I'm In Nice!

and its very nice :)

not alot to say acutally, we took a 7 hour train here and had a little trouble finding the hostel which is actually an incredibly fantastic place. Its much nicer than many hotels i have stayed in, the only downside is taht we have to share the room with two other people, although this really isnt much of an issue because they are both 20+ year old girls from the east coast.

We walked around the city a bit, and its nice. But the whole thing feels like a reality check...a big one. Its hard to point out the specific things that are so striking but it feels like i walked out of disney land and am suddenly in a normal society. Like, there are normal size cars, there are big buildings, people dress much more casual and there is a huge range in people.

i think there is a big part of me that just wants to make it through this trip as quickly as possible. I really couldn't care less how great it is. I think i am going through the motions a bit, because i went on this trip more based on principle than actual want. Although i am really excited about Paris.

we are spending all day tomorrow here, and then the next day we take of to Avignon :)

Review of Surrounding Country Side

Boboli Gardens, Piazza della Santissima Annunziata, and the Orto Botanical

The Boboli Gardens are my socket. I could not live in Florence without them. I wander the grey, wet, dark, stone streets of Florence purely on battery power. Don’t misunderstand, these streets are some of the most incredible, amazing, and beautiful in the world to me, but they ever so minutely drain me. A constant drain that I always feel in the city, any city. I feel the life slowly leave me and it is at that time that I return to my favorite place in Florence: the Boboli Gardens. I go there to recharge, to get my daily dose of green, and if it is green you are looking for these are the gardens to go to. So large are they, so magical, and so beautiful that there is no other substitute. Built in 1550, everything within them is full of energy; from the huge variety of trees (cypress, oak, ect.) to the design of the gardens, nothing is lacking except for flowers. But it is winter so we can excuse this. I walk through the gardens, heading south towards my favorite spot, right at the end of Cyprus Alley in the famous reflecting pool called L’Isolotto (or Little Island). The energy in that very spot is unlike any other, it is my socket, my place to recharge. My place of solitude where I gain the energy to survive for another couple of days. It smells of nature, the sound of birds fills the air. People talk and laugh on the main streets, and to feel sunshine! Oh nothing is better than getting that dose of vitamin C. If I had not found this place I could never of been as happy as I am now. My time in Florence would have been one continuous drain, but luckily I did find it.

In comparison to the two other places I visited, The Orto Botanico (also known as the garden of the simples) and the Piazza della Santissima Annunziata, the Boboli’s are no comparison. Yet, these two places serve very different purposes than the Boboli’s. Piazza della Santissima Annunziata is one of the most fantastic piazzas in Florence. Dating from the early 13^th century, the true magnificence of the piazza is do to the influence by Filippo Brunelleschi’s Loggiato dell’Ospedale degli Innocenti (1419-1451). Most consider this work by Brunelleschi to be the first true renaissance piece, the sloping arches with the white babies and blue background give this pizza something different. The Innocenti was Europe’s first orphanage, with a system allowing mothers to drop of unwanted children anonymously. This gives it a odd air, because it was one of the first outreaches to the needy. It is the first open arched piazza to be placed in Florence and one of the first of its design in Europe. It has a sense of…dare I say abandonment? Yes, it has a sense of abandonment to it, as if people have forgotten the significance of this place. People stand in groves, staring at the Duomo, Ponte Vecchio, Plaza Vecchio, yet no one seems to stand a stair at the significance of this place. This is why I like it, because I do know the  importance. I have not forgotten.

            My third spot, unfortunately, I could not get into. It is closed for various reasons, none of which I was able to figure out, but I was still able to stand a stair at the Orto Botanico. The Boboli’s are my place of rest, the Loggiato dell’Ospedale degli Innocenti is my spot of wisdom, but the Botanico is my glimpse of ancient Medici, a quick view of the past that is so utterly different than the other monuments of Florence. The Duomo is beautiful, significant, and very old. The Palazzo Vecchio is even older, but both do only one thing: intimidate me. These gardens though are meant to do nothing of the sort. They were possibly the first Botanical gardens in Europe, used to grow medical herbs. Founded by nuns, and eventually controlled by Cosimo the first in 1545. Covering over 400 acres, and containing over 6000 different herbs it is a very straightforward garden. Not meant to impress but rather to serve a purpose. A purpose now looked at very different; hospitals, medicine, drugs, and the sort are not often thought of as gardens, but rather plastic pill containers. But this place is a mixture of the two, almost eerie for some reason, it contains an entirely different form of beauty the other two locations. A beauty far reaching, and much deeper.

Michelangelo Vs. Bernini

Sculpture represents reality. Painting does not. Painting is about conveying a message or documenting the way something looks. But sculpture is far and beyond a mere recording of visual fact when it is done right. Good sculpture is nice: like a painting it can convey a message or document a living person, however the important difference—and the reason why sculpture will always be superior to painting—is that great sculpture has its own life: a realism that can never be matched in any other artistic expression. Michelangelo and Bernini were able to give personality, emotion, and quite nearly a soul to their best work. Michelangelo’s “Pieta” and “David”, and Bernini’s “Rape of Proserpina” and “Apollo and Daphne” all fool the viewer into wanting to believe they are "alive". The street performers that can be seen standing perfectly still on the street do this, but in reverse. They sit there and stare at you, playing with you, teasing you, and almost fools the viewer into thinking that they are works of art made of stone. But between these two fantastic sculptures, which one is superior? Michelangelo or Bernini?

Michelangelo is the Mozart of art. He was the young, snobbish, kid who was just naturally great at everything he ever tried to do. He had very little to no actual training and gained the favor of the Medici family very early on. They commissioned works from him for an extended time until the Pope caught sight of him and never let him go. Michelangelo's first noticeable work was some fine relief work--which is carving into a solid piece of marble, but only partially which is not meant to be seen “full circle” but only from the front, like a painting--and a rather ugly wooden crucifixion located in the Santa Spirito. Ironically enough, the piece that caught the attention of the Vatican was a sculpture he carved of "Cupid" (which has been lost) that was damaged, by the Medici, to make it appear as if it was an original ancient Roman piece. When it was discovered to be a fraud, the Medici got in trouble, but Michelangelo was invited to Rome to work for the pope. This is where things get weird. One of my favorite pieces of all time is created just after one of the most disappointing pieces of all time. Michelangelo sculpts a piece now located in the Bargello: Bacchus. It is a really funny looking sculpture, which has an oddly shaped face and no real life to it. It looks like a failure that was attempted to be passed of as a success. It is a piece that is meant to express the look of a drunkard. But it just doesn’t. It has narrow eyes, a weird mouth, and just simply does not look realistic. I wish I could say why it doesn’t work, but I can’t. Judge for your self, but even the man it was commissioned by, Cardinal Raffaele Riario, rejected the piece. I believe this was Michelangelo’s first real commission, and also his first failure. It must be because of this piece that he was so adamant about doing things his way afterwards and why he tried to destroy pieces he felt were failures. But, directly after this failure he finished a piece in 1497 that will stand above all others in sheer beauty for all of time: The Pieta. A perfectly executed classic pieta, it does everything proto-renaissance sculpture is suppose to do but presents it in a way that had never been seen before in Italy. Most notable is the Pieta’s beauty, specifically Mother Mary’s, which is actually odd. She looks as if she is a young women, probably in her early 20’s or younger. Which is, of course, not logical—Jesus was thirty three when he died. She is also sculptor much much larger than Jesus, which is meant to portray the look Michelangelo wanted: a month cradling her son. This is contrary to the scientific nature of the renaissance; it is an example of an artist taking “artistic liberties” to express what he wants the viewer to see rather than what actually happened. It is possibly Michelangelo’s most finished work, with a highly waxed exterior (which gives it that glossy look) and is the second sculpture in artistic history to perfectly capture a moment, never to be outdone (the first is Donatello’s Mary Magdalene). This is why it is so significant, it is nearly perfect. There is nothing to be done better, no flaws in the entire piece. The lifeless body of Jesus along with the flawlessly serene face of Mary is . . . perfect. The emotion that is evoked by looking at it overwhelms the viewer, a feeling of shock, horror, beauty, and love. It is simply stunning. Only two years later, in 1499, Michelangelo started his second perfect sculpture. It is my favorite piece of art: the David. Sculpted from what was called a ruined piece of carrara marble, no one thought it could be finished. The marble itself was flawed, and still Michelangelo spent the next five years working on it. The result is the most spectacular David, and most powerful piece of sculpture ever done at the time and still stands strong as the most impressive work because of its massive size and serene beauty. But my favorite part is not the size, or impressive nature, but rather the facial expression and how it changes as the viewer moves from right to left. From the right side he actually looks concerned and scared, but from the far left he looks like a true “mans man”, as confident as is humanly possible. If the viewer stands on the right side, and slowly moves to the left in a circle, they can actually watch as David makes up his mind that he IS going to face of with Goliath. It is the most fantastic thing I have ever seen, and again, it will never be out done. After this, Michelangelo did a couple of paintings (the Sistine chapel comes to mind) but for the sake of this comparison, I am going to stick to sculpture because that is what Bernini was great at. Funny enough, the rest of Michelangelo’s sculpture does not strike me any where near as great as these two mentioned. Maybe he got lucky, maybe he was temporarily anointed by God, or maybe he tried to do too much, but the rest of the sculpture (specifically the woman in the San Lorenzo New Baptistery) just looks off. Infact, all sculpture looks off after looking at the David and the Pieta (with the exception, of course, of Donatello’s Mary Magdalane). No one, not even Michelangelo himself, is able to come close to reaching this incredible mastery of the “perfection”  seen in the Pieta and David, that is until a young boy named Gian Lorenzo Bernini came along.

Bernini was literally called Michelangelo reincarnated. Similar to Michelangelo, he was spotted by the Vatican (specifically the Pope) at a very young age, but in direct contrast, Bernini worked faithfully for the Pope his entire life where as Michelangelo mostly worked against the Vatican. His story is much simpler, and therefore shorter. As a sculptor he produced five significant pieces that I am going to look at, starting with his most strange and least impressive, "Aeneas, Anchises, and Ascanius". It is a strange piece because it does not look realistic, and I want to look at it first because it is Bernini’s first significant piece and is similar to the Pieta in its unrealistic aspects. It shows Aeneas fleeing the burning city of troy with his son following and his father on his back. Realistically, you would hold someone on your back by letting them straddle you, but in this sculpture the grandfather is sitting on one shoulder as if it is a chair of sorts. He is also much smaller than Aeneas. This is done in order to show the main point of the piece, the three stages of life (youth, adulthood, and old age). Now, it is no where near as impressive as the Pieta, Bernini’s next four are, but this one is important because it does a couple of new things that Bernini will use more effectively in his next couple of statues. For one, you see a disregard for realism, meaning that Bernini wants to make a point more than make a piece realistic. Two, Bernini loves the very vertical, tall, and twisting motion in his sculpture. Almost as if to show a disregard for gravity, which is very different than Michelangelo’s Pieta, which is extremely stable and set with gravity. And third, Bernini uses very different effects on the marble to create extreme differences in texture. Michelangelo barely did this; which can be seen in the texture of David’s hair versus his body versus the tree trunk. Bernini begins to master this in this piece, expressing the roughness of the hair, the smooth quality of the young body and the old age of the elder’s skin. Most impressive is the face of Aeneas, which is very beautiful and soft…that’s right, soft. Which is an odd way to make a face look when it is carved out of stone, but Bernini will do that, he will make things look very peculiar. These three principles of Bernini’s can be seen much clearer in his next statue, “The Rape of Proserpina”. The first thing the viewer notices is the realistic qualities of the skin…I mean marble that is supposed to look like skin. The fingers pressing into Proserpina’s side, the wrinkles in her twisting body and the soft nature all are unlike anything that has even been seen before. You can see Bernini’s lack of strict detail in the expressions of the faces, specifically in the face of Pluto, who has a huge beard and, for lack of a better word, a bit cartoony of a face.  He also continues his vertical, twisting, contrapposto look of defying gravity. He tends to go vertical, and does so even more in the statue with hands, arms, hair and all other manners of objects sticking out in odd directions. He enhances his use of texture in the face, hair, dog, and most of all, skin of the piece. He creates a strong sense of life, and more than ever before it feels as if this piece was digitally created by Pixar and is simply paused; except, it is made of marble (which one continues to forget) and was done in the 17^th century. But, if the texture, movement, and lifelike nature is impressive in “The Rape” then it is perfectly done in his most famous, and my favorite work: “Apollo and Daphne”. The principle of realism is forgotten because, well, no woman ever turned into a tree in mid stride. But, somehow, it seems more realistic than the first two. This is Bernini at his best. He absolutely destroys the laws of physics, moving marble up and out as was never thought possible. Daphne’s hair, and hands, are hanging in mid air where one just wonders what is supporting all that weight. It is phenomenal to see it done that well, but almost as impressive is the incredibly realistic texture created by Bernini. The wood looks like wood, and the skin looks like skin. It is nearly impossibly to believe that it is actually crafted out of marble because it shouldn’t be possible. But he did it, and did it perfectly. It is a piece that stands so pure, and so impossibly, that any person could love it. The detail between her leg and what is becoming the tree is amazing, the way her hair is changing into leaves, and the MOTION that is created. Nothing has even been close, and nothing ever will be. It is perfectly done, just like Michelangelo’s Pieta and David. There is virtually nothing about the statue that makes sense because all of the basic principles of sculpting in marble are broken. It doesn’t look like marble, it looks like its too light to be marble, and no one can convey motion in a piece of stone like this. But Bernini did. His next two pieces are not nearly as impressive, yet are extremely amazing none the less. His “David”—which shows an in-between stage of David as he slings the rock, and expresses real motion in a piece of marble—and “Ecstasy of St. Theresa” which is a beautifully crafted in the Mannerist style (with extreme gold sunlight, and a busy atmosphere and a pricelessly beautiful face of St. Theresa and the angel).

But who is better between the two? Michelangelo was able to do the classic stuff like no one before and no one after. In my opinion he had two perfect statues that will never be bested. But, on the other hand, Bernini was able to do things with marble that shouldn’t of been possible. Where Michelangelo’s philosophy of sculpture was to free the being inside from the surrounding stone, Bernini’s was a step further. He actually wanted to free the being from the confines of being stone, turning it into something greater. Who is better? The answer is neither, they both are truly phenomenal artist’s who had very different styles and were able to master these styles never to be

   

Donatello (i havn't had time to write on her, so i might as well put what i've been writing for school

 (i havn't had time to write on her, so i might as well put what i've been writing for school)

                                

Exam 1:

Comprehensive look at and critique of Vasari’s view of Donatello

All of the artists that can be chosen from are proto or early renaissance geniuses. They all contributed in one way or another to what eventually became the artwork of Michelangelo, Da Vinci, and Raphael. Some, however, such as Fra Angelica, capture something that the high renaissance artists never could. In his case, the serenity of Mary in his annunciations may never be equaled. Above all else, the single early-renaissance artist that probably will never be bested is Donatello. Donatello is truly one of a kind. No other artist in history has been able to capture the raw emotion of a person and portray it through sculpture as effectively and simply as he does. His work is able to touch the soul, but even more remarkable is he was the first to ever attempt to do so. Without doubt he succeed far beyond what any person believed was possible, and no one will ever be able to match his ability to capture everything it means to be human with in sculpture.

Vasari pays Donatello the highest compliment, saying that he “sculpts with so much grace and elegance and such fine sense of design that they were considered to be more like the distinguished works of the ancient Greeks and Romans than any other artist” (Vasari, 148). Of course, because the Greeks and Romans were considered to be the best sculptors before the renaissance, to say that he nearly imitates them perfect is a huge compliment. He even says it more straight forward in the sentence after, saying that “no other artissan surpassed him in this field, and even in our own times, there is no one who is his equal” (Vasari, 148). There is no better praise that can be given, and all of this praise is more than justified. Donatello truly was the first to fully grasp what is possible in a piece of sculpture; the emotions, the feelings, the personal relationship a viewer can have with the piece, he was able to do it all. Vasari goes through a long list of the magnificent work, specifically his David, his Saint George, a piece Vasari calls the Abundance, his I’ll Zuccone, and most of all his Gattamelata. Vasari gives all the pieces individual comments of recognition, but the three most important are his Saint George, which is given worthy praise, his David, a piece highly over rated in relation to other similar pieces, and his Mary Magdalene, a highly underrated piece of his and possibly one of the most signficant pieces of early renaissance.

Saint George is a fantastic sculpture, originally crafted for the Armourers’ Guild to be placed in their niche of the Orsanmichele, it is by far the most famous of the representatives inhabiting the structure. Later moved to the near by Bargello, people come from far and wide to view this dragon slaying hero. Vasari describes the head of the figure as “a youthful beauty, courage and skill in arms are reflected, as well as a fiercely awesome vitality and a marvelous sense of movement” (Vasari, 151). This is an exceptionally accurate account of the piece. The small jaw and head, along with the simple eye brows and smile, give the sculpture a boyish, or “youthful”, appearance. Yet, accompanying this boyishness is the stern gaze which is looking, presumably, at the dragon. This gaze screams of confidence, even more so than Michelangelo’s David. If there was a statue to come to life and, with sword in hand, slay a dragon it would be this one. More than any other piece, it is his eyes that capture me. Some say he looks as if he were a man turned to stone, but I disagree with this. There is no way he could be: he is much too good looking. There is an idealized air around the piece that is portrayed so significantly by the great Donatello. Vasari goes on to speak about the bas-relief on the lower part of Saint George’s tabernacle, calling it a piece with “a horse that is highly esteemed and highly praised” (Vasari, 151). This is more praise than I feel inclined to give. I do not fully understand the appreciation of bas-relief. It does its purpose well in the tabernacle—which is to tell the story of Saint George without distracting from George himself—but the bas-relief by itself does not seem to be anything too substantial. There is only so much praise lightly carved material deserves, but none the less the two together are remarkable. They represent the most pure form of confidence that can be found in Renaissance art.

 Unfortunately, the view of Saint George is slightly blocked by what is sometimes considered Donatello’s greatest work: David. Located directly in front of Saint George, it is easy to compare the two; the powerful, beautiful Saint George versus the David; most accurately descirbed as very….feminine. The age of David when he slays Goliath is unclear, some would say that he was an undeveloped boy, others would say a teenager beginning to look like a man. Different artists have chosen to shape David in very different ways. Verrocchio’s David looks like a young boy, and later, Michelangelo’s David looks like a full blown man. However, Donatello’s doesn’t look like either. When looked at disregarding the “man parts” he, without doubt, looks like a little girl. The curve of the body, the simplistic shape and lack of muscle development create a very effeminate look, from the back he actually looks a little provocative, no man has curves like that. But why would Donatello do this? Maybe it only looks feminine compared to the other two David’s. Maybe a little girl and a little boy look a lot a like, or most likely, Donatello probably tried to convey the sense of innocence that David had when he set out to slay Goliath, emphasizing how incredible the feet really was. Likely, in truth, it is a mixture of all of the above,  but the the fact is that his David is distractingly feminine. The light smile, and curvy body, all seem to emphasize femininity and create a weird sense of questioning that can make it uncomfortable for the viewer. The size of the hips, the placement of his hands, and even the hat, all seem like something a girl would do and wear. But most disconcerting of all is the uncomfortable feather standing up right into the most “private spot” of the statue. The sole salvaging aspect, however, is his face. No other piece surpasses the serenity, the life like qualities, of this face. Again, it does look a little girly, but beautiful without question. The proportions, the softness, and most of all, the smile, all are phenomenal. It’s the only aspect of the piece that screams “Donatello made this!” because no other artists has even been able to create a more powerful, yet simple, face in his or her work than Donatello. Some would say that it deserves extra room for error considering it was the first full cast bronze nude since the Romans, but truthfully Donatello knew what it was going to look like and purposefully made him look like a her. All in all, it is sad that the David gets as much attention as it does, there are other pieces by Donatello that deserve far more credit.

No piece is a better example of deserving more attention than Donatello’s Mary Magdalene. Carved out of wood, no other statue can take you through such a emotional journey. Vasari says that she is “very beautiful and well executed, for she has wasted away by fasting and abstinence to such an extent that every part of her body reflects a perfect and complete understanding of human anatomy” (Vasari, 149). This is true, but it is so much more than just an admirable statue. He only makes one comment which only draws attention to the physical production of the piece; this, possibly, is because Vasari is looking at it from an artists eye. But as a human, she can connect with a cord inside a person unlike any other sculpture. When first seen, the viewer is struck by a strange wooden carving, unclear of what is being represented, but as it is looked at more closely a face and body is found. Emotionally, the first feeling is disgust, for she looks to be in utmost grief. The cutting away is very ragged, much different than the normal polished marble people are used to looking at. The eyes have sunk back into their sockets, many teeth are missing, and she is clothed purely by her overgrown, ragged, and dirty hair. The viewer can not help but think of how ugly this piece is, but soon after that thought enters the mind her hands catch the eye. Perfectly carved, smooth and beautiful—in a gesture of prayer—they stand in direct contrast to the rest of her. And, as if the struck by an instant realization, the viewer sees that she isn’t in pain, isn’t ugly, but has rather given herself fully to God. Through fasting and abstinence she has focused everything on her savior, and her body has deteriated because of it. Part of her is in pain, for her savior is gone and she desires nothing else but to return to him; she is close, soon going to die, but it is clear that she is heaven bound, her hands show this within their serenity. They have done nothing but pray, and pray beautifuly. The detail of the piece only compliments the lack of detail in the hair and clothing. It shows that it is ragged not because the sculptor was a poor artist, but because he choose to express her that way. It is a beautiful piece, horrid and terrifying, yet most definitely beautiful which deserves great praise and recognition. Funny enough, seeing it in the small Duomo museum actually adds to its majesty because one does not expect to see such a powerful and significant piece of work in such a place.

Without doubt, Donatello is the most powerful sculptor who has ever lived, portraying all sides of human emotional, beauty, and spirituality. Although some have come close (like Michelangelo), no one has even been able to recreate the power of his pieces. He said it best himself when comparing his simple wooden crucifixion with Brunelleschi’s heroic, beautiful, one. He said to him “it’s for you to make Christs and for me to make peasants” (Vasari, 149), and this he did beautifully, always representing the common man.

High Resolution Photos

If you want to see my favorites or want desktop images, follow this link:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tddl/

Tired Tired Tired

So things have really changed for me this last week and i just now realized what it was. Over the summer i used to go to bible camp, it would be a week long program where i would have 8 or so cabin mates, would play games, do organized activities, have free time, and go to chapel. Its the only other time i have ever been away from home. Coming here i realize now i had the same attitude as if i was going to camp. I was going to have room mates (cabin mates), school (chapel), time to explore Florence (free time), AIFS activites like soccer games (organized activities) my teachers are councilors, the AIFS staff is the program staff, and everyone wants to meet everyone. This is how it felt. It was go go go for the first two months, doing everything and anything possible. People were hanging out, meeting people, going to school, but in the last month everything has changed.

Now it doesn't feel like camp anymore. I know people well enough, and am used to the way of living here, that it feels like thats all i am doing: living. Its much more casual (because i can watch hours of Seinfeld and not feel like i'm missing out on priceless wonders around me) but also a lot less fun. It is a very different way of living, and i just don't know which one i like more. Before everything was an adventure. I was completely out of my element, exploring, getting lost, ect. But now i've made Florence into my element. I think i changed a lot in order to adapt to living here (specifically because i am living in the middle of a large city, something that would of been a shock no matter where, even back home). The good news is that ive learned from all of this, i've learned to take care of myself, to be comfortable in a city setting, to not need to understand everything (if anything) of whats going on around me. The good news is that, in many ways, i have made Florence mine. I will always think of Florence as home, it will be that spot i will always want to visit again; i am sure of that. But the interesting thing (and kinda bad news) is that a couple of things are missing. It feels like there is a whole inside of me. Its not painful, and its not all that horrible, but i do know that i will never really be content or happy until i fill that hole. What is it? It's simple, and can be explained in one word: family.

I miss my family like i never knew i could miss anything; it is ok, because i will be going home in a month, but if i wasn't i would not be able to stay here. But its more than just my immediate family, is my cousins, and aunts and uncles, and grandma's and grandfather's and friends. All of these are waiting back home for me, and that is such a wonderful feeling i can't express how happy that makes me. I cant wait to get back home, and i can't wait to be able to see everyone again. This hole can be filled and i know it, the only thing i don't have waiting for me back home (or here) is a girl. But i am confident that i will find one soon, i have to, i know i will never be really happy until i do.

One month left. . .

Museum Evaluation 1: The Uffizi Gallery

(I wrote this for my art class, thought i would share it with you guys)

 I choose to visit the Uffizi gallery (for about the 8^th time this trip) and from the Uffizi I decided to write about my favorite piece with it: Filippo Lippi’s “Madonna with child and two angels”. The Uffizi each and every time is a true treat to visit, the amount of priceless art that is held within this single museum astounds me. It seems that no matter where I look I see something that could hold my attention for hours on end. Everyone has heard of the Uffizi gallery, so walking into it—especially for free—is an incredible experience. This definitely prepares my mind to reach a critical mode, yet I also try to maintain the emotional side of my mind, so that I can feel as well as critique. The entire museum is designed to  have the oldest pieces near the front, and the older ones towards the back; a progression of art from pre-renaissance to post-mannerism. Names stand out throughout the gallery, such as Cimabue, Daddi, Botticelli, Van Eyke, Michelangelo, and Da Vinci; all are names that strike a cord in any person that has even a minor appreciation or knowledge of art. There are many beautiful pieces within the museum, most specifically of all is Michelangelo’s “Holy Family”, Botticelli’s “Primavera” and also his “Birth Of Venus”. But my favorite piece, a piece often given ample amounts of credit, is Lippi’s “Madonna with child and two angels”.

            (1) Lippi’s piece is from the early renaissance period, a period that emphasizes both beauty and realism. There was a very distinct difference between the two, and at this time they had not really been combined yet; there were those like Lippi and Botticelli who wholly grasped what it meant to create a beautiful piece. They purposefully disregarded some realistic factors to create a more attractive work of art, and they succeeded in that without doubt. Others, such as Van Eyke, focused solely on realism, loosing in the process much of the beauty. Lippi’s however is the exact opposite. Painted in 1465, it is a beautiful piece far ahead of its time. It captures the serenity of the catholic church at the period, the idea of what the Madonna was suppose to look like. It is Mary done better than ever before (with the possible exception of Fra Angelica and his many annunciations). (2) Lippi was orphaned at a very young age, and soon after put into a monastery to become a monk (hence the title Fra Filippo Lippi), he left the church when he was 17 and soon later distinguished himself as a painter. It creates a funny sense of sympathy, even though he was known as sexually…rampant. He really did have an awful, semi pathetic life with the one exception of his painting. (3) When he lusted after a girl, and was unable to woo her, he would paint her into his commissions. This is seen in his “Madonna with child and two angels” where the beautiful Lucrezia Buti (a woman training to be a nun) was denied to him, yet he still was given permission to paint her into the piece. Eventually he captured her heart, and convinced her to elope with him away from Prato, never to return. (4) It most definitely reminds me of home, my mother used to have a small framed picture of this work. I grew up looking at it, always impressed by the majesty of the Madonna. It reminds me of my childhood, of the beauty of some women, of possibly the beauty of a girl I may meet and fall in love with shortly. It evokes strong, uplifting, yet humbling emotions with in me. Which is partially by design, the viewer was suppose to be at awe of the beauty of Madonna, yet also inspired that she was your personal Saint, a gateway between yourself and God. (5) Made from tempera, as oil painting had not made it this far south yet, it has a very soft and almost flat look. Most of the colors are subtle and meant not to distract from the face of Mary. The most striking aspect of the painting, however, is the intricacy of the veil of the Madonna. Barely visible, it flows and flutters down from her head past her shoulder emphasizing the curves of her face, shoulder, and neck.

Rome Part 3

Well, the next day we had alot to do. Because we were cutting the trip a day short we had to do the Vatican, St. Peters, and the Galleria Borghese all in one day. We woke up around eight o'clock (not an easy thing to do after walking around rome until four in the morning the day before) and then ate breakfast (two croissants, a glass of orange juice, and a coffee) and then went out headed for the Vatican. Again we naviagted the metro and buses (we really were getting the hang out if by the end) and made it to the Vatican around nine thirty. Really the day can be summarized into three things: 1. we saw the Sistine chapel, it was incredible and also saw Raphael's School of Athens. 2. we saw the galleria Borghese, which holds of all Bernini's sculptures and was my favorite part of the trip, and we saw St. Peter's Cathedral. It was a really long day, considering we had to go across town form the Sistine chapel to get to the galleria Borghese (because we had to make reservations) and then go all the way back to see st peters. It was all incredible though, especially Bernini's artwork. Ive seen st peters, and the Sistine chapel before, but I'd never even heard of Bernini. He was called Michelangelo reincarnated, and truly was as incredible as the best of the world. He worked exclusively for the pope, and was able to create movement within marble that still doesn't seem perfect. Michelangelo's philosophy of sculpting was to remove the unnecessary pieces of marble to expose what God had put int the piece, Bernini's was a step further. He tried to free the marble from what was unnecessary around it and also from its physical limitations, he wanted to turn it into something other than marble. The sistine chapel was...well the sistine chapel is known for: being incredibly beautiful. And st peters is exactly what st. peteres is known for: being really really big.

it was a great day, and the amount of walking that we accomplished still amazes me. Rome really is something special

Rome Part 2

After sleeping for a couple of hours and catching up with my family on the internet, Sean and I decided to set out on the town. Before we left we talked to the people and nothing had opened up. We were kind of worried about what would happen if nothing did open and what the alternatives were, so we looked at the situation and couldn't figure out what to do. We would have to find another hostel most likely and pay more, and then also pay a cancellation fee because it is so short term. But the guy said that if he could find someone to take our room we could cancel our reservation without paying our fee. It was quite funny actually, because we said to cancel our reservation and try to find someone else, and he looked at us funny for a couple of seconds and said "i think i actually can sell you room now..." walked into our room said something to someone in there, came back and said "ok. . .i sold your room." Then we had to decide if we wanted to find another hostel, or come back a day early. Our tickets were open tickets, meaning they could work for any train of that type going to the same place, so i checked train times and there was the same train (a 7 o'clock train) heading back to Florence that we could take. So we decided to do that, leave a day early and not sleep as much that night. We then left, around 8 o'clock to go see as much as we could see at night. We took the metro all the way up to the Spanish steps and went from there do all through Rome back to the Colosseum. The Spanish Steps were exactly how i remember them: a big set of stairs. I still do not understand what is so significant about them, but none the less, Sean and I saw them. We went from there to the Trevi Fountain, which is absolutely beautiful. A photographers dream, it is easily the most beautiful fountain i've ever seen (and even calling it a fountain seems to diminish from the beauty). Yet it still didn't do it for me like many of the other important things i've seen here, in Italy, because its so modern. I believe its 19th century, which always takes away from its importance. We went from there to view the pantheon (only from the outside obviously), the roman forum in the dark, and then the Colosseum in the dark, which is easily the most magnificent thing i've ever seen. Each arch is individually lit, and it stands out from the rest of the world in an unmatched splendor that was screaming "take pictures of me!" Sean and I both have little mini pocket tripods, so we walked around setting up our cameras on the ground looking like complete idiots. It was fantastic. The whole event, starting at 8 at night, ended at four in the morning. We were exhausted, and ready for bed. I never thought we would be the one crawling into a 6 person hostel room at 4 in the morning, but we were.

Rome Part 1

What a crazy couple of days. It feels as if ive been away from home (meaning Florence) for a lifetime. The original plan was to go to rome for three days/two nights. To see the Roman Forum the first day (including the Coloseium) the Vatican the second day, and the trevi fountain/pantheon/spanish steps/galleria borghesi the third. The only problem was somehow we miss booked our rooms and only had a bed for 1 on the second night. I think that between when i looked at availability and booked the room they lost the second spot and i didnt know. We figured we would see if anything opened up for the second night (considering we had to pay a down payment allready). The train ride over wasnt bad at all, and i had expected it to be rough. We paid 16 euro for the slow train all the way down to Rome, nearly four hours long. But the view was beautiful, we brought snacks and watched movies on our ipods the entire time. It passed quickly, less than two movies and we have 34 total. Once we got in Rome things were hectic, there was no bathroom on the train so we had to find a bathroom which is never a easy thing when youve "really got to go". The whole world became clear once that was over. Sean and I walked down to our hostel through Rome, it probably took about forty five minutes, to find a really Roman man awaiting us. He took offense when we asked for "Hostel di Roma" and corrected us calling it "HOTEL di Roma". He had a hardcore chin strapy mustache beard thing (you know what im talking about) but was wonderful from the very beginning. However, he said EVERYTHING was booked for the next day but if anything opened up they would make room; he even mentioned something about throwing a mattress up on the roof if need be (i still dont know how serious he was). But he seemed very optimistic and was very friendly so we figured we would wait around and see what became available. He  followed this by showing us the entire city of rome via map. What to do, how to do it, when to do it, what buses to take, how to get  a bus pass (we bought an unlimited three day bus and subway pass for 11 euro each), where to get food ect. He had given the speech a couple of times i would guess so he ran threw it pretty quick, amazingly i was able to follow everything he said. We then set out on the town. We wandered about, took a bus towards the coliseum, got some pizza, and then found the Roman Ruins (aka the Roman Forum). It was beautiful, we were able to walk all the way around them and got some incredible pictures. The age of most of these structures is incredible, imagining what it most of been like back in full bloom is awesome. We walked all around and then headed down the main street and suddenly, directly in front of us, was the Coliseum. It was just as magnificent and beautiful as i remember it being. We went in, and spent a couple of hours just moseing around, even ate some food we had with us. The power of that building, but good and bad, is overwhelming to me. After that we headed home to take a nap. it was nearly 6 and we slept utnil about 8. a wonderful thing, naps are.

Status Update: Rome Day 1

so, me and sean couldnt get two for tomorrow night. we are going to come home tomorrow instead, so we figured might as well make it a night out here....after taking a nap we walked all from the spanish steps to the colliseum and took hundreds of pictures. after taking the right bus in kinda the right\wrong direction we are finall home at2:30 in the morning

My goodness, ive been busy

School, school, school, planning spring break, and school.
This has been my last week, which is why i havnt written much on here. There has not been alot of time or material. But material will be here very shortly.

Sean flies in tomorrow for the week, i am going to show him around florence and then we are going to go to Rome and Venice. Ive been doing my research and have figured out the train tickets, train times, prices, hostels, museums, architecture, churches, food, ect in rome, and the same for venice.

but the homework load has been insane. Probably more the last week than the entire month before, i believe the teachers fell behind their lesson plan and what not, but forced all the assingments on us early trying to get it back before spring break (because they want to have stuff to grade over break). But it is all over now.

Literally the only other thing i have been doing is watching movies with friends, because its been so cold, and on the sunny days (like today) playing frisbee/soccer with Dakota. Its odd seeing a big wide open field, but we found one today (it was only a 35 minute walk....) and had a good time. Wore shorts for the first time since coming here, they felt kinda akward...

but rome and venice info is on its way, very shortly!

Fiesole

Well, i have had a really fantastic couple of days. Sunday i got invited to go with Jeremy Ball (my philosophy teacher), his family, Ken (my art teacher) and his wife, and Marci (the english teacher) to Fieosele--a small town that overlooks all of Florence. We took the bus (1.20 for a 90 minute bus ticket, not too bad) up there. Its only about 20 minutes away, and actually a pretty nice drive. Ive always liked standing up on buses as they twist and turn. To try to keep your balance, and there was plenty of twisting and turning. Alethia and I (jeremy's 13 year old daughter) were seeing who could go the longest without holding onto anything. We both didnt make it very long and it didnt take very long to get there either. As soon as i stepped of the bus i knew i was somewhere special. The entire place is small, cute, and dominated by one bell tower that overlooks the entire town. We looked around a little, and then headed towards the central attraction of the town: a 1st centuary amphetheator that is almost perfectly perserved. Just walking up to this old hunk of stone seemed...off. I am pretty sure that we associated ruins with, well, being ruined. But this place was nearly prestine. Apparently it had been burried at one point of another, and it wasn't until recently that they discovered and unburried it. As any anthropoligist knows, burrying something is probably the best way to preserve it, so some of these ruineds seemed too nice to be as old as they are. Besides that, there really wasnt much else noteworthy, besides the breaktaking view of Florence, and the awesome food they had there...here is a link to pictures:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=206600&id=723772976&l=883052a7c4

Boboli Gardens

See them all here:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=5128984&l=813063b705&id=723772976

I Swear My Shower is Trying To Kill Me

First day. i got burned.

the water is literally scolding hot at times.

then it got blocked.

we got aifs to come and draino our place, but that took forver. we had to take 30 second showers, because it was as if the shower wasnt draining at all.

then the hose wasnt working right, apparently it had gotten twisted, so it would spray on and off...

but tongiht beats them all. i took a good long shower (like 5 min) for the first time yet. it was a very frightening expierence, but i made it through all right. i was happy, because for the first time it seemed that i had made it through a shower without something horrible happening. then, through a complex mangeri of door bell rings, nocknig, ect, a guy ended up outside our door in a panic: "did you just take a shower?" yes......"well all the water just came into my shoe shop"...ohh....well thats not good.

so, during orientation we were told not to mess with any of the plumbing, because some girls had a couple of years before and drowned a shoe shop beneath them. well, turns out that was my apartment. and something broke, and the same thing happened.

we will see what happens; the good news is that im not responsible. the bad news is that i cant shower until we figure this out....sponge bath anyone?

Futball (NOT SOCCER!)

Italian culture is fantastic. First of all, as it turns out, Italians are really into their cities. I mean, they live by them. They don't call themselves Italian. They are from Florence, or Siena, or Tuscany, or Rome, or Naples, or Venice, and each one of these places hates every other one except for when the other city beats a city they hate more. Fiorentina (the futball team of Florence) is incredible passionate and hates all other teams around. The agreed upon most hated team in Italy is Florence, because they are so stuck up. The number two team is Venice. Watching the game was truly expressive of what it means to be Italian. The players would sulk for minutes if they missed an open shot. I mean,  the whole stadium and game would stop to watch this one guy sulk. And then one of his team mates would have to help him back up and encourage him, and then the game would go on like it never happened. It almost looks like i'm watching a corny soccer movie, where everything is over dramatized. On T.V., a couple of nights ago, Florentina played a German team, and it was like watching robots play against professional actors. The Germans won (because of a horribly miss called score that should of been off sides, the head ref was even temporarily suspended because of it) and i couldn't help but watch the Italians afterwards. It was more entertaining to watch the Italians loose than the Germans win. In football back home, the losers just put their head down and walk of the field. But the Italians were crying, and hugging each other, and kicking everything in site. It even looked like one of them was going to charge the Germans. The Germans on the other hand looked like our loosing teams back home, heads down and walked up the field. Dakota has a Juventus jacket (a futball team somewhere near by, that is probably the best team in italy right now) and at dinner one night the waiter pulled him aside and half threatned to kill him and half tried to save his life by saying "you cant wear that jacket around here, if i dont kill you someone else will. It would be like wearing a red socks jacket in New York..." (this was priceless, and i think Dakota actually enjoyed it). I mean, the rivalry here is so strong, that the Florentines actually root for other national teams when they play Italy. Because most of italy's national team is Juventus players. The romans, when they came to play here, were allready in the stadium when we showed up. They were literally walled off in their own section of the bleachers with purposefully left empty bleachers on both sides. When they scored on us (those sons of bitches) the romans through red and gold flares out of their section into near by ones. I flare literally hit the guy next to me. Now of course, every italian in the arena wanted to charge the section, for about 5 min, then they acted like it had never happened. I think they just want to get outraged. I took a picture of a "gold man" when he was first putting the stuff onto his face, and he started yelling at me. I trully dont undertand why, i guess he didnt feel he was ready for pictures yet. It would be like taking pictures of an actor when he was first getting dressed...one thing is for sure though, everything here is entertaining, or it is once you get off the main streets. All of the shops on the main tourists streets are very "american" in that they want you to come in, buy something, and get out. But the shops every where else are just the opposite. For example, i was waiting in line for my panino yesterday when the lady at the register started to help this other guy put his sandwiches into a plastic bag. It was a nice gesture, im sure he could of maniged on his own, but she was going to help him. In the mean time, the line in the place was out of the door. Everything is about the idea of something, its about making the best damn paninis in the world, or the nicest leather jackets, the money is just an after thought. My first thought was, "wow this is way better than back home, where its "in-and-out" as fast as possible" but once i thought about it i realized that in some ways its as if they are more interested in the popularity than the money. Back home people want money first, fame second. Here, people just want fame, because they know if they get it they will get the money with it. But i like it more, there is a courtisy that exists, not soo much towards me because i dont speak italian and just look akward no matter where i go, but it definitely can be seen towards others. Even my friends Andrea and Jennifer, who speak and look very spanish/mexican get treated alot differently (i think better) because they always ask if the italian speakes espanol before they ask if he speaks english (hanging out with them is a kick too, i dont understand just about everything that is going on around me in italian during the day, and then i go to their house and i dont understand just about everything that is going on around me in spanish, but im getting used to it. I just sit their and wait for them to come back to english, they almost always do). There is a political movement starting in the north that wants italy to start moving back towards states and away from a unified country. Its an intersting idea, which is really picking up speed, but essentially it is actually BACKWARDS progress in relation to most of the world. Maybe its a better movement, but its an odd one. Everyone is talking about and wanting globalization. Easier trade, easier communication, better jobs, but italy wants to move back to being independed sub states. Why? I think a big part of it is the pride Italians have in their own culture, which varies greatly every mile almost. I mean, before Italy unified as a country, the dilects from region to region were so unique that Florentines could not communicate with Venetians. Thats an incredible concept, isnt it? It would be like San franciscans not being able to communicate with people from Organ (oraganians??). But with that dialect people feel united, or maybe unique. And its more than just the language thts different. Each city has its famous invention. Its food that its famous for. And you cant find it any where else in Italy. Thats just wrong in their mind, and it would be acknowleding that its good if you started making it. So the menus even are completely different from town to town. There are really no big chains either. I mean, literally, the only big chain in florence is McDonalds. There are three, all in the most touristy/ghetto areas. AIFS said that if they ever hear about us eating at McDonalds why we are here, they will personally make us pay. And to remember that they know where we live. Thank God, becuase i feel the same way. I have not looked inside one yet, and i hope it will never accure to me to go inside to eat something. I understand that wanting something from home, but there are other places to go.

we will see if i can live without it....the only thing i really miss is chips and salsa...funny huh?

Quick Update 2/24/10

i bought some purple sweaters, 15 euro each, i got two. one is dressy, and warm. really nice. and the other has a little bit of elastic in it, so its more sporty/every day. its a really nice dark purple, almost like a navy blue, which is fiorentina's colors. (its a good excuse to wear purple).

dakota has been cooking dinner (mostly pasta) and ive been eating whatever is left. i pay him a couple of euro, and clean up. and sometimes we will put a movie on afterwards and do homework. didnt really expect to get along with my room mate this well.

in philosophy, i finally kinda learned something today. we talked about media, and all the "filters" news has to go through in order to get to the public, and how it would probably make more sense to make media a public organization (kinda like the CA university system). it was a really fantastic discussion. people in class really got into it.

ive now been to the uffizi 5 times, to the bargello, acadamia, santa maria novella, santa maria fiora (duomo), santa spirito, big toy store, plazzo vecchio, ponte vecchio, 5 other people's apartments, 6 diferent restraunts, the oil shoppe (where they know me by name now), kadeer's kababs, 4 different internet trains, countless leather stores, and pisa, lucca, and vereggio.

so, where should i go next?

Shoes

Everything here is on sale. So much of everything that i assume its just a marketing scheme that is always in effect. Americans love their sales, and if they walk into florence and see the unbelievable prices of some of the most amazing leather in the world AND its on sale, whats going to stop them from buying it? There is even one store here that says, in english "real sales! Up to 50% off". Which is, ironically, acknowledging the fact that most of the sales here are not real, and then trying to hook you into buying from THEIR not real sale. Its laughable to me, especially since a couple of days ago i would not of even picked up on it. However, there are a couple of real sales around. In fact, quite a few of them. Once i got a feel for the prices of jackets, gloves, shoes, scarfs, ect. the real sales immidietly became visible, and there are some incredible sales here. I was talking to the guy from the place i bought my jacket (its called Poesia, and his name is German (with a H, said the same as Herman)) and he says that the economy is so bad right now that there are just no tourist compared to normal, that their prices are down because of it, and because winter is passing right now, into spring, all the stores are trying to sell their winter clothing to make room for the "new collection" (which is what stores call the summer/spring collection). This is why i got my jacket so cheap, and also why i have found beautiful sweaters, scarfs, and gloves for unusually cheap as well. The prices show it, things like jeans, shoes, hats, and other clothing are not marked down. They are somewhat "universal", meaning that it does not matter how hot it is, Italians always where pants, nice shoes, and fancy hats. The fashion here is both different than i was expecting and less than what i was expecting. Everyone has heard of or seen that one italian man or woman who is so beautiful, and so well dressed, that your draw literally drops. Coming here i had thought i would see more, and i have seen some. The money that these people spend on their clothes is incredible. But tons of people here dont dress like that, really most don't. There are two main differences between here and America, and they are pretty obvious differences. 1: All Italians were nothing but dark clothing. When they were something light or white, its PERFECTLY white, and it is definitely a fashion statement. This is only seen in Italian guys wearing white jeans, or white shoes, or an Italian girl wearing a white white dress, but this is rare to see. 2: All italians wear leather shoes. Ive been looking, trying to figure out what's "in style" and frankly, everything leather is. It is so...individual. Its like every person has a very distinct different look, but at the same time looks exactly the same. Ill be in a restaurant looking around at the shoes of the people sitting near me and will see that every person their has very different leather shoes. Except they are all the same exact basic shape and the exact same color. So, when i finally bought my shoes (i bought two pairs now, because they were such good deals that i could afford two different kinds...one lace up fancy, and the other that leather slipper kind. you know, with no laces.) I figured i had to get what looked good for my style, and more importantly looked good to my wallet. So this place, Poesia, has cut prices dramatically on their winter wear, and is trying to get lighter jackets in for the spring. German is a truly unique character. I'm about 80% sure hes gay at this point, but it doesn't really matter. He is from Sicily, and moved up here for the work. hes probably 40-45 years old, bald, kinda pudgy, and wears all colored leather stuff. Hes a crack up, but very intelligent at the same time. I guess i dont feel like i can describe him very well, you just really have to meet him. He was telling me about all the things i should do, and we talked about Obama, and we talked about how closed minded people are, especially the Italians here in Florence ("they are living in the past" German says, and i said "yeah, thats exactly why i wanted to come here, to see the old italy") and then we talked about leather, and Opera, and school, and art. Hes great to talk to, and he said that he has never met an American like me. I was asking him where all the good food spots are around town, and he was describing places i didn't know off, so he said "give me your number, i will call you after work, and i can sit down and write them down on a map for you". So as i wright this, i'm sitting here waiting to see if he is going to call, which does seem a little weird, like, i'm going to go get a drink with this guy, but thats a good thing...right? Im in florence, ive got to meet the locals. Turns out that he did the same thing i am doing right now when he was 20, but in reverse. He lived in Marin for two years when he was 20 (random). But i'm hoping that he can tell me where all the good joints are around town, and where i need to travel. Maybe he will even give me some connections in Sicily, places i could stay for cheap. Meet some real italians, or Sicilians, or whatever. We will see what happens. Either way i had a fantastic day shoping. Ohh, and i also got this beautiful dark blue sweater for 20 euro, half cashmiere. Marked down from 50 euro. Ive got to stop spending money...

Pictures! The sky really was blue and pink!

See the rest here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=203584&id=723772976&l=b284a3763f

Leather, leather, and more leather.

i finally found a jacket. i have been looking and i found this little hole in the wall leather place that was  really nice. Normally i avoid these kinda places because they put alot of pressure on you to buy, they push hard. Italians can be incredibly aggressive, almost like if you dont buy something from them your personally insulting them. But this place wasn't like that. It was totally genuine, in the most random location of the main street, close enough to be nice, but not so close that it stays in business just because of where it is. But the jackets here were incredible, 300-600 euro jackets, all handmade in italy. But the staff there was incredible as well, the main salesman is this little balding guy who im pretty sure is gay. this made for a really fun accent. i dont know how to describe it, just really fun. he is the nicest guy too. he helped me out, and showed me some of the jackets they had in the back. They were all a combination of jackets with minor damages, last sizes, too big of a sizes, ect. but i found one that right when i put it on it felt perfect! It is gorgeous, a dark dark brown with a fair amount of...whats the word he used? not damaged, but like, textured...in other words its not shiny. but not too "bikerish" either. almost like it had gold specs in it. He even liked it on me so much he kept on wanting me to try it on. 95 euro, and i love it. but obviously i couldnt buy it right then. it had been marked down that day, so he didnt really think it would stick around too long, he was going to try to hide it on one of the racks. so i stood around, wearing this jacket, talking to this gay italian. he was really interesting, born and raised in florence. Never wants to leave, he loves it here so much, we even talked to his parakeets that he has in the store, he did recommend i come back soon if i wanted it because it wouldnt last long, and he said he would try to save it for me. he also said that if i paid cash he would sell it for 90, so i walked out all excited about maybe buying this jacket in the next couple of days....


well i went into the shop next to it, and the people there were just so typical. boring. not nice. and the jackets werent as nice either. They kept on pushing me to pick one out, like their time was so valuable that i was just taking advantage of them. it was right then that i thought "why wouldnt i buy that jacket next door, its perfect, cheap enough, high quality, and the place is so amazing." i looked in my wallet and i had exactly 90 euro in cash, and that was it. the final sign that said "your stupid if you dont buy it" so i did. i went back, and he was surprised and delighted to see me, and i gave him the money and he gave me the jacket. he didnt even count the money, just put it in the register. Is this some kinda trick to make me think he trusts me? i kept on thinking i must be getting ripped off, but you could tell this jacket was nicer than the other ones. So i bought it, and i love it. ive been wearing it non stop for the past week, because its been sooo cold here. (i miss the sun).


Ohh, and the next day dakota (my roomate) wanted to go look at them, so i took him and he found another really nice one. a darker brown with more of a grey\silver undertone rather than gold. it looks better on him than mine would, but wouldnt look as good on me as mine does. Ive been stopping by there every now and then, and they have been giving me the heads up on when the sales come. the first day the shoes went on sale i bought so really fancy, very italian, leather dress shoes with leather soul. 40 euro. and then i also bought a belt there, that they measured for me and everything for 10 euro. i love this place, now when ever i walk by i wave, they wave, and its trully fantastic. ive never had that at home...


my shoes are going on sale tomorrow, should i buy some more casual dress shoes???

Oh heaven, i dont know where to start...

Well, i have finally fully excepted the idea of living in florence. Ive been finding the little places that give the good deals, the "local" places that is. I have my favorite lunch spot, called the "Oil Shoppe" which makes probably the best Paninis in the world (a Panino is a sandwhich basically) for only three euro. They are so big that i usually can barely get through half of one, which means that im almost eating lunch and dinner for three euro. Each bite makes me feel like the world is going to end, and it doesnt even matter what kind you get. My favorite is the salami with peppers, a little spicy, which is really nice considering nothing else is spicy here. I swear, if the italians went to India, they wouldnt be able to eat anything but rice. They usually warn be about the peppers at this place, which seems so ironic considering it is less spicy than the hot sauce at taco bell. But each bite is incredible, which is plain wrong considering how little i spent on it. I would of discovered this place earlier, except its closed like every other day for no reason, and when it is open the line is out the door. I have finally figured out how to negiote the place: arrive early, really early, and wait, wait really long. But its soo worth it. The only other thing i can find here that is spicy is the Kebab. Now, when i first heard about this things i was picture a sish kabab (im sure i butchered that spelling), so i was picturing a long wooden toothpick with meat on it. But i was wrong, it is basically the Italian/Greek version of a burrito. Chicken or beef thrown into a tortilla with some of the strangest spices ive seen in it. Now, again, the guy warned be the first time that it was spicy, and it was a little more spicy than the Panini, but barely. The next time i went i asked him to make it really spicy, and he defintiely did so. I probably drank two liters of pepsi just to get the thing down, which was really incredible. I dont know how to describe the over all taste of the thing, its something you have to try. All the rest of the food here is incredible, i go to this place called Billa. Its the largest chain around, and has the cheapest stuff. My normal checkout usually includes nutella, bread (30 cents for about a three foot long bagget), milk, salami, bree cheese, coke, water, and other random stuff. basically everything cheap i can find that still tastes great.

The issue here is that no matter how much you eat you still want more, not because your hungry but because it just tastes so unbelievably great!

Busy Little Bumble Bee. Day 14

It has been a crazy couple of days, everything has been flying by so fast, yet it feels like ive been living here for forever. We had school on friday to make up for the monday we lost on the first week here (we had orientation on that day), which has been keeping me really busy. Ive also been trying to figure out the sylibus' of all my classes, and filling out paperwork to drop one and add another. Im dropping human 7 (called into to humanities, which covered all kinds of little italian quirks such as mythology, italian culture, ect) to add art 2.2 (a class that has an emphasis on breaking down and analyzing art, starting in the gothic moving all the way to impressionism). My two other classes, art 5 (basically a conceptual "what is the meaning of art" class) and phil 244 (contemoary moral issues) are both fantastic. The phillosophy class feels a bit...introductory, which would make sense considering most of the people int he class have never taken a philospohy class before. But everything he has covered so far ive mostly known (Metaphors of the Wizard of Ozz, Plato's "the cave", liberalism vs conservatism, ect). Ive been doing virtually nothing but museum hoping and going to diner/bars. Been meeting tons of people, which of course is a good thing, and all of the art is incredible. The David (to be cliche) is probably my favorite next to Lippi's "Moddonna and Child With Two Angles". But there is so much great art here that it is nearly impossible to pick past those two. Today, however, was a great adventure. We as a group went down to Viaraggio for Carnivalle and vilentines day. It was epic. Huge. Unbelievable. There were, i dont know how many, giagantic floats, and since there was no fence/boundaries i could walk infront of and around each float as it moved (pictures coming, alot of them). We spent all day there and then took a train back. School tomorrow, so i am going to cut it short.

Philosophy here i come...

Chocolate Festival

They all can be seen here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=199860&id=723772976&l=ba82988848

Pictures!

Pictures From Florence

Pictures From Florence

All Can Be Seen here:

 http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=199847&id=723772976&l=bf4095d669

It feels like its been a month. Day 7

Finally, i feel that ive fully assimilated into the wheather, time change, and food. And the wonders of the food,
i have yet to have a meal that didnt blow me away. Ive been relativly safe, not eating anything to scary;ive
been so hungry that the idea of screwing up a meal scares me. The pasta, pizza, paninis, and pastres are out
of this world. Most of the places seem to have similar quality food, unlike back home, the key as it turns out is
to find the cheap places and there are some cheap places. 3 Euro for a panini that i cant even finish? You
cant beat that.

Its "carnivalle" this weekend, some kind of celebration. Im not entirely sure what its about (ill find more deatails later) but there were people all dressed up costumes with masks all around town. I went out again, and found so many incredible things. There was an olive oil and wine carnival in the Piazza Republica (where my school is) with all kinds of stands that were giving out samples to everyone. There was oil oil and wine of course, but there was also jam, and honey, and cheese. It felt like heaven. Afterwards we kept walking, and we actually did find heaven. Across the Calazouli, in another plaza, there was a chocolate carnival! Stalls so stacked with chocolate that we did not know where to start. Needless to say the smell, the view, it all was nearly intoxicating. Chocolate wrenches, balls, candies. Liquid chocolate to drink, and samples EVERYWHERE. THe entire place was exploding with energy and beauty. After walking around town for  a couple of hours we went to a restraunt located right next to the Arno and Ponte Vecchio called the "Golden View". It was much fancier that i was used to, it even had live jazz. The food was good, not as good as others (it seems that the more sketchy the places, the better the food tends to be), but the atmosphere made it worth while. I went home aftwerwards and started messing with my pictures to get them ready to upload.

Some of the girls wanted to go clubbing, and a lady from AIFS recomended that we go to a place called Glameor. I thought ide check it out, so went with them. It was very differnt than American clubs. Apparently, nothing really starts until around one in the morning, and the italians then party until five or six. Different from back home. Alot of the Italian men there were real creepers (kinda like back home). I stayed for a  while but left early because i was so tired and im not exactly a big dancer (if thats even dancing). The funny thing is that in the Club, and everywhere else too, all of the music is American. I have yet to hear a song that isnt in English (scratch that, i just heard an Italian Rap song), but at the same time there is definitly a small bias against Americans. I think i understand why though, every night i get woken up at one point or another by yelling, drunk, Americans walking down the Cazouli (my street).

Its been one heck of a journey so far, and tonight ive got two foot ball games to go to, one italian, and one very american.

The leaning tower of pisa. Day 6

Last night my friends and i got lost. And nothing has been more fun so far. Wondering around we found a Latin American market with all kinds of fun jewelry, beautiful views of the Arno with light reflecting of the water, a park fully equipped with swings, and the most spectacular view of the city. I dont think i got to bed until near two in the morning (again). My poor roomate must think im doing all kinds of crazy stuff, but it does not really matter. Ive mostly mastered the art of sneaking into bed without lights. We have tried to sleep without the heater on for the first couple of nights, but we have both aggreed thats just stupid. Its almost the same feeling as jumping into a frozen lake. You throw off the four layers that youve been fully consumed in all night and the cold...its taken some getting used to. Unfortunetly, again this morning we woke up in the cold, the fist night i was hoping to not have to go threw that again. Except this time, it was also dark. The power had gone out. Dakota wasnt sure what to do, so i jumped up and checked the brakers. All of them were on, so i then checked outside, and they were all on aswell. The odd thing was that the lights in the hall were on, but we were running out of time to get to the bus to go to Pisa.

The bus ride over was beautiful, the views of the country changed soo drastically and so quickly it seemed that this was some kind of made up world that i accidently stepped into. Forests, mountains, fog, wineries, olive trees, everything italian could be seen from the window. It was about a two hour bus ride there, i got on the bus that went to Luca first (a small city famous for their walls). Luca was adorable, much smaller than i thought. There were two cathedrals that really had that old feeling to them. Two things really stuck out to me: the Lippi painting, with its incredibly vibrant colors, and a painting that dates back to 5 A.D. supposedly painted by a man that had actually seen Jesus. Theoretically, it is the only portrait that exsists of Jesus. But you never know how true that is. We got lunch there, and gelato (of course) and then got back on the bus to go to Pisa. Now, it was raining the entire time, so i could only take pictures when i had some kind of cover, or the rain stopped. But once i got to pisa, it was almost like "screw this, i need to take pictures of this". The four monuments, all centered around the cathedral, were the cathedral itself, the bell tower (better known as the leaning tower of pisa), a beautiful marble cemetary and the Baptisry. In all honestly, the Leaning tower itself was rather unspectacular in comaprison to everything else. My first thought was, "wow, its not very tall". I
guess it just looks taller in pictures. But the Catherdral was spectacular. At the time that it was built it was the largest in the world. It was the first one to be built to resemble a cross, and it was the first one to incorperate a full scale dome. All other famous cathedrals, such as the Duomo or snt Peters, were all based on this original design. The ceiling, however, was the most beautiful thing. All gold, the pictures do not do it justice. Yet, my favorite thing of the day was the Baptistry. It was specfically designed to create an echo, and a women there gave an example, chanting for a couple of minutes. It was absouletly phenominal. The trip concluded at that point, and we all got on the bus to head home.

Well, once i got home the power was still out. This sucks, and it was friday night too, which meant that AIFS wasnt even in the office. This meant there was a good chance we may have to live without power for the weekend (not a horrible idea, considering i had been used to comeing home in the cold and dark anyways) but still not something i was excited about. So i went to see what i could do. I was walking the streets, trying to figure out where i could go to find AIFS when i walked into one of the AIFS leaders: Phillipa. She came over to look at it, and then called around and got the landlord to show up. He very quickly flipped a braker located six feet of the groun downstairs that gave my apartment power (italian electricty...) and i had power back. He was very nice, and very young, so i expect that he was likely the son of the actual owner.

That night, to cap it off, i went out with friends to diner, and then walked the streets at night talking. It was a fantastic day.

Day 3? 4?

wow, so much has happened so fast. I allready feel like ive lived here for at least a couple of weeks. Time here seems to move so slowly, maybe because there is very limited internet and no tv (i unplugged it).

Yesterday i got my musuem pass, which is good for all of the big musuems here unlimited times. All 26 of them! So, of course, i had to go visit the Uffizi. Since i will be able to go there every day if i wish, i wanted to take a different appoach to viewing that art: i wanted to look at the art while ignoring who the artist is. So, i walked through every room of the entire place (took about 2 hours) just stopping to look at the art that caught my eye. And to be honest, there was really only one piece that struck me (turns out it was a Lippi that is among the most famous there). This is the one:

So i was a little bummed, but right before i left i grabbed a map to see who painted this one. Too my shock there were names like Da Vinci, michelangelo, and Bachicheli on the map.  So, i had to go look at them again to see why they didnt strike me. Well, turns out, out of the entire Uffizi i missed one room, the room with all to the most famous art of the Uffizi, which were these:

This was my favorite part of the day. Afterwards a whole bunch of us went to whats called the "frat house" which is the largest apartment that has 11 guys living in it. i guess its going to be the meeting place and center point of the trip. We had alot of fun there, and i met a bunch of people. some really cool, some not so cool, but no one horrible.

Today, however, was a very different day. I woke and had to be at class by 8 in the morning. Me and my roomate (his name is Dakota, for the record) tried not using the heater at night...that was a mistake. We woke up this morning and the whole place was actually COLDER than it was outside. And it was 34 degrees F outside. This was followed by an attempted shower, which didnt go so well. We have this really dinky shower than doesnt drain fast enough, so we cant take longer than a 9 min shower. Like showers back home, it likes to change temperature randomly, except UNLIKE back home, instead of changing a little bit for a little while every once in a while, this one flucuates constantly and too huge degrees. Cold, hot, warm, burning... Its safe to say im not going to get any peace in my shower. After the shower i rushed of to my first class, Philosophy 244 (moral delimas) and it was an entire class that was directed towards non-philosophers minds. Explaining really basic stuff that i learned in highschool, yet they were great questions raised. However, i didnt really want to dive into the deeper levels of "freedom from vs freedom of" and the symbolism in the Wizard of Oz, and im pretty sure he didnt want to go there either. Needless to say, it was really boring. The good news is that it should be pretty easy.

This weekend is going to be absolutely crazy. There is a trip to Pisa friday for 8 euro, and a soccer game sunday that i want to go to. Then there is the superbowl (its going to be a big party). Along with this some girls i met asked if i was interested in going to Venice for the weekend (apparently they want a guy to go with them). So any thoughts? is it worth not sleeping at all? i was thinking it might be.

Love you guys, thanks for reading :)