I Miei Amici di Italia

La Coppa del Mondo

As you all know by now Italy won the World Cup! I have still not recovered from this as the partying never stopped. The cup was right around the same time that all of the Italians finished thier exams and began their summers so my last month of living in Florence was not quiet! The night of, the streets were packed full of honking cars and Vespas all decorated with numerous enthusiastic Italians waving flags, ringing bells, and what not. We watched the game at the bottom of Piazzale Michelangelo where there was a giant outdoor screen set up. We were with all the Italians who had arrived 4 hours before the start of the game just to get a spot... After the game we traveled around the city in awe of all the crazy celebration until we ended up at the Duomo where crowds of people were dancing to crazy men with drums. By far one of my favorite moments ever.

Troppo Caldo

Si, ho troppo caldo.....I am too hot. I thought Fort Collins was hot in the summer, but it is nothing compared to Florence! Not to mention how much stickier all the tourists make it when you have to squeeze through them just to walk down some streets. Air conditioning is rare...and I have had a rash on my arms ever since I returned from Greece that is aggravated by the heat…but nonetheless I am loving the beautiful weather. . We have made a few trips Viareggio, a beach about 1.5 hours away. It is a common place to go so the trains are always jam packed. With the exception of an area about the size of a backyard, the entire beach is private and you have to pay to use one of the hotel's areas. The sand was extremely hot and so were all the European bathing suits. I just can't help but laugh. My tiniest little bikini is conservative here!
Since I wrote last I have only gone on a few day trips, to the beach, to Sienna (Florence’s ancient rival) and to Pisa to see, yes, the Leaning Tower. Sienna was good, especially when we walked around the corner anticipating the beautiful Duomo only to find that the entire façade was a giant picture. It was ‘under construction’ and the entire thing was covered in scaffolding. As Alex, the tall Austrian would say, we got majorly punked by Sienna.
Pisa was actually very cool and the surrounding piazza was beautiful. It was comical to sit there and watch all the people take pictures of them pushing it over or knocking it down. I’m not gonna lie, I wish I would have gotten one. Pisa had the cheapest shopping ….so you know what that means.
Other than the weekend day trips I am a dedicated intern from 9:30- 5:30 Monday through Friday at Enrico Coveri. Mind you by dedicated I mean I arrive at around 9:45 go on lunch from 1:00-2:30 (but arrive back at about 2:45) and then leave anywhere from 5:30 – 6:00. And no, that’s not just my schedule…time is not as crucial here as it is in America. Nobody is ever distraught about being late or behind schedule…this concept works well for my tardy lifestyle and I find that I am even more punctual than most of the people at work Further more, the concept of intern here does not translate to free labor like it does in the States. I have not been asked to do one task in the four weeks I have been there. I get to design all day everyday and am basically just building my portfolio and watching the designers create the next season’s line. I have my own desk and have access to any supplies I need. Everyone is very friendly but the language barrier definitely affects my interaction with them. Small talk is very small and the questions that I want to ask about suppliers, distribution, and the entire design process are too complex to dive into with my simple, conversational Italian.
I am approaching my last four weeks in Florence and am contemplating on just staying here forever. I am excited to see other places but sad to leave the friends that I have made from various countries. I know it will be harder to see them again compared to how easy it will be to hook up with the friends I have made from the States. It has been so fun to have an international conglomerate of friends. We are a big group of Columbian, Canadian, Mexican, Austria, French, Italian and Americans! The main language spoken between us foreigners is English. But everyone has made many local Italian friends and the level of English spoken with them varies. It is odd to speak with the Italians because they feel so badly when their English is poor, but don’t even judge for a second how poor our Italian is and are more than happy to try to speak with us in English. One boy explained to me how important he thought it was for Italians to know English above all other languages because it is the international language. He felt embarrassed that Italy, in comparison to other European countries, did not speak very much English. I told him that in America it is not too common to speak a second language fluently and that I wished we felt the need to know anther language as much as every other country feels it must teach their children English.
I am finally moving to the center!! I have had enough of the Italian bus system and endless nights of sleeping at friends because I missed the last bus. So I have found an adorable apartment that sits directly at the base of Piazza Pitti (the ancient Medici “country home”). It is also a one minute walk from the Ponte Vechio! My friend Jenny and I will move in on Saturday and I am counting the hours.
I hear the states are hot and so we both feel each others pain. Hope everyone is well. Lake Powellers…..I CAN’T TELL YOU HOW JELOUSE I AM…What I wouldn’t give to just walk into the water right now or enjoy a cold morning ski….Have a great trip, I’ll think of you often!