Florence wasnt what I thought it would be. I arrived after the cinque terre, one of the most beautiful places ive been too. A place that you picture Italy being, small houses, on the cliffs next to the ocean, perched up high waiting for the birds to fly by. I loved the Cinque Terre. My arrival in Florence was nothing spectacular. Took a train after a sleeping on the rocks the night before, not getting much sleep. On my train ride there were fisherman that were on the harbor fishing next to the rock i was sleeping on. I couldnt believe these older men, they stayed up all night fishing and then went home. Crazy.
I had to transfer 2 times and finally i get to Florence. The plus about Florence- air conditioning. Italy is hot. So I finally made the executive decision to only stay in hostels with AC because I didnt want to get up at 2am (like i did in Rome) and shower in cold water as a way to fall asleep. So my hostel had AC...thats a plus.
As i trekked around Florence I was once again around a city with tons of people who were tourists. THey were looking at Duomo and the many churches and museums Florence has to offer. But as for me, I just couldnt get into Florence. Maybe I was tired of traveling and seeing churches or maybe I was missing friends or maybe its many factors. Regardless I felt restless in Florence. I walked around a lot and just thought about life and the people surrounding me.
I couldnt help but think about how so many people are visiting these churches, these places that are meant to show God and bring people to the truth of who God is through pictures or through sculptures or through words but instead of pointing to God...people were going to see the history but not see the Maker of it all. Instead of seeing how Great God is people were praising the artist, forgetting the Creator who gave the creation their gifts and abilities. I dont know if ive written about this before but so many times throughout my trip as ive visited churches I have left sad at how blind people are to the Truth staring them right in their faces. I keep thinking about Jesus and how he cleared the temple when people were selling items in it and not allowing it to be the Holy place that is. I felt the same way during my time in the Duomo and the many other places ive been too. This is not being treated as God's house, but a den of photos, a den of experiences people are craving to experience to fill them for a time being. The last thing it is doing is giving praise to God.
I felt empty for a time in Florence. There was one place that brought life to me and it was michangelo's piazza. It is one of the most beautiful views of florence. I went up there around 6pm so i could see this piazza and the sunset and i stayed there for 3 hours. Just watching the people, looking at the city and just journaling about life in the midst of one of the most beautiful sunsets ive seen. I was sitting on these steps that about 100 other people were sitting on with me, just taking in this breathtaking view. I felt so much love and appreciate for God in this moment. I also wished for certain friends to be there with me, drinking wine and just talking about life. I loved these steps. I loved this view. I also then loved Florence. Being away from all the craziness in the city and seeing it from afar brought a lot of appreciation for the city itself. I left these steps feeling so alive and feeling good about my hazy future. I also left these steps in so much gratitude of my life back in the states and of my community that is all over.
I left these steps ready to leave Florence, basically ready to leave Italy and move on. I was going to go to Venice but a beautiful distraction interrupted that thought. A friend from Labri- stef- was in Italy studying and she had a free week so we started talking about traveling together. So, I decided last minute that I would meet her in Milan and go to Switzerland with her. The funny thing about all of this is that we were communicating via email, we never got to confirm our meeting at the train station so I booked a train that arrived 10 minutes earlier than hers and just went. I get to Milan, I find her and she freaks out because she had no idea I was coming because she didnt have internet to actually check to see that i had responded saying I was coming. There are so many other crazy things about Milan that happened but all you need to know is that God set up this meet, set up this entire excursion to Switzerland.
I have a couple words about Switzerland- CLEAN and BEAUTIFUL! The train ride itself was like a beautiful tour through the country and i was thankful for just the ride. We rode through the alps, through rolling green hills and through towns that were beautiful and quaint and peaceful just from the look of them. As we were riding on the train I felt so much peace. This is exactly what I needed, a change of pace, a different place, and being with friends.
We spent 4 days in switzerland and none of them were planned. We figured out where we were staying when we got to the city and just played out life as it went . There is something so freeing about not having plans. I am such a planned person that it was nice to just live life and watch all the scenes unfold. Some scenes were funny and some were stressful but in the end the whole trip to switzerland was a huge blessing. We went to the lake and laid out, had picnics from the cheese we took from our amazing breakfast at our hostel, met people at a bar and made dinner with them the next night, ate chocolate, played the guitar at 4am with some gypsish people and just walked the streets of Zurich and Lucerne marveling at how beautiful they were.
So my unplanned and random trip opened to my eyes to how much planning can get in the way allowing life to happen and to just be. just letting life play itself out......something I want to continue to bring with me wherever I go.
so switzerland was my lifesaver. and was my reminder on just how big God is. i've never felt so taken care of and realized on this trip just how much God has shown up daily for me while traveling. I may be planned or unplanned but God is always present and that is my peace and my comfort.
No comments:
Post a Comment