For the past few days...

Buona sera! It's been kind of a crazy last few days!

-Firstly, the temperature has dropped considerably. The first few days we were here it was sunny and high of about 50 deg, just a little chilly but not too bad. Perfect for walking around. As soon as I begin to start doing stuff to get my apartment and begin my actual study abroad experience, it dropped to high of 35. So that's kind of a bummer, I didn't realize Italy got quite that cold in the wintertime. My parents left today, so I'm glad they mainly had good weather for their vacation. I think they really enjoyed their visit!

-I got my apartment keys a few days ago, and I'm all moved in for the semester! My apartment is really cute (rather old but very authentic Italian) and my roommates are very nice. Being on the Oltrarno side is a nice break away from the more touristy side of Florence. It's much quieter here, and much more typical Italian countryside living.

-However, what's not been so nice is our heat. The first night there, it decided to shut off a few hours before we went to sleep. The low was 27; we had to sleep in 2 layers of everything. After orientation things and walking around all that day we hoped it would have come back on... And it did! But only for a few hours. Sometime in the night it shut off, and was equally cold as the night before. And to our surprise this morning, no hot water! We think the system used all the hot water for the radiators (the apt has small radiators in every room) and none was left for showering. Fun times. But luckily later this evening some nice gentleman came and fixed it for us, and it seems to be working now. Let's pray it stays that way! Although, apparently the hot water/ heat/ and electricity going out is a common problem in Italy. That's slightly annoying. But hey, I'm still in Italy so that makes up for it!

-Not knowing more than basic Italian (from Rosetta Stone) is also slightly problematic. I speak more French than Italian, which does me no good because even though there are cognates, they verb conjugations aren't that similar. I've been relying heavily on my talking Italian phrasebook app (this is super helpful actually, if anyone wants more information on it) and also Google translate. But I'm starting to pick up phrases here and there.

-Story about Google translate... We have this wardrobe/ bureau/ armoire in our bedroom for hanging clothes, and it has three doors. Each door had a lock and a key. So the first day I turn the one on the left, it opens. I turn the one on the right, it opens. The one in the middle... Stuck. Of course. So for days I'm trying everything to get it open, including using a knife to try to pry the bottom open. It is the only space big enough to hang clothes, so without it we can't put our hanging sweaters anywhere. Evidently it got jammed shut from the last time it was closed. Everyone takes a turn trying to get it open, even my parents. So today, while the same nice man that fixed our heater was here, I literally had to type "can you open this wardrobe? It's stuck" in english, translate it into italian, realized I couldn't say it so I handed the guy my phone to read. (super embarrassing! I wish i could have asked him like a human being, but none of us knew the vocabulary.) He was kind enough to open it for us! Praise Jesus he got it open! We finally were able to hang up our clothes, which had been sitting in a pile since we got there.

-Classes start on Monday which is really crazy! It's been sort of a big vacation. I've been here over a week and it still doesn't feel quite real. Being on this adventure still feels like I'm in a dream, a little bit. Although, the sobering reality of school is coming soon. But mine and my roommates' classes sound like they will be really fun! My classes are: Ceramics, Watercolor Painting, Italian Renaissance Architecture, and Handbag Construction. Those probably sound really easy, but our syllabi said it requires many hours of outside work, because we only meet once a week for 2.5 hours! Hopefully 3 studio classes won't kill me...

-We got our official FUA ID cards yesterday... So official! We also found this super cool market while on a break during orientation things! It's called Mercato Centrale, literally "the central market." The bottom floor is all fresh ingredients and merchants with fresh food to prepare for meals. It's huge! Butchers, cheese artisans, gardeners, winery owners, it's crazy! The top floor is all little local restaurants where you can eat good food but cheaply without paying a sitting fee. (Most restaurants charge a sitting fee, like a fee for occupying a table, because most people take 2-3 hours for a meal. Seriously.) So that was super cool! I felt accomplished that we found it. Next on my list to see soon is Santo Spirito!

-It rained today :( first rainy day here. But Florence is somehow still pretty wet and with freezing temperatures. Next rainy day we will go to a museum or something :)

-When things go wrong, I just have to remember that even if I'm outside my comfort zone, I am living out my dream of getting to study here. I'm very blessed to be here! Although, that mindset is kind of difficult when its freezing outside and inside your apartment... Lol. It will get better though! Hopefully the weather will warm up soon!

Ciao!