Duomo, The David, and Pisa

We climbed the Duomo yesterday, saturday, and it was incredible. 493 steps to the top, and when we reached the last few stairs, the sun was setting on the city, it was so amazing! We took several pictures, but for some reason blogger is giving me trouble when I try and upload, so hopefully I will get that taken care of before too long, I know you are all anxious for photos. The inside of the Duomo is also a sight to see. The round roof is all painted, with the most beautiful work I have ever seen, it was breathtaking! There are Mass services held in the church, and I am hoping to attend a few services while I am here, as they sound amazing, and are in Italian, which could be fun. We also went to the Academia Museum and saw The David. That was really neat, the detail on his hands and feet are amazing! We were not allowed to take photos in this museum but there was incredible art on all the walls, most of which are more then 500 years old so it was neat to see some ancient history. 

Friday night there was a welcome party for all the SAI (Study Abroad Italy) students, and that was also very fun! There were two free drinks for everyone, and loud music with a dance floor. My roommates and I danced until late, and then slept yesterday until 1:30 in the afternoon, so that was a new one for me. I have never slept that late. We are going to the same club tonight to watch the superbowl!

Orientation is all through now, and classes start tomorrow. I am excited to get into a routine and attend classes. They all sound so interesting!

Here is my school schedule for the semester, for those who are interested. 

Monday- I have Italian Language class from 9-10:15am

Tuesday- Restaurant Management from 9-10:30am

Wine Appreciation from 12-12:30pm

Wednesday-Italian Language again, from 9-10:15

Tradition on Italian Foods at 12:00

Thursday- Creative Italian Food and Decoration from 3-5:30pm

And I have friday off, which is nice, and so do all my roommates so we can get an early start to our travels for the weekend!

Today we spend the better part of the day in the town of Pisa. It is an hour train ride from Florence, and the tickets were only 5 Euros each way, so that was a nice little trip without too much of a cost. In this town is where the leaning tower is, which was pretty incredible to see. I also took lots of pictures here, so hopefully I will get those up soon. We met some guys earlier in the week, both of which go to Alabama State University and both of them are named Hunter, which is ironic, so we have been going out with them at night, and they joined us in Pisa today. Its nice to have some guys around, we don't attract so much "attention" from the Italians and other travelers. 

I miss you all so much, and hope that the weather is treating you well. It has been in the late 50's here, so not too bad. It rained a little today, nothing to heavy, but its nice for some cozy weather as there had been hardly any rain in California before I left. 

I will write again soon. Love you!! Ciao Bella!