Days 59-68: United States of America "Visit"

     Being home was a great experience. I spent the first few days being jetlagged and surprising everyone that I was back home. I visited Bentley several times and had a blast seeing everyone again. Ordering in English was something that I had to get used to again. I did get to experience a giant snowstorm and drove in it on the 29th!
     I was ready to go back to Italy by the 31st, and spending that holiday in an airport was definitely fun. Terminal B is really boring though, and I couldn't wait to just get all that travel time over with. 23 hours of traveling to look forward to!

Day 58: Going Home!

     As I was leaving this morning, Caroline woke up to give me a goodbye hug. We had a realization that the most time we've been apart since I got here was one night. I'm going to miss her!
     I had forgotten how terrible it was to drag a heavy suitcase on the cobblestone roads to the train, but I made it and met up with Shelly. We were sitting on the train waiting for it to take off. It left eight minutes late, which rarely happens; we got to Rome at 8:21. Everything ended up going well, and after standing in lines for literally hours at the airport, we were on the plane to the USA!
     My plane landed in NYC and I got two hours to text away. I MISSED THIS SO MUCH! It's funny how you slip so quickly back into your old lifestyle, even though I'd spent two months away. On the flight from NYC to Boston, I got a window seat. My mom and sisters met me there. We ran towards each other to hug as soon as we saw each other. After 23 hours of travel, it was great to be home. :)

Day 57: Train Strike Issues.

     As I was in class getting ready to take my midterm in International Marketing, I found at that tomorrow there is supposed to be a train strike! This is extremely inconvenient, as Shelly and I are supposed to take the train to Rome in the morning. Luckily my Italian professor told me that the trains leaving at 5:50 am should be okay; the strike wasn't supposed to start until 9am.
     When I told my host family that I was going to Rome in the morning, they told me to be careful as apparently there are riots and flooding in the city. I watched the Italian news but it's quite hard to understand. I'll just hope that everything goes okay!
     TOMORROW I GO HOME TO THE STATES!!!!

Day 56: More midterms

     I can't wait to finish this week and be done with all these exams; today I had wine marketing, which I think went fine. Marco and I had our usual dinner banter. I'm actually going to miss everyone for the week that I go back home!

Day 55: Photoshop Midterm

     I had my first midterm of my study abroad experience today. It wasn't difficult, and because I finished early, I got to work on the pictures I took in Cinque Terre. After class, Caroline and I went to Le Botteghe di Donatello for lunch. It's a little expensive, but you get great views of the duomo and even better food. I would absolutely recommend this restaurant to anyone visiting Firenze!

Day 54: Language Barrier

     Nothing really happened today, besides at dinner. Dinner was at 9 (I can't get used to this cultural difference!) and Marco and I were teasing each other as always. He tried to say that he had a crappy day, but what he really said was, "I crapped all day: at school, at work.." Caroline and I fell off our chairs laughing. Sometimes language barriers are the best part of this experience. :)

Day 53: Running to Piazza Michelangelo

     Caroline and I ran from our bridge all the way to the top of the hill of Piazza Michelangelo. I have never been up here, but these views are the best in Florence. You can see everything. There was also a church that looked like the batistry, and a cemetery.
     Later, we went to Vivoli, which definitely has the best gelato. I got Millefoglie, which is my favourite dessert in gelato form. It was not cheap, but totally worth it.

Day 52: Flight Booking

     I booked my flight back to Boston today! I will be flying out of Rome in less than a week. I decided I'm going to keep it a secret from everyone and just show up as a surprise!
     Shelly and I tried to go to Gusta Pizza, but it ended up being closed. Places here have such weird hours, I can never remember when something is going to be open or not, especially because of the law that shops can only be open for a certain amount of hours every day.
     Caroline and I decided to go to The Diner tonight. I can't believe that I am going to be eating real American food again so soon!! The Diner does have the best milkshakes I have ever tasted, though.

Day 51: Cinque Terre

     Today I woke up at 6:15 am because I had to catch a train to Cinque Terre! Shelly and I took a train that stopped in Pisa and then we were supposed to get a connecting train, but it never showed! We ended up having to buy a new ticket and pay an extra sixteen euros. Oops!

     Cinque Terre is five "lands" that have paths as well as trains connecting them. It's a tourist spot, and probably one of the most beautiful places I have and will ever experience.

     We finally got there in one piece and started in the first town, Riomaggiore (La Spezia). You could walk down to the water's edge and see all the boats. I couldn't get over how colorful the houses are here, the pictures I took couldn't even do this place justice!

     Between the first and second towns is the most famous tourist spot: the Via Del Amore. This is where all the locks are and where people carve their names into plants. It's super romantic, and of course Shelly and I had to leave some kind of mark on the town!

     This walk led to Manarola, the second town. This town is kind of boring. Sadly, we missed the train and so we decided to have lunch here. I got a super fresh, green pesto and pasta. Maybe it was worth getting stuck here after all...?

     Shelly and I took the train to the third town, Corniglia. There was a giant hill to get to the actual town; the walk was pretty strenuous. When we were about halfway up, a bus passed us. Apparently you could get a bus up the hills... The walk was well worth it though once you got to see the views. However, there wasn't really anything to actually do when you got up there.

     The fourth town, Vernazza, was tied for my favourite. There were beaches, shopping, gelato, and everything you could hope for in this little town. Shelly and I decided to embark on an intense hike to the final town. These were the most beautiful views. The sun was bright, the water was glistening, and Vernazza looked so bright and lively from above. The hike took about an hour twenty minutes.

     Monterosso, the last town, also had a beach. I wish we had had more time in this town, but Shelly and I had to go back home to Firenze, as it was getting late. I got a call from my mom while I was here, telling me I could come home to the states for Fall Break! I was so excited; today was just absolutely perfect.

Day 50: 43places

     Today I discovered the most wonderful website: www.43places.com. It highlights everywhere you've been and where you want to go. My map is looking a little barren, but I hope by the time I leave Italy for good that I'll have traveled a lot more. Especially with Fall Break coming up, I'll have plenty of time to travel!
     Tomorrow I'm going to Cinque Terre, and I've heard it's absolutely gorgeous. I can't wait!!

Day 49: A typical Wednesday

     I can't believe that tomorrow will be my 50th day in Italy. Today was an average Wednesday in Firenze- walk around the city, photoshopped some of my picutres, and then went to Italian and Wine Marketing classes.
     Probably my biggest accomplishment of the day is beating level 30 on bejewelled. I'm actually giong to miss having such a small phone when I go back to America.

Day 48: Classical Photography

     Today I woke up and went to photo. I edited some of my photos from France once I finished my project. I got a lot done, but I still have a lot left to do. It takes longer to go through and delete pictures on a mac, but it's certainly worth it when I can crop out random things from my photo. I wish I knew how to straighten a crooked photo, but I'm sure I'll learn before the semester is over. Today we did classical photography after the break. I went home while I waited for the camera (there were 2 classical photo cameras for the whole class, and I was the last one on the list to use it). Nick was late bringing it back so I only got 7 minutes to use it instead of 15. Italian class was after this, and it dragged by. I can't learn when I'm forced to sit down and listen during class.
     Dinner was pasta and the second dish was chickpeas, spinach, and mozzarella. It was SO GOOD! I'm super tired, so after talking to Tom on the phone for an hour, I fell asleep immediately.

Day 47: Back to the Grind

     Today I woke up, did my homework, and then went back to bed until right before class. We had a male substitute teacher for Italian. He was really nice, but quite hard to understand. I went back to bed when I got home; France had really knocked all the energy out of me. I can't believe I only have 68 days left in Italy, yet I'm too tired to go out and about today!

Day 46: French Riviera: St. Paul de Vence, Cannes, and Eze

     Today we got up at 7:20, started repacking, and got ready. I feel so happy in France, I don't want to leave! I slept extremely well, something that neither Caroline nor I do back home in Italy. We went down to breakfast at 7:45. It was only one croissant, which is completely different from Luca's trips, where we get a buffet breakfast. We left at 8:30 to St. Paul de Vence. The bus ride was nice because Caroline and I got to sit next to each other at the front of the bus instead of across from each other at the back.

     We spent an hour and a half exploring St. Paul de ence. It's an adorable little town up on a hill. It was all made of rocks. First, we walked to the panorama and took pictures of the beautiful mountains and surrounding towns. Then we walked down to a cemetery. It was a really nice cemetery; one of the graves said, "Revient me chercher", which means come back to find me. In the entire town, there is one main road and two side roads, and no cars can drive here. We stopped in some cute shops, and I spoke to all the shop owners in French. I love the language so much! We went to a church and we were the only ones in there. We wanted to go up into the priest standing thing but our morals got in the way :p. We did a little more exploring before we left to get to the bus. I got MinuteMaid Apple Juice in a can for the ride.  At 10:50, we left St. Paul de Vence for Cannes.

     I have wanted to go to Cannes since I went to the Printemps de Bourges 5 years ago. Sadly, Cannes was a huge letdown! The ride was 40 minutes. It was very beautiful, but there wasn't much to do, and everything was about 10 euro overpriced (an average salad we saw was 15 euros!). We walked next to the docks to look at all the boats. Then we went to a small market that sold art, and then saw the building where the internal film festivals are held. It was made of glass mirrors. All over Cannes, there was candy shaped art of country flags. I was so obsessed with finding them all! They were my favourite part of Cannes; sadly, they aren't there all the time. It was just an artists featured work. Finding them reminded me of the cow hunt my family and I did in Boston.

     Caroline and I found some cheap food after an hour search. We got caprese paninis for 4.50 euro each. They were so big that we didn't finish them! Food in France is way better than Italian food, and you get a much better deal (except in Cannes). We decided to walk up a ton of stairs to the clock tower and church. The views from there were breathtaking. Walking back down was a struggle, but we made it down and back to the beach in about 10 minutes.

     We decided to walk out onto the rocky part of the beach, and stayed out there just looking at the ocean for 15 to 20 minutes. Then we hung out on the seawall until we left at 2:15. We had to wait an extra 13 minutes because 2 dumb girls showed up late. Then we left for Eze.

     We had passed Eze yesterday on our way to Nice, and it was a very pretty town. We went to a perfume factory where we saw how perfume was made. You have to go to school for three years and then work in a factory for 7 to become a perfume maker. You also can only work 2 hours a day because then you get your scents mixed up. Sounds like an awesome job if you can persevere for 10 years!

     After that was over, Caroline and I walked up a dirt road path (seems to be the theme of this whole trip!) to the top of Eze. There was a yard sale and I saw the french version of Hungry Hungry Hippos! We had to walk uphill more to see the Clock tower and church. On the way down, we bought Magnum ice cream bars. The bus left at 16:54. I can't wait to get back into Italy so I don't have roaming charges and can call people again! We watched Ocean's 11 on the ride back and returned at 11. I was surprised by how quickly the ride had gone by. I went to sleep at midnight after making 2 phonecalls. What a great trip :)

Day 45: Monaco and Nice, France

     It wasn't hard to wake up at 5 in the morning, shocker! I packed everything (and forgot my swimsuit, boo) and then went to Piazza Indepenzia, a fifteen minute walk from our house. I fell asleep on the bus. I had to sit next to a random guy because the bus was pretty full  by the time Caroline and I were getting there. I did see a part of Cinque Terre in my semi-conscious state! We stopped at 9 am to run to the bathroom/some people bought food. After we left there, it took about 2 more hours to get to Monaco. We passed by Eze along the way; we're going there tomorrow!

     Monaco is the second smallest country in the world. It's smaller than Central Park in NYC. It takes 5-6 minutes to go from end to end. The ocean is absoultely gorgous here. It's on the cote d'azure. We got off the bus around 11:20 and rushed to see the Changing of the Guard. I couldn't see much, but it looked like it was like the one in DC from what I could see. Right next to this place, I spotted a license plate with 3 3's in a row. From the area where the Guard is, you can see three countries in one picture: France, Italy, and of course, Monaco. There are only 4,500 Monaco citizens because you have to live there for 20 years to become one.

     I absolutely love Monaco. I feel so at home here because they speak French. Caroline and I got lunch at a creperie. I had an egg and cheese crepe, and then a "Bounty" crepe, which was chocolate and coconut. YUM! I love french food. We didn't have time to go down to Monte Carlo and gamble, sadly, but we did find a spot with spectacular views. We took a ton of pictures and then went back to the bus. We left Monaco at 2:20 pm with our tour guide.

     The bus ride was full of views of the towns as we climbed higher up into the mountains. We stopped along the way to see Nice from a more birds-eye view. Our hotel is in Nice. It's named hotel Busby. It's not great but that's okay. I couldn't care less because I'm in one of my favourite countries in the world!

     We went for a tour around the old city with a small group. Nice is definitely in my top five favourite places in the world. Everything is gorgeous and the people are so nice! We saw Elton John's house in the distance. We also saw a cathedral that was stunning. (Luckily only one, yay!)

     After the tour, Caroline and I went to the beach. The beach was made of pebbles and made the most beautiful sounds. It was so relaxing! After that, we got ready for dinner. The restaurant was 10 minutes from the hotel. The guy leading the trip (not Luca) picked an Italian restaurant that was family-style. It wasn't very good; I think he managed to pick one of the few bad places to eat in France. Walking back was so cold! I love it here though. I wish I could stay forever! J'adore la France <3. It's 10 pm and we're just settling in for the night.

P.S. To anyone that is reading this: Nice is not pronounced 'nice', but 'knee-ce', and Eze is not pronounced 'easy', but 'eh-zzzzz'. "Eze is not easy and Nice is not nice."

Day 44: Academia Museum

     Today I went out to the Academia with Caroline. It was gross out because it had rained all morning. We waited in line for about 30 minutes and then got in. It was free, which means my museum card has now paid off by 1 euro! The museum didn't let you take any pictures, but really the only thing worth seeing was the David. It was huge! I sneakily took a picture! Michaelangelo's other works that were in this museum were unfinished.We spent about an hour inside and then went for pasta at a bar. It must be a rule in Italy that to be a waiter, you have to be super attractive. I spent the rest of the day just chilling around the house; I haven't been feeling well. I went to bed at 10:30 because tomorrow I'm waking up at 4:50 and leaving Italy for the first time since I got here!

Day 43: Fieldtrip To A.... Grocery Store?

     Today I woke up, went out at 10:45, bought two ATAF (the bus) tickets, and then went to the bank to get money for the French Riviera. I went to class in Strozzi at noon; we all went together as a class to catch the ATAF. We went to Esselunga, a grocery store outside the city. It was the dumbest fieldtrip ever. We had to find products that were in this grocery store as well as in America. It was a waste of 3 euro to get there when we could've done the same thing in Firenze. We got back and I had to run to Italian class. After class I spent the rest of the day sleeping because last night I only slept 4 hours. I just couldn't sleep, which happens a lot here.

Day 42: Chianti Fieldtrip

     Today I went to La Campagna with Nick for his 21st birthday!! It was a really nice sit down lunch before class. I didn't have Italian class today because I was excused to go on a field trip with my Wine Marketing class! Woo! We went on a coach bus at 3:30 to a winery that was about 25 minutes away. We got to taste grapes right from the vine. It was really cool because you could taste the difference of the grapes from vine to vine. We saw how they make the wine, as well as their wine cellar (which was really small in comparison to the one from the weekend). Then we had a wine and cheese tasting. We had to run to catch the bus at 5:15, and then we went home.

Day 41: Photoshop is Love

     I learned so much on photoshop today in photography class! It really transforms my photos. This class is one of my favourites I've taken in college; I wish Bentley offered classes. I got out an hour early from class today and so I practiced my Italian. I prefer the french language, but I do love speaking Italian! I skyped Ali for an hour and a half today. I miss Bentley and my RA job so much!

Day 40: Card Games!

     I was so tired today. I barely had the energy to walk to class 4 minutes away! I had a meeting for Wine Marketing at 11 and then went grocery shopping. I killed time before my Italian class. Nothing really interesting happened between then and dinner, but after dinner was really fun. Marco taught us how to play an italian card game and I showed him "the old farmer" card trick. It was really fun! Amanda Knox was freed today; they decided she was innocent. I passed by the town she was held in this weekend. I'm almost done reading The Help! I love it! I don't want it to end!

Day 39: Pienza and Montepulciano

     Today I woke up at 7:53 am. I was so tired and did not want to get out of bed. But by 8:30, I was all packed and headed up to breakfast. By 9:15, we were leaving for Pienza. The ride was about an hour. We didn't spend very ong in Pienza. It was a quaint town that had only one main road. We got to see a church that is going to be knocked down soon because the dirt beneath it is moving and it's falling down the mountain. I lit a candle for Grannie in this church. A famous version of Romeo and Juliet was filmed in this town as well. That's basically all that happened in the town. After that, we went to a farm that was about 5 minutes away.

     The farm was interesting. They showed us how to make cheese and shoed us different kinds that they make. The aging process was gross because 2 week old cheese is extremely moldy and they have to wash it off to age it. After seeing the whole process, we got to try all the types at lunch: farm fresh cheese, bread, honey and "mustard" (it tasted like jam). We hung around this place until 2, and then left for Montepulciano.

     It was about 20 minutes to get to Montepulciano. This was teh town where New Moon was filmed. The town was super hilly. I can only imagine how hard it was to get all the film equipment up to the top. We got 20 minutes to explore the top area because we had arrived before the winery opened. I saw a real Volturi cape from the film!

     The winery was really cool. Some of the barrels were probably able to hold 50 of me. We had a wine tasting after the basement, and some family back home is going to love me because I bought them the best red wine in the Tuscan Region. Although today doesn't sound like I was too busy, I was absolutely wrecked after today. We went home after the winery and I slept most of the hour and 45 minute ride, and then went home to my real bed.

Day 38: Arezzo and Cortona

     Rabbit rabbit! This was a nice start to a new month! I woke up at 6:54 am, had breakfast, packed, and then we left at 7:40 am to get to the train station for our coach bus. We didn't leave until 8:30 am for Arezzo; the bus didn't ahve enough seats. But it all worked out in the end. The really annoying girl that was on the trip to Capri sat behind Caroline and I. She whined half the bus ride about whatever she could think to complain about, including forgetting her swimsuit. *note: we did not go any place remotely close to a beach or pool*

     The ride to Arezzo is an hour and a half. In Arezzo, we saw a ton of churches. There was also an antique fair, which only happens the first Saturday of every month. I got to see the street where the guy in La vida e bella came down on a bike and took out the woman who became his wife. After a million churches (hardly an exaggeration), a group of us went to lunch. It was Bijon, Nick, Shelly, and of course Caroline and I. It was an incredible deal compared to anywhere else we've been: salad, water and half a pasta dish came to 10 euro. Yum. We also got some amazing gelato before the bus. I got nutella chocolate and marzcapono or some weird name like that. It was the best I've ever had.

     The bus to Cortona was an hour 10 minutes, and I slept most of the way despite the fact that I was missing out on some beautiful sights. When I woke up, we were at the St. Luca Hotel. (This was really funny to me, because our professor guiding it is named Luca). Outside the hotel had the most beautiful views of the landscape. I was really excited because this trip was perfect for my photography project on landscapes; I am now finished a week early! We got 1.5 hours to relax in the hotel room before a walking tour. We are staying on the sixth floor. But to get to our room, you have to go down instead of up. Very weird!

     Our walking tour started with some homemade gelato (too much gelato for one day!) Then we hiked a lot to get to a church on a mountain. The views were phenomenal, but that is really the norm in Cortona. After the hike, we went back to the hotel, showered and went to dinner. It was fancy; Luca really gets us the best deals on these trips. After dinner, Shelly, Caroline, and I went for a walk. I took a picture of the big dipper! It's a little shaky but I'm just really excited that my camera is that awesome.I read The Help before sleeping. The annoying girl I mentioned before was being obnoxiously loud in the hallway, so it took me awhile to fall asleep.