Another Roommate...What?

6-20-07

When Jessie and I first moved into our apartment, our landlord briefly mentioned that another girl would be living with us. She has been going to our school in Florence for about a year to study fashion design and she is Italian. We were excited to meet this girl, but she never showed up the entire first week we were here. She did however manage to leave a refrigerator full of pasta, ham, cheese, and Coke, which started to rot, mold and smell within a few days. Fantastic. She also knew about a broken window in our living room and called a handyman to come fix it. How did she know about the window? We have never seen her in the apartment. Things were starting to get creepy . To ease our freaked out minds, Jessie and I went through all the options as to why she was never around. Maybe she is on a school trip? Maybe she went back home? Maybe she does not actually live here? Or according to Jessie, maybe her dead body is locked behind the door right next to our room? Yeah, that one really helped. We decided that if she did not come home by Sunday, we were going to talk to our program directors at school and then go home and eat her delicious-looking tortellini in the frig. On Sunday, we spent the day going to the grocery store down the street, figuring out how to use an Italian laundry machine, walking around the neighborhood, reading girly books, and relaxing from our busy travel weekend. Still no sign of the roommate. We left the apartment for a couple hours only to return to our drying laundry rack moved from the living room to the front doorway, our dishes cleaned and put away, our bath mat missing, and a restocked frig. We wandered the apartment in silence completely confused. She was still nowhere to be found and her bedroom door was still locked. As we were cooking dinner, we kept a constant eye on the front door and finally, it opened. The mystery roommate was alive! Her name is Nicka and she lives in the south of Italy, but has been studying here for a little over a year. She speaks decent English, but I speak to her in Italian. I am hoping she will help me with my Italian homework, which I can never understand. The coolest part about Nicka is her fashion designs. Love it! She showed me her portfolio and pictures from a fashion show she put together. They are incredible. One collection was made entirely of straw. How about that? After watching her sew this adorable jacket the past two days, I am inspired to...go shopping :) Definitely not to learn how to sew, although that may come in handy. Our apartment has turned into a live Project Runway. Mom and Murph eat your hearts out!

Last night I met up with my two Kappa friends, Caitlin and Annie, from Purdue that have been studying here for 4 weeks and leave this Saturday. Sad. We went to a little bar called BeBop to listen to a Beetles cover band that performs every Tuesday night. They were hilarious. They also introduced me to Kebobs, which are very hard to explain but resemble a BLT wrap and are absolutely delicious, and these gold keys you wear on a long chain around your neck. Apparently, girls literally fight each other for these keys. Guess that means I will be getting some. Today we are climbing the Duomo together and eating at the Oile Shoppe, a place highly recommended by the Florence crew. My to-do list just keeps getting smaller and smaller.

Cousin Kate comes today, but she seems to have a packed schedule while she is here. Hopefully, I can meet up with her.

Train Traveling

6-16-07

This weekend marked the very first travel weekend of our 6 week stay here in Italy. I decided to visit Venice, a city of romance, waterways, hungry pigeons, decorated masks, and gondola rides. All week I tried to convince people to come along and ended up traveling with about 20 Arcadia students. Out of those 20, only 5 of us really bonded with each other and have officially formed our own little clique. Jessie, Bryce, Mark, Julian, and I are a great traveling team. We purchased tickets together through a complicated machine at the train station the day before and managed to only screw up one ticket. Poor Bryce lost about 30 Euro at a malfunctioning machine and had to stand in another line for over an hour to retrieve the money. Keeping in mind our “traveling team” modo, Jessie and I left Bryce and the boys to figure out the dilemma on their own. We were hungry. The morning of the trip we reconvened at the station, grabbed our usual cappuccino and pastry, and headed off to Venice by 6:30 a.m. We switched trains in Bologna and tried to sneak into some first class seats. Traveling to Venice should be done in style, right? Well, apparently not because we got caught. Dang it! In Venice, we headed straight for San Marco, which is a huge plaza with museums, shopping, live music, cafes, and pigeons. Oh the pigeons. There were hundreds of pigeons hanging out in the plaza begging for food and well, tourists can pay to feed them. Being a tourist, I decided to pay the Euro and bravely walk toward the flapping, black mass. Instantly I was attacked! Pigeons flew in from all directions and latched on to every part of me they could. My hands, my arms, my head, my shoulders…the food was gone in milliseconds. It was the most terrifying thing I have ever done, but it was so worth it. Next on the itinerary was a gondola ride. Jessie and I were beyond excited about riding one, but the rest of our team was less than thrilled. They bought beverages to help them get through it. Seeing Venice from the water is definitely a memorable experience and one I will never forget. It was just like the movies with heart shaped seats and a real live gondola man. Our gondola man was pretty popular on the waterways and would yell “gobble, gobble” to every other gondola man we passed. They thought they were hilarious. We thought they were strange. Before we left Venice, we just had to stop and say hello to some very important people. Georgio Armani, Prada, and Gucci were all there and looking even more glamorous and expensive than ever. How I love them.

One more thing…our school took us on a day trip to Siena and San Gimignano this weekend as well. These medieval cities have lots of history and lots of character. We visited churches and museums in Siena, but loved just sitting in the plaza people watching and eating some of their famous treats. Yum! In San Gimignano we looked at old towers, watched two boys play soccer, and took scenic pictures. Although, I will say that Venice has been my favorite trip so far. Next weekend….Sicily.

Italian Leather Boots Are Bellisimo!

6-13-07
On every corner, in every shop, there is a plethora of leather. Leather purses, leather gloves, shoes, books, belts, anything you can image. Since my first walking trip on the first day, I have been seriously infatuation with a pair of absolutely gorgeous leather boots in a store window. Miss Sixty’s store window to be exact. Now, some of you may not be familiar or have forgotten my list of things I wish to accomplish in Florence, which is extremely important for this particular blog, so here is a refresher…
Eat as much gelato as I can
Make friends with some Italians
Visit everything on Kate’s list
Travel as much as possible
Ride on a moped with an Italian boy
Buy a leather purse
Find Amy Jo and BC’s old apartment
Go to a beach
Find a place that plays live Italian music
PURCHASE ITALIAN LEATHER BOOTS
Number 10 is officially crossed off the list as of today. Before anyone freaks out about this seemingly impulse purchase (mother and possibly grandmother), let me explain. I have walked past that particular window every day, twice a day, or more, and have also kept an eye out for other boots to compare. I describe it as quick and efficient research. I also believe that when in Florence do as the Florentines do. Florentines buy leather boots. I am trying to immerse myself in the culture, that’s all.

Today I also accomplished number 6 on the list, a soft, natural brown leather purse. It too has been starring at me for days now. With classes not starting until 2 today, I just had to make the trip to the mercato and check it out. The mercato literally sucks you into its rows upon rows of nic-nacs and handmade goods and will not release you until something is purchased. I tried to explore some other purse options because there are hundreds, but this one particular purse kept following me! What the heck! So I decided to buy and found a stand run by the most bargainable guy in the mercato. It was a piece of cake getting to the price I wanted and I would like to thank my blonde hair for all its help. Blonde hair in Italy is a whole other story, but some people are just fascinated by it. The new purse and I loved showing off together around the streets and in class today. We were turning heads and making people jealous all over the place. Leather is definitely my new best friend.

Quick side note…I saw a bride and groom taking wedding pictures on the Ponte Vecchio today. What a lucky couple. I took a picture, but still cannot seem to figure out this picture posting on the blog. Oh well.

Wait…We Actually Have to Take Classes Here?

6-12-07
Having all the free time in the world to do whatever you want, go where ever you want, and see what ever you want is truly the way to experience Florence. But once classes begin, you can kiss the majority of that free time good bye. The first class I chose to take over here is an art history class on Michelangelo and his works. I figured that learning about his master pieces and then walking down the street to see them in person would be amazing. The professor informed us that we will take class trips daily to the museums and even travel to Rome to see Michelangelo’s sculptures, painting, etc. How fun! He lectured today on different medias, techniques, styles, and did a very brief overview on how Michelangelo fits into each category, or idea as Professor Rolf described them. It was shaping up to be exactly the kind of class I was expecting. Traveling and art are a great combination. I am looking forward to learning more art history, analyzing different artworks, and visiting historical places. Then came the class syllabus. Italians obviously don’t mess around when it comes to education. 1 written essay, 1 presentation, and 4 exams with essays. He also gave us directions to all the Florence libraries…for research. The whole “not worrying about my classes or grades” plan suddenly pulled a 180 on me. This may be harder than I thought. Who wants to research on vacation (well I was calling it vacation before class started)? Class number two is my Italian language class. For two full days, I have spoken quite a bit of Italian, not well, but have managed. Our professor walks in speaking to us as though we are all smoking cigarettes and have dark hair, dark eyes, tight pants, and last names ending in “i” or “o.” I have only taken a semester of Italian and pick up on 1 of every 10 words this woman is saying. Uh oh. Did I mention this class is 4 hours long 3 times a week? 4 hours of smiling and nodding with little comprehension. The good thing is that we spend the last 2 hours of class walking the streets of Florence learning how to order from restaurants and gelaterias, which means we get to eat and roam for a grade. Chocolate and vanilla ice cream translated into Italian is gelato stracciatella. A+ for me! This class may be the most difficult to understand, but is already by far my favorite.

I found out today that you can scale the Duomo. What a very intriguing thought! I will have to look into that. I also heard about designer outlets that are fairly close to Florence. Checking into that as well. Another cool thing I learned today was that we live right above a craftsman’s workshop. The constant banging sounds are incredibly annoying in the early morning, but turn into these extravagantly built and upholstered pieces of furniture. It’s nice seeing something so amazing and beautiful in the morning before heading to the Michelangelo class from you know where…

Un Cappucino e Un Crimini della Crema Per Favore.

Alarm clock sounds at 7:30 a.m. so Jessie, my roommate, and I can head out early to find a good caffè place before our orientation begins at the Accademia Italiana. Our goal is to find a good place close to our apartment that we can frequent on a daily basis. We want to make friends with some Italians. The barista behind the counter greets us with a Buon Giorno (I know what that one means) and we stand back a bit to see how the others are ordering. We go with un cappuccino e un cremini della crema, a pastry. Great choice. While we are eating, Italians start flooding the caffè wearing these extremely stylish outfits and speaking incredibly fast. I can’t help but stop eating to watch everything that is happening around me. Wow! I am in Italy, in a caffè, hanging out with the locals. This is crazy! When I finally decided to snap out of my stare and pick my jaw up off the ground, Jessie and I headed off to the school, which is directly across from the Pitti Palace. I took a pretty difficult Italian placement test, listened to a few lectures about safety and class procedures, and took a tour of the school. One balcony on the third floor has probably one of the best views in all of Florence. I think I will spend a lot of time sitting there. Maybe even sketching a little? We will see. Our school advisors then prepared an authentic Italian lunch with 6 different kinds of pastas, homemade pizza, and deserts. I was in awe of the food and think I may take an Italian cooking class. Mom, Grammy, and Amy Jo would be so proud. We took a little walking tour after lunch with my Michelangelo professor and visited some of the main Florence attractions – The David, inside the Duomo, the Gates of Paradise, the Piazza della Republica, and the Santa Maria Novella. He also pointed out Vodaphone where I will be purchasing an international cellular device, tomorrow. The best part of the day was a free dinner on a Tuscan hillside provided by the Accademia Italiana. The entire school squeezed, shoved, and pushed their way on to a single bus that took us near Fiesole outside Florence. Traveling with that many hot, sticky, smelly people was not pleasant. I did, however, have my first blonde moment of the trip during the bus ride. An Italian woman was sitting in front of me reading a book and I thought to myself, they print books in Italian? It’s going to be a long 6 weeks. Anyway, the restaurant was absolutely gorgeous and very swanky with a 4 course meal and a bottle of Chianti. We started with two different pastas that were too good for words and then moved on to a, what is the word, interesting meat dish. I thought it was just a very rare-looking steak, but turns out they cooked us wild boar. Never in my wildest dreams…The boys in the group had just a tad too much Chianti and on the way back started playing with the bus doors and yelling for people to hop on. Oh boy. The streets here are just as beautiful at night with live music playing everywhere and Italians out enjoying cool air. A crowd was gathered on the Ponte Vecchio to listen to a singer/guitar player, so we thought we would gather too. I love Florence.

The mosquitoes have finally arrived at apartment 2 and the never ending sounds of mopeds are getting louder. Tomorrow I am investigating a pair of Italian boots I saw in a shop window and starting my classes.

Flying Solo

(Note: This post was meant for Sunday Night...I am far behind)

It is amazing how quickly one gains independence while flying solo. I found myself sitting in the Indy Airport Saturday, all by myself, with a stomach full of nerves and close to tears. Don’t get me wrong, I was beyond ecstatic about studying abroad for 6 weeks, but being shoved into new experiences isn’t something I handle well, at first. I need a solid, well thought out plan and leaving Indy without one was terrifying. How am I going to understand Italian signs in the airport? Will I go through customs in Milan? When I get to Florence, how do I get a taxi? Who is Tonelli and why do I have to ring her doorbell? I thank my mother for this “being in control” gene. Getting to Newark, NJ is a piece of cake, chocolate cake preferably, J and getting onto the massive 747 was also pretty easy. A man wearing a Packers jersey, cut-off shorts, and high tops made me smile and relax because dad would definitely be that guy traveling to Florence dressed like a NASCAR fan. The man next to me can’t speak a lick of English but gave a little father, son, and holy ghost prayer before take-off and while landing. Also, making me smile. We land in Milan and I start following the wrong group of people headed out of the airport instead of to the transfer gates. Oops! Good thing mom reminded me to ask lots of questions. Finally, I arrive in Florence ( Firenze as they call it in the Milan airport – talk about one confused American – stood in front of the monitor for a good 5 minutes wondering where my flight was) and run into a girl from Purdue! How much smaller can this world get? Finding a taxi was the easiest part of the trip and I had to laugh at myself for being so dramatic about not finding one. I bonded with my driver and he was very impressed with my horrible attempt at speaking Italian. He taught me that when you answer the phone, you say “Pronto.” Good to know. My apartment is gigantic with high ceilings, big arching windows, sitting areas, and a kitchen. My roommate is very, very shy and quiet, but that is better than absolutely nuts. We walked around all day yesterday and saw the Ponte Vecchio, the Duomo, the David, the Pitti Palace, the Boboli Gardens, J.J.’s Cathedral, etc. Already I have had 3 different flavors of gelato (Coco flavor is the best), Italian pizza, Bruschetta, and Sparkling Water (sick!). I am learning so much already and cannot wait to continuing learning more. I am on my way to becoming a true Florentine.