Bonjourno!

It is Tuesday July 3 here in beautiful Florence! Today was a big day! We went to the Uffizi (sp?) museum and spent over 3 hours wandering the halls gazing into the works of Botticelli, Caravaggio and other renowned artists. Like many museums, I was unable to take a camera inside which was unfortunate but reasonable.

However, the most exciting thing of the day was running into former Polish president Lech Walesa. He was surrounded by security guards and at one point I walked right past him! Walesa was a union and human rights activist in Poland in the 80's. He also won a nobel peace prize in 1983 and was president of Poland from 1990-95. He was really a 'working mans' politician and did a lot for the new union workers at a time where rights were not abundant in Poland. He is a BIG deal in Poland. I learned about him in AP European History class my senior year of high school. It was amazing to see him in person!

The two pictures are of a really cute dog I saw in front of a sandwich shop. He was the owners dog and was just chilling out--trying to beat the heat like everyone else. I guess I am on a dog theme recently.

I also took some more random pictures of the convent I am staying at. There is one of the view from my window into our private garden and the hallway leading to my room. It is really quite amazing. Today I woke up to more chanting and singing from the nuns! It is like I am living in a book, I swear.

Tomorrow is the 4th of July and our class is having a special Independance Day celebration! I am excited. However, I am sad I am not in the U.S. for one of my favorite holidays. Oh well. I still love my country the same, if not more.