Salve! (Hello!)

Ciao! I’ve decided to start a blog for my time in Italy for my benefit as well as yours. So welcome to my very first blog!

I suppose the logical place to start would be the beginning, but I don’t actually care to relive getting here so I’m going to skip that. Let’s just say I’m ecstatic to actually be here. Moving on…

My whole program basically takes places in one Villa- we sleep here, eat here and go to class here. Now some of you may think that this would suck and think we’d go crazy being in one place all the time… you have obviously not seen this place yet. The Villa is beautiful, exquisite, gorgeous, stunning, and absolutely magnificent. (And yes I just looked up synonyms for beautiful- it deserves every word)

So “The Villa” resides in a bedroom suburb of Florence called Sesto Fiorentino, it’s really quaint and I actually really enjoy living in the suburbs it’s more authentic plus it is super easy to get into Florence. They put a lot of effort into preserving the Villa and so far they’ve been really successful. I remember during my first meal here looking up and just seeing this magnificent work of art and thinking how cool is it that this is where I eat everyday. It’s slightly difficult to explain, but just like the city it resides it’s quaint and authentic. I live in a 5 ish room. I say ish because it is one big room where my four roommates live and then in the back right corner there is a little side room where my bed is. It’s actually kind of entertaining. I also didn’t have a light for awhile so I lived in the dark, alone- not weird at all. The way the Villa is set up sort of like a dorm, except instead of big communal bathrooms there is a bathroom for every room that just the people that live in that room share which is nice. For example, my room has a bathroom attached to it with 2 showers, 2 sinks, and 2 toilets for the five of us so that’s nice (except that it is pitch black in the toilet stalls and only one shower has a curtain, but that’s another story).

I think the most beautiful part of the Villa is the gardens. I haven’t even explored all the grounds yet (as I missed orientation) but it is just picturesque. I can’t wait for spring so that things are in full bloom and we can hang out outside!

I have really enjoyed the company of the people in the program. Not just the students, but professors and the people that work/ run the Villa. It is always wonderful to meet new people, especially likeminded people. Especially since it is so easy at school to stick to your group and forget that there is soo many other people at your school. It’s kind of crazy that I had to travel across the world to meet all these awesome people that live in Madison, it’s slightly ridiculous. Needless to say I’m very anxious to continue to get to know everyone.

I’ll move on to food because I think that’s what people are most interested in. So far I’ve eaten every meal except one at the Villa, which trust me I’m not complaining about. I’m still getting used to the eating schedule here. Breakfast is served at 7:30 am (for those of you who know me well, not really my favorite time of day) and breakfast is bread or croissants with different spreads like jam, honey, nutella, and homemade peanut butter (which I have been told is out of this world but I have yet to be at a breakfast where it was served). Then lunch is served at 1 (or 13:00 here another thing I am still getting used to). Lunch is the big meal in Italy and is typically followed by a siesta (except apparently not at the Villa as I have class right after lunch). But most stores and things in town are closed between 1 and 3 ish, a concept that baffles most Americans. We were just joking today about how ridiculous that would be in America, could you imagine a CEO not taking meetings from 1 to 3 because he was at home napping? Although I am all for America adapting this idea, maybe that’ll be my next campaign (Americans for Siestas). Anyways lunch typically starts with a soup and then there is a meat with a side of maybe pasta or cuscus (which was out of this world) and usually a salad and oranges are always out. My favorite so far was split pea soup with home made croutons, it took my breath away. We also had egg plant, zuchinni, and peppers cooked to perfection- they were warm and luscious as they touched my lips (haha that sentence was ridiculous). Now these are just highlights, trust me everything is fabulous. Then dinner is served at 7, which is typically a pasta dish with a salad and every other day we get dessert. All meals are served with the most amazing coffee I’ve ever had, I’m addicted. I had lunch in Florence on Sunday and it wasn’t too noteworthy. And I’ve had gelato twice, once in Florence and then tonight in Sesto. We found the most adorable little Gelattoria in Sesto, something tells me that we’ll be back there often!

Now most of you are probably wondering if I am worried that I’m going to come back 300 lbs. The answer is no not really. First off you walk every where and we haven’t even truly began traveling yet so the amount of walking will only increase. Second, I will definitely be going hiking and on runs, I mean the Tuscan mountains are literally outside my windows how much more enjoyable could a run be? Third, the food schedule pretty much prevents me from snacking, plus there is no food to snack on (unless you get a few things from the grocery store, but why spend euros on food when I can eat for free?). Fourth, the food is so fresh and not processed so it has to be at least slightly good for me right?

My classes are great. I’m not to concerned with doing well in them because they are so relevant and interesting. I am taking a Comparative Fascist Cultures class, which looks into how German and Italian fascist movements came into power. The professor is great, really chill and funny! Then I’m taking an Italian Cinema class where we watch a movie every Monday and then discuss it that week. Although the first one wasn’t too enjoyable (I mainly think that had to do with the fact that it was my birthday night and wasn’t exactly what I wanted to be doing). BUT, I’m really looking forward to this class simply because I’ve never taken anything like it. I’ve never even given too much thought to the effect that cinema has had on culture and society, so I’m glad to be finally giving cinema the attention it deserves. Italian, is well, it’s a foreign language so that always comes with it’s challenges but I think the professor is really good and seriously how more relevant could a class be? THEN, there is Art History!! I am obsessively obsessed! The professor knows everything and is soo passionate about it. On Tuesdays we travel to Florence to see the art first hand and she explains them and then on Thursdays we discuss the pieces in more detail. I truly think I’m going to learn a lot in that class and hopefully when some of you come to visit I’ll be able to share at least some knowledge!

Needless to say I feel right at home here, it’s wonderful. So many exciting things have happened already but there is so much to look forward too! I feel very fortunate to be able to have this experience, as it is truly once in a lifetime.

Sorry this was so long, I would say that the other ones won’t be this long but I don’t make any promises. I don’t really care if no one reads this, it is just as much for myself as it is for those of you interested in my life. Well, I’m off to bed as it is 1:10 in the morning here!

Arrivederci!

P.S A lot of Italian words are completely butcher by Americans in America (like boun apettito) so don’t come over here thinking you can say much of anything (DAD!)