First Weeks in Florence

It has been an exciting couple of weeks! Since our last encounter I have done much more than I expected to do in such a short amount of time. Other than wondering around Florence, I have started classes (which I must say I am very happy with, my teachers are amazing) and I have traveled to both Cinque Terre and Milan.

Cinque Terre was a last minute trip planned by a couple of friends I made in the program. The easiest way to explain this amazing place is by saying that it is located on the coast of the Italian Riviera. The area is split into 5 small towns (hence the name “The Five Lands”) in between hills and mountains that overlook the sea. The colorful houses and small buildings are stacked one after the other giving each of them an amazing view. After climbing many, many stairs, getting on several trains that took us from town to town, and then hopping on a 40-minute boat ride we finally got the chance to hit the beach. After a long day we had visited all five and were rewarded with a nice swim and some amazing pizza.

A week after coming back from Cinque Terre, a friend from back home and I decided to head on over to Milan. The train ride from Florence to Milan was only an hour and forty minutes so we got on the earliest train and got to Milan with a whole day to wonder. We visited the Cathedral, the Duomo, a park nearby, and then eventually ended up in an amazing street called Navaglio Grande. Although we did get lost several times on our way there, once we got to the area we fell in love. Through the middle of the street runs a river, splitting it in two, yet multiple bridges that connect both sides made it easy to wander from one side of the river to the other. The river was surrounded by restaurants, small shops and bars which came to life as we sat down for dinner and watched the sun slowly go down. It was an amazing day.

I feel like I have come a long way from being that girl who had just gotten off the plane and was worried that she wasn’t going to be able to figure out anything about the amazing city that is Florence. Between the language barrier and culture shock, I didn’t really know how I was going to get by. But, with every day that goes by the more I fall in love with the city and the more I get excited to learn all about it. Hopefully there will be many more adventures to come. Ciao until then!

Carolina R