Saturday, December 5, 2009
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
I'm still alive...
Florence was fun, Assisi was amazing, internet still kinda sucks... Lucky for me, we're leaving for Rome tomorrow morning and the apartments have wi-fi so I'll be able to catch up on all of this stuff. K, laptop battery is dying and dinner is about to start, so check back later.
Monday, June 1, 2009
ugh...
The internet is a pain here in Florence... Access is limited, so I'll need to get myself organized and write everything ahead of time and then upload it to the internet. I might not have anything new up over the next few days.
Btw... who's heard about the missing Air France flight that disappeared between Brazil and Paris? Apparently they flew through some really bad weather and the plane automatically reported that there were electrical issues and the plane might have also lost cabin pressure. They lost contact with the flight after that.
It's kinda scary to hear about that since I'll be flying back in nearly a month, but in a weird way I almost feel a little better about the flight home. I mean, how often do planes have serious issues like that? The odds of anything happening to me on the way home are extremely slim.
So yea. That's all for now. Hopefully I'll have something up by Wednesday, so come back then!
Btw... who's heard about the missing Air France flight that disappeared between Brazil and Paris? Apparently they flew through some really bad weather and the plane automatically reported that there were electrical issues and the plane might have also lost cabin pressure. They lost contact with the flight after that.
It's kinda scary to hear about that since I'll be flying back in nearly a month, but in a weird way I almost feel a little better about the flight home. I mean, how often do planes have serious issues like that? The odds of anything happening to me on the way home are extremely slim.
So yea. That's all for now. Hopefully I'll have something up by Wednesday, so come back then!
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Day 2 - Duomo di Siena
Everything seems so surreal... It almost seems like a dream. Being in Siena and seeing all of this history and culture - I wouldn't be surprised to wake up in my bed at home in a little while. I mean, how the heck did I end up in Italy with a bunch of people I don't know, taking classes that I could have easily taken back at Cortland and managing to do it all with just a backpack and a laptop case?
It's a humbling experience. I thought I've seen a lot since I've been around the US and Canada, but Europe is a completely different experience since it has so much more history. From seeing some of the greatest places in the world - New York City with the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Time Square; Los Angeles, the Hollywood sign, Beverly Hills, movie studios, etc. Heck, I even worked at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida and that opportunity gave me the chance to meet people from all over the world - none of those experiences could give me what I'm getting now. I'm seeing things that have been around before America was even "discovered" by Columbus and it's very interesting to try and relate everything I've seen so far to what I've learned in the past. I wonder how I'll react when I go to all the other cities and see things that I've learned about since elementary school...
Enough of the wondering. Let's get back to what I've actually done so far. Today, we visited the Duomo di Siena (the Cathedral of Siena).
(to be continued... I gotta get packed for the next city)
It's a humbling experience. I thought I've seen a lot since I've been around the US and Canada, but Europe is a completely different experience since it has so much more history. From seeing some of the greatest places in the world - New York City with the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Time Square; Los Angeles, the Hollywood sign, Beverly Hills, movie studios, etc. Heck, I even worked at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida and that opportunity gave me the chance to meet people from all over the world - none of those experiences could give me what I'm getting now. I'm seeing things that have been around before America was even "discovered" by Columbus and it's very interesting to try and relate everything I've seen so far to what I've learned in the past. I wonder how I'll react when I go to all the other cities and see things that I've learned about since elementary school...
Enough of the wondering. Let's get back to what I've actually done so far. Today, we visited the Duomo di Siena (the Cathedral of Siena).
(to be continued... I gotta get packed for the next city)
Friday, May 29, 2009
Day 1 - Arriving in Italy and Siena
A four hour drive to JFK, a nine and a half hour flight to Rome, a three and a half hour bus ride to Siena, and a mile or two walk to the hotel... it was the longest trip of my life!
But, I'm finally here! The cramped seating of the plane, the crappy microwave meal they served us, the bumpy bus ride, and the Jim Carrey/Steve Carell marathon are going to be just a faint memory compared to what I'm about to experience. I mean, I'm in Italy! And for nearly a month! This is something that few get to experience and only a few of those few will get to spend as much time here.
After all of the travelling, we probably got into our hotel rooms around 2 pm and had until 7 pm free to ourselves. My roomate, Mike, and I tagged along with our professors and explored the city for a little while and then stopped for some food/gelato (Italian ice cream - for those of you who don't know). After that, we found the restaurant that we were all going to eat at later that evening and then went back to the hotel.
Our hotel - is a very interesting place and has a lot of history behind it. It was a former palace owned by the noble Bulgarini family until 1262. Afterwards the building was owned by Ghinibaldo di Saracino and his wife Sapia Salvani and was featured in Dante's “Divine comedy”(http://www.cannondoro.com/). The old Ponzi's tower can be still be seen in the Hotel's facade. This tower and others that are scattered all over Siena used to be lookout towers for the different families who were constantly fighting for control of the city. Usually the higher your tower was, the more influence and power your family had. Unfortunately, the towers in Siena were all topped and cut down to the same height, but you can still find many of the towers today.
So here I am in Siena, Italy. It's funny to be here since my sister is an alumna and my brother is currently a student at Siena College in Loudonville, NY. It took me forever to find out why Siena College took its name from Siena, Italy, but apparently the College's original name was St. Bernardine of Siena College. St. Bernardine of Siena was a Franciscan Friar who lived at the end of the 14th and beginning of the 15th centuries. He was a famous preacher who also risked his life to assist victims of the plague. He popularized devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus-thus the emblem of the Holy Name on the seal of the college (http://www.siena.edu/level3col.aspx?menu_id=528&id=860#bern).
Anyway, back to the rest of my first day in Italy... After getting back to the hotel, I crashed and took a nap for an hour or two because I barely slept during the trip here. I woke up, showered and got ready for our group dinner. We met at 7 and walked about 10-15 minutes to the restaurant. After some really good food, we walked to a nearby shop and had a cup of gelato and then walked to the Duomo di Siena (Cathedral of Siena) for a brief orientation of the city. Following the orientation, we walked back to the hotel and went straight to bed.
I think Siena is a really great way to start this program off. It's a smaller city with a lot of history and since it's not yet the weekend, everything is at a slightly slower pace and it really helps us get acclimated before things start to get really crazy!
But, I'm finally here! The cramped seating of the plane, the crappy microwave meal they served us, the bumpy bus ride, and the Jim Carrey/Steve Carell marathon are going to be just a faint memory compared to what I'm about to experience. I mean, I'm in Italy! And for nearly a month! This is something that few get to experience and only a few of those few will get to spend as much time here.After all of the travelling, we probably got into our hotel rooms around 2 pm and had until 7 pm free to ourselves. My roomate, Mike, and I tagged along with our professors and explored the city for a little while and then stopped for some food/gelato (Italian ice cream - for those of you who don't know). After that, we found the restaurant that we were all going to eat at later that evening and then went back to the hotel.
Our hotel - is a very interesting place and has a lot of history behind it. It was a former palace owned by the noble Bulgarini family until 1262. Afterwards the building was owned by Ghinibaldo di Saracino and his wife Sapia Salvani and was featured in Dante's “Divine comedy”(http://www.cannondoro.com/). The old Ponzi's tower can be still be seen in the Hotel's facade. This tower and others that are scattered all over Siena used to be lookout towers for the different families who were constantly fighting for control of the city. Usually the higher your tower was, the more influence and power your family had. Unfortunately, the towers in Siena were all topped and cut down to the same height, but you can still find many of the towers today.
So here I am in Siena, Italy. It's funny to be here since my sister is an alumna and my brother is currently a student at Siena College in Loudonville, NY. It took me forever to find out why Siena College took its name from Siena, Italy, but apparently the College's original name was St. Bernardine of Siena College. St. Bernardine of Siena was a Franciscan Friar who lived at the end of the 14th and beginning of the 15th centuries. He was a famous preacher who also risked his life to assist victims of the plague. He popularized devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus-thus the emblem of the Holy Name on the seal of the college (http://www.siena.edu/level3col.aspx?menu_id=528&id=860#bern).
Anyway, back to the rest of my first day in Italy... After getting back to the hotel, I crashed and took a nap for an hour or two because I barely slept during the trip here. I woke up, showered and got ready for our group dinner. We met at 7 and walked about 10-15 minutes to the restaurant. After some really good food, we walked to a nearby shop and had a cup of gelato and then walked to the Duomo di Siena (Cathedral of Siena) for a brief orientation of the city. Following the orientation, we walked back to the hotel and went straight to bed.I think Siena is a really great way to start this program off. It's a smaller city with a lot of history and since it's not yet the weekend, everything is at a slightly slower pace and it really helps us get acclimated before things start to get really crazy!
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Benvenuti in Italia!
Well, I'm officially in Italy. Long trip. Long day. I'm gonna pass out and write something more meaningful soon. Stay posted!
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