After a long car ride, a delayed flight out of JFK, running through the halls of a Frankfurt airport, another flight to Florence, and a Taxi ride, I arrived at my apartment! I live on the ground floor of a huge apartment with 4 other students; 2 from Penn State, 1 from UConn, and 1 all the way from Kansas! We have a huge foyer, two bathrooms, a large living room, a kitchen and 4 humongous bedrooms (the Penn State girls share). Our whole apartment is absolutely beautiful, with high cathedral ceilings that make voices echo for days. (If there was not an Italian law enforcing no noise after 11pm, I think I could sing here all day!) We even have a long corridor leading out huge double doors to a patio with a garden. Mom and Dad-- I certainly got YOUR money's worth. And oh yeah, I live only a few blocks from the famous Duomo!
After arriving at the apartment, I hung out with my room mates and tried to get rid of the incredible jet lag that the long flight had produced. Later, we ventured out to walk around the streets of Florence. Most of the shops were closed because it was after 9pm, but we found a small bar (coffee bar) and spent our first euros on sandwiches and pastries and a bottle of wine, then sat out in the Piazza della Santissima Annunziata, down the street from our apartment, and relaxed.
On day two (Saturday) we woke up early and took a bus up into the beautiful hills of Florence, to the Hotel Aurora, which offered a view of the entire city. We were officially welcomed into the Palazzo Rucellai program and celebrated with a wonderful lunch (pasta, pizza, bruschetta etc.) provided by the hotel.
Afterward, there was a chance to explore the little village in the hills. I got some great pictures of the narrow streets and open plazas.
That evening, we cooked fresh Italian pasta and toasted some bread for a "roomie dinner" -- all remarking that it felt very strange to be cooking our own food in our own apartment in Italy... wow, we really are growing up! After dinner, my room mates Carrie and Joann and I stopped by a music club called "Be Bop," where the very famous Beatles cover band played their first show. We enjoyed wine and coronas (with lemon instead of lime?) and watched a very Italian band play very American music, such as Pearl Jam and Michael Jackson. It was an absolute blast!
Later, we walked further around the city with a couple Italian boys that we'd met who showed us all the hot spots for night life. Italians, though in love with wine and whiskey, do not over-drink. It was refreshing. One drink was enough for them and ironically, it was actually easier to hold a conversation with people who barely knew our language than at UConn's drunken parties. The dance clubs were quite Americanized-- not really my scene, but what was super cool was that people were socializing right on the street corners and in plazas, around fountains, and leaning against tall marble pillars; truly a sight to see. We were made aware at the earlier orientation that "women" are the "national Italian sport," so after that, we ditched the Italian boys, joking and telling them we lived in the Duomo and headed home to get some sleep.
Day three began with a tour of our school, the Institute at Palazzo Rucellai. Wow. Amazing. Built in the 1400's, the ceilings and walls are covered in marble and ornate paintings. The classrooms are literally in the rooms where the Count and Countess Rucellai had lived, including a large classroom that used to be a ballroom.
We toured the surrounding area, with beautiful clothing stores, pharmacies, restaurants and (coffee) bars. We learned some survival Italian, recieved our class schedules, got our books (which were a thousand times cheaper than at the UConn Co-op) and then signed up for trips to other cities and for activities in Florence. We were tired (still getting used to the time difference), so we took a quick nap, (which I just woke up from) and later after everyone is done Skyping (haha) we will probably try to go practice our new Italian skills at a bar with the locals.
Well, thats it for now: I've got my first classes tomorrow and I will write more about them soon. I miss everyone back home and wish that you could all be here with me!
Love, Mandy
PS. I'll leave you with one more picture: This is a partial view of the entire city of Florence. If you look between the trees, you can see the Duomo in the distance!
