Would you visit a place like this? Had you heard about San Marino or Urbino?

A couple of weekends ago we took an early bus Firenze-Genova to discover one of the biggest coastal cities in Italy, home of pesto sauce and (oh dreamy) focaccia. As I've done in our previous daytrips around the country during these three months, I decided to wear something as fashionable as comfortable and warm enough to deal with an uncertain weather and a long day of walking and touring ahead. Carrying a light, neutral but still warm coat as this Lightinthebox one I'm wearing is as important as carrying a bucket bag in which you can store everything you'll need in your day trip around any Italian city: wallet, smartphone, tissues and so on.

So, what did we do around Genova and what impression left on me this huge, historical city and its surroundings? Well, Genova it's way bigger than I expected, much bigger than Firenze but less touristy (or at least, less touristy when it comes to foreigners, because it was plenty of Italian families with their children) and there are plenty of marvelous sites to discover and take pictures in: Genova's Palazzi, its many University buildings, its commercial promenade covered in ah-mazing porches, both of Genova's ports... For a tiny moment, I kind of regretted being in a city which isn't as big as Liguria's main city and dealing with tons of tourists everyday in my way to class. But then, we all came back late at night to Firenze and I again felt really grateful that I'm having the opportunity of studying in the Renaissance capital for a year.

But anyway, I'll stop talking about nonsense and focus on the outfit. I'm still a bit doubtful when it comes to dressing up to stroll around Italy: the fact that my choices here are a much limited comparing to when at home, summed up that I can't figure out the weather (it changes like a crazy thing every-single-day) and added to the fact that you better wear comfortable walking shoes just makes everything complicated. My advice here to keep safe and warm would be wearing tons of layers: a T-shirt underneath a pullover, maybe a blazer if it's too cold and then your perfect go-to coat. A pair of jeggings, culotte pants with tights or even your favorite jeans are great to complete an Erasmus-proof outfit to survive endless adventures while being abroad.

So... Have you ever visited Genova or any city around Liguria or even Italy? What's your perfect outfit to stroll around when being abroad?

I had a slight beforehand idea that, when you are living abroad for a whole course, you are expected to travel. And travel to exhaustion specially if you are in a country as culturally rich and marvelous as Italy. However, the budget is pretty tight, and being based in a city like Firenze which doesn't have an amazing connection to other European cities if not taking a 6 hour bus doesn't allow me to travel every single weekend to an "exotic" destination like Bratislava or Bucarest. However, Firenze is an amazing location to do an Erasmus year if you want to discover the best places in Italy, because it has great connection with both the south part of the country and the north. You can reach Milano and Rome in about two hours of train, and amazing and less touristy places like Lucca or Arezzo are just turning the corner.

So, as my flatmate and I have developed a great friendship we decided to take a train to a place near Firenze to do some sightseeing. Both of us share passion for travelling and eagerness to master our skills in italian language and culture. She is the one behind the camera while in Italy, and the one who always agrees in enrolling a crazy daytrip to take pictures and discover new places to eat delicious food. This time, we took a train to coastal city Livorno, which is amazingly close to Firenze but at the contrary of what you might think, is not touristy at all. We strolled through the historical center and took some amazing pictures at Terrazza Mascagni near the seaside. We spent the whole morning entering in diverse churches, visiting Livorno's historical forts, had lunch near the beach and finally head over Pisa to take pictures with the Leaning Tower and Cathedral, which has a pretty breathtaking interior.

To stroll around I wore this Silvian Heach culotte pants that I bought on our last tour through the nearest mall, which are pretty comfortable and super versatile, as I can wear them with thights and warmer socks to turn the whole outfit into a Winter-friendly look to wear around European cities. I think we're actually having sort of strange weather around here, because it's almost December but it's not as cold as everybody told me it should be. That's why I always carry with me my basic blazer jacket and envolvent scarf. I don't want to freeze but neither to carry around useless stuff I can't put on!