I've done something really dumb

And that is... going to be prefaced. Every M,T, and F I have Italian. These classes are at different hours every day. Last night Gina and I were making plans and we agreed to go to the Ciompi Market, because I didn't have class until 11 30 on Mondays. I get to school around 11 20 and I'm not concerned. 11 30, I walk down the hallway, but the door is still closed. So then I check the schedule... and today is when I have class at 10 30, Friday is when I have class at 11 30. Ugh! My second to last week and I've forgotten my schedule?? That's so frustrating. Fortunately, there's another Italian I class at 12 30, and I'm going to go to that one, and feel like an idiot.

So Italy has got these monstrously big misquitos. A couple weeks ago Renee and Gina kept getting bit on their faces while they slept. They get inside because we have to open the windows if we want to avoid mold in our apartment. I was feeling pretty glad that they weren't biting me, and I figured that it was because I close my door all day. Then a week ago one bites me in my sleep and leaves a gigantic red spot bigger than anything the other girls have gotten. Since then I've slept with the covers over my face. Last night I'm about to turn off my light when I look up at the ceiling above my pillow. There's a misquito there, just... waiting. Waiting for me to go to sleep. I thrawted him and slept covered all night til this morning. Ha! I hate misquitos. One bit my hand the other day and it itches really bad.

Other than that, I've had such a cultural weekend! Friday we went to the Boboli gardens and sat around and tried to get some sun. I did the first cartwheel that I've done since my ankle injury because I was feeling so good and I'm pretty sure I sprained my wrist. It made a big "crack" sound and hurt really bad and I saw spots for a while. I wore a tank top though, which was fantastic! That was the night of our best tacos yet, we finally got the sheep cheese to mozzarella cheese to parmesean cheese right and we mixed in three different kinds of meats. It was super good. We had a lazy night in because the next day, Gina and I went... horseback riding through the Chianti region!

They drove us out to this farm house and it was really nice and strange to be in a car. My horse's name was Rien (Rienne) and we fought a little bit. She was a trekking trained horse, and I was a Western trained rider. Trekking horses get more slack in the rein than Western trained horses. We argued right up until I hissed at her in Italian, and then we cooperated more. "Facciamo una coda!" Which means, We make a line, because she kept trying to walk on her own side. The path through the woods was a little bit precarious - the horses' hooves kept slipping. It was a little nervewracking sometimes, but it was a lot of fun. Then we had a wine tasting. The white wine was really good but the red was really dry. Really really dry. The day ended with a Tuscan meal that was super delicious. I played with dogs and wore a tank top and it was so sunny and wonderful. The ride home was down this little winding road through all these villages and it was super fantastic. He drove really fast and it was just a lot of fun, and we all sang songs. Bushes kept coming in my window haha.
It was so sunny and wonderful that Gina and I didn't want to go home. We sat in the grassy area outside of the train station and just basked. What a wonderful day!
When we did go home, I fell asleep. I probably would have stayed asleep until the next day if a misquito hadn't bit me on the face. Arg misquitos! So I woke up and make lasagna soup, which was really good. Only it was really spicy, because I forgot my pepperocini garlic mix doesn't have a little filter and I poured in like 1/5 of the bottle. I watched Breakfast on Pluto and then Kevin and I watched V for Vendetta. Good lazy night to pair with my good active day!

We were sort of lazy yesterday. I cleaned and excercised. But I needed to go listen to the Gregorian chanting, which I thought was at 4 30. It was at the church of San Miniato al Monte, which is on the oltroano and up some really steep hills. So I booked it and was there by 4 36, only to discover that at this time of year it isn't until 5 30. Once it started, it was really interesting for about 15 minutes and I was making a lot of observations to myself and enjoying it. Then I started getting sleepy. Then maybe 10 minutes later it turned into a Catholic mass. I was in the middle of the bench and couldn't get up so... I stayed for mass. Until the sacrament was dispensed, when I got to get up and leave while everyone else got up to partake of the host. It was a little awkward for me to be sitting there as a tourist while there were other people there for Church. I was literally pained when some woman started taking pictures. It hurt. I don't know if she was American or not, which would make me feel a little better if she wasn't. But it was an active religious ceremony, not Disney world!
So leftover lasagna soup on a quesadilla is really delicious.

And now we get to the most exciting part of my weekend! Alex calls and asks us if we want to go to some hotsprings in the middle of nowhere with this Italian guy she knows. I can predict reactions. Some of my friends are cheering this idea on, and some of my friends and most of my family is thinking, Oh good, Jessica would never do something like that. Actually, everyone is probably thinking I would never do something like that. Because I wouldn't. Go out into the middle of the woods, into the middle of nowhere, over an hour outside of Florence with people I don't know? When I have no way of leaving if it goes bad? Who wants to get raped? I don't.
Only... I did! Gina, Kevin, Alex, this guy Massimo, and I all went to these hotsprings in the middle of nowhere over an hour outside of Florence and it was fantastic. We were back in a car (and here I thought I was going to die - I was in the middle seat, which has no seatbelt, and he drove at the average speed of 120 km per hour.) The music was good. The baths were fantastic! Someone went and carved actual tubs into the stone and there were little thermal waterfalls. It was a really Italian experience, because only Italians go there (unless you're not Italian and you know someone that is.) It was so relaxing and so much fun. My skin feels really good now too, because they're healing waters. We were there for a couple hours and then we went home, where I had one of the best sleeps since I've been here. I'm so glad I ditched my old prudish self and went.