Siena, Assisi, Naples, Oh My!

I heard from my pal Derek last night. I say that he's one of my Italian friends, but the truth is, he is an attorney in Pittsburgh. I met him in 2004 on my first trip to Florence. We have stayed good friends ever since, and have even met in NYC a few times for reunions. He will be in Italy at the same time this summer, and we finalized plans for going to a wedding together in Gamberale, a small mountain town northeast of Rome. This is going to be a little tricky because the wedding date is close to Mike's departure, but we will figure it out. As they say in Italy, "normale."

I am in a state of nervousness and excitement at this point. It's really one week away from today. I feel as though this trip was totally meant to be, as this was the most exhausted I have ever been at the end of the school year. 

I'm flying away from my new condo (side note: I closed on my condo on June 29th, 2012- one year ago tomorrow), family, and summer lifestyle in New England. I'm going to live in another country. It's only five weeks, but that's a long time to be away from everyone and everything!

I emailed the apartmentsflorence.it people today to let them know when we are arriving so someone can meet us at the apartment. We will be arriving at 2:05pm in Florence. Then, we'll get our walking shoes on and hit the town! Some of our first spots will of course be Piazzale Michelangelo, give Porcellino a nice rub on the nose, the Ponte Vecchio, and the best gelato spot in Firenze, Vivoli (or so they say). I'm going to cry actual tears when I see everything again.

Derek is going to guide us through Roma and Napoli. After Mike goes back to the States (sad!), we are thinking of going to visit the island of Capri. Derek is also hoping to visit in Florence, which will make my trip so complete. We're also hoping to see Cinque Terre, Siena, Pisa, Fiesole, Assisi, and Perugia.

My amazingly lovely second cousin Dawn (and Luke, her husband) live in Umbria, not too far from Firenze. We are planning to see each other in Umbria, and then hopefully she will come up to Firenze and stay with me.

Right now, I'm just trying to hold in the excitement of this trip. I had a great New Bedford night tonight: dinner at Davy's, and soft serve down by the dike in the South End. I had fun with the fam (minus Jeffah), and will miss them.

I should get started with my packing. Ciao for now!

Waiting Patiently

Ciao, ragazzi!

This blog is my first ever, and I am excited to announce that I will be reporting from Florence, Italy for five weeks this summer. It is going to be an adventure! The wonderfully amazing Michael J. Raymond will be accompanying me for the first two weeks, and I absolutely cannot wait to show him around Florence!

I "lived" in Florence for four weeks while studying in the summer of 2004. I was staying in an apartment on Via Pietro Colletta, just east of the center of the city. This time, I will be staying in an apartment in Piazza Santa Croce, right down the road from where Rossini, Dante Alighieri, and Galileo were buried. Crazy! One of my favorite restaurants, Baldovino, is right up the road. To be honest, I fell in love with the city completely, and it was so difficult to leave it knowing how long it would probably be before I could go back. I am excited to be able to see Florence all over again; visiting churches, museums, gardens, vineyards, and just soaking in the immense culture the city has to offer. I'm definitely bringing my flute in hopes of the opportunity to play. After almost ten years, my life has changed a lot, and it will be very cool to return to the place that helped me grow up and open my eyes so much.

I will be in Italy for a total of 34 nights, which means roughly around 102 incredible Italian meals. So, my goal is to write about each day. Please feel free to email or comment, as I'd love to keep in touch during the trip. More to come soon!

Ciao ciao.