Firenze: It's On

Finally in Firenze! The flights were an adventure that truly started off this semester right. 

First leg had me staying in LA for the night , which was wonderful because I was able to stay with my mom and say goodbye, as well as see Leif, who drove up to see me after work. 

I met two roomies and another Chapman girl in LA and we flew all the way together. The fun leg came on the Chicago to Zurich one...never have I been more cramped in my life, no sleep there. Then Zurich had us leave the city (which is full of cottages and sloping green luscious hills) and fly straight over the Alps! Full of snow and higher than any mountain I've ever seen they extended into the sky with lakes and small villages scattered among them. 

The Florence airport was surprisingly easy to get out of, no customs or visa/passport check which was strange but fine by me! The whole flight at that point was filled with American and international students so meeting people became the name of the game. I felt like I was thrown straight back into orientation week at Chapman. In a wonderful way of course because everyone has been so nice and fun so far! And from all over as well, NY, NJ, OH, OR, CA, Holland, Paris, MA, NE...just everywhere, with different accents, varying backgrounds and stories, but with all a joint fascination and love for Italy.


Hard not to though truly, this place is like a dream...or a movie set. The buildings hardly seem real, I feel like I'm continuously coming to the end of the street in California Adventure when I realize that I would walk into a wall because the buildings seem fake! 


Narrow streets, cobblestone roads, tall buildings, windows open everywhere, clothes and linens hanging on lines and people poking their heads out to observe the street life. Everyday there are street vendors for fresh food, leather, and miscellanious goods in the local marketplaces. 


My apartment is old but beautiful, no A/C so we keep our windows open all the time for fresh air, the locks and appliances are old and antique in a good way, they still work fine so it's all good. No dryer or dishwasher...or microwave so things may get interesting in that sense but everything else is quaint and fantastico! Molto fantastico!


But already I've had so much wine and pasta I may never want to come back to the states, or at least eat Italian food there. The food is OUT OF THIS WORLD. Literally. The freshness of the ingredients just oozes out flavor and the wine is always served with it and compliments the taste just so...and international students get rockin deals for food and drinks nearly everywhere!


Well the nine hour time difference is still getting to me, jet lag is NO joke. Tomorrow is the Duomo, the food market, planning more trips, maybe renting bikes to explore and going out to the bars and disco! Not American disco however, but clubs are discos here. That is how amazing Italy is.


Ciao for now,
Jessica