La Dolce Vita

Now that classes are “over” (still unclear as to whether classes are finished this week because I have 2 classes that are scheduled for next week), it’s time to get down to business.

Sure, I’m going to have to study but like I’m talking about exploring! We never got to truly explore Milan this semester (sad). We saw all the touristy things and some popular areas, but I’m talking about becoming a native haha. Yesterday, we went to our first REAL aperativo on our own at Yguana. (I TOTES recommend it if you’re coming to Milan for a weekend or day or whatever.) It was so good! For 10 euro we got unlimited food+1 drink until 10 PM. It was great.

OK! Back to work :)

Arrivederci, i miei amori!

I always thought going to Paris was going to be my most expensive trip since, you know, everything fancy is related to/in Paris but surprisingly it wasn’t! It was my second longest trip and it was probably the least expensive per day!

For those thinking of eurotrippin’ to Paris, DO IT. If you’re an EU student/resident you get into ALL the museums for free. So that saves you what like 10 euros per museum?! Probs close to like 60-70 euro (aka about $90)  by the end of it. We were there for 4 full days and did this:

• Eiffel Tower (duh) [we didn’t go up]
• Champ Élysées/Arc de Triomph
• The Louvre 
• Musée d’Orsay
• Notre Dame 
• Jardin de Tuileries
• Sainte Chapelle
• Château de Versailles

We also did TONS of walking around. When you go, don’t spend money on lunch. Just do like the locals and grab a baguette/sandwich for like 4 euro at a café.

Aside from money things, Paris was the most beautiful city at night. All the lights from the buildings, the tower, and lamposts made it exactly how I envisioned it in my head.

We found Starbucks in the Latin Quarter as well as Christmas decorations aka Boka & I were in heaven because we love Christmas :D 

The Eiffel Tower sparkling at night was the most gorgeous thing I’ve ever seen. All the pictures I took could barely do it justice.

^These are United Buddy Bears (or something like that). Basically all the countries a part of the UN design bears every year and the exhibit is placed in major cities around the world. This year, the exhibit is in PARIS! But of course there was no Jamaica bear -_-… I did find a US bear though:

I definitely recommend going to Versailles. Unless you’re like a polar bear or something, I would suggest going when its like a normal temperature. When we went it was like 45 degrees and windy (about 7 degrees for y’all Celsius people), and I we were all freezing. But it was beautiful. Marie Antoinette’s Estate was so vast and I couldn’t help but imagine her waltzing around the yard and ponds.

Bottom line: Go to Paris, especially as a EU student. You get into just about everything for free :) BONUS - It’s gorgeous.

Apparently I look like someone who would be from Zaire.

Who knew! I sure didn’t!

PSA: Zaire is no longer the name of a country and has not been the name of the country since 1997. 

So two days ago I had a lovely dinner with my friend Ally. As we ate our salads, chicken, and beans -trying to cleanse ourselves from Amsterdam (post to come) - we started talking about our favorite places that we’ve visited in the past three months.

The fact that its been three months is just mind blowing. My teacher started talking about our final the other day and he kept saying how we only had 2 weeks left of class. I had about 17 different emotions pass through me: first happiness, second “wait…what?!”, third shock, fourth sadness. As much as I miss home, it’s scary to think that I will never do this traveling every weekend again. I’ll save the sappy post for the end haha.

Speaking of traveling, my top places I visited:
1. Barcelona
2. (A very VERY very close second) Paris
3. Cinque Terre - the first excursion! Also the weekend when I met tons of people and I went to a beach
4. Amsterdam
5. Ghent
6. Florence
7. Brussels
8. Ibiza

*I refuse to count Oktoberfest because that was a hot mess and I was in Germany for less than 12 hours. Same with Lake Como (minus the hot mess).

Funny thing is… I think I can honestly say I enjoyed every single trip I’ve been on but all for different reasons. I would go back to the first four places without a doubt, especially Amsterdam and Barcelona (Paris with a boyfriend). I miss it already.

Today in class, my prof asked who was paying attention to the USA election. Everyone said they were. Later, he asked who is voting for Obama. No lie, 85% of the class raised their hands. Mind you, my class is 70% Italians and about 10% Americans.

Yeah, y’all he’s internationally loved. Let’s just hope there’s enough domestic love.

*crosses fingers*

So I’ve noticed that while I’ve been abroad I’ve been (slightly) more open to trying new things. Here is a running list of things!

1. Pesto - awful experience. It tasted amazing but my face looked like WIll Smith’s in Hitch. 
   (see http://www.skinema.com/CskinHitchSmithSwollenBig.gif) 
2. Grilled cheese - yes. I MADE and ate my own. For those who don’t know me… i hate eating plain cheese but WOO.
3. Peppers. I LOVE PEPPERS (especially green ones).
4. Onions - I put that shiz on errthang
5. Special K bars- yup trying to be healthy!
6. Special K cereal instead of my usual Frosted Flakes
7. YOGURT - I just bought two whole tubs of yogurt.
8. cappuccino - less of a surprise. loves it. 
9. Bolognese sauce  aka meat sauce.
   
   

I feel like my doctor and close friends would be proud. 

I actually have class tomorrow?! Literally I think it’s been 20 days since my last class.

I won’t be able to concentrate because it’s ELECTION DAY! Oh lawd. Let us pray for Obama. 

Last night we went to a club called Le Banque. It’s literally an old bank that they turned into a club it’s sooo awesome and super close to Il Duomo.

We had a blast! The entire room was deocrated with balloons and signs that said Candy Shop. The music was questionable at first but then it got live.

(Photo courtesy of Ally ‘Glowbug’ Chang)

NBD, just chillin’ on some speakers :)

They played Crazy in Love by none other than Queen Bey and I was like:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=X93HRJSipWw

So if you couldn’t tell… we had a great time (minus the creepers). I definitely recommend it to any one who’s staying in Milan! If you’re a girl be careful of the creepers, and if you’re a guy… don’t be a creeper.

Just rewatched the Cheetah Girls 2 video for “Strut.” I know where like 90% of the places they filmed in Barcelona are.

I feel so accomplished! (Also, that is on the steps of Parc Guell!)

Enjoy the pictures above

yup.. i’m a bit awk

glowwbug:

Imani: Hey I’m Imani, what’s your name?

British Paul: Hey my name’s Paul (in a strong British accent)

I: Pole?

BP: Paul (again, in a strong British accent)

I: Wait… seriously, Pole?

BP: Yeah

So apparently there’s going to be a public transportation strike tomorrow in Milan…

Guess I’m not going to class…….. :)

 

Saturday I went to Oktoberfest with like 200 exchange students.

I don’t really know how to start off this post except to say I’m really glad I went, but I definitely will NOT need to go back to Oktoberfest again. I don’t know how people do this every year and still have a functioning liver.

I still can’t believe that yesterday actually happened. We were in Germany for maybe 15 hours and now I’m back in Milan. Here’s a list of what happened at Oktoberfest:

Oktoberfest: A Cornucopia of Events

• Dude spilling beer on me
• “I’m going to KILL you old man” - Boka said to some creepy old man who tried to console us when we were cold and angry
• Creepy puppet biting Priscilla’s shoulder
• Eating half a chicken and drinking a liter of beer before 12
• Finding new pants … sigh
• Someone lost the sole of their shoe
• Harry potter hats!
• Apparently, I’m Brazilian now?
• Partying in some beer house while listening to classic rock aka zz top and van halen
• Roller coaster of emotions
• The disorganization that is ESN
• Venturing into Munich and not able to read signs =/
• The tour of Munich wasn’t really a tour of Munich
• Walking 25 minutes to the bus in the pouring rain

All in all: I’m super hapy I went. It was cheap and I would be upset if I had to spend an entire weekend there. Also, I love my friends they are crazy, understanding, and amazing who I dragged with me to find pants. Definitely owe her the world. On top of everything, I love the pants I got :)

Firenze. was. BEAUTIFUL.

I absolutely loved my weekend in Firenze with the best people here, Priscilla (aka Prischilla), Ally (Korean Hands), Boka (Borislava), and Masha (she doesn’t have a nickname yet we’re working on it). We stayed in a somewhat sketchy hostel but it was so close to everything. I think we were like a 10 minute walk from Duomo and maybe another 5-10 minutes from Ponte Vecchio.

This is a view of the Ponte Vecchio and….

This is the beautiful sunset from Ponte Vecchio that we captured the first night. Literally don’t think I’ve seen a prettier sunset in a long time. As the cherry on top, there were street performers playing the guitar and violin. Loved it :)

After the trip I’ve never felt more cultured in my life. I went to so many museums and churches and I actually don’t regret a single one. With in the first 3 hours of us getting to Firenze we got to see the city from a birds-eye-view atop Palazzo Vecchio.  It was gorgeous, but there were no elevators. (I think I walked up and down close to 3000 stairs this past weekend. no joke.) 

Speaking of stairs… 

We went to Duomo on Saturday morning and it was absolutely beautiful. The cathedral was hugeeeee! It was like the ceilings were never ending and beautifully painted. After walking through for about 30 minutes we proceeded to go and climb the domes. Yup. We climbed to the top of the dome. Saw this breathtaking view.

Speaking of amazing views! We also went to Piazzale Michelangelo just in time for our last sunset on Sunday evening. It was beautiful! We literally saw all of Florence including some of the country-side of Tuscany. All I kept thinking was Imagine if we came here when the leaves change color?! 

We met two adults from the US who were telling us to be safe because they have a children who studied abroad. They were so cute! It was like as soon as they found out that we were studying abroad they went into full parental mode.

Other miscellaneous stuff that happened last weekend:

1. We met 2 navy people in our hostel - they were cool, they took us to a sketch club though haha
2. I got called Brown Sugar - I mean, I guess I was just waiting for it to happen
3. Our hostel owner guy called himself Mike Tyson - no, he was not black.
4. I saw The David!
5. I FINALLY got my name necklace :) it’s silver and fabulous.

Yeah, if you go to Florence, enjoy the museums and churches, but don’t forget that the city has much more to offer than the things you pay for. Walk away from the touristy sites into the towns. You won’t regret it…unless you don’t have a map). 

I’M GOING TO FASHION’S NIGHT OUT TONIGHT IN MILAN!!!! Is this real life?

Hello everyone! It’s been like weeks since I’ve been able to write on this thing, but I’m back!

So far, Italy has been absolutely amazing! As much as I love shopping and beautifully dressed men, the best part about being here for me is the language. It sounds so romantic (yes, I know it is a “romantic” language) when people speak it. It’s like my goal to be able to communicate with someone easier before I get back.

I say “easier” because since I’ve been here I spoke to 4 different people in Italian/Spanish…. what would that be, like spatalin? I was so proud of myself!!! I instructed two cab drivers on where to go to get to my dorm. THEN I went to the store and I had to explain that I wanted to return something because I accidentally bought two of the same thing and la signora told me I could only exchange and that there were no returns. BUT I understood it was like the BEST moment eva!! I’m taking this like crash course right now…. it sucks. It’s sooooo long! I think the past 3 days it was 5-6 hours everyday -__- I am not about that life.

I’ve been going out a lot also. It’s not like overkill but we went to the club/bar two nights in a row and I regret nothing… except maybe the first night. It was at JustCavalli in Milan and the place was beautiful but it’s outdoors and it started pouring -_-. Literally, I think it’s rained everyday since I’ve been here haha. Last night and Saturday were the most fun I had in a while, there was dancing involved and good music so I was happy! They played Niggas in Paris at both places so I went crazy just for my Wash U loves :)

I do not have class until Tuesday Afternoon so I have another weekend in Milan to enjoy before class ties me down!

That’s all for now! Ciao i miei amori. <3

Motto of the semester: YOLO/Do You.

So today was the day I moved in… kinda.

I moved into my Arcobaleno residence today :) The room itself was pretty nice! My roommate and I have our own balcony right outside our double glass doors. Umm are we lucky? Yeah I think so! However, all we see from our view are the apartments next door but hey I’ll take it! We even have a mini kitchen with a microwave, fridge and a TON of drawers and stuff for storage. It’s like I’m a real person or something.

There’s a HUGE kitchen down the hall that also has this balcony to walk out onto. I haven’t been there yet. I also already met a few people from the east coast! Like 3 people from the tri-state area !!!! They all seem really nice and we all had our parents with us! But I am so happy I had my parents with me today because of all the trials and tribulations.

When I checked-in to Arco the woman that was helping me was soooooo rude like actually. I kept trying to ask her what I need to do in Italian & English but she just kept scolding me in Italian and I had no clue what she said because she was speaking 70 miles a minute. But eventually, her co-worker stepped in and helped me out. She had taken my passport away to keep and wouldn’t tell me why. She just kept saying that I would get it back Monday. MIND YOU, to get money out of the bank or anything I need my passport soooo…yeah, that wasn’t going to work. Wash U has spoiled me so much with all the happy singing and helpful people that make move in SO much easier. WUSA’s and RA’s I love you and respect you so much more.

After I basked in the glory that was my room, I realized that the AC wasn’t on and that the internet wasn’t working. I also figured out that I don’t have any wifi in my room… i mean in the building. I almost cried. I didn’t even know what to do! As the icing on the cake… my bag is still lost. YUP. It’s been 5 days. They found it Wednesday, but I still don’t have it. We called the people, they had a message in all Italian. I caught bits and pieces but even the front desk worker said it didn’t make any sense hahahaha. I think I’m going to show up at the airport Sunday morning if it’s still not here by tomorrow evening.

I think today was just so unorganized so tomorrow has to be better. I need a little bit of organization in my day. But now that I know what to expect, I have a happier disposition and get more accomplished and meet more people. (Yup, right now I’m at my parents’ hotel room because there was too much to do.)

I’m supposed to go to Il Duomo tomorrow with a bunch of the exchange students, so that should be super exciting!

Here’s to a better tomorrow!

Wait… this is still so surreal. I’m actually in Italy? Today I got to spend all day walking the streets of Milan with my family. Literally fantastic. We sat at a cafe for breakfast for like 3 hours. It was great.

We saw the Leonardo da Vinci museum which was very interesting (and I usually don’t like museums).

THERE’S SO MUCH TO TELL! But the internet in the hotel sucks! I’ll probably update more over the next few days.

Also, tomorrow I’ll be in Venice :)

Today is the day! In less than 8 hours I will be on a plane on my way to Italy! Wait… what?!

AHH! I’m so excited & happy & nervous & freaking out! Last night I had cold feet, like I wanted to runaway from everything cold feet. But I called one of my good friends and he was like “listen, you’ll be fine. get over it. YOU’RE GOING TO MILAN!” And I was like yeah… you right. :)

I feel like I definitely overpacked but I mean thats the curse of having too many clothes to choose from: EVERYTHING gets packed haha I constantly wonder how my friend fit all her stuff in ONE SUITCASE for 6 months… 

I’m so pumped! I can’t even deal anymore!  

Arrivederci !