L'Accademia, Nada, e la mia sciarpa.

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Originally uploaded by catrberry

Today was a very typical Florentine day. I assume it will be like most days here...
It consisted of waking up, breakfast, shower, learning to tie my scarf like a European (pictures on Facebook, of course), and heading to the Palazzo Vecchio and Piazza della Signoria before class. If you've never heard of this outside quasi-museum, it holds 16 statues: five are original masterpieces and eleven are replicas of masterpieces (the real ones are all in Florence). So, anytime of day you want, you can head to this piazza next to the Uffizi Museum (housing the most prestigious works of Renaissance art, similar in reputation to the Louvre, The British Museum...), and gaze upon these incredible INCREDIBLE sculptures.
I headed there before my class to read Calvino's "Marcovaldo" and people-watch. This may be one of the best places in Florence to do so. I sat on a bench next to a statue and watched as tour group after sneaker-wearing elderly couple after Italian natives and so on admired these masterpieces. I mean, it's free! I'm such a penny-pincher so I know I'll become a regular here. I also enjoyed the security guard having to repeat to foreigners "non mangiare!" None of them understood the first time and would come back with their food, only to be yelled at again.
Then, I headed back to my place for a quick peanut butter and toast lunch before class. It was my second beginner's Italian, and we're still working on greetings...
My teacher is CRAZY. "Pazza" in Italian. But she rocks. Her name: Nada. She has this strange high-pitched voice...it makes me worried that I'll pick it up whenever I speak Italian because she's the one teaching me. The best thing about her is the way she dresses. A little background: Italians can wear ANYTHING and look stunning. And, oh, they take advantage of this.
On the first day of class, sweet Nada wore this white top that looked modest at the top. Then BAM! you realize that her shirt is unbuttoned so that her belly-button is showing. This lady is like fifty, okay? And the whole class you can't help but stare at it...it's like a train-wreck. ANYWAY, today she wore suede, tan ankle boots with fringe at the top, black parachute capris, a collared white short sleeve polo with a tight black tube-top over it, a silver and gold necklace, and only ONE earring...it was an emerald that dangled almost all the way down to her collarbone. And trust me, the one earring thing was purposeful. Both days she has worn pink eyeliner on her top lid and aqua eyeliner on her bottom lid, as well as a quirky little smile. I love this lady because she owns whatever she does.
Which is why I decided to tie my scarf in an unusual way this morning. I wanted to try out something European and just rock it. I asked a guy friend in one of my classes, "So is my scarf cute or is it a little ridiculous?" He replied, "It's a little ridiculous." I took it as a compliment. And I'm still wearing it. It looks like a cute little rose. Go ahead, judge me. I'm just learning to express myself.
After class, Jess and Leyla and I headed for a roomie adventure to L'Accademia, where Michelangelo's David statue stands. It. was. breathtaking. So intricate, so much larger in real life than I had expected. It snuck up on me and then I couldn't take my eyes off of it. You can't afford mistakes in sculpture, and this was complete perfection. While Skyping my parents (for an hour!) tonight, my mom said that it is so evident that Michelangelo was inspired by God in his works. His genius is beyond human limits. L'Accademia is on our museum card, which means admission is free. This also means I'll be pouring over the sculptures and amazing paintings there while I am here. Fan-tas-tic.
I'm off to read and then sleep; tomorrow ISA takes us to a Medici Villa away from town! Can you say PICTURES?!
Ciao!