The Arkansas Traveler: Playing Catch up

This time in Italy has been jam-packed with many activities, so I haven't updated in some time but fear not my dedicated readers I have not forgotten you. As I depart for Venice on my first independent travel, I should probably tell everyone what I've been up to since then. On February the 10^th the entire class was sent into Florence to participate in a scavenger hunt, which consisted of us finding things like the JFK memorial (who knew you’d find that in Florence), taking multiple pictures of the Giglio, the symbol of Florence, and interviewing a local shop owner. That of course was a challenge in and of itself, we had to try to communicate with one another in a mixture of poor English, broken Italian, and numerous hand gestures. After eating a light lunch of a ham sandwich, chips and water, the Class met at the Cathedral of Santa Maria of the flowers for our afternoon class. It was there that we had a tour of the Baptismal, which is the oldest building in Florence, as well as the Cathedral itself. Both the Baptismal and the Church were chalk full of beautiful mosaics, paintings, and Frescos. Me being the history nerd that I am almost had sensory overload for the sight of everything. I wish I could find the right words to describe the awe-inspiring beauty of the Frescos painted on the inside of the Church’s dome but I’m afraid my words just won’t do. Touring the church was not the end of our tour; oh no we then had the pleasure of climbing the stairs that led to the top of the cathedral dome. This dome when it was built was the largest free standing dome in all of Christendom; in fact it would hold this title for over a century until St. Peters Basilica was built. Any way the climb up the 463 stairs was long and tiring. In fact half way up I wasn't sure if I would make it to the top, my legs felt like they would give out at any minute and my lungs burned with every breath I took. But When I had reached the top and stepped out onto the ledge the wind and the cool wet afternoon drizzle seemed to reinvigorate me. The view from my vantage point was amazing. I could see everything from the busy markets and street vendors in downtown Florence to livestock out in the fields that outlined the city.

The Next day most of the class left for a three day Ski trip to Abetoné. Abetoné is a small town in northern Tuscany that is well known for its slopes. I must say being a boy from Arkansas, I’ve always wanted to go skiing but never really had the opportunity. So I had been looking forward to this for a while. The first day we were there I spent most of the day in a skiing class, which didn't really teach me much other than how to fall with style. By the end of the second day I was doing pretty good at the basics such as braking and wide bank turns. On the third day I spent the morning skiing and the afternoon I spent exploring the mountain on foot rather than risk trying to tackle a trail that was beyond my abilities level. The scenery was very picturesque in fact it felt like everywhere that I looked belonged of the front of a postcard or maybe some sort of Christmas album.

After spending a few days of licking my wounds and letting my pride heal, it was time for the group to travel to Rome. The trip was amazing; I got to visit everything in Rome, from the catacombs and the Colosseum to St. Peter’s basilica. It was interesting seeing all these sights that I have only read about in books, especially Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel. I wish I could have taken more photos but a lot of place wouldn’t allow that. We finally returned to the villa on the 23^rd and now one the 28^th. A group of friends and I are bound for our first independent adventure.