Trip to Florence!

This weekend I went out to Florence with a group of other students! We went to a lot of museums and saw some incredible works of art and other interesting buildings.

We were not told the museums we were going to see until we got there but everyone knew we would have time to go to the leather market. I was really excited and held off buying one in Rome because I had heard you could get them cheaper and see more variety in Florence. Boooyyyy was that true. The Florence market did have a lot of similar things to Rome but they had every color imaginable, every strap color, every style of bag you could imagine and more. They had everything from key chains to wallets to notebooks to masks. It was crazy big and a lot of fun. The merchants are very aggressive so beware! They know to get you to buy something and they will do their best to do so.

We also went to the Salvator Ferragamo museum. This years exhibition was about his return to Florence and it was covered in art that inspired him and all different kinds. They had plates, painting, and even fabrics. It was interesting to learn all the things he did in his life and the people he met. He designed shoes for Aubry Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe and his business is still run today by his wife and children. It was really cool to hear about his life and how he made his first pair of shoes at 9 years old. I think I was still playing with dolls at that age, not skilled enough to operate a sewing machine much less a needle and thread!

Another fun thing Avery and I did was find a little Chinese place to eat at. I have been thinking about chicken fried rice for weeks now and I was so excited to be able to find a place here that serves it. You’d think they would have more restaurants here but everything, and I mean everything, is pizza and pasta. Unless you count McDonalds as a restaurant! Overall, the weekend was really fun and a lot of learning!

Week 1 In Rome!

This has been my first full week in Rome and wow! It’s easy to see why it’s named the most beautiful city in the world! Classes began last week and I’ve already seen so much!

We had an orientation on Wednesday, May 31st, where we walked to the Pantheon and learned some of the history behind it. It was incredible. After walking to see that and picking up some gelato our tour guide dismissed us to learn the streets of Rome and find our way home. It was a challenging experience but through our confusion my roommate, Avery, and I were able to navigate ourselves back to our apartment. (side note: our apartment is awesome!)

On June 1st and 2nd we started our classes and didn’t get around to exploring too much because the jet lag caught up to us, but on Saturday and Sunday Avery and I traveled to Ostia Antica to sit at the beach and explore 7th Century BC ruins. The beach was relaxing after the first few days of traveling and the ruins were incredible. They were described as Italy’s best kept secret and they didn’t disappoint.

On June 5th Avery and I went to the Trevi Fountain and went back again on the 7th!

Our classes are on Tuesdays and Thursdays all day and we usually end up going to a museum or two with our professors and the rest of our classes. We have already written a couple observational papers for our econ class about the different places we have gone. It’s so different here it makes it so easy to spot differences in culture and mannerisms.

This past weekend we visited the Vatican, Villa D’Este, Coliseum and the Forum. They were all incredible and had remarkable pieces of art. Pictures don’t do them justice these places are things you need to see for yourself.

I’m so excited for these next week to see what new places I’ll get to explore!

(Pictures aren’t uploading right now but I’ll try to get them up in the next day or so!)

 

Going to Rome!

I am Elena Macaluso and I will be traveling to Rome this summer! I can’t wait to see what new and exciting adventures I experience!