Week 1: Florence

Welcome! I’m excited that you’ve decided to check out my study abroad blog. Ever since I was in high school I knew I wanted to study abroad. That dream has now become a reality! I left home on January 21st after a stressful night of packing and trying to narrow down my admittedly extensive closet. Saying goodbye to my dogs did have me in tears… Mom and Dad please send me more pictures…

On one of my first nights I got to see the sun setting as we crossed the bridge on our way to dinner.

The city is divided into two parts by the Arno River. Every day I cross this bridge!

Quick break after walking around the market.

After a long winter break and lots of family time, it was a little bit challenging to jump right into such a different atmosphere and lots of independence in a new country. I struggled a little bit with gaining my footing and realizing that this is truly my life now; I’m not hopping back on a flight to Wisconsin any time soon! Now that I have been here a week I am starting to get more of a grasp on the Italian lifestyle, but I still feel quite stupid at times when I cannot understand a word of what is being said to me. Although I try to be the mysterious cool girl (if you know me closely you know I have a weird thing for aesthetics) but the blonde hair and botched pronunciation is pretty much an easy giveaway. I’m trying though! I ordered my cappuccino in full Italian today which took a full week to hype myself up to do. In the words of Lauren, I turn into a little mouse when I try to speak Italian because I am nervous to completely mess up and say the wrong thing. However, living here has already increased my confidence in at least trying. Besides every waiter, waitress, barista, etc. being extremely sweet and accommodating whenever I try to order, there are a couple other things I’ve noticed. First, do not expect anyone to move over for you on the street. I am so used to my quick pace on USC’s campus that I was completely shocked by the slower pace of this city. If you’ve seen me on campus at school this is often what you can expect to see: me speed walking with my big grey headphones on while my hands are full with various items like art projects or camera gear. People definitely move to the side of the sidewalk for me to pass and vice versa. That definitely is not the case here. I often find myself walking uncomfortably slow behind people here, itching to swerve around them. I think a big learning process of this experience will be abandoning the hustle culture I am so used to and embracing the luxury of a slower lifestyle, filled with friends, food, and so much culture and beauty surrounding me. I’ll keep updating you on other differences as they reach me.

Saturday morning visit to the Sant Ambrogio Market.

We have been up to a lot this past week, leaving me completely exhausted at the end of each day. I love how walkable the city is; there isn’t a single street that isn’t absolutely gorgeous. Upon arriving on Monday, Lauren and I had the absolute joy of dragging two suitcases each 30 minutes from the train station to Natalie and Maddie’s apartment, where we were spending the night. Never mind the fact that one of my suitcases was 50 pounds… I mean, I lift and all but that was pushing it. Taking up the entire sidewalk, wearing a hoodie and yoga pants, while the suitcases’ wheels kept getting stuck in the cobblestone was one of the most humbling experiences of my life. Once we reached the apartment we had some much needed downtime and then had an amazing gnocchi dinner by the Duomo.

The rest of the week flew by, lots of walking around and exploring the city, eating amazing food, and the occasional clubbing night. Don’t worry Mom, my boot heels have not gotten stuck in the cobblestone yet. Besides all of the wonderful food and coffee I’ve had so far, my favorite thing we did was walking up to the Piazzale Michelangelo. This plaza overlooks the entire city and with the combination of the sunset, the live music, and all of the different people around me, I truly experienced a moment of surrealism; I feel so extremely blessed to get to be in this country and city for the semester. The immense beauty around me and the new friends I’ve already made have set a wonderful foundation for the weeks to come.

Yay Liv has arrived!

Overlook from Piazzale Michelangelo.

See you next week!