Sweat It Out and A Day of Luck

Wow, sorry guys. I am in Florence and i haven't had email access until today because of not having a student password, yada yada yada. So im just on a five minute break from my first class today. So ill give you the run down of whats been going on in Nice and here thusfar, and then later today write more of a philosophical/photographical essay/personal account of the past 6 days.

Nice: Beautiful beautiful beautiful. the rock beaches didnt even bother me, other than that it was insainly hard to get in and out of and the water was gorgeous, but freakin cold. It was extremely touristy so I was completely fine just being by myself here, lying on the beach, and listening to music. I figured i had a lot of sweating out toxins and bad energy to do that had been accumilating for the past week and a half. The only person i had to talk to was a flirty Algerian who came and sat down on my mat. You know there is nothing more irritating than a guy who comes over to flirt with nothing to say. I can't stand it when guys think it works to sit next to you and be charming, but expect you to do all the work. ugh. So when i figured out that his English wasn't that great I just started asking questions that he couldnt answer without basically mocking himself. When i laughed he thought he was being funny. No, i was just laughing at him. It was entertaining for a while and then when i didnt want to do work anymore, i completely just stopped talking to him and stared straight into the ocean. Since he obviously had nothing to say he finally got the idea and finally left sheepishly. I felt just a little bad because as he turned to say goodbye and sorry for disturbing me (which he had) he tripped on a rock and nearly fell. It was really awkward so i just turned my head and put my earphones in.

The British girl i wasnt too fond of in the beginning I ended up becoming little friends with, along with her Irish friend. I took their portraits before leaving and exchanged emails. It was nice to be in the company of just girls and to be girly for a change. Though it was quite a different girly because the girls in the hostel, these two and then several Swedish girls, were all very reserved and quite shocked at how open i was or the things that came out of my mouth. i am not used to being in reserved company so that was weird. But I have been tired of hanging out with guys all the time and have missed the company of females and "girl time."

I ended up having to leave a little early due to train scheduling. Nice has daily overnight trains to Florence from 9pm - 7am. It was okay that my trip was cut short because i wasn't really interested in going to the museums in Nice and there is only so much beaching one can do. I had gotten my thighs splotched with sunburn just the first day. *note: i did try topless tanning. no big deal for europeans, but it took me a while. i think its a good thing to try at least once in your life, but not everybody...please!* So my last day I just basically hung out at the hostel because once i get in that packing mode and getting ready to go, i just want to go and get there; nothing else is on my mind. But waiting until 9pm made me incredibly anxious (though i did get to meet probably the most gorgeous man i have ever laid eyes on, from south africa who was taking my bed. next trip? south africa baby!) Upon leaving there was discrepency about getting my money back for the night i was not staying, the pink lady ended up not being so nice, but i got at least 10€ and my deposit back.

My train ride couldn't have been more uncomfortable.

At first i was excited to share a cabin (which i thought was going to be a sleeper cabin, but no, it was three chairs closely staring at another three chairs) with 5 American guys, who all kinda young looking, but decent. Then they started talking. "yeah, so this is our first night in two weeks being sober, what about you?" oh dear god. i looked at them and was like um, so are you guys in school? yeah we just graduated. highschool, right? YEAH! oh boy. quintessential californian highschool boys with stinky feet that took over the entire cabin so that all i had left was one tiny little corner to somewhat nuzzle in. That didnt really work, but atleast those boys didn't drink the rum they brought on the train, and they were all right guys.

Wednesday, June 27th: A Day of Luck

Once i arrived in Florence I must have gotten my brain pick-pocketed because I have never made a more stupid decision. I had a choice to walk left or right or take a taxi. I didn't have a map, only an address for the school, and most people were walking right. So the choice was clear to me to walk, carrying about 50lbs, to the left without a clue of where i was, but thinking that i would just happen upon it. what? seriously? when did i become this dumb? i had thought that there were directions in the packet they gave us from the train station. no. but after walking around for 25 minutes and then trying to hail a cab for another 15, i read that you cannot hail a cab, but can only go to cab stations. there are only 3 cab stations in the city of florence, the closest one being by the train station that i had just come from. awesome. I was so irritated with myself at being so stupid. ah but luck! I happened on a cab letting out some man to his apartment and jumped in. I actually wasn't that far away, but there would have been no way at all to find where i was going.

The school was closed when i got there since it was before nine. I have never been so sick of travelling as i was at this point. I waited and had a cappaccino at a nearby cafe, then got sent to another building further away, and just had to wait until 12 for the housing. I went up to the cafe and to the smokers pavilion outside since it was in a nook and fell asleep. I was woken up in an hour by someone coming out for a smoke. And another stroke of luck, it was Claudia! Never have i wanted to fall to my knees hugging her legs, so amazingly happy to see another Midwesterner who knows what the 600 S. Michigan Ave building even looks like, and knows what a Chicago hot dog tastes like, and knows that the Cubs suck, and knows that taking the brown line at night is one of the most beautiful ways to see Chicago. Never have I ever been more excited to see someone I didn't even know. Claudia is the coordinator of the trip. She took me back to the apartment she was staying at with the other female faculty and i had the most blissful nap of my entire life. I had made it. It was like running a marathon and breaking through the ribbon. Man I have never felt more relieved! Ah!!!!

That night I had a wonderful dinner put on by the chair of the Art and Design Department, Sabina, who loves to cook for people and host and do things like that. She is a woman in her forties that just got married last year and is the most hospitable welcoming woman with intelligent, wise, and the most encouraging words I have heard all year. I am so blessed to not only have met her, but to have been able to spend quite a bit of time with, since she was only staying till the weekend to make sure everything was flowing for our group. The rest of the faculty from our school that had arrived all came over for dinner. What a refreshing evening to go from simple conversations with people that speak English as their 3rd language and have no experience in the arts, to people that have been ACCOMPLISHED in the arts for over 30 years. Wow. I was not regretting one single bit that my host in Florence fell through that night or that i had come in a night earlier than everyone else. Not one single bit. And just to do a little bragging, I charmed the socks off of them too, and the non-photo faculty all wished I was in their department. ha! what a compliment. I really was blessed.

Florence is amazing! Italy is amazing! And of all the places Iàve been, Italy is my favorite. The lifestyle, the food, the everything. Most surprising is how freaking nice our apartment is. HOly cow! it's huge. we have a dishwasher and a huge refrigerator. I don't even have a dishwasher in Chicago! oh and a washer in the apartment. This place is nicer than my chicago home.

This weekend was spent walking around with my three roomates, Jenny Montgomery, Elana Greeklastname (both photo majors), and Allena Criscie (an illustration major).They are all great and we get along well. I totally have a friend crush on Elana; she cracks me up. It was nice to get to know a European city without the 10lb backpack on my shoulders. And though i love my roomates and it was wonderful to actually get out the word limit, but good lord i have never done so much shopping and talking in all my life. The season of "girl time" has passed. I dont like to talk THAT much and i have a shopping expiration life of about 2 hours, maybe less. So sometimes i have to separate myself from them, which i hope they don't think im being bratty. Europe is new to all of them, so they should go out and explore, but i have been seeing all these things everyday for the past two and a half weeks. I needed rest.

Today was the first day of class, which was basically just finding out password for computers and yada yada yada. The lecture was a bit remedial, because Diana has to teach to a range of student levels. One girl has only had photo 1, and four of us are seniors. After class we decided to look at the facilites, but I'm going to wait and save that one for a new blog. haha. oh man. yeah, that will take a blog to itself. And people in Chicago, you kiss that dirty Columbia College darkroom floor, cause you are a spoiled photo facility brat!

Tomorrow is a day trip to Lucca we all decided to take with the art history class, and this weekend we're paying a little extra to take a day trip through tuscany which includes wine tasting. huzzah!

Ciao.