Monday, January 31, 2011

Quite a day...

As for my first day of classes...

Study of the italian Mafia was AWESOME! That is going to be a really neat class!

Italian was pretty hard... my teacher speaks VERY limited english and we jumped RIGHT into speaking italian!

Psychology of effective managers was really neat as well.

Then... Got lost in Florence for AN HOUR trying to get home from class, passed the Duomo about seven hundred times, got pooped on by a bird, and ended up at a location so far it was off the map, BUT i did see the most gorgeous Italian boy ever, making my accidental adventure all around Florence absolutely worth it!!! 


Ciao! 

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Thank you, Rick Steves

Yesterday was truly one most incredible days. It was the first "free" day that we had. We all decided to sleep in to shake off some of our jet leg and rest up before school starts. It seems like since being here we have been going nonstop so it was really nice to have a relaxing morning.

 We went to the Uffizi and got our Uffizi passes which will allow us entry into a number of fabulous museums and churches around the city. Then we went inside the Duomo and Duomo museum. Incredible.

Thanks to my Rick Steves Florence book we learned SO much!!! The Duomo has a rich history and is a compilation of some of Italy's most influential artistic geniuses.  The Duomo's construction begain in 1296 and has had several face lifts since then.


Across from the entrance you can see the "gates of Paradise" by Ghiberti. Ghiberti won a citywide competition to construct these doors depicting scenes from the Bible. These are copies but the REAL panels can be found inside the Duomo museum.

When you enter the Duomo you enter into a 500 feet long by 300 feet wide nave.  Here you can see the BEAUTIFUL painted dome of the "Last judgement" constructed by Brunelleschi, whose tomb is in the Duomo's basement... Also in this area is a huge clock made in 1443. This is a 24 hour clock that starts at sunset and STILL WORKS today!

Then we went to the Duomo museum. I cannot even begin to describe all of the absolutely incredible things that live in this museum. Some of my favorites included:

John the Baptist's index finger!! WEIRD!

Michelangelo's Pieta. This is one of the last pieces that Michelangelo completed before dying. Three mourners tend to Christ after his crucification. Christ is held by a figure representing Michelangelo himself. Seen face on the figures seem very sad and lifeless however, seen from the right their faces change emotions from this grief to peaceful expressions. SO COOL.

Donatello's Mary Magdelene. This carving is extremely moving because of Mary's realistic expression.

After getting lost with Rick in the Duomo Museum for over 2 hours we stayed in the Duomo and attended english mass at 5. It was incredible to go to a mass in such an amazing church. We're going to work our way up to going in Italian and even Latin!







gelato.. YUM

The Arno
Tomorrow is our first day of school! I have 3 classes: Study of the Italian Mafia, Italian 1, and Psychology.  I am so anxious to see what school at Lorenzo De Medici is like!

Friday, January 28, 2011

SALDI!

 Today we went to their version of "Target". I bet the whole store could have fit into just Targets cereal isle! There are so many funny differences! You must pay one euro for the rental of a shopping cart while in the store, you get your euro back when the cart is returned. Most people, however, just use these little rolling baskets while they shop. For the delicious, fresh, fruits and veggies, you MUST put on a glove to pick out what you want. Afterwards you weigh your selection and print out the price. If you fail to do this and check out with non priced items, you will be angrily turned away at the check out. In the fresh meats department you MUST take a number and wait until your number is up on the screen. You will not be served unless you do this, even if you are the only person in the store! The milk, meat, and cheese here is all so fresh and unprocessed that it lasts a WHOLE lot shorter time here than in the states. Most people go to the supermarket EVERYDAY just to get their food to make dinner that night and then maybe for breakfast the next morning. Italians eat dessert foods for breakfast and omelets for dinner. 

After the market we went  for coffee and pastries. I learned how to say Empty or "No filling", "VUOTO"  a CRUCIAL lesson for me here! Almost as crucial as, "SALDI" !

We've been sort of compiling a list of places outside of Italy we must travel to and visit. Munich and Croatia were suggested to us by Italians. Any other must sees?!


Tomorrow is our first completely FREE day. We are planning museum visits, mass at the Duomo, and then going to Italian space (not kidding, check it out: http://www.spaceelectronic.net/) 
Delicious Pizza at Gusta Pizza

Beautiful church we just "stumbled" upon

Roomies on the Pointe Vecchio




Our school! We start school this Monday! 

Ciao for now! 

XOXO 

PS: SALDI=SALE! 

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Firenze!

Finally made it! This place is absolutely phenomenal.. I honestly cannot believe I am actually getting to live  here! After a ten hour, 1,537 mile, flight from Fort Worth, I arrived in Frankfort on Tuesday and then had about another hour and a half flight right into Florence. The views from the plane landing in Florence were outstanding. So many beautiful hills and valleys.

The first two nights we were here we stayed in Hotel Medici right in the heart of Florence. Im not sure the hotel owners knew what they were getting themselves into when they invited 16 Texas girls with our huge, heavy suitcases, to come stay in their tiny old hotel.... To say we overwhelmed the 5 by 5 ft lobby is a severe understatement!

<------------Our room... for THREE ppl! Thats all!





We got over the room conditions once we realized that THIS was our view! The Duomo! Absolutely Breathtaking. You MUST see this in person, pictures dont do it justice. 

Today we finally got to move into our flats! Ours is beautiful, we totally lucked out! We are across the stunning Ponte Vecchio bridge away from the Duomo. This area is much more residual and less touristy.  A local Florentine told us that this area is much more desirable because of the open land, the fresh markets, and the local night life. I am staying with 5 other girls from TCU, we have a really fun group. We have three bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, a kitchen, a dining room, and a living room. I was defiantly not expecting a place this big, its awesome!!! Our walk to the school (starting Monday)/ Duomo area is about 10-15 min, but the beautiful scenery and people along the way certainly make up for the travel time!!

My room! I spy Dr. Charles 

all our wonderful storage space!

dining/study/skyping  room 

cute little kitchen!

outside drying rack!

family room 

Via Santa Maria, our new home!!! 

XOXO 

Saturday, January 22, 2011

TO DO: Get on the plane

After checking things off and then adding more to what seemed like an endless "TO DO" list, I am finally down to just one task, GET TO FLORENCE! I honestly cannot believe the time has really come, but I feel very ready to stop the 'planning and preparing' and finally start the 'exploring and experiencing'.  


With a brand new twitter account (Mcboschini), skype name (Mary.boschini), and now blog site, this formally very UNtechno savvy girl has already begun learning a lot on this adventure. I hope these avenues will help me stay in touch with all of you while I am in Europe. 


I will sincerely miss all of you, my close friends and family, while I am away but truly appreciate all of your thoughts, prayers, and well-wishes. 


Ciao for now! Next time, from Firenze! 


Grab the Passport and leave the Boots behind! (Betcha cant believe it? I'm not taking a single pair of cowboy boots with me.... What am I getting myself into?!)