March 19, 2009--Happy Birthday Mom!!!

Today is my mother’s birthday. This is the third birthday that I’ve missed in my immediate family since I’ve been over here in Italy. It’s kind of sad to think about it so I don’t a lot. I’ll have to think of really good gifts to bring home to each of them. I sent mom an email this morning wishing her a happy birthday.

We had our last Art class today, as well. We all met in front of the Pitti Palace at 1pm and bought a ticket that included two museums and two gardens. We first went into this museum that had ancient pieces and the modern interpretations of it. It was interesting to see some of the modern sculptures next to the old roman sculptures. Some of them were very weird while others didn’t look to bad. There were also modern paintings interpreting different sculptures or paintings. Overall, it was a really interesting exhibit.

The next stop in the museum was the precious metals portion. We saw pieces of marble inlay, jewelry, gold-work, and many other trinkets from the Medici family. There were a lot of precious stones in jewelry or crazy sculptures. My favorite room was filled with different types of jewelry. There were diamond and amethyst tiaras, massive earrings and necklaces, bracelets and tons of rings. Whatever stone there is out there, I’m sure it was set in a piece of jewelry in this museum. It was just glorious to see because as you walked into the room, it sparkled.

After the precious metals room, we walked across the inner courtyard of the Pitti Palace and up a good four flights of stairs to get to the Costume Museum. Here they showcased many women’s fashion from the 15 century to modern designs. There were also some 17th/18th century men’s designs as well. I loved the really old women’s clothing in the museum. The dresses were all gorgeous, even the modern ones. There was also a room with shoes and parasols from way back when. None of the guys were really interested in this particular museum but a few girls were, including me.

After looking at the Costume Museum, we went outside into the Boboli Garden. This garden is huge, and I mean HUGE! It was absolutely gorgeous as well. We walked around for a little bit, found this pond/fountain/island maze thing and continued on to the newest part of the garden: an exhibit on Pompeii. They had a replica of an ancient Pompeii courtyard garden set up in the Boboli Garden. This was very interesting to see as well; all the architecture, the water system, and the plants. (I cannot wait until I get to see Pompeii on Sunday.)

We then walked up this huge hill to get to the somewhat top of the Boboli Garden. After walking some more we exited the Boboli Garden and went to the next garden, the Bardini Garden. This one was smaller, quainter, but just as gorgeous and soothing as the Boboli Garden. In each garden, I felt calmer and more relaxed. The beauty of the gardens soothed my frayed nerves from this week. I didn’t want to leave so soon but I needed to get back up to Fiesole to grab my backpack and then head back down to Florence to the station to leave for the Almalfi Coast.

On my mother’s birthday, I experienced my first thunderstorm in Italy. Betsy and I were riding the #7 bus up to Fiesole when it started down-pouring in San Domenico. By the time we get up to Fiesole, it’s coming down in buckets and even hailing a little. Betsy and I run up the hill to Villa Bonelli but had to stop halfway in the doorway of the Coop because the rain was coming down sooo hard. By that point, my jeans were soaked through in the front and my sweatshirt was soaked in the back. I did not have my umbrella on me because it didn’t look like it was going to rain when I went into town earlier. When Betsy and I finally get to Villa Bonelli, our first thought is to get into dry clothes. When we walked into the room, however, it was to find that we left our window open and that we had a growing puddle on the floor. We cleaned up the mess, got into dry clothes/shoes, and headed back out to catch the bus down to the station. By this time Bailey, who is also going with us, caught up to us and headed out with us.

The ride to our hostel was horrible. The bus was completely full so there were no empty seats. The three of us had the back five seats with these two other guys. It was the most uncomfortable ride because there was no room and our seats didn’t recline so I couldn’t fall asleep; added to that was the fact that the bus driver was swerving all over the road and would accelerate then brake. It was also storming quite ferociously outside: thunder, lightening, and torrential rain. This all made for a nauseous ride and I was grateful when we finally got to the Seven Hostel around 2:15 am. We unpacked and all fell into bed, with our alarms set for 9 am.