Ciao amici!
Everything is going so fabulously here. I have been attending Italian class every day, which is going very well. My background in Latin and in Spanish has made it fairly easy. My teacher is this young, super adorable, girl. She is so fun, bubbly, and charismatic; it makes the hours of Italian grammar go by fairly quickly.
I live with five other girls in a really nice apartment. One girl is a local Italian girl named Alessandra. She is the cutest girl in the whole world. She is always smiling and is so happy all the time. She has been really helpful: showing us where the supermarket is; showing how to use the metro; giving us restaurant, bar, and club recommendations; and helping us with our homework. She even helped me throw my friend, Chris, a 21st birthday party here at my apartment.
Today was her birthday so my housemates and I made her dinner: American dinner with burgers, grilled cheese, and french fries. I think she loved it; she almost started crying when she saw all the hello kitty decorations. She has been really great; I am really lucky to have her as my RA.
Unfortunately, I've been sick all week, so I haven't been able to explore Milan as much as I would like, but thankfully I have another 4 months to do so. :) This past weekend I went to Pisa, and I have a trip to Venice planned for next weekend. Next weekend, it is Carnival in Venice! I am so excited... Carnival of Venice is supposed to bring out the true colors of Venice. The masks and the costumes! Oh it's going to be so amazing!
I did visit Pisa this past weekend! The trip was so great and luckily so successful for my first trip. It was certainly an experience. Chris' birthday was Friday, so I threw an aperitivo at my apartment for him as a get-together before everyone went to a club. Everyone got back at 3am from the club, and our train for Pisa was at 6am! I managed to get everyone out the door and to the train station on time... it was quite a production. Working off an hour of sleep, we arrived in Pisa four hours later!
I have 300 photos from yesterday. It is going to take me a while to sift through them and put them up. I will post a few in the coming days. We had the nicest weather; we were so lucky. The square, where the Leaning Tower of Pisa is located, is made up of a Basilica, a Duomo, and several other museums. The whole area looked like it was out of a movie set. Nothing looked real. It is hard to believe that you are staring at a building that is leaning at a 5 degree angle. There were ten of us from IES who went to Pisa, but we ended up splitting into smaller groups early in the day. Chris, Sadie and I spent a good hour trying to take the best photo of "holding the building up."
After our photo shoot, we climbed the Leaning Tower! It's scary how much you can feel the angle of the building. The view from the top of the tower was breathtaking. I could see the city of Pisa and the mountains in the background. There aren't words that are strong enough and descriptive enough to explain how amazing the view was or how extravagant and regal the duomo was. No wonder a picture is worth a 1000 words. But even pictures don't do it justice. I've visited many cathedrals throughout my travels, and this duomo was certainly in the top 10 of regal churches. It was such a great day and there are many more to come! (Can't wait to post the photos for you!)
... In other news...
I just signed up for classes. BEST SCHEDULE EVER... I am taking an Italian Fascism and Anti-Semitism course. The teacher is supposed to be great, and the course is completely ME right? I am also taking an environmental sustainability course for my International Affairs major. AND I am taking a fashion design course at the local university! I am taking a fashion design course at one of the top fashion design universities in the fashion capital in the world! AH! It's going to be super intense and I am going to be way out of my league... but since when have I ever backed down from a challenge?? Going to be epic! ... next Armani here lol
Anyways, everything is going great and I have plans to get a few other trips on the calendar. Hopefully I can visit Zoe in Florence and Kayla K. in Copenhagen.
My dad asked me today whether this was my best abroad experience. And I have had a lot of abroad experiences and my response is always that each and every one is completely different and cannot be compared. Visiting a synagogue in Djerba, Tunisia where Jews and Muslims live together peacefully; Sailing through the Panama Canal; Praying at the Western Wall; Trying to make the guards outside of Buckingham Palace laugh... They are all unique and unforgettable experiences. The next four months are going to be amazing... with great people, a new language, and new fantastical sights (like Paris and Venice and Berlin). What an experience I am having! Can't wait to keep you updated.
Hugs and Kisses from halfway across the world.
~E
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