Last Days in Siena!

Well my classes ended on Friday and by Saturday morning we were heading to Rome! I will miss Siena so much! I have had such a great experience there in both taking classes at Dante Alighieri and getting to meet so many amazing people! On our last day there we did the most touristy thing possible to celebrate our going away) that was to clim to the top of the clock tower in the main square Piazza del Campo, and it was beautiful! here are some pictures from up top of Siena!

bellissimo lacqua!
our first dip in the Meditteranean was cold!

Yesterday we went to the closest beach to Siena = Castiglione della Pescaia! It was so beautiful and we spent the entire day there just enjoying the sun and the people and the gelato of course! Unfortunately i came home with what feel like third degree burns that cover the entire front of my body... apparently the sun is more powerful in Italy than in the US .. it hurts, but it was still a good day!

Scuola

some of the girls in piazza del Campo
La Catedrale di Assisi
I am getting so sad thinking that my italian classes are coming to a close soon... they have been very challenging but i have loved them so much that i honestly would stay for months if i could! I thought id talk a little about the school and how it works! so my class is very small, just five of us now (four students left last week) There are people from all over the world that attend the Dante Alighieri so there are many cultures and languages to learn about within the school. One of my favorite people I have met is Vanessa, she is from China and obviously speaks Chinese. It is so funny that we can communicate and be friends through our Italian that we both struggle to speak! There are also many people from places around Europe- Switzerland, Norway, England, France, Japan, China, and a few other countries are represented in school and it has been an amazing experience to get to know all of these people! I hope i can stay in contact with them even when i return to the US of A!

Cooking Class!

Last Thursday we got to take a three hour Italian cooking class! it was so much fun, we did everything you would do for a traditional italian meal (about 4 or 5 courses!) We hand rolled pasta, learned how to make the most amazing chicken sauce thing and the dessert wow! so i am offering to share my newfound talent for italian cooking with all you women when i return!!! we will have an italian food night!

San Gimignano

Monday was a holiday for us italians... The day that Italy became a Republic! To celebrate this joyous day me and my friends Sabrina and Christine went to a neighboring town of San Gimignano! This is one of the oldest towns in tuscany and was the first town to have towers inside the wall! We had a great time walking around even though it rained for the mojurity of the afternoon (Italy has the craziest weather, it was 90 one day and then raining and about 50 the next)... it is a big tourist trap basically but we still had fun walking in all of the antique shops and visiting the Gellateria the won best taste three years running! io amo gelato!