Student Journals: AIFS in Florence, Italy

Brittany Henthorn
Ohio University
Richmond in Florence, Italy

My Tennis Shoes

Brittany HenthornTennis shoes. Mine are blue and gray. I bought a new pair before I left for my semester abroad. I suppose most people don't give a lot of thought to their tennis shoes - just throw them on if you're going to be on your feet all day, or walking a lot. But mine are special. They've carried me over the centuries-old stones of cobbled streets, admiring structures that have witnessed more of this history than I could ever hope to remember from a textbook. They worked with me to conquer the rocky, coastal tracks of the Five Lands and probably still have traces of the beaches of Italy - sand is a stubborn, lingering memory. In them, I tread softly through the excavated ruins of Pompeii and ran through several stations to catch a train. They hovered over the canals of Venice as I sat on the side watching light and boats reflect in the water. They were there for me when I attempted to support the Leaning Tower, kept me from slipping among the stalagmites of Antro del Corchia, and walked between vines collecting the flavor of Chianti. Together we've visited the homes of Shakespeare's Juliet, Rome's emperors, and opera's Puccini. They know Florence best, having taken the same route to and from classes everyday: around the Duomo, past the Piazza della Repubblica, over the Ponte Vecchio and down Via Maggio. Across the marbled floors of Santa Maria Novella we've walked with tourists, talking about the past and the present and stood in the shadow of the many Davids of Florence. Most fondly, they didn't soak up too much water that one time I forgot my umbrella and had to walk across the city in the rain. Maybe my shoes don't look very new anymore: they are scuffed on the sides, the tread is worn on the bottom, and the color is faded from dirt and sun...and to be honest they smell a bit. But they have more value now than they did when they were new, and I'll forever remember the places we went together.

Richmond in Florence

Richmond Florence Internship Program