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the reflections issue cimitero degli inglesi rain in rome living in middle-aged florence student s voice our last months in florence and much more 11

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breaking news ganzo opening ganzo update living in middle-aged florence florence is renowned for being the center of renaissance art if i think about the renaissance i think about the public square and the life activity enthusiasm vision of the future and the innovations that were raised and praised in the period but living in florence doesn t give me the same idea the same sense of opening i feel florence today is more middle-aged instead i feel high walls of suspicion high walls of individualism ganzo doesn t have the ambition of starting a new renaissance era but surely intends to open the city up to novelty to share its beauty beyond the surface to help all the people who come to visit its splendor to better understand its significance beyond the disneyland attraction it may appear to be ganzo opens its doors to art culture genius aggregation food wine and anything that may bring a new enthusiasm to the city and its visitors the future is to build bridges and links between cultures and to train the youth to respect that different is not better or worse just different there is no color at ganzo no religion no dress code no boundaries only the scent of youth and the energy of hope gabriella ganugi

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upcoming events creative campus art crawl upcoming event creative campus art crawl creativity fuels the imagination and inspires ideas that have the potential to make an impact on many if given the opportunity the goal of creative campus is to offer students who are studying abroad in florence the opportunity to collaborate with local students on theatrical musical visual and other artistic projects throughout the course of the semester since it s inception creative campus students have been involved in the following theatrical performance in conjunction with florence international theatre company this semester creative campus students are organizing an art crawl which will be held on wednesday april 16 the art crawl will be an evening filled with culture food and fun this event will give study abroad students and italian students the opportunity to come together for a tour of the local artigiani shops where they will learn about the different artistic trades from the artigiani themselves the tour of the artigiani shops will be followed by an apertivo complete with art and music you won t want to miss this creative campus event unleash the creativity within while learning about the creativity that fuels others for more information on creative campus and florence international theatre company please visit the website http www.florencetheatre.com/en/index.h rebecca barton all are invited so please come and big buddha at palazzo strozzi over 200 master pieces arrived in florence from china as a witness of the cosmopolitan outfit of the imperial courts of the last millennium for the first time in europe the best of the han and tan traditions are going to be displayed showing what the golden period of the chinese emperor was all about a large part of the exhibition is dedicated to buddhist art with large statues of the buddha the pieces have been installed at palazzo strozzi where the exhibition is going to be hosted until june 8th for more information www.palazzostrozzi.org luca bucciarelli italians do it faster it was april 2006 when the italians voted for their parliment and their government the entire legislation should have lasted five years but all of a sudden two months ago the government lost the parliament s trust and there you go crisis no allies or agreements were possibile within the parties to keep the government in charge for the remaining years so let s go vote this upcoming april 13 and 14 about 60 million italians are expected to decide between a righwing party called partito delle liberta and the leftish partito democratico the choice is between the former prime minister silvio berlusconi and the former mayor of rome walter veltroni big challenge well it seems more like the italians are getting bored of voting once every two years or sometimes less only to rush into electoral campaingn while no one has been able to devise an electoral system to guarantee stability within the governamental forces luca bucciarelli

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fuori porta cimitero degli inglesi the english cemetery of florence is a small graveyard located up borgo pinti in piazza donatello encircles all around the graveyard is the busy street of viale antonio gramsci the graveyard sticks out a bit from the usual florentine scenery indeed it is not everyday you find a graveyard in the down town area of a populous city the unique sight of this graveyard is rivaled only by its bizarre and interesting history a group of fua students and i visited the site on two occasions in awful eerie weather to take pictures for an upcoming british institute exhibition the sister in charge of maintaining the graveyard walked us around explaining some of the noted brits who have been buried there and how each one was related to florence elizabeth barrett browning shakespeare s descendants walter savage landor to name a few florence seems to have long been a popular tourist destination as we found grave markers of people from all over europe caretaker julia bolton holloway explained that the graveyard is in need of a great deal of attention and told us how the local gypsies have been her only source of assistance in helping to restore and repair the site this cross-cultural site was full of little surprises and the experience is entirely unique piazzale donatello 38 tel 055 582608 john lake photos on this page by tanya velazquez foodies latterie in florence in the tradition of small mom and pop stores specializing in certain types of food categories a latteria carries dairy products such as milk cheeses and yogurts many latterie are stocked with a selection of cheeses but one in particular is worth visiting for a sweet breakfast simply named latteria the tiny bar is tucked amongst the historic buildings on via dei neri and is noted for its pastries such as sfogliatelle napoletane flaky triangular and filled with chocolate or pastry cream they can be ordered at the counter with a rich cappuccino at breakfast and eaten at the small tables covered with checkered tablecloths service is not offered at tables and offers a more comradely intimate atmosphere the place though small is hard to miss just look for the pastry laden window and the original store sign latteria latteria via dei neri 50r grace joh

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il ristoro dei perditempo the timewaster s haven is an approximate translation of the name of a small niche offering tuscan tastes inadvertently positioned around the corner from ponte vecchio on borgo san jacopo it s not a destination spot being amongst a fancy restaurant an avant-guarde clothing shop and of course ponte vecchio but once you stumble inside there s an immediate air of non-time or better yet lack of hurry that reduces the outside world to an almost noiseless din throw a long glance at the glass counter and read each handwritten label you might find tastings of baccala in umido artichoke flan a creamy lush soup of pureed vegetables or earthenware dishes laden with duck or beef ragù to generously top off a large slice of rustic toast forno vapore an organic bakery on the outskirts of town provides unusual naturally leavened organic flour breads such as pane mediovale that reveals a dark crumb and slightly sweet aftertaste as well as sugar-free sweets to top off the meal three enormous flasks of red wines are self-served in glasses i preferred the rosso di maremma from southern tuscany the rear of the locale opens up into a small dining area with cozy high stools and tables classic yet modern colors and the entire back wall composed of a large glass window perches directly above the arno wine flows forks caress foods and tongues the river creases with the wind and currents only time moves imperceptibly unwilling to interrupt the conviviality of the moment borgo san jacopo 48r 055 2645569 open everyday 1 1am-9pm grace joh new apicius book culinary portraits of florence the apicius food communications program is coming out with a new gastronomic guide to florence here s a sneak peak from the cover the david the duomo the uffizi nothing short of touristy the three denote the meaning of a city to many visitors pizza and gelaterie pasta and tiramisù can also become the meaning of cuisine while exploring florence/italy from a food point of view culinary portraits of florence however ironically paints a picture of the city s cuisine many may visit but few will truly see as the locals do the cookbook not only explores traditonal elements of florentine cuisine like wine bars and gastronomie but also examines the stands of trippai and local markets that many tourists would never see even if they walked by one it is an energized insider s guide vibrant and evocative of roads less taken the graphics and colors are loud while the photos lovingly frame the food and give new perspective to sights in a very-photographed and overly-photogenic city showcasing a color and ritual that makes florence unique from any other italian city the food communications program

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community flash no smoking in the classroom it has been on the first page of every newspaper the big issue of an italian professor of high school captured by a camera and dropped on youtube while he was smoking in class but the reason of such a big deal was the comment of the student who was recording the fact oh well and now he is smoking a joint in fact we do not know yet if he was smoking a hand rolled cigarette or a joint but the professor has already been let go all the students who first accused him are now defending their beloved professor but he still remains in big trouble luca bucciarelli gently weeping for my guitar photo by amanda bell i miss my guitar the way other people miss their families not to say that families aren t worth missing mine certainly is and i m sure yours is too but i particularly miss my guitar to remedy this temporary loss of musicality fua sponsors music night which i attend every other week drummers bassists vocalists guitarists and keyboard players gather in a private studio near the soccer stadium and play songs ranging from weezer s say it ain t so to guns n roses knockin on heaven s door on instruments provided by the studio i m the first one to admit i m not the best singer or guitar player but i ll also be the first to say that there is a certain thrill to unabashedly wailing into a mic or smashing a crash cymbal for the sole purpose of blending your sound with other musicians other musicians from different states and countries hopefully we can combine our sounds musical tastes and patch cords to compile a set of songs to record by the end of the semester it s no replacement for my guitar or my family but hey it s a pretty good substitute amanda bell fieldtrips rain in rome it s funny how the weather can control our mood or in this case how the rain can dictate a class trip expectations were high as my italian culture class visited rome to see the sites and give presentations throughout the city the rain did not go away but it also didn t return the next day a good-sized group of us stayed the night in rome and got to walk around the next day free from the morbid rain and the experience was completely different ancient ruins street performers good shopping a variety of restaurants and a great nightlife made me believe in rome again seeing a city with dry socks makes all the difference john lake

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dolomites fieldtrip f from the roman ruins and sounds of screeching vespas the pristine village of villnoss lies nestled between the towar ering dolomite mountains in italy s south tyrolean region because the austrian border is less than an hour from the cluster of valleys the locals speak solely german the only slightly problematic issue for an italian-speaking american like myself i have visited villnoss val di funes three times in my life both in summer and winter and it is without a doubt my favorite town in italy valley-dwellers thrive on adventurous activities such as scaling the rocky dolomites most often without harnesses or casually sending their five-year-old children down black diamond ski slopes the nearby town of ortisei val gardena boasts some of the best skiing in northern italy if you have been searching for a town like heidi and peter s where the air is sharp with freshness and local restaurants won t let you leave without a taste of their homemade schnapps then pack your skis and lederhosen and head to villnoss melanie wagner student voice river rats when i told an italian friend that i would be studying in florence for the semester the first thing he told me was to look out for giant rats maybe it was this anxious anticipation of my first encounter with one of florence s famed that dimmed the inevitable culture shock by lumping all of my qualms about living abroad for four months into the image of a beaver-size river rat the drastic changes in my day-to-day life would have to be less frightening than something as horrific as that after a rainy first week in florence everything started to fall into place classes began my painful new boots were finally broken in and i could find my way to school and the grocery store without pulling out a map yet still there was no sign of the rats-had they been lured away by the pied piper of study abroad it wasn t until almost a month later on a beautiful late afternoon jog along the arno river that i finally spotted the monster of my imagination yet he was nothing like i had feared rather than gnawing on innocent ducks with razor-sharp teeth he was peacefully paddling down the river enjoying the warm sunny day just like myself i finally let out a long-awaited sigh of relief and gladly let him take the rest of my worries with him as he quietly floated away melanie wagner internship experience frittelli gallery looking to diversify my italian experience and gain a greater knowledge of italian language i recently took an internship at frittelli arte contemporanea a contemporary art gallery located in novoli i ve now been interning at frittelli every tuesday and thursday for about a month and a half the first few times i went in i was really nervous however the people that i work with are amazing and quickly set my fears to rest after a few days i fell into a routine entering data into various excel spreadsheets organizing books preparing packages for shipping and so on every day at the gallery i learn something new the italian word for highlighter the hand motions to describe someone who is crazy the words one uses to say that something is disgusting or terrible i also learn little things about italian lifestyle such as returning home for lunch and always taking at least an hour lunch break obviously i am thoroughly enjoying my time at frittelli arte contemporanea so far it has been an amazing experience one that has allowed me to become immersed in italian culture improve my italian skills and most importantly feel like a florentine not just an american doing american things in an italian city if you re interested in checking out this awesome contemporary art gallery catch bus 22 by smn and take it to the mercato di novoli stop or look it up on the web at www.frittelliarte.it katherine mcclure

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photo by andrea cofino taking advantage of life in florence as you all are well aware we have less than two months living here in florence italy during our spring break i took some serious time to think about what this means no more cappuccino in the morning and apertivo in the evening for most it s back to continental breakfast and possibly sneaking into our favorite over 21 establishment it s easy to realize how fortunate we are to travel here and have the amazing opportunity to live in this city and in this country but with our days numbered we should really begin thinking about all the things we haven t taken advantage of have you spent a day strolling the boboli gardens yet have you been inside il palazzo vecchio have you traveled to venezia roma or the amalfi coast these are all things that in two months we ll be regretting if we haven t done them sit down write a list of everything you d like to do before you go back home make sure you finish them all of them even if it s as small as taking the number 7 bus to fiesole for the sunset you have well over a month left and certainly no excuses andrea cofino do s don ts by erica treadwell do check out the movie theater the odeon for example offers original language movies and is located right by piazza repubblica shop at markets such as san lorenzo for the freshest foods check out sant ambrogio for a less touristy scene and outdoor produce stalls make a day trip to the beach a ticket to viareggio is cheap and the beach is beautiful take plenty of photos while you re here old things from new angles and perspectives the miniature doors on the battistero instead of the cupola of the duomo for example don t miss a fiorentina soccer game if you go make sure to wear purple always speak english try it in italian even if it comes out wrong we re here to learn after all remix your favorite things by trying new places if you re a die-hard fan of lampredotto at nerbone try venturing out to the stand near piazza beccharia via gioberti miss a cheap flight on ryanair.com check tickets ahead of time for the best prices or try a last minute deal to an unexpected destination forget to have fun you re only young once created and published by the student editorial staff of the student services department

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