The First Weekend

Now that the first weekend is over, I guess it's finally time to update this thing. Sorry it's taken so long, since I know all of my thousands of imaginary followers have been eagerly waiting an update on this. So much has happened, I really don't know where to start. Well, maybe I do. The beginning seems appropriate enough.

Arriving at LAX was a surreal experience. 5 days prior, I left my home in Elk Grove CA, said goodbye to most of family, and headed for Southern California. I spent the weekend with my sister and seeing friends at Pepperdine. It still hadn't hit me that I was leaving for Italy in such a short amount of time. Even at LAX, it still did not hit me that I was leaving the states to live and study in Florence for 8 months.

There was a ridiculous layover in Rome after an 11 hour flight (with some questionable in-flight meals), and then a ridiculously short flight (approx. 35 minutes) to Florence. We were tired. We were hot. Some of us were a little irritable. But then we saw our wonderful Program Director Elizabeth Whatley and shepherd us to the bus that would lead us to our Villa in Florence.

And that's when everything changed.

The feelings of being nervous, or tired, or scared, all disappeared in an instant. Thoughts of "this is actually happening" entered all of our minds.

We arrived at the Villa and was immediately greeted by Dr. Paul Contino, our visiting faculty member from the Malibu campus. We walked into the Villa and were led into, what I think we can all agree, is one the most beautiful buildings any one of us could call "home."

Although we were tired and the effects of jet lag were beginning to creep on us, we took a bus tour of the city, passing by famous sites and landmarks including the Duomo and Ponte Vecchio on the Arno River. The tour ended with a stop at Piazzale Michelangelo. We were graced with a view of a huge replica of the David and so blessed with the best view of the city. Words cannot even describe. So I'll leave you with this picture. Just let that one sink in for a minute...yeah, it definitely took more than just a minute. After staring at that beauty for a good 20 minutes, we called it a day and headed home.

The next days were very eventful, including a walking tour of the city, another trip up to Piazzale Michelangelo, a day trip to the gorgeous town of Fiesole in Toscana (about 20 minutes from Firenze), and a trip to the train station and the Piazza del Duomo. Viewing the Duomo up close and at night was unlike anything else. We proceed to go to a gelateria nearby (curtesy of Pepperdine) and took in the city. Whats that saying, again? When in Florence, do as the Florentines do--or something like that. What have you.


Exhausted. That's how everyone felt. As amazing as the city is and as much fun as we were experiencing, it was rough getting up in the mornings. Surely we would be able to sleep in on the weekend...right? Wrong. Two more days of adventures through Toscana. Those bus rides were torture. But my God...getting there and seeing Siena; I'll let the picture speak for itself. I completely and utterly feel in love with Siena. It was unlike anything I had ever imagined. Free from the hustle & bustle of Florence's crazy streets, Siena is a quiet and beautiful city with a rich history. Visiting the Siena Duomo and San Domenico to see the Relics of St. Catherine were awe-inspiring.

We left Siena and travelled to another small town in Tuscany, San Gimignano. Smaller than the other places we visited, San Gimignano is a medieval town known for its many towers. Another quiet place with a gelateria claiming to be "The World's Best Ice Cream." So naturally I checked it out. And it came pretty damn close.

I am so in love with this country and there is so much I have yet to explore.

It also came to my attention as I was writing this that the chronological order of some of the above days might be wrong. That is because I honestly am getting everything mixed up. I cannot believe that at the time I am publishing this post, I haven't even been in Florence for a full week. It feels like we've been here forever, in the best possible way.