Day 40-46

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Trip Start May 07, 2008 Previous
Entry Trip End Jun 23, 2008

  Florence, Tuscany, Italy
Monday, June 30, 2008

Day 40 (M)     Today starts the last week that I get to spend in Italy.  I went into CAPA early in order to print of my paper.  Class today was at the Santa Felicita we looked at a mannerist work of art in a chapel it was very cool we learned how the whole space works with the painting to give it meaning.  The painting is called the entombment it is very cool it is non-naturalist and it appear that the women holding Christ's body are going to lower it out of the frame and on to the alter which would act like the Stone of Unction.  The whole space is a mini holy church of the Seplucure which is the church that housed Christ's tomb.  This works with the meaning of the Christ being entombed and then rising to heaven.  It is a very complicated painting would take for ever to explain and probably bore some people to tears so I will spare all of you.  After class Ti and I stopped in a panino shop right next to the church.  I got a great panino on schiaschata (sorry for spelling) it is a flat bread and I got a nice dark red ham and pecorino on mine it was very good.  For dinner we went over to the girl's house and we helped them cook some dinner it was good.  We just hung out with them for a while.
Day 41 (T)       To day is the last day of class for Italian life and culture because Thursday is our exam.  We watched a movie about Albanian immigration to Italy not the greatest movie.  After class Ti and I set of to find something to eat we wondered pretty far and then out of no where we found a small shop that sold fruit and veggies and also made sandwiches I was very excited I saw that they had boar meat but they were out so I got salami Tuscan style with Gorgonzola cheese and Ti and I split a fig, not a whole lot of flavor but it was good.  I can't we went to a Middle Eastern restaurant for Dru it was ok but just got the cheapest thing because it was expensive.  After that we headed to the Lion's Fountain to watch the Italian match against France they have a good shot of advancing they need to win and Romania needs a tie or worse.  It was a very exciting game Italy played really well and they scored on a penalty kick that a French defender got a red card on.  Two Italian players picked a yellow in back to back games so they will miss the game against Spain.  One of the younger guys added a goal on a nicely designed free kick play it deflected off of Henry and to the opposite side that the goalie had gone.  The Italian guys behind us celebrated with us because he said we weren't like all the stupid American tourists that have no reason or idea what they are cheering and celebrating.  That was cool it made us feel at home and we made fun of the dumb tourists together.  On the way back to the apt. we stopped and got some gelato.
Day 42 (W)     Last day of class in art history for class we went to the Medici crypts and the Medici chapel design and sculpted by Michelangelo.  The room remains unfinished Michelangelo escaped the rule of the tyrannical Medici Dukes and would never return to Florence.  His understudies would be responsible for placing the sculptures in the room even though not all of them were finished.  The chapel houses the ashes of the two Medici captains of the Catholic Church.  It is a mannerist room everything works together and an engaged viewer is needed for the meaning to come out.  This is why Pope Clements 7th, a Medici, passed a law that said a priest must be present at all times and give the four masses of the day at their correct times.  (.....)(look at class notes to finish).  After the Medici chapel he said the rest of class was optional because we had turned our finals in at the beginning of class he said that it was a lame duck lecture.  For those of us who stayed we went to the loggia Signoria to look at the rape of the Sabine Women and the Purseus.  (CLASS NOTES)  For lunch I went to the trepparia next to Dante's house to get my favorite panino, which is the panino con lesso, for the last time.  I will remember that sandwich and I plan on trying to make it, but it will not be as good as Giovanni's.  We didn't stay at CAPA long we had some cleaning to do before the apt. check.  Jerry had to study for his two finals tomorrow so Ti and I took Dru to a vegetarian apparativo in Piazza Santa Spirito.  They place was kinda funny blaring Busta from the 90's unedited.  Going to this place reminds me of a time when Mom took us to eat at some local place and there was a bunch of hippies, pretty much the same thing with a little PEDA thrown in there since it was vegetarian.  It was definitely an interesting experience but hey I'm not going to complain about all you can eat for 5 euro and we could have eaten and ran out because no one really cared I think they were all a little to high.  On the way back we finally did something that we wanted to do the whole time we sat on the triangle of the support of the bridge that faced the Pointe Vecchio.  We hung out here for about an hour then headed back we were excited to see the street festival.  When we crossed the main street back to our side of town the whole street was filled with people the whole mile back to the apt.  The festival was called Rock around the shop all the shops were open and some had sales and samples in the street.  We went to Luigi's and tried a local specialty beer it was ok it tasted like honey, way to sweet.  Those were the low lights of the festival listening to Italian people sing American rock & roll songs was hilarious.  This could have been one of the funniest things I have ever seen, people were dancing to the hand jive, rock around the clock, sweet home Chicago, and the YMCA.  The YMCA was the best because they didn't really know the dance and they were dressed like hippies.  For the dance they kinda got the first two letters correct but after that they just waved their arms back and forth.
Day 43 (Th)     This is my last day at CAPA and we have the farewell dinner tonight.  For the final in my Italian life and culture class we only had to answer 3 essays questions it was very easy and I most likely got an A in the class.  We waited around for Jerry to finish up his final in Italian class.  After he was finished we went with him and his class to get gelato for the last time.  We walked home with one of the girls that lived in the same direction, we followed the Arno until we were at our street it was a great walk.  The other apartment of guys came over before our dinner and we played some card games and had a few drinks.  The dinner was very good once again my favorite was the pesto bowtie and liver spread.  Everyone went out afterwards to bars near by we even got our friend Saverio to come out for a little bit.
Day 44 (F)       We spent most of the morning cleaning up the apartment.  Then we sat down and decided how we should spend our last day.  We decided on the Boboli Gardens.  It was very relaxing I sat under a tree in the shade and stared at the city below that I had called my home for the last 40 some days.  After about 2 hours by my-self Ti and Dru showed up and I showed them around the rest of the garden.  As we made our way back to the front they were setting up for a banquet for the Florentine fashion week that was coming to an end.  There were models and designers already showing up to look around the gardens.  I didn't care about them to much I was more interested in the antique cars that lined the outside of the amphitheater.  It was already 7 by this time so we headed out to have our last dinner as the meat locker.  We walked to Aqua al Due but they told us that we needed to have a reservation even though there website said no reservations needed.  So we started walking around trying to find something else.  We ended up finding something right next to CAPA.  We all (minus Dru) ordered the balsamic glazed steak and since it was a special occasion we ordered Brunello.  Brunello is a very expensive wine we paid 40 euro for the bottle.  It was well worth the money it was far better than anything else we have had.  After having an amazing dinner we walked around the city one last time together.
Day 45-46 (SAT-SUN)           These two days would be very long.  Saturday we slept in and I woke up right before Jerry left for Rome to meet his parents.  Ti had gone to meet his friend at the train station.  So Dru and I went to COOP to get some food.  I spent my last 5 euro on a 2 foot baguette, a hunk of Asiago cheese, and two packs of salami.  This would be my food for the rest of my time in Italy.  We took a two hour nap so I would be alert all night at the airport.  Since I had no money Dru offered to let me take his taxi with him to the airport at 4:30.  So I went at that time I helped Dru carry all his luggage.  I waited with him, we had a hard time with getting his luggage to India because the rules are different.  He finally got it all sorted out I said good-bye and I was on my on for 12 hours until my plane took off.  I sat outside and finished my food through out the night and I played solitary games and read by Sherlock Holmes book.  The time went by some what quickly.  I meet some girl from Iowa State as we waited in line so I had someone to talk to.  Sitting at the gate I ran into 3 girls from my program and they gave me some Dramamine to help me sleep on my long flight.  The flight to Munich was pretty short they girl I had meet had to run through the airport because she had to get to her next flight it was pretty funny.  I made it through all the security and sat and watched all the planes take off.  I flew Lufthansa which I love hope the next time I go abroad I can fly with them again.  This trip I had my own TV.  After lunch I took both of my Dramamines and I felt my self get some what tired but I look like an animal shot with to low of a tranquilizer dose.  I couldn't fall asleep but I could barely move I finally fell asleep for about 2 hours.  Over all a great flight and I was finally back in the US.  It was weird to have everyone speaking English around me.  The flight to Indy was very bumpy with all the storms in the Midwest region.  I had made it home in one piece thank for taking the time to read my blog hope you all enjoyed.

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