I've been here for 2 and a half weeks and it feels like way longer than that. It's weird to think that 3 weeks ago I didn't know a single person here but now I live life with my friends and spend every moment with them. I love it. I'm getting comfortable in Italy but not too comfortable that I take it for granted. I'm settled in. I know my streets and I know the cheapest place to get gelato. I'm finally used to the idea of not seeing familiar faces until December. I'm quite excited that my parents are coming to visit and I'll be able to travel with them during my fall break which begins on my dad's birthday. It feels good to live in Italy.
The school mode is kicking in and I'm already used to having homework but it's nothing like school at home. Our program is so small, only about 40 people, so classes are enjoyable when the people in class are the same people I just spent the whole day before with. And when I'm in the heart of the place of the Renaissance and surrounded by art history everywhere I look. Last week I was exploring the city with Hannah when we walked a block north of my apartment and just impulsively decided to go into the museum that holds the Statue of David (it's beautiful). The next day I wandered over to the Uffizi Gallery by myself and stood in front of Botticelli's stunning masterpieces and Leonardo's lesser-known yet still marvelous work. I got to see in person a ton of other pieces I studied at CP but never thought I'd be lucky enough to stand in front of. I gave myself a who's-who quiz on the figures in the paintings I saw and I was even able to pick up on how to recognize some other saints without being told what to look for! I can't walk 3 minutes without coming across one tabernacle or another and I get to hear the bells of the Duomo's bell tower every 15 minutes from my living room. Last week in class I got to paint my own fresco, which, if you don't know anything about art, is the technique that artists used back in the day and even now to make their work last thousands of years. Art history. I feel overwhelmed in the best way I've ever felt it.
This weekend was fairly relaxing. My friends and I decided to save the money and skip Monaco to explore Florence for a weekend. We saw the Statue of David and the inside of the Duomo all together one day and went back to the Uffizi the next. We made it across the Arno River and hung out on the concrete plaza in front of the Pitti Palace. We had Nutella-filled croissants at 2:30 in the morning from the secret bakery. We discovered two American diners and took full advantage of both. I had a bagel and a (sort of) milkshake one day, a grilled cheese the next, and a Caesar salad (more like, garlic with some lettuce, and croutons = bread) and (sort of) Vanilla Coke the next. Mixed in with those meals was the delicious dinner we had over at the boys apartment on Saturday night. Ricky and Marissa made us delicious pizza and pasta and we sat around the table telling our highs/lows of the day, which has lately become a daily thing. Sunday night our friend JC's mom was in town and took a dinner party of 10 students out to a nice restaurant, which was far too generous of her. It was so nice to stay in Florence for a few days, but I'm so so so excited for next weekend because me and my friends are going to the Amalfi Coast!
I haven't blogged in a week and I can't think of much else to say. I don't know if that's a good thing or bad thing. I hope things aren't becoming less exciting to me, because there is nothing in the world like living in Italy. My days are becoming regular days though. I go to school and then the rest of the day is filled with one thing or another. I can't get enough gelato. I tried to give myself a limit but I keep breaking it. Oopsies. It's hard for me to say this but I think I'm actually getting a little tired of Italian food. The food here is SO GOOD, of course, but I crave variety. Dinners are still real good but I should start eating something other than a panino for lunch. Luckily in about an hour I'm headed over to the boys' apartment again for our second round of Mexican Mondays. At least Mexican Mondays add some taco seasoning to my life. (Interjection: After tonight I will have eaten over at their apartment 5 times. 5 TIMES. And I have yet to cook a meal for everyone! What?! When did I lose my role as the cook/hostess?!)
Good luck to everyone on their last first day of school today! I can't say I wish I was there, though. =]
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