first day of class...

well yesterday was the first day of class and so far, they seem like they will be really interesting. each class is usually 2 hours but for most you go on walks around the city--rarely do you spend the entire time in the classroom. but it makes sense--we are in one of the most beautiful and historic cities in the world!! 

i just had writing class and our professor starts out with the question 'what is a journey?' ok, i thought this class was going to be more of a journalism thing than a philisophical class. my head starts thinking a thousand different things...what do you mean 'what is a journey'? can you elaborate? do i need to take notes? is there only one right answer? am i even in the right class? then all of the sudden this girl (later i find out she has traveled all over the world and done everything with her life while practially curing cancer) answers with some insanley over the top comment involving animals and society. at this point, i am already lost but figure that i should stick it out till the end to see what this class is all about. for the next 2 hours i realize that the kids in my class are so typical of every english major student ive ever met. (sorry bubba--you are the exception) when given the chance they love to talk about themselves and hear the sound of their own voice. when asked what color the sky is, they cant say it is blue--they respond with "it is the color of my spiritual connection to all living things" or something complicated like that. so some of the answers these kids were giving just made me laugh. towards the end of class we were given our assignment and the professor asked for voulnteers to read their finished papers aloud at the next class. two students (the girl i mentioned earlier) and another guy (who also had made it very clear that he was over qualified to be in the class) volunteered, so i decided i should do it as well. keep your fingers crossed that my paper ends up going well!! oh and by the way, the answer to the question 'what is a journey' ended up being 'a transformation'.

my weekly schedule looks like this:

monday-history of christianity 9-11:30 and italian 3-4:15

tuesday-travel writing 12-2:30

wednesday-italian 3-4:15

thursday-history of the medici family 3-5:30

i am so excited to have fridays off to explore the city or take little day trips! this week thus far has consisted of class and grocery shopping. it is so fun because we have grocery stores near our apartment but we also have wonderful markets where we are able to buy exactly what we need at little specialty carts. it also gives us a chance to practice our italian. the fruits and veggies here are SO fresh! we have been making our meals at home the past few days and we love cooking with all the italian spices and ingredients.

as promised, here are some of the pictures! it is on my facebook account but this link allows for everyone to see the album even if they do not have a facebook. i still have more to add but my internet at the apartment is SO UNBELIEVABLY SLOW!!!!! i need to get wi-fi set up at the school so i can use my computer there with faster internet. 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2126295&l=1d3db&id=18811585

i just had lunch with a friend of mine from high school who has spend the entire year in florence! it was really nice to see a familiar face and catch up on old times.

anywho, enjoy the pictures and i hope yall have a great week!!!

lovelovelove