Ciao! So I'm not sure if Ellen and I have mentioned our Italian teachers to you yet, but in one word they are: amazing! For the first week of class (instead of plugging our brains full of grammar lessons and vocabulary words) they took us around Florence to show us "il loro Firenze". From shopping in the open air markets to grabbing "un cappuccino" at the best cafes we wandered around exploring Florence from a local's point of view (which is the best way to see it, of course!). Our last class consisted of loading into a Florentine bus (our first!) and heading to the Tuscan countryside to see the mountain town of Fiesole. It might have been a bit of a hike to see the monastery at the top, but the view of Florence from its grounds was well worth it. It was funny looking down over the sprawling countryside to see the city (our city) extending its buildings around the river and into the hills. They truly know beautiful architecture here. Instead of having the city force its way into the Tuscan greenery, it integrates itself naturally into the mountains so that the countryside and the city become one whole beautiful landscape.
After a a short venture into the monastery to see its miniature museum (full of relics from China and Egypt, oddly enough) we headed back down to the sleepy little town to order a cioccolato, then it was on to the bus and back to Florence. (Though we've both promised ourselves a trip back to Fiosole to get some more of that delicious chocolate!)
Fiosole!
Ellen and Mary Haley.
Making the hike to the top.
Ellen with our new friend Brett
Ellen at the top!
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