A day in Florence!

Hi all!

Thanks for waiting it out until we got this post up. The internet in Florence has been a bit tricky, but have no fear... Maya's here! So we'll start with that - my name is Maya Klauber and I'm a junior. This is actually my second tour that I've been able to take with Chorale, and it seems like it just keeps getting better. Every night we find ourselves saying "this was the best day ever". The language is beautiful, the country is gorgeous and the food is the best in the world. And yes, I can (and will) spend time talking about all that, but first let me start you off with the single funniest encounter I've ever had:

So it was yesterday...a Wednesday afternoon on the sunny streets of Florence. My group of friends decided to roam a market place in the Piazza Santa Maria Novella. It was total sensory overload- from the smell of fresh pizza to the brightly colored clothing hanging in each stall. The streets were bustling and filled with smiling people making large hand gestures. The vendors beckoned us over, promising the lowest prices in all of Florence and selling everything from lighters with the Pope's face on them to fine jewelry. So there I was, walking through this scene when, from within a stall, a suave voice called out to me:

"You remind me of a jellyfish...°

I know I must have looked completely stunned, as I stood there (face to face) with this ridiculous suitor

"Excuse me?" I replied

"Yes, a jellyfish...soft. cute. lovely.°

Now if that wasn't the single most hilarious pick-up line any of you have ever heard, I urge you to try to beat it. Or how about the man in the pub that came over to talk to me, but would only speak through a walkie-talkie?! My verdict is that Italian men are incredibly vocal about their feelings and generally express them in some pretty foolish ways.

Moving on, though, yesterday was a great day. We all went on a walking tour in the morning until lunch time, stopping at various points of interest in this beautiful city. We walked near the river and saw the Pontvecchio bridge, looked at gorgeous statues in the center of town and learned that Michelangelo's David has an extremely large right hand so that it can support itself. The tour concluded at the Duomo - the largest and most famous church in all of Florence. The outside is laden with greens, reds, blues and golds, and the inside is just as breathtaking. After speaking with the guards, Paul managed to get us 60 seconds of singing time in there...no words can decribe that sound or that echo. Although we were whisked out of there pretty quickly, we planted ourselves on the front steps and sang 4 songs for a crowd that seemed to multiply by the second. We took the opportunity to pass out flyers for our concert last night, which was in San Stefano al ponte. The show was beautiful and it's been said that it was our best one musically - particularly "Deep River", one of our African American spirituals. We actually nearly knocked Paul off the stage.

We love and miss you all and rest assured- we are all happy and consistently filled with pasta :)

Ciao,
Maya