I am exhausted. It’s been a really busy couple of days.
I only had one class Thursday, which was glorious. I could sleep in and then come home right after class. Alyssa and I also went to a little veggie market and bought cheap, delicious green things (like broccoli) and diet Coke. We chilled at home in the evening, watching Friends, cooking pasta, etc. That night Alyssa, Colleen, Keyana, Emily and I went out to 21. Now, the facebook invite said the club opened at 10 and the specials ran until 12, so we arrived a little before 11. Oh, well, the club REALLY opened at 11, so we were the first ones there. Fortunately, we and the twin bartenders got along quite nicely. I would call the evening a success, minus the creepy guy who wouldn’t leave me alone all night. Apparently if a girl is dancing with her friends, it means she’s waiting for a guy come dance with her. Heads up: not so much true. And pulling people’s hands off and shoving them away doesn’t always work either. This is when it is helpful to have guy friends. Other than the Grabby McGees, the night was great and we danced, danced, danced. Then, our lives changed.
In Florence, it’s illegal for restaurants to stay open past 1 AM, but heard about a kabob place that stays open until 5 AM. After 21, Colleen and I are hungry, so we pull Alyssa on our adventure to find said kabobs. Well, we find the place. The lights are off and it looks like nobody’s in there, so we knock on the door. Kabob Man lets us in and makes us the most delicious wrap we’ve ever had, specially made to order, for 4 euro. It was truly our greatest find. We munched all the way home and went back the next night as well. I have a feeling we’ll soon be on a first name basis with Kabob Man.
Friday was a wonderful day of sleeping in, chocolate, books, and non-sketchy Italian men. These were all separate activities. After slowly waking up, my roommates and I went to the Chocolate Festival in Piazza della Santa Croce. There were tons of booths with all the chocolate you can imagine. Colleen and I bought hot chocolates (cioccolatto caldo) that were literally melted chocolate with a little milk. Though they were small cups, neither of our sweet teeth was large enough to handle the richness of the chocolate. I bought a coconut milk chocolate truffle and went on my merry way to exchange a book for school and get store credit for a return. So, check that off the list. The weather was kind of rainy (which is, apparently, typical for January), so Alyssa and I came home, and Colleen joined us soon after. Colleen and I decided to go out and meet two guys she met the night before. Other people were going to meet us, but considering we had to be up early the next day, their decisions to sleep were understandable, and probably the smarter choice. Despite some awkward moments, we girls had a fun night and topped it off with a kabob.
Today we awoke at the butt crack of dawn. I still maintain that if the sun isn’t up, I shouldn’t be either. Mix this with not going to bed until late (at least later than I should’ve gone to bed), and you’ve got a rough morning. I slept on the top floor of the double decker bus pretty much all the way to Siena. Once we got to Siena, I had just gosh darn good time! It was a little rainy, but not bad. We split into two groups, since so many people went on the trip. We went to a cathedral with the finger and head of Saint Catherine, which also had the only picture painted of her when she was alive. We stopped off where Saint Catherine lived, took a walking tour through town, got some coffee, and then did the Duoma of Siena. I had been there before, but it was just as incredible going back. I can’t handle how detailed everything is in this particular duomo. And I really liked the Bernini sculptures. I may or may not have touched one. There’s no way to tell. I spent a lot of time in the library this time around, looking at the old manuscripts and the Donatello sculpture (I’m pretty sure… it’s late at night. I could be confusing them). Afterwards, we were all starving and went to lunch.
The bus ride from Siena to San Gimigniano was a little busted. My food hadn’t quite settled, and we drank a lot of water and coffee at lunch, and the roads were very, very windy. I’m not the only one that got car sick. Once we stopped, Alyssa kindly popped me some meds. Since it was raining something awful in San G, we didn’t spend as much time walking around and went to a café, where I, thankfully, found a Sprite to calm my stomach down further. We all agreed we should come back to San G later in the trip, once the rain stops, because the town is adorable and the views are beautiful, but you couldn’t see any of it when it was raining that hard. When we got back, we got McD’s (I’m pretty sure there’s only 1 in Florence, and it’s right by the bus/train station) and bee-lined for home, soaking wet, sore feet, and hungry. We had had a lot of fun, but were ready to be out of the rain. Then I passed out. Then I wrote this.
Tomorrow should be a relaxing day of reading, homework, and grocery shopping. I’ve checked ahead, and the weather is supposed to clear up next Wednesday through Sunday. Hallelujah!
I’m also trying to figure out how to put up pictures. If they’re not up here, check Facebook.
Pace, tutti!