Friday was the official ONE MONTH mark of my stay here in Firenze, Italia! It's absolutely insane to think I've been here that long and yet I also feel like I've done so much already that it couldn't have only been one month. It also scares me that this month flew by because that means that the remaining 2 and a half months will be over before I can finish my next gelato ; ) We've all hit this 'let's do everything we said we were going to within the next week' mode because we're all so nervous it won't actually happen if we don't do it soon. It is definitely true that things can get pushed to the side and then the next thing you know there's no time left to do them. I really don't want that to happen here so I'm really going to try not to waste any of my time (which I'm already failing at since I did barely anything today, but I guess my excuse is I'm getting over a small cold). All in all I can't say i regret how I've spent any of my time thus far. Hopefully after the next 2 and a half months I'll still feel the same way.
Anyways, this past week was one of the more 'stressful' that I've had. My trip to the French Riviera got canceled due to lack of people signed up and the work load seemed to pick up some. The stress had probably reached it's peak Wednesday when I was preparing for my first oral presentation in my Italian class. All that stress I was feeling had the potential to shift into either a monumental amount of disappointment or excitement when I got a message from my mom on skype simply saying "ouimet letter call me."
Back story: for those of you who don't know, starting the beginning of last fall semester I began working on my application for the Francis Ouimet Scholarship Fund. This was probably THE most intense scholarship ever created, well at least the most intense one I've applied to. They asked for a 5 page application to be filled out, 3 essays, 2 recommendations, loads of financial information, and a bunch of other random stuff. All of which got put in the mail on the last possible day due to some missing pieces. Talk about stressful. I had an interview a few months later and finished it all after I sent in my spring semester grades. Insert *sigh of relief* here.
Anywayssss, through skype I watched my mom open the letter that would determine if all my hard work was actually worth it. And believe it or not it was! I ended up winning a scholarship of $5,796!! Mom and I were both practically in tears. It was a pretty great moment and I'm still in shock over it honestly. Needless to say I couldn't concentrate on my oral presentation after that haha but thankfully I didn't end up presenting anyways. I think someone was looking out for me there :)
After that wonderful surprise and since my weekend was now open, my friend Kat and I decided to book the Vespa tour we had been wanting to take. That Friday we met our awesome tour guide, Fillipo, and the rest of the group at 9:15 to head to Chianti. Once there Fillipo taught us how to drive the vespas and we practiced a little. Gotta admit I was a little nervous but once I was driving around it wasn't that bad. We took off down the road, cruising along through the Tuscan countryside. The only downside to driving the vespas was not being able to stare out at the magnificent views for too long at one time. It was breathtaking. I was honestly in a state of pure bliss the entire time. Okay, I lied, maybe not the ENTIRE time... At one point we stopped on the side of the road to let the others catch up. My front tire happened to go off the edge of the road so as we were getting ready to go again I guess I gave it a little too much gas in order to get it back up and ended up doing a sort of wheelie... I don't know what your reaction would have been in that situation but mine was to hold on tighter to the handlebars. Big mistake. Pulling down on the right handlebar gives the vespa gas so I ended up giving it even more gas and the next thing I know I'm face down on the other side of the road with the vespa on top of my legs. Luckily there were no cars coming and I only left with a few scrapes but it was definitely a little unnerving. After that we ate lunch at a nice little restaurant and then started to head back to the barn (on the bumpiest street ever : / ). Then Fillipo took us to the Chianti Castle for a wine tasting. Even with my minor mishap I had one of the best days and I'd recommend it to anyoneee who wants to really experience the beauty of the Italian countryside!
Sorry this post is so long but I'll just finish it off with some photos from the Vespa Tour!
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| Our yummy desert Panna Cotta (which we learned how to make in my cooking class too!) |
vita, amore, felicitÃ
