This weekend marks the official halfway point of our trip! I cannot believe that we have survived this long out of the United States, and I also cannot believe we have experienced so much in so little time.
Robert and I are both officially moved in to our cute little Italian apartments that we will be calling home for the next month. It has been so nice to start settling down, and the unpacking of the suitcase after a month of travel was the best feeling in the world. We both live pretty much directly on the Piazza di Santa Maria Novella (Robert's room directly overlooks it, mine is on a side street) which leads for picturesque views as we walk out each morning. I met my roommates-the sweetest two girls from New York City- and we have started making our picture perfect Italian apartment home. I say picture perfect, and I mean it. All three of us are shocked at how lucky we were in getting such a cute place to call home. From the stained glass door that welcomes you to our kitchen to the quaint living room that came stocked with a variety of Italian books, everything here has been more than I could imagine. I have my own room while the two other girls share a room. It has been wonderful.
We moved in on Thursday, and haven't really stopped moving since. Though being away on the most patriotic day of the year made me extra homesick, I was quickly put at ease while walking around the beautiful city. One of Robert's roommates has already been here for a month and has been a HUGE help in guiding us around. He showed us the major tourist sites first, and I was amazed at how close we are to everything. We are about a 2 minute walk from the Duomo and a 10 minute walk to the Ponte Vecchio. I feel so Italian already! He then showed us the more local (and practical) sites. We successfully went grocery shopping, where we bought pasta and wine to make for a celebratory first night dinner. It was so delicious!
The next morning brought orientation. We met our advisor and walked around to find the buildings our classes will be in. We're taking two classes: Palaces of Florence and The Pairing of Food and Wine. Tough month! Haha. We start class tomorrow morning, so we should start getting into a daily routine pretty soon. After orientation, we walked around the city some and ventured into the Piazza del Mercato, where I bought an authentic Italian leather purse- I know I'm gonna like it here!
Yesterday, Riley led Robert and I to San Vincenzo beach. Two hours of trains took us to paradise. The beach was very similar to American beaches-white sand and the salty Mediterranean Sea. We spent the entire day relaxing on the beach and unwinding from our crazy hectic past three weeks. I feel better already! The Italians definitely put us to shame with their impressive tans and odd styled bathing suits, but we tried to act as local as possible. After we were all beached out, we stumbled upon a Ferrari gathering. We were walking out of the beach to find dinner and two minutes later a troup of 15 Ferraris parked next to us! Robert was in Heaven.
I'm planning to spend today enjoying the last full day of relaxation, although I think that the entire month will be relaxing here. I've learned that Italians are never in a hurry (except when driving) and have tried to embrace it as much as possible. I'm not the most patient person, so it has been a challenge acclimating to the slow movements- slow service at restaurants, slow washing machine, slow walking- but I'm trying! I can't even start to put into words how much I've learned on the trip so far. From history and art to food and culture to little things about myself and how I want my life to be- the learning hasn't stopped. I'm not sure that either one of us had any idea what we were getting ourselves into when planning a two month trip outside of our comfort zone, but I'm so glad that we did it anyways!
One month down, one more to go.
Until next time- ciao!
No comments:
Post a Comment