I apologize for the lack of activity on here, but I have been so busy! Every day has been jam packed and we've been taking a lot of day trips. We just got back from Rome yesterday and it was absolutely amazing. I loved Rome. I wish we had more than 3 days there, but I made the most of my Roman Holiday. Sadly, today is my last full day in Florence. I just finished my homework at school so now I'm off to enjoy the city for one last day. I'm going to keep this entry short so I don't [View Full Entry]

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We just got back from Venice! I had such a great weekend. Friday we left for Venice and frankly I wasn't all that excited for it. I just thought it would be another Italian city, but I was so wrong. Venice is like no other city I have ever been to. First off, there are no roads, no cars. You get around this maze of a city by walking forever or by taking the water taxi, which is like the city bus. It is so easy to get lost, but that's half the fun! You find new shops or cafes around [View Full Entry]

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This past Sunday we got up early to catch a train to the Cinque Terre, the Five Villages. The day started off cloudy, but that turned out to be a good thing because then we didn’t have to battle the heat. We began our journey in the first village, Riomaggiore. The hike to the second village is more like a leisurely stroll along the coastline. The trail is fairly high up but it hugs the coast so the view is gorgeous. It didn’t take long for us to make it to the second village Manarola. After each village, the hike gets [View Full Entry]

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I can't believe week two is almost over. This week went by a whole lot faster than the first week. The museums and Palazzos are starting to blur together and I'm doing the best I can to differentiate them in my head! Plus it's hard when almost every church has the same paintings and same frescoes showing the same Biblical scenes. I can't tell you how many times I've seen "The Annunciation of Mary" or "The Cruxifiction of Christ" It's kind of sad because after a while they all blend together, but each fresco or painting is truly beautiful. One of [View Full Entry]

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After a week of perfect weather, the rain came today. But lazy, rainy Sundays are just as good in Italy as they are in the States. I didn't do much today; I mainly worked on homework. I did venture out and get some groceries with a couple other girls. I guess this would be a good time to talk about what I'm actually studying here in Florence. My 5 weeks here consists of two parts. The first part is the Art, Architecture, and Interiors of Florence. The instructor for this class is Stewart Abbott, from the AIU(American Intercontinental University) London campus. [View Full Entry]

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Wow. I’ve only been here 4 whole days but it feels like a lot longer. So far in my classes we’ve been to the Ponte Vecchio, the San Miniato Church, the Piazza/Church of the Santissima Annunziata, the Hospital of the Innocents, the Baptistry by the Duomo, the Duomo Museum, the Medici Chapels, Lauretian Library, and San Lorenzo Church, and then finally Casa Siviero. Like I said before, wow. It’s hard to digest all of that information, but I’m doing the best I can. It helps that I love everything that I’m seeing. The Hospital of the Innocents was especially e [View Full Entry]

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I’m officially in Florence! (Or as the Italians call it, Firenze) I’ve only been here for a day and a half, but it feels like a lot longer. I don’t know if it’s the time difference and the lack of sleep or maybe the fact that today was just jam-packed with so much stuff. We started by moving into our student housing, which is really nice. The whole place is decked out in IKEA furniture, which I think is kind of funny. I’m sharing a suite with three other girls: Laura, Caitlyn, and Sam. The set up is really nice; nicer [View Full Entry]

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So I made it; at least to Munich. I’m waiting to board my flight to Florence. The flight over here wasn’t all that bad. I sat next to a Greek gentleman, and that was interesting, to say the least. But I do have to say that I had the best seat: 33K, a window seat right next to the wing. It was the perfect seat for my first international flight. And I do have to say Lufthansa is awesome. The seats were comfy, even though they were cramped. Every person had their own personal TV with movies, music, and other stuff [View Full Entry]

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In less than 24 hours I will be on a jet to Munich, Germany and will eventually end up in Florence, Italy. I can't believe it's really here. For years I've drooled over all of the travel shows on the Travel Channel, PBS, and the like. I've travelled with Samantha Brown on Passport to Europe, I've seen the sights with Rick Steves on Rick Steves' Europe, and I've shared experiences with Ian Wright, Justine Shapiro, and Megan McCormick on Globe Trekker. But now it's finally MY time to be the world traveller! I'm having mixed feelings of anxiousness, excitement, and nervousness. [View Full Entry]

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