La Dolce Vita

So with sleepy eyes, no makeup, and a tremendous amount of anticipation to see Bri and Florence, I left my hostel the next morning and made my way to the metro. Although I hadn’t needed to use the metro in Madrid before, I didn’t exactly relish the idea of a 30 euro taxi-ride to the airport. So with map in hand, I mustered all my courage to tackle the metro line. And what do you know? Even before I got into the metro I had a problem buying my ticket! First, I couldn’t figure out how to work the machine, and then once I got my tickets, the machine ate them and then stopped working! But God was looking out for me because just then he sent me an angel in the form of an unbelievably sweet and helpful twenty-something year old Spanish guy! Between his broken English and my broken Spanish, he understood what the problem was and used the metro phone to call the desk and ask for assistance. He waited with me and explained it all to the metro worker when she showed up, saying that he didn’t have anywhere important to be. So, whoever you are out there, thank you sooo much for your kindness!
Thank goodness I have some experience with metro maps and taking various lines because the journey to the airport was a little confusing, and I had to ask for help a couple of times along the way. But everyone was so helpful and went out of their way to assist me, so I was very grateful when I finally made it to the airport with the perfect amount of time before my flight. Overall, from the time I had left Salamanca, I had had a good time in Madrid but had also experienced great stress, so my reward was waiting for me on my flight…..as luck would have it, I sat next to a beautiful, BEAUTIFUL young Italian man named Emiliano….it was the most blissful flight of my entire life! I had planned to take a nap, but that plan went right out the window as soon as I saw that lovely white smile, those chocolate brown eyes, and tan skin. He was probably in his mid-20s, lived in a small town outside of Florence, was extremely attentive and funny, and had been in Spain on business with his colleague. We talked throughout the entire two and a half hour flight, and I was terribly smitten. If it was socially appropriate, I really would have leaned over and kissed him right there in the plane! I was devastated when the plane landed and we said goodbye as he and his colleague went to pick up their bags.

After taking a taxi to my hostel, I called Bri to let her know that I was finally in Florence, and the first thing she said to me is “I hate you!” (in response to me telling her about my Italian man lol). That’s love, alright! : ) She said, “Why couldn’t that happen to me!?” Brianna my love, you have over two months left in Florence to have a real Italian love affair, but I only had five days so I had to make it quick! When I met up with Bri that night, we screamed with enthusiasm when we saw each other…it was so wonderful and comforting to see someone I’ve known for so long and missed so much.

Before I go into Florence, I must talk about something that was pretty upsetting for me during my trip. When I had been in Madrid, my mom had gone to the dentist with major pain in her mouth and teeth. They obviously didn’t really understand the severity of her pain because the dentist said she would probably need surgery and that she should come back a few days later to look into it further. It was while she was waiting to go back that the pain became unbearable and my dad took her to the emergency room, where she ended up having surgery in her mouth. I’m still a little confused on the details of the surgery but after my parents returned home, my mom had major complications following. Her entire jaw was abnormally swollen and an abscess was growing in her throat, making it difficult for her to breathe and eat. She was put on a breathing tube and stayed in intensive care at the hospital for four days. Physically, she said it was the hardest thing she had ever endured in her life. It has been two weeks now, and she hasn’t completely healed by any means, but she’s no longer in danger. Most of this occurred while I was in Florence, and it made me sick that something so scary would happen when I am not only absent, but halfway around the world and completely unable to be there. To make matters worse, my dad was so sleep-deprived and distraught that he wasn’t communicating with me as well as he normally would. He also didn’t want to worry me too much so he wasn’t telling me much. But this worried me even more! I was sick with concern, so I finally took matters into my own hands and called my Nana, figuring that she would know everything. She set me straight on some details, and I asked her to please talk to my dad for me. It worked wonders because the next time I talked to him he was much better and could talk to me honestly and logically. I needed this very badly because I was starting to get the feeling that I needed to fly home. The truth is that it did almost get to that point, but thank God everything turned out okay.

Although I was very concerned about my mom, my five days with Brianna in Florence were still unforgettable. The city is just stunning, and once again, I was reminded of the reasons why I love Italy and why I feel such a joie de vivre there: the friendly people, ridiculously incredible art and architecture, brightly colored buildings, and flowers in every window. I saw some things I had dreamt about for years. I went to the Galleria dell’ Accademia and admired Michelangelo’s masterpiece, the David; I literally gasped when I turned the corner and beheld him, in all of his muscular glory. Just as my Nana had said, he was simply beautiful, and I walked around him three times before I felt satisfied! I saw the Gates of Paradise doors and the Rape of the Sabine Woman sculpture, both of which I learned extensively about in my AP art history class senior year (thank you Dr. Steeber!). I drank the most amazing hot chocolate of my life in the Piazza della Signoria, visited the Boboli Gardens, and admired breathtaking views of Florence with Brianna at Piazzale Michelangelo, while drinking Bellinis (my favorite drink and one that you can’t find in Spain, believe me, I’ve asked plenty of times!).

Additionally, I spent some of the best hours of my life at the Galleria degli Uffizi and saw Botticelli’s The Birth of Venus (I can die happy now); visited San Giovanni, which is the famous Baptistery, Santa Maria dei Fiore (more widely known as the Duomo!), and Ponte Vecchio (the gorgeous old bridge). Some irreplaceable memories I have include enjoying a wonderful, authentic Italian meal with Brianna at the invitation of her host mom; getting a good taste of Florence’s nightlife and singing Italian karoake with new friends from Quebec, Canada and Sydney, Australia, as well as other states in the US; watching proudly as Brianna impressed me with her Italian; and spending way too much time in this amazing stationary store, where we were instructed by a very friendly Italian man on how to make marbled paper by hand! The only bad part of it all was saying goodbye to Bri…I’m not going to lie; it was pretty hard on me. She is the only person I have seen in Europe that I know and will be the only one I see for the entire four months. How bittersweet it was to kiss on both cheeks European-style, and simply say “See you at Christmas!” I will miss her tremendously, so thank God we have skype!

Although Madrid and Florence were amazing, I was extremely happy to come home to Salamanca and see my friends here. For the time being, they are my family and I missed being with them, so it was blissful to see the cathedral spires come into view once again as my bus entered the city. After all of the experiences I had had during the past week, it felt like an eternity had passed, and I got all teary-eyed to be back in the city, back in my bed, and home…..

I got back to Salamanca a week and a half ago, and nothing too exciting has happened since. I was exhausted when I got back from my week-long trip, and I got sick immediately after. So, I’ve gone out a few times with friends, but have tried to lay low and get over this lovely cough I get pretty much every fall/winter. I started my new classes for the semester, and I am thoroughly enjoying my conversation and Spanish art classes. Now that I’ve been to the Prado, Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, and the Thyssen in Madrid and seen an abundance of Spanish art, it’s great fun to recognize the works of art that we discuss in class. I’ve also spent a good deal of time the past week writing and getting this blog updated, and a new load of pictures on Facebook will follow, so watch out for those!

I’m not going away this weekend, but on Sunday, I’m going on a day trip to the Sierra de Francia mountains located in the Salamanca region with my API group to do some hiking. I’m really looking forward to seeing the beautiful scenery, as well as visiting a traditional Salmantinian village on the way. And next Thursday, API is taking us to Paris for the weekend! I was there in June with my brother and fell in love with it, so I’m filled with anticipation to further explore “the city of lights.” So for now, I must go do some shopping for warmer clothes, but goodbye, adios, au revoir, arrivederci, sayonara, and vaya con Dios!