After three weeks in Florence and a lot of questions about what I'm doing and how it's going, I finally decided to post on this blog I kept promising I would maintain. This still may be the only post I ever write. We'll see how motivated I'm feeling through the rest of the semester.
Contrary to popular belief, I am actually attending classes here... two days a week. This semester I'll be learning about advertising Italian destinations, travel writing and the psychology of mindfulness (ok fine this is a meditation class), in addition to taking voice lessons.
Obviously that doesn't take up too much of my time, so I've also been traveling, learning to cook and watching some of the great rom coms available on Italian Netflix.
During my first weekend here, I spent a day in Cinque Terre- five towns along the Italian Riviera coast. Although I failed to hike along the cliffs from Vernazza to Monterosso al Mare, I did manage to get a killer sunburn while hanging out on the beach.
I visited Venice during weekend two, which wasn't as exciting as I hoped it'd be. The relatively small city holds an average of 50,000 tourists a day. With so many narrow streets and bridges, it's clear Venice wasn't built to hold that many people. Still, I'm glad I got to visit before the water level inevitably rises so much that Venice floods to the point of being uninhabitable.
Last week, I was forced to think back to one of my many summers at Camp Lake Hubert. I tried out horseback riding and soon realized it wasn't for me. A few days after deciding I'd never ride a horse again, my counselor told me I had no choice. I told her I had been bucked off a horse to get out of going on a ride with my entire cabin. 10 years later, I remembered that story was made up, so I decided to give riding another go.
As I am still sore 4 days later, it's safe to say this still isn't my favorite pastime, but Ariel (the horse) and I did have a lovely time exploring the Tuscan countryside. She stopped at every possible opportunity to try and eat any grape, grass or branch that crossed her path, and I was unable to stop her. Not surprising.
I'm writing this just after returning from a weekend exploring Maremma and a few other little towns in Tuscany. I helped a girl find the phone she lost on the beach, hid in a cafe to avoid rain for an hour, walked up too many stairs (but saw some killer views), visited enough Catholic churches to keep me away from mass until Christmas (sorry, mom), bathed in some natural hot springs that are supposed to be ~healing~ but I think they were just kinda gross, and enjoyed exploring some of the less-touristy areas of Italy.
I've also spilled food/wine/water in multiple public places, tripped over children/animals/stationary objects, knocked over a bike and shattered my phone screen, so I'd say I'm really starting to blend in with the locals here. Stay tuned to find out if I ever learn Italian (doubtful) and to hear about where I'm going next!
Thanks to all of my fans for supporting me through this journey. Peace & blessings to you all.
P.S. @Mom & Dad, I'm doing all of my homework and I'm making friends, don't worry!!!!!