Lovin' Florence

So Florence is amazing. I'm loving it here, studying abroad was the best decision. This past weekend I did a lot of sightseeing and of course, ate great Italian food and drank classic Tuscan wine. On Friday I had my usual 3 hour intensive Italian class, and then my friends and I went out to a great little traditional restaurant Coquinarius. I had such good rose wine with simple cheese ravioli and some "crostini"-basically bruschetta with basil and olive oil topping. Giovanna made fresh salmon and vegetables that night. I also got to take a great run around the park near our apartment, overlooking the Arno river! It was fabulous.

On Saturday I saw the David at Galleria dell'Academia, for the first time of my life. It was absolutely breathtaking. It's hard to really describe the emotional reaction this piece of Michaelangelo gives you...also you can't take pictures of it, not that I could do it justice if I had. Also, our class saw an exhibit by Robert Mapplethorpe, a renowned photographer. I feel so fortunate to be in Florence studying this incredible art and history. We had a great lunch at Trattoria Za-Za- I had good appetizers of prosciutto and a delicious veal sauteed in white wine sauce. That night I went out clubbing with my roomates at a really fun club called Space! We had drinks at Oibo and Caffe Begallo to start out and then finished with a night of dancing. It was lots of fun!

Yesterday I woke up lazily and had an American brunch at a restaurant near the Duomo called Angels. I got to have an American burger with fries, and it was really good! Then my roommates and I walked around the San Lorenzo markets and shopped for awhile, and had gelato too. Giovanna made a great pasta pomodoro and I fell asleep satisfied and in love with my new city. Thats all for now, will write again soon! XO Lily