"Would you like to share some grapes with me?"

Today started with an early morning run (for some of us), fresh baked pastries from a local shop, and a beautiful sunrise... All in all, a normal day in Castiglion Fiorentino. As soon as we were all assembled, we split into two groups: one to trek to a print shop to marvel in our own personal, artistic experiences, and the other to discuss personal safety and well being with our wonderful student leaders. I (Kathryn) was in the first group, and have to say, for a bunch of engineers, we have a surprising amount of artistic talent. Although we won't be opening up our own print shops anytime soon, the experience was simply marvelous.
I (Rebecca) was in the second group, and after a discussion regarding a few of the more practical aspects of our future lives in Aggieland, we were granted a few hours of free time. As hinted by the worsening smell in the dorm rooms, some of us took this time to hand wash our clothes. At least, after hand washing everything in buckets and hanging on lines to dry, using the laundry facilities on campus should be a breeze.
Soon after, both groups reunited in time for a hearty lunch of an Italian specialty: cantaloupe wrapped in either turkey or proscuitto. The relaxation continued with more free time--(although not enough for a few to finish their rowdy game of Risk, or "Risiko"). With no meetings until four o'clock, and the Italian heat and lack of air conditioning for inspiration, a few of us could not resist buying some water balloons seen in a nearby store. After convincing some gullible group members to "come look at this!", a lengthy and refreshing water balloon war ensued.
We passed the rest of our free time quickly, refreshing on some of the discoveries we made in the Florentine museums and preparing to present our findings to the group later in the day. The meeting was a true collaboration, allowing everyone to vicariously enjoy the experiences of the whole group. A little more free time (used for napping or checking out the fresh grapes at a nearby fruit stall), and the only thing that separated us from dinner was a leadership Q&A session with our student leaders. They shared their insights into being successful as a leader at Texas A&M University (as we all hope to be in our next four years).
Dinner was delicious, which was no surprise, and found us dining on pasta primavera, salad, and pork tenderloin. After a briefing on our day trip to Rome tomorrow, we took part in the nightly tradition of gelato! Still recovering between exhuasting day trips, most of us headed back pretty early in anticipation of an exciting day tomorrow. Although the saying states, "Rome: A lifetime is not enough", we still look forward to seeing as much as we can!
Arrivederci,
Kathryn and Rebecca