siete_domestici

So Top 5 Things that have happened since I last posted...

1. Last night, we went to the opening of this awesome/huge club/bar extravaganza. The weather was beautiful. The people were beautiful. The drinks were expensive. Not my type of place at all, but I met a guy named Fabio... haahha! So it was worth it. This place was so Euro, it was like 'Wild On E!' And yet again... my friends were the ones dancing on the stage.

2. I went in saw 'In Good Company' and I throughly enjoyed. Allright, so the acting wasn't exactly that great and the script was a little cheesy. But it had an awesome soundtrack and it made me smile.

3. Sitting out on the front lawn (i.e. concrete) of the Palazzo Pitti practically every day. Gossiping and Eating Paninos. Rehydrating and refreshing.

4. Shit Show Wednesday night at Faces. 10 Euros all you can drink is bad news. I STOLE THREE BOTTLES OF LIQUOR FROM THE BAR, don't ask how or why because I do not know. OMG03892.

5. Museo Specola, this morning. Room after room of the weirdest shit Florence has to offer. No Frescoes, no Baroque sculptures. Instead... insect collections, stuffed animals, bones, and a HUGE collection of wax anatomy sculptures commissioned by the Medici Family in the 1700s. ridiculous. and amazing.

life.

Holt shit.

I am coming home in three weeks to the day.

MAY 12th. Around 6:30pm EST.

Holy shit.

Last night, the Carabienieri (Police!!)came to my apartment building. a bunch of friends came over to my apartment. We were drinking/having a good time. My roommate, Lizzie, came home... wasted. People from Soul Fusion were yelling up to our apartment, Lizzie was yelling down. Apparently, the upstairs neighbor chucked an egg at one of the guys head and the guy called the cops on him. As I was leaving the apartment, the police were coming in. great.

Things are great here.

On Wednesday, I went and watched the sunset at the Piazza Michaelangelo. It was so amazing. We drank champagne and talked. It would have been romantic except that I was with my roommate Megs. It was nice though. She talks really loud and was talking about Monte Crisco sandwiches (ala Bennigans) and this kid chimed in and was like "a heartattack in a sandwiche" I turn around to see about 10 Emerson kids. extremely random.

It was my friend, Lindsay's birthday and we had a dinner party at her apartment and went out to the bar. goodtimes.

Last night was ridicolous. I can't even begin to explain the shit shows that happen in this city.

All right.

So I took the night bus to Athens with my buddy, Grace. And got into town at 5am. Luckily our friends had checked into the Marriott earlier in the day. Lauren used to work there so we got a really good discount. I never thought I could feel so strongly about the Marriott. It was practically love at first sight. Big beds. Nice Linen. The Best bathroom in Europe.

By this time our group was down to nine.

We slept for a while and then were forced to leave the palace that was the Marriott. We went to the Acropolis. It was amazing. So old, 400 BC. Imagine... is the white house going to be a ruin someday? Every empire falls. Anyways I thought about that a lot while I was there. It was also beautiful to see the city of Athens, sprawling out from around the Acropolis. We sae the parliament, and the Olympic stadium. Saw all the must sees.
Then we got to return to the Marriott. Exhausted, I went to the rooftop hot tub. It was windy and cold. But amazing at the same time. Then night Colleen, Grace, and I stayed in and watched Castaway. In Greece unlike in Italy they do not dub the movies. Thank Goodness. I never thought I could be so happy sitting in a Marriott Bed and watching a Tom Hanks movie.

The next day we took off (in tears) for the cute and close island of Aegina. We get off the ferry on the island, and immediately find a sketcho cheap place to stay. 13 Euros a night, but it was no Marriot. The guy gave us extra cots but we all just crammed in one big bed. It was so quaint though. Had the best Gyros in the world. They had like a honey mustard sauce and french fries. so good. We went shopping. Drank Beers. Played Cards. Went to a late dinner at a Traverna. It was nice and quiet. The town was pretty empty and out of season.

The next morning we walked around the town a little more and had breakfast, waffles! We went back to Athens and did some shopping. The pope died. We watched Frequency in English and ate cheap gyros and pastries.

Sunday morning, a bus to the Athens airport, a Flight to Rome, A train to the train station, and finally a train to Florence.

And here I am. I month left till I fly home to Boston. crazy.

Trust me... I can barely handle this past week that was my life.

So it all started at the ass crack of dawn last Friday morning. We left Florence and headed toward the port of Ancona. At 1:30 we got on the Ferry that would take us to Igomentsia and be our playground for 15 hours of our life. The ferry was called SuperFast, and let me tell you it was a great time. It was like a mini cruise ship, casino and all. First of all let me tell you that I am traveling with 19 "friends" from my program. So we all get up to the deck of the ship and basically hang out all day. Dinner. And then what else to do but start drinking. We all bought alcohol before we got on the boat so we were prepared. After dinner, the shit show began. It was cold and probably about 11pm when we really started the party. By this time most "normal" ferry travelers were sleeping. And let me tell you they were doing this everywhere possible... i.e. the hallways. It was odd to say the least. The respectable people that we were we sat outside drinking. Unfortunately, the only other people on the deck where these two lesbians, sleeping under the picnic table in sleeping bags with their dogs. They hated us.

We played 'Never Have I Ever' for a while, which helped me get a lot closer to my travel friends. We also met this random kid Ryan, who was traveling by himself, so that was fun. At one point he comes outside and is like 'i think one of your friends is half naked sleeping in the hall' Turns out it was an eight year old. There was also a play area on the deck for small children, which some of the girls got into and started to fight with the toys. Did I mention that the group is 18 girls and one guy. Poor Kid.

Ok so the best part of the night was the Ukranian. Apparently this kids friends' ditched him while he was wasted and luckily he stumbled up to the deck to find us. In broken English he asked to sit down, and all I could think was this should be good. So the kid starts talking all the english he knows. And damn the boy knows how to use the word fuck, really really well. He uses about everyway possible. His box of Marlboros said something like "Smoking causes Impotence", he knew what impotent meant. I stole his cigarettes to give to one of my friends. He tried to kiss my roomate Megs. So I told him Megs and I were lesbians and she was pregnant. He told her she shouldn't be drinking. He fell backwards in his chair. Twice. The second time he tried to do a backflip. We recorded him the whole time. We asked him if he knew Oksana Baul and Victor Patrovski (sic), he didn't. The kid provided a good hour plus of entertainment.

When it was time for bed we headed down to the lounge and slept in chairs. It was the oddest thing ever, all these kids sleeping in pushed together chairs next to Italian and Greek truck drivers. I fell asleep watching the oddest movie ever.

A Kings of Convenience Video is on the Euro MTV. Sweet.

In the morning we had to take another ferry from Ingomentsia to Corfu... and the Pink Palace. Once we got to Corfu we waited for an hour for Magda to pick us up. Finally she did and we were on our way. So we drive through the ghetto and finally arrive. We all get shots of Pink Ouzo (A Greeek Liquor) at 7 am after 24 hours of traveling. It definitely gave me a buzz. And then D-Sac (Dylan-the only guy) had to take three shots because some of the girls didn't take theirs and the staff women was giving us a hard time. He was wasted after that. It kinda set the tone for our stay at the Pink Palace.

Saturday was nice. Basically I slept and then headed to the hot tub with some friends.

And Saturday was the TOGA PARTY. The sign promised plate smashing and an ouzo circle, and although we got none of that. It was basically us getting wasted in baby pink Togas in the hostel lobby/bar. Highlights of that night include:
1. Megan, attempting to pop a squat on the way down to the hot tub and landing in a thorn forest. She was so scratched up. The next morning, there was blood on her Toga. Sick.
2. D-Sac went up to one of the male employees and was like 'How do you tie this toga?'. He was like have the big guy do it. Reinder, the big guy, He is this huge HUGE, Dutch guy. And a source of much entertainment. Later in the week my friend Melissa, took him down. That is my girl.
3. So Everyone went down to the hot tub which is a big errrrrrrorrrrrrrr. This girl who would later become known o us as 'Tiffany' had sex with an employee. It was so sick. I told Melissa to splash them and she did a lot. There were lots of titties out.
4. The Albanians, splashing Colleen and me so much that we had to get in. Sick.
5. My friend, Lauren draped over the sketchy bartender George (mullet and uni-brow), when I tried to save her. She said it was okay, they were talking about "the history of Greece since the 1500s."
6.Lauren, Megs, and Meghan taking a shot Megs described as a "Whisked filled Garbage can glass filled with every liquor from the bar topped with JD" chased by a shot of Ouzo.

I know. Oh, and my friend Lindsey had to do the walk of shame in a Toga. man.

Sunday was basically a result of Saturday and involved waking up at 2 and watching movies. It was cloudy!

On Sunday, to our dismay 40 Italians show up. We go to dinner expecting to see 40 sketcho guys, and guess what OLDIES! That's right all these old Italian couples. They did everything to please these people including only serving them spaghetti. racist. And putting on this crap polka-ish CD so they could dance everynight after dinner. So we sat there getting wasted and playing cards, watching Italian oldies waltz and line dance! They did coax us to the dance floor a couple of times. And Megs and D-Sac got in a slow dance. It was so crazy. Aftert the went to bed the trouble started, Body shots. Luckily I was never that drunk to make it to the bar. I saw Lindsay's tits and the next night, Dana's. They did it voluntarily too. And then funny
thing was it was basically us and the sketcho sceezo employees.

We also played the fuck me game and had some great fucks, highlights include: Down-Syndrome Fuck (from Reindeer, the Dutch), Sheep Fuck (From the other Dutch Employee), Up Against the Wall Fuck and Nympho Fuck (From Jamie), What's your name again Fuck (from D-Sac) and my all time favorite, Albabian Fuck. At her last night at the Pink Palace "Tiffany" went out with a bang, and we all got to witness this sick Albanian making out with her, the Albanian fuck involves a sjarp jab of the tongue and a good slap (referring to the derogatory treatment of women).

I just realized how gross this must all sound. Don't worry the Pink Palace is almost over.

I also went on a Quad Safari, which for someone as clumsy as me could equal danger. It was so much fun though. We went all over the island on ATVs, Up a cliff down a cliff, to the beach and a monastery and a fort. It was so much fun. I almost wiped out a couple of times. But luckily I didn't. D-Sac, while trying to prove his man hood with a trick, flipped his shit, but luckily he was ok. During the lunch break, Lindsay went off in the woods with one of the guides she had been hooking up with and the other guide chased them to take pictures. sick. My friend Laura was the cutest. She is this little girl wearing all pink and was riding like a "motorcycle mama" (her word).

Laura was alo the suprise drunk of the trip. That girl got wasted everynight. Watching her smoke a cigarette was the best. At one point D-Sac (they see each other kinda) went to find her and she was on a far away balcony. He was like "where are you?" and she was like "Over here where else would I be" She also told Melissa to take this kid down to the hot tub and "Bring him Down."

There was this little Aussie employee named Antoine, and he described the pink palace world perfectly "By the time these guys leave [the employees] they are all going to have Aids"

Wednesday was our last night at the Pink Palace, and we went out with yet another shit show. A kid that worked there fell off a balcony. I had a wonderful conversation with a 25 year old Canadian, who's girlfriend (who was a religion teacher) was sleeping upstairs. The grosser bartender George (bald) came up behind me and gave me a hug and a kiss ( I was reminded of this). Me getting my roomates at the Pink Palace, Colleen and Megan out of bed, repeatedly. Then them taking blow jobs shots, and hopping back on the wagon.

Await part two. Don't worry it is not as exciting.

So I am in Greece right now. Amazing. I think the trip has been defined thus far by our hostel: THE PINK PALACE. Hahahaha. Can't even handle it. More stories later.

Before we went on Spring Break we actually had to do work, so it wasn't that exciting of a week. I had two 10 page papers due on the same day. Not a big deal. No Stress.

The weekend before I went to Assissi. Which is like pretty much the most beautiful place in Italy. St. Francis, my homeboy, is from there to. There are also frescoes by Giotto in the St.Francis Church. So it is in the Umbria valley and built into the side of a mountain. It is gorgeous. We spent all day seeing St.Francis' church and his homegirl, St.Claire's Church. By the way, the previously mentioned Peter, was our tour guide. He is so awesome.

All right, get this. We go to the monastery where St.Francis received his stigmata. Holy of all Holy. And this monk is following us around, unlocking doors and stuff. So we are in the actual chapel of the Stigmata, and the monk is waiting outside these glass doors for us (so we can all see him) and Peter is just talking and talking. All of a sudden he is like "Look at that guy out there... beautiful specimen of man... wasting his life away." Everyone pretty much just started laughing. Peter is the best. Man, who says that. Then We have dinner and vino with the monks after. I saw one using a cell phone I felt betrayed.

Saturday we went to the Cinqueterre which is pretty much one of the other amazing places in Italy. It is this hike that connects five fishing towns. It was so beautiful, you climb into the mountain and go to the next town. During parts of it I was pretty sure that I was going to die. But the views where worth it. I have learned on this trip, that beautiful views are worth risking your life. At one point a blind man speaking some sort of Slovak tongue passed us. So we get there... 2 hour hike between the first two towns. Stop have amazing pesto pizza and then 1.5 hour hike to the next town. Then Gelato. It was an amazing day. We saw the sun set on a cliff between two fishing towns on the coast of Northern Italy. I love my life.

I got a Euro haircut. No not a mullet.

And now Greece. which already there are so many amazing stories. Just wait.

Things are good here in Italia.

I have seen lots of sites this week in Florence. My friend's friends from Emmanuel are visiting, so we have been going out pretty much everynight. It is a good time. I went to the Biboli Gardens, they were amazing. And the Uffizi Gallery, which holds 93292 pieces of art so that was also great. I love Boticelli.

Yesterday I visited Parma and Montova. They are north of Florence and so nice and quaint. In Parma we saw some important works by Carregio. And in Montova the Ducal Palace. It is where Isabella D'Este lived. She was awesome.

Florence has been attacked by tourists.

I hope everyone had a good Spring Break.

There is a ton to look forward to here. Springtime, and it actually being warm enough to enjoy Gelato and walks along the Arno. Sunsets at the Piazza Michaelangelo. GREECE. And the South of Italy.

I am feeling really disconnected from everyone/everything so send me an e-mail and let me know how you are.

so I just got followed by an Italian all the way to the internet place. sweet. It is 8pm over here. so dirty.

I went to a soccer game today. Firenze vs. Reggina. It was so awesome. The Italians were going crazy. There were flags and smoke. So amazing. There were these two men sitting next to us with blow horns. And this hold flag waving crew. So funny. And this really odd oldie, with a beard and an apron was sitting next to us and yelling really funny things (I think they were funny.) And then after the game he was cooking hot dogs outside. I yelled like eery Italian word that I know. Firenze won. Also, people kept making explosions happen, and there was purple smoke and flares.

yes the computer is not in Asian, so I can update!

So Rome was freaking amazing this weekend. I should not even use the word freaking to describe it, because Rome deserves respect.

We left Florence early in the on Thursday... it rained and rained. And we saw the Colosseum. It is so amazing and old. That is what I love about Rome, it is so ancient. We also toured the ruins. Came back to the hotel, watched some CNN, the pope got a tracheotomy.

Friday was intense. We went to the Vatican. I saw the Sistine Chapel. I almost fainted it was so amazing. Also, in a couple of weeks the chapel will probably be closed off because that is where all the cardinals convene to elect a new pope. Saw where the current pope is going to be buried. Then we went into St.Peter's. Massive. I was waiting for people outside and like 983479 ask me to take pictures of them it was fun. Then some Haitians ask me for my water bottle so they could take home some holy water. I gave it to them. We went shopping walked around rome.

We chilled at the hotel and played some card games and about 11:30 we headed out to the bars. So, we were trying to catch the Met.Ro., Rome's public transport system and it was pretty much the most ridiculous thing ever. seriously. We were running and getting on random cars. I ended up carrying a beer, I have no idea where it came from. We finally made it to the bars. Good night.

Saturday, more touring. We saw soooooooooo many churches. We went on like the Caravaggio tour of Rome of something. It was cool though. Caravaggio was a pretty dark guy, We got the "best" coffee in Rome. amazing. Went to the Pantheon. Got the most gelato for the least amount of money in Rome. Saw this church that had a painted optical illusion dome. It was so cool, you walk in and it looks like there is a dome. But under it was a total trick. I guess when they built the church they did not have enough money, so the priest was a tricker. I learned how to say trick in Italiano, tripola. sweet. Then more tours, trevi fountain. Then the "best" gelato in Rome, so good... I had honey and pear. Amazing.

So the reason we had the best gelatos and coffee in Rome is because of our tour guide/teacher. Peter. But Peter with a italian accent. He is the cutest oldie ever. He is this really tall guy and he wears a scarf and plays with it when he talks. He also likes to talk about how gay Michelangelo is. He is so funny. He calls us children "Come here children. Listen to Peter children" He also likes to compare classical greek figures to our "boyfriends" back home. What a great oldie.

Saturday night we went to Hard Rock Cafe. I had a veggie burger, I think Hard Rock although it is pretty evil, is the only place in Italy that knows what a veggie burger is. Then we went to the bars again. Good night.

When I was in Rome. All I ate until Hard Rock, was Pizza. I think eating pizza is what they mean by when in Rome.

Long story short. I heart Rome, and I toured it like a champ.

Uhh... I was going to update but this website is in asian right now. Uhh I am so annoyed.

so domani, children I will tell you about Roma.

send updates.
leslie

Hahahahaha...

I forgot to write about the divos we saw last night at a bar called the Red Garter. We were there because they play beer pong on Tuesday nights. Anyways we notice these two Italians jumping on each other and dancing to the man who sings bad karaoke. One was wearing a tight (I believe Polyester) pink shirt. So funny. And then we notice their friends... OMG392084092840. They both have there super long hair super spiked up. But the thing is... one side was spiked up and the other side was cut. OK... so it was like they were getting a mohawk but they got lazy. Not only did the guys have similar doos (you cannot call hair like theirs a haircut. But they were corresponding meaning one had the left side up and the other had the right side up. Best duo ever. Wonder what their mom/moms think of the hair. The y were both wearing ridiculously tight clothes and sagging their pants to show their boxer briefs. yes.

Culture shock.

So it is snowing outside and has been for the last two days. Unfortunately/ Fortunately the snow is not sticking so it is just wet. No sunny Florence.

Things are general good. I had a great relaxing weekend. Yet again I hung around Florence. This is usually how it goes. Spend all day walking around. Going to Markets, enjoying the views, and just hanging around this city. Then dinner. Then drinking. And drinking.

On Thursday, I got to see KAT PURGAL! It was fun. It was nice to see a familiar face in a foreign city. We talked about her travels and my Italy. And the pledges. We had dinner at my apartment. And I took her to Festival Del Gelato. It is like a playground with Ice Cream. It was amazing.

On Friday, we went to my new favorite restaurant, I Tarocchi. It is my favorite restaurant because 1) it has amazing cous cous with vegetables 2) it has litros de vino for 6 Euro. Anyways so we did that. Had some wine and a good time. Then my apartment and had some champagne. It was a good time. So I was pretty drunk when we headed out. I fell in my slippery shoes in front of the duomo and skinned my knee. It was funny. I was out with my friends Colleen and Grace. Then we went to a bar and they have 5 shots for 5 Euro. and it was all over from there. We met some kids from the Army that were stationed in Vencenzia. One was from Texas, and I kept bothering him about the army all night. He probably didn't want to talk about it... but I was fascinated. He is 20 and going to Afghanistan in a week. crazy. It was a good night though.

I really like spending the weekends in Florence. And I don't mind not traveling, because I have time to relax. I literally feel like I am on vacation.

I am going to Rome this weekend with the school. So that should be fun and we are going into a lot of educational places so that is also good.

You wouldn't judge me if I drank every night of the week, would you? I am definitely in it to win it.

wish you were here.
lots of love.
leslie

Happy Valentine's Day!

I love you all!

leslie

Ahhh yesterday was amazing. We went to Carnivale in Viareggio, a small seaside town about an hour away. We had lunch at a restaurant and then we hit the streets. We took a walk on the beach and we watched the sun set. It wasn't too cold either which was nice. The sun setting was that perfect blue/pink color. It was so breathtaking. About 1/2 a bottle of vodka later we went into the parade. It was so awesome. They just have all these gigantic floats that barely fit down the streets. Each playing their own music with 18 million people wearing colorful costumes. It was so cool. We were dancing around the floats and singing along to the American music some of them played. And this one float looped this song about Carnivale in Italian, and I sang along to that one too. It was in Italian. hahahaha.

The main idea of the parade is to make fun of politicians. So in addition to having giant charaterizations of a lot of Italian politicians. We also saw many likenesses of George W. and Rumsfeld. One prime float had both of them naked sqirting silly string out of their penises. yes. It was amazing. I wish they would have had Condoleeza Rice. I hate her. There was also a float with a giant anatomically correct paper mache Brazilian women. yes. It was so much fun.... it was raining confetti and silly string. So it is kinda like the Mardi Gras for italians, a little less trashy though. There were fireworks over the water too. I fucking love fireworks.

I am going for a walk and then class.

Also, the pledges seem so cute. I can't wait to meet them. Good luck to everyone involved in that process and keep it real.

Hahahahahaah thank god I don't really smell Euro. They smell really bad here. Back in Siena there was this club and it had a really random cave in it. Anyways, all the Italians danced in there and it smelled so vial. If I come back with a weird body odor. Let me know, promise?

So things are really good here. I am so relaxed and just basically having a good time. I don't have any early classes so I can basically get out of bed when I want which is nice. I usually take a walk along the Arno everyday. It is really beautiful and the weather is getting better and better. The sun is shining most days too. I have had a couple of really fun nights out. Also there is a random Americani bar that plays Beer Pong on Tuesday nights, that was fun. I stole beer out of someone's beer shuttle (this amazing 3.5 liter contraption filled with Heineken). hahahaha.

I have like little stress. I really feel like I am on vacation. I go on these really long walks and ponder life. I know that it sounds ridiculous and emo, but I really enjoy it. Looking back in my planner it is weird to read about my Emerson life. I do miss Emerson, but I think this is the best thing for me right now.

I am only taking three classes here too and they are pretty enjoyable. Also, only having three classes adds to the sense of vacation. I am taking Italian Cinema and Society, the teachers name is Lorenzo and the classroom permanently smells like Euro BO, I don't think that it is from Lorenzo though. We have watched some really good movies so far. But I have no idea what Lorenzo is saying during his lectures, his English runs together. My English and American Writers in Italy professor has the same problem, her lectures are like one big sentence. But I like having a literature class. Italian is fun, our teacher speaks like negative English. We taught her how to say peace out last week, and she told us that the young Italianos say "bono". Should I trust her? That sounds pretty creepo.

How bout them Pats? The Superbowl was so much fun. We went to this really American bar, and it was like being in little America. I don't think anyone in there spoke Italian. hahaha. Also, we stayed up for the whole game. I don't really remember but apparently we got home at five am. good.

Last Saturday, I went with a couple of girls to Pisa and Lucca. It was a nice day trip. Lucca is the quietest town ever. It is really nice though. Pisa, has the tower... it is still leaning.

The supermarket is called the Esselunga. We get 40€ worth of vouchers there each month. So my roomate and I went last week. It was amazing. So many pushy Italianos. We spent most of our vouchers on vino. error.

Down the alley I live in (the opposite way) from Soul Fusion, there is a tiny creepo door. And above it, it says 'La Buca Del Moro.' I am pretty sure that it has something to do with hell.

Also, Vegas is definitely on for my birthday. Kathy and Tom are in. My mom wants to see that Circus show. yes.

send me e-mails. I like them.

lots of love.
wish you were here.

leslie

here is my new address.... (letters only)

Via Castello D'Altafronte N.4
VII Floor
Italy-Firenze 50122

andiamo!

So I made it to Florence. This city is amazing. I visited here my senior year of high school and I would have never imagined I would be living here it is intense.

I live in the center of town, two seconds away from the Arno River and right down the street from the Ponte Vecchio. The Ponte Vecchio is basically the bling bling bridge, it crosses the river and there are gorgous jewelery stores on either side.

So the apartment is really cute. It is kinda down an alley right behind the Uffizi. The piazza Signoria right around the corner from us houses the neptune fountain and the fake David statue. amazing. On our street there is a "Disco Pub" called Soul Fusion. hahaha. It is literally two doors down and it is a disco pub. amazing. Saturday nights are free for international students. yes. Speaking of international students there are a lot here.

The actually apartment is really cute too. You walk into the living/dining area. We have a couch and a little table. And then to the right of the door is the baby kitchen. It basically has everything except a oven and a blender. To the left down a long hallway is the bathroom. Damn, is the bathroom Euro. Luckily our shower has a stall. But it is basically just a drain in the floor. And we don't have a bide. So I don't know where I am going to wash my feet.

Right next to the bathroom are the bedrooms. Megs and I live in the double and Lizzie lives in the single right off of ours. They are good size rooms. And we have washer too. Also the window in my room looks out into this creepo courtyard. I hope no Euro or creepo Italian stares into it that would suck. So the apartment is nice and cozy kinda like a french cottage. And it is well equipped because they usually rent it out to tourists.

Today is the second day of classes. Inever have class early which is good, because I am on vacation. And I am only taking three classes which is good, because I am on vacation.

I am starting to plan more trips. next weekend equals Carnivale in the seaside town of Viareggio. so excited.

Top Five Things so far about Florence (so far)...
5. Being two minutes away from a hell of a lot of art. i.e. David.
4. Gelato
3. Disco Pub.
2. 8 Euro for Mexican Food at a place called Tijuana.
1. The Sun Shining on the Arno River.

that is all for now. tell me how you are or you get a slap when I come home.
ciao!

Last night was the best.

I love Siena.

leslie

So... back to the adventure known as Venice. We had not eaten dinner by the time we got there so we dropped our shit in the hotel freshened up and then went out to generally comb the streets and find some grub. So we saw an allright restaurant and passed it up. And then another one and passed it up. And then we saw a bar/pizzeria/shithole, and thought "oh, what a perfect place to have dinner in Venice" what made the establishment even more attractive was the group of young Italian "stallions" (read: creepos) yelling at us as we walked by. So we went in. It was owned by Asians. Oddest place ever we sat in a booth behind the bar and the waitress came over and threw some menus, silverware, and 'tude at us. We got some pizza. It was allright. And then it came. No not dessert or drinks or more pizza. A man/woman creepo thing. What the fuck. It was dressed in a fur coat with awful painted on makeup and some sort of odd heeled shoe things and tights with Dolce&Gabbana logos. Sweet. On top of that another creepo kept trying to sell us roses. It was kinda funny.

Saturday we got to visit a lot of the sights in Venice including the Academia, Sait Zaccaria, and St. Marks. Saint Marks is the most beautiful thing ever. The whole ceiling is gold mosaics. So amazing. And we went out on the terrace that over looks the city including the square and the canale. It was amazing. And warm! And Sunny! We went to the Realto Bridge for lunch and shopping. I had an amazing 2euro sandwich. And got some pretty Venetian glass earrings. After lunch we went to a couple other things including the Santa Maria Gloriosa and Scoula di San Rocco. I don't know. But all these sights keep running together. I am kinda over seeing churches but whatev. They are all so old and amazing that I don't really mind.

That night we went out to dinner near St. Marks square. It was good. I got pasta. And then we went out in search of a pub/bar/discothèque/whatever the nightlife in Venice had to offer. Much to our suprise the nightlife near St.Mark's was thoroughly disappointing. We went into one bar and walked out because it was too high class for us folk. So we kept walk all over the city back and forth and back and forth. Finally we met some kids from our program and they were like let's go to St.Mageherita Square. Shit. That is the sketcho area with the sketcho Asian cross-dressing pizzeria. But we went anyway we knew other kids were going so it would be allright. On the way there we ran into my soon to be roommate Lizzie from Mississippi who was WASTED and told us about the typical Venetian drinks called Sprits, that go for about 1.50. YES. So we go and I consume about 4 of the drinks. They tasted like crap, but they were so cheap I just had to do it. hahahaha, how many times have you heard that before. Needless to say it was a good night. When we got back to the hotel I washed my feet in the bide. They were dirty. and my roomie filmed it. Good night.

Sunday was a good day too but it was colder. We went to the Palacio, which was cool. I remembered it from high school though. We wanted to leave so we escaped from our tour guide and as some sort of punishment we got lost in the basement/prison/creepo thing on the way out. We made it though and the rest of the day was nice. We went shopping. I bought more earrings. I had the best pizza ever. Seriously, Venice is the best ever.

On our 5 hour+ bus ride home it started to snow. It was so pretty to see the rolling hills of Tuscany get blanketed in white. Much nicer than the blizzard that is Boylston street right now back in Boston but what can you do.

Also, last night was amazing. One of the Contradas hosted all of us for dinner. It was so good. And it took two hours. So, when you have two hours to eat you have two hours to drink. By the time we left I was pretty gone off of red wine. It was a god time though. Afterward we went to the hangout SOBS for a bit and then home.

Such a short time left here in Sienna and so much to do. Tonight is our last night out and apparently it is Australian day so the Australian pub in town is having a party. I have a feeling it will be a doozie. Then tommorow a few more sites to see, packing, and studying! I have a final exam in Italiano in Friday…. And then Florence.

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Lots of love.
Wish you were here.
Etc.