Where do I begin? I can honestly tell you that my first week here has been a whirlwind of mixed emotions and events that will make my stories later on very memorable. To start, my name is Brittany and I am doing an Events Planning internship through Jacksonville University Study Abroad Program. I flew from Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Boston to Rome then landed in Florence after a long, 24 hour flight. I have not been dealt the best hand of cards here because my flights were delayed, I had an 8 hour layover, my luggage got lost and I was just informed that my internship placement here fell through, due to the company going bankrupt. Who knew? It has been very tough for me and I went through serious culture shock and wasn't eating for days. If you have been in that situation, I feel for you. All in all, I stopped, gazed at my surroundings, took a deep breath and said, "Hey, I'm in Florence and I wouldn't want to change a single thing that had happened so far!" So, I am staying positive. I got my luggage, I'm picking up Italian faster than I thought and my new internship placement is in the works. This is an opportunity of a lifetime and overcoming all these obstacles is just one more story to tell.