May 11. Watch out Italy! Ready or not here comes Rachel!! ;)

On this day I will be heading over to the country of pasta, pizza, gondolas, and much more. Super excited for this new adventure. It will be a bittersweet moment in my life. I will be leaving the only home I have ever known (besides the apartments in Greenville...lol). I know it will be a challenging experience for me, but at the same time Im sure it will be very rewarding. I never would have dreamed that I would ever even visit Europe, let alone, live there! I know that God has blessed me with this amazing opportunity. Not many people get this kind of opportunity. It's up to ME to make the most of it and enjoy all moments, even the bad ones. Now, when I sit outside on my porch I imagine sitting from one of the balconies of our apartment. I picture myself reading a good book while drinking a good glass of wine and taking tons and tons of pictures of everything that is around me. I think I will learn a lot from this experience. Only one month to go...it is so hard to believe that is happening to me. Of all people in this world, I never would have imagined that I would be getting prepared for this experience. This kind of thing happens to other people, not to me. Until now! :)

Riding Horses in Tuscany? YES PLEASE!

http://www.florencetours.net/?event=offer.detail&offerId=13153
I've been reading Frommer's guide to Northern Italy. It got me even more excited about living in Italy. It was funny when me and Thomas skyped earlier. I'm pretty sure he got a kick out of me today. I started babbling on and on about these different things we could do. He of course made fun of me. :) My friend sent me information about something she did while in Italy. Riding horses in Tuscany! It sounded like a lot of fun. I saw other tours on the website like riding vespas on an ice cream and wine tour. Thomas really made fun of me about that one! Haha! I could see the secret smile on his face. I think it probably makes him happy when he sees me excited about Italy. But anyway, I am very excited!! I want to have picnics, go to the local markets, go on a bike tour, ride horses in Tuscany, etc. etc. etc. etc.!!!!! :) Now that the praxis is out of the way I can keep my nose in books on Italy! :)