What Happens Abroad Read Online Free Page A

Because it was early, we didn’t have to wait in much of a line, and when we made it inside the Uffizi, I thought I’d died and gone to heaven.
    I’d never seen so many beautiful medieval and Renaissance pieces in one place before. My eyes drank in the weeping angels, the frightened Marys, and the other religious images ranging from the beautiful to the deeply disturbing. And then we rounded a corner and I came face-to-face with Venus.
    It seemed like every art class I’d ever been in had a picture of Botticelli’s birth of Venus hanging in the room, but just because I’d seen the image reproduced dozens of times didn’t mean I was prepared for how amazing it would be in person. I mean, intellectually, I knew that the painting was huge, but knowing that and then seeing it take up almost an entire wall were two different things.
    â€œShe’s impressive,” Joelle whispered behind me.
    I could only nod; I was too captivated to speak.
    Joelle and Sarah were patient with me, but having them waiting for me was kind of distracting. Still, when I finally pulled my eyes away from the magnificent piece, I promised myself that I would come back: I’d found my new favorite work of art.
    ~
    We took a break for lunch after we left the Uffizi, although Joelle’s version of lunch was another cup of coffee and a pastry, and then we headed across Florence in search of the museum that housed the
David
.
    â€œWhy are you so hung up on it, anyway?” I asked as we walked.
    Joelle shrugged. “It’s famous art, right?”
    Sarah nodded. “And it’s supposed to be breathtakingly accurate.” She flushed as soon as she spoke, and I giggled.
    â€œSo you want to see it because it’s ancient porn?”
    Sarah looked horrified, but Joelle laughed. “She has a point, Sar; that’s sort of what you said.”
    â€œWell, it’s not like we can come all the way to Florence and
not
see it, right?”
    I grinned. “Wouldn’t want to miss it.”
    Joelle nodded, her eyes sparkling. “Especially if it’s so accurate.”
    Sarah shook her head. “Can we just forget I said anything?”
    â€œNo!” Joelle and I responded simultaneously, and after a moment, we all cracked up. Linking my arm through Sarah’s, I gave her a gentle squeeze. “Let’s find the naked man!”
    â€œNaked men,” Joelle corrected, taking Sarah’s other arm. “I’ll bet the museum is full of them!”
    We giggled until we got to the Accademia delle Arti del Disegno. The museum was a pleasant surprise; although Michelangelo’s
David
was the centerpiece of the place, there was a great collection of other sculptures, too. I should have known that something that was started as an art school by the Medici back in the sixteenth century would be impressive, and I enjoyed looking at the different marble nudes that lined the corridors, especially the ones by Bartolini; it was like he’d captured real people in stone, right down to their personalities. How did sculptors manage to do that?
    Sarah looked a little swoony when we finally made it to the main event, and I poked her in the ribs. “Did you find a new boyfriend?”
    She shook her head. “Something about his face sort of reminds me of Carson.”
    Joelle chuckled. “What, the blank stare?”
    Sarah ignored her. “I think it’s the nose.” She sighed heavily. “I still can’t believe I’ll never see him again.”
    I reached over and squeezed her arm. “I’m sorry. But . . .” I struggled for a moment, trying to figure out a way to cheer her up. “There’s more to life than guys, right?”
    Sarah nodded slowly. “Right. I just haven’t figured out what to do with mine.”
    I nodded. “No one said we had to have everything figured out yet.”
    Joelle snorted. “You must not have met my