Hi guys! Sorry I have been so MIA lately I was abroad for my spring term in Florence, the land of pizza, pasta and gelato!

Obviously there were many #treatyoself and #cheatdays while abroad but the 3 mile walk to and from school each day helped balance them out. I know taking a leap of faith can leave you feeling anxious but doing something completely different and out of your comfort zone rewards you with unforgettable memories and once in a lifetime experiences. The hardest part of the adjustment is living in someone else’s home; for the first two weeks you feel like a complete stranger, but it soon starts to feel like you really belong there. It was a little scary having no say in what I would be eating for dinner every night but that was part of the experience, and having a host mom who cooked meals outside what I normally eat,  introduced me to things I may not have tried otherwise. Fortunately, in my case she was an amazing cook and was super into being healthy. She would whip up healthy spins on some classic Italian dishes. Some of my favorites that she made were eggplant parm, steamed veggies with rice and melted cheese, lentil soup and of course, pasta carbonara.


















Even though there were plenty of #treatyoself meals it is easy to balance it out with all the healthy foods Florence has to offer. It wasn’t difficult to find great healthy alternatives to the paninos and Gusta pizza. We discovered this place called Shake Café where you could get some bomb smoothie bowls, avocado toast, and awesome salads. Italy is known for their extremely fresh produce so even if a salad sounds boring at first, but the produce makes a world of difference and makes for a surprisingly satisfying meal. Also, most restaurant have tons of healthy alternatives on the menu and if they don’t, don’t be afraid to ask for suggestions or possibly a substitution. Some of these options were a tuna salad or Greek salad, soup, frittatas, and all types of meats or fish. Some of my most memorable meals were actually something on the healthier side, like the curry glazed salmon from Osteria Santo Spirito, which I highly recommend and then maybe split their famous truffle gnocchi for the table 🙂 🙂 🙂



Life is all about balance so if that means you’re going to Italy you better enjoy everything it has to offer, like gelato at least 3 times a week 😉 even though the change is a little daunting I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything. You rock Firenze!

xx, FF