I am in the middle of midterms, but got a text from Momma Dearest saying "when are you going to update your blog??" That was all I needed to put off studying Italian and Global Business to work on this post.
Last week (March 10-16) four of my sorority sisters flew to Florence to visit Julie, Hayley, and me. It was quite the eventful week; I don't even know where to begin.
Day 1:
Monday morning we met up with Rachel and Amy who had flown in the night before.
First adventure of the week: their bags did not make it to Florence.
We walked around a little bit and then headed inside the Duomo to look around and then climb up the 463 steps to the top of the Cupola. The views were stunning and hopefully made up for the girls' lack of clothes and makeup.
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| I was so happy to reunited with these two! |
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| Beautiful 360 degree views of Firenze |
After climbing the Duomo, we went to lunch at our number one favorite restaurant Osteria Santo Spirito. We'll take any excuse to order some truffle gnocchi or walnut ravioli.
Second adventure of the week: Meridith and Shelby flew standby and it took them four days to get in. They finally flew to Zurich and took a six hour train. That is dedication right there!
We picked them up from the train station and third adventure of the week: their bags were still in the U.S.
We all headed back to the apartment to shower and get ready for dinner at one of our favorite splurge restaurants, Acqua al 2. Acqua al 2 is famous for its blueberry steak, and at the end of the meal we were all thoroughly satisfied. After dinner we headed out for a little while, but were all tired and our friends had to wake up early to go to Rome.
Day 2:
On Tuesdays Julie, Hayley, and I all have class the whole day, so Meridith, Shelby, Amy, and Rachel decided to go to Rome for the day. I am so glad they got to be there and witness the excitement of the Conclave; they can say they were there the day before Pope Francis was chosen.
I got home from a full day of class around 5:45, went straight to the dining room table, sat down, and got on my phone. Five minutes later, my roommate Janette came home and went into her room. She came out and said, fourth adventure of the week, "Sarah I think someone broke into our apartment." At first, I didn't believe her. I thought that Ellen or Julie had just made a mess and didn't have time to clean it up. Then, I went half-way down the stairs to my room and saw that my drawer was open and completely emptied onto the floor. I went back upstairs, we grabbed the laptops and ran out of the apartment. We got in touch with Julie and Ellen who rushed home, and we waited for our program director to come over and survey the apartment. He came over and checked the apartment before we went in again to see if anything of ours was missing. All that had been taken were copies of passports, Julie's Nike workout pants, Ellen's underwear, and Girl Scout Cookies Meridith had brought. Yes, you read that right; they stole underwear and Girl Scout Cookies. How rude!
When we realized that everything important was still in our possession and confirmed that our locks would be changed, we had fun making up theories about the robber's identity. The most probable story, and the one that our Italian professors believe, is that they were Gypsies. Gypsies are the women in long skirts who walk around begging for money or food. We are convinced they are fake; Julie saw one pull out an iPhone. Anyway, since the robbers took food and clothes, we believe they were looking Gypsies looking for food, clothes, and jewelry. Thank goodness none of us have nice jewelry here. One of Julie's fake gold bangles was bent; it was obvious they were checking to see if it was real gold.
The good news is we are all okay, nothing important was taken, and we have quite the story to tell!
Day 3:
Wednesday morning and early afternoon was spent on our fifth adventure of the week: experiencing the Italian police station. We filed a report, but know nothing will happen. The police went back and forth between blaming us and not believing us. Again, we are just happy everyone is okay; it doesn't matter what the police think.
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| An Italian police report is a pretty cool souvenir |
After class, we went to La Giostra, another one of our favorite splurge restaurants. When we got to our table, we got free appetizers and then a free bottle of wine that costs 80 euro. Life is hard over here in Italy!
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| Roomies reunited |
Day 4:
Thursday our friends visited some museums while we were in class and then we met up later that afternoon. We went to a wine store nearby that has a basement where you can drink wine and eat cheese and meat. It is a cozy little place and the perfect atmosphere for all of us to catch up. I have really missed our quality talks. After a crazy week, it was nice to relax and truly enjoy the company of one another. We went to a late dinner before a night out on the town.
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| Chris, Rachel, Trey, Julie, Amy, me, Meridith |
Day 5:
Friday morning, we were up and ready for a hike up to Piazzale Michelangelo. We walked back down and grabbed sandwiches while Rachel, Amy, Meridith, and Shelby picked up some things to take back to friends and family. We had to say goodbye to Rachel and Amy Friday afternoon when they boarded a train for the Bologna airport.
That night we went to a send-off dinner for our friend Chris. He ran the Rome Marathon last Sunday! The TCU group is all so proud of him! I was glad Meridith and Shelby got to meet some more of our friends. We were ready for bed after a yummy pasta dinner.
Day 6:
Saturday, Julie and I woke up and started studying while Shelby and Meridith tried to figure out how they would be getting home. We met them for lunch at Pino's sandwich shop before they got on a train to Rome. Pino's sandwich shop is actually called Salumeria Verdi but it is owned by a man named Pino. Pino makes the sandwiches, his wife makes the pasta, and his father-in-law runs the cash register; what a classic Italian family business! The sandwiches are by far the best in Florence.
I loved having Meridith, Shelby, Rachel, and Amy in town for the week. I needed that taste of home and time with my best friends! Even though it was definitely the most exciting, adventurous week of the trip, it was full of countless memories and great stories. I couldn't imagine better people to experience this past week with.
Now it is back to studying for my last two midterms I have tomorrow. Tomorrow night I leave for spring break: Prague, Berlin, Amsterdam, and then back to see my sweet family!
Love to all!
Sarah
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