany to the West, and at night the Arno river is so still that the reflection of the Ponte Vechio and the buildings on the left & right side of the Arno are luminous and incredible. 

This past week has consisted of a lot of wandering around the city, trying to familiarize ourselves with our home for the next few months, as well as a lot of orientation activities with the university. It has been really interesting getting by here with out the aid of knowing the language. Yes, in areas around central Florence  you can expect more Italians to know English, but it is still trying at times, and we do not take for granted that people will speak English. The first morning we were here, we went to a small grocery store around the corner from our flat to by some cereal, milk, and bread. The grocers were 2 Italain women who spoke only Italian and we somehow managed to tackle the language barrier with our very rudimentary grasp of Italian and many hand gestures. Also another time we went to a chain grocery store, Esselunga. We wanted to purchase some turkey, but there is no such thing as pre-packaged deli meats. One must get it fresh from the butcher at the deli counter. So for 5 minutes Christi, Cait, and I are racking our brains trying to figure out how to say turkey and converting pounds to kilos in order to know what would be a sufficient amount to order. We finally settled on 200 grams (which turned out to be perfect), and the butcher was a friendly man who knew some English so that event turned out to be a success. I have to say over all I found the Italian people to be quite willing to help and very friendly. 

Last Wednesday night we were coming back from a dinner hosted by Study Abroad Italy at the Hotel Medditerraneo. We were passing by the Galleria degli Uffizi and decided to stop and sit on the steps. Two street performers were playing live music down the gallery next to the Palazzo Vechio. One of the performers played a few original instrumental songs on his flute, and then him and his partner played a few Simon & Garfunkel, James Taylor, and U2 songs. It was really enjoyable. At night the weather is so nice. It's cool and there is a constant cool breeze blowing down from the mountains. During the day the weather is fairly hot, but again there is a constant breeze. It is definitely better than Texas, and especially better than Houston because it isn't humid. 

Alright dinner time- I will update later with more intimate details about this past weekend.

Viva l'Italia!

Hi all- I am leaving for Firenze, Italia tomorrow! I really can not begin to expound upon how excited I am that the day has finally arrived. I have been talking & dreaming about Italy since last Fall and so for this day to be upon me now just leaves my nerves in a mixture of excitement and ecstacy! I am going to try and keep up with this blog regularly, and that way you may frequently get a clear picture of what sort of mischief I am getting into over here. Alright wish me a safe and happy trip tomorrow; I hope everyone enjoys the Labor Day holiday!

Ciao y'all.