Last day in Europe!

So we got back about 6ish this morning and got cleaned up and crashed. Then we got woken up at about 1 pm because the ladies cooked us lunch - they love us soooo much! Getting out of bed I actually jumped off the side of the top bunk and then didn't get a grip or something and slipped and fell like halfway across the room - it was funny but painful. I'm sure I'll have a bruise lol. Then we went down to lunch and they had made us steak, mashed potatoes, salad, pasta, bread, fruit, and cokes! It was very unexpected and thoughtful...that's why HUF is the best - the people. After lunch Paige and I went to layout on the terrace since it was warm and sunny and we hadn't got to go to the beach at all :(. It was fun. Then we got cleaned up and then we were informed that Kyle, our prof/assistant to all things HUF, was taking us all out to dinner at 630 tonight. More people showed up, like the boys who had train troubles :(, Susan and her mom, Molly, and Raeanne & Brette. So we all went to La Bottega one last time and then walked through the market in Scandicci for our farewell time. It was really fun. Then we came back and finished packing - my bag's a few pounds over...oops. Then I updated my blog - it's been a chore so be thankful lol. Then I'm about to get on skype for a few and then crash because for some reason I'm still really tired and 12 hours of plane rides tomorrow isn't going to help much lol.

I'll be home about 930 pm tomorrow! I'm very excited and ready to be back. Europe's been an adventure and great, but home is home for a reason! Love you all - see you soon :D

Marseille...or not

So Paige and I woke up and left Paris at about 615 this morning to catch our 730 train to Marseille. We were pretty tired, but excited to see the Chateau d'If and chill at the beach for a little while. We got there and were welcomed by a torrential downpour that was pretty, but not cool because the ferries couldn't run in that weather and we definitely couldn't chill at the beach in that. It was so bad that the roof of the train station was leaking. So Paige and I went to the bathroom and cheated the system - it's dumb to have to pay. Anyway so then we decided what we wanted to do and we decided to go to Nice and see what our options were from there since that was one of our stops on the way back to Florence during the overnight train stuff that night. Then once we got that planned out we had a little bit of time to get some lunch and get over to our train. We didn't have to pay since it was a regional train - so that was nice. Then once we were at Nice we checked on a train to Monaco since it was really close and popular. So we went there and it sprinkled on us a little bit, but it was ok. We just walked around there and went in a couple shops that were having sales. We saw the super nice car places like the Ferrari shop - there was a scandel in the middle of the street bc someone brought back a car damaged and it was pretty apparent - I decided to inconspicuously take a pic ;). Then we found someplace open so we could eat dinner and then we decided to check out Ventimiglia since it was just at the end of this regional train and it was on our agenda to get back to Florence too. From there we got an earlier and better plan to get back to Florence and we took 3 trains - a regional one, a reserved one that was the worst night train ever... so smelly and loud and hot...ugh, then another short regional one (that we crashed on since we were sooo tired). Then we were back in Florence around 530 am today and got back to the villa and crashed.

Paris - Day 3 of free travel (day 2 of Paris)

So today we got up and around about 9ish and went to get them coffee - yes I've been the odd man out all summer because I don't like anything coffee :(. Then we started our walking tour at the Notre Dame which was really cool. Then we went to their memorial to those deported from France. It was interesting but small and I really wish they had stuff written in English at least on a pamphlet or something like that so I could understand, but that's ok. Then we walked down this street that was dominated by book vendors that just sell books out of these little stands and it's cool bc they have new stuff and old stuff - at one of these Raeanne found me a book by Freud and I couldn't resist. I opened it up and it's actually 5 case studies of clients he had in the late 1800s - it's in French but I can read some of it. Plus it'll be a cool part of my collection for when I have an office someday :D. Then we went to the Shakespeare bookstore and they were filming something in there, but it was really cool and there were so many cool old books! They had realllllly old books next door, but they cost like 200 euros :( I really wanted to get The Count of Monte Cristo to read for Marseille (where Chateau d'If is - the prison he was in and where Paige and I are going tomorrow) but it was the unabridged version and I bought a book at the Louvre yesterday [Trey and Dad you'll be proud - it's not about vampires or werewolves at all]. Then we went to the Latin Quarter where all the philosophers and awesome people at the time hung out. Then we went in St. Severin church and it was cool - it's a part of the journey to Rome so that was really fun to see. Then we found this authentic French restaurant that wasn't too expensive and we ate there. I had salad then chicken and fries, then apple pie. Everyone really liked this place. Then we were sooo tired but we had a few more places to hit up. We went to this square that is symbolic of Revolution and revolts because they had to pave over the roads there because at one point students were revolting and they used the cobblestones from the streets as weapons and they chunked them at the cops! Then we went to Pont Nuf - which is the really old bridge and they were actually filming a movie on it at the time so we just had to look from the next bridge, but it was a movie supposed to be set in Rome...I don't get it either lol. Then it was about 4 so Paige and I decided it was too late to go to Versailles so we were headed for the Orsay Museum but it was closed by the time we got there and so we just went back to the hotel (about 630ish) and crashed because we were literally exhausted - I think all summer of traveling is catching up with all of us. Then a few hours later we thought about going to the Arc de Triomphe but it was rainy and gross so we just chilled for a little bit and watched BBC to catch up with world events (in English lol). Then we got some dinner and called it a night. Tomorrow is Marseille for Paige and I :)

Paris - Day 2 of free travel

So we got up early and our train left at 635 am from Nice to Paris. So we slept on it :) Then when we got there we had to get on their metro system to get to our hotel - not hostel :D. Then after we checked in and all that we got Subway sandwiches because we were starving and they were right across the street! Then we went to the Louvre and spent about 3 hours there. We ended up seeing Michael and Anna there and went to dinner with them at a Chinese place because everywhere was a minimum of 20 euros! Plus this lady was super nice. Then Raeanne, Brette, Paige, and I went to the Eiffel tower and ended up getting there around 830 or 9 so basically perfect timing to get daytime pics and then night shots and on the hour they turn on flashy lights for 5 minutes! It was super awesome. I got my last souvenirs for people today so I am officially really done now lol. Then we went back to the hotel and crashed because we were so tired. Tomorrow is a walking tour courtesy of Rick Steve's guide to Paris book and a short visit to Versailles with Paige.

Nice, France - Day 1 of Free Travel

Ok so we got up and went to the train station at 5:45 am to catch our train to get us where we needed to be to catch our train to Nice. Well, apparently the people told us wrong or our train was just MIA, but it didn't come so we had to wait til 7:45 to catch the next train there which has us missing our train to Nice. So we were up ridiculously early and nothing was open so we just went down to the water and watched the waves and it was very cool to experience it with no one out there. Paige fell asleep and I was talking to this awesome cat that was just chilling out there. I named him Cassanova because of the "Stray Cat Strut" song hahahaha. Then a bar opened at 7 so they got coffee and a croissant. Then we stayed up in the train station and got on that train. Then we got on another train to Nice and ended up getting there at about 3 pm. The weather there wasn't too warm either, but it wasn't rainy. So we checked into our hostel which was nice and then reserved our train to Paris for the next day and then walked around town and went to H&M - big sale going on. Then we saw these street performers who were dancing and it was soooo fun! They were really good. Then we made our way to the beach and it was pretty but cold. People were actually in the water though and these guys were acting so dumb and like belly flopping in the waves and then losing there shorts and not pulling them up right away - gross. Plus old men in speedos. Ew...Anyway then we got some dinner - KFC and kebabs lol. Then we found out that some of our friends got stranded in Nice because their trains messed up and so we met up with them and they ended up getting a spot at our hostel (which is the best in France btw) and so we hung out with them in McDonald's while they tried to figure stuff out and then we just went back to the hostel and chilled for a bit and then said our goodbyes for real. Then tomorrow is a train to Paris!

Saturday of Cinque Terre

So this day was supposed to be dedicated to sleeping in and chilling on a beach, but the weather has been weird this summer. We all got up got around about lunch time because the sun was actually out then, but Anna and I wanted to hang around and get ready before joining Paige and Hailey. So we got all ready and met up with Michael, Anna's boyfriend, and went to catch the train and it was sunny kinda, but absolutely frigid. It would've been miserable to be at a beach in that weather! So we decided to change plans and I got information about getting where we needed to be to catch our train Sunday morning to begin our real free traveling. Then I walked around and looked in the little stores around Vernazza and then got some lunch and went back to the room for a bit. Then a big group of us went to this awesome little Pirate restaurant for dinner. The waiters were brothers and they ran it and they were cracking jokes the whole time and they gave us their famous dessert for free, so we each took a bite - it was berries and some kind of cream yogurt stuff...sooo good! Then a little while later all of our group met up at this park and said our goodbyes and gave hugs. People were crying. It was dramatic. Then we walked down to the water again and it was gorgeous! The waves were very high today and it was hilarious to see people getting splashed 0:). Tomorrow it's time to travel to Nice, France!!!

Friday of Cinque Terre

So this day was interesting. The trains were on strike so we got a bus to take us to Cinque Terre which is a group of 5 fishing villages on the coast. So we got as far as we could on this really windy, on the edge of a cliff road and then after 2 people told our driver if he continued driving on the road he'd get his bus stuck, he decided to stop and let us out. Then we had an awesome traffic jam going on while he backed up and turned around at a hairpin turn. Then we crammed about people and everyone's luggage into a tiny van that some nice little Italian man called for us and that took us down to Vernazza, the village we stayed in. We got checked into our hotel and cleaned up and then went to dinner at this little restaurant and it was ok. Then we walked around and went down to the pier to look at the coast. Then we crashed because it had been a loooong day. The plan for Saturday was to sleep in and then go to the beach.

Last Final of my College Career

So today I woke up and took my Bible final - the last test of my undergraduate college career! It wasn't bad at all. Then we had chapel - my last one of those (this wasn't on the schedule so the other day I accidentally lied...whoops). Then I had a break and then lunch! They made pizzas and we had pasta and fried zucchini things. Then I packed and talked with Daddy on skype and then cleaned up. Then we went into Florence for our last hoorah! :( We went to the texmex place and then got some kabobs later after we had worn off the chips and queso lol. Then we came back to the villa and on the way back tram checkers decided to be mean to us and get on and come straight to us and tell us that our cards weren't scanned enough times or we couldn't scan for more than one person with the same card and they were acting like they didn't know English, which they completely did, and so they gave us 2 tickets - so total of 100 euro which since it was completely dumb and false and unfair, we decided to split evenly and just call it 10 a piece.
Then we got a ride back with Julie our music teacher :). Then I worked and got on skype and then I'm about to get ready and crash :)

My schedule since I'll be without internet:

We leave the villa on Friday and spend Friday and Saturday all together at Cinque Terre (5 villages) still in Italy. Then on Sunday morning 4 of us will leave from there and go to Nice, France for the day. Then Monday we'll leave Nice and go to Paris for 2 days. Then Wednesday we'll go to Marseille and then get back to Florence and the villa Thursday and then fly back Friday.

I'll have internet again Thursday when I'm back at the villa so I'll let everyone know I'm safe and all that good stuff :)

Love you and don't worry - everything will be fine, God is watching out for us :D

Shipment day

So today has been pretty boring because it is just for shipment which I'm not doing since I'll be home in 9 days! :) A lot of people are free-traveling for longer than a couple days so they are shipping their suitcases, etc. home. So some people packed last night and some did this morning so I got no sleep so I woke up in an awesome mood lol...but then I turned in all my stuff like my whisperer (what we used to hear at onsite classes) and my coffee key which I didn't use at all. Then I cleared up my account w/ HUF and I owed them 1 euro and then they paid me for working so now I'm rich! Not really rich, but yesterday's shopping is now null and void :). Then I had lunch and then finally got a nap which my friends give me a hard time about sleeping, but there was no point in going to Florence, I don't need to shop anymore and they were just going to go plus I needed sleep bc I would've snapped at some people bc I seriously got no sleep last night which is not good when you're me. Then I woke up and checked on my stuff and then went down and helped Tiffany with the mural (don't worry - I just supported the ladder lol). Then it was time for dinner which was like mac & cheese on steroids and then chicken kabob-ed on a stick and green beans! It was very good. Then for dessert I had a peanut butter apple :D. Peanut butter is virtually nonexistant over here so it's a delicacy for me lol.

Later I think we're going to watch a movie and then I'll read over my Bible stuff since I have a final in there tomorrow at 9, but it won't be too hard. Then my undergraduate career will be over! Nope I'm not sad lol! Then I'm pretty sure me and my friends are going into town tomorrow night for tex-mex again :D

I also realized today that I won't have internet access via my laptop for free travel bc I don't have a working charger. Plus my phone would be roaming in France, so I basically will give you an outline of what I'll be doing and where I'll be what days and then I'll let you know when I'm back safe at the villa :).

Final Banquet

So today we had our last chapel - my last Harding chapel ever! Then we had lunch :) Then, since mom ordered it, I was social and went into Florence with Tiffany. We went to Hard Rock, a cafe, the Piggy market :( fail, and H&M. Then we got McFlurries!!! So this trip was a major success :) I got some really awesome stuff on sale and it was cool. Then on the way back I found my sunglasses and scarves that I was looking for that were overpriced in the piggy market :P Piggy market = failure market. Everything's too expensive for a market - so if you come to Florence walk through and touch the pig for luck, but shop in the other markets! Then we came back and got ready for the big event - the Final Banquet. The theme was "Across the Globe". So I went as a gyspy :) According to Robbie I was too pretty to be a gypsy though so I was like a queen gypsy. It was really fun - we had some Asians, Romans, Egyptians, Muslims, Indians (from India), cowboys, a Coach Burks, an American - it was Lorenzo, a guest Italian prof/helper, then we had a couple dress up as Italians with funny hair (Ethan) or a see thru tank top with a dark highly visible bra and tight pants with high heels (Amanda), then Molly went for Spanish. It was pretty awesome. We had steaks and baked potatoes and soft bread! Then we presented our surprise gifts to the Mona and Robbie, Kyle, Sandro, Sylvia, Leda, and Paola. Then I worked for the night and then the girls had a dance party/run and play in the random rainstorm so I had to join that. Then I've been skyping and doing job search fun. So far one denial and 2 other completed applications. Fun fun...not! Lol.

Tomorrow's just shipment day so I'll take my time and plan out what I need for my free travel, what needs to be thrown away, and how to best pack the rest of my stuff in the suitcase :) It will probably be an epic fail because I don't pack as well as my mom - bc mom's just awesome, but I'll figure it out lol.

Pizza Oven Inauguration

So today was the day where we had Humanities class and were supposed to be reading our journals, but that turned into Robbie reading a few quotes and then getting us organized for the rest of our day's activities - the Field day for the kids. So I was supposed to be helping with Robbie's art activity, but then my body decided to revolt against me and I was sick all day long. It was miserable and I think half the people don't believe me that it is as painful as it is, but this was definitely the worst this summer - I felt like I was getting stabbed repeatedly. Anyway so I didn't get to help with the kids bc I was curled up trying not to breathe bc I couldn't move without making everything worse. Then around 5:30ish I was able to get up and around a little bit if I moved gingerly so I kinda cleaned up after people bc the majority of the people here are slobs, but that's ok. Then Giovanni came and inaugurated the villa's new pizza oven. He used to be the owner at Gallo's the awesome pizza place we ate at in Scandicci. We had a pizza marathon again. We were supposed to have 8 different kinds, but we ended up having 7 and being too full. We each had the opportunity to have a slice of each type of pizza. They were very good. Then it was watermelon time!!! Then I helped clean up and picked up my laundry and did my work for the day. Now I'm going to clean up for the night and then skype and crash, in theory :).

Shalom & Agape!

Last Worship, Concert, :(

So today is the beginning of the last week here in Italy and it's sad. It's exciting and sad too. This morning was worship here at the villa and it was wonderful. We talked about seeing beauty in God's creation, especially His masterpieces - us. Then we had a lot of awesome songs - good ones but old ones. Then we had some time then lunch :) Then I napped bc I don't know if I'm just run down or what, but I'm tired all the time and I feel blah, so I napped. Then we got ready and ate dinner at Movida and then went to our last concert and it was a trio of Harding profs including Chuck Hicks who leads singing at Dtown church out at school. It was sooooo good. They played all kinds of music and they had a trumpet player, a guitarist, a piano player and sometimes Chuck sang. It was really fun! Then we went up to Piazzale Michelangelo and had gelato and grooved to some Michael Jackson music that somebody's car was playing way too loud lol! Then we came back to the villa - we just got back. I'm trying to get people on skype but they must be busy :( I guess I'll just get to talk to them tomorrow bc I'm pretty sure the internet's actually going to cut off tonight.

Also I met and talked a lot with Sara, a new neighbor near the villa. She's 17 and chilling with us a lot. She's coming tomorrow to help out with our field day with the kids' camp. I'm helping face paint and I tried to talk Sara into interpreting what the kids want at the face painting station :).

Love you everyone...ps - 5 months from today = my wedding!!! :D

Saturday fun!

So today we had our last Bible class and we turned in our last homework assignment and got back our tests and reviewed the commonly missed questions and then some final reminders for the final which is Thursday. Then we had Humanities and we got in groups of 12 and passed around our journals and read everyone's AHA moments and a couple others from each journal. That was pretty cool. It was fun seeing what touched each person. You could tell that some people were writing to please the teacher, but that's whatever. Then we had naptime/Italian for the 4 hour students lol. Then we had split chapel and that was good - Mrs. Jeanie talked about continuing to make good decisions and how each day and each moment is its own decision to act right and I thought that was a really interesting viewpoint. Then we ate lunch - PESTO pasta!!! Yum :) then we set up for the afternoon's activities. We helped write letters/address envelopes/etc. to help try to raise funds for HUF since the insurance sucks since the fire. That took longer than expected but then we had brownies and then they had water games outside = slip n slide, baby blowup pool, water balloons, etc. But I wasn't feeling like getting soaked in clothes and most likely injured bc I'm graceful like that and then having to clean up again. Plus mom was on skype - so I got to talk with my parents for the first time in a few days and it was great! Then we had a cookout with hamburgers and hotdogs and smores. I set a marshmellow on fire just for fun ;). Then we had the talent show and that was pretty awesome. We had legit music acts, funny skits, funny videos, our IES photo theme videos, etc. It was pretty fabulous. Then I did my work and came up to talk with Tyler.

13 days!!!

Harry Potter Mania!

So today I didn't have any classes, but I had to get up and get ready so we could take our group picture that goes in their scrapbook here. It's of all of the students and the professors and their family and the workers here. Then I crashed because I was super tired and then I woke up about an hour later for chapel and lunch. Chapel was really good today - D. Wade talked about how we need to challenge ourselves with our worship because honestly we're pretty lazy. We sing about standing while sitting down...really?! Also we rarely pray down on our knees or prostrate. The pain that causes is a physical reminder and focuser of our thoughts and is humbling before our Almighty God. It was a challenging lesson and I hope to remember it and employ it in my daily walk. Then right after lunch we watched Harry Potter #7 part 1. Right after that we got shuttled down to get on the tram to go to the Odeon for Harry Potter #7 part 2 - the Finale!!! The theater was so pretty, it could've been cooler, but still cool. Such a good movie - Tyler, Daddy, and Haley: We are totally going to see this when I'm home :D. Then some of us went out and ate the one texmex place in Italy and it was really good. Then we just walked around and then Hailey and I decided to head on back bc we weren't feeling too hot - my knee was pretty awful and she'd been under the weather all day :(. So we headed back and the tram driver was crazy! She slammed on the brakes and I flew out of my seat. It was bad. Then she shut it down a stop before we wanted off and the bus wasn't running so we had to walk back and then there were these 2 creepy Italian guys following us and getting closer and closer so when we were crossing the overpass when the couldn't see us we ran and then at the bottom of the hill David, the Shackelford's son, stopped and picked us up (thanks God!) and we looked back and they had been running after us. Anyway God was watching out for us and we got back to the villa safely and then I worked and then did my Bible homework (last of the semester!) then skyped with mom for a second and planned a shopping/pedicure day and then talked for a while with Tyler.

I'll be home in 2 weeks! I'm excited for a few days of free travel and then I'm just ready to be home for good... I love you all!

Lucca and Pisa

So today was all onsite classes in Lucca and Pisa. We left Scandicci at 8 this morning and rode on the bus for about an hour or so to Lucca whose medieval walls are still intact. It was actually a pretty boring visit, but we had a very nice tourguide - Linda and she showed us around to the different piazzas and the old Roman Forum and multiple churches. Nothing too exciting though which was kind of a bummer. Then we ate lunch and had some free time to walk around and see some of the shops there. Then we drove over to Pisa and went in the Miracle Piazza which holds the Baptistry, Church, Bell Tower - aka the Leaning Tower of Pisa, and the Cemetary. My favorite was the cemetary and then the church. The tower is for real lean-ing. Like it's definitely going to fall someday even though it's super reinforced with deep down cement and liquid nitrogen. Anyway, so we walked around after we saw all those things and then some people climbed the stairs to the top of the Pisa Tower, but I didn't. I had to take some of my knee medicine earlier in the day so that was a no-go for me, plus what was I going to see from up there? They don't have any views, but that's ok. Then we walked around and bartered at some shops and these guys tried to sell me sunglasses that they were saying were real Ray Bans for 25 euro... I said no those aren't real and I'm not paying that much. Then they admitted they were good fakes and lowered the price, but they didn't lower them enough for me to buy them bc I'm stubborn ;). Then we dropped some people off at Lucca for the Elton John concert after we all at at McDonald's...yep they took us to McDonald's for a "special dinner". But it was still pretty good :). So we got back to the villa and I'm going to try to get the knots out of my back...yuck. Anyway tomorrow we take the group pic at 10 and then I have chapel and lunch then HARRY POTTER MANIA!!! We watch the 7th movie part 1 here then go into town for the new one...the final movie...I might cry. I hope they give Mrs. Weasley her line - hehe!

Love you everyone!

Cooking Class!

So today was pretty cool. I woke up for Bible and we had our last lecture and notes class. All I have left in there is a test, a review session, and a final :). I finished up my Humanities journals today and turned them in. So all that's left in that class is tomorrow's onsite moleskin notes in Lucca and Pisa and then turning in my final that I've already completed. Then IES pictures are due Friday at noon so I have to pic out 7 of my pics to send to Erin to put into a slide show. Then I had cooking class tonight and we made a 3 course meal and I was a part of all three courses! We made pasta from scratch and then kinda enchilada-ed it around some eggplant and cheese with red sauce and cheese on top for the first course. The 2nd was beef sauteed in wine and rosemary with potatoes on the side. Then we had chocolate cake with a peace sauce on top. It was all soooo good! I actually ate some of everything and I ate my whole piece of cake with the sauce...I know - where is the real Sara at, right? But Marcella was the lady who runs it and was teaching us and she was so precious and sweet and she got emotional when we sang to them and as we were leaving. It was cute. Then we came back to the villa and I did my work and then got stuff ready for onsite classes tomorrow and then got on skype :).

Love you all!

Volleyball's over

Ok so today was pretty chill for the most part. I woke up just in time to grab some yogurt and juice for breakfast then went to Bible class and we talked about parenting so we took some notes and then Mrs. Jeanie came in and told some stories and I thought what they both had to say was good and insightful. Then I took a nap until chapel since we didn't have Humanities today :) then I went to chapel and it was really good today, we read and talked about Hebrews 11 and connecting to our spiritual heritage. Then we sang some really good songs and then ate lunch - we had tacos!!! Texmex in Italy :) Then I read some and did some productive stuff then took another nap bc for some reason I'm just tired so I decided to listen to my body and sleep. Then I woke up to study some for my volleyball final and then I went down for that and we ended up not having the skills test, only the written test (I made a 100 I'm sure of it)! Then we had dinner and it was awesome too! Then my free travel group (Paige, Brette, Raeanne, and I) went to reserve some of our trains. We ended up waiting in line for about 40 minutes and then the guy was running off and shorting us money and then getting confused with the trains. So I ended up getting all but one reserved.

Then we went on a mission to find coke, but that sorta flopped bc everywhere closes at 9 so then we ended up walking to a McDonald's. Anyway so now I'm officially done with volleyball class and Italian class (that worksheet was my last thing and it's turned in now). After finishing 1 journal entry and 1 day of onsite classes and turning in my final that I've already finished I'll be done with Humanities. Then I have to get my picture theme together for IES, but that'll be easy bc I already have the pics. Then Bible will be a few more lectures and a test so I'll be done for sure by the 21st. :D

So it's kind of a weird feeling knowing that soon I'll be traveling for a few days and then be home. I'll be sooooo happy to be home and to see everyone again and have air conditioning LOL, but it'll be weird to not be here anymore if that makes sense. It's been a fabulous and different summer.

Goodnight everyone!

Last full week at the villa

So this starts out the last full we of being at the villa. I had Bible class this morning, we talked about finances and I really wanted to fall asleep, but I didn't. Then we had Humanities were we went over the schedule for that class for the rest of the time and then rearranged some things and then we got the rest of class time today to work on journal entries. So I took an epic nap until it was time for chapel and then lunch. We had the Italian version of rounds and broccoli :) sooo good. Then I worked on my journals and did my last art/architecture entry and I read a chapter in the Sprezzatura book about the Roman Republic and wrote my literature entry about that. I only have one entry left and that's my "AHA" moment. I know what I'm writing about I just didn't want to keep writing anymore lol. Then I skyped with Daddy :D and then got all my laundry from downstairs. Then I worked for the day yay fun. Then I worked on updating my blog so that's all done now. I still have dinner and volleyball class left tonight. Then tomorrow all I have is Bible class, chapel, lunch, dinner, Volleyball tests - the written 25 question true false test about the rules and then the skills test. We're planning on reserving our train stuff for free travel tomorrow after dinner if the train station reservation place is still open. I also have to get my IES picture theme together and turn that in and turn in my worksheet that Mona finally gave to me to make up the day I was sick. So pretty easy from here on out! Only 17 more sleeps ;)

Last day in Rome :(

So Sunday was our last day and we got all packed up and left our stuff in storage at the hotel and then got bussed over to the Villa Borghese which is my favorite gallery/museum so far. It has my (new) favorite sculptor and awesome paintings etc. Bernini's my fave if you were wondering. We walked through and looked at some of the more important pieces and they were so wonderful. We mainly featured Caravaggio, Bernini, and a little of Rafael. Then we walked through the very extensive park which reminded me of somewhere in the US. They were normal trees and grass. Then we walked down the Spanish steps and then found some lunch and went through the artisans' works in the Piazza Navona and I found some pretty watercolors of Rome :). Then we went back to the hotel and chilled in the lobby. I was going to get a smoothie from the place next door, but they were closed yet again (they were closed the night before too.) So that was a bummer, but then I just chilled for about 45 minutes until it was time to get a cab to take us to the train station. Then we sat in the station for about 20ish minutes and then got on our train. The train left Rome at 4:30 and we got back into Florence at 6 and then they bussed us back up the hill (we were sooo excited about not walking up the hill!) Then we had dinner and then worship and then a concert by Ivo Krawkoski (which I didn't go into, but I listened to some of it.) I cleaned up, got unpacked, and was able to get skype working again! Rome was awesome - definitely my favorite place I've been so far, but I was glad to be back at the villa.

Vatican!

So this was Saturday July 9th. We went on a self guided-ish tour through the Vatican museum and listened to lots of info about certain pieces (that Robbie said were the best). We had to write about at least 10 of them - I chose some of his pieces and some of the others because I liked them better, who would've thought? Then we had to turn in our tour listening devices and then I bought a cross necklace (I personally think it was blessed by the Pope) lol. Then we had to zigzag back through the museum again to get back to the Sistine chapel to sneak into the group line to take the short cut over to St. Peter's. But eventually we all got through and it was awesome! I got to go into the Sacristy and see lots of stuff that I don't know what it is oops. Then we all met up and it was about 3 so we needed food! And a couple of us hadn't gone to the Colloseum (slackers) so they went back there and we got some food and just scarfed it and immediately regretted having eaten so fast, but oh well. Then we went back to the hotel to clean up and nap until dinner. I went to the French nun dinner where they sing and dance. It was really cool. They sang Ave Maria and asked us to join in with them and then the dance was a "traditional dance" where she was basically on point (ballet style) the whole time...it was so beautiful. You could tell she really loved what she was doing bc she had a smile on her face and was looking up the whole time.

Just chilling in Rome, no big

So this was the 2nd day in Rome, July 8th. We left the hotel at 8 and went to St. John in Lateran church which was pretty cool, just not as cool as my church lol jk...kinda! Then there we learned about the signs and symbols of the apostles and how they were martyred - ps Bartholomew = creepy...I'm pretty sure I took a pic of the sculpture of him. One cool thing about this church is that it has statues of all of them and each one was done by a different sculptor of the day. Then we went to St. Mary of the Holy Steps and I really wanted to do the steps, but they didn't give us time to do them and they were closed when we had free time or were too far away from where we were at when we had free time. But these steps were brought here from Jerusalem and supposedly they are the ones that were leading up to Pilate's throne so Jesus walked up and down them. There are blood splatters on some of them, but who knows if they are the actual steps or if it is Jesus's blood. But you cannot climb these on your feet - you have to go up them on your knees and it's a very moving experience to see the people who feel compelled to go and endure a small fraction of Christ's pain by climbing these. At the top there's a special Pope chapel where supposedly an angel painted the painting in there. It was obviously closed off.

After that we went to St. Clement which was cool bc it was on top of the old church and cult place that was underground and we got to go down and look at it! Then St. Peter in Chains was pretty cool bc they have the chains Peter was chained in - they supposedly have magical power so they're on super lockdown so people don't jack them. Inside here they have the tomb of Pope Julius II so that was interesting. Then it was time for lunch which we ate right outside the COLLOSEUM!!!

So we ate lunch then learned about the Colloseum, but didn't go inside as a group...Then we went into the ruins part and learned about the Arch of Constantine, Arch of Titus, Basilica of Maxentius, Temple of Antoninos and Faustina, and the legend of the Rape of the Sabine (actually a love story...ask me sometime about the legends, I love them :D, nerd I know...lol), then the Dioscuri, Temple of the Vestal Virgins, Arch of Septimus Severus (I tried to convince DWade to sing the Harry Potter Puppet Pals song, but he didn't go for it), then Mamertine Prison, the Equestrain statue of Marcus Aurelius, Capitoline Hill and the piazza and buildings there (where we get Capitol Hill from fyi), then Trajans Column, and the monument to Victor Emanuel II (first president of united Italy). Then we had free time for the rest of the night so we went back to the Colloseum bc we were relatively close. It was soooo cool! Our group is the first one to get everyone to all go inside AND the first to not get anything valuable lost/stolen :D go us! Then we cleaned up and took a power nap then went to find kabobs which took about an hour to find. It was crazy, but they were good lol!

1st day of Roman Holiday

So we left for Rome on Thursday the 7th at 7 am from the villa. Our train left at 8 and we got to Rome at 9:45! First off we went to the Christian Catacombs of St. Sebastian which were really cool. I wish we could've been let loose in there to explore, but I understand why they don't because everyone would get lost and they wouldn't be able to find them. My favorite part were the mausoleums on the way out (yes I'm weird and like mausoleums...sorry). There were 3 of them and you could still see the urns with ashes (since these were pagan they weren't as concerned about moving the remains for their sake). 2 of them kept going deeper and you couldn't see the end. I soooo badly wanted to be a little kid again so I could get away with crawling under barriers and exploring ;). Then we went to Circus of Maxentius where they had chariot races and fights, etc. This sight isn't as popular, but it's way more intact than others similar so it was cool. Then we heard the legend of Romulus and Remus - the twin brothers that founded Rome. Then it was lunch time so we ate our sack lunches and then I gave my lesson at St. Paul Outside-the-Walls where historians think Paul's body is actually buried! It was really legit. Then we went to drop off stuff at the hotel which was so pretty - it's called Hotel Tiziana and is in a really good spot in Rome. It's used as a dorm for a college during the school year.

After we unloaded in our rooms we went to the Piazza Navona and learned about the 3 fountains that are there. This piazza has all the artisans in it selling their work :). Then we went to the Pantheon which I was kinda bummed about because it was originally a temple dedicated to all the Roman gods, but now it's a Catholic church so Mary and baby Jesus are everywhere :( but I'm grateful they did convert it because otherwise they would have destroyed it and I wouldn't be able to see it. So Robbie said to just imagine gods' images wherever you see anything Christian...Then we traveled to the Column of Marcus Aurelius and then the Trevi fountain (yes I did throw a coin in :D) and then we took Hailey out for dinner because she was the birthday girl :) We had an awesome waitress and we all had on tiaras...Such a long day but so fun!

Wednesday July 6th

Ok so sorry I've been without internet since we left for Rome, but I'll fill you in on the past few days one day at a time. So on Wednesday the 6th it was our last day at the villa before Rome. I had Bible class that morning and we talked about our interviews that we had with people that we admire their marriages. I talked to Grammie and Gramps because they've been together forever and I know that things couldn't have been easy the whole time, so I wanted to get some of their wisdom and advice. Then we had humanities class and in there we had our last quiz over chapters 5 and 7 in the textbook and then an essay question about the reading he gave us. Then we had a guest speaker - the vice prefect who's over all the different types of police they have here. It was really cool. I think USA has a better system and our's is more effective and efficient, but it's interesting to have something to compare it to so I appreciate it more. He invited us to come to his office and get a tour (he works in a building made in the 1400s that overlooks the Duomo and the Arno!) I want to go if we have the time! Then I got packed for Rome and prepped more for my onsite class about St. Paul Outside the Wall and then had chapel and lunch and then volleyball. We only have 2 more classes - 1 day we play and then the last day we take our 25 question true/false written test over the rules and our skills test and then that class is done!

24 more sleeps :)

Ok so today has been awesome. I'm declaring it my own personal independence day and I'll do a write up about it someplace, but not necessarily on here. But anyway today's been awesome. Most of the girls stayed up and watched Tangled which was absolutely adorable! I'm totally going to have to have it...and watch it again while here. Then we painted up with stars and USA stuff and then did our Scandicci challenge and that was a blast. Then we all crashed and then we had a Bible test this morning at 9 and that went pretty well I think then we had Humanities right after that and it was more prep stuff for Rome, but more of the culture and architecture than artists. Then I had an awesome nap and woke up for chapel and lunch at 1. Chapel was really good - shoutout to Mom! We sand Paradise Valley and I sang the alto part for you (at least as much as I could lol). Then we finished planning out free travel stuff and there are 4 of us traveling together - Paige, Brette, Raeanne, and me. We're going to Nice, then Paris, then Marseilles (all in France) before coming back to the villa to finish packing up and head home. Our little group is actually splitting up because 2 of them wanted the extra day in Paris to spend more time at Versailles which is cool, but I don't need to spend a day in a courtyard looking at gardens. Paige and I just wanted to see where they signed the treaty and hit up some other spots. So we are the 2 going to Marseilles and that's where the Chateau d'If is which is the prison that was in the Count of Monte Cristo! I'm so pumped...we're taking a ferry over and then getting to explore it :D So we have all the trains planned out and we'll have to get our reservations some time soon when we're in Florence. But we have all our hostels/hotels reserved! (And only one night is on my card this time so only 2 people owe me money and we all decided to work that out now so it's not a big deal on the trip!) Also about money - only 2 people owe me money for the Prague hostel and they know it, it's just a matter of being able to break bills, etc. So I'll be even with everyone soon! Yay...

So I woke up from my nap being yelled at to get to volleyball class (oops my alarm didn't go off). And then immediately had to dig and hit and apparently I still have the tendency to hit really aggressively if I'm mad...LOL. Then I cleaned up after that class and went down to dinner. Pretty soon we're going to have a big band concert for our humanities class out on the court. I really am not pumped about it at all because I'm not in the mood for classical music and I had to take my knee med so I'm about to crash anyway, plus the mosquitoes here are crazy!!! Literally I got a bite on the back of my head, through my ponytail, and another through 2 layers of clothes...crazy little persistent suckers. I'm about to look up some info about St. Paul outside the Wall - which is actually going to be cool. But since I teach that class in 2 days, I should probably start prepping that lesson haha.

Pace <3

Independence Day!

So today I had to get up at 11 for Humanities class at 12 and we learned about Berlini and Caravaggio who are artists that we'll be featuring in Rome in a few days. Then we had chapel about welcoming Satan's trials because that means we wear the title Christian and he's coming at our faith because it's a threat to him. It was really cool. Then we had lunch which was spaghetti :) and then free time til 7 when the bus came to take us to Robbie and Mona's house for our own special 4th of July party. We had brisket and red, white, and blue gelato and my first watermelon of the season! It was pretty awesome. Then we got to look through photo albums of their wedding and family and previous HUF groups. The whole time they had patriotic music playing in the background. Then we sang the whole bus ride back to the villa - when we were singing "I've got friends in low places" the Italian bus driver recognized it and turned on the lights and was laughing at our performance :D. Now I'm trying to iron out all the details of 2nd free travel and get all that nailed down with the people that are coming with so that's a bit stressful bc places to stay are difficult to find when you want someplace that's not sketch, in a good part of town, and is a legit price. It will all work out though :)

Stars and stripes tonight!!!

Love you everyone!

Tuscan American Society and the big party

So the reason this post is a day late is because we all got back to the villa about 12:40 am. So the internet was already shut off for the night. My day started out really rough - I didn't get a good night's sleep because Satan decided one tactic wasn't working so he really pushed another and it got to me. Anyway I didn't get calmed down enough to go to bed until around 2 am so I was tired and irritated when I woke up. But church was really good, we sang some really good songs and then since it was our last time to worship with the congregation in Florence they circled up and sang "The Lord Bless You and Keep You" to us. It was very precious. That and my friends turned my morning around. Then I had a little bit of a nap that afternoon and then at 4 we left to go to the park for the 4th of July party we were cooking at.

You will never believe it - I grilled! Like an outdoor grill with real meat and fire and all that. Yep I'm a pro now...hahaha. Anyway I really did grill burgers and hot dogs and help refill condiments and all that. I was pretty proud of myself lol. There was a crazy British lady yelling at us to hurry up and I was like, "This is not McDonalds...this is real imported USDA beef that has blood in it (sorry mom). It takes a while to cook. Back off lady!" I didn't say it to where she could hear me though. Then we met this really cool little puppy named Bart and he was super adorable so we helped this guy out by running around with the puppy when he got restless :) It made me miss my puppies back home :(. Then the concert was super awesome and Mona made everyone get up and go up in front of the stage to support them "not to dance"...yeah right Mona. Anyway they were really cool and I actually met them and got them to sign my map bc their cd was all black so the pen wouldn't show up - I told them they needed a silver sharpie for that in the future and they were really thankful for the idea. Their music was really fun and upbeat and chill and I kind of like it that sometimes it's in Italian so I don't know what's going on haha.

Also I'll write more about this later, but being in multiple other countries, especially on the 4th of July has made me really reflect on if our country is really as bad as I make it out to be or if I've been too harsh.

Siena Horse Race Day

So today I woke up and went to chapel and then lunch. I wasn't feeling too good in multiple ways and I had done some more research on the horse race and changed my mind about paying to spend 3 hours on a train to get there and back as well as having to stand in a mob crowd where fights break out in the heat and rain and not getting dinner and just being in a mob crowd. Also there aren't really rules so they can hit the other riders and horses with their whips and a few years ago the animal rights groups got really angry because a horse fell and then got trampled because they didn't stop the race and the horse ended up dying a few days later because of the injuries it sustained :(. All of those things added up = me not feeling like going to Siena to see this race, plus we could just watch it on tv. So I rested up here, got some more homework done - (thanks Grammie and Gramps!!!), helped get supplies and set up stuff for the big cookout party we're having tomorrow, did my regular work, went to La Bottega for dinner with Kyle, Mona, and Daniel, and did some wedding planning stuff. So I've had a great day and I'm glad I chose to stay. I hope everyone else had fun. I know some people went to the beach, but I think most went to the race (which lasts about 90 seconds). I'm about to take a shower and get stuff ready for tomorrow and then talk with Tyler. Only 168 days til our wedding and 27 days til I'm home :)

Love you all and hope you have a great 4th of July weekend!

PS - Tomorrow's our last day to worship with the church in Florence and then we have a big cookout/party thing with the American society in Florence tomorrow night. I saw stuff for PB&J's, burgers, hot dogs, puffy cheetos, Dr. Pepper - WHAT?! BTW - in case I haven't mentioned it, DP doesn't exist here so it's a big deal :)

1st day of July

So today has been a pretty chill day. I woke up and got some breakfast and got ready and went to Bible class. We talked about how Keeley got engaged and got the story from her...it was very cute and very their style of relationship. Side note - I've learned a lot about how different people really are while here this summer. I've kinda made a social experiment out of 36 students living in one house with 3 professors that stay here and a family of 5 living nearby. It's definitely interesting to observe the dynamics of different relationships and how they function or handle dysfunctions.

Back to my day - so Bible was not a big deal at all, we got done a little early. Then we had Humanities class and all we had today was our test over architecture styles and ancient Christian symbols and the symbols of the Gospel writers in Revelation and then info about the 4 founding fathers of the church. So it wasn't as bad of a test as I thought. I only missed 2 because I had no clue what that part of a column was (bc he didn't tell us to know the parts of a column, but it's ok). Then we had time to fix up our journals since we actually have the notebooks to put them in now :). Then it was chapel time and then lunch :) Then I had a nap that was glorious and then I worked some and helped clean up because Dr. Hopper (the director of all of Harding's International programs) is coming in for a day or so. So basically we've had all kinds of Harding royalty here this summer - I think they secretly came bc I'm graduating LOL!!!

Then I had dinner and decided to be productive today so I did my 2 journal entries over the Duomo climb and Museum I visited yesterday. Then I did my final for my Humanities class and typed up and emailed Grammie and Gramps an interview assignment for my Christian Home Bible class. (Hopefully it works :). ) Then a lot of people went bowling in town and I needed some Sara time away from all the hustle and bustle so I stayed here and worked and did my school stuff and took a nice shower without people bothering me. It was glorious.

Tomorrow I have a very relaxing day consisting of waking up for chapel and eating lunch and going to the horse race in Siena!!! I'm going to pick a good neighborhood to cheer for and hope that horse wins :) I'll let you know all about it tomorrow. And don't worry Grandma - I'm going with a bunch of my friends so I won't be alone! Love you <3