So I don't think I'm very good at this whole blogging thing... there's so much I want to say but don't ever know where to begin, and I'm not even technologically savvy enough to put pictures up! I'm just going to have to try to write even just a paragraph a day on here... I'm trying I promise!
A "quick" update on the 'order of events' this past week and a half- I can't believe we've been here that long! I apologize if this quick update is really not that short...I'm trying to write a little something about each day sooo here we go....
Wednesday,May 25- Leave DFW for Florence, via layover in Madrid
Thursday, May 26- Struggle in the Madrid airport to find our connecting flight (as described earlier). Arrival in Florence that afternoon to our fully furnished apartment, and two roommates from the University of Arizona, Hillary and Phoebe.
Spent the evening wandering around the area near our apartment, thinking we had explored more than the FOUR blocks we actually did see... I guess I was a little more tired than I realized. Found a cute restaurant to eat our first Italian meal: a margherita pizza! We then tried our first gelato, a taste of heaven if you ask me. There was some kind of orchestra and choir concert going on in one of the piazzas that we watched for a bit as well, then made our way back and to bed. A very good first day in Italy!
Friday, May 27- Orientation with our group of fifteen American students, fourteen of us being girls. Poor guy! Our school is located in the Piazza de Republicca, which is one of the main squares in the city center of Florence. We met here for orientation on classes, schedules, safety etc... we even had an hour Italian lesson! Our teacher was hilarious, fast-paced and knows how to make you feel right at home here. She had us practicing dialogues left and right (however, I'm not sure I remember them anymore!) I carry around an Italian phrase book with me everywhere. It usually helps you out to show the locals that you are trying to learn the language... so I've been trying to "try" to so just that.
Friday night two of our advisors took the group to El Gato e Volve, or "The Cat and the Wolf" for a welcome dinner. Meredith and I have since been back and decided that it was our favorite restaurant here! Don't judge if we end up eating most of our meals there- it really is that good. They fed us a hearty three- course meal including a delicious piece of tier- a -misu for dessert... YUMMM!
Saturday, May 28- Today we had a waling tour with the cutest German woman, living here in Florence as an art historian and professor. We saw many historical landmarks in the city, as well as learned about the history of Florence since its foundation. After the tour and a boost of confidence from all of our new tools on navigating the city, a group of ten girls in our program decided to explore together. We found a small pizzeria with only Italians eating there- a very good sign. Another delicious meal of course and then we were off walking on the edge of the city center by the city walls... what a beautiful part of Florence! We went up and down hilly roads, saw authentic apartments, homes, views etc. We had a great time getting to know one of the other apartments in our group. They are a great bunch and fun to be with. We are from all over the U.S, which makes for interesting conversation... New York, New Jersey, California, North Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky, West Virginia, Arizona, and Texas.
That night, Meredith and I met up with some friends from A&M studying with another program here. It's great to have friends in other programs here too... allows for more freedom to do lots of things while here!
Sunday, May 29- I had been given contact information of a couple living in Florence on Campus Crusade staff, although they call it Agape Italia here. I sent them an emakl when we first got here and they were kind enough to invite us to go to church with them. So we did! They are adorable and from Texas as well. They are Melanie and Matt Phillips and met a SMU in Dallas. They have on two-year-old little boy and are due with baby #2 in a couple of weeks! Anyways, they were so wonderful to pick us up for church and then invite us to their home for lunch afterwards. The service was in Italian, but I LOVED it. A baptism service was being held this particular Sunday. It was incredible to see these Italians share their testimonies(although I couldn't understand a word) and then be baptized in the name of the same Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and the God in America. It was one of those moments where I tangibly experienced the "biggness" of the Lord and His sovereignty over all the nations. Wow. It was an incredible experience that I am very thankful to have witnessed. Sharing a meal with Matt and Melanie was a blessing as well. Just being able to connect with a Christian, American couple living here helped the adjustment to Florence immensely. They were so kind to give us tips and explain to us the Italian culture, ask us about ourselves and tell us about their last four years here and what they feel the Lord is leading them to do next. all this to say, I am very thankful for this day and these people! What a blessing the Lord gave us. I have a feeling I'm going to learn a whole lot about God's provision on this trip...
That night Meredith, Hillary, Phoebe, and myself made a spaghetti dinner, complete with bread, veggies and red wine! We took many pictures of our spread- I guess you could say we were really proud of ourselves :) Then out for more gelato of course! My favorite place called Grom is THE BEST! meredith would say it's here second favorite, but it's my top choice. Everything is natural and fresh: real coffee, real chocolate, real strawberries, peached, coconut.. you name it and it's made with the actual ingredients of its flavor. And they only use fruits when they are in season. It's amazing how locally the Italians eat. Strawberry and peach gelato will only be around as long as the farmers are growing them here... it's truly incredible stuff.. I'm going to miss this place when we have to leave.
Monday, May 30- First day of class! I thought I might want to add art history so I sat in on this 9am class, afterwards deciding it would be A LOT more reading for a summer class than I want to do- ha. From 12-2:30 is my 'Culture of Food and Wine' class. I LOVE it! My professor is an Italian woman who is all about nutrition and the history of Italy through its food. I was eating it up. We learned all about the culture of Italy from the original inhabitants to the ancient Romans, Middle Ages, and Renaissance. It is so cool to learn how food really does shape the way cultures, traditions, and a group of people develop.
Explored more of the city that afternoon and went back to "El Gato y Volve" (the favorite restaurant) that night... so good! Meredith and I decided it would be a good idea try these waffle gelato treats we'd been seeing all over the place after dinner... NOT a good idea! Overpriced and melted by the time we took the first bite! At least we tried though. I say it's part of being cultured.
Tuesday, May 31- Went for a run this morning (my 2nd one here). Something about getting up early and soaking in some of the first rays of sunlight bring me so much joy. It's a time where I can recharge, exercise, wake up, have a quiet time etc. without the hustle and bustle of the city or feeling like I need to be doing something else. I hope to make this a habit as much as I can!
In class today we learned about Italy and its food and culture from the Renaissance to WWII to present day. Another interesting day of class-- LOVE LOVE LOVE...
Explored with Meredith in the afternoon. Visited the Santa Maria Basilica, which was gorgeous. It amazed me to read about the history of all the frescoes, stain glass windows and architecture of the building itself... most of it was completed before the discovery of the new world, which I never really stopped to think about before... that is really old! It's incredible to think about how old everything in Florence is- And I thought I was old at age 20! Too cool. Dinner with the roommates this night at a cute place one of their friends recommended. Again, a yummy meal and a trip to gelato afterwards.. good thing we walk everywhere here or I'd be freaking out about all the bread and sugar we eat here!
Wednesday, June 1- Read for class this morning- we have a lot for a class about food and wine! Class with cheese tasting... that was really fun. We learned all about the different categories of cheese, how they are made etc. I'm such a nerd and love learning about the process, history, background of it all! We tasted six different cheeses. I decided that I like sharper cheeses the best like, parmesan and gorgonzola... such foodie over here :)
Wednesday night, we (all 15 of us in the program) had a surprise 21st birthday dinner for our roommate Phoebe. She was thoroughly shocked since we had all only known each other for less than a week! That's what I love about this program... It's small enough to get to be friends with everyone. Everyone is so sweet as well, kind of like a little Firenze Family! After diner, most of us headed out on the town to a bar. The night was made complete with karaoke and Joey Cramer (A&M Fiji in Florence) playing "Wagon Wheel" and "every rose has a thorn" on the DJ's guitar. It was hilarious! Literally Texans were all of the sudden right at the foot of the stage singing along. There were so many southerners there, it was cracking me up!
Thursday, June 2- Slept in this morning because it was an Italian holiday, so no school! I went for a run/ explored around noon and found a small amusement park- kinda creepy but mostly funny, and a bike trail/ running path that many Italians were using... It was AWESOME! I felt like a true Italian in that moment. That afternoon, Meredith and I went for a 3 hour hike around the city. We found the most beautiful view of Tuscan villas, and of the city of Florence itself... Italy is such a beautiful part of the world. It never stops to amaze me. We also stumbled upon a park, where we took many pictures, explored etc on our way up to the lookout point of our hike. My favorite view was from the top of this old monastery we found on our way, though- no tourists, just us on top of the world (it felt like that at least) looking out over the entire city and countryside. Truly breath taking.
Dinner that night included a slice of pizza, diet coke and early bed time to get up at 6:15 the next morning to go to Cinque Terre!
I'll write about the weekend in another post... feel like this is getting a little long and there's a lot to write about the weekend!!
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