Well, the time has come!

My dream of studying abroad has been several years in the making; however, I never thought I would be moving to Florence, Italy. I have studied Spanish for years, and I was dead set on living in a Spanish speaking country until earlier this year. One day I decided that I no longer loved learning the language, and I needed to expand my horizons and try something new-so here I am, moving to Italy with no knowledge of the language, and only a vague understanding of the culture... This should be interesting!

Those who know me well know that I'm a planner. I'm not very spontaneous, and I like things to be organized and well thought out. For me, this trip is about letting go. I have almost no plans, and very little control over most of the adventures I will be enduring. Although this is completely nerve racking, I am beyond excited to see what will come of this journey, and how I will grow as a person because of it.

I will be studying at a Fashion Institute in Florence from February-May. I have several planned trips through my program, and I hope to visit many countries throughout the school year. Most of the other college students in my program will be flying home in May... I don't have a flight home until mid-July. At this point, for those last few months I have no plans, no where to stay, and not a care in the world-I will simply go where ever the universe takes me!

This last semester, and especially these last few weeks, have been a woorl-wind of stress and preparation. But my bags are packed (...almost) and I have about 36 hours left before my flight. I've never been away from Colorado for more than a few weeks, and although I love this state and will miss its beauty, I can't wait to see what the rest of the world has to offer me.

Several people have asked me to keep in contact while in Europe, so I thought this blog would be the easiest way. I have been informed that due to the age of most buildings in Florence, and the thick bricks of their foundation, I will have limited wifi access... but I will do my best to post once every week or two.

Until then,
Arrivederci!