Who knew that Italy would be freezing cold?! Luckily, I brought a puffer jacket that dad got me, but even then, I'm still cold! Classes went well so far! during orientation, we walked around the city and were told of places that may be of importance to us, such as the grocery store and the street that leads to the historic center, as well as some restaurants along the way! 

The heater in my room is very confusing and it started to spray water at me! Luckily Delaney figured out how to work it and fix it! The bed is a bit hard and the pillow isn't that soft. I have to make do! Goodnight Verona!

Orientation day 2! Got a tour of the university and where our classes would be! I got lunch with a group of girls from Cincinnati, Ohio! They're all nice, but I felt a little excluded since they all knew each other. Still had a great time! 

Some of the girls are talking about going for dinner and then checking out a local club! I've never gone out so I am excited to go and dance and meet new people!

(Later)

The club was called DiscotecaLove! It was very fun and I loved all the music, but I was surprised to hear a lot of American music. 

I actually made some friends with locals and they are all nice! Except they didn't know where New Mexico was. I had to tell them I was from where the show Breaking Bad is based. That was the way that they understood, which is actually pretty cool!

The first official day of classes! I had Italian I and Italian Culture! Both of the professors seem very kind and the classes will be fun and interesting!

It was raining again today and very cold! I wish it would warm up!

I went to the store today to go and get some simple groceries and things that I can make easy lunches and dinners with since I am not the greatest cook. My roommates and I all have assigned shelves in the fridge, but I bought pasta and sauce for everyone since it can be something easily made and it wasn't that expensive. 

Though there's this little sandwich place just around the corner from the school called Doc & Dop, run by a man named Antonello and a woman named Diana! They are so sweet and it's cheaper than going to a restaurant in the historic center.

Arrived in Milan! It was our first time taking the train and it wasn't that bad actually! I came with some girls named Hannah, Carmen (my roommate), Kelly, and Elle. We met up with Elle's boyfriend and friends who are studying abroad in Torino and explored the city. It's so beautiful and so many people. There are so many high-end shops like Gucci, Prada, Louis Vuitton... they're all over!! We are staying the night and leaving in the morning, so we are probably going to go eat tonight and then head to bed!

What's nice is I'm making some friends!

Made a last-minute trip to Florence! Carmen, Hannah, Haley, Addie, and I all went on the fast train and got here! 

We went to the museum where the Statue of David is and I cried at the sight of him he was just so beautiful and he is the reason why I study Art History! Looking at the extreme detail just mesmerizes me. The rest of the museum also had beautiful paintings and castes of other famous sculptures. The original Rape of the Sabine Women was there as well and was huge! I could spend the entire day there if I could. 

We then went inside the Duomo and I was a bit underwhelmed with the simplicity inside. I'm sad I didn't get to go up to the bell tower, but I was too tired to walk up all those stairs!

Then we went to a rooftop bar and there were beautiful views of the churches and the city! It was very cold, but we still had a great time!

Today is a local festival in Verona! There was a large parade with beautiful floats! Confetti littered the streets and people were dressed in costumes! Vendors sold homemade pasta along the streets and were cooking! It smelled amazing! And then for some reason there were kids throwing flour on people. Poor Carmen got flour bombed. It got all in her hair and her clothes! It was funny though! Carmen, Elle, and I all went together and had a blast. Part of the parade was a figure called Papa Gnoco! He supposedly is like Santa Claus, just giving pasta to poor children instead. There were so many people and it was just very fun! We walked home and got ready to go out. Well, Elle and I. Carmen was tired and had to get ready to go on a trip. Everyone is actually leaving tonight or early tomorrow morning, so Elle and I decided to stay in Verona to explora more and just hang out. A couple weeks ago she went with her boyfriend (he's studying in Torino) to a swimming pool club type of thing and meet some other Americans! They're in the army and said they wanted to come to Verona for the weekend, so we will hang out with them tomorrow. But tonight, Elle and I are going to DiscotecaLove to dance!

Carmen, Hannah, Addie and I were supposed to fly off to London today! Sadly, Carmen got sick and Hannah decided she didn't want to go, but Addie and I still wanted to anyway. We hopped on the plane and it was a nice and easy flight. Our Airbnb is fancy, we just shared the house with the host. It was very nice and in the center of London. We walked around a lot and bought souviners. We saw Big Ben and Buckingham Palace. There's so many people and it is just a wonderful city! For dinner, we ate at Gordon Ramsay's burger restaurant! It was delicious! Tomorrow we will wake up and leave at 10am. It was a noce little over night trip and wished I would've stayed a little longer, but I still got to see it!

A lot of people went out of town for St. Patrick's Day, but not Elle and me! We have become good friends and travel partners. We always hang out and watch movies in the downstairs movie room, eating ice cream and other snacks! We went to Brescia today because she had heard that the town celebrates it more than Verona does. We hopped on the train and spent the entire day there, though it seemed that the only Irish thing there was an Irish pub. They had good fish 'n' chips though! We came back to Verona and decided to celebrate at one of our favorite spots called Campus Bar and Pub. Elle got a new neighbor and we all wanted to hang out. Her neighbor's name is Ryan and he is from Iran. I'm just happy we got to relax and have some fun today! Especially because I keep losing my voice. Just too much excitement! Elle got a little hat from the pub, but she lost it. How sad.

Carmen, Carmen's friend Kristen, Hannah, Kelly, Haley, Ellie, and I decided to come to Rome for Easter break! We took the fast train and it took a while for us to get to the Airbnb, but our Airbnb is beautiful! It has frescoes on the walls and has a little spiral staircase to a loft with three beds. There's a large master room and a guest bedroom. It was perfect for all of us. I seem to not be getting better from my sickness. My voice sounds terrible and my nose is stuffed. I messaged the doctor and he gave me medications before I left so hopefully those take action soon. We are right down the street from the Fountain of Trevi. I can't wait to see more of the city tomorrow! I just love Rome. It's beautiful everywhere you look. I love walking into random churches and seeing the art inside. This city truly makes and art history major happy!

We landed in Crete today! Greece is so beautiful! It was funny though because when we were trying to catch a bus, Carmen tried to wave it down and the bus driver simply waved back! Eventually, we found someone who spoke English and they ordered us a taxi. We got to our Airbnb and it was really cute! Carmen, Elle, and I met Alyssa there and started getting ready to go get some dinner. We went to this one restaurant and the food was delicious! I never had lamb before but I really liked it! Tonight, the girls wanted to go try this fancy restaurant and of course, I was willing to go! We got dressed and went and it was really nice! Tomorrow we are going to walk around and do some shopping and then the next day we will go to the beach to relax! I can't wait to see the ocean!

The Akropolis is BEAUTIFUL! It was an easy hike to get to the top, but it was just so beautiful. Even with the temples in ruin, they are massive and just beautiful. I got a little sunburnt, but it was work it. I'm so happy to get Athens off the bucketlist, though you definitely need at least a week in Athens to see other monuments, but Carmen, Elle, and I had a great time! We leave tomorrow morning Back to Verona.

We arrived in Munich, Germany! A good amount of us have planned on going on this trip because there is a festival called Springfest! It's a lot like Oktoberfest, but this one is just in the spring! We also went through this traveling agency that is college-friendly. We are camping in the woods and they provide free food and drinks. They also gave us dirndls and a lederhosen for Donny (he's the only boy who wanted to come). We came back from the festival a little while ago. They had a bunch of fun rides and beer gardens. I can only imagine how big it is when it's really Oktoberfest! It's nice to get to spend time with the group. I'm sharing a tent with Addie. Well, got to head to bed and do it all over again tomorrow!

Tonight is a last dinner for us. Some people didn't come, but most of us were there. We all brought out own food, played games, and just talked. Elle left earlier today and it didn't settle with me that she was leaving until she was already gone. I was really sad when she walked away, especially because her and I became such good friends. Tomorrow morning is when I get on my plane. Haley, Sierra, and I had left earlier than everyone because we were going to meet some other friends, and I realized it would be my last time seeing Hannah. We cried and hugged for a long time. 

It's going to be rough tomorrow at the airport. 

Gigi came into my room when I came back to the apartment and told me her goodbyes as well. We hugged and talked for a little bit. Took everything in me not to break down. I'm going to miss everyone so much, but I know that there are more adventures for me to come and I can't wait to see what those adventures are!

Arrivederci Verona!