July 10 Concert Under Our Window

Life is good today as we enjoy a wonderful concert from a student orchestra from Estonia right across from one of Firenze's most beautiful piazzas, Piazza della Signoria, where our apartment is located.  We are surrounded by Florence's government offices, the Uffizi, which houses the world's greatest art collection, and Cafe Rivoire, where some of the world's greatest authors drank expresso.  Some of our students left Friday for the French Riviera while others are traveling to Venezia.  Still others decided to spend the weekend in Sweden.  They deserve some time off after a hectic week which introduced them to Robin Larsen's travel and feature writing class and the great work of Luchino Visconti and Federico Fellini in the Italian Cinema class, Lucca and the Uffizi, where they saw a special exhibition of the work of Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610).  Caravaggio, Rome's most important artist, ushered in one of the most important movements art, something Leonardo DiVinci and Michaelangelo failed to do. His intensely emotional realism and dramatic use of lighting had a formative influence on the Baroque school of painting.

We now await our friends Andreinna and Emilio Gunichi, one of Italy's foremost artists.  We met them 13 years ago on our adventure to find Frances Mayes' Bramasole (Under the Tuscan Sun) in Cortona, Italy.  Since then we have seen each other in America or Italy each year. We also spoke to our friend Ilaria Lembo of Compiobi.  Ilaria was our first Italian teacher in Florence, and she and her family have become wonderful friends.  They even spent a summer at our Arcadia home while we were in Italy.  She told us great news--she and her husband are going to have a baby in September.  We attended their beautiful wedding in Italy three years ago.

Life is good today!

July 6 Lucca

Sunken and sheltered behind its magnificently preserved Renaissance walls, Lucca is a mystery right up until the moment you enter it--like Paradise--by way of St. Peter's Gate Once inside you'll find widing, canyon-like corridors dotted with palazzi, medieval towers and store-fronts, amphitheatres and hidden churches brillantly decorated with Romanesque facades, all confined within the city walls, along the op of which runs a tree-lined promenade The city lies at the heart of one of Italy's richest agricultural regions and has prospered since Roman times when it acquired great political significance and commerical power tans to the wool and silk trade and the command of its strategic position at the crossroads of the Empire's communications with its norther reaches. Today it is ranked amongst the wealthest in Tuscany. We discovered the riches of Lucca on bicycles!!!!

July 6 Pisa and Lucca

We headed for Pisa and Lucca or our first field experience today Pisa, the home of "The Leaning Tower," is said to be of Etruscan origin. In 179 B.C. it became a Roman colony and was an important naval base for the Romans. How could that be when it isn't even on the coast? The remains of the original harbour were unearthed a mere 500 metres from the foot of the Leaning Tower along with sixteen 2000-year-old ships! The Leaning Tower will be coompleted cleaned by the end of 2010. Its architect (Bonanno Pisano) only managed to get hte fist three tiers completed before the tower started to lean on the southern side The problem is said to be due to shifting soil, and it continues to lean a little further each year. Engineers have finally managed to right the tower by 40cm by moving soil from one side and attaching weights to counteract the gravitational pull.

July 5 Hike to Piazzale Michelangelo

Jett Martin, Brie Snyder, Natasha Krukpnak and Maricela Miguel with Professor Fellow made an early morning trek to Piazzale Michelangelo, where they caught a glimpse of the entire city. Fellow then took then introduced the girls to the Central Market in Firenze. But they all had to touch the nose of the porco for good luck.

July 4 Independence Day in Italia

The day began with an orientation to AIFS, the courses and how to function as an American in Italy, It ended with a walking tour of the city and then a private walking tour with Professor Fellow, who pointed the important things--the markets, the banks and the gelato shops!!!

July 2 Andiamo a Firenze!

We had to give a hand to Swiss International Airlines. This was the quickest international checkins we have ever witnessed. We were on our way to a stopover in Zurick before continuing on to Firenze. Three students were already traveling in Europe and would meet us at the Florence university site. Excitement ran high as students who have logged lots of international flight mileage exchanged stories with those who would step on a plane for the first time in their lives. We were ready to go. Viva Firenze!

June 22 The First Meeting

CIAO,STUDENTI!
Students in the 2010 Summer International Media Institute in Florence, Italy, met at the home of Clara and Tony Fellow June 22, 2010. At a garden dinner party, students were introduced to Professors Fellow and Robin Larsen who discussed course assignments and tips on the life-changing experience they are about to embark. The evening was topped with a showing of the 2009 student experiences. Andiamo a italia!