il mio appartamento and last weekend

So, spent the afternoon rearranging some things in my apartment (a la KJ) and now the place feels MUCH more like home. I created an excellent reading nook under the stairs in place of the crappy storage area it was. Also got some decent pictures to share. Still working on the bedroom. My bed is super hard and I thus far I have been unable to sleep through the night. Am trying to get to Ikea to get a eggcrate or something. Yes, there is an Ikea just outside of Florence and a free bus that goes there straight from the center of town every hour on the hour all weekend long. Crazy.

So, let's backtrack. Last Saturday, we headed to Fiesole, a small town in the foothills surrounding Florence, to check out some Roman and Etruscan ruins. We were accompanied by the study center's resident art historian and were given a tour which included an amphitheater, roman bath, and temple complex. Then, we hiked up a hill (straight up - a Florida girl has got to get used to this) to a monastery. The views were unbelievable.

We headed back to town and Betsie (one of my student assistants) and Ryan (the program assistant working in the study center office) decided to get lunch at the Mercato Centrale. Both Betsie and Ryan have spent almost a year in Florence already so both speak a moderate amount of Italian and know their way around quite a bit. We went to Betsie's favorite stall and got a huge slab of lasagna for 4 euro and we ate it on the steps outside. Molto bene.

On Sunday, I finally got a chance to sleep in and putter around my place a little bit. I headed out of the house around 11 hoping to finally get inside Santa Croce Basilica. Mass was just about to start, so I scratched that and walked down Via De Pepi toward the grocery store to get some all-important yogurt, which is practically all I eat besides pizza and prosciutto. On the way I ran smack into a FLEA MARKET (Mercato delle Pulci)! Located in the Piazza dei Ciompi just two blocks from my house is a monthly flea. The stuff they had for sale was amazing. Books, old signs, lots of art, they even had a life-sized marionette pony. I amost wept. Check out my amazing find!

Later in the afternoon, I met up with the students again and we hiked another giant hill and 10,000 steps to San Miniato al Monte (basilica) and Piazzale Michelangleo (a beautiful scenic overlook). The basilica had amazing frescoes and a brilliantly painted ceiling. More to come... off to Italian class. Ciao!