Yesterday I went to the Academia. I saw the exhibit about Amore with chastity chests that displayed Renaissance gender customs. Michelangelo’s sculptures were massive and potent. The Prisoner was writhing and twisting out of the stone. The big glass window above David was impressive.

Today I went to lunch with Steph and Betsy and had lasagna and pizza. I met up with Rachel to go to the Teatro Comunale to see Salome. Salome was avant garde with nudity, gold dust, a big vault, setting in a casino and lasciviousness galore.

Alex said, “And the sea kissed me”

Indeed Venice she kisses you. She kisses you with kindness, with massive blue skies and sparkling iridescent waters white diamonds glimmering all around, reflected in the mosaics made of glass.

Venice threw me for a loop. She tackled me with her tenacity and vivaciousness. The city is so completely different from Firenze.

Itinerary:

• Lagoon trip to Murano by private boat
• Hotel Messner
• Visit to Palazzo Ducale
• Basilica San Marco at night
• Jodie Mariotti Tour (Two unknown museums)
• Stanley Kubrick Photography exhibit
• Scrovegni Chapel in Padua
• Guggenheim Museum
• Galleria dell’Accademia

Venice seemed like a dream. I couldn’t believe the potent artwork that I was so close to. The ceilings are made of decorated guilt wood. Frescoes couldn’t survive due to the salt in the air so walls are covered with oil painted frames and rich luxurious fabrics. The buildings are alive: they move, twist and turn with the changing waves and forces.

This week we finished intensive Italian (having Italian for five hours a day) and had our final test on Friday. Friday night we went to a beer festival at Santa Croce. Beer tents were everywhere and it was pouring. Everyone was huddled underneath the tents and under umbrellas. I choose one that was coffee flavored very subtle and smooth and another lemon flavored beer both were subtle and soft opposed to the other drinks my friends had that were bitter with lots of hops.

After we went to the Red Garter but I was tired and new that I had to wake up at 9 am the next day to meet Rachel at the bus station and make our way to Genova. We bought a ticket at Santa Maria Novella train station and made our way to Pisa where we would have to transfer to get to Genova. From Firenze to Pisa it’s about two hours. From Pisa to Genova it’s another two hours. After a long ride we finally got to Genova. I was able to figure out how to buy bus tickets. We bought them from this little shop and then found the bus that took us to a little alcove. We had lunch by the sea. Then we spent five hours in the aquarium. It was huge and packed with families. I loved it so much.

The little children were full of life and excitement. They kept shouting the Italian names of all the fish and were marveled by the beauty. I missed my little sisters profusely but the little kids reminded me of them and gave me a sense of peace and tranquility. My favorite part that I was looking forward to was the jelly fish they were mesmerizing. Then we went to sit on the dock and take in the view. Sitting on the dock was “delicious” we were surrounded by buildings cascading up and down the hill, a huge sky filled with a deepening blue that met the water. We made it back just in time for our bus and I arrived back at “the casa” when everyone was meeting up to go out to the pub. I went out to give Zoe a happy birthday hoo-rah and saw the end of the Rome vs. InterMilan game. Rome scored in the last few seconds it was a big upset and really fun to watch.

Sunday we went to Via Reggio

Sublime. It rained when we had pizza for lunch. The mixture of warm food and the smell of rain filled our senses. Then when we were at the sea Zoe said, “It felt like when you are about to enter a warm bath tub full of water”. Surprisingly the water was warm and the wind gusts created gigantic crashing waves. The gusts of howling wind created huge waves of crashing water that felt so loud and large. I was wet with salty water between my toes and the pressure pulled the sand from underneath my feet. Everything was sublime and serene.

We road the train back to Santa Maria Novella Station. Then I finished up some homework and prepared myself for the week ahead.

This week class has been good. We studied the past tense and had a quiz on Friday. I joined the gym here and they have a great wooden floor studio upstairs and peaceful garden. I like walking there it is ten blocks from school. Today, Sunday, we figured out how to use the bus system finally. My roommate and I went to the Boboli gardens. We finally found a used book store. I found a book and now I’m about to start collaging it. After the Boboli gardens we met up with Zoe and Steph to go to the American cafe near Via Fume. We had french fries that reminded us all of the US. The owner of the cafe had photos of himself and different rappers. He owned the shop solo and was taking like twelve orders at once. After we were done eating we stopped at the grocery store and looked at some sneaks.

Yesterday we went to Siena and the Chianti wine festival. Siena is a lot different than Florence. The city is built upon three large hills and the buildings are built along an entire different set of codes. The two main government towers are large and tower above everything else. Most of the buildings follow a three color pattern: yellow, orange and red that when illuminated by the sunlight are radiant, warm and welcoming. The streets curve and wind, up and down the hills. Most of the buildings have three aperture windows as opposed to the regular two aperture windows in Florence. They also regulated that the buildings must be composed of brick everywhere and I liked when Gail explained the fishbone patterning of brick laid in the center. I think my mom would have liked Siena: she’s always liked brick houses.

Driving to Chianti the path was beautiful. I still love the fertile black soil of Iowa better than any other soil I’ve ever seen. The sunflower fields looked thirsty and even the grape fields were a light brown as opposed to the black-brown rich midwest soil. We purchased passes and tasted lots of different wine. I figured out that sweet wine tastes like pure maple sugar: it is too sweet for my taste. I was at first attracted to it because it looks like honey and I don’t like bitter wine. White soft silky wine is more my forte. Red wine is always too rich and bitter or sweet for my palette.

It was a long day and all through it I was congested and sick. I laid down for ten minutes when we got back and then it was time for dinner. My roommate and I are both pretty sick at this point. I hope we can get rid of it this week.

The greatest thing so far is when our teacher says: COURAGE but it’s coraggie pronounced like (core ah hay) she says it three times like a mantra-tantra. Every time something seems daunting it’s this core-ah-hay, core-ah-hay, core-ah-hay that lets me feel appreciative of this entire experience and strong enough to tackle the newness of everything.

We visited the church of basilica di Santa Croce. The monks were singing so peacefully their prayers. It echoed throughout the entire church. The gray church so large was covered in black shadows and kept itself cool. I could imagine prior to electricity how these buildings functioned. Candles flickering luminescent shadows dancing everywhere. The little room felt so cozy and comfortable. Santa Croce let me realize

Cinque Tierre was absolutely beautiful. I haven’t been to the ocean since I was nine. The salt lingered on my skin all day between my ears, under my finger nails and the taste of my lips. The water was so blue and clear you could see all the way to the bottom. The sunlight flickered on the waves dancing a catatonic melody shape shifting sparkling like a million diamonds. Graffiti and murals were everywhere declaring each others love on via di amore.

Elizabetta is the funniest teacher ever she makes class really exciting. Yesterday Sergio showed me some of their paintings on their wall. One artist scratches what looks like black sharpie mixed with red and blue. Its volatility and scratchy texture symbolize the political upheaval. He kept records from when the artist (who I will have to look up later) was at the uffizi in the 70’s.

Today I will go look for the library and the Uffizi.

It’s official a month from today I will be going to Florence.