Wake Up For "Scuola"

It's all fun and games until you have to go to school. Yep, classes have started. Actually I have already completed my first week of classes here in Florence. Gonzaga University actually has its own campus here in Florence, and while it is limited to a single gate way and one building, it is just enough space to accommodate the 150 students studying here. While not everyone goes to Gonzaga back in the states (some students come from Notre Dame, LMU, or even Lafayette like my roommate) they all attend Gonzaga's campus here in Florence. I am taking five classes this semester so only 15 credits. While 15 is not as many as the 18 credits I took last semester, it is still definitely a challenge. I am taking Ordinary Differential Equations (Mom and Dad I'll be sure to ask you questions about this one), Statistics for Experimentalists, Ethics, Mechanics of Materials, and Dynamics. Some of my teachers are actually Italian and while they do teach the course in English, understanding them through their thick Italian accents is a bit of a struggle. Two of my engineering professors are Italian (Dynamics and Mechanics of Materials) and my ethics professor is Romanian. While I have the same professor for both my math classes, he actually teaches at the Gonzaga campus back in Spokane. So it's cool having so many different professors in one place. All my classes are five minutes apart from each other and all located in the same room (think of it as the professors are coming to you - as my mom has me look at it). Overall the biggest challenge I have so far is finding the motivation to go to class and actually do my homework. While every one of my professors trust us to actually complete the homework on our own, it doesn't help when you have an entire city waiting to be explored right outside your classroom window. We are given three day weekends every week here so that is also nice. We end school on Thursday and get Friday, Saturday, and Sunday to travel or use to catch up on other things. I also don't have classes on Wednesday so I guess you could say studying abroad is insanely hard, and I do not know how I am going to manage only going to class three times a week :). Haha no it's pretty easy going from what I have experienced here so far, but I am excited to see how the rest of the semester will unfold. I signed up to participate in an authentic Tuscan dinner on Thursday night (YUM) and a classical concert Saturday night and a Florence vs. Roma football (soccer) game on Sunday night! So lots of things happening and to look forward to. I will be sure to blog all about it and share pictures. Hope all is well back home and sending all my love from Florence! Talk to you guys soon and ciao for now!