Cinque Terre

At the beginning of last week the weather forecast predicted rain all week. We were all really bummed especially about Cinque Terre. We knew we would be hiking (yes, you heard that right.) and that it was coastal. So all week I was praying that I would take rain everyday in Siena and Florence but just to spare us Cinque Terre. And God is good because we couldn' t have had prettier weather. It was a little cold but with the most beautiful skies. Everything looked like a postcard. I felt like it wasn't reality and I was just looking into a backdrop.

Cinque Terre means "5 lands" because it is made up of five little towns. When I signed up for this trip and they mentioned hiking I didn't really take them seriously. Hmmm definitely found out they weren't kidding the first day. We hiked for 5 hours from the first town to the second. 5 hours! Can you believe I did that?! And to be honest, I really enjoyed it. The nature and me were definitely "one" that day. ha! Saturday we visited the other 4 towns which were all made up of a cluster of colored houses. If you come to Italy, I highly recommend Cinque Terre. From the last town there's a walkway called Via dell'Amore which is a lovers lane. It was so cute, but I wish I had had a boy to walk it with me :). I tried to hold Jess's hand but she didn't like that too much. People come and write on the walls and its an Italian tradition to put a lock on the walkway to symbolize your relationship's strength. We were all very sad to leave this breathtaking place! Enjoy the pictures!

Siena and Florence

Sorry I haven't updated in a while! Last week was a very busy week, but so fun! We went to San Gimignano, Volterra, Siena, and Florence. I didn't take my computer because we were told we wouldn't have internet connection...big mistake. I felt so lost without my computer! I will definitely be taking it with on midterm break!

We did a wine tasting in San Gimignano which was beautiful! Volterra was mentioned in Twilight and we thought that some of the movie was filmed there but it wasn't :( It's just mentioned in the book. It looked like a vampire town though. They also are known for their alabaster and we got to visit an alabaster sculptor which was really neat!

San Gimignano...We had gelato at this place and they had cheesecake flavor!

Mary Hester, me, Britani, Sara Beth, Kelly, Jessica and Madeline

Jess and I at the winery...

Volterra...

Siena is great town and had lots of cute shops! They're known for their horse race called Palio, which happens in their main square. Thousands of people cram in the middle to watch it. It only lasts for about 75 seconds and it is a huge deal if you win! Tuscany is also known for a soup call ribolita which has potatoes, beans, bread, and vegetables. It is very delicious!

Ribolita...

Siena Duomo

Italy's oldest stained glass. Made around 1212...

Florence was a lot of fun and there were a ton of Americans. This was nice because everyone knew English! ha! This was my favorite because we got to go to the Capucci Museum which featured amazing dresses that were more like pieces of art. We also went to the Ferragamo museum. He designed shoes for movie stars like Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe. The only bad part was we couldn't take any pictures :(. I highly recommend it if you love shoes! That was a very short overview of my week! We did a lot more like visit churches and art museums too.

View of Florence...

Spring dress at the Capucci museum

Drum roll please...

This summer I will be interning at...

I was offered to be a Polo intern for the Color Department of Ralph Lauren in New York City! I am beyond excited!! Please feel free to come and visit me! Thank you for all the prayers :) Here are some of my favorites from his fall/winter 2010 show...

Deruta and Assisi!

Last Thursday was one of my favorite field trips yet! We went to Deruta, which is know for their hand-painted pottery. It was so beautiful! And such a cute little town...

After visiting the town, we went to a pottery factory and watched how they make the pottery! This business sells to Saks, Neiman Marcus, Brombergs, etc. It was so neat to see the process of how the pottery was made. And there was a really cute worker so that helped too! :) We got to see everything from the molding of the clay, to the painting, to the glazing. Everything was great until I went to take an "artsy" picture in the room that has all the samples for buyers and KNOCKED OVER four plates. I just stood there in shock. My purse bumped up against them but luckily nothing broke! After that I was a little freaked out. Oops!

We then went to the town of Assisi, which was so beautiful! The weather was beyond perfect and the town was so cute. We were given a tour of St. Francesco (St. Francis) Church by a MONK! How cool is that?! He was from Pennsylvania and very knowledgeable. He gave the best tour we've received yet. It was like he was giving the gospel as he was giving the tour which was really cool. I could have listened to him for hours. The artwork in St. Francesco is all connecting by comparing Francis's life to Christ's life. Pictures weren't allowed in the church but here's some of the outside and of the town.

SCV

Tuesday was suppose to downpour so our field trip got changed to go to the Vatican City. It's a lot like Washington D.C. It's its own city state, has its own flag, monetary system, etc. This is where the famous St. Peter Square is located. One of our teachers, Susanna, gave us a tour of the Vatican museum. I could listen to her for hours. She is so knowledgeable about art history and has the most soothing voice. St. Peter Church was my favorite and so beautiful. We also got to see the Sistine Chapel, which to be honest I wasn't that impressed with. I feel like it's one of those things that when you see it, it's not near as good as what everyone builds it up to be. Although, the Last Judgement piece that Michelangelo painted is very moving. You aren't allowed to take pictures in the Sistine Chapel, so I was unable to take one of the Last Judgement. It was such a beautiful day in Rome! Here are a few of my favorite pictures from that day....

The dome of St. Peter

A tapestry of the Last Supper

Paul didn't want to crucified like Jesus, so he was crucified upside down.

A dome a lot like the Pantheon.

Prominent Italian families have a crest. This is the Chigi's crest in the Vatican. (Chigi Palace is where I'm staying)

Beautiful ceiling...

St. Peter's Square

Rubbing St. Peter's foot for good luck...

The alter in St. Peter

Jess and I eating candy at the train station after a long day...

A guy that painted a painting for the Chigi Palace and he was on The Sopranos!

One of our precious teachers, Francesco. One of the best dressed men...