Burn Baby Burn

Despite just having been in Lugno for an evening, we went back as a class yesterday for an architectural tour. We spent the first half of the day walking around with someone from Giraudi-Wettstein (pronounced Jeer-ow-dee Vet-shteen). Which is a relatively local firm here in the Ticino. The tour ended at the USI, which is the university in Lugano featuring buildings by some heavy-hitting architects and a master plan by Peter Zumthor. The building pictured above is by Giraudi-Wettstein, and the one behind the guys below is by Galfetti, who also happens to have designed the elementary school in Riva, which is sketched in a previous post.

After the tour, we sketched a little bit in Lugano and then had free reign of the city. As usual, Will fell asleep.

We decided that I'm going to post a picture of will sleeping in every city in Europe we visit. Because it's inevitable that this occurs, that kid can sleep anywhere.

The picture is of Will and our classmate Chris sleeping during a break in the tour. I have to give the photocredit to my other classmate Kristin, she's the one who captured this golden moment.

During our free time Jane, Will and I self-toured around Lugano, checking out the architecture, as I proceeded to get yet another burn. I have some ridiculously sensitive skin! There's now a running joke here that includes the phrase, "Hey Steph, it looks like you're a little red..."

Anyways, we ran into some really cool buildings, if you want to check out all the pictures so far, I'll be putting them online soon, whether it be flicker or somewhere else, I don't know yet. That should come in the next post once they are all up (so I'm not posting dead links all over the place). We saw so many things, and walked so much that we were only too happy to get gelato at the gelateria closest to the train station, which has this ridiculous view over Lugano.

Once again, I didn't get to do any shopping, which is definitely good for my wallet, and definitely bad for my morale. But this time it was because I didn't feel like shopping, whereas in Milan, we moved so fast I never had time to stop and shop. (But you better believe next time I will make time) 

As we were leaving the gelateria I heard a familiar accent. Yes, dear readers, I heard the unmistakeable accent of an American. So, being the socially graceful person that I am, I smoothly interrupted their conversation with a big, whopping, "OH, Are you Amercian?!" It turns out that the three people sitting at the table were all American, though one has been living in Europe (Lugano, mostly) for 50 years. She's a retired opera singer, and was discovered at Juliard by Toscanini and sang in La Scala and many opera houses all over southern europe. Her guests were a husband and wife photography team from Chicago (the accent I picked up), and we all had a great conversation. Rather exciting when I think about it.

We got back in time for dinner, which is very good considering I started my shift in the Dining room last night. (At the villa, each week three people have dining room duty, eventually everyone will do it as we rotate through- 1 from Architecture and 2 from business. This includes, cutting the bread, setting the table, and cleaning up.) Gitano and Luigi are our kitchen staff and cook, respectively, and Gitano actually speaks some english. Luigi speaks very, very little. I'm pretty sure he only knows the phrase "I don't speak English". 

Dinner and Lunch should be interesting, seeing as it's a bunch of guys and me in the kitchen (The other two students are guys from the business program). Today we discussed in Italian whether I liked ragazzi (loosly translated to "guys").  The boys got a huge kick out of that conversation, so I had to narrow it down. I'm an uomini (men) type of girl. 

I think we got it sorted out though, at least I hope so (some of those business guys are pretty cute!)

I have the rest of the day ahead of me, so we'll see how that goes. I have a 1/4" detailed model due on friday, for a project that I haven't got very far on yet, so these next few days may include a couple of late nights. 

For now, Ciao Everyone!

Lugano & Milano!

First of all, your daily glimpse of where I live:

So this is the Villa's Lobby. We hang here when we're ready to go out on excursions, or meet up. 

I know, it's pretty amazing. I don't know if I gave you any background on the Villa Maderni yet, so I'll do a little blurbing now:

The Villa Maderni was commissioned by the mayor of Riva San Vitale, who also happened to be the man that led the small area to become the Republic of Riva San Vitale, for probably about two months. The house is over 200 years old (250 actually), and almost everything but the furniture we use daily is just as old as the house! all of the doors, fireplaces, clocks, floors, and rooms are unaltered and original. A lot of the paintings on the ceilings and of the details on the walls are restored to a similar state. It's amazing to live in a place like this. 

I still can't believe it's real to wake up to all of this! It's so strange to see the alps out your window every time you wake up! (that's the view out my window!)

Alright, so again: we've established this place is gorgeous! 

So Friday night, we went (about 30 of us) to a silent film festival in Lugano which is just north of Riva S. Vitale. We walked around the whole city and into the park area, which is... you guessed it: Gorgeous!

After that little trek in the park, we decided to go hunting for a bar, or a club, or anything really. Well, I decided to play sheep for this one, and let the more...intense personalities take the lead. Let's just say we walked around forever. I think that would cover it!

In the end we did make it to the bar, where we spent a lot of the night, just hanging out and having a couple drinks. A lot of us are still getting to know each other (aka the business kids are still getting to know us, and we're still getting to know some of them-- there are a lot more of them!). So then we split a little bit: about ten people went home, and the rest of us elected to stay to go to a club and take the train back early. Well, split we did, but approx. 15 people is still a lot to take from place to place. I swear we look like a mob wherever we go!

It was a ton of fun, and I (typically) spent the whole night dancing. All in all, it's not bad to spend hours walking around when the place you're walking in happens to look like that 

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Eventually we did find our way back to Riva San Vitale (at 4:30 in the morning!!!)

Saturday was (thankfully) low-key, and we spent most of it just hanging out at the Villa. I think everyone needed a break. I went back to the Lido (which is actually how it's spelled, and also how it's pronounced, so please excuse my misspellings from earlier posts) and Julie and I just swan around for a while, trying to ignore the preteen boys being obnoxious (I guess that's the same in every country).

Later that night we started a puzzle of the map of switzerland, but needless to say, that one's going to take a while!!  Everyone just wanted to do something fun (not to mention cheap) so we decided to have a night game of capture the flag. About 20 of us ended up playing, and it was pretty cool. We played in the local elementary school grounds, which is cooler than it sounds. My team won 2 out of 3, so that's enough to make anyone happy!

We called it a night pretty early (especially compared to Friday night) because we were all getting up early to get to go to Milan in the morning at 8 AM!

So today was Milano, and it was really fun. It wasn't too exciting, as we mainly did a fast moving tour of the city. We're supposed to go back with a smaller group, but this time was just a feet wetting for the urban setting. Thankfully, we reverted back to 5th grade and adopted the buddy system. What else can you do when you have 50 people through the streets of Milan?!

So Will was my main buddy, 

(that's him napping beside a bridge when we took a bar break halfway through the day). We basically whipped our cameras out and played complete tourists. It was great. I mean, what else can you do in a mob of so obviously American students?

So this next week we spend in classes and it's Bellinzona on the 29th! 

So until then, Ciao!!

I'll leave you with a picture of the Duomo in Milano [the fourth largest cathedral in the world!]

A little walk around...

So I promised I'd have a couple pictures for you, and so today I'll begin by putting in a couple pictures of the Villa, and the grounds. 

It's been ridiculously hot here for the Ticino, so on Wednesday, we all went to the Leito (beach in Italian) to cool off. I think the whole town was there! 

We mostly kept to ourselves, though I know that once I know more than 5 words in Italian, I'll feel better about going up to them. 

I only know one whole sentence, and that is: Vorrei uno bicchiere di vino bianco, or, "I would like a glass of white wine."

I know, just the important stuff, right?

We started classes yesterday though, and we'll spend an hour sketching each day. I think there's a sort of theme here, where we do each project twice. That means every sketch twice, every project twice. I think it must be about the process. 

There is an elementary school by Galfetti about 50 Meters from the Villa, and we've been sketching that for the last two days (including this morning) though we've been assigned a block of Riva San Vitale per person, and we'll sketch that block the whole semester. My block happens to include the Temple di Santa Croce (my Italian is atrocious, I'm sure), which I'm ecstatic about sketching- it'll be hard to do well, so I'm really glad I've got a whole semester to sketch it!

I love living in the villa so far, though I keep on sleeping through my alarm, because at 7 o'clock AM, the bells at the church ring for mass. It is so intensly loud, that I can't help but sleep through my alarm that goes off at 7:45. Luckily enough, the bells ring again at 8:15. 

It's my own personal alarm and snooze, I suppose.

This just happens to be the view from the computer room attached to the studio. It's from the top floor of the villa, and yes, those beautiful bells would be the bane of my dreams.

So we've established that the Ticino is beautiful... but it's incredibly surreal to wake up to a view like this!

It's impressive to say the least, and from my studio desk, the dome and tower of the Sante Croce are just visible over the classic, tiled roofs of the Ticino. 

All of this, painted against the Alps, stretching off into the sky.

Like, I said...It's kinda pretty here.

Tonight we are going to Lugano, which is a little north of Riva. There's a film festival, and I'm assuming this means, wine, music, and nice weather. So I hope that I'm right about it. 

So for now, I'll bid you adieu, because I need to be at the train station at 7:40

Ciao!!

VIVA RIVA!

I've waited so long to use that as a title post. 

Now, for the down-low:

I made it to Riva all in one piece, and feeling good to be here.

I only once was offered chocolate by a strange man in the Geneva airport.

(I'm so travel-savvy I said no)

I was the second student (of about 50 total that are living in Riva) to arrive at the Villa, and I just want to say, that I want to live in a large, old villa somewhere with maybe three other people total. Because it was so peaceful. I read out in the garden a little bit, and then walked the grounds, and I met a lot of the other students as they arrived, so I know a lot of the people that are here, even the business students!

So let me tell you a little bit about the program: there are 32 business students and 15 architecture students. Everyone always says it's a little segregated; that the architecture students don't really talk to the business students.

This distresses me a little bit. I'd like to know the people who are worth knowing!

I guess however it shakes down though, will be fine. I mean, we spend time together because we take our classes together (which start TOMORROW!) so of course, that's who we would know. 

Also, our schedule is a lot more firm then theirs is: we have specific things we do and places we do- theirs has a little more freedom and choice to it. 

So when they are doing one thing: we are doing another. Doesn't allow for much mixing, eh?

Other than that, the Villa is gorgeous! I love living in a 200+ year old house!! (just the front DOORS are 200 years old!)

I will post a few pictures with each post in a little while, I just have to take them first!

Also, throughout the semester, I may put up some sketches or project work that I'm doing so you can get a feel for it all. 

A little logistics + housekeeping:

If you would like my address here in Riva, or any information such as public phone numbers (and you actually know me aka family and friends) give me a quick email and I will send it to you. You should be able to find it through the blog, but if not- just post me your email address and I will shoot you all of that info back!

So for now, Arrivederci! 

Airport Security

So the first leg of the journey is coming to a close!

Just one more flight until I'm in switzerland and approximately 5 minutes from Riva San Vitale. 

Dulles was easy as pie-- that's my home turf and I knew where I was going. It also helped that I happened to be on the same flight as a fellow classmate headed to Riva! Though we split up in London Heathrow, it was reassuring to have someone to help me through the first connection. 

I'm not going to lie, I'm one ball of stress doing this alone, and by the end of it my shoulders are going to give me hell. 

I think I've been lucky enough to get through unscathed. Though with one more flight to go, I probably shouldn't speak so soon!

Geneva was a little confusing, as I didn't have a boarding pass yet and had to find my way through the airport to the check-in. (It's ok, I had a good 5 hours to do it, and I've still got about 4 left!)

Really glad that I took so many years of French in High School, because while everyone in Geneva seems to speak english, French is their first language, so they always start talking in rapid French. 

La Bas, s'il vous plait, La Bas!

So I'm trying not to look the dumb American, but if the shoe fits....

Just Kidding. 

Well, my pre-paid, outrageously overpriced internet is drawing to an end, so I'll leave you with only one observation from my journey thus far: The Alps look pretty damn cool from here.

OK- and GO!

It's finally here!!

I am about to leave the U.S. in approximately 7 hours. 2 of which will be spent in going to the airport, 3 of which will be spent at the airport, and the other two will be spent waiting and waiting and then some more waiting. 

Don't worry, I've got a couple books. 

I have to admit, I wasn't nervous until last night- when I suffered a "holyshitIleavetomorrowandIhaven'tdoneanyhtingyet" 

I got home from my cousin's wedding late last night. You know, partying with the family. (it was crazy-awesome btw.) Realized a couple things: 1. my luggage was still 10 pounds overweight (what? I absolutely needed 22 pairs of socks)  2. I still had some portfolio work to do (because let's face it, I have a life)

What did I do when I got home? Sleep.

So this morning, my dad woke me up at 8 (by request) and made me an egg sandwich. He told me to breathe, and then I began. 

I'm packed. 47lbs, ohhhh yea, kool-aid style. 

So here's the skinny: tonight I'll be flying into Heathrow (I see London... you're right, no need to continue that one)

By ten AM tomorrow morning I will be there, and then proceed to Geneva, Switzerland, where I will await my shuttle to Lugano, I'll crash at the hostel, full of jet lag I'm sure, and then proceed to Riva San Vitale at any time over the course of the morning. 

Those are the plans. I will let everyone know how they work out...

So Ciao all of my beautiful friends, family, and fellow explorers!! Wish me luck, speedy flights, in tact luggage, and fortune!!

Until next time!!