2 weeks in 2 paragraphs.

Turns out that I suck at blogging... or maybe it's just that I haven't really done anything too exciting or crazy in the past 2 weeks.

The most exciting thing I can think of was the announcement of Machiavelli's arrest on February 19th, exactly 500 years after the original announcement! My Understanding Modern Italy class took a short field trip to a piazza near Palazzo Vecchio, where there were men in costume complete with drums and trumpets. Around 3:30 a man riding a horse read the warrant for Machiavelli's arrest from a parchment roll! The whole group of 14th-century-clad men marched over across the Ponte Vechhio and over to the Piazza della Signoria, concluding in front of the Biada Monastery. It was a really fun experience, especially seeing the reactions of people, both tourists and Italians, who had no idea what was happening!

Another exciting thing that happened was when Alex Bailor (and 2 friends) came to visit! They attend the CAPA London Program, but visited Florence for a few days during their tour of Italy. It was really nice to see a Pitt friend and even more fun to feel like a tour guide! It was amazing to realize how much I've learned about the city in the short time I've been here; I was able to recommend restaurants and, most importantly, gelaterie... but I was also able to give short history lessons on buildings and the city!

So... that's about it. Stay tuned for the beginning of spring break: Rome edition.

Local Italians and Fortezza da Basso

One of my main goals for studying abroad was to immerse myself in the Italian community, but it is somewhat difficult because the Florentine community is exceptionally private and very closed. Thankfully, with a little bit of exploration, two friends found a coffee shop run by a mom, and her 20 year old son, Massimo. Friday night, Lorenzo and I met up with Massimo and his friends for a little bit. Although there wasn't TOO much integration between the groups, hopefully it will lead to more nights together. After hanging out at the coffee shop, I went home because I had to wake up early (6am!) to catch a train to Ravenna for a fun-filled weekend. On my walk home, I ran into Professor Looney and his wife. As per usual, they recommended places to go in Ravenna- they are both so knowledgeable about everything, it's fantastic.

Saturday morning came along and I was unable to get out of bed. I texted Kelsey and Tylar telling them that I wouldn't be able to go to Ravenna- I was nauseous, dizzy, and had a killer headache. I felt so awful about not being able to go to Ravenna because I was excited to see the mosaics it is famous for, and most importantly, Dante's tomb, but there was no way I was going to be able to make it... and in the end, I'm incredibly happy I was so sick that morning.

When I finally felt like an actual human being again, I texted Lorenzo (one of the only CAPA kids who was left in Florence this weekend- Catie/Julia were enjoying a weekend in the French Riviera, Ty/Kels were on their way to Ravenna) and we got lunch, got coffee (and planned to meet with Massimo later that night), and then decided to walk around Florence. The day was GORGEOUS... only one cloud in a beautiful blue sky, sun shining, breeze blowing... we couldn't pass up the opportunity to explore!

Walking along the Arno River.

I had heard about a HUGE antiques market at Fortezza da Basso held every 3rd Saturday and Sunday, and even though I only had a SLIGHT idea of where it was, we decided to head over anyway. It was really nice just walking through the city, especially because it was a part I had never even seen before! I discovered a few more gelaterias that I want to try, a store that seemed to have really nice, inexpensive shoes, and another vintage shop. After a bit, I decided to ask someone where the Fortezza was... turns out we were heading in the wrong direction... but we finally got to the market after a bit of backtracking. The market surrounds a fountain (which must be beautiful in the summer, considering how pretty it was in February...) and is made up of a bunch of tents where locals go to sell their antiques, books, clothes, etc etc. Unfortunately (or fortunately, for my wallet), I had no cash on me, but I hope I'm in Florence next time it comes around.

We kept walking, and even tried to do homework, but the day was too nice and it wasn't working out... and after all that walking, I needed a nap! We walked farther on Saturday than I had ever walked in Florence, but it was such a lovely day and I couldn't waste it being inside.

wut.

That night, Lorenzo, Evan, and I went across the river to the Piazza of Santo Spirito where we met up with his flatmate, his girlfriend, and some of their friends... students from all around the world: Mexico, Palestine, El Salvador. We drank at a bar, went to a club, danced for a few hours and then tried to find a secret bakery. Yes... a secret bakery. These are the locations where bakers who supply local pastry shops make all their goods, and to be able to supply the shops so early in the morning, they begin baking around 3 or 4 in the morning... and if you find a shop, you can buy a delicious, warm pastry right out of the oven. I'd found one about a week ago, but to the group's dismay, it was closed last night! We ended up going to Mr.Pizza where I met 2 of the coolest Italian girls (and their Spanish friend) after joining in on their rendition of Volare. (Don't read the following, parents!) Now, with a few beers in me, my Italian was on fire! I was speaking as if I were fluent- it was amazing, and they were loving it! I showed them how to sassy snap, we discussed a possible nickname (K.Lo), and they said that after their exams, they'd invite me to parties and shopping. I was absolutely ecstatic about the opportunity because I love practicing my Italian but hanging out with only CAPA kids (most of whom don't speak any Italian) is detrimental to my language improvement! We exchanged numbers and when I got home, I already had a friend request from one of the girls. It was honestly just the cherry on top of a fantastic Saturday! Even though I wasn't  able to go to Ravenna/Rimini/San Marino, I can confidently say that integrating myself into the community and making friends was just as amazing, if not more so.

Another week gone...

This past week was pretty quiet... Class took up a bit of time, but I still had fun nonetheless!

After talking to my dad about my weekend plans to go to Ravenna, Rimini, and San Marino, he asked when I was going to Paris. Most of my weekend travel plans are to cities in Italy- I figured I should see as much Italy as possible while I'm here because I can always do the larger cities later in life. And with only 2 months left, all my weekends are full... or so I thought! I realized that my plans to travel around central Italy during spring break fell through, so I had almost an entire week free. I jumped at the chance, and immediately messaged Tylar. Within 30 minutes we had plane tickets for Paris... amazing! I hope during the 4 days I'm there, I'm able to travel to Luxembourg or something!

Here are some random pictures because I've been slacking on my posts lately...

Most households in Italy don't have dryers because they are ridiculously expensive, so all the clothes dry outside... 

OH, just hanging out 6 stories above the ground.

I tried to do some homework at the Biblioteca delle Oblate, which was once a convent and a hospital. There is a cafe on the top floor with a great view of the Duomo. I know when it gets even nicer out, I'll be spending more time here.

Ayooo, there's the Duomo!

 Here's hoping I have more exciting stuff from this weekend!

"Maybe you'll get a tattoo saying 'Florence roofied me!'"

As I'm sure I've mentioned before, Professor Looney is the greatest help and resource here in Florence! Not only is he approachable about any subject, not only does he spend hours touring us around the town, he also feeds us! After the Pitt student party at his house, he mentioned that he wanted to have all the Pitt advanced students over for dinner at his apartment to discuss our adjustment and any suggestions for improving the program.

After almost 8 hours of class on Tuesday, all the advanced kids headed over to Professor Looney's apartment for dinner. It was a great night; we talked about our experiences at CCF and CAPA, integrating into the Florentine community, and also Professor Looney/his wife's family. Professor Looney even joked about possible tattoos we could get to remind us about our study abroad experience... hence the title of this blog post. They talked about their kids and how they met; it was truly amazing! Both of them are the sweetest people and are always open for conversation; they're like our Florence parents!

That night was Fat Tuesday, so I just HAD to go out! I met up with a few kids from CAPA and we partied like it was 1999. It was a really fun night that was only a taste of what was to follow the rest of the weekend.

This is a short post, so I'm going to comment on something that really bothers me about Florence, and that is the fact that people don't pick up their dog's shit. Now, I understand that there isn't a lot of green space in Florence- everything is cobblestone, cement, etc etc so the dogs have no choice but to use sidewalks as their bathrooms, but what really makes me upset is the fact that MANY people just leave it on the sidewalk. WHAT?!? Can someone please help me understand this? The entire month-ish that I've been here, I've seen a grand total of 4 people pick up dog shit... it just truly amazes me because this is a WALKING city... why make it harder for everyone by leaving smelly poop all over the damn place?? Rant over.

Carnevale in Viareggio

Even though I was unable to go to Venezia, I DID make a day trip out to Viareggio for their carnival! Viareggio is a city in the Tuscan riviera probably most famous for the carnevale held a couple of weekends in January and February, but also for the beautiful yacht-building business. I woke up Saturday morning and along with a bunch of other CAPA kids and took the almost 2-hour train ride to the Tuscan coast.

Immediately after stepping off the train, I knew it was going to be a great day: people were all dressed up, huge smiles on everyone's faces! Julia and I bought our tickets to carnival and then walked into the craziest experience since being in Italy! Apart from people in THE most ridiculous costumes throwing confetti at every chance, and the wild, uninhibited dance parties, there were gigantic floats lining the 2 main streets that were out of this world. The amount of detail that goes into the construction of the floats is astonishing, and clearly visible. As my homestay family told me, many of the floats are some sort of satirical political or social commentary, which was definitely interesting to see.

Literally the first thing we saw as we hopped off the regional train!

Later on, this opened up and there were dancers inside.

The masks and wings all moved... very cool!

I have no idea what kind of satirical commentary this is... but it looked cool!

After finding Catie and Katie, buying some confetti and a mask, and dancing around the streets of Viareggio for a while, we decided to get some lunch at a small cafe... probably the best hot dog sandwich I'll ever have. Guys, even hot dogs are better in Italy! With a perfectly content belly, we made the trek out to the beach to find Catie's family... yes, the beach. It was absolutely amazing especially the snow-capped alps behind the town. It kind of reminded me of the beaches in El Salvador, which are actually much prettier in my opinion... but it was still an unforgettable view that made me question if my life in Italy is even real!!

Even though I thought nothing would be able to top Bologna as a day trip, Viareggio definitely tied! It was amazing to just traipse around the streets throwing confetti at people, dancing to whatever music each float was playing, admiring the elaborate costumes, and just appreciating life! It was a perfect day that ended with watching the sun set while sitting on the beach with two good friends... and my face painted as a dog.

Saturday's Looney tour around Oltrarno

After a night of shenanigans on Friday, I woke up early and went across the river for a tour by Professor Looney. The first stop was one of the oldest churches in Florence, called Santa Felicita. Although the original was established in the 4th or 5th century by Syrian merchants who were considered "lesser Romans," the current church is probably from the 18th century. The Vasari corridor is located right above the church; Vasari built this corridor under orders from Cosimo de' Medici I after the Medici family moved residence to Palazzo Pitti. The corridor connects Palazzo Vecchio and Palazzo Pitti through the Uffizi, Ponte Vecchio, and Santa Felicita and allowed the Medici family a safe passageway, but also allowed them to attend church without being seen. (Shoutout to Tylar for that nugget of information!)

Vasari Corridor in front of the church's facade.

Inside the church, Professor Looney mainly spoke about Pontormo's The Deposition from the Cross; although painted during the High Renaissance period, it's style is incredibly different from that of earlier paintings, often cited as an example of mannerism. Pontormo focused on color rather than mass and also omitted including the cross, but did include a self-portrait in the background!

We walked to Palazzo Pitti and Professor Looney pointed out the apartment where he stayed the first time he studied in Italy... right across from Palazzo Pitti! It was really fantastic to hear about his experiences studying abroad and even more interesting to hear that a famous Italian writer, named  Umberto Saba, lived in his room before him!

Because people are only allowed to enter Santo Spirito church until 12:30 on Saturdays, we hurried over to the church which is seemingly simple from the outside, but very beautiful inside, and is one of the greatest examples of Renaissance architecture. Brunelleschi designed the outlay of the church and its 38 chapels, but not the baldachin over the high altar which was added in 1601. Each chapel of the Basilica was paid for by an important family of Florence, and many of the paintings include portraits of the patrons.

Our final stop on the Oltrarno tour was the church of Santa Maria del Carmine, mainly to look at the Branacci chapel which was the only thing left untouched by a fire that burned down most of the original church in 1771 and which holds important frescoes by Masolino, Masaccio, and Lippi. Although the rebuilt church is built in a rococo style (late Baroque), the chapel's frescoes are of the Renaissance and most particularly mark the transition into Renaissance. Masolino was a Gothic  painter who worked with Masaccio as his assistant and their contrasting styles can very clearly be identified; while Masolino's figures were still flat, somewhat lifeless, Masaccio's figures had volume. Their painting styles differed in that Masolino focused on line, while Masaccio focused on mass.

Masaccio's The Tribute Money on top, Lippi's
Raising of the Son of Theophilus and St Peter Enthroned
on bottom

Pitt's very own Professor Looney

Palazzo Vecchio and climing the Duomo

This week started out slowly with classes and not much else! Luckily, I've been enjoying my classes a lot, especially the ones I'm taking at CAPA because they are taught by two of the most interesting professors I've ever had. I can definitely say I'm learning so much about Italian history, language, and culture both in and outside the classroom, but unfortunately, it's not all positive. There are many delusions that were quickly shattered after a month of being in Florence, and this caused major culture-shock and homesickness. Thankfully, after 3 weeks, I no longer feel like a complete stranger/tourist and I feel like this can definitely be a temporary home!

Although I'm starting to feel like a resident, there are still a million touristy things to do in Firenze and one of those is walking through Palazzo Vecchio. Gather 'round kids, it's history lesson time!
Located in Piazza dell Signoria, Palazzo Vecchio is the fortress town-hall that was built in the 14th century (with further additions and changes in the 15th), in order to further protect the magistrates and important representatives of Florence's government. The most important family that resided in the Palazzo was probably the Medici family, a family of influential, wealthy bankers who rose to power in politics. They are known for their vast collections of art, statues, etc which were donated to the Tuscan state by Anna Maria Luisa de Medici, the last of the Medici line. While Duke Cosimo I lived in the Palazzo, it was called the Palazzo Ducale, but after he moved residence to Palazzo Pitti which is across the river, it was renamed the "Old Palace."

 The fortress was absolutely amazing; and to think that it had been used for centuries by the most powerful residents of Florence was even more astonishing. After checking out the courtyard decorated by Michelozzo, Tylar and I walked upstairs to the Salone dei Cinquecento (Hall of Five Hundred), a massive room that was used for meetings held by Florence's rulers; the walls and ceiling are decorated with HUGE paintings by Vasari (and his assistants) all showing Florence's military triumphs over Pisa and Siena done in the mannerism style. It was probably the most impressive hall I'll ever see in my life!

The museum portion of Palazzo Vecchio includes many of the apartments of the Medici family and other beautifully decorated rooms. My favorite room was probably the Hall of Lillies, a room covered in the gold Florentine fleur-de-lys on a rich blue background... Maybe it was my favorite because it reminded me of Pitt! The decoration of this room, attached to the Chapel of the Signoria, signified the brief but good relations between the French crown and Florence. Another of my favorite rooms was the Stanza del Guardaroba, also called the Hall of Geographical Maps, because of the 53 amazing maps, all drawn in the 16th century, that surround a large bronze globe. It is certainly mind-blowing to think about how much cartographers knew about the world in the 16th century!

Even though we were exhausted after the walk through Palazzo Vecchio, we decided that because the day was so picturesque, we should take advantage and walk up the Duomo. And so, after about a month of being in Florence, I finally stepped into the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore... It is a very beautiful church decorated in the bare style of the Renaissance, which was somewhat underwhelming after seeing some of the more heavily decorated churches in Bologna. After a quick look around the church, we decided to make the climb in the Duomo... 463 steps for a fantastic view of Florence, the surrounding countryside, and snow capped mountains in the distance!

 

Piazzale Michelangelo

Sunday I woke up late and headed across the Arno river to Piazzale Michelangelo with Lorenzo; this piazza overlooks the city of Florence and has a bronze copy of Michelangelo's David. It was an absolutely beautiful so the panoramic view of the city was breath-taking.

lookit.

Bronze copy of David

S. Maria del Fiore and Santa Croce

After the taxing sightseeing experience, we got some pizza and then a nutella and marscarpone crepe...DELICIOUS, HEAVENLY, DELECTABLE, SCRUMPTIOUS, ETC ETC. I hit up some shops and window-shopped for a bit before heading home for dinner.

Now, everyone knows how much I hate football (go ravens?), but I decided to go out and watch the game at a restaurant with Catie and Lorenzo anyway. In all honestly, I was only going for Beyonce's half-time show... and it was FABULOUS. I was already expecting a Destiny's Child reunion, but it was still spectacular. I went home after that, considering that it was already 2:30am and I had class at 9!

Since this is a really short post, I'm going to talk about some of the Italian/Florentine culture differences that I've noticed in the month I've been here. Everyone told me that Italians are crazy drivers, but I didn't expect it would be this awful! In my first 2 days, I was almost hit by 20 vespas, 82 bikers, and probably 392 buses... something I'm sure my parents don't want to hear! People don't really stop for red lights; it's not a stop sign here, it's more of a "watch out there may be people in your way" sign... which can be really irritating and incredibly dangerous in the tiny, cramped streets of Florence! Thankfully, I'd always been taught to walk across streets carefully, but drivers are still absolutely ridiculous. Another crazy thing is parking... If I have to walk AROUND ONE MORE CAR PARKED ON A PEDESTRIAN CROSSWALK................. there are just no rules here, and if there are, I don't think anyone knows about them! Anyway, enough of my rant, here's a picture of an SUV parked EXACTLY in the middle of a crosswalk.

che cazzo fa?

Disco on Friday and Pitt game on Saturday

Friday night was probably the most exciting night here! After a very lazy day, I headed over to Tylar's homestay because one of the other students living in her house was celebrating her birthday! Vips' birthday was an absolute blast, especially because the entire family was so inviting! I walked into the dining room where 20+ people surrounded a table, dancing their butts off... everyone yelled to welcome me, and it was great! After about an hour, we headed out to a dance club... HOMESTAY PARENTS INCLUDED. They bought us all drinks and danced all night.

After the dance club, we headed home. I slept over at Catie's so that I wouldn't walk home alone at 5 in the morning. When I woke up, Catie's family was so hospitable and offered me food, drinks, a shower. I went home after breakfast and Italian cartoons, showered, and then headed out to meet Catie, Tylar, Lorenzo, and Angela for pizza and gelato.

We went to a bar and watched the Pitt Syracuse basketball game... and guys, I teared up when it started. They showed shots of the city and campus (Hi, Catheedj!) and I got homesick for a while! I got even more homesick after seeing the Zoo... The atmosphere was so great and I would've killed to be there in my blue-and-gold homemade tutu screaming like a banshee! I'll just have to wait until next year.

I went home to relax after seeing the Pitt game; I was exhausted from Friday night's shenanigans. I watched Pulp Fiction (AMAZING MOVIE, FUR-SURE.) and headed to bed.

Professor Looney's Festa

After an entire week of only school and almost no fun, Thursday definitely made up for it! It started off with another 8 hours of class: 3 language, 1.5 literature, and 3 humanist literature. Thankfully, it was a gorgeous day so during my 2 hour break, I walked around and got lunch with Tylar and Chris. I tried a kebab for the first time and... guy, it was magical! The florentines working at the kebab place were also really nice, so that definitely added to the experience! We ate our kebabs on some outdoor benches, people watched (my favorite hobby in Florence, by far!), and then got some gelato. Luckily, Tylar and Chris feel the same way as I do about gelato: always get gelato after lunch. No ifs, ands, or buts. We tried a new place and I got a coconut flavor that made me feel like I was on a tropical island!

Somewhat unfortunately for me, both of my literature classes were covering Petrarch- I had 4.5 hours of instruction on Petrarch's sonnets, letters, and life. It was especially boring (and kind of infuriating) because Petrarch is my least favorite of the Italian poets/writers I've studied, but Professor Tellini and Professor Looney kept it interesting.

About a week ago, Professor Looney invited all Pitt students in the CAPA program to his Italian apartment for a small party! We walked over to class and his wife greeted us at the door with wine and noms- everything was delicious and they were such perfect hosts. Talking to Professor Looney outside of the classroom was also incredible; he is probably one of the most knowledgeable people I've ever met, but is always interested in what others have to say. At some point he asked who taught my morning literature class... when I said it was Professor Tellini, he almost died I swear! Turns out that Professor Gino Tellini is a world famous writer and professor, having published a vast amount of articles discussing Italian literature and taught at many universities around the world! He even taught Professor Looney as a teaching assistant when Looney studied in Florence for a year! It was so amazing to learn that, and I will definitely be going into my Italian lit class with even more respect for the professor.

The party was a blast and to continue the fun, Catie, Lorenzo and I decided to go to a bar on the other side of the Arno river. And so began the biking adventures: both Catie and Lorenzo had their bikes, and because it wouldn't make sense for us to walk 30 minutes to the bar, I was convinced to ride side-saddle on the back of Lorenzo's bike through the cobblestone streets of Florence as cars and vespas darted out of alleys. In other words, I was convinced into the most harrowing (and somewhat painful) experience of my life. Miraculously, I stayed on pretty well, through bumps, turns and all... might have also been some good biking skills on his part though. It was so fun riding a bike through Florence, that I am honestly considering buying my own bike for the next few months!

Anyway, this bar was a very hip place right in the piazza of Santo Spirito; it was very chill and full of Italians, which I enjoy. We got drinks and sat down at a table outside, chatting for a while before we decided to make a responsible decision and go home... class at 8:45 every morning can really put a damper on weekday nights, but it was still the perfect ending to a very enjoyable day!

I hope to have more pictures soon, but for now, here's the elevator in my family's building... It's absolutely teeny and I still have no idea how I managed to fit both of my suitcases in there the first day!

3rd week in Italy: school, school, more school

This week was pretty boring! The weather was very bipolar so exploring Florence after class wasn't always an option. Good news though: it's getting warmer and raining a little less, and it's hopefully a sign of good weather to come!

Unfortunately, this week started off a little poorly. On Sunday night I did laundry, and because my family doesn't have a dryer, I had to hang my clothes 6 stories above the ground on a clothesline. Sunday was beautiful so I hoped Monday would be too and that my clothes would dry overnight... NOPE. I woke up around 4am on Monday morning and it was POURING. Needless to say, I instantly missed home and the ease of doing laundry! There was also no hot water that night when I showered, so my homesickness skyrocketed for a few hours...  

On Tuesday, I had 8 hours of class... I never have that many hours of class at Pitt, so it was a little rough, especially considering that all of Tuesday's classes were taught in Italian which requires a bit more concentration than English-taught lectures! It hasn't really been a problem so far, but it's definitely draining. That night, I had dinner with my homestay family and my homestay brother's girlfriend, Paola; during dinner, we started talking about how Paola is from Certaldo. My homestay dad explained that this is where Boccaccio, father of Italian language and literature, was born- I interrupted him to tell him that I knew who Boccaccio was and that I've read some of his works, to which everyone had an incredulous reaction. It was even funnier when I explained that I also listened to some Italian music... My homestay dad said I'm the strangest American they've ever hosted!

Wednesday... I can't even remember what I did Wednesday, so it must have been a TRULY boring day! I think it rained all day, so when I got back home after my 3-hour Italian language class, I didn't want to go back out!

Hopefully this weekend is a little more eventful because I don't want to bore you guys with my non-adventures!  A possible weekend trip to Venice for carnevale is being thrown around!

Antiques Market at Piazza di Ciompi and a visit to Santa Croce

Sunday morning, I woke up and headed over to the antiques market with Kelsey. I was absolutely astounded by the amount of tables and stalls set up for the entire day! You can find clothes, books, surgical equipment from WWII, furniture, jewelry, postcards/photos, etc etc. My personal favorite had to be the postcards and old photos; Kelsey had to literally drag me away before I spent all my money! I also bought a couple scarves and an advertisement from the 20s, which I'm planning on hanging up in my apartment next year!

Stall at the mercato dei pulci (flea market).

I met up with Tylar, Chris, and Catie and we headed over to Santa Croce which is considered Florence's most Gothic church and is also the largest Franciscan church in the world. Santa Croce holds the tombs of many great Italians: Galileo, Machiavelli, Michelangelo. The interior of the church was absolutely beautiful, decorated in frescoes, monuments, and reliefs. The church was also much larger than I had initially expected: there was room after room full of artwork in the museum, a beautiful courtyard with a few Roman arches, and a long underground hall of funerary monuments.

"YOBO: You Only Bologna Once"

My Saturday started off early with 8 other kids from CAPA and a 40 minute high-speed train ride from Florence to Bologna, which is in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. We stepped off the train with no map, no directions, and no itinerary; it was somewhat daunting, but after asking for directions in Italian (about 4 times, I might add) we finally reached what seemed like the center of the city. We stopped for a coffee and pastry at a bar called Frollia Caffé, which was probably the best decision of the entire day. My hot chocolate was good, and my pastry was even better... but the best part was practicing Italian with the nice Bolognese barista. We asked him where we should eat lunch and he very kindly and smartly recommended a very local osteria close to his bar. 

We headed off in search of some interesting buildings or the University of Bologna. For those of you who don't know- the University of Bologna was founded in 1088 making it the oldest university in the world! Instead of finding the university, we came up to the two towers of Bologna. Built in the 12th century, these towers were initially used for defense by the wealthiest families, but are now a symbol of the city. Luckily, the tallest of the towers (the Asinelli Tower) is open to visitors on Saturdays so I mustered up some courage and somehow climbed the 97m to the top! The view was amazing especially because the day was absolutely gorgeous.

Garisenda and Asinelli Towers

View of Piazza Maggiore from the top of the tower

As we headed over to Piazza Maggiore, we stopped and listened (along with a huge group of Bolognese) to a fantastic band playing the Star Wars theme song and "Imperial March." We finally came upon La Fontana del Nettuno, the San Petronio Basilica, and... a group of actors dressed in old-time garb! When they saw Julia and I not-so-sneakily snap a few pictures, one of them came up to us and told us to pose for pictures! It turned into a huge photoshoot... especially after I asked for a sword and one guy graciously ran into the Palazzo d'Accursio and snagged one for me! Turns out they were about to film a scene about La Festa della Porchetta (translated to: feast of the pork) in which pork would be thrown off the balcony of Palazzo d'Accursio while the people were celebrating St. Bartholomew.

Oh, just about to get my head chopped off... va bene!

Around this time, we decided to make the trek to Osteria Broccaindossas... in other words, heaven. This was the local place that our barista very expertly recommended; I say this because it was amazingly authentic Bolognese food! We entered the small restaurant and were seated in a back room; there were no menus so at the suggestion of our waiter, we decided to just get a bunch of antipasti for the entire table. We had no idea what they were bringing us, but we were hungry and decided we couldn't really go wrong in Bologna! The meal started off with a perfectly fresh mixed-greens and orange salad, followed by mortadella (which is like bologna but about 289473920 times better), and the most divine pecorino cheese with fig marmalade. At this point, I was perfectly content with the antipasti and was ready to order a primo piatto, but they kept bringing more food! And it only got better and better! They brought out sweet peppers, sausage and beans in a thick sauce, little torts of zucchini and eggplant with tomatoes, eggplant parmigiano, potatoes with cheese, polenta topped with bolognese sauce, and pumpkin flan swimming in a butter and cream sauce.  Even though the entire group was ready to loosen their belts, we were feeling gluttonous and decided to order lasagna with bolognese sauce and ravioli... Both were such mouth-watering dishes. The dessert: clementines and the richest brownies I've ever eaten! My words won't give justice to the delicious meal they served us because it was probably the best food I've ever eaten in my life. (Sorry mom, I love your food too!) It was very clear as to why many people consider Bologna a foodie's paradise!

We walked around Bologna some more and checked out a few churches, such as the San Petronio Basilica. In Piazza Maggiore, we also watched a group of breakdancers while sitting on the fountain! As our departure time neared, we headed to the train station but not before getting some gelato... everything about my life in Italy revolves around gelato!!

I can certainly say that my day trip to Bologna wasn't only a huge success, but a great day for bonding with friends over food and wine and practicing my Italian. It was really nice to get out of Florence and experience a whole different setting in Italy. The people of Bologna were all much more willing to humor me and speak Italian, whereas most Florentines always speak English.

On Saturday night, Catie, Lorenzo, Julia, and I went to a party hosted by a student at the CCF; it was very cool because everyone was from all around the world: Holland, South Africa, Brazil, Colombia, Serbia, England, Russia, etc. It was the perfect ending to a perfect day!

Michelangelo's David

Unfortunately, I really cannot remember what I did on Thursday... so it was probably a boring day! I had class for 6 hours with a short lunch break in between. I also went to a bar called Salamanca that night- pretty cool atmosphere, not enough dancing!

On Friday I took my first test in my Italian Language class and then headed to lunch and gelato with Tylar. We made a quick game-time decision and decided to check out Michelangelo's David in the Galleria dell'Accademia. Oh, you know, just casually strolling over to see one of the most widely recognized pieces of sculpture. Ain't no thang.

...Just kidding. It was absolutely incredible and I wasn't prepared for it in the least! After checking out a few paintings and wandering around lost, Tylar and I turned the corner, gasped, and stared for about a minute. At the end of a long corridor lined with unfinished sculptures by Michelangelo was the 17 ft, white marble, biblical figure known as David. We walked up to it in complete and utter shock, and honestly, I won't ever get over it. In my opinion the most striking feature were the veins and wrinkles in David's hands- everything was so realistic. Unfortunately, pictures weren't allowed... but don't worry guys, I'll go back soon and be a sneaky photographer!

I had been feeling sick all day, so I went home to rest up for my trip to Bologna on Saturday!

Heart-shaped pizzas and future European trips

Okay guys, nothing important happened on Tuesday except that I ate a burger.  In my Italian taught "Understanding Modern Italy" class, I gave a short presentation on the linguistic disunity in a politically unified Italy and the eventual dissemination, teaching, and dialects of Tuscan Italian. As a linguistics and Italian double major, it was probably the most interesting topic I could have covered!

My Wednesday was much more eventful and definitely one of my favorite days here so far! After my class at the CCF, I went to lunch at Gusta Pizza (which in on the other side of the Arno river) with Catie and Julia. This is probably the closest I'll get to neopolitan pizza before going to Napoli! The guys who run it are from Naples, so it's definitely legit... buffalo mozzarella and everything. Not only was it the best pizza I've had in Italy so far, it was shaped like a heart... I was sold!

Margherita pizza and a beer for lunch... so italiano!

And in the usual flow of things in my life, lunch led to dessert, and in Italy, dessert means gelato. I ate at Perché No for the FOURTH time... I just can't get enough of their fiordilatte con amarene (blackberries and cream) flavor! I could eat there every day of my life and be perfectly content.

We then explored the city looking for vintage stores, but no luck! The 2 we did find were closed in the middle of the day, but I'm definitely going to be trying again soon. Hopefully I can snag some cool, vintage Italian threads.

I guess it doesn't really sound like a crazy exciting day, but I think it felt so great because the sun was finally shining almost all day long. I can already tell that once the weather changes, Florence will be even more of a blast! It was beautiful walking around without worrying about puddles and wet socks and umbrellas in my face, so I can't wait for more days like that.

In other news, I booked a train ticket to Bologna for this Saturday. It'll be a day trip to... FOODIE CENTRAL- butter and cream on everything. I'm all about it! Apart from the food, Professor Looney said that this weekend Bologna will be having a modern art festival and so it's a really good weekend to visit.

IN EVEN BIGGER NEWS, Tylar, Vips (her homestay friend), and I booked a flight to BRUSSELS... guys, waffles. WAFFLES. During that trip, I'm planning on hitting up Amsterdam too. I'm really excited to travel around Europe because it will definitely be a really fun time.

Squishy socks and Orsanmichele

The rain has been putting a damper on my experience... being uncomfortably wet and walking around the city with squishy socks (maybe rainboots would be helpful..?) is not fun at all! Which is why on Sunday, I woke up late (once I heard how badly it was raining in the morning), went out for quick lunch and gelato trip at the same panini and gelato places as the previous day (which shows how freaking delicious the food was!), and then headed straight back to my apartment. It was the laziest Sunday ever. (Except for the one Sunday after my birthday when Cara and I rode the struggle bus all day... but anyway.)

Monday's classes were... normal. Nothing too exciting, to be honest. The exciting part of my Monday happened after class. With a bit of exploration and after saying "maybe it'll be on the next street..." about 5 times, Tylar finally found this teeny little sandwich place (where she ate a 2 euro sandwich once!) near the Duomo and Piazza della Repubblica. We walked in and there was barely enough space for us to stand, so you can imagine my surprise when the owner asked us if we wanted to eat downstairs... yep, we went downstairs and walked into 2 TINY underground rooms with stone walls, super cool decorations, full of stylish Italians. I was already in love as we sat down, but as Tylar, Chris, and I were talking about the cool restaurant, one of the waiters looked at us incredulously and asked, "OH, you guys are English?!" GUYS, IT WAS A BITCHIN' MOMENT. I was super pumped. Anyway, the menu was in Italian- generally a good way to tell you are in a genuinely Italian place, not a touristy spot. I had polpette, which I THOUGHT were only meatballs... NOPE. The dish was balls of all kinds of things... I still don't know exactly WHAT I ate, but it was all delicious. Sidenote: the orange fanta here is made with REAL ORANGE JUICE, so it literally tastes like oranges with fizz, aka heaven. I'll never have orange soda at home again!

Polpette miste con le patate al forno

We ate lunch and scurried off to meet Dennis Looney, an incredibly knowledgeable professor from Pitt who is acting as an advisor in Florence, at the Orsanmichele church in between the Duomo, Piazza della Signoria, and Piazza della Repubblica. Okay kids, get ready for an Italian monument history lesson. The Orsanmichele church was built in 1337 on the site that was once a monastery, but interestingly enough, it was not a church initially. For a very long time, it was used as an open grain market- farmers would go and show off their grains and make deals; they would pour their grain down chutes and show it to customers and other grain farmers. It slowly became a church because farmers would pray for good deals and prosperous crops!

Entrance to Orsanmichele.

On the exterior of the church there are 14 niches that hold different statues all paid for by different guilds that ruled Florence in the 14th century. These statues were somewhat revolutionary in the way the sculptors conveyed movement and a greater sense of realism; many of the statues seem to be coming out of their niches, and most seem pensive, as opposed to the stoic facial expressions of statues of the past. One of the statues that clearly shows a new way of sculpture is Donatello's St.George, which was paid for by the armourers guild. Other guilds that paid for statues were the shoemakers, bankers, silk merchants, etc. The copies of the statues are on the exterior, while 13 of the originals are inside the church's museum.

St.George by Donatello

Unfortunately, we could not take pictures of the inside of the church, but it was truly beautiful. Amazing ceilings and a Gothic Tabernacle that surrounds a painting of Madonna and Child by Bernardo Daddi. We walked up to see the original niche statues and they were nothing short of breathtaking. We then walked up the last set of stairs to see a great view of the city beneath us! Not only that, but the sun finally appeared after days of elusively hiding behind rain clouds. It was absolutely inspiring to see the sun shining down on the rolling Tuscan hills in the distance and lighting up the Duomo.

LET. ME. DIE.

Once again, I realized just how lucky I am for this opportunity. I am sincerely thankful for this experience because I know that I will learn so much through it, not only about Florence, but about myself. And, as cliche as that sounds, it's what studying abroad is all about, right? That AND the gelato... snagged some after visiting the church at Perché No, again!

Following a short meeting at CAPA, I went home for dinner with my homestay family. On a whim, I decided to buy train tickets for a day trip to Bologna on Saturday! GUYS, FOODIE CENTRAL. The weather better cooperate!

A presto!

p.s. Sorry for the potato quality of my photos. I forgot my camera at home and all I had was my ipod. 

Droppin' it low at the Galleria degli Uffizi and crying at La Casa di Dante

After going out to a bar named The Lion's Fountain (fun music but, not-so-fun people) last night, all I could think of was greasy, fattening, American fast-food. I know I'm in ITALY and the food is really yummy and healthy, but all I wanted last night were some nuggets and bbq sauce, about 5 slices of Sorrento's pizza and ranch, a sub from Uncle Sam's, or a bacon cheeseburger with extra lettuce from Five Guys... Actually, I want ALL of those things IN THAT ORDER. Maybe I'll just go crazy with that stuff once I get back to the states!

On Saturday morning I woke up and met Tylar at the Duomo for a day of museum exploration! We went to a small cafe for a cappuccino and literally the best pastry I've ever had in my life. Then we made our way to the Uffizi gallery, which houses amazing artworks such as Botticelli's Birth of Venus and Primavera, Caravaggio's Bacchus, and Titian's Venus of Urbino. Personally enjoyed the restored statues and busts the most; particularly those in a room that Tylar and I decided to call the Stanza of the Danza- it has maybe 20 statues surrounding the entire room, and each character is depicted in movement, but to me, they definitely all looked like they were doing a lil' jig! REALLY MATURE, I KNOW, but I couldn't help it. I really enjoyed going through the Uffizi, and I definitely plan on going back there soon because after about 2 hours of walking through the museum, my head was throbbing with all the paintings I'd seen!

OHAI, DELICIOUS.

After the Uffizi, Tylar and I decided to eat at a tiny little sandwich shop named Da' Vinattieri near Dante's Church... I could die. Our sandwiches were LITERALLY the bomb diggity and the place was too cute for words. Outside the shop there are a few absolutely adorable bikes-turned-into-tables lining the wall where you can place your drink while nomming up your porchetta, rucola, and mayo panino. Honestly, perfect.

just posin' with her Dante and Beatrice sammich.

LOOK AT THIS CUTE BIKE TABLE, PLEASE.

That sandwich shop is directly next to Dante's Church; for those who don't know, this is the church where Dante first met Beatrice, the woman who inspired La Vita Nuova and led him through Paradiso in La Divina Commedia. Beatrice and her husband were buried at this church, and I could barely believe it.

Next up was Dante's House where many artifacts of the Alighieri family and paintings depicting Dante's work are on display. In the final room, the ENTIRE Divina Commedia is displayed on the wall along with illustrations of the Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. It was truly amazing, especially because Dante Alighieri's works were the reason that Tuscan dialect became the standard Italian language.

Right in the middle? The entire Divina Commedia work of literature.

I am glad to say that I finally went to Perchè No, a gelateria close to the Duomo where I ordered fragola (strawberry) and argumi (lemon and orange) gelato. Guys... halp! It was so fabulous that I don't think I'll be able to eat ice cream back home... ever.

Tylar and I decided we wanted to go into the Duomo museum, but after SOMEHOW missing the entrance like total dum-dums, and then circling the entire freakin' thing in the freezing cold rain, I made the executive decision that I needed to go home and crawl into bed to thaw under about 7 blankets... Now that I think about it, I should've brought my forever lazy to Florence.

Okay, funny story time. In a bout of wishful thinking, I decided not to take my umbrella while exploring, so naturally, it started raining while we were in the Uffizi. This meant that I got drenched while walking for 25 minutes from the Duomo to my homestay. A little old Italian grandma even made me get under her umbrella while waiting at a crosswalk- probably because I looked so pathetically wet and cold! Anyway, I got home and Dario (my homestay papa) met me at the foyer and said his mother was visiting and that I had to be introduced... Yes, I met my homestay grandmother while soaked to the bone. I have no doubt in my mind that I looked like a drenched rodent. Embarrassing, but va bene! I had coffee with them and a short conversation and it was truly so nice of them to invite me to sit! I felt really welcomed.

Until next time, ciao boos!

Classes, the third boob, and karaoke!

The last couple of days haven't been the most exciting because I've felt somewhat ill and only wanted to sleep, but I thought I'd give a short summary nonetheless!

After being in the Superior Italian language class for 2 days, I switched into the medio avanzato class; those kids spoke way too well, and unfortunately, I'm definitely not on that level yet. I feel so much more comfortable in this class, which is still advanced, but now I don't feel confused at everything! I also had my Italian Literature class which will focus on Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio, and a few contemporary Italian writers. This class is taught in Italian, but the professor speaks slowly (specifically for us international students) and is pretty easy to understand. I had my final class on Thursday afternoon- Renaissance Lit: Humanism, which is taught by none other than Dennis Looney, a professor at Pitt. He is such a great professor and I am so excited to take his class!

On Wednesday, I went out karaokeing with Tylar and 2 of her homestay friends (she has 7 other international students living in her homestay!). We went to a fun place called Shot Cafe where we all took a "Boob" shot and also had an "Orgasm..." definitely some questionable shot names!! We went to the karaeoke bar where Tylar and I did a very poorly sung version of Lady Gaga's Bad Romance and we rocked out to Bohemian Rhapsody, of course. It was a pretty fun evening full of ridiculous dancing and awful singing!

Also, on Thursday night I had gelato from a place called Vivoli... LET ME DIE, IT WAS SO GOOD. They had delicious flavors like pineapple, pear, etc etc, but I ended up buying some amaretto and pistachio gelato. Next time I go, I'll definitely be trying their fruit flavors. MMMMM, dead. I will probably go back there about a billion times!

Now it's Friday night and I'm ready to have some fun! Hopefully I'll have more pictures and stuff soon. Ciao ciao, y'all!

"I LIVE on a roll."

Tuesday was the first day I had class, beginning with a ridiculously difficult Italian language course at the University of Florence. The professor was very nice and pretty easy to understand (even at her normal native Italian speed), but the other students were clearly almost fluent and it was incredibly intimidating! It definitely was scary realizing how much Italian I don't know... siiiiigh. I think I'll be moving into a lower level which will still definitely be challenging, but at least I'll be able to participate without feeling completely useless.

After the Italian class, I met Tylar and 2 of her homestay friends for lunch and gelato. Not sure if I mentioned this earlier, but I plan on eating gelato every day... just a teeny little cup everyday, and no one can stop me. I DO WHAT I WANT. The gelato is literally absolutely divine; my favorites so far have been blackcherry and pistachio.

Tylar and I headed to our 3 hour class at CAPA called Understanding Modern Italy with the senior academics adviser of the CAPA program, Guido. This 7 person class is taught in Italian and is all about understanding the risorgimento and modern Italian culture. Guido speaks incredibly quickly, but very clearly and tells amazing stories once sidetracked, which seems to happen somewhat easily! Let me just say that he quickly became my one of my favorite professors...ever. He made us share somewhat intimate parts about our lives, things professors don't normally ask, but they were obviously important to him! He was especially intrigued by the fact that my parents (HI GUYS! I'LL CALL HOME SOON, I SWEAR!!) immigrated from El Salvador and that we speak Spanglish at home. Every now and then during the 3 hours, Guido would switch to English for 9.3 seconds and then switch back to Italian and I realized that I understood it all perfectly; it was such a seamless transition in my head and I was honestly just shocked! I think it was very apparent evidence that I'm already getting a bit better at Italian. Also, the title of this post is one of Guido's; when I said that he was on a roll which is why I hadn't interrupted him to ask a vocab question, he yelled "Karla, I LIVE on a roll!" and it just sounded so funny that the whole class cracked up. Even though it's 3 hours long, it's definitely going to be one of my favorite classes this semester.

That night, CAPA rented out a ristorante for the entire CAPA group and it was honestly one of the funniest nights here. One of the rooms was playing a college basketball game on a huge white wall, so of course all the boys couldn't stop drooling over it! The food was delicious: bruschetta, liver paste, tuna paste, prosciutto, salami, broccoli pasta, sage and butter ravioli, artichoke risotto, and tiramisu... basically everything I love in life! Most important part of the whole evening wasn't the food, but bonding with the program kids over a few bottles of wine... not that I drank any. Blegh! (Cara, se tu stai leggendo questo, mi dispiace tantissimo!)

The group I sat with was hilarious and I couldn't stop laughing, especially with quotes like "WAIT... can I tell you something weird? I made out with your boyfriend!!" It was truly fantastic sitting down with these kids and getting to know them! The teachers (Guido and Looney, the two greatest humans) obviously loved our Italian speaking skills and they kept coming over to talk to us and share stories. It really felt like such a nice little community and I hope we get to do it again soon! It was super tough leaving the restaurant but it was getting late and I still had homework to do for Wednesday, so Kelsey and I walked home with super high spirits!!

Monday productivity!

Monday started off with a very stressful placement exam at the CCF during which the advanced group of CAPA kids were handed a page with 4 prompts and had to write a 500-600 word composition. We had no previous knowledge of the prompts so there was a lot of bullshitting! After about an hour and a half of writing, staring off into space, and thinking about breakfast, I gave up and handed in my essay.

The group went to a little breakfast bar where we all ate standing up, which is a very Italian thing to do! For breakfast, they have coffee and bread/cookies/etc and eat while standing (if at a café). I love it! I had a marocchino and a croissant with some kind of sweet cream inside- very delicious! After wandering around for a bit, led by the boys in the group since I sure as hell don’t know where I’m going yet, we headed over to the CAPA center to get a few class things figured out.

This is when I realized some really fun information; because I am on the Advanced Italian Track, I’m able to take courses (taught in only Italian) at the University of Florence with ACTUAL Florentine students! In addition, because there are classes on Fridays, the courses only run until March 15^th, meaning that from that point on, I’ll be free to travel around Europe from Thursday nights until Tuesday mornings! And it was honestly the best news ever! The scheduling for the University of Florence classes is really weird though. My language class in from 8:45-11:30 every day and then from 11:45-1:15, I’ll have my Literature 1, Literature 2, or History of Italy course, but the days of the courses won’t always be the same each week. I might have the Lit 1 course on a Monday and Thursday, but the following week it’d be on a Wednesday with History on Friday. It’s kind of really stressful, but I highlighted all the days I have class and I think I’m set! Although I’ll still have 2 classes at CAPA on Tuesdays (Conversational Italian with the most fashionable Italian professor ever) and Thursday (Renaissance Lit: Humanism with the best Pitt professor aka The Loon-dawg) afternoons for 2-3 hours after my University of Florence classes are finished for the semester, I’ll take it!

After this, a few of us left from CAPA towards the Santa Croce church for lunch at a small restaurant where I had pasta, beef, and potatoes. Then we walked over to a corner gelateria where I HAD THE BEST BLACKBERRY GELATO EVER. I am drooling just thinking about it!! We went to sit over on the steps of the church and died over Florence’s beauty and then talked about cute animal videos for about 15 minutes. You know, normal things.

Tylar and I then went to the Uffizzi, which was closed like most museums in Florence on Mondays, but that was okay because we made our way across PONTE FREAKING VECCHIO to the other side of the Arno River. For those of you who don’t know: Ponte Vecchio is the only bridge in Firenze that was not destroyed during the bombings of WWII. We walked through Altr’Arno for a little bit and visited the Santo Spirito Church and the Palazzo Pitti, which was astonishing. 

View from the Ponte Vecchio.

We headed back to CAPA to find out our essay results after running into Kelsey and Catia. I found out I was placed into the Superior Italian class, which was so surprising! I don’t think my essay was really that good… but OKAY FINE WITH ME. I really think being in the advanced class will push me into learning Italian quickly and effectively!

I went home for dinner with my homestay family and it was fabulous like usual. The Italians eat dinner differently than we do. Generally there is some kind of pasta course, a meat course, salad or veggies, and then fruit for dessert. It was a little strange at first, but now I think I’m getting used to it! And I really enjoy eating fruit for dessert (although my family isn’t letting me eat apples or bananas because I mentioned I’m allergic to them- oopsies!). Another thing I’m getting used to at dinner is my family in general. They are very sweet (Dario even said that in the 10 years they’ve hosted international students, I’ve been the best at Italian! Woohoo!) and I am finally getting to be more comfortable around them! Tonight I even joked around with them and participated a little in their conversation about Berlusconi. I also tried to explain what a snuggie is, but I don’t think I did a very good job! My family speaks English, but unless I look UTTERLY confused about something they’ve said, they only speak to me in Italian, which is very helpful. I can already feel that I understand Italian a bit better. I have noticed that I have recently begun translating everything I say into Italian in my head, which is somewhat surprising but pleasant when I know how to do it! Here’s hoping that in 3 months, I’ll be able to speak almost fluently!

So many surprises everywhere!

My plans for my first Sunday changed because of the constant rain- I swear it’s like being back in Pittsburgh! I had planned to go to the Market at Santo Spirito, which is on the other side of the Arno River but due to the rain, I thought it could wait another week. I didn’t want to stay home all day, so Kelsey, Julia, and I met up for lunch and went to this little restaurant thing where we all had pizza and fruit with a whipped cream for dessert. And honestly, the pizza was VERY good, but I can’t wait to try even BETTER pizza. The fruit was BEYOND amazing… siiiiigh.

After lunch we decided we weren’t ready to go home so we explored the city a bit more… 4 hours more. Now, my family and friends know how lazy I am when it comes to physical activity, so I am completely amazed at myself for being able to walk for so long on these cobblestone streets with heeled wedged boots!

Sunday wasn’t the most exciting day, mainly because of the rain and because a lot of things are closed on Sundays! After walking around for so long, I was absolutely pooped and so I went home and lay around until dinner, showered, and went to sleep. I had to wake up around 7:30 to take a language placement exam at the Centro di Cultura per Stranieri (the Culture Center for Foreigners at the University of Florence) the next morning.

So far, I’m loving Florence! Although I definitely experienced some homesickness on Sunday, due to the weather and my jet lag, I am incredibly lucky and excited to be here! Something I find truly beautiful is the fact that while wandering around, you could turn on a random corner and immediately be in a piazza or near a gorgeous church without any real previous hint! The streets are so narrow and tall that it is almost impossible to see anything past what’s directly in front of you, so it was such a nice surprise when I accidentally stumbled upon the Basilica Santa Croce and the statue of Dante Alighieri. I was literally in shock and couldn’t even move… which is dangerous considering that people drive pretty crazily in Florence! 

Ciao ciao, y’all!