Arrival...

I have arrived in Italy safe and sound! I love it here! There's so much to do and so much I want/HAVE to see before I leave. I finally have a computer that I can use, which is my roommates, but we are stealing wireless from somewhere in the area. Maybe from the Dolce and Gabbana store downstairs! The street we live on with the Biliotti family is super nice. It's all designer stores. But, the traffic outside is SO loud! It's impossible to sleep, so I think once I get tired enough or used to the time change, I will probably crash. I have already walked all over the area, but just staying inside the city center (which is the main tourist-y part of the city with all the old ruins and new museums.) It is toursit time in the city, which I wish I could consider myself not part of, but considering Christy (the roommate) and I have to stop on every street corner to pull out the map, I would say we definitely count as tourists. The family we are staying with is so amazing! We live with Mauro and Loriana Biliotti. They are an elderly couple who live in a large apartment in the city center with their cat Berillo. Mauro is an incredible artist who lived in San Diego for many years, so he speaks very good English. Loriana is a retired seamstress who speaks very little English. She knows small phrases like 'no problem' and 'is good.' They have given me one month to learn Italian, then they are not going to speak anymore English to me. I guess this is good because I need to learn, but it might get confusing at first!! I am surprised that I understand so much just from the Spanish skills I have learned. There are many similar words, which is really good. The Biliotti's cook amazing food for us for dinner. The first night we were here they cooked a 'light' dinner because we were tired. So we only had salad, cantelope wrapped in proschuto (a WEIRD combo, but a delacacy here...), salame, cheese, and penne pasta with meat sauce. Yeah, I KNOW!! I felt like I was going to pop from this light dinner!! The next night they cooked us the best lasagna I have ever had, with homemade noodles.

The flight in was uneventful. I flew all night and made a lay over in Germany. Luckily there were many other SAI (Study Abroad Italy) students on the plane with me so it was very easy to find where I needed to go.

The first few days we have been having orientation. Christy and I have been finding our way to our classes, which is only a 20 minute walk down along the Arno River past the Uffizzi Gallery and over Ponte Vecchio. Not going to lie though, I thought this was going to be an amazing walk, but all the tourists get in the way!! It is so hard to weave through the masses of people and avoid being run over by the vespas, who we learned very quickly DON'T STOP for pedestrians!! But everything is beautiful here and every church or ancient building that I pass I make a mental note to go inside soon because I think of all the incrdible architecture and paintings that I have studied in Jeff's classes that await inside. I have to wait to get my international student discount card so I can get in free!! We have been to the Duomo (many times already) and to all the main churches, but have yet to go inside.

I had my first gelato experience!! I cannot get enough!! Christy and I have decided to make a goal to try every flavor available. I had stracciatella (I think is how it s spelled...) it's like chocolate chip, but really calling it that does it NO justice! Gelato and espresso are possibly the best inventions in the world. Oh, and their wine's not so bad here either...

Anyways, it is lunch time, so we are going to find a 'bar'. (Which is really a cafe here...what American's call bars are 'pubs'. The Italians might be disappionted when they come to America looking for food and only find sleezy bars...)