But for Now We are Young, Let Us Lay in the Sun and Count Every Beautiful Thing We Can See

I know, I know... this blog is long overdue. But in my defense, today was my last day of June classes so I've been pretty busy and it's been blazing hot so all of the energy I have left is just sucked out and into pools of sweat (serious).

All right, so for those that don't know, my mom and aunt came to visit last week! It was such an amazing time! I really wish they could have stayed for more than a week, and I'm sure they were wishing the same thing. We had so many great laughs and they were such great company. While I was in class they were able to go off and explore Florence, shop, take a few day trips, shop some more, and even dared to rent a car for a day. I even got them into see The David without waiting in line :).

On Thursday I got really sick and missed class... so we went to Venice! It was quite the adventure getting there. Booked trains, long lines, not being able to find anywhere to sit, and waiting around in Bologna, and then we finally got there.

First view of Venezia

My aunt has a cousin who lives right outside of Venice on Lido so we were able to meet up with her for a very late dinner (due to our train fiasco we missed the dinner that had been planned, but a panini and prosciutto is always close by when you're in Italy!).

My mom and I got to our hotel, and we were so happy to be in an air conditioned building, we slept so soundly. We woke up the next morning with the promise of an American breakfast, which ended up being the best cheese I've ever had with yogurt, croissants, biscuit cookies, orange juice and a cappuccino. Not all that American, but not bad at all!

Now that you know exactly what I ate, I'll tell you about our day in Venice...

The Amazing Race: Venezia

So fancy!

Awkward picture of myself, but loving it!

Piazza San Marco

Happy in Venice with my new hat!

We wished we could have stayed for more than just one night. Everyone has their own mixed feeling about Venice, but when you just stop, slow down, enjoy your surroundings and stay away from anything you need a ticket to see, it's wonderful!

When we got back to Florence we were just in time for the fireworks! Every year they have a big soccer tournament between the different neighborhoods of Florence. Afterwards they have fireworks over the Ponte Vecchio, so the three of us along with the rest of the city squeezed ourselves onto the bridge to watch (what we could actually see) the show.

Happy happy!

It was my mom and my aunt's last night in Florence. We sat outside next to a piazza, listening to music, eating gelato, and contemplating leather coats. I was sad to see them go, but it was such an amazing week I couldn't help but to be happy... And there are already talks of a reunion tour!

On Sunday Tara, two other girls from SRISA and I finally made it to the beach! Plus a few stops in between...

First, we stopped by Pisa. Pisa was never a city I had actually wanted to visit. I just wanted to snap the picture of me pushing/holding the tower and be done with it. But to my surprise, it was kind of a charming little down. We even found a big mural by Keith Haring close to the train station.

You may not know the name, but you know
you've seen his stuff before!

 And here it is..!

Everybody do the Leaning Tower!

Good arm positioning.

YES!

After we were happy with our results, we headed back to the train station, where the real fun of the day began.

Travelers Tip: When you see a sign that says something along the lines of "Train strike, warning that trains may be delayed or cancelled" do not think nothing of it! These train people mean business.

We made it to the train station only to find that every train to Viareggio was cancelled. With purchased tickets in hand, we frantically found a help desk and was directed onto another train with a few stops and a larger cost, but there was nothing stopping us from getting to the beach. We purchased the new tickets four minutes before the train to Genova was scheduled to leave, somehow managed to find seats, and we were on our way! And let me tell you, thank God we didn't just give up at Pisa, because the time we were able to spend in Viareggio totally made up for the mess we were about to endure on the way home.

WE MADE IT!

Heaven

It was such a wonderful day, regardless of the stress of the trains. But on the way back things got pretty crazy. The strike was supposed to end at nine that night, so we made sure not to leave until then. However, when we got back to Pisa and onto the platform, there was no train (or anyone else for that matter) around us. So we waited for the next one that was scheduled, and thankfully more people showed up. But the train, on the other hand, did not. No more trains were running to Florence. We were stuck. In Pisa.

There was a bus that was going to come to take everyone around one in the morning, but we really didn't feel like waiting for two and a half more hours for that. So the four of us happened to find two other girls that needed to get back, and we split a taxi. Finding a taxi for six people was difficult, finding a taxi for six people that would drive us all the way to Florence was even harder. But we eventually got one and paid 30 euro each and returned to our apartments safe and sound, and a little bit burnt.

Not the best experience, but it was a great day. Tara and I are planning on going back on Friday, since it will be her last day here. And this time we'll be skipping Pisa.

As for school, all of my June classes are done! I got a 99% on my art history final (ha) and I'll be finishing my last batik tomorrow. Although, my batik teacher said I could come in during July if I just paid by the hour, so there will hopefully be more batiks to come! I'll also have pictures of all of my final pieces soon... maybe tomorrow. Who knows.

Our fan is also broken, and July is the hottest month next to August for Italy. I wake up sweating, I fall asleep sweating, I am always sweating. I'm getting a new fan tomorrow.

Everyone is going home this weekend. Even our neighbors that I finally met yesterday are gone now. I only know of three other girls that are staying. It kind of makes me wish I were going home too. And then thinking about not going home like everyone else makes me a little homesick. But on Thursday I'll be heading to London to visit a few friends, so it'll be nice to see people I know! I am very excited, and actually, I'm just about to book my flight!

So, even a little homesick, I'm still loving this city. Having new and comfortable shoes makes me love it even more, since I swear the roads are even more beat up than when I first got here. And I've finally made the connection to the beach! Which always makes me happy. Especially when a beach looks like this one! I found a sun hat right in time!

Lastly - there has been an odd amount of yelling/shouting from the people who live right across the street from me. I don't think it's Italian, but it's super intense. I think the heat is getting to them, too.

A presto!