Fiorentinas at Via dei Serragli 41?

So, apparently, Rachel met some Fiorentinas (the soccer players) out dancing. She is seeing one of them now, which makes her the coolest girl at school, easily. They all came over last night and we drank wine and then they left. They were funny, but I looked at the roster this morning and their names did not appear there...very fishy. Anyway, they're still the worst team in the league, so it's like meeting a high school baseball player. ;)

A nice walk to Fiesole

So last week instead of class, we took an early morning bus in the rain to Fiesole, an Etruscan town near here, and walked back. It rained most of the way, but it was so lovely. We started at a Franciscan monestary, passed a Domincan one on the way, and also passed a villa that Hemingway wrote at (he sure got around, eh?). It was such a nice morning, I wish all classes were that nice. I don't want to leave. I'll try to post pics, bear with me. We had a lovely view of all of Florence and it was super misty and creepy looking.

I'm spoiled rotten

And here's why...
well, obviously the food. I have a zucchini in my fridge that has been there for 2.5 weeks and has not shown the slightest age. I plan to eat it tomorrow.

School. It can't get any easier. People complain that it's hard here, but I don't know what their home schools are like. I have 5 papers to write this week, no problem.

Coffee. It takes literally 4 minutes to have some at a bar and pay in the morning. Not to hot, not tooooo caffiene-y, just right.

Wine. You can get a really good bottle for 3.50. I'll be ruined when I get home because that same bottle will be $11.

Amazing art everywhere I look. Sursly, I feel like a hack here being proud of covering a tin in pretty paper.

Things I miss are numerous, like internet all the time, like my own dishes and a blender, like a big bed and my husband and cats, and etc etc. I will miss Italy, but the time has come to look forward to home.

New glasses and pineapple series

Joe in Firenze!

Joe really was here, I promise.

It's photo time!

I really am sorry about the lack of visuals on this blog. I know I repeat myself, but it's *really* hard to get enough internet time to post things. Okay, enough complaining about the internet. Here comes the soccer game!









This is, from left to right, Val (aka Vava Hore, which was printed on her ticket. You can call her Vava), me and Karen having a ball with the crazy Italian fans.

I miei genitori!

My parents are here! My dad is so skinny and my mom is so cute! They had a terrible time getting here, but I found them at their hotel last night around 7 or so. We walked around a bit, you should have seen their faces when we got to the Duomo! Even at night they were freaking out. We had dinner in the Piazza della Republica, and then gelato, of course, and then I walked them home. Today Karen and I met them at the Duomo for mass at noon, which was lovely. My dad was keeping up with the prayers with the little paper they gave him just for that purpose. They were surprised by the fact that when communion time came, every one just got up, there was no pew by pew or any such orderly procession. I was not surprised by this, given the lack of “line respect” I’ve seen in the last few months.

After mass, Karen and my dad and I climbed Giotto’s belltower, and all got vertigo-y and nervous before we got to the top top. I pointed out the important sights and we went down to find my mom who had gotten this super cool book of pictures of Florence now, and then it had these cello overlays that show what it looked like “then.” We all had a lovely lunch together, and then my parents and I made our way to Piazza della Signoria, where we saw the giant Neptune fountain, the fake David, a thousand other sculptures, and my favorite, the plaque in the middle commemorating the place where Savonarola held his famous “Bonfires of the Vanities.” My mom was freaking out with all the history all around. I’m so happy to be here when they see it. We walked around a little bit more, and then I headed home to do laundry and homework. Hooray.

Karen and I are getting sadder and sadder to leave. Everyday is one day closer to the end, and we are just starting to feel settled in. I finally feel like maybe I could meet some real Italians and make some real Florentine friends, but school is yoinking the rug out from under me. Let’s not think about that anymore.

Todd and Jenny arrive Sunday, which I’m super excited about. I just hope they have as much fun as Don and Joanna are having!

Midterm results, because I know you're excited.

Okay, I know you’re all dying to know how I did on midterms. So I’m happy to report an A for Cinema, an A+ for fashion history, a C+ for Italian (eeee) an A for Medieval lit and an A for 20^th century lit. Good thing they make school so easy here. I won’t be able to keep up next semester! My Medieval lit professor assigned us 15 pages of reading for homework, and then asked if it would be okay if he gave us an extra 5. Oy. I’m getting spoiled in so many different ways by Italia.

Have I mentioned that I think ALL Italians wear glasses? And super cool ones at that. I’m dying for a pair of killer glasses and will keep you updated on what I find. I love Italian fashion, at least the stuff I can’t afford. The rest of it is a little, well, icky. The fashion-y items I’ve been obsessed with are a few bags (of course), glasses, and coats. Even the shoes are only eh. My bank account is glad for that, I’m sure.

So my parents arrive Saturday, as I mentioned, and my mom emailed me about a medieval armory museum that I had no idea existed. How fun will that be? I hope to get to a few touristy things with them, and that is at the top of the list.

I’m trying to think of Italian things I’ve done lately that you want to hear about! Here’s one, it’s freezing in our apartment. We all sleep in sweaters under 100 blankets because our landlord can’t get around to coming over to turn the heat on. Joe and I went back to the jazz club and heard a really great singer. She was like a musical instrument, the way she could scat.

Last night we made popcorn and watched Flashdance. Is that Italian? Maybe not, but it sure was fun!

I can't believe she's alive after all these years...

Okay, I can’t resist any more. One of my roommates (not Karen) is SOOO stupid…

“How stupid is she?”

She’s so stupid, she asked, “So London is English and Paris is French?”

She’s so stupid, she thought a green patina-ed bronze copy of Michelangelo’s David outside the city was the real one, and was happy to show it to her parents.

She’s so stupid, she compared a story of wealthy Jews being arrested and taken to concentration camps to American reality TV--IN CLASS.

She’s so stupid she thought she was going to dance on a bar, and ended up letting the bartender take a body shot off of her and then cried for a week about cheating on her boyfriend.

She’s so stupid, she started yelling in her Italian class, “why does everyone keep saying ‘va bene?’ What does ‘va bene’ mean anyway?” (this is what Italians say for okay.)

She’s so stupid, she spent 8 weeks calling every hotel in town to find out rates, but never asked about availability and was surprised when rates went up and they didn’t have room for her and her parents/boyfriend a week before they arrived.

She’s so stupid that she was reading some nonsense chick-lit and said, “according to my book, if you don’t have sex for a year, you’re a virgin again.” You should have seen Joe’s face for that one.

Thank you for letting me publicly vent about this particularly frustrating teenager. Stay tuned for more stupidity henceforth titled “Daily Stupidity.”

Halloween!

Oh, I forgot to tell you about Halloween! That was the night my school friends were supposed to come out and meet Joe. Only two made it, Dionisia of scooting fame, and Paul who is very funny and cool (he’s coming over on Friday to watch my downloads of the Project Runway finales).

As you all know, Joe has this incredible manner of meeting excellent people really quickly, and was outside the pub smoking his pipe when a man dressed like Hunter S. Thompson stuck his head out of a window 2 stories up and they began a shouting conversation. Joe came back in and told us we’d been invited to a party, so up we went (the bartender handed us Guiness witch hats on our way out, I folded mine up into a cowboy hat). The young’uns bailed (I think the combination of too many cocktails and too many adults was too much for them), but Joe and Karen and I had a marvelous time. The apartment belonged to an American named Mark who is attending a 4 year masters of painting school here in Florence. We met several of his classmates, including a man in his 50s, Harry, from Brooklyn, a woman from Queens, an Italian who proposed to Karen, and Australian girl who was enjoying her first Halloween ever and many more people. It was quite a fun night, and we saw some of Mark’s paintings, they were really excellent. Hooray for rooms full of artists wherever I go. Hooray for my personable huzbin.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOE!

I love you and miss you and am sending you cake through space. Happy birthday, Mr. Adorable.

I'm back!

Sorry for being so missing, dear readers. I was on vacation from my vacation, and so here is a very abbreviated version of what has been going on here. Joe was here and we had a marvelous time. We hung around here in Firenze, and then we were off to Cinqueterre, which has to be one of the most gorgeous places on earth. We hiked a bit, but some of the trails were closed. We had an ocean view (if we stuck our heads out and turned left) out our hotel window (we stayed in the middle town, Coniglia). The next day (Monday? Tuesday? Who can tell) we took a train to Manarola and a boat from there to Riomaggiore. We saw an amazing exhibit about Leonardo DaVinci at the Uffizzi gallery, it was about all of his works rather than focusing on one thing or another. It was cool to see all of it at once, he must have never slept. Talk about manic.

Joe and I went twice to our favorite restaurant in the world, Mario. It’s amazing, and I’m sorry to tell you for your sake that it defies description without gestures and happy face making and lots of “mmm” and “oh my god”s. But oh, my. Mom and Dad, we can have Thanksgiving there the Friday after, or we can go to another place that’s making American Thanksgiving on Thursday night…you decide. Both would put us all in the hospital, and while medicine is socialized here, I still don’t think it would be too fun.

Then we rolled ourselves to Rome. Karen and Val were there already, having a blast of course. They made friends with some adorable Carabinieri (military police) and one of them is Karen’s admirer now. He’s coming up for a visit soon. We went to Saint Angelo’s castle, the protection of the Vatican, and the baths of Caracalla. It was like “advanced Rome.” We did go back to the ice bar, because you just have to see it. Karen has those pics, but she’ll give me some soon.

Devon asked me what I want for Christmas the other day, and I told him Indian food and a whole uninterrupted hour on the internet. Add to that life without teenagers, and I’ll be in heaven.

My parents arrive on Saturday! Hooray! It’s their first time in Europe, and I know they’ll be blown away. I’ll keep you updated.