French Riviera

Not feeling well and rain still couldn’t dampen the beauty of the French Riviera. A weekend was not enough time to explore the medieval cliff towns and sandy beaches that seem to fill this entire region. Only a five-hour bus ride from Florence, it felt like a different world. This was the first overnight trip I had taken with one of the numerous student tour groups that seem to thrive here. All in all they are a good option if you want someone else to do all the planning and if you want the cheapest rates. However, some words of advice they are not very organized and the majority of the attendees are more interested in the nightly activities then any of the cultural wonders that abound in the region. That being said, like anything in life, this trip was what you made of it. And we made it work, even if the room we stayed in also housed a few slugs.

The weekend was filled with drama, history and excitement. Each stop offered something new and unexpected. Eze was filled with drama. While here the rest of the group decided to take an impromptu tour of the perfume factory, without telling us. Imagine the fun we had running around in the rain searching for our bus, or a familiar face, to be confronted by the horror of being left behind. However, being the resourceful creatures we are, we decided to have a late brunch and wait for the next local bus to Monaco. After enjoying some delicious quiche and tea we stumbled upon our group and rejoined the tour. In Monaco we toured the palace, drove by the casino and then spent a delicious afternoon sipping cocoa and sampling chocolates. Finally, we paused in Cannes. Excited but tired I happily stood on the steps where the famous film festival airs and put my hands in the prints of several stars. It was a wonderful way to spend a weekend.

An Active Weekend

No one has ever called me athletic and for good reason. However, Florence is surrounded by some of the most beautiful countryside’s, so I decided to dust off my walking shoes and give activity a whirl. First stop was biking in Chianti. A challenging trip ensued, consisting of a 13km trek up and down hilly roads and hugging several S-shape curves that would make any driver cringe. But, while I wasn’t clinging to my brakes in terror, I was able to take in the lush Tuscan countryside. Deep valleys and vineyards filled my vision in every direction and my digital camera couldn’t truly do it justice. A difficult day, but well worth it. When exhausted we pulled in to a vineyard, I’d never felt like I’d earned a glass of vino more; I was nearly too tired to drink it.

Invigorated yet sore day 2 of my new adventurous life began with a train ride out to Cinque Terre. This day proved just as challenging, even without the bicycle, but again was worth the pain. Taking our time we strolled easily along the trails of the first few towns, taking many picture stops along the way. A combination of the Amalfi Coast and Santorini, Cinque Terre, was filled with its own mystical beauty. Around every corner there was a new view of sparkling blue water and cragged rocks jutting down the cliff-sides. Every town had its own charm and entertainment and I observed many a cliff diver, something I can happily say I will never try. After lunch the hike hit its hard stage, nearly all up hill on uneven terrain, it was difficult, but luckily I made it and as a reward had a delicious gelato in the last town. I’m not sure if it was my spent body talking or what but an ice cream never tasted so good. 6km later I was physically done and happily slept on the train ride home. I think I’ll put away my walking shoes for a while now.

Likes: Beautiful scenery and fresh air
Dislikes: not a real wine tasting, rude restaurant staff in Cinque.

A Week of Firsts

No matter how old I get the start of a new semester always fills me with butterflies. This was even more so this semester because Saci is an art school, an area that I have had little contact with since the days of paper-mache in middle school. However, inspiration can be found in every corner. This antico palazzo was actually the home to Mona Lisa and was created as a shrine to Galileo; a man who once said “doubt is the father of invention”. Surrounded by such legends as these my first week flew by as I began to learn about basic photography, video, Italian cinema and graphic design. Not only is the school full of impressive history, but the teachers as well have led fascinating lives. From successful fashion photographers to consultants on films such as the Godfather, these professors have done it all and I was filled with a new enthusiasm for the arts after hearing their stories. While I am slightly intimidated by both the student and staffs ample resumes I am excited by the prospect of a challenging semester in areas that could lead me in new directions that I had never before considered.

The Beginning

The Good The Bad and the Italian

Location:

Saci definitely had something against us when they gave us our housing, we are the only ones to be on this side of town and the only people who have a twenty minute walk to get to school. Now this wouldn’t be so bad except for the fact that we have to walk through the market to get there, the very market that at orientation the school tells you to avoid if possible and not to walk through at night. Well, that’s going to be a little hard seeing as I have a class till 8pm and cabs are ridiculously expensive here so that is not an option. They pretty much can charge extra for any little thing, time of day, number of people etc.

Apartment:

Luckily I have my own room, but having six girls in one apartment makes it very cramped. The first day we moved in we paid our landlord 20 euros to be able to use his wifi, which was awesome. Until the next day when it no longer worked and we had to go sit in the hall to get any bars, but for now it seems to be sort of working if you sit really close to the front door. Another problem with the apartment is we have no hot water, which needs to be fixed asap, since I hate cold water. Finally, my other gripe is over not having an oven, even though I don’t really cook it would be nice to have, because this is the one place that might inspire some culinary skills.

Getting Around:

It took me four days but I can now successfully find my way around the city, for the most part. This was the part I hated the most and was causing lots of frustration. As I mentioned we live further than anyone else and the streets here are very confusing because some of them change names half way down. Today A and I went on a long walk in every which direction getting lost on purpose so we could really learn the city. We went to the duomo and the ponte vecchio and over to the rose gardens.

It’s a very disconcerting feeling not knowing where you are or how to get to where you want to go. Something we found out on our first excursion to Ikea. Via the internet we discovered there was a free shuttle to the store., so we asked at the reception desk at school. They told us it left from the train station and says Ikea on it, which sounds simply but was not. We get to the train station and walk around searching for this bus. We cant find it so I go in the station and ask someone where it is, they tell us it’s across the street on via Nazionale. By this time we’ve missed the bus so we decide to walk in that general direction and get a snack. I then end up asking, in Italian mind you, the gelato guy where the bus stops, all I can understand is straight ahead and on the right. So as it comes closer and closer to the time for the next shuttle we begin frantically searching for it, however we can’t find it. We ask two other places, one tells us its bus number 30 the other tells us its in front of the tour busses. By this time we’ve missed the shuttle again. Just as we are about to make the trek home we see people with Ikea bags who helpfully point out the bust stop which is in none of the spots we were told. I think Saci needs to be a little more organized and helpful with these directions.
First Impressions

For the first couple of days I didn’t even feel like I was in Florence, or another country. Probably, due to the fact that I’m living with all people I know from home so it felt like I was just in Boston. I like that we are all together, but t I really wished they had put me with people I didn’t know so I could have met new people. When I wrote this a few days ago I was feeling slightly negative about the whole situation. I was sick of living so far away from everything and constantly being surrounded by people. But, I’ve finally adjusted to it after walking around and taking in the sights.

One other very overwhelming experience was going to the supermarket, where of course everything is in Italian. It took me the longest time to decide what to buy and finding milk was the hardest because all I could read on the bottle was fresh pasteurized milk, so I had no idea if it was skim or what not. Also it was so crowded but I managed and I’m sure it will be much easier the second time.

Part 2: Goodbye Boston Ciao Firenze

So I arrived in Florence’s airport, which is very tiny. I felt like I had landed in Hawaii because you exit the plane, from both ends, on to the tarmac and are then shuttled to the terminal. The luggage claim area has only 3 belts, this was a very small airport. The first thing I noticed when I got inside was the extremely long line at the lost and found counter, which raised my anxiety level for fear that my bags would not be making the trip with me. Luckily after a good fifteen minute wait my bags appeared and I half lugged half carried them out of the airport.

Before I had left home I had arranged to be picked up by the school since I was arriving the same day as the group flight, or so I thought. The housing people claimed they had no knowledge of this so I had to take a taxi to the school’s main office to pick up my keys. I was not off to a good start. Luckily, I was able to share a cab with another girl. When I finally get my housing form the lady hands me a sheet and shows me on the map where my housing is, she tells me it looks far on the map but it’s really not that bad, this is all lies. I take yet another cab and pull up to my new home and I am confronted by about fifteen steps, yes I counted. It took me about ten minutes to climb them and bring all my bags up, but I made it! Even more fortunate there was an elevator, which was amazing because there was no way I was going to be able to carry those bags up to the second floor.

I finally reach the apartment and the first thing I do is explore. I notice bags in two of the rooms, but no one is around. I was happy that I had my own room and that there was a washing machine and two bathrooms. Overall as first impressions go it was a pretty nice place.

Part 1: Goodbye Boston Ciao Firenze

These entries are going to be a little delayed due to move in and other factors, but here we go;

The Flight

From Boston to Europe was pretty much what I expected. It was a very long and a very uncomfortable flight. Airline seats were not designed for real people. However, I made it and the real flying fun didn’t start till I took my flight from Prague to Florence. See no one ever told me about domestic flights in Europe. For instance everyone neglected to mention the different rules, such as they allow a much smaller weight for bag size. Even worse most European airlines only let you have one checked item, so this presented a problem since I had to gigantic suitcases with me. So there was little choice but to pay the fee for the extra bag. U.S airlines could learn a thing or two about ripping off customers from these guys. I mean we only have a set fee for every additional bag, but if they modeled themselves after the Europeans they could make a killing charging 10 dollars per every additional pound, which is basically what happened, and my suitcase was very heavy. Then even more annoying on the flight there is no free peanut snack or a glass of water, every thing being offered cost about 3 euro, which is really not cool of them. But, now the next time I fly, which will hopefully be soon since there are so many places I want to visit, I will definitely be prepared.

Part two of my arrival will be coming soon so godersi la bella vita!