And what a fashionable boot it is.
I have made it to Italy in one piece, and have finally gotten a chance to catch this thing up on my journey. So from the beginning, the airplane had free booze so it was obviously a great trip across the pond. When we arrived, Ryan and I had fun finding our way through Milan fumbling in my new found language of Spanglian. After a few wrong turns and a bottle of wine later, we found our train and hopped on board. We arrived in Como, which is to be our home base for the trip at around 8pm and had our first Italian dinner of what is now a staple of our diet, some of the lightest and most incredible pizza ever. We didn't sleep much, with the excitement of the first day there, so at 6 am we woke up to rain, lots of rain.
The first day was glum and overcast, but still incredibly beautiful with the lake dominating the city and the mountains gently holding us in the valley on two sides. The clouds hovered on the hills and set up camp to greet me. I met some of my new teachers and saw my studio which is the largest villa, (Villa Olmo) on the lake front. I ate and drank to my heart's content and the group of us started to get acquainted with eachother as a group, and with the city.
On the second day though, the sun greeted us in full force and the entirety of our city came into view. It is amazing that I will be living there for a semester. It is too picturesque for its own good. I am just in awe of the place whenever I walk around and cannot conceal a smile. I start to form my mental map of the whole thing and have a basic sense of where I am going, even though you can see the mountains to orient yourself no matter where you are.
The days go by in a blur of pizza, pasta, and incredible architecture. The duomo just looms over the center part of the city with its huge flat facade just staring at you making you feel its presence whenever you get a glance of it. The Casa del Fascio is there in its gloriously modernity even though now it is home to the National Police, who hate everyone and wouldn't let us sit on the bench obviously made to be sat on in their courtyard (it really is the home of the fascists).
Just as I am getting settled in, it is time to take off for Rome. So this is where I am writing from now. I have just finished my first week here in the Eternal City, and every day has been an adventure. Just on the way from the train station to the hotel on our first night, we accidentally saw the Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, and too many churches to mention.
We have been studying with our new professor Michele all week and drawing a whole bunch every day, but we have found ample time to party and I have already jumped in the Trevi Fountain to wash my hair while closely watching the police car close by.
There is a lot to tell, and I will get back to updating soon, but right now some more pizza is calling my name. Ciao ciao
