missing in action

but I have a good excuse (I know I'm always making excuses...so maybe I just suck at blogging, what are you going to do?) Anyways, school has been keeping me busy and now...on my first free day, I had no idea what to do with myself. Ok, that's a lie too, I had to many things to do but limited myself to only the best...if only everyday was as tasty as today.

Morning/Afternoon
slept in, mmmmm tasty
panettone french toast and eggs, mmmmm more tasty

Later....
bus bus bus....miss my bus stop....bus bus bus
turn in library books, mmm the library....dusty.
grocery shopping
bus bus bus
BAKING, mmmmm.....triple ginger cookie.....mmmm triple tasty :)

(listen to Lucinda Williams, Fruits of my Labor....it was my theme song for the day)

DATE NIGHT with my BFF4FL

SO, I don't get to spend to much time with my best friend but I cherish the moments we do. Friday night was date night and we made our first stop at EROS, a wine bar somewhere off the N. Wine of course is always good, the food was very nice. They had a really good mushroom risotto (top ten on my list of food I love/last meal items) and then we made our way over to chachachas, how convenient it was just a few blocks away! So of course we HAD to have a small pitcher of sangeria and then we made our way by muni and got some cheesecake. I know....it sounded like a good idea BUT probably wasn't cause then we had to roll our ways back home. But of course, we met some very nice people on the Muni....sometimes I love the muni.

I love Glady, not only because she loves food almost as much as I do, but she's always there to dry my tears, lend an ear, make me laugh, (and trust me we did all of that in one night) but above all I know that she is always there for me. No matter how busy our life gets I know I give her a call. <3

"The Chain"

I think Ingrid Michaelson has a beautiful vocie, I especially like this song. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fu2gxZDquzA

A year later....

A little more than a year ago I left for Italy. I can't exactly say I was super excited for the experience...to be honest I just wanted to go somewhere else. And well I took a few semesters of Italian and I am an art history major so Italy just seemed like it would be the best fit. The whole week before I left though, I was stressed, I was nervous, my stomach was making all sorts of twists and turns, I, Sara Gorrell could not eat...I mean that's how nervous I was, I think about food 24/7, so the fact that I couldn't eat, is well a big deal. But that first week quickly turned into a month, and before long things were getting easie I truly began to love Italy for what Italy is. It's not just Michelanglo and Leonardo but it's about eating outside with your friends, going to apertivo, buying your food from the market, learning all the bad words, and trying to make sense of everything going on around you...trying to figure out how you fit in this world and understanding there is there is the huge world and what you know, is only a small percentage of a percentage.

And now I'm back in San Francisco, a worldly city in it's own and trying to figure out again how I fit in, a sort of cultural shock in my own country. But now I know, it is a big world out there and there are so many things left for me to learn and it is good to know that wherever I go I am home.

Sorry ya'll

I've been doing very poorly at blogging lately...but I have a very good excuse because I have been without internet these last 2 weeks. Now that I'm back in the real world, I'll be updating you guys on my trip to Sicily.

Preview: IT WAS AMAZING!!!!....

Almost over....

Technically, today is my last day of school. I finished most of my finals yesterday but I still have to go to final critique for figure drawing today. I can't believe it's almost over.... this year has gone by to fast. :(

I'm a mess....

This whole week I've been out of it, literally.

Sunday I woke up from my nap and decided that I wanted to open my window (you know see if it's raining...)and I'm leaning on the glass with one hand and pushing the shutter open with my other and just my luck....my entire hand goes through the window. I'm not going to lie, I was pretty freaked out, not only was there glass and blood all over the place but I was didn't know if anyone was home. So I run into the kitchen shaking with my cell phone in one hand (I have no idea what I'm going to do) but luckily Gaby was home and she cleaned me up very nicely (as well as calmed me down and made me dinner :)). I have a few cuts on my hand but nothing to bad, i have a small cut on the outside of my wrist and that one is pretty deep so maybe I'll get like a cool scar or something, at least I would have a good story.

And then yesterday, I was in the library on the ladder getting some travel books for Sicily and Spain and I must have been really excited or just plain out of it cause I took one step down and then decided (without looking) that I was close to the floor and I reached down with my other foot and straight up fell. Now looking back I probably had like 5 more steps on the ladder until I actually was close to the ground to reach for the floor, so when I fell I fell HARD....and on my ass. Again I didn't really hurt anything, my butt just hurts a lot.

So I'm thinking...that these next few days I should take it easy (maybe lock myself in my room) because with my current luck I'm gonna get hit by a bus or something. :(

Spring break was all about our search for the sun...

and we found it.

Above all the best part of Puglia was all the great people we met. From the pescatore in Gallipoli to the Alessandro from Conversano, Puglia would not have been half as amazing as it was without the warmth of it's people.

Pragha, It was like a dream...

....a really good one.

I left with Sarah and Katerine from Florence around 7:30 by bus and didn't get to Prague until around 9:00 the next morning. The bus was uncomfortable and I kept going in and out of sleep. So when we finally arrived in Prague it was like I was sleep walking. Once we arrived we took a quick tour around the city. There were quite a few special markets (because of easter)so we looked around a bit at the arts and crafts and food. After, we walked over to the astronomical clock which is famous for the "special shows" that happen on the hour. We had just missed the show so we continued our walk toward the river walking past the Jewish district and then ending the tour at the river.

It was so hot in Prague, and we were so tired that we laid in the grass and enjoyed the sun for a bit. We took our time walking back looking though the markets and stopping to get our first beer of the trip. Afterwards we went back to the astronomical clock to watch the "walk of the apostles" and then eventually ventured back to our hotel where we napped until dinner. For dinner we joined the rest of the group for a traditional Czech dinner at U Fleku, the oldest beer hall/brewery in Prague. The place was a little touristy but they had great food and tasty beer. Dinner started out with a soup and rye bread and then I had roasted pork with bread and potatoe dumplings and sauerkraut all washed down with a big (and cheap) beer. And then after all that....We got apple strudel :)

After dinner, we walked across the Charles Bridge and checked out the castle at night. Wandering around we found a "jazz club" which actually played only Funk music but it was a lot of fun. Enjoying the music....I drank yet another extremely cheap but tasty beer and when we finished we walked back across the bridge to this five-story dance clup which had different music genres on each floor. We spent most of our time on the dance/techno floor and danced until the early morning. It was amazing.

Saturday we woke up late, had breakfast and walked over to the castle. We walked around a bit, stopped to eat some lunch (embarissing story: the belt loop on my pants got stuck in the chair and I could NOT get out. I kept trying to get up but the chair would follow me....and then Sarah tried helping and the waiters kept coming around asking if we needed scissors. Sarah finally got me out. I laughed so hard that I cried, it was amazing!) and then exploredaround the castle some more. The place was huge and the cathedral was amazing. The inside was closed but walking around it was an experience in it's own sense. In size, it completely towers over everything and the gothic style is unbelievable. Definately is one of my favorite buidings in Europe. After walking around with the girls, I adventured off by myself for a while because I had a different ticket... but after I left Sarah and Katherine all the sights were closed so I walked out into the plaza where they were setting up with Obama's speech. Then I walked to St. Nicholas Church at Malostranske Namesti and checked out the inside. The church was beautiful and I was able to walk up to the second floor and look at the at the church below and the fresco's above.

Afterwards I walked back across the river where I waited for the girls and watched a protest agaisnt the creation of a US base in the Czech Republic. When Sarah and Katherine came over, me and Katherine decided to get a Thai message which like the beer was extremely cheap but amazing. It was like a cross between yoga and a message because they move and stretch out your body while placing pressure on your muscles. It was relaxing and rejuvinating with the exception of popping my toes and fingers (I really can't stand the sound it makes). Afterwards we walked back to the hotel, rested a bit and we decided on getting some good thai food....but we were easily sidetracked when we passed a Mexican restraunt across the street from our hotel. and because none of us had had legit Mexican food since being abroad (I've been here for 7 months by the way...) and we were desperate. Our eyes were definately larger than our bellies and we ordered tons of food: tortilla chips, salsa, sour cream (OMG they had real sour cream!!!!), quesadillas, a burrito, rice and beans, margaritas....and I ate it all! I don't know how I did it, but I did and I was so full that if our hotel wasn't uphill you could probably rolled me home.

Sunday we woke up extemely early (4:50) so that we could make it to the castle to get good spots to see Obama. We waited and chilled until 10 when he came on. It was the amazing and surreal. I have been in Italy since late August so I did not experience the excitment of the election, sending in my ballot, I felt a little removed from the whole experience. And being here I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would have a chance to see our president speak. So when we found out Obama was going to speak in Prague at the same time we were going to be in the city, I knew we had to go because when would I ever get the chance to see our president let alone see him speak aboad. It was amazing, exciting, and extemely moving. Watching Obama speaks makes me believe again. He makes me believe that we can change our act around and things can change. This is important because since being in Italy I have seen how foriegners view our country and although it was negative with Bush being in the crowd during Obama's speech in Prague with thousands of people....Americans, Czechs, Austrailians, Brits, and Italians (and I'm sure many more countries...but these were the only ones I talked to or reconized by language) proved that many people support us once again and have hope for the future.

It was the perfect ending to my dream in Pragha.

Obama's Speech: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwYzAp7QV3U&feature=related

and 900+ photo's later.....

I've finally updated my shutterfly, so check it out. http://postcardsfromitaly.shutterfly.com/.

MILANO....

Today we took a nice long train to Milano for a field trip for my 20th Century Art in Italy class. So I know you are probably thinking, "20th Century Art and Italy....really?" and I don't blame you, cause it's so freaking hard for Italians to move on from the Renaissance but there seems to be at least one exception. Exactly 100 years ago, 1909 Futurism was born....a movement started by Italians (but again because of some "moving on" issues, actually began in Paris). The idea of futurism is machine....it's very anti-classicalism and ironically very anti-museum. Marinetti the father of Futurism said, "We rebel against the spineless worshipping of the old canvases, old statues, and old bric-a-brac, against everything which is filthy and worm-ridden and corroded by time". And with that, came Futurismo, the most famous modern art history movement to come out of Italy.

During the 1900's, Milan served as the home for many Futurists of the time and today, in honor of it's 100th anniversary, they had a pretty amazing exhibit that gave a nice overview of the art work as well as music, furniture, costumes, books, magazines, and set design. It was pretty sweet. These were some of my favorites....

A lot has happened....

Since I last updated you all. We finished finals which was a bit of hell but worth it because it meant vacation!

For semester break I left Florence at 3 in the morning to embark on my first adventure outside of Italy. First stop.....Amsterdam. Some highlights: pancakes, coffeshops, good food (that isn't italian), canals, rain, snow, Anne Frank's house, an AMAZING metro, english speakers (really weird), sex shops, red light district, rjiksmuseum, Van Gough Museum, big hotel beds, sneaking my 2 roommates into our hotel room, Ben and Jerry's.

Next stop on a train to Paris....

Half Way

My study aboard school year is more than half way over, it came quietly, and as a suprise because things have been going by so fast. I can't say that I have enjoyed every second but I can say I would never do anything differently. These last 5 months I've learned a lot. Not only all that school stuff (cause thats the "real"reason I'm here, right?), but I know myself even more.  I mean there is still more to see, do, taste, touch, hear, and learn but it is kind of sad to think that this whole experience is almost over. I mean in many ways Florence is my home, I could never see myself living here forever but then again I could never see myself living in Elk Grove again, yet "the Grove" is more of a home than anywhere else. 

I don't think you realize until you've gone away how much you miss home. But many times here, when I go away whether it be a short weekend trip or a week long trip how much you miss home, and many times the "home" I can't wait to get back to is my home in Florence. And I think that is something many people miss out on because they only go away for a few months and it is just a really (really) long vacation. But I'm no longer on vacation, because Florence in many ways has become another home for me.  

A Grand Adventure

Today was all about avoiding EVERYTHING (among the "everything" would be reading and writing essays) and I would say I have been pretty successful. It began with cookies, seriously, thats what I made for breakfast and ended with HOOK...the movie!!! We kind of built a magic carpet bed in the middle of our living room and ate fresh bread and played steam roller. Somewhere in between we went on a magical adventure that took us (in the rain) to Piazza Michelangelo then to an old forest and straight out of Florence (we actually walked passed a sign that said "Firenze" and had a fat red line though it!) and then back down the hill to the grocery store and then back home for tasty tasty soup and more cookies. 

It was a very good day. 

The FIRST post of the New Year

I feel like my first post of the New Year should be entertaining, I want to keep everyone interested right? Especially since I haven't written in ages.....And anyways I don't want to bore anyone with my New Year's Resolutions (which by the way has nothing to do with this blog, although it would be a great resolution to "blog everyday/every week/on a regular basis...." I can tell you now it would never happen....sorry) 

I'm staying at my parent's apartment in Florence until they leave and since my Aunt and Uncle have left there is and extra room which for me is a nice change. So Tuesday morning my parents left the house early to catch a train to Venice and since it was Tuesday and I don't have class until 1:30 I took my time. I made myself some breakfast, got ready at a nice leisurely pace, and talked with Glady on SKYPE.  I didn't even consider leaving the house (I wanted to go boot shopping) until around 10:30. Well when I go to open the door find out that the door won't open os I figure ok, I'll just use my key and unlock it from the inside. After messing with the lock for a good 15 minutes I realize my efforts will get me no where....especially since by the 15th minute I am fully pissed and pull off the door handle....at this point I figure I should try another route. I text my roommates who with my luck happen to all be in class and then I text some friends that live around the corner from the apartment on Pepi.  I also give the land lady (who is also happens to be my land  lady) but she doesn't answer. SO, about an hour-hour and a half later I am finally rescued (THANK YOU SARAH YOU ARE MY HERO) and seriously I felt like Rapunzel. I opened the window and threw down my long blond hair....actually I just threw down my keys and Sarah unlocked the door from the outside. It is a very non climatic ending to my stressful morning. 

BUT, afterwards we went to lunch at Tavola Calda da Rocca ("hot table") inside the San Ambrosia  Mercato and had a AMAZING (....and cheap) lunch. For 6.50 I got bread, water, pesto lasagna, and creme carmel (and some wine which our very nice booth mates shared with us). It was a perfect "happy ending"....