Scotland and Liverpool and The Queen!!

Hi everyone! Just wanted to give you a quick update on the last week since I've left Florence. I had fun in Scotland and in Liverpool. It was nice to stay with Amy and for her to show me around and know where all the cheap places to eat were. Both were more relaxed trips which was nice after all the traveling I've been doing. I really enjoyed Liverpool and it was great to see Becky (she was our Aupair when I was 5 and I haven't seen her in 15 years)! It was nice to catch up. Her house was beautiful and Jacob (her son who's about to turn 8 in 2 weeks) was really cute. He brought his friends over to the house yesterday because they had never seen an American girl! lol. On Wednesday we got in and Becky picked Churchill and I up from the train station. On the way back to her house she showed us a couple of sites like the football stadium where a lot of fans were killed years ago and there's an eternal flame. We went to her house and had dinner and then walked around her neighborhood. We got a true English ice cream cone when the ice cream truck came by. It was really good! On Thursday Churchill and I went into town while Becky was at work and Jacob was at school. We left a little later than planned but it worked out well because we got to see the Queen of England!!! It was really cool; people hope to see her their whole life and never get a chance and we got to! She was opening an exhibit or something and she walked out to her car and waved. There was a children's choir that sung a song about Liverpool. Some of them were deaf so they signed it as they sang. There was also a Lady that turned 100 years old that got to give the Queen flowers. We were just in the right place at the right time. The people Becky works with were all jealous because they've never even seen her. A couple people even fainted; it was a little hot though. We got some lunch on Albert Dock and went to the Beatles Story museum which was really cool. It had had things that showed how they became the Beatles to the present. It was a lot larger than I expected. We had a girls night out and went out to dinner and then walked along Mathew's Street where The Cavern Club used to be. There's a replica in it's place. We went to the Cavern Pub across the street which is like similar to what it would have been and had a live band and Brian Adams guitar along with other bands' memorabilia. Churchill left Friday morning and since I've been sick the last few days I just rested at Becky's and got ready for Paris. I felt a lot better after resting for the day. She made a traditional English meal for dinner! Lamb and vegetables and potato wedges. This morning I had to catch a 6 am flight to Paris. The flight got overbooked some how and there was one person without a seat. They offered 250 Euros to switch to a later flight. There were no volunteers but they eventually worked something out. We ended up leaving an hour late. We got in about 9:40 and I didn't get to the hostel till 12! It was pretty easy, I just had to take a train to town and then get on the subway which I was familiar with from the last visit. It just took a long time to get my bag, figure out the best way to get to the hostel and to get tickets. It's nice to know that I can do travel by myself but I much prefer a travel buddy. It's just nice to have someone to talk to. Well it's off to bed for me....it's been a long day. I'll try to write soon!

Last Days in Florence

On Thursday night we had a farewell party at an old palace that someone let the school use. It was really nice. The house was beautiful and had a really nice garden. It was a great way to end a great semester. It was sad to say goodbye to all the friends that I've made over the last 4 months especially knowing that we're from all over the US and it will be a while before we see each other again.

Friday was my last day in Florence as a student and resident. Nicole, Courtney and I went to climb the Duomo. It's something that Courtney and I have been meaning to do all semseter but never did. I almost didn't go because I'm going to do it with my family in a few weeks. I'm so glad that I did though. It was the perfect thing to do on my last day in Florence. It was beautiful at the top! I'm glad I did it now because all the buildings have more meaning. We could see all of Florence. We saw Santa Croce and knew that's where school was and could see where my apartment was near the train station. It was beautiful and the city was still quite since we went early. We walked over to the market one more time and I got some olive oil to take home and a new scraf! I've been looking for a lighter weight scarf for the spring so I was excited to find one I liked. I took my time walking back to my apartment, enjoying the walk before spending the day packing. After we dropped my bags off in storage Courtney and I walked around Florence and took some pictures of daily life. It was one more walk around some of our favorite spots in the city. We couldn't go without one last visit to Grom! (it's one of our favorite gelato shops!).
It was a nice way to say goodbye to the city. I'm going to miss Florence and my new friends a lot. I was sad to leave knowing that when I come back with my family it won't be the same; I'll be a tourist. Even though I'm sad to leave I'm getting ready to be home. The traveling is getting tiring and there are lot's of things I miss from home especially my family, my dogs and my friends! Can't wait to see you all soon!

Miss you!
Dana

Wanna Be a Model

I got my haircut on Wednesday at a hair academy here in Florence for Free! When I went in the student took my jacket and then took me over to wash my hair. It was really nice she massaged my scalp as she washed it! She didn't speak any English so I mostly just talked to the professional. They asked me how I wanted my haircut and I said I at least wanted a trim and asked him if he had any ideas. He gave me 3 different options and I chose one that's short in the back and gets longer in the front. As the student was combing my hair I started to get a little nervous that I wouldn't like it and maybe I should just get a trim like I planned. After she separated my hair into different sections the professional came back and told her she did good and then he started cutting. He started with really thin rows of hair and went really slowly so she could see what he was doing. He was also cutting another ladies hair so he let the student cut a little coming back every now and then and making sure she was doing it right. The other lady was right next to me so he could still see what she was doing. Whenever she had a question she would ask him so I felt fine about her cutting it.
I'm still getting used to it, it's a lot shorter than it was especially in the back. I really like it though and all of my friends have said they like it!






I can't figure out how to rotate the pictures sorry.

Vasari Corridor and the Uffizi

This morning I went to the Galleria degli Uffizi (Gallery of the Offices) and through the Vasari Corridor. Study Abroad Italy organized this for us for free. It is very hard to get into the Vasari Corridor so it was very VIP like; we didn't have to wait in line at the Gallery and a security guard walked with us through the corridor and everything.
We first got an hour tour of the Uffizi. Our tour guide was very good and showed us the most important pieces. It was cool to see things that I have been studying about in my History of Italian Renissance class. We saw things by Botticelli, Leonardo and Michellangelo. My favorite piece was the "Birth of Venus" by Botticelli.


The Vasari Corridor is a secret passage that goes from Palazzo Vecchio (the Old Palace) to Pitti Palace (now you can only enter from the Uffizi entrance). The corridor is lined with self portraits. As you cross the Ponte Vecchio (which is the only original bridge in Florence-it was spared during the war) the portraits start in chronological order with artist from Florence first and then from other regions in Italy. As you leave the Ponte Vecchio the self portraits are from artist from different countries. The last stretch of the corridor has portraits of the Medici Family and their relatives. At one point the corridor goes through the interior of Santa Felicita (a beautiful old church). The Medici Family used to use the Corridor to go there.
this website has some pictures of the Vasari Corridor: http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-22583933;_ylc=X3oDMTF1dnBiaXQwBF9TAzI3MTYxNDkEX3MDMjcxOTQ4MQRzZWMDZnAtdG9kYXltb2QEc2xrA3VzaXNsYW5kcy0yMDA4LTAzLTI4

Museo Salvatore Ferragamo

On Monday (3/3/08) my fashion in film class went to the Ferragamo Museum. It was so interesting to learn about him. He made his first pair of shoes when he was 9! In Italy it's important to have a new pair of white shoes to wear to your First Communion. His family didn't have enough money to buy a new pair for his sister so he made them for her. He came to the US when he was 16 and worked in a shoe factory and realized he didn't like it right away so he went to Santa Barbara and opened a shoe repair store with his brothers. He soon started designing shoes for films. He then moved his store to Hollywood and became known as "the Shoemaker of Dreams" and "the shoemaker to the stars." He made a wooden last of your foot with all the measurements he would need so that each pair of shoes would fit you perfectly. He experimented and perfected the support in shoes to create shoes that were now stylish and comfortable. In 1952 he got the idea that his heels would last longer if made of steel. He called them by the Italian name, Stiletto.

In the museum we saw the wooden last he made for Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn and Drew Barrymore. He made shoes for stars for both their roles in films and for them personally. On display they had old receipts from stars included one for Marilyn Monroe. They also had shoes that belonged Monroe and Audrey Hepburn on display and other shoes that were made for films. We also saw a pair of shoes made out of 18 karat gold that were designed for an Australian Tycoon's wife.

My Fashion Marketing class is also going to the museum in a few weeks.

 

(Information from Fashion in Film class and Ferragamo shoe museum)

A Chianti Experience

On Saturday (March 1, 2008) I went to Castello di Verrazzano, Greve in Chianti, Tuscany for A Chianti Experience with Study Abroad Italy. Chianti is known as the wine-growing region. They offered this trip free to all SAI Students! I signed up as soon as I heard about it! They had 3 private buses for to take all of us there. Lindsay said there were about 140 students that signed up. Everyone wanted to take advantage of this free trip! It was about a 45 minute bus ride up to the winery. I don't like taking those large buses up the hills with the tiny, windy roads. Every time we went around the corner the bus driver honked to let anyone coming know we were going around the curve.

When we got off the bus there was a beautiful view of the Tuscan Countryside and vineyards. They split us up into three groups based on the buses we were on and we got a tour of the winery. Unfortunately, we had a hard time understanding what are tour guide was saying. Before going inside he showed us the wild boars they raise there (which we had for lunch). He showed us around inside and told us some techniques they use to have the best quality of wine. They continue to use wooden barrels instead of steal ones, even though it's more expensive, because they believe it has a better result. He also told us about the Chianti Classico wines and what they have to do to get the DOCG label.

After our tour, we went into the restaurant for the wine tasting and lunch (which was also free!) They told us how to truly taste the wine by evaluating the color, smell and taste. To evaluate the color you put your glass against something white such as your napkin or the table cloth and you can see the difference in colors in the different kinds of wine. The tasting was much different to ones I've seen in the US when we went with my parents (of course them my brother and I had to watch them taste all the wines). There they tried a lot more different kinds. At Castello di Verrazzano, each table got a bottle of the 3 types of wine we were tasting and a bottle of the dessert wine. There were 7 of us sitting at our table and we had an amazing view overlooking the countryside.

Our "light meal" included:

Primo: Pasta al pomodoro with fresh basil (pasta with tomato sauce)

Anitpasto: Salame, prosciutto, finocchiona (the boar?)

Vegetable course: Cannellini beans with Tuscan olive oil and salad

Cheese course: Pecorino and Parmigiano cheeses with Balsamic Vinegar

Dessert Cantucci with Vin Santo (brucheta with the dessert wine)

The meal was delicious and it seemed like they kept bringing out more and more courses.

My favorite wine was the Chianti Classico DOCG and the Chianti Classico DOCG Riserva.

Volterra (Saturday February 16, 2008)

I went Volterra with Courtney, Ashley and Natasha. We took the bus which was really cheap. We had to switch buses in Colle di Val d'Elsa. We ended up having to wait for almost an hour so we went into a little café and got some tea and coffee while we waited. It was really cold. Volterra was absolutely beautiful! It's up in the hills and you can see the Tuscan Countryside. The city was pretty empty since tourist season hasn't started yet. We went into 2 museums and went to see the Duomo and Cathedral. The rest of the day we just enjoyed the scenery, walked around the city and went into some stores. We had a great lunch at this nice little restaurant.

We saw the worst prison in Italy according to Courtney's host mom. Before we realized it was the prison we just saw the tower and want to see if we could go in and climb it so we could get a good view. It was a very laid back trip and great place to go for the day.