Day 29 - July 28

 Thursday. Last day of class :( I loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeee my food class. I loveeeeeeeeeee my teacher. And I loveeeeeeeeeeee all my new friends I have met and cooked with in that class! It is so weird to say goodbye to the people I have bonded with for the past month, even just through a class, because I really may never see them ever again. It is such a weird feeling!! Our cooking final went amazing. We cooked spaghetti with a very simple olive oil, cheese, and pepper sauce for the first course and we had 3 celebrity (old students of our teacher's) judges to be served. It was so much fun. I felt like we were on iron chef...only we got to pick the ingredient. I had to make a presentation about the food and where it cmae from and talk about how to make it. It tasted delicious and we ate every last bit of food that was cooked today. At the end of class we all took pictures with Marco, our teacher, and let me tell you that he is quite the character. He was telling everyone how he demanded us to take pictures and that they were totally necessary when we asked if it was ok. He also said that he loved our class...how much? Enough to make a little heart with his hands over the top of my head when we took a picture together!! It was so funny because he wouldn't seem like the kind of person to be funny like that! The picture is
great...and I still need to upload it :) So the rest of the day I was busy, busy, busy. I had to go out and take my pictures for my final project, study for my test, and edit more pictures for my portfolio. I am swamped. I think that I got some good pictures throughout the day, but that never means that my teacher thinks the same thing like ever. I was so stressed out about the exam and the final and all the editing that I had to do that I didn't even get to finish everything! Unfortunately my portfolio is the thing that had to suffer because I did not have time to edit my pictures in the correct format to be  printed. Everything else was done for a grade so I felt those were a little more important. So after we all went crazy a little bit in there trying to keep up with all the work, I forced a group picture! It was so funny. My teacher is NOT photogenic and does NOT know how to take a picture like at all. I even got a picture of him and I together and it took us like 5 times to get one where he at least is looking at the camera with his eyes open. It was like working with a child. But it was really funny because I was laughing at him the whole time and meanwhile we all think that he has a crush on me so he was really nervous...or at least that is what we think. Probably not all that true. But I had to rush out of class to make it for the program dinner for steak tonight!!! We all got dressed up and headed to the restaurant. We had a blast!!! I am really going to miss a lot of the people I have met here and it is weird that I won't be seeing them or talking to them on a regular basis after this weekend!! We all had such a great time eating. I got the famous Florentine steak with the blueberry sauce...oh my god. That is like heavenly. So tasty!!! We also got a pasta sampler...5 different pastas passed around, then dessert sampler which was 4 different slices of dessert!!! There was a chocolate brownie cake, terrimisu, fruit tart, and I think cheesecake or something? I actually do not remember! It was such a good dinner and I am so happy that I got to experience all of this. I loved every second of my time here and it is so sad to think about it being over!! We all decided to go out together in celebration of our last night. It was a good time, but Carrie and I went home early so we could get some sleep before our extremely busy day tomorrow. It will be my last day tomorrow and my goal is to shop until literally all my money is gone!!! I want to get a bunch of stuff done so I don't want to be up too late!!! Can't wait to be coming home, but I really am so sad to leave Florence!!! It has been such an amazing experience that has probably changed who I am and who I will be in the future, but in such an awesome way. I also have made some friends that will last forever I think. I am really close to some of the girls and I know we will make the effort to drive the ridiculous amount of hours that are between us. We just have so much fun and I have become used to talking, seeing, and living with them everyday. Can't believe it is over!!!