I HEAR that

Italians know how to party.

On Saturday night, I was standing outside my apartment talking on the phone. All of a sudden about 50 people showed up at the door with food, wine, and all the essentials of a party. A woman came out and told us that she is sorry but there will be a party tonight- she apologized for the music. I thought nothing of it, went back inside, and looked over some music for my voice lesson Tuesday.
About a half-hour later, as I was winding down and watching a recent episode of LOST that I had just downloaded (I know, it's a sickness...) when all of a sudden "Freakout" was playing through my bedroom window. Then came "I Will Survive", "YMCA", and "Celebrate". Because the party went well into the night, my roommates and I got up out of bed (because there was no sleeping to the "YMCA") and made food.

Yes, Italians know how to party- to American 70s and 80s music.

La Nostra Spettacolare Italiano

I was downloading my pictures from my camera to my computer and asked Beth what to call the folder. She said, in a loud booming voice "Our Italian Spectacular." And folks, that is certianly what it was. Having her here was amazing. I think about all of you all the time, see things that remind me of you, and want so much to be able to show you these things. Well, for the past 10 days, I was able to share those things with my beautiful sister, Beth.

Rome, Pompeii, Perugia- The Euro Chocolate Festival, Siena, Montalcino, Florence, and Pisa. We did them all. It is safe to say that Italy was invaded by a few of the Meyer sister's.
From hating public transportation, to touching a lot of "old stuff", Beth and I pretty much experienced it all, including the culture of those oh-so-wonderful Italians. At one point Beth said "Do they even see me? I mean, we're walking on the same sidewalk coming toward one another and it's like they AIM for me. Do they want to hit me? Is that actually happening?" I patted her on the back and said "Welcome to Italy."
So, we took over two hundred pictures just on my digital camera. That doesn't include the artsy ones Beth took on her "that camera's so big, that girl has to be a tourist" camera. It's okay. We embraced being tourists, didn't we, Beth? How can you not when 80% of this country's economy comes from tourism? Here are a few pictures- some of the highlights of our Spectacular. Enjoy!

The Italians don't drink coffee, they drink espresso (which they call 'caffe' or in English, coffee). Being a black coffee drinker myself, I have embraced this Italian tradition. By the end of the week Beth had to have her fix everyday too. Yay.

Yes, Beth is infact touching the Coloseum. And it's very old, I hear.

Me and the Pantheon. Here that Beth? PANtheon. (We had some issues calling it the Parthenon...whoops...)Isn't Rome beautiful? *sigh*And look! Beth got to sit in her very first Roman theater in Pompeii!

On Tuesday we took two trains and a bus one way to get to the EuroChocolate Festival. It was worth every minute. We would walk down the old streets with over 300 vendors represented while the sales reps for the companies handed us chocolate. As embarassing as it is, we bought so much chocolate, we had to buy another bag to bring it all home. Daddy- aren't you proud? Hey, most of it is for you guys!Siena. We used it as a sort of home base for three nights so that we could fully explore Tuscany. Our hostel was great, and so was the city.

This is a story I will most likely tell everyone. But let's just say, the Meyer girls were defeated. Defeated by a steak. This is Franco. He is hacking off our portion.

The same night that we were defeated, our first course was fresh pasta. The restraunt had an open kitchen so we could see everything going on. Amazing.We spent one day in the beautiful Tuscan town of Montalcino. Great food and great views.And we had to get a Paul Robinett candle picture in Pisa (the candle is leaning too...hehe). Although the city was dirty, the tower was really interesting. We were both kind of shocked that there really was a big leaning tower.

We didn't have a personal photographer on the trip (dissapointing, I know) so there were many of the pull away shots!
Beth and I had amazing time and were so excited to spend time together in such an extrordinary place. Where to next Beth? Greece did you say? Awesome.

TWO DAYS

BETH IS COMING SOON!
BETH IS COMING SOON!
BETH IS COMING SOON!



So, did I mention my sister Beth is coming to visit me in two days? I am pretty excited.

San Gimingano

A few weeks ago I went a small Tuscan town outside Florence, about an hour by bus, called San Gimingano. Being in a city most of my time here, it was wonderful to get out and see some of the countryside. The town is most known for its 14 towers. The rich people of the day would display their power and wealth through the height of their tower- the higher the tower, the more imporant you were. It is estimated that there were more than 70 of these towers at one time. After the war, there were only 14 left standing.
But I'll let my pictures do the talking about this town's history and beauty. Anything I would say would just be frivolous.

I hope you have a wonderful day in the Lord.

Happy October

On Sunday was the annual "Corri la Vita", a walk to benefit cancer patients in Florence. This year, over 8,000 people signed up to give donations, raise support and walk and run for the Florentine residents. All of the proceeds go straight to work specifically in Florence. It was such a fun experience, crowed and sweaty, but very fun. There were hills, skinny Italian men in short shorts, a plethera of running shoes, and free water at the end of the race. A few of a my roommates and a few classmates signed up for the 6K walk, which ended up being more of an 8K hike. It was great exersize, and as you will see, we got to walk to some of the most panoramic spots in Florene.

This is a view of the runners speeding down the Arno.

This was one of the delightful little hills we got to climb!

But it was worth it, because this was the view from the top of that little hill.

The Finish Line!

So many people came out for this cause, which was wonderful. I was astouded at how many people ran this race- and not the 8K...no no no.... the 12K. My friends and I were some of the very few that walked this "walk". And not just a stroll down the street. We were clippin at a pretty nice pace. No wonder everyone in Italy is skinny and beautiful- they are all in excellent shape. Me on the other hand, well, we're working on it. I'm eating so much better here, doing pilates every morning, and walking a lot during the day. This walk was a good jump start for me.