Pisa and Florence!!!

Ciao everyone! I'm just back from my weekend away! We had SUCH a great time! On Friday, we went to Pisa with a group from my university in Rome just for the day. Turns out Pisa is fun for about... 30 minutes. We got to see the Leaning Tower and the surrounding buildings, and then we saw a few other things, but to be quite honest, I have no idea what they were. We were in one of those typical tour groups where you follow your guide while they hold up a neon umbrella or something so you can see where to go... needless to say, it wasn't my favorite place in the world. However, the Leaning Tower was really pretty cool, and we got to take the typical "pushing the tower over" or "kicking the tower down" pictures so that was entertaining. We had booked a train to leave from Pisa to Florence, so after we took all those pictures, we made our way to the train station. Which was tiny... and not super nice. So we waited for our train in a cafe outside, and when we finally got on our train, we found out quickly that we were on a regional train... not as nice as the train we rode from Florence to Rome. So we sat with our bags in our laps and chatted with each other until the hour ride was over. We fell in love with Florence the second we got outside the train station! It is unbelievable how different it is from Rome. Rome is very fast paced and noisy, while Florence is much more quiet and relaxed. We soon recognized the difference in paces - when walking in Florence, we walked slowly, in no rush. In Rome, things are hectic and people are everywhere... so much different. We call it our "Florence pace" and our "Rome pace." It was definitely a nice break from the big city. So I thought before that I was bad with directions... now I know, after attempting to help navigate to our hostel in Florence... that I am absolutely AWFUL with directions. After a few minutes, I decided to not participate in the decision-making process of where to go, and just follow the group. I think everyone appreciated that. We finally got our room, and were pleasantly surprised. For a hostel, I'd say it was pretty nice. We ate a yummy dinner and enjoyed our first night in Florence! On Saturday, we got up fairly early, and without my help, found our way to several cathedrals and beautiful sights. Like I said, Florence is absolutely beautiful - definitely somewhere I'd love to go again. Saturday night, I was lucky enough to go with my roommate, Margaret, to see a friend of hers who is native to and lives in Florence. This man, Margaret's old horseback riding coach named Claudio, was so hilarious. He took us to a delicious restaurant that was beyond the touristy places we tend to choose, and we got a true Italian experience. Complete with 4 courses and tons of conversation, it was without a doubt the best meal I've had since I've been in Italy. Mom and Dad, you would be proud. I tried everything that was put in front of me... including bruschetta with LIVER on it. Yes. I ate liver. And I didn't hate it. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it. After dinner, we met back up with our group and watched a soccer game at a little Pub near our hostel. We successfully made our way through the Florence train station, and got to look at the countryside during our ride home. Definitely a great way to end our weekend! Florence was definitely a great experience, and I'm glad we made it our first city to venture to! A few pictures to come soon! Love ya'll very much!

Corinne