5 Things I Love About Firenze

 1. MTV TRL Awards: MTV Italia still has TRL. Who would have thought? Anyway, the Award Ceremony was held in Firenze this year and it was a free event. I got to see some of my favorite Italian artists sing live at Piazzale Michelangelo like Club Dogo, Marracash, Dolcenera, Francesca, Arisa, Moda, Noemi and Young the Giant. And then there were people I heard for the first time like Two Fingerz and Entics. I was really impressed by them. :) It was an amazing show.  

2. San Lorenzo Market: All of your souvenirs come from this market! I live in the center of this market so all the vendors see me walk by everyday. This helps when I'm haggling cuz I get the best deal. People like seeing familiar faces. :)

3. Ristorante La Padellaccia: I went to this restaurant for my Christmas dinner and then a few more times after that. It's 2 minutes away from my apartment, it has quality food at decent prices and it's a homely environment.
                                  
4. Ryan Air: This is the airline that everyone uses to fly within Europe. It has insanely cheap flights (I got to fly to England and back for $50) and you can pretty much fly anywhere.

5. Gelato Festival: I LOVED this festival because it gave us an excuse to eat gelato Every. Single. Day! Even though I have a favorite gelato place in Florence, the best gelato I have ever had was from this festival. Man, I did not know that gelato got better!! Why can't we have Gelato Festivals back home?? :/

Mia♡ 

Things I ♡ About Italy

1. Notte Bianca: Was the best. night. ever. There is just so much that went on. There was a whole group of us before it became me, Adriana, Piti and Andrea. Then what followed was free drinks, getting couples to kiss by chanting "Bacio! Bacio!", flash mobs, sexy bartending twins, dancing in piazzas, walking around all of Firenze, live music, pictures, running into old friends, more dancing and blurriness. It was Epic. Wish I could be here for the next Notte Bianca. :)

2. Hard Rock Cafe Firenze: I had never been to a Hard Rock Cafe before. I know we have so many back home, including one in SF but I just had never gone. So, when I saw one here in Florence I knew I had to go. It took me months but I finally got the chance to go with my roomies. The food was delicious. Huge portions, fried chicken and coca-cola. It felt just like home!

3. YAB: YAB is a club in the center of Florence. It takes me about five minutes to get there walking. They have great music, cute boys and good drinks. It has slowly become one of my favorite places. Mainly, because of the cute boys lol.

4. The Opera: My roomies and I went to see Carmen not too long ago and it was fantastic! It was set up in a small church but the performers were amazing. I fell in love with the role of Carmen. She was a charming songstress.

5. Lucy: My roommate Lucy is the perfect shopping buddy. She can, believe it or not, out-shop me. We can spend a whole day doing nothing but window shop. Most of the time she ends up buying everything while I go home with nothing but we always seem to have fun while doing it. Also, she happens to be the best makeup artist ever! I love it when she does my makeup! The amount of attention I get when she does my makeup doubles. She's a miracle worker! lol. Sadly, she leaves tomorrow to Mongolia. :/ I am so thankful I was able to have her as a roomie tho. I can't imagine my time in Italy without her. <3

5 Things I Heart About Italy

1. Fiesole: is a part of Florence but away from the city center. There are less tourists and more scenic views in Fiesole. My friend Vicky took me up for a light lunch and some gorgeous sights.

2. Bakeries open at 4am: After a night out what is better than freshly baked pastries from a Pasticceria? NOTHING!!  Especially when chocolate is involved.

3. Days at the Park: With Spring in the air and sunny days one of my favorite things to do is go to the park with a nice book and just read. This park I go to has a fountain, lively Florence residents and ducks walking around.

4. Parla Con Me Remix: Julia Lenti released the remix to her hit Parla Con Me this week featuring two talented MCs Ghemon and Mecna. I cannot stop hitting the replay button! If rap is not your thing then I would suggest listening to the original song.
       

5. Chianti Wine: Tuscany is well known for it's wine country and this wine is just one of the finest it has to offer. The best part is the price. You can buy a bottle of this wine for about 3-4 euro which is a reasonable price here. No karaoke night is complete without wine. :)

5 Things

1. Karaoke Nights at Old Stove: I have been going to these since October but most recently I have been joining my FACE friends there too. It took awhile for me to get the courage to sing on stage but I haven't looked back since. (Karaoke pics are never flattering)

2. Mondo Marcio - Non Dimenticare: This song is legit. Love it. His voice, his style, his appearance isn't so bad either. (; Watch out Fedez you have competition for my Italian hubby. This should really just say Marcio cuz he is so good looking!! Just my type. But it's the song I love this week.



3. Velvet: This magazine helps me practice my Italian. Plus, you know how much I LOVE magazines so why would it be any different in Italy? It is also the perfect eye candy. European fashion is like....oh dear, it's expensive but so worth it. At first I'm not impressed oh whatevs. Then I go on a US store website and I'm like Oh yeah, thats how the clothes is back home. If only I could afford it all. But it really comes down to Travel Money or Clothes Money. Can't have both. And I REALLY wanna see Paris!

4. Live Music in Piazza della Repubblica: No matter what time of day it is there is always a music act playing in this popular square. They can range anywhere from flute bands to opera singers and believe me, it does not stop there. I always enjoy sitting on one of the benches and listening to the musical acts. It's very calming and sometimes it puts me in the mood to dance. :) What is better than free entertainment?

5. The Diner: I have mentioned this place before but I really have to add it to the list. It's funny because I am in Italy and I should be going to Italian restaurants. But I have Italian food every single day at home. I always cook pasta, ravioli, salads, soups, and all that good Italian food that I just need a break when I go out to eat. My favorite place to go is the Diner because they sell American food. Mind you it is very expensive but soooo worth it. My favorite thing to get is the bacon cheeseburger although I die for their chocolate milkshake.

Mia♡

My 5 Things I Heart About Italy This Week.

1. Radio Italia: is a station on TV that only plays Italian music. They play all the top hits and have a mixture of artists who have been around for decades to those who are just coming out. We have this  on every time we are cooking in the kitchen or just hanging out. 

2. Conad: Is the supermarket I get all my groceries from. I literally go here at least three times a week for groceries. Since I walk to the supermarket I can only buy what I can carry/fit into my reusable bags.  

3. Dee Jay TV: Although there is MTV Italia, Dee Jay TV is like Italian's own version of MTV. They target a younger demographic. They show videos in both English and Italian and I love that they show old episodes of Popular in Italian.

4. Distratto by Francesca: This song plays at every store I go to, every restaurant. It's such a good song from such a young girl.



5. Salamanca: It's a restaurant by day that at night is filled with many young people, a DJ and sangria pitchers.
 

                                                                     Mia♡

5 Things I Heart

1. A: an Italian magazine I like to get here. I love it because it is only a euro and has just as much fashion, italian news, and gossip articles as the next women's magazine.

2. Elegant Drinks: While in Venice I stopped by a bar for a warm drink since it was a bit nippy outside. This elegant hot chocolate warmed me right up  .

3. Trains: trains are a fast and inexpensive way to get from city to city.  Plus, look at the pretty graffiti on it. 

4. Mask for Carnevale: Green is not a color I usually go for but as soon as I saw this lovely mask I decided I simply could not do without it. This mask was perfect for Carnevale. Wearing it made me lower my inhibitions. No one knew who I was, I could do whatever I pleased. And you bet that I did just that. 

5. Long Italian Names For Small Towns: Italy has the strangest names sometimes. Well, they are strange to foreigners. For example, on the way to Venice we stopped at a small town called Pontelagoscuro which translates to, dark lake bridge. Hehe, oooohhh Italy.   

Mia♡

5 Things I Love This Week.

1. Klab: If you are my friend on Facebook then you have seen me mention Klab a few times. It is the gym that I go to at least 4 days a week. It is literally 2 minutes walking distance from my house and I love it! Sure, it is super expensive, I registered when I had a pretty good income. Now it is my escape where I love to go to to let loose.

 2. FACE: Florentine Association for Culture Exchange, aka FACE is a group that puts events together for foreign students. The club is also open to anyone who wants to meet people from other countries and practice different languages. It's pretty cool cuz my roomie and I go to practice our Italian, sing at karaoke and have met some pretty nice people. It's nice to make some new friends since I lost pretty much all of my Via Lingua crew, except for Vicky. Everytime we get together it is a good time for sure. :)  

3. Adriana: is my new roomie that I've had now for about 3 weeks. She is here from Mexico studying architecture and likes to have a good time. Like no seriously, last week we went out 5 days in a row.  Well, she went out with me 4 out of the 5 times. lol. I'm glad she is our new roomie.  

 

4. Bag Tax: Anytime you go to the supermarket here you have to take a reusable bag. If not you are charged for every bag that you need. It's not much but of course everyone is trying to save some cents so we try to take our bags everytime. This is a nice way to be eco-friendly and is something we should consider doing back home.

5. Clean Streets: You would be surprised how clean Italy is. The streets are washed every night by these big machines, men go around picking up any trash seen around. It is beautiful. Italians know that they get most of their money from tourists and tourists like clean streets. More than that, they like having a clean home. Every night, without fail the streets are cleaned. I love it!

Mia♡

5 Things I Heart About Italy This Week

1. Street Art: Everyday artists make these on the sidewalk only using chalk. They spend hours doing them and at the end of the day they are washed away. The next day the artists start over again. I wonder how much money they make because as you can see they have a plate so people can leave €€€s.

2. Roomie Dinner Nights: Every Saturday the girls in the apartment and I have dinner together. We each are in charge of a course - main course, side dish or salad. We get to enjoy each other's cooking and company. It's all in good fun. :)

3. I Saldi: In January all the stores in Italy are desperate to get rid of their winter clothes to make room for their Spring collections. As a result, there is a huuuuuge sale here. You can save anywhere from 20-70% off of some pretty awesome stuff. Unfortunately I didn't do as much shopping as I would have if I had a job but I did manage to do a little bit of shopping. I'll start saving my little pennies so I can save next year. :)

 

4. Yamamay: It's like a Victoria's Secret here in Florence. Besides Kiko I have spent the most €€ here. What is more essential than makeup and lingerie??  lol.

5. Giorgia: She is an Italian singer that I just cannot stop listening to!!! I've downloaded so many songs from different Italian artists but she's been my favorite so far. :) If you want to listen to her, her new single is this but the song I keep on repeat is this one.

 Mia♡

Do you remember my 5 Things Posts??

If you ever followed my UCD blog then you will know that back in the day I used to do this thing called 5 Things That I Heart Right Now. In those posts I would pick 5 little things that made me happy during the week. Well, I feel like I may be taking some things for granted/ I am forgetting to mention things about Italy that are not in the U.S. or are just awesome...Sooo, I decided I am going to start doing 5 Things I Heart About Italy This Week.

1. Kiko: I LOVE KIKO!! Kiko is a cosmetic brand made in Milan that is not too expensive. To me it is like Sephora. I go there to admire the displays. I always have to resist buying something and I've actually gotten pretty good at leaving the store empty handed. It may be because it is always crowded and it is such a small store. Here is my Kiko collection. :)

Not pictured: The Kiko bag I just bought, two nail polishes and an eyeshadow.

2. Universitá di Firenze Sweatshirt: It's pink, cute and keeps me warm. What more could I ask for?

3. Fedez: I am obsessed with this Italian rapper called Fedez.  He is such a cutie and has a voice I could listen to for days. Click here to listen to one of his songs.

4. Paula: Paula is a book written by Isabel Allende. I am reading it in Italian so I am very dependent on my Italian dictionary. I figured it would be a nice way to expand my vocabulary. This book is also written in Spanish and in English so if you are looking for something new to read I recommend it!

5. Pandoro Melegatti: Basically a cake. It's delicious bread that comes in an odd shape made in Verona. If you want more info click here if you want to know more about it.

Mia♡