Views from Rome!

Gallavanting through ROMA & Fiesole

This Saturday I got to see the Eternal City and it absolutely blew my mind!!! Everything that the Romans did...they just did it better. All of the buildings are so imposing and rich with history...I got to see the famous Colosseum, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, and Vatican City all in a day's work! I originally didn't think I was going to get to see Rome, for time and planning reasons, but my host mom recommended a travel agency and so I got to go. It was amazing...I took about 200 pictures in one day and my jaw was dropping every 5 minutes. I loved all of the baroque architecture and the panoramic views that I got from my bus tour. I wined and dined well in Piazza Navona with a cute Italian couple, and ate gnocchi, bruschetta, and then some gelato! The Italian couple I met basically adopted me for the day, it was so cute...we all took pictures of one another and at the end of the excursion they bought me a guide of Rome in Italian as a little gift! All in all I was so happy that I got to see such an important city and that I did it on my own. Sunday, even though I was tired, I didn't have much work to do and my high from Rome pushed me to take a 20 minute bus to a hillside town overlooking Florence, called Fiesole. There I took some of the most gorgeous pictures of the entire city of Florence (from a birds eye view) that may even trump my photos from Piazzale Michalengalo. Pictures to come soon, xoxo!

Pictures of The Queen's City

LONDON!!

This past weekend I visited London and I have to say it definitely ranks up there in one of the most AMAZINGLY beautiful cities I've ever seen, with tons to do as well...entertainment, nightlife, shopping, and great food too! I saw the whole city in a mere 2 and a half days thanks to my amazing tour guide Line...including the big sites like Big Ben, the Tate Modern museum, the London Eye, Tower of London and the Tower Bridge, and the best shops on Oxford Street and Regent Street. Let's not forget Harrods! That store was more like a palace than a place to buy things...words can barely describe all the wealth thats in that one building. We also shopped through Notting Hill and Camdentown, two adorable little hamlets in London. I had the best weekend and am still reliving it in my head and wish I was there for longer! I may be interning there next summer...

PARIS

Paris, je t'aime

This past weekend I was in Paris...aka the city of love. It marked the 5th time that I have been to the beautiful city, Paris never fails me. I had the time of my life! Even though I have seen it many times, the art and the landscape and the shopping on the Champs-Elysées never disappoints and always burns a hole in my wallet haha! Of course, I saw the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Jardin Tuileries, I ate good french pain au chocolate in my friends' apartment, and had the best french wine and oysters! I bought a gorgeous look-a-like classic Cartier ring, tasted the INCREDIBLE chocolate macaroons from La Durée, got some silk scarves, saw the Notre Dame in all its glory...basically fully enjoyed Paris to its utmost for the 3 and a half days I was there. It was so hard to leave! I really feel like I could easily work and live there in the future, and I'm finding that also true for Florence. Yesterday and today, just in transit, I realized how comfortable I am on my own and how great Europe is. I think I could really do well here in the future if I ever find a career...maybe I was born on the wrong continent-since Im now proficient in 2 languages, I definitely would consider a life here.

On another note, today I bought the perfect leather bag...its caramel/light chocolate brown with gold buckle detail and it really is exactly what I wanted. Pictures of Paris and my bag to come...ciao!

Italian Opera!

Wednesday night I saw my first Opera at Teatro Communale in Florence. The opera was by Verdi, entitled "Rigoletto," and it was such a great experience. I loved getting dressed up in my proper and going out for the spectacle. Though I couldn't really understand most of it, granted because it was in rapid Italian, I definitely am glad I went. Our group sat at the top of the theatre, so we had a birds eye-view, and despite the fact that many of the thespians I was with complained about the excessive modernity that this particular director applied to this classic storyline the singing was beautiful and I'm sure it will be something I remember fondly for a long time.

Today I set off for PARIS for the weekend! I'm so excited to go back to probably one of if not my favorite cities in the world. I'll be there until Monday night and will hopefully have pictures up sometime next week. Au revoir maintenant, bisous!!

Words cannot begin to describe... Galleria del Uffizi

So im sitting in my program office at school right now, still in awe of the artwork I just saw at the Uffizi gallery in Palazzo Vecchio. I am speechless... I cant believe I am living and breathing in a city with so much history and majestic art its really incredible. I am so lucky to be here and this afternoon proved to me why I chose Florence. This city has everything.

I set off for the Uffizi at 11 this morning, after my Italian class, just on my own not really sure what to expect. I got in quite easily actually, because I have a card called 'amici del uffizi' which is special for students at my school and gets me into most every museum in Florence for free. I traveled up the 3 flights of grandiose stairs and immediately the hall of the gallery took my breath away. I felt so small looking at the amazing, large columns flanking the sides of the corridor.

Actually though, when I first went to the Uffizi directly after 2 hours of intense class, I felt really lightheaded and though I passed through many of the famous rooms that house Botticellis and Leonarda da Vincis works, I felt myself getting tired so I got lunch in the Palazzo and came back in the afternoon. Id like to say in the morning I got my bearings and in the afternoon I was able to fully appreciate the art because I was full and ready to take in everything.

And oh did I! By far my favorite piece of art that im still awestruck by was the work by Gentile da Fabriano in his Adoration of the Magi...decorated with such ornate and delicate detail, and rimmed with gold trimmings everywhere, my jaw was dropped for a good three of four minutes just staring at the piece. I saw the incredible Birth of Venus and Primavera by Botticelli...and I have to say I preffered the latter to the former, especially the second time around. I thought that both were fantastic pieces of art, but something about the movements and depiction of Venus in Primavera moved me a little bit more than in his Birth of Venus.

I also got to see incredible paintings by Leonardo da Vinci, most specifically the collaboration painting (done with his master Verroccio) called the Baptism of Christ. And I absolutely loved the Sala delle Niobe, lined with amazing canvases brimming with gold and ceilings arching upwards towards the heavens. I felt so small in this room, but in the good way.

I cant believe I was just in the company of some of the most acclaimed pieces of art in all of Renaissance history, and it was a mere 3 minute walk from where I take classes. I only really saw in depth the first half of the Uffizi today, because I want to appreciate the museum as best and thoroughly as possible...and just the first half took me 2 hours to really get through. Im so glad to be living and studying here, and my little adventure today totally validated, in a way I cant really describe, the reason I chose Florence!

Photos from Chianti Trip

Chianti!

Today I had a field trip to the Chianti wine region of Italy, just 50 minutes from Florence, and I have to say it was absolutely breathtaking. We got to walk through the countryside for hours on end just taking in the beautiful sights of the grapes in the vineyards, the landscape, and the hills surrounding us. We had a personalized tour through a famous castle owned by a nutty Count, where we got to sample wines made in the castle firsthand! I was certainly at home! And the house was in itself a living relic...I saw and touched first-edition books of Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice, Don Quixote's novels, and I even saw a Mark Twain's personally hand-written autograph in a copy of The Prince & The Pauper. He knew the great-grandmother of the Count who lives there!

The wine and the history I learned about today was fantastic. I really loved Chianti, it is definitely one of the best parts of Italy I've seen to date, even though I've only traveled a little bit so far. This coming weekend, on Friday, I head for Paris and then London the weekend after that. I'm going to be traveling on weekends a lot more now...in just a few short weeks I'll get to see another beautiful part of Italy, Siena! I'm really falling into a nice groove here in Florence...taking in all the art, reading in my favorite park almost daily that overlooks the Arno river, and eating tons of course. I'm taking in all of the city!

Ciao per ora! :)