Hectic first week of classes!

My room is messy, so I guess that means I've officially moved into my apartment and made myself at home!

I feel more comfortable walking around, even if I get lost I can usually find a landmark or the Duomo and figure it out from there. Grocery shopping is kind of hard too, I think I'm going to get things to make sherpa stew tonight if I can find them.

Classes here are going to be tough, I'm definitely not in one of those "slack off during the week and travel every weekend" programs. I have 100 pages to read for my Italian Cinema class for Monday. I also had to switch some of my classes around and drop one. So I'm taking Italian everyday, Italian cinema on monday, Life and works of Michelangelo on Tuesday, Graphic Design on Wednesday and Photography on Thursdays. There was a problem with the photography class where I was accidentally placed into a second semester of a year long course, so I had to change it today. Classes are so long though. Italian is 2 and a half hours and the rest are at least 3. I'm just not used to focusing on the same subject for that long just once a week. It will be an adjustment!
Everything else is good! I've made friends and I should be getting my museum pass next week so I'll start going to the state museums for free whenever I want! (Soon Grammy!!)

We have a school trip to a vinyard in the Chianti Hills at a house owned by a countess and her family. The email I was sent described her as "eccentric." Its supposed to be amazing! I think I might also be doing a day trip to Sicily in a few weeks with my program (it only costs 15 euro, and thats for dinner, quite the deal actually).

My sleep schedule is all screwed up, but it usually is so thats fine, I'll get better at it.

I'm starting to feel like I might just be okay here for four months. I actually learned how to count to ten in Italian (finally!) so I don't feel awkward asking for two of something like I have for the past 10 days!

Last Friday one of my advisers took a group to a small town in the hills just outside of Florence called Fiesore. Apparently it is where the first settlers of Florence lived. It has the most amazing outlook where you can see all of Florence and the hills surrounding the city. My pictures don't do it justice!





More pictures soon once I figure this thing out!

Ciao!