Around the World : Firenze parte uno

       Ciao tutti!!! So I am officially done traveling for awhile after being gone for the past four weekends. Now I have all these blogs to catch up on. I am going to write them in chronological order, but I just wanted to tell everyone that I have been safe on all my trips and I had an amazing time. But stay tuned for more blog posts this week on Siena, Florence round 2, Pisa and Amsterdam.
    My first trip but actually my second time in Florence was short and uneventful. I went to Florence with six of my friends in the program (Alex, Ari, Sabrina, Maddie, Andrea and Kerry) to celebrate Ari's birthday. Alex organized the train tickets, hostel and itinerary and even bought Opera tickets. I was so excited to see my first opera in Italy.
    We started off our Florence weekend with an early morning wake up call to catch a nine o'clock train on Saturday. Some people in the group had a fun Friday night, and needed some help waking up. All in all, everyone made the train, and in 35 minutes we were in Firenze. Of course I had my backpack on my back, my walking shoes on my feet, and my camera around my neck the whole day. It was a gorgeous day outside, in the low 70s high 60s and the sky was clear. Our first stop was a bar, to grab a caffe and load up on fuel for our long day ahead.
    We walked to the Piazza Santa Maria Novella first because it was right next to the train station. The last time I was in Florence was over four years ago with my mom when I was sixteen. I only spent less than 12 hours in Florence because it was a stop on a cruise, and therefore I still had plenty of things I wanted to see. Memories of the trip four years were coming back to me. I had a special connection with Florence because my studied there when she was abroad and now here I was in Florence while I was studying abroad. It was a special city.
    After the small Piazza we made our way over to the Piazza del Duomo where the beautiful church was located in the middle of the city. It was a tall and wide church that could be climbed to the top to see the entire city. My friends decided they did not want to climb the Duomo with their backpack so we just entered the main floor of the Duomo. I would put "climb Duomo" on my list of things to do when I return. I do not remember if I went into the Duomo the first time I visited but the church was absolutely beautiful.
    Then we walked to the Academia where we can see the original David, but the line for tickets was long, and we only had limited time. (another thing to put on my list). The group split up, because we wanted to do different things, and we agreed on a time to meet for lunch. I went with Alex and Ari, and we walked to the Piazza Santa Lorenzo to go to the outdoor leather market. At the outdoor leather market I bought some gifts for family members but wanted to return to buy more leather goods (added to the list). Everywhere in Florence was completely filled with tourists. I heard more english being spoken than Italian. Also some of the main roads were closed to the public for walking because of a huge bike race. This was another reason that Florence was even more crowded. But it was also a special day where about ten museums and places were free to the public. One of the museums I wandered into was the Museum of Palazzo Medici Riccardi. The Medici family was a political dynasty, banking family that first began to gather prominence in the Republic of Florence in the lat 14th century. This family was an important symbol and well-known in the city of Florence.
    It was now lunch time, and my friend Ari found this cute sandwich shop right next to the piazza with all the monuments including a replica of the David. The group met up for lunch and I had a vegetable panini and it was delicious. Then we went to vivoli (gelateria). My mom used to go to this gelateria all the time when she was studying abroad in Florence and she took me there when I went to Florence for the first time. I always thought it was the best gelato in the world, and I still think so. I had pistachio and fragola (strawberry) and the salty and the sweet was the perfect combination. After gelato we split up again and Ari, Alex and I went to take pictures in front of the Santa Croce. I love this church because the star on the top of it resembles a jewish star. We did not have time to enter the church but I will put this on my list of things to do when I return. Then we walked to the Ponte Vecchio and saw the beautiful view of the water and we also went by the Uffizi to see the artists painting beautiful landscapes of Florence. I remember buying a painting of the Duomo when I was in Florence and it is still hanging in my room in my house in New Jersey. Another activity I want to do when I return is to visit the Uffizi. This list is really long and I hope I can conquer Florence when I return.
    There was also a bike race occurring in the town of Florence during our visit and many streets were closed. The streets were filled with tons of tourists from all over the world. I heard tons of different languages, including English. We then made our way over to the Palazzo Pitti also known as the Pitti Palace. This Palace was bought by the Medici family in 1549 and today houses several minor collection and is fully open to the public. We wandered through the Boboli Gardens behind the Pitti Palace and admired all the sculptures. There were many steps to walk up to the top but with my backpack and camera I made it to the top. The view was so worth it and on the way up we stopped to take pictures. Alex was very into mimicking the exact pose of the sculptures. For one of the poses she needed props so she cut down a piece of a branch and used my umbrella, and Ari's nectarine to take a perfect picture. We finally made it to the top of the garden after many laughs along the way. The view was breath taking. I took many pictures of everything including myself and my friends, and it turned out to be an amazing day.
    It was now time to check into the hostel and meet up with my other friends. We booked an eight person hostel room for seven girls but the bigger room had a leak in it so the guy put us in the six person room with three bunk beds and a single bed in the middle of the room. It was a tight squeeze and I felt like we were girl scouts all over again. We planned to spend as little time as possible in the tiny room. We got ready for the opera and left to grab an aperitvi and some dinner. We found a place that sold drinks with free appetizers so we all bought a drink for four euros and indulged in the appetizers as dinner. This is one way to save money on dinner when you are abroad. Then we made our way to the opera. The opera was Carmen, a french opera set in Seville, Spain. Get this: I was in Italy seeing my first opera, in French, and the plot was set in Spain and the commentary between acts was in English. This was a extremely multicultural and I really enjoyed it. The actors were amazing and their voices were beautiful Also we saw the opera in an old church called St. Mark's Anglican Church in the middle of Florence, Italy. I will never forget this night.
   But the night was no where near over. After the opera my friends and I went back to the hostel and celebrated Ari's birthday with wine. We also befriended an Aussie who was staying in the hostel as well. After making a lot of noise and getting yelled at by the creepy owner of the hostel, we left and made our way to a discoteca called Space. Everyone danced the night away, and by the time we left the dance club it was almost five in the morning. We made our way back to the hostel just as the sun was rising and took a nap before departing in the morning. When we woke up it was raining a bit, and we stopped in a caffè for some much needed coffee. We took the twelve o clock train back to Bologna and after walking in the rain with my umbrella back to my apartment I was home by one o clock. I left Florence knowing I would definitely return soon to see my Aunt Dianne and to visit places I did not get to see.
    I know I am really behind on my blog, but hopefully within the week I will be all caught up. Stay tuned for posts about Siena, Florence+Pisa and Amsterdam. I am having the time of my life and everyday is a new adventure. My roommate and I are getting along so well. She is adorable and always makes sure I eat and wake up. She made me dinner last week! Pasta con Tonno. It was delicious. She also loves chocolate and i dolci and always tells me to mangia mangia! She always does not understand how I never blow dry my and go outside with wet hair. Also on of my other housemates Simona had her graduation last Thursday and she invited me to see it. I met her entire family and celebrated with her! She graduated with a degree in political science and now she is getting her masters. I bought her an owl key chain (green her favorite color) from Florence, a box of pasta because she loves food, and a bottle of Valipolicella wine for a gift. Right now I am currently in the study room of my apartment building studying for my first midterm in theater on Thursday. Later tonight I am going out with my roommates to see my first Italian film. Also I received a package from my mom and I just would like to thank her for sending me an amazing package full of goodies that I love including a new workout outfit.
    I had my last cooking class with Rita last Wednesday. We made a faro, soup with celery, carrots and beans and a torta di creme (cream pie/cake) It was an absolute delicious meal. I can't wait to have another class with Rita in November with my mom. We are going to learn how to make pasta from scratch in Italy! It can't get any better than that. Overall, my life has been very busy, but in a good way and I am so happy with my decision to study abroad in Italy. I miss everyone and I but I will see you soon. I can't believe I only have two more months in Italy!
Con tanto amore,
Samantha