Paris "Wee Wee"

Since we couldn't feast on a delicious meal for Thanksgiving, anddd it was our one year Anniversary, me and Caleb decided to meet in Paris! And it was just as expected! We started our day at Mcdonalds for breakfast.(Such Americans I know) But it was the fanciest Mcdonalds we had ever been in! We went all over the city, starting at the Louvre where we saw the Venus, and Mona Lisa. Would I be wrong to say the Mona Lisa is overrated?? Okay then I won't say it. Caleb was excited about the Louvre, because the pyramid above it was in the Da Vinci code, so it was cool seeing that. We then went to the infamous Eiffel Tower, and it's not overrated at all! It was beautiful. It trulyyy is the heart of Paris. Me and Caleb were so excited that we stacked up on mini Eiffel tower statues, keychains, and lighters. It was a battle going on between all the guys selling the tower. It was like an auction. They all kept lowering their prices, so we could buy from them. Caleb almost was hustled by some guys gambling in front of the tower. He saw one guy winning, and almost played because it looked so easy, but after watching for a while, he realized that they were working together on a team trying to trick tourists. Crazy right? It was also crazy, because a lady came by and kicked the box they were gambling on. We figured she was religious, or either just felt like he was giving Paris a bad name. Long story short, the tower is beautiful, but it is surrounded by beggars and peddlers. After leaving there, we stopped at a deli, and got a chicken sandwich, that was delicious! The people there were sooo nice, opposing the stereotype that all Parisians and French are evil. Caleb spilled some sauce on his new jacket, and they brought out soap and water to help him clean it. They also said he looked like 50 cent, which is always hilarious to me. They directed us to Champs Elysees, the famous street in Paris, where we headed next. We approached the Arc de Triomphe, which is also famous. As we walked down the Champs Elysee, we could see the huge ferris wheel, that we like to call "The Paris Eye". We stopped at two foreign car shops, one being Mercedez, Benz. Both had nice cars we had never seen before. We then went to the Louis Vuitton headquarters, which did nothing more than upset us. I mean it was a beautifulll store, but itjust made us want to buy stuff, and of course we couldn't. There was a line outside the store, as if we were going into the club. The inside was huge! And I think the lowest priced item was a keychain for 115 euro. We went up and down the escalators, and into the beautiful rooms, staring in awe. In one room, the unthinkable happened. We looked out the window, and it was snowing!!! It was soooo pretty! I've never seen snow before, and what a great place to see it. I pretty much ran out of the store to play in it. Everything just seemed perfect! We then headed over to the Notre Dame, a beautifullll church that was nice to visit. Caleb then took me to dinner at a traditional French restaurant in the Latin Quarters. After eating here, we came to the conclusion that French food is bomb! I had garnished steak, and he had the beef stew in wine sauce. We both had it with rice and potatoes. We also both had a crepe with cheese and ham for a starter, and for dessert I had ice cream, and he had an apple tart. It was all sooooo good. To finish our night, we headed back to the Eiffel Tower to see it lit. Too amazing for words.

The next day we went to the Versailles Palace, which of course is gorgeous. When approaching all you see is a looong Golden gate. The inside is huge, and each room is decorated with great detail. Our audio guides said each room has been done over ten times. We saw the kings chambers, and the queens bedroom. It was truly a sight to see. However, while walking through, we kept seeing these strangeee contemporary art pieces. They were colorful, big, and just looked as if they belonged in the Disney store. Our audio guides said they had only been there in the last few years to be showcased. We figured it was a money thing. What was even more funny, is that we approached one of these weird pieces, and saw that it was done by Pharrell Williams. It was a piece filled with several diamonds and stones, but still, it was very much out of place. After we left the palace, we stopped and got a barbecue chicken burger sandwich, with FRENCH fries. Again, french food is molto bene. Just before I got on my bus to the airport, we stopped at the Hotel Lafayette. It's a hotel that sits on top of the gallery Lafayette, a Parisian mall. We went to the 33rd floor of the hotel, to see what is said to be the best view of the city, and it was. It showed us just how beautiful the city really is. So yea um i love Paris! Sidenote: If you ever go to Paris, don't go in November. It was freeeezing. Not good for our LA blood, at all.

The David

The David is in The Accademia. The David actually is pretty much The Academia. The Accademia is one of the best Art schools in the world, and it has very few students. Inside of it are great sculptures done by Michelangelo, but the greatest of them all is The David. When first walking up to it, it may take your breath away. It is huge, and very detailed. Before Michelangelo sculpted this, it was just old marble sitting in the Piazza near the Duomo. Nasty, old marble, that no one wanted. Michelangelo, who was very cocky, asked to use it, and said I bet I can make something of it. It still, to this day, is the greatest masterpiece Florence ever had. And even though it is centuries old, it still represents, the ideal man, that any woman til this day would date. His body is so detailed, the feet and hands match perfectly, and the hair looks real! It took him two years to finish, and it became the Florence symbol. If you look into his eyes you can see how focused he is, because it represents David before the victory over Goliath. His slingshot is not held high, as it is in the pictures we're used to, because it is supposed to represent mind over muscle. David used his intellect to overpower Goliath, and Michelangelo conveyed this through the piece. There is nothing like it.

The Uffizzi

I've been in Florence a while now, and I haven't fully taken advantage of all the beauty here. Lately I've been visiting some of these historical places. One great place I went was the Uffizi. It's a museum that houses paintings from the greats Michelangelo, Da Vinci, and Bacilli. Mind you ALL of these artists are from Florence. It also has pictures from Raphael, and he's only from a small town right outside of Florence. Do you feel the greatness??? There I heard some of the stories about Michelangelo who was arrogant, stubborn, and greedy,but he was a genius, so no one could say anything. I learned some things about Da Vinci who was a student for six months before he collaborated with his master on a painting, and his part of the painting was better. After this, his master never painted again, this painting is also at the Uffizi. There are also a lot of Bacciali paintings, who was the first to start making paintings appear more realistic. The greatest part of the Uffizi is that it had a separate corridor that royalty such as the Medici, would walk through over the city, the ponte Vecchio, and the Arno river, to get to the Pitti Palace. This corridor has over 300 self portraits. The Uffizi is definitely one of the top ten tourist sites in Florence.

LONDON

So somehow Ive failed to talk about my trip to London. It was INCREDIBLE. Now Caleb had continuously made it seem as if it wasn't what it's cracked up to be. From what he told me it was cold and dull. Now, it was cold, but dull it was not. The first place he took me was to the Big Ben, London Eye, and Thames River. He didn't even give me a warning or anything, just took me to it. I immediately screamed! It was sooo beautiful! The sun was setting right over the river...and it was just...to much to handle. He then took me over to Buckingham Palace which was pretty, with a really pretty fountain in front of it. However, the coolest part was the soldiers walking back and forth like they used to do in the past. We also went to the Queens Garden. It was fillllled with so many flowers, and just colorful leaves all over the ground. If there's anywhere you want to be during Autumn, its here. It also had these small ponds with ducks, and black swans in it. To a city girl like me, this is a site to see. Buttt I got a lil taste of the city too. There's a street in Central London that looks just like Times Square. It's filled with all these theaters, which pretty much makes it the European Broadway. Caleb treated me to one of the shows, "We will rock you". Umm it was interesting, kind of, but it's more about the experience.d We also participated in something called Orange Wednesdays, when movies for students are like dirt cheap. We went to see Paranormal 2, and it was funny sitting in the theater with excited British kids.

By the way, I LOVE there accent. Caleb claimsss they love ours too, but I highly doubt it. They are also some of the nicest people ever! The fact that they're all mean is a myth. Although, I have met mean ones, let's not forget about my trip in.Anyways, we also went to a night club called Oceana! Oceana reminds me of Vegas clubs! It had four beautiful rooms for different genres of music! It was the first time partying with just my boyfriend, but it was fun! The last big thing we did was take a River Cruise. It was at night and it was beautifulll. It was sprinkling a little bit but we didn't even care. We were able to hear all the history of that's surrounds the river, which was pretty awesome! Like some of the ships that still sit there in the water. In war, they were used as decoy ships, and if anyone would approach, they would be shot instantly. If you want to know anymore, ask me! Overall, it was a great Fall Break! We're not even going to talk about me missing my flight back. That's another story entirelyyyy. :) wait! I almost forgot! One of the best parts about London...I was reunited with my love....Chipotle!

The Italian Night Club

So a lot of thestudents party here, but they only party at the American tourist nightclubs. I decided if I was going to party, it would be at an Italian club, with Italians. So Chelseas intercambio and his friends invited us out for a night with them, so of course we said yes. They came to pick us up at midnight on a Friday night. Italians would start partying that late.

They drove us to a different part of Florence, kind of along the outskirts. It was kind of exciting seeing the city from inside a speeding car. When we got there, we met up with some other men and women. Rolling pretty deep with the Italians. The club was free entry which was cool. It had cars parked upstairs which was different. The people, of course, party hard. We danced the night away! One of the guys, Daniele, said "the word of the night is Be stupid!" and that's just what we did.

Me, him, Chelsea, and her intercambio joined together doing the craziest dances. The wave, the robot, an airband, we did it all. It was really fun. Afterwards we went to another secret bakery. They call it their breakfast after the club. Kind of like Denny's for us, I guess. They treated us to delicious pastries, and we hung out there talking for a while. It was a nice night. Did I mention there was a man dressed as Elvis in the club??

Gusta Pizza...Again

I show Gusta so much love, because you know what, they deserve it! Gusta is the pizza place on the same street as my apartment, and we like to say it's the best pizza in Florence. The men who work there are from Naples, and Naples is known to have best pizza in Italy. Gusta also owns a coffee shop next door, and a panini shop next to that, that is sooo delicious!

Anyways, we went to Gusta to ask if we could use the restaurant to film, and they were very nice about it. They called Caleb Will Smith, and flirted with me right in front of him. Italians have no shame. They agreed to let us use the place in the morning, before they opened. Not only did they do that, once we got there, they gave us free pizzas, free beers for the actors to use, and even made me my own personal mini pizza. They don't even sell these. They got really involved in the film, laughing and reciting lines. They let us stay as long as we wanted, and pretty much made the customers move around us. No American business would ever do this! Ahh The joy of a relaxed country. At the end, they had us all sign autographs for them, and made us promise to show them the film. Ahhh I love Gusta.

Short Italian Film

The last time Caleb came, he said the city was so beautiful, that we just had to film a short film here. So we brainstormed some ideas, and I wrote a script up. I found some students that go to my school to act in it, and we dedicated a whole weekend to filming. All it did was remind me of what a beautiful city I live in. We filmed some scenes at night, and had a chase seen on the bridge. This was exciting to see, especially since Caleb asked one to jump in front of a car and he did it. He also had the main guy of our film try to jump over a street barrier. When the guy didn't make, he went down, and so did the barrier. I guess because we were loud someone decided to throw BLEACH on us! Yes Bleach! Now I know when you're being loud after hours, Italians are known to throw down water, but this was bleach. We thought it was raining at first, until we smelled it, and notice everyones clothes had changed color. It was awful. However, we filmed in some really great places, and overall it was a good experience.

The Apperitivo

So Italy has this thing they call the Apperitivo, very similar to Americas happy hour. If you come, this is something you HAVE to get. They offer one at a restaurant most of the students go to called Ganzo. What you do is pay 4 euro for a drink. This could be wine, alcohol, etc. But I must first warn you that Italy is not stingy with there alcohol. This could be a good or bad thing, depending on the person. They give you this large glass of alcohol to drink. You then are able to have a mini-buffet of food, available for about 3 hours. When I went they had this delicious jambalaya, pasta of course, little sandwiches, nachos, bread with mean baked into it, kish, and more. I ate until I was stuffed. It was actually during the night of an art gallery, which had some portraits that my roommates did in it. So there were paintings, an unlimited amount of food, Americans, and Italians, plus music. The atmosphere was great.

The guys come to make us Italian dinner

A couple of days before we left for Fall Break, my roommate Chelsea invited her intercambio over, well he invited himself. He, and two other friends, came to make us a TRADITIONAL Italian meal. When they walked through the door, they came ready to go. One of them cracked his knuckles, and threw his apron on. You don't see this in America! They pulled out packages of different cheeses, meats, and fresh pasta. The three of them begin whipping up the best meal I might of ever had. They brought out five bottles of good wine, since all we've been getting is boxes. As they cooked, they had two of my roommates chopping up cheese and meat. Of course they complained about the waythey were cutting it. The food was ready in no time, and the men start serving us. (The way life shouldbe) The first course was the pasta. Now since I've been in Italy, I haven't tasted pasta that I've really loved. I actually kind of missed the pasta from my school cafeteria, but this one was AMAZING. It had spinach in it, and I couldn't tell you what else, but it was absolutely DELICIOSO! After that, they brought out this baked eggplant, with melted mozzarella cheese, and pasta sauce. You can pretty much guess how good this was. Then! The last course was a juicy roast beef. I have went to quite a few restaurants since I've been in Italy, and this was definitely the BEST food I'd had so far...well besides Gusta's pizza.After dinner we had a dessert drink. We dipped Biscotti (Great Italian cookies) in it, and it was definitely the cherry on top.

It was really nice getting to know some locals. They were really nice, and bubbly. One couldn't speak English, so we tried to speak in Italian...that didn't last long. They even taught us an Italian song, that we're supposed to sing before we drink our wine. "Brendizzino, La La La La!"

It was really fun! Oh and how I forget to mention the tray of appettizers covered in Salami, Prosciutto, and other meat. So good!!!

Sienna, San Gimignano, and Assisi

Last Saturday and Sunday we went to Sienn San Gimignano and Assisi...if you didn't read the title of the post. They were all gorgeous. They had wonderful architecture and great history.History that I was really interested in! In Sienna we saw the actual body of the most famous patron saint. They had a mask over her skull but it was her actual body. They also had her actual thumb in a separate case. A little strange but interesting. Also I would say Sienna's church was hands down the most beautiful I've seen in all of Italy. It was insane how pretty it was inside. In San Gimignano we ate at a place known to be the BEST gelato in the WORLD. Ehhh it was okay. I still like the one near my apartamento better.

In Assisi we saw The St. Francis basilica.We also saw the hair of St. Clare that she had cut off for religious purposes.Again a little strange...but interesting. All of these places were amazing!I really suggest everyone visit them! But until then, just enjoy the pictures.

Cinque Terre-A fall that was worth it...Kinda.

Hello there friends! I know it's been a while since I've updated, so I wanted to tell you about a few trips I've taken recently. Let's start with the infamous Cinque Terre!! It is said by some to be the most beautiful place in Italy. It is the place that we were originally supposed to go to for an overnight trip with our program, but was changed to Verona due to weather conditions. They claimed it was to dangerous to go to while it was raining, apparently it's not the safest place to go to in beautiful weather either. Now, Cinque Terre means five towns. These towns are con

nected by four trails. People go, not just to enjoy the beautiful beach water, but also to hike. Yes, I said HIKE. Now if you know Roni, you know Roni is not a HIKER. Roni can barely go up a hill without wanting to turn around. Roni is a full blown LA city girl, that has never even embraced nature until I came here. Now that you know that, I'll tell my story. We wake up early Friday morning excited to go to the lovely Cinque Terre. I originally plan to put on a dress, but I see everyone in shorts and decide to change. One of my roommates comes in and asks why I'm wearing sandals. I reply, "Isn't it like the beach?" She says yes, but we're hiking. I felt like she was speaking in Italian to me, because I didn't understand. "Welll I was just planning to lay out at the beach, but I guess I can go with you guys" I think to change my shoes, but somehow I forget. Once we arrive, the place is realllly as amazing as everyone says it is. We sit down on the beach and eat our lunches we brought. "This is my kind of day," I thought. One of my roommate suggests we start the hike. Ianne tells me we'll just go for a while, and come back to the water. Talking myself into trying something new, I agree to go. We start walking. We go up several steps, and of course I take several pauses. I think more than once to turn around, but I keep pushing. We pass sooo much beauty on the trail, I begin to get excited. We stop at a waterfall, and I indulge in it. I put my feet in, and take some pictures. I was really having a good time. We continue walking, but somehow we get off the path. The path we're on is very narrow. I tell Ianne "Oh my gosh, my friends wouldn't believe I'm doing this!" I also say, "Did I mention how bad my balance is?" This is when I start looking at how high up we are. We keep walking and realized the path is closed off. We turn around, and as we head back, my foot slips down off the side of the cliff, and my body follows it. Now don't ask me why there was not a rail or anything between us and the edge, because guess what, I DON'T KNOW! Before I knew it, I was grabbing onto Ianne's hand trying to hold on for dear life! All I could think was if I let go, my life is over! No my life didn't flash before my eyes, because I knew it wasn't my time. All that went on in my head was I have to get up from here, NOW! I kept looking up at my roommates who were screaming for someone to get help. I then realized I was in excruciating pain! I was stuck in a thornbush! I begin to scream, "I'm in pain, I'm in pain"! Ianne, who is my hero, jumped down and pulled me up! Little did I know, there was some leveled ground beneath me, and I wasn't about to roll down the hill. I wiped my legs that were covered and blood , and finally found a way back up. We rushed to this booth that wasn't that far to get help. When we got there, the lady saw my legs and instantly began shaking her head in anger. She was Brazilian, and she had a little feisty attitude. My legs hurt so bad, I snapped and said, "I don't need your attitude, I need your help!" She ended up being very nice, and gave me disinfectant for my legs. My roommates picked thorns out of my cuts, and my legs looked pretty awful. They're currently still healing. I was ready to just head home, but they talked me into just going to the next town which "wasn't that far away", to just relax there. I reluctantly agreed, and after about TWO hours, we finally made it to that town. I have to admit that I'm glad I continued on the path, it was really a wonderful place. It would have been better if that didn't happen, but no sense of crying over spilt milk. It was really a great place, and I still suggest you go BUT Moral of the story: When hiking, wear PROPER shoes.

In case anyone is wondering about the STUDY part of Study Abroad, I have received two papers and one quiz back since I've been here...all A's! Leggoo.

Lucca

So Saturday we took a train a couple ours away to another famous city in Tuscany. (The region of Italy I'm in) It was such a peaceful trip. The city is soo quiet and green. There's not many tourists, which makes it much more relaxed. We walked around the city walls, and observed the beauty surrounding us. The people there rode bikes and walked a lot. It wasn't as much crazy traffic as it is in Florence. There was even a family sitting in the park talking and enjoying wine together. There were also a lot of young lovers sitting in different areas of the park. We watched all of this as we sat on the swings. Loved it.

Secret Bakery

So there's this secret bakery....that is sooo good! Not many Americans know about it. It's more of an Italian thing. They start selling at 1am, and end at about 3am. They're not supposed to be because it's right beneath a residence, and they have a quiet police, so I hope no Italian Police look at my page hehe. Anyways, when you get there it's like a drug deal. There are signs on the door in English and Italian telling you to be quiet. You lightly tap on the door, and this guy comes out and whispers what do you want? Me and my friends all said something chocolate. You hand him ONLY one euro, and he brings out an amazingg croissant. When I first bit into it, I didn't think it was that good....but the warm chocolate filling in the middle made it sooo much better. Another one of my favorite things about Italy. :)

"Cause in the end all you really have is memories."

Friends Abroad

On Caleb's last day here, a couple of my other friends visited Italy as well. They're studying abroad in Spain, and since it's almost time for them to leave, they wanted to pass through Italy. It was a short visit, but we had a really good time! We walked around the city, and visited the main attraction in Italy, the Duomo. Now up until then I had only seen the outside, but Caleb informed me that entry was free! So we went in and it was BEAUTIFUL.

The ceilings and walls had extremely pretty designs, and there were candles in the middle that we each took turns lighting. We then left and went to visit the San Lorenzo market where they indulged in scarf buying. I'm telling you the scarves are so nice, and when someone in America asks you where'd you get your scarf from, you just say "Oh...Florence, Italy." They'll think you're fancy,when you only spent 5 euro. We also went to Piazzale Michelangelo. Caleb's second time that week, but I wont let anyone come here without seeing it.

It was also funny the Italian men seeing THREE Black women together! It was to much

for them to handle! AND these random girls from Serbia came up to us and asked if they can take a picture WITH us. We were a little confused but we did it. Just figured they had never seen black people up close and personal. I would say that they had a pretty good time, and yeaahh I'm a pretty good hostess :) Look at me showing off Italy like I live here.

Sidenote: I realized this was really my home when I started getting annoyed by tourists! I mean I know I've only been here awhile, but they're always in the way when I'm going to class, and I'm like I see this everyday, keep it moving!!...I kid I kid.

Other Food Places

Of course Italy is known for it's food so the first thing Caleb wanted to do when he arrived is eat! I took him to this little cafe I had heard about. It was on top of a department store overlooking the city, and supposedly had really good prices. This was very true, but the person that told me about it left out the part about them having BAD SERVICE. We went and it was really nice, but no one was helping us. We waited awhile and the waiter never came. We walked inside, and he was counting his money. So of course, as Americans, we left.

We also went to get gelato, and sat on the beautiful bridge by my house. Yep that's what I pass everyday. Can't get over it.

NOTE : Italy's customer service is awful. There's no calling the manager or anything like that, you just take what you get. ESPECIALLY in restaurants. There's no tipping out here, because waiters get paid pretty good. Therefore, they pretty much don't care about your service. If you want the check, ask for it 30 minutes earlier. Seriously.

Another place that we tried, of course as Americans, is Tijuana. I LOVE Mexican food so I had to find a place, and I'm happy I did. This place is sooo good. I had the nachos and they were to die for. We went during happy hour, so we all got fragola margaritas at discounted price, and it was hands down the best I ever had. You might think I'm hyping this place up, but I promise the food iss delish. Of course we took pictures, so take a look. Caleb also bought me a rose from this guy passing by. I swear Florence is the place of Romance.

Caleb's Visit

So last week Caleb came to visit me! He loves Italy...I think a little more than London even. I took him to visit several places around the city. One really nice place we went to is a little town right outside of Florence called Fiesole. Fiesole is about twenty minutes away on the bus, and it is one of the best places to go if you want to sit back in peace and just enjoy the beauty of Florence. When we first got there we went to this little cafe that my roommates love. We stacked up on some of the best little tarts, one we especially love because it's filled with Chocolate, and it is deliciousss. We then hiked up a hill, that was about five minutes, but it was pretttyyy intense. (I swear I never walked so much in my life). Once we got to the top...the view was INCREDIBLE.

We stayed there and waited until the sun set. We met a really nice older couple that was visiting, and by the end of our conversation we were taking pictures with them. Caleb also gave Katie and Evan a Romeo and Juliet photo shoot, which was to cute. It was a really nice outing, fo

r a good price. Enjoy the pictures.

Gusta Pizza Flirts

The three brothers that work at Gusta Pizza love the chocolateee. They randomly made this for me and my friends. Too cute.

Little Person I miss the MOST

Okay....I REALLY miss this little bugger.

Person I miss MOST

So I had a LOT of help getting to Italy! So many people wanted to see me here, and I loved the support I received from so many friends and family! But one in particular put in the MOST effort. The lady that has my heart...my grandmommy! This lady has become the true backbone of my family. I honestly don't think there's any grandmother better than her. Because of her I've been exposed to sooo many different things. As an ambitious young lad, I've always had a LOT of goals. She has supported me in EVERY single one! From me wanting to be a librarian, "You can own your own library"....to me wanting to be a singer and poet. Her and my grandfather had me in poetry contests, and singing in front of people, knowing I can't sing! When I wanted to be an actress, she would take me to auditions, and stay up with me all night, the day before. She picked me up from games when I randomly decided to cheer lead, she drove me way to the valley when I randomly decided I wanted to play the flute. She was the one that came with me to my first college orientation, and walked around a huge hot campus. For every little dream I decided to have, she's been there, supporting me ALL the way. Even though I'm far from her right now, my heart is growing closer to her, and I'm starting to realize more and more each day what a wise woman she is. All my life people have told me I'm just like her, and it's definitely a compliment.

San Lorenzo Market

So there's a realllly nice outdoor market in Florence. Well there's multiple markets, but one of the best is the San Lorenzo market. They have EVERYTHING, for really good prices! From scarves, to leather purses, to keychains, to clothes, to wine openers. Pre-Warning: Many of your gifts may come from here.

I love this place! You can talk the people down to any price you like! And everything is made in Firenze. Its funny we met an American boy there selling products for his Italian father. He tried to fool us, but him blasting Jay-Z was a dead give-away.

Anyway, San Lorenzo is A must visit when you come. It's like an upgraded Slauson swapmeet.

Verona

So one thing I forgot to write about was my weekend trip to Verona. First of all, this was one trip that I was not at all excited about. This is due to the fact that originally, we were scheduled to go to Cinque Terre. Howeverrr, because of the predicted bad weather conditions, our program decided to cancel that trip, and go to Verona instead.

Mind you, Cinque Terre is said to be one of the most beautifulll places in Italy. Its five towns, with five different islands, but because of the water and rocks, they say it is a very dangerous place to be when it's raining. Therefore, we were stuck going to Verona.Verona is where the home of Juliet is located. Interesting, because this is what the movie we saw in Florence was based on. Sooo let me talk a little about the trip.

When we got to the hotel, I was disgusted. It had to be the WORST hotel I have ever stayed in. It was a double bed, and one twin, for me and my two roommates. The blankets were random patterns. There was a bucket under the sink that was surrounded by dirt. There were bars on the windows...and LAST but certainly not LEAST....the bathroom was outside in the hall, and we had to share it with boys! Boys who left stains in the toilet as soon as we got there. #Cmonson

So we immediately left our room, and went in search of food. It was 7 of us, guys and girls, and we found a pizza place. We then began walking around a bit. We went on a guided tour with a woman that barely talked. Although, some of the sites were BEAUTIFUL. There were several designer stores, an amphitheater that looked like a mini-coliseum, multi colored buildings, tombs, and of course Juliets house!

Let me tell you. Seeing that movie, as corny as it was, made this experience so much better! Of course, they don't know if the story of Romeo and Juliet was true or not, however it is in fact where the Capulets lived. At the site, there was of course a balcony, and a statue of Juliet. Tourists are supposed to rub her left boob if they want to find true love, and rub her right if they want to be rich. Most girls rubbed the left. I put my hand on both!

The walls were covered with writing by tourists, alot of which were love notes. I somehow managed to fit Roni and CD up there. (simp moment). After we left there we went to a river in the middle of Verona that just like everything else was amazing, and then we went to the top of a hill to look down on one of the best views I've seen.

That night, we went to a museum that was holding an open art gallery. We all held in our laughter at the random stuff that was considered art. Some mans keychain, teapot, and pen. I'm not sure if it had a deeper meaning, but we couldn't find it. We then wen't back to the hotel. We were so bored that we took hotel business cards, and made playing cards out of them. We sat in the room disgusted by it. We all agreed that it looked like the room a murderer goes to on the movies when he's getting ready for his next victim. Yes, it was that bad.

The next day we were so ready to go. Our bus didn't leave until four, so we did everything we could to pass time. Verona was nice, but it was not a place you would stay for more than one day.

Odeon Cinehall

So we decided to go to the movies one day in Florence. Of course, nothing in Florence is the same as America. Being in a movie theater, is like being in a theater that kings and queens once went to!

Giorgia told me about it! It is the oldest theater in Florence, and it is called the Odeon Cinehall. Me, Katie, Ianne, and our two friends Conner and Evan decided to go one night. It was absolutely gorgeous inside! We sat in the most comfortable cushioned seats, and looked up at the prettiest antique ceiling ever made. Nevermind the bitter Italian woman at the front that didn't want to give us our student discounts.

The movie we saw was Letters to Juliet, and despite the fact that it was the corniest movie I've ever seen, it was still a really nice experience.

My intercambio!

One of the things I was most excited about when coming to Italy was setting up an intercambio! That's when I meet with someone who speaks Italian, and we teach each other our native language. Well the time had finally arrived, and I was told that I would be meeting with someone named Giorgia! I was so excited!

When we finally met, of course it was a little awkward. She was nice, young, and knew English pretty well. We walked to get gelato, and talked a bit about some places she had traveled. She asked if I preferred her to speak in Italian, and I told her I preferred her to speak a little of both. She agreed, but when she would burst into Italian, I was so confused, all I could do was nod. She then told me she would be meeting with her friend that she hadn't seen for awhile, and I could just watch them speak Italian. I agree, even though it seemed a little odd.

When they met up, they immediately dove into conversation. I just stood there, struggling to understand, but it didn't help. I didn't know at ALL what they were talking about. We went to a restaurant, and had an apperativo (some wine and appetizers). I ate what were the BEST veggies I ever had in life. They continued to talk, and I continued trying to understand. Giorgia would stop and ask me "Do you know a little bit?", I would say "ummm a little". I was definitely lying. I didn't have a clue what was going on. When we finished eating, Giorgia and I set up another meeting for that following week.

At first, I was a little dissapointed. That was not how I had planned it to go...but then I realized...I was in an Italian restaurant, with Italian women, speaking the Italian language. If I'm not embracing the culture, I don't know who is!

GUSTA PIZZA

I could write an entire post about this place alone...but all I will say is...If you EVER come to Italy...make SURE you try Gusta Pizza. It's right near my house which is by the Pitti Palace...and it's the BEST pizza I've tried here. It's a small place ran by three Italian men that KNOW English! It has thick balls of mozzarella...and....I can go on and on...but you must try it....and for 5 euro, it can't be beat!

A sight to see

Ok so...let's begin...I haven't blogged in like two weeks...SHAME ON ME! But I'll write what I remember. The weekend before last, me and my two roommates went up to Piazzale Michelangelo! It was an AMAZING view! We sat up at the top of the hill and looked down over the city. I had already been, but this time we went at sunset, and took peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, plus a little wine in juice boxes (yes they have them) along with us. We sat on the stairs that the tourists from all over sit on, and just basked in the ambiance. A British couple sat next to us, and offered to take our picture. I always think it's extremely nice when people OFFER to take you picture. We were surrounded by couples, of course, because it's the city of love, and you can't walk anywhere without seeing two people staring each other in the eyes. It's so romantic, but a little annoying when you miss your own love. Anyway, we watched the sun go all the way down, and the city LIGHT up. The churches, the Duomo, and the Ponte Vecchio all were beautifully LIT...and honestly all I could think again was...I can't believe IM HERE.

I shall update tomorrow. P.S. since I've been here I've been referred to as Black Beauty, Brown Sugar, Sugar Brown, and ChocolAte...I find it so funny.

About to indulge in some more cauliflower and pasta! My second veggie meal here! I usually don't eat a meal unless it has meat, but this dish is so good!

I'm having my bf bring me Lawry's seasoning salt...and a copy of Takers on dvd...I'm all about embracing the culture, but a girl still has needs.

I would say the mosquitoes love us more than the Italian men.

First Week of School-Friday

So today after a long night of wine drinking and card playing, we went to one of the trips included in our program, Medici Villa of Petraia. It was absolutely amazing. We met at the bus station at 9:30am, the time we were supposed to leave. Of course we didn’t, because Italians never leave on time. At about 10am, the entire group piled on the bus, stamping our little tickets in the machine. The bus ride was about twenty minutes, so I decided to take a little nap. I woke up to pictures Katie took of me with my mouth open, and a group of other students staring at me. It was an awkward moment, but hey it’s Italy. You get over things quickly. Once we exited the bus, we walked through several back alleys. We passed several homes which let us know we were out of the main city, which is made up of mostly apartments. We walked up a hill, that was not as steep as I had expected, and went through a tall steel fence. It was absolutely beautiful. It was the first Villa I had been to, and it was covered with gorgeous roses in every color. The grass was perfectly cut, and the trees were perfectly trimmed. There were three fountains, all spread out in various parts of the villa. I couldn’t help but imagine what it must have been like as a Medici growing up with this as your front yard. It got even better when we went inside the home that they once lived in. When we first walked through the door, we were in the main ballroom. It was of course covered in fresca’s, a word I heard Ianne use to describe the paintings on the walls. It also had multiple deer heads hanging up, one in which you could still see the mark of where it’s throat was slit. I tried to imagine the eighteenth century, when everyone wore huge ballroom dresses and danced under the chandelier. We went upstairs and visited several rooms that were also covered in “frescas”. The guide, that only spoke Italian, and had to be translated by one of our directors, explained that they hadn’t changed any of the stuff since the eighteenth century. It amazed me that these were the exact rooms, this wealthy family used to sleep in. I began to create several stories in my head. What was most interesting was when we were shown the room of the King’s mistress. Yes! I know! The king’s mistress lived in the same house as he and the family! I would also say that she had the best room in the house! Her name was Rosanni, and she had a Baby blue room. The pictures she had on her dresser of herself were still there. At first I thought it may not have been so bad to be a mistress in those days, but then I imagined how unfulfilled she might have been, just as his wife was. Glad I’m a woman in these days not those. There was also a room with an alter that sat in front of a gold Jesus piece hanging on a cross. I can’t help but love how religious this place is. Although, I’m not Catholic, they still have many of the same beliefs that I do. So I see this as my own spiritual journey. After leaving the magnificent home of the Medici’s, well one of them, we headed back on the bus towards home. When we got off, we decided to get McDonalds. I know this is shameful, since we’re in one of the best food places in the world, BUT after eating pizza almost everyday for almost two weeks, you kind of miss that old processed American food. I will say that afterwards I regretted it. Not only was it worst than the McDonalds in the states, but it was more expensive! There was no euro menu, and I paid 4 euro for a small happy meal. I can’t complain though, dinner will be wonderful. My roommates Ianne and Katie had planned to go hiking at fisole?? And I wanted to try it, but I just couldn’t. I’m a city girl, and all this walking is getting the best of me. I decided to come back to my apartment and write for a while. As I headed back, I passed so many tourists of course. And all I could think was this place looks straight out of a movie. The best fashion stores lining the streets, wealthy tourists everywhere eating gelato, or chowing down on pizza. Scarves, bracelets, and art being sold on the corners. A man sketching a painting in the middle of the street with a hat out that’s being filled with one euro cent. I have to remind myself that this is not a movie. It’s Italy. It’s Florence. It’s…my home. A YEAR AGO...I HAD NO IDEA I WOULD BE IN ITALY...SO WHO KNOWS WHERE GOD WILL TAKE ME...A YEAR FROM NOW.

I miss my love.

So It's been two weeks exactly since I've been here....and I realllly miss my boyfriend. He'll be heading to London Tuesday, and hopefully coming here soon after :/. I thought I would take this moment and be reallly corny/mushy. So it hit me the other day that I WON'T be able to go up the street to his house whenever I want, and he won't be able to do the same for me....EVER AGAIN. :( I met this boy my freshman year, and we've kind of been attached ever since. Yes I said boy, because that's what he was when I met him, but I've watched him grow and mature into a man. My man, I should add. We did have a few rocky situations occur between us, but their was something that would always pull us right back together. He used to always say, "What other college students live right by each other, and still spend hours on the phone?". Bestfriends, I would say. We've grown together in so many ways over the years, and he really has been a major support system for me...always encouraging me to write, to intern, to better my craft, to get off twitter and do something valuable. He's always there when I need something...whether it was much needed groceries as a starving college student, a car battery that "he installed" when my car messed up, lets not forget my actual car, that he took me everywhere to find even when we weren't on the best terms, many rides BEFORE I had a car, alll my fundraisers to go to Italy...anytime I have a problem, no matter how small it is, he is who I call...the list can go on and on. I really feel blessed to have had him in my life, and although many may throw in their negative commentary, doubts/ judgements, and try their best to point out his flaws...I still give him the utmost respect...because I know what an incredible guy he is...and I knoow I'm not the easiest girl to deal with...but I'm worth it :) Many people may have tried their best to end our love, but what we have is to strong to be stopped by outsiders looking in. I treasure the relationship that we have, and I'm happy to say that we will be spending our one year anniversary (since we've been committed) in Europe! What other couples can say they do that?? Beyonce and Jay, we're coming for you! I love you Mr. Davis...you make me HAPPY...and at the end of the day, that's all that matters. Can't wait until you get here! There's no such thing as a perfect guy, or perfect girl...just perfect for each other.

I must admit....the cheese here is amazing...but...I miss cheddar.

First Week of School-Thursday

So Thursday is the day that I have two of my major classes. Magazine Writing and Social Media. Since I’ve already met the teacher for my Social Media class…did I mention she’s the coolest? I was really excited to meet my teacher for Magazine Writing. I get up and put on the new purple dress I got at H&M for ONLY ten euros, and my new leather boots that I bought at a store on one of the backstreets for cheaper than they would be in a tourist area. I talked the guy down to 27 euro, I tried to get them for 25, but they were originally 29. It was funny, because he was an Asian guy, and it reminded me to much of the stores at home, except for the fact that he spoke Italian. A bit confusing, but the point is, they have stores everywhere. So back to class. Me and Katie get there, excited for the first day, and the teacher is ten minutes late. She then comes in, looks at us, and says in an Italian accent, “Where are your computers?” Confused, all ten of us responded, “Computers? We were never told to bring computers.” “Well I was supposed to have a class with computers. I can’t teach without them.” Okayyy, I’m sure we all thought. She then left the room, came back and told us class was canceled. “We will have class one day next week, when we can get a room with computers.” A few of us questioned her changing the schedule, because we all have others classes at different times. “I will work something out, don’t worry”. This is an example of the Italian way of thinking. They are so carefree, and do things on their own time. As we walked down the street towards home to get back in bed, she walked behind us. I honestly think she just didn’t feel like teaching today. Later on I headed to my social media class with the wonderful Christi. This class will be awesome since majority of the time we’ll be tweeting and blogging which I LOVE to do. After class we head to the grocery store, and the American in me is kicking in. Did I mention the grocery store is right by my house, right near the beautiful river? Just thought I’d remind you. Anyways, I’m ashamed to say, but I begin to buy hamburger patties, fried chicken sticks, fried fish, and steaks. I’m getting just a tinyyy bit tired of pasta and pizza multiple times a day. Plus steak was only 3.50 euro, and it ended up tasting delicious. It also ended up being pork steak, but it worked. We spent the rest of the evening eating that, playing cards, and drinking wine. I would say this is the life. What about you?? This is what they mean when they talk about THE LIFE.