Yes, I'm still alive.

Hey there! 

Sorry for the lack of email/blog/skype lately...needless to say I've been just a little bit busy the past few weeks. Had a bit of a reality check when classes started (oh yeah...I'm here to go SCHOOL...), but so far I'm really enjoying all my courses. In addition to my italian classes, I'm taking a class on the Roman Empire, one on Human Development in Culture (mostly compares family/cultural dynamics in the US and Italy), and one on Italian Renaissance Art.  Definitely a little different from what I'd normally be doing at CU this semester, but the change is oh SO welcome. 

The past few weekends have been jam packed with traveling/sight seeing/getting lost/getting found/eating/more eating/wine/more wine/etc....pretty much livin the dream. I've made a couple trips to Assisi, a neighboring etruscan town about a 20 minute train ride away. Assisi was the home of St. Francis, and has some of the most beautiful architecture I have ever seen. The Basilica there is absolutely unreal - words cannot describe the enormity and beauty of this church. The moment you walk into the upper church and see the bright blue vaulted ceiling dotted with gold stars, it's as though you become a part of this town's amazing history. Quite the experience.

Assisi is perched up on the west side of Mount Subasio (424 meters) and the highest point in the town is about 30 minute hike up to Rocca Maggiore, an ancient fortress rebuilt in the 14th century over an earlier fortification dating back to the time of Charlemagne (in other words, its really really really old). You have GOT to check out the photos I put up on Picasa...holy smokes, guys. We timed it perfectly so that we reached the castle right at sunset. Pretty much enough to knock your socks off. I admit that I'm a complete sucker for sunsets, but this one has got to be at least in my top 5. 

Last weekend Julie, Hannah, and I decided to have a little adventure and take a trip to.....*drum roll*...VENICE! The train ride was pretty brutal - almost 7 hours...all I'm going to say is THANK GOD we were on a EuroStar train. 1st class was a great investment. 

When we arrived Friday afternoon, the weather was unreal. 65 degrees and sunny...we seriously couldn't have asked for a better weekend. Venice is one of those places that you've always seen pictures of and always dreamed of actually being there, but once we stepped out of the train station and saw the all the canals and water taxis, it honestly did not feel real. Honest to god, my first reaction was that I needed to call up the Travel Channel and arrange some sort of contract so they can document my UNREAL life. It would be a hit, I'm sure. 

We pretty just meandered around Venice for our first day, not really sure at all what we were doing. I'm convinced that there's really no such as thing as being "lost"...sure there are detours and maybe less than efficient routes, but with no map and no idea at all as to how Venice was laid out, the three of us pretty much rocked that city. We of course hit up Saint Marks Basilica/Square/Bell Tower and all the surrounding major sights. Our second day we also made a little trip to Murano, the island that is famous for their blown glass. Got to watch a couple demonstrations by a few different artists and of course (half just because of my mom and her obsession with glass) bought some souvenirs. 

Ready to hear about the highlight of the trip? The part that I'm sure is going to seal the deal for my contract with the Travel Channel? Saturday afternoon we walk into an enoteca, buy bottle of champagne, pop it in the middle of St. Marks Square, do a nice little cheers in the midst of alllll the pigeons, walk down to the grand canal, and hop on gondola. Yes, this actually my life. And no, it doesn't feel real. So for about a half an hour the three of us sipped on champagne and listened to our gondolier (dressed of course in the black and white stripped shirt and that cute little hat) give us a history of the canals. I'm telling you, my show is going to be a hit. 

So as most you know, my favorite part of Italy is the fooooood, and Venice definitely did not let me down. Seafood there was to DIE for....all I will say is ravioli with mussels and scallops in a shrimp bisque. So good I wanted to roll in it. I am salivating right now just reminiscing. 

So there you are...you are almost caught up to date on my life. Right now, i'm battling a beast of a cold and have almost completely lost my voice, but I'm sure I will survive...hopefully at least long enough to enjoy a couple more italian meals and a couple more glasses of wine. Oh, and long enough to at least shoot my pilot episode for the travel channel. I'm off to go drink a gallon of OJ and take some random medicine that the crazy pharmacist gave me yesterday. Livin the dream, my friends. Livin the dream. 

Ci sentiamo

-Sarah