Buonasera a tutti!
(Forewarning: this blog post turned into a novel because it covers a few weeks worth of trips, so get comfortable!)
I’m still on the catch-up train right now with my blog posts. So much has happened since my last post, but I’m going to try and catch everyone up to speed in one quick post.
But first, I hope everyone had a Buon Pasqua (Happy Easter) this past Sunday! Coincidentally, Sunday marked the 3rd month that I have been here in Italy and I have only about three weeks left before I head back to the United States. It was kind of a sad realization that this amazing semester is about to come to an end, but like all things great and wonderful it had to end at some point right? I have been scurrying around the past few days trying to plan out my last two weekends in Italy. Some things from this semester feel like they were an eternity ago, while other times I feel like I just got here and there are still so many things that I haven’t seen or done.
Anyways, now time to get you caught up. The last time I posted it was about my trip to Sicily and Lamezia Terme. The weekend after my Sicily trip I had my last overnight excursion with API. We visited the town of Siena on Saturday (the forever rival of Florence). Our city tour guide was awful, but at least we got to see some pretty cool stuff on our own. In the main church in Siena there are the relics of Saint Catherine; her skull and one of her fingers are preserved in wax. It was a little crazy, but still interesting to see. The main square of the town is also where they hold the annual Sienese horse race (Palio do Siena). The city is divided into 17 sections, each with its own animal mascot and every year the city sections race a horse in the race for bragging rights over the other sections of the city. Our tour guide was a part of the Elephant sector (she reminded us of this fact at least 20 times). Siena was really pretty, but I still don’t understand how it was such a competitor to Florence because it was so much smaller. Maybe I’m just partial to Florence because I have called it home for so long.
After Siena, we went to a traditional thermal bath for some relaxation that afternoon. By thermal spa, I mean a big resort with a lot of speedo clad Italians and lots of warm pools that smelled like rotten eggs. It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting. At least it was relaxing to just sit down for a while. That night we stayed in a town somewhere between Siena and Perugia that no one knew the name of. It was a little odd because we got there so late at night and left so early in the morning that we literally only saw the inside of the hotel while we were there. It’s kind of a shame though because it was actually kind of a nice town; too bad I can’t tell you which town it was.
On Sunday, we started our day with a tour of the town of Perugia. Unlike our bossy, repetitive tour guide from the day before, our tour guide in Perugia was hilarious because she was so hung over from her son’s rugby party the night before. She was definitely the sassiest Italian that I’ve ever met, and her city tour was awesome. Apparently the city of Perugia went through a lot of oppression by the Pope throughout their history, so it’s the only city in Italy that doesn’t acknowledge the rule from Vatican City. Also, part of the old city is actually underground from where the Pope once built his private palace on top of the city center. Today, the city is known more as the chocolate capital of the country (and the location of the Amanda Knox trials as our tour guide pointed out) than for its history of anti-Catholicism.
(apparently there was some kind of children's festival going on and these were the mascots)
Our last stop for the weekend was at Castello Verrazzano in the Chianti region of Italy. This was definitely my favorite part of the weekend and probably my favorite experience from my time in Italy so far. We had a group wine tour from Gino, the head winemaker. I literally could have listened to him all day long; he made me laugh, he made me cry, he made me contemplate, but most of all he made me jealous of his job. We toured the winery’s facilities and were then served a three-course meal with several wine tastings and a class on how to properly exam wine. It was the perfect ending to a pretty great weekend. The best thing I took from the wine tour: “mangia, beve, l’ama forte e non teme la morte.” Eat, drink, love strong and never fear death. One of the truest toasts I’ve heard in my life.
The weekend after was kind of a quiet weekend. On Friday there was a transportation strike so we couldn’t really leave the city so we made a day trip to IKEA. It was kind of an odd feeling to go to a giant Swedish store, but it also felt a little bit like home for the first time in a while because the whole inside of the store was identical to all the ones I have been inside in the US. My roommates and I tried out every recliner and couch in the seating department and then bought some lingonberry jam and juice ot take home with us. Saturday, we found out we could rent rollerblades in Cascine Park so it’s pretty easy to figure out what we did that day. Afterward, we attempted to go to a Florentine rugby game, but one of the referees didn’t show up so it got cancelled.
This past week was a lot of fun because we had a lot going on. Wednesday, Florence hosted the TRL awards. It’s the Italian division of MTV, but we got to go to a huge, free concert in Piazza Santa Croce. It was a lot of fun, I just wish I would have known more of the songss because it was all Italian artists.
Thursday, my roommate, Derek’s, mom and brother got into Florence so we had to make sure to show them around the city. We also took Derek’s brother out a few nights in a row to show him a good time.
On Friday, Derek took his family on the grand city tour of Firenze, and Johnny and I went on a day trip to Cinque Terre with our friend Danny. It was one of the most beautiful places I’ve seen while I’ve been in Italy. It only took us a few hours and a couple of trains to get there, and once we got there we were able to hike around between all the towns. It felt so great to go hiking! The one thing I’ve missed about home is how easy it is to just go outside and go camping or hiking. It such a long day with a lot of walking, but the trip was definitely worth it.
Saturday, we went with Derek and his family to Pisa. For whatever reason, I was just in a really terrible mood that day so it was probably the worst day trip I’ve ever gone on. In Pisa, the only to see in the entire town is the leaning tower. We literally rode the one hour train there, snapped like 20 pics for about 45 minutes, and then we got right back on the train and went home. I’m sure Pisa is a nice place, but I just wasn’t feeling it so much that day.
That afternoon we went to a rugby game, and this time the two teams actually played. It’s a good thing Johnny was there to explain most of the rules, otherwise I would be have been pretty much clueless the entire time. It was kind of neat to be the only non-Italians there, and now I can say that I’ve seen a rugby match.
Last Sunday was Easter her in Florence, and one of the biggest holidays celebrated by the city. Buon Pasqua! Easter morning we went the “blessing of the eggs” ceremony and then watched the explosion of the cart. It was pretty awesome. It was the third time I had seen fireworks here in Italy and, let me just say, Italian love their pyrotechnics. The rest of the day we enjoyed brunch with some friends from our program, which basically meant that we ate chocolate and drank mimosas until we had to get ready for Easter mass. We made it to the Easter mass in the Duomo and it was a great service. P.S. Italian children act just as restless in church as American kids do. Not helping that fact, a bird had found its way into the humungous church and the kid in front of me was having a joyous time watching it hop around between all the seats. For Easter dinner I FINALLY got my Bistecca alla Fiorentina! We took Derek’s family to a little osteria on the other side of the Arno and had a great steak dinner. It was one of the best Easters I’ve ever had; I just wish I could have shared it with my own family.
Buon Pasqua!
Ponte Vecchio at sunset on Easter
Bistecca alla Fiorentina
Phew, that was a lot. But now you’re caught up on my Italian semester! This week is going to be a busy week because I have two papers to write for final projects in my architecture classes. It’s so hard to focus to write TWO 8-page papers. It’s going to be rough.
This weekend I am supposed to have my last trip with API to Lucca for the day, but the roommates and I are in the process of planning our own camping adventure in the Italian Alps. We also have the Fiorentina soccer game on Sunday. So much work and so little time!
Anyways, I’ll let you know how it goes. It’s so crazy to think that my time here is almost done!
Ciao for now!
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