The "One Month" Update: The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

I'm baaaaaack!

Cannot believe I left Walpole one month ago today! What's even more unbelievable is how much I have already changed since August 27. Anyone who was within a 20 mile radius of Woodruff Road knew how nervous I was to get on that airbus to Paris, (the tears, the drama, the packing and re-packing, the fighting with Terri over the weight of my suitcases ... sorry mum) but here I am! So many new friends, so many trips to new places, so many new recipes I've mastered, and so many new Italian words added to my vocabulary!  Thanks to everyone who helped me get here.  Loving every minute of my life here in Italia!

Quick shoutout to Julia and Mollie, my fav gal pals, for the best going-away gift idea ever! They wrote me a note for every day that I'm away, giving me a slice of home each morning when I wake up! (Because everyone knows how heartwarming Snoop Dogg quotes can be at 8 am, right Moll?) In all seriousness, it was such a sweet idea, just like those two to think of something so nice!!

Ok so since we last talked, I've done some serious traveling!! Bologna, Milan, and Lake Como with FUA (my university), Cinque Terre with my roommates, and back to Tuscany for a class trip! I could seriously get used to this!

Bologna was gorgeous, it's a small old city with so much character. We toured the oldest university in the world, visited an old church and meandered through a museum.   I went into the city hall, and got to sit where their actual city council-members have sat for centuries while debating plans for the city! How official do I look??

Of course while in Bologna I had to try their signature dish, taglietelle al ragu.  Not to make you guys jealous buttttt ... it was amazing, of course! It's what us Americans call "bolognese", except bolognese is apparently what tourists call the traditional Bolognese dish, taglietelle al ragu. I'm so NOT an American tourist! (... I SO am hahaha) After lunch, we hunted down the oldest and most famous bakery in Bologna, and let me tell you it was worth the 30 minute walk! But that's my biased dessert queen opinion. 

We spent only one day in Bologna, and that night we headed for Milan! 

Sorry did I forget to mention that we visited Milan while fashion week was going on?! Ahhh the life of  a study abroad student.  My favorite thing in Milan, besides the shopping and the fashion, was the Duomo. The Duomo is a recognizable landmark of Milan, but to actually see it in person and stand next to it was such an amazing experience. The Duomo is the third largest church in the world!

The next morning, we left Milan for Lake Como ... So, in other words,  I was on the hunt for George Clooney all day. Despite it being a rainy, gloomy day, Lake Como was gorgeous. No wonder it's a favorite vacation spot for Italian royalty, government officials, American actors and actresses, and business moguls! Lake Como is 4 hours north of Florence, right at the edge of the Alps. I did some more shopping at Lake Como, why not, and later that day we headed back to Florence.  It's weird how I'm already treating Florence as my home! (Nothing will ever replace Walpole though hahaha) After a weekend away, it was so nice to come back to the apartment and back to my beautiful city. 

Fast forward one week, (aka four extremely difficult and grueling days of classes ...)  and the girls and I decided we would head to Cinque Terre for a Sunday hike! This is by far my favorite place I have traveled to in Italy.  Talk about breathtaking!!  Cinque Terre is 5 towns built on cliffs at the edge of the Mediterranean Ocean.  We took the train from the first town to the second and third, and then we hiked our way from the fourth town to the fifth!  The hike between the towns was brutal, but so rewarding! No camera can capture the beauty that we saw while trekking high above the Mediterranean. 

(Here's Joe and I hanging on the Via Dell'Amore at Cinque Terre, being romantic, having a great time)

The last town made the entire hike worth it, because the last town had the beach!! My first plunge into the Mediterranean was refreshing and rewarding.  The water was the perfect temperature, and the salt made it so easy to float in the ocean for the rest of the day. 

Back we went to Florence for Week Four of classes. And now here I am on blog day! I hope the States are treating you all well!  I miss fall in New England so much, I've changed my backgrounds to pictures of the Big Apple Orchard and Westfield in the fall.  I cannot believe I'm missing my favorite season, but then I catch a glimpse of the Ponte Vecchio and remember I'll have my New England fall back next year!

I'm off to dinner,  I promise I'll be better at updating my blog! (hi Ari and Mike this means you) 

Ciao!

Ti amo e mi manchi, 

Baci, 

Steen 

La Vita Italiana e la La Dolce Vita!

Ok guys yes I've been here for over a week and I have yet to post on my blog ... But here I am! Better late than never right? Right Ari?! Don't act like you don't know that's my life motto.

In other news, I'm living in freakin' Italy! How cool is that? Sometimes I forget I'm in Florence, but as soon as I see those red tiled roofs out my bedroom window, I instantly remember what a lucky girl I am!  I wake up every day to church bells from Santa Croce, I walk past the Duomo on my way to school, and probably more often than I should, I cross the Ponte Vecchio to get gelato!

Now something you should know about me is that I have absolutely no sense of direction, which means I spend a good chunk of my time here completely lost.  The difference between here and the States, however, is that I curse a whole lot less when I'm lost in Florence - to be perfectly honest, I actually enjoy being lost now! So far I've discovered Florence's oldest bakery, the carousel, the replica of David, Piazza della Signoria, and the Boboli Gardens all while wandering lost around the city. (never alone, don't call Terri in a panic or anything!)

I live in an adorable apartment right near the historical city center, with five other girls all studying at FUA. I could not have had better luck with my roommates, I swear all we do is laugh in this place! (It may be because we all drink the Florentine tap water, but hey what can you do)

I'm taking four classes through FUA, italian language, italian cooking, renaissance architecture in florence, and intercultural communication. All my classes are held in centuries-old palaces that the school has bought and turned into classrooms, offices, media labs, and a library!  Can Westfield please do this? (Peace CP? Dobelle? Mary from the DC? Does anyone support me on this?) I know how many palaces there are in Western Massachusetts so hopefully they've figured something out by the time I return to school in January.

Florence and I are currently in the honeymoon stage of our relationship, so I really have nothing bad to report! I'm in love, I'm in love, and I don't care who knows it! The city is amazing, the language is amazing, the food is to die for, the italian women are so fashionable, ugh it's just perfection. Check back in a few days though I'm sure I'll have something to complain about by then! Hahaha

Ciao, bella! (bello for all you handsome men reading this!)

Baci,
Steen