Location: not London.

My vacation was supposed to start with a weekend in London.  Four other Smithies and I had plane tickets and a hostel all booked, and lists of things we wanted to do, including Kew Gardens, the changing of the guard, the Rosetta Stone, Christmas markets, the Globe theater, mulled cider and mince pies, tea and scones, etc, etc...  On Friday morning we took a train to central Pisa, another train from there to the Pisa airport, and then sat around for several hours waiting for check in to start (we gave ourselves a little TOO much extra time--but better way early than late), excited not just because we were going to London but also because we’d heard there was snow in London.  In fact, there was a snow storm in London.  And we found out while waiting in line to check in that the airport we were supposed to be flying into had just closed.  So our flight was cancelled.  Not delayed, just outright cancelled.

Needless to say, things got complicated.  It’s all turning out all right, though.  I’m back in Florence, staying with my host mother’s mother (who herself is a host mother to some of the other Smithies who have already left.  Her name is Maria Teresa) until Mom and Ellie arrive on Tuesday (I could have tried to get a spot on another flight the next day or the day after, but they were predicting snow in London Saturday too, and if I went Sunday I’d just be turning around and flying back to Florence Monday morning).  Actually, technically I’m staying with my host mother’s uncle, Bruno, in Maria Teresa’s house, because she left this morning for Tunisia with Emilia, Francesa and Eleonora (Emilia’s twin daughters), but not before giving me a key, and explaining how to get to the house, and where the closest grocery store was, and which room I should use, and that I should make myself at home in the kitchen.

I lucked out, because even though I'm disappointed not to go to London this weekend, I can always go another time, and at least didn’t HAVE to go to London--for the other four with me, their travel plans depend on being in London to catch flights elsewhere later in the week.  Also, the London hostel cancelled my reservation without charging me for it, it looks like EasyJet will at least reimburse me for the flight TO London, and, best of all, had I gone to London, I would have missed out on the SNOW in Florence!!!

Except for up in the hills, Florence almost never gets snow.  And even when there is snow, it’s only flurries that don’t stick.  Yesterday evening it started snowing, and kept going all night, so that we woke up to at least an inch or two.  It’s gorgeous.  I took lots of pictures, but I didn’t bring my camera cord with me when I moved houses, so you’ll have to wait about a week to see them.  Did I mention that Florence only has one snowplow? Luckily, the snow on most streets melted fairly quickly (after going through a nasty icy stage that was pretty but perilous).  The buses were still completely out of whack, however, and I wound up walking about 20 minutes, loaded down with my backpack, my duffle, and a shoulder bag to a different bus stop, because when the 10 bus can’t get all the way up to Settignano, they don’t even bother going as far as our house, because there’s nowhere to turn around at that point.  And then I waited about half an hour, maybe 40 minutes before the other bus turned up.  But I got here eventually, and later Camilla (another Smithie) and I went up to San Miniato al Monte to see the spectacular view of snowy Florence, drink hot chocolate, and listen to the monks chant vespers.  It was cold (the streets up near San Miniato are still iced over, and it was definitely colder up there), but beautiful, and full of Florentines (and some stray tourists) marveling and taking lots of pictures and throwing snow balls.  Emilia told me it snows like this maybe once in 20 years.