Mi facciono male i piedi!

Which means "my feet hurt" and I think it pretty much sums up the weekend in Firenze. It's so good to be back in Rome. We did so much this weekend that I'm going to have to split it into two posts so you lazy ones don't get deterred. I even had to take notes each night to remember all of our goings-on and what I thought of it all. So here goes.

Friday morning we met at the Vatican to do our first class excursion. We spent two or three hours exploring the giant church and then the tomb of the Popes down below. I took countless pictures, you can see them on Facebook or Picasa, but it really is impossible to get an idea of this place from pictures. You have to see everything in Rome in context. After we rushed back to our apt to pick up our stuff and book it to the train station.

We bought our train tickets there, which wasn't too big a deal. Then sat around for about an hour and a half waiting for our train. I don't understand it, but thus far I have visited 3 stations and seen no benches or places to sit and wait! So we grabbed some floor and made camp, then went to get gelato. That's when I learned not to judge gelato based on how it looks. I got something yummy looking, yellow covered in cookies and drizzled with strawberry sauce, I was expecting like strawberry shortcake flavor or something. Nope, of course not. It was "supa inglese", which my teachers have said is like bread pudding. It tasted like Dayquil!! I'm traumatized, I don't want to try any new flavors anymore.

Ok, now for the train ride. We took the cheap train, which means it was slow and the trip to Firenze (Florence) was almost 4 hours as opposed to 1.5 on the fast train. But ultimately I'm very glad we did that. Three girls, Megan, Mary and Morgan, all grabbed seats next to each other and left Kelsey, Caitlyn and I to fend for ourselves further back. Caitlyn and I sat next to a guy and his sister, and Kelsey across the isle from us. So glad that happened because this guy we were with was awesome! He was a CalState student studying for the year in Firenze, and his sister was visiting him. He was funny and we had great conversation for the full 4 hours. Then he gave us recommendations for dinner and going out, etc. I think his name was Geo, I'm so glad we met him. The only problem with the train was it kept going through tunnels. The Tuscan countryside was incredible, I loved it, but for some reason there were countless tunnels, and each time we went in one the car instantly pressurized. It felt like our ears were going to explode each time; imagine the most intense airplane descent and how your ears feel when that pressure is changing. We did not enjoy that. Though I know from the ride home it's better with your iPod in.

Of course the first thing I do when we get to Firenze is trip. Not eat-pavement kind of trip, just look like a stumbling idiot kind of trip. I thought the cobblestones would be better there, and often they were, but I still managed to find the uneven ones--always. And I always find the door thresholds here in the most ungraceful way. When I made it alive to our hostel, it was incredible!! I think our exact words were "woah this is better than our apartment!" It really was, especially the beds and the shower. The showerhead was huge and it felt like it was raining, and our beds were memory foam and I have never slept better. I miss it... We're spoiled, now I'll never be able to stay at a dumpy hostel.

Ok here's where the weekend started to get interesting. First, the back story: we brought two non-roommates with us, Morgan and Caitlyn. I felt like everyone was trying to exclude Caitlyn and didn't want her to come, so I did my best to be friendly and welcoming to her. So when we got to the hostel, the rooms were supposed to be arranged 4 and 2 beds (though it ended up being 4 and 3 beds). Caitlyn and I put our stuff down in the 4 person room, and started to get settled when Morgan walks in and says to me, "Um, Natalie, us four [Morgan, Megan, Kelsey, Mary] were planning to be together in the 4 person room, so if it's ok could you to switch to the smaller room?" I still can't believe she had the nerve to ask me that. For a minute I thought about just agreeing and not making an issue, but I'm just not that kind of person. I told her straight up "No, actually it's not ok. I feel like you guys have been trying to exclude Caitlyn and me since we got on the train, and I will not move to the other room and let you isolate us. I'm staying right here." She seemed so shocked I had said no, like she was expecting me to just roll over. I'm so proud that I stood up for the two of us, regardless of what happened the next day (I"ll get there). I'm so proud of myself for not taking her crap.

But at the time I felt awful, like I wasn't wanted. I seriously considered using my train ticket to take a return train the next day, or meeting up with other girls I know and really like so far and sleeping on the floor in their hotel. But no, I stayed, sort of to piss them off but also to try and enjoy myself for the rest of the weekend. Anyways, we decided we all needed dinner before we got really bitchy and so we followed Morgan to some place she'd heard of. Of course she couldn't find it, so instead I lead the way to a place nearby the guy next to us had recommended. It was a kabob place, which apparently is like gyros, and even though the girls were very skeptical about it, it was excellent and everyone said they really liked it. Then Caitlyn, Megan and I went home for an early night--the earliest one yet for me, in bed and asleep at 10! We were exhausted, and poor Megan was sick so it was entirely necessary.

Ok, as promised, here's the break in my recount.