Il Dolce Far Niente - The Sweetness of Doing Nothing

This week was definitely a 'down week' for our group, we took it easy as far as night life and tried to get more into the mentality that finals are just around the corner somehow, but we still had some pretty good highlights.
 

Thursday we went to Monteoliveto, a Benedictine monastery in the hills of Tuscany started by Bernardo Tolomei. There were dozens of beautiful frescos by Luca Signorelli and Sodoma, and we got to see the Abbey, which was pretty cool. Some parts of the monastery are still strictly cut off from outsiders, so we didn't see all of it, but we did get to visit the library and the pharmacy. It was crazy to think that people never had to leave that place for anything. 

Afterwards, we went to Pienza and learned about how Pope Pius II (whose family was from Siena) basically wanted his own perfect Renaissance town, so Leon Battista Alberti created it for him. Its interesting because the main cathedral doesn't have any Christian symbols like Mary or Jesus on the facade, but only the crest of Pope Pius II, which according to our professor proves that the town was to assert and boast the power of the Pope. The main square in Pienza is formatted in the same manner as an ancient Roman Theater, with a clear focal point in the center of everything, proving it truly is a perfect Renaissance town. 

This weekend, our group truly came to understand the meaning of the Tuscan phrase 'Il dolce far niente" - The sweetness of doing nothing. 

This was our last weekend to get away without having to worry about school, because next weekend is the weekend before finals and no one will want to go too far from Siena. We have been kind of burnt out by the hustle and bustle of running around big cities littered with tourists and long lines, so we decided renting a villa in Tuscany would be the perfect way to spend the weekend. It took a long time to find one that slept 12, wasn't too far, and that was within our price range, but luckily, Nicole came through again and found a great place in the Chianti Region near Monte San Savino! 

 

Friday afternoon we took a bus to Monte San Savino, and the people we were renting from sent a big van to pick us up from the stop and bring us to the grocery store. We ran into the store and proceeded to buy way too much food, and when we brought all of our bags out the guy who was driving us must have thought we were crazy to have bought that much food for 3 days.  After filling the entire trunk with our groceries, we hopped in and drove to our Tuscan paradise! As we pulled into the driveway we all started freaking out, it was absolutely gorgeous! Our own little secluded oasis - complete with an infinity-edge pool and an outdoor balcony! We spent all of Friday and Saturday by the pool asking ourselves over and over "What did we do to deserve this?!" We all decided we have to say "Thank you Mom and Dad!!"

This morning it was full on cleaning-brigade to make sure the house was left the same we found it. We realized we didn't have return tickets to Siena (oops..) and we didn't know where the closest ticket office was (double oops). We asked the lady who we rented the house from and she said that her friends could drive us back in their car for 10 euro each. We've come to realize we have a 'Study Abroad Goddess' looking over us, who consistently has been getting us out of could-be problematic situations. So, rather than paying for an hour long un-airconditioned bus ride, we took about a 35 minute car ride with the music turned way up.

So, tomorrow starts our last full week of class, Friday we're going to the beach, Saturday we're going to Florence to see Roberto Benigni's "Tutto Dante" (Everything Dante), and then next week is our last week in Italy. After this weekend of relaxation, with a chance to recenter, and again be reminded of the beauty that exists in this world and in this life, I'm ready to make the most of the next 13 days. 


"Happiness is a consequence of personal effort. You fight for it, strive for it, insist upon it, and sometimes even travel around the world looking for it."