Five Things I'll Miss Most About Florence

Amid cranking out papers and studying for exams, my time in Florence is, very quickly, coming to an end. When I say quickly, I mean that I feel like move-in day was just the other day. But at the same time, it feels as though I've been here forever. Four months is a long time. Cold weather and wearing jackets seems like ages ago. This city feels like home. The amount that I've learned in classes and being here is immeasurable. I can't think of any other four-month span in my life where I've matured this amount learned as much about myself as I did this semester. Below the jump are my five favorite things about living in Florence since January.

EDIT: So now I'm done with my semester and visiting my family in London. Look below the jump for the list.

5. Accessibility to other amazing places:  This semester, I've gone to some of the most amazing cities in the world, including Milan, Barcelona, Paris, Rome, Venice, and many others. The beauty of Europe is how condensed and packed full of history and beauty it is. Going from Florence to Rome is like going from New York City to Washington DC. Europe is so accessible. It amazes me how different the cultures are in such a small space as well. Travel a couple hours in any direction and it feels like a new country. In fact, different regions in Italy speak different dialects of Italian. In some cases it's so extreme to the point where if a Sicilian and Roman were to have a conversation, it would be difficult to communicate at times.

4. The beauty of this city: I'll admit that when I first got here, I wasn't really that impressed with the city. Yeah, I saw the Duomo and thought it was beautiful. But other than that, I was kind of like "whatever" about it. But as my stay there grew longer, I became more and more in love with it. Florence is truly a beautiful and wonderful city. It's a small city. Max and I had bikes, and could get anywhere in the city within fifteen minutes. There is an incredible amount of history here. It was an eerie feeling the first time I stood on our roof, looked out towards the Duomo, and realized, "Damn, everything I'm looking at is older than the United States." I could go see The David one morning, than after lunch head over to the Bobli Gardens. The beauty there never stops. At times it was a little too touristy, especially once the weather got warmer. But it still had a small-town feel, and by the time the semester was over, it really felt like home.

3. New friends made while here: Going abroad for a semester is an experience that so few people get to experience. So those of us who are fortunate enough to do so share a unique bond. Living in a foreign country is an isolating experience in that we're thousands of miles away from. I've had the pleasure of making many new friends this semester. I've also developed bonds with people who I knew were coming to Florence, and left with strong bonds. But if I could take one thing out of my experience, it would be the bond built with the other two-thirds of the Old School Movie Crew. I can safely say that I left with two friends for life, even if they are these two fools.

2. Leo, Lucca, and their Panini: This semester, we found the best sandwiches in the world. Across the small piazza from where Fatima lived was this little shop ran by two cousins, Leo and Luca. The store was ran just by these two guys, and at any given point, no more than five people could comfortably fit in the store. But their panini are incredible. You can get pretty much whatever you want on your sandwich for only 3.50. When I say I went there at least four times a week, I'm not exaggerating. Early on, I got to know them and we built a good relationship, even though the language was very prevalent. But every time I went in, we would joke around a bit. And on Notte Bianca, a night where all the stores in Florence are open late (which the picture above is from), they bought me and a couple of friends some wine. I found out that their cousin has a restaurant in New York City too, so I will definitely be going there next semester.

1. My Italian family: Max and I have spent a lot of time talking about how no matter what we say to people when explaining our homestay, words can never express how much we got out of our experience. Back in January, Max and I were placed in a homestay with Concetta and her son Giacomo. We enjoyed it right off the bat; Concetta made delicious dinner every night, cleaned our room, and washed our clothes. And Giacomo would occasionally join us to eat dinner. But as the semester progressed, so did our relationship with the two of them. I began to realize how great the two of them are. Concetta is the sweetest woman you'll meet. In my opinion, she went above and beyond what NYU paid her to do. She helped me with my Italian homework, helped us buy our bikes, and so many other things. One of my favorite memories with her was on the second to last weekend in Florence, on Mother's Day. She took Max and I to Giacomo's soccer game. To get there, we had to take a half an hour drive through the beautiful Tuscany countryside. When we got to the game and saw Giacomo, he was pleasantly surprised to see us with her. In the first half, he scored a goal (the only goal his team scored that day.) I remember the three of us being so happy and giving her a hug after he scored. It was then, when we shared that moment of joy, that I really felt like I was part of their family. Saying goodbye to them last week was definitely the hardest goodbye of the semester. I hope to see them both soon. Giacomo was talking about the possibility of coming to New York around Christmas time. These are two people who I definitely will put an effort in to keep in contact with in the future.