Last Week in Florence!

Santa Croce during Notte Bianca

These past 2 weeks have been a blur. Now I have less than a week left in Florence. I can’t even begin to understand where the time went. At the end of every semester, time always seems to be speeding along, but this semester just disappeared completely.

Bianca Notte was last Tuesday night. It’s an annual event in Florence where the whole city stays up all night, shops are open late, and there are art installations in all the main piazzas. Definitely one of my favorite nights in Florence. I even got to ride a carousel! 

The park just before sunset

Last Saturday morning I was up at 4 am & already making by way to the train station by 5 to meet my cousins in Rome for the day. We explored ancient Rome all morning: the Coliseum, the Roman Forum…even a few random little chapels.

It was so amazing to just be able to take the train into Rome for the day to meet up with family! I love how easy it is to travel around Italy. I was even back in time to go to the Firenze vs. Roma soccer match.

Firenze vs. Roma: Smoke bomb on the field.

Madness ensued. I knew Italians loved their soccer, but the game was crazy! Wild gesturing everywhere, giant flags waving, more security guards than I knew existed in Italy, multiple almost-fights, and smoke bombs being thrown around—once even in my section! It was an amazing game and so incredible to be a part of such an enthusiastic crowd for a soccer game. 

Leather shopping

This weekend, my Wisconsin cousins (Justin and Christy) visited me in Florence! I got to show them all around and go shopping, while doing some last-minute souvenir shopping myself as well.

Sunset over the Arno

Last night was Nicole’s birthday, so we went to Osteria Santo Spirito across the Arno, somehow skipped the hour wait, and were seated at a lovely little table outside overlooking the piazza, surrounded by twinkle lights. The food was amazing and it was a perfect night out for our last weekend in Florence. To top it all off, we saw a beautiful sunset over the river while walking to the restaurant.

Feelin' the love at Gusta Pizza

That’s the short version of what I’ve been up to these past few weeks. Other than that, I’ve been swamped with schoolwork. (Yes, we still have finals and papers for study abroad.) I’m still here though, trying to get the most out of the precious little time I have left in Florence. Sometime in between, I explored the Boboli Gardens, the Santa Maria Novella Church, and a park on the outskirts of Florence at sunset.

Medieval Jesus in SMN

Santa Maria Novella Church