I can currently feel the world turning beneath my feet

I've been nearly a month in Italy and classes only just started last week. I am, in fact, in both Art Restoration and Art History, and it looks like the one will couple very nicely with the other. None of my classes seem too concerned with scheduling conferences yet--a vague mention of "We'll meet on Tuesdays" from Art History is all I've gotten so far. Tuesdays look like they'll be busy.





By pure luck, I don't have class on Mondays, so it looks like I might be able to take an extended trip out to see some darling friends in Scotland and England, which I look very forward to. It also means that they can come and visit me for a weekend!

Unfortunately, having no class on Mondays means I have all three classes Tuesdays and Thursdays, one class Wednesday and one class Friday. The Duomo choir, which I got into after the audition, meets on--surprise!--Tuesdays and Thursdays. Untill 11:00pm. Even after the first day, I was too exhausted to know to get off at the right bus stop. Which means that, for me, no Duomo choir.

On top of that, the entirety of my school has gotten some kind of malicious cold. I spent most of the weekend bundled up in bed (watching Doctor Who) trying to kick it, but I woke up this morning even worse than before. Now not only do my throat, stomach, head and nose hurt, but I'm altogether quite dizzy.





SLC took us on a trip to Carrara, where Michelangelo's white marble came from. It was very beautiful--there are man-made caverns beneath the mountain and white faces of sheer rock along the mountainside. We saw marble workshops and marble sculpture exhibits. Everything was marble.

Vino Rossa o Vino Bianchi?

I've been in Italy for two weeks now, and the only class that has started is Italian. Art restoration and (hoping I don't get bumped) Art History will be starting next week. So many things have happened in the past two weeks that I can't think of a way to start; you'll have to make due with a bullet list, or else this could last forever.

*Had the longest day possible, starting at 8:00am in the US and ending at 11pm the next day in Italy
*Petted about thirty outdoor cats, much to the dismay of my classmates
*Spent four days in Pescia (here read ultimate perfection in Italian countryside)
*Saw the hometown of Pinnochio
*Climbed a Tuscan mountain (from one Tuscan town to the next)
*Witnessed a Vespa on Vespa crash
*Saw an exhibitionist Italian man on a Vespa
*Have eaten the best food the world has ever seen.
*Found that water (naturale OR frizzante, but particularly naturale) is not available unless you ask for it specifically. The availability of wine, however, is not a problem.
*Have not yet even thought to turn on my own computer (I use the school's, but only when absolutely necessary)

Mia donna's name is Giovanna. She has a husband and a thirty year old son who got married last week, and there are two other American students living in our house. Mi famiglia is the most adorable thing I have ever seen in my life, and despite their lack of English and my lack of Italian, they make me feel incredibly at home. (Giovanna and I have a date to watch House M.D., as we have established that we are both in love with Hugh Laurie.)

We live across the Arno from Florence; I see the rowers on the river every day as I cross the bridge, and it makes me realize how much I really miss sports. I have yet to get involved with anything activity-wise here, but I have an audition for the choir at the Duomo next Tuesday. We'll see how that goes. Depending on scheduling, I may even see how much joining a boat house costs. I doubt I could keep a single afloat, however.

Florence is incredible. It's raining right now, and the city is still beautiful. It's impossible to get lost, because even if you've gone down a street you've never seen before, you will inevitably run into one that you have. My school, in Santa Croce, is about twenty minutes from both the Duomo and the Ponte Vecchio. I'm already beginning to hate the tourists. But if that's the most of my troubles, I have to say I'm incredibly lucky. Despite my initial fears, I'd say a study abroad in Italy was the perfect choice for me.

This weekend I have a classical concert to go to, and on Sunday, a wine tasting with an Italian count. Let's see how this goes for the non-drinker. It should be fun. Everything's fun in Italy.

When you go, will you send back a letter from America?

“Don’t be precise,” said Dwalin, “and don’t worry! You will have to manage without pocket-handkerchiefs, and a good many other things, before you get to the journey’s end.” –The Hobbit

My flight for Italy leaves today. While I’m not sure how often I’ll be able to get online, I’ll try to put timely updates here about my year abroad, complete with pictures. This is just an introductory post so everyone knows where to look. For more interesting stories (hopefully) check back in a week or so!