Welcome to Florence!

Internet sucked last night, so I couldn't post this...

This is my third day in Florence, but I've been so busy that I forgot to write. Oops. My bad.

We flew from London to Pisa and bused from Pisa to Florence.

Our hotel in Florence is pretty cute. I got pretty lucky because my room has a balcony that overlooks one of the beautiful streets. I'm rooming with a girl named Jo who is also one of my roommates in Rome. She is SO nice, and we get along great!

When we first arrived in Florence, we had a little free time (or nap time to most of us). That night we went to a couple bars. Our biggest mistake that night was to go out so dang early, and by early I mean 10:00 pm. We quickly realized that we were the only people out, since some clubs don't even open until 11:00. Don't worry, the next night we learned from our mistake.

Saturday, we had most of our orientation stuff. Our school for these two weeks is more like a random building with a couple classrooms, but I like it. We did some ice breakers and then went to lunch... a three course lunch. I've never felt so full in my life. It was quite painful actually. That's when I wondered: How the hell do European women stay so skinny when they eat like this every day?!

I discovered the secret... They walk EVERYWHERE. And not just a few blocks. We walk miles every day. My feet and knees hurt so bad that I can't even recover at night. I wake up still sore, and get to do it all over again. But I am loving every second of it.

How could you not love this?

That night we didn't leave the hotel until after 11:30 pm and went to a huge club in Florence called "Space". And let me tell you, it was out of this world! We took the place over, all of us getting free drinks and shots from the club owner. It was awesome. A guy in my program named Nick and I even sang "Livin' on a Prayer" by Bon Jovi karaoke style. We will see if that video ever pops up on Facebook!

Then after a very long night of fun activities, we all finally got to sleep in. And we definitely did. My roommate finally woke me up at noon, knowing I wanted to enjoy the day. But I was not alone. Most people were still asleep. So, I grabbed Daniela, Sara, and Katie and we went to a little pizzeria down the street. Then we went exploring and did a little shopping as well! At 5 we had an optional art walking tour, so I decided to go, because, why not? Turns out, it wasn't even about art, but our tour guide was a hoot and a half! Such a cute Italian man.

Our tour guide! He also had bright red glasses. Sorry the picture is blurry... He never stopped moving.

At the end of the tour, Peter (our tour guide) just kind of left us miles away from our hotel! None of us knew where we were, but that's the great thing: You have to let yourself get lost to make the best discoveries! While wandering around we found some great shops and restaurants. I also bought some pistachio gelato, which I highly recommend if you are ever in the area.

Some awesome street art we stubbled upon.