Sorrento, Capri, & Napoli

                                              ^Our Pizzas in Napoli
                                             ^ The beautiful Australian as we ate our paninis 
                                                       ^The amazing Blue Grotto
                                                 ^ Coming back from a swim in the Green Grotto
                                              ^katie, michelle, erica, me, wayne(the australian), travis, & jake
                                                        ^ On our private boat in Capri

My trip this weekend was amazing! It was the best vacation I have ever been on. On friday, we left Firenze at 1:15pm. We had to switch a bunch of trains, as that was the cheapest way, and finally got to Sorrento at 11pm! When we got to our hostel, we found out that our roommate was a gorgeous Australian. He was sooo nice and soo cute. We immediately got some limoncello, since that is what Sorrento is famous for. We went to sleep after that and woke up early to catch a boat tour of Capri. But we missed the boat by about 2 minutes. So we decided to take a ferry to Capri and just go from there. When we got to Capri, we found out that we could actually take a private boat around the whole island! So we jumped on and saw the whole island for about 2 and a half hours. It was beautiful! It was very warm out, but not too hot. We saw the white grotto first, then the green grotto, where we jumped of the boat for a swim in the Mediterranean ocean. The water felt so nice and was extremely salty. After our swim, we lounged around on the boat until we got to the Blue grotto. To get inside we had to get into a tiny 3 person boat, because there is a tiny little cove that you have to go under to get there. It was scary because we went straight into darkness. But once we were in there, the water was SOOO blue, it was like aquamarine color. Everything was dark, except for the illumination of this water. There was singing from the men paddling the boats and it was absolutely amazing. I have never seen anything like it before. I actually got pretty emotional since this was the place my Dad said was his favorite in Italy. It was as if going into this grotto gave me some closure. It made me feel more connected to him, which made me feel very happy. I am very fortunate that I got to experience this.  After we got back on land, we ate at a panini place. Then we walked up to the main square, which was quite a hike, but definitely worth it for the great views. Later we went back to sorrento and went to an outdoor bar/club, where we became friends with some Canadians. It was absolutely amazing hanging out with an Australian and Canadians the whole weekend. It is actually funny because hearing their accents all the time made me aware of my own American accent. I've never noticed my own accent before, but hearing theirs made me hear my own. On sunday, we went to Napoli because we wanted to eat at the place in Eat, Pray, Love. When we got there, it was closed!!! But the pizzeria across the street from it is owned by the same family so we went there. The pizza was delicious!!!! But Napoli is not a place I would ever want to visit again. It is such a sketchy place. I had to hold onto my bags really tight because there are creepy people everywhere. It is not a very pretty place. There is lots of litter that no one bothers to clean up. But I am glad that I experienced going there. At 2pm we boarded the train and took only one straight back to Firenze. We got back at 8pm and I was exhausted! I came back with lots of great memories and a souvenir bottle of limoncello. This was definitely my favorite trip and I want to go back very, very badly!!! I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to visit Italy. 

Taco Tuesday

nothing too excited has been going on here. School is going good. I got an A on my last test, only missed one question :) I am trying to plan a trip for this weekend. Tomorrow I am thinking of going to Pisa. This weekend I wanted to go to Naples, Sorrento, and Capri, but I don't think that is going to work out. Today my Culture teacher, Marcello, told us that Lasagna originated in Bologna, so I definitely gotta make a trip there to try some. For my birthday in November, I am thinking of going to London to go on a Harry Potter tour! But the new Harry Potter movie comes out at the end of November, so I don't know which one I should go for. 

Tonight the roomies and I all made tacos!!! It was delicious!!! We mixed beef and chicken and bell peppers and onions and spices and tomatoes and lettuce. It was a nice change from pasta, not that I am getting tired of it or anything. 

Weekend

So the field trip was amazing! We first went to Volterra (yes, like the Volturi in Twilight). I didn't care too much for Volterra. It was filled with lots of history, but I did not really find it interesting to me. But our next stop was San Gimignano, which I loved!!! It was absolutely beautiful and had great views of all the vineyards. I bought a bottle of white wine with 4 other people and enjoyed the view. After that, we went to Casa Machiavelli for dinner. It was a traditional Tuscan 3hr dinner. The food was great! We had bruschetta, minestrone soup, ribs, chicken, potatoes, salad, and red wine. The minestrone soup did not look appetizing when they served it to us. It was really thick and looked kind of like mush. I was anticipating if I should eat it or not, but I knew it would be rude if I didn't. So I tried it and it was delicious!!! It was sooo good. I actually did not care too much for the wine though. For desert we had biscotti with a dessert wine. You are supposed to dip the biscotti in the wine, but I also didn't care for that either. So I just ate the biscotti by itself and it was delicious. We got back from our field trip at 11pm and then I had to go straight to bed because I had to be up on Saturday morning at 6am, since we were going wine tasting at 7:30am. We took a bus to Chianti with a tour group. Our tour guide's name was Luca, who was absolutely gorgeous! Chianti was awesome right from when we got there. We took a 2 hour hike through all the vineyards and took lots of pictures. The hike was a lot of fun, but it was pretty intense at times, because Chianti is pretty hilly. Then after our hike, we went to an old family owned villa for lunch and wine tasting. The lunch lasted for about 3hours. We first had bread, salami, prosciutto and white wine. Then we had toasted bread with garlic olive oil on it. It was amazing! I think this is now my favorite thing to eat. After that we had 2 types of pasta, pesto and tomato. They were both really, really good. We had red wine with the pasta. I loved the red wine! It was chianti classico. I even bought a bottle of it before leaving. So we got back to Florence at 6pm and I was exhausted! So I decided to play it cool for the night and just go to sleep instead of going out. I'm glad I did that because this morning I woke up very refreshed! So I went out by myself and got a cappuccino, then explored a little to see what kinds of shops are close to my apartment. Then I was craving these little salty bread rolls from my favorite bakery, which is about a 10 minute walk. But when I got there, it was closed! So I got a panino right across from my apartment, which was very very good. The top picture is of me in Chianti. The next picture of of Erica, Katie, and I at San Gimignano. 

ciao ciao

The inside of the Duomo is open everyday to the public for the cost of 8 Euro. But once a year, they open the terrace free of cost. Yesterday was the day, September 8th. We had to see the terrace, as it was a once in a lifetime chance. It was raining and we had to wait in line, but it was all worth it. The view was amazing and you could even see my apartment's terrace which was really cool. Tomorrow is my first field trip! We leave at 9am and we are going to visit 3 places. It is an all day trip, so we won't get back to Florence till midnight! We are going to Volterra, San Gimignano, and Casa Machiavelli. I am very, very excited! Then on Saturday, we are going wine tasting in Chianti. We are doing a 2 hour hike to the vineyard. It is going to be an intense weekend, but it will be so much fun. Last night, my roommates and I made a huge feast! We made pasta primavera (with zucchini, eggplant, bell peppers, and chicken) and garlic bread, and salad, and red wine. It was great! Then after, some people came over and we all hung out and studied for our test that we took today. School is going great. I love how my teacher speaks in only italian in class. I am really benefitting from it. He also doesn't let us talk to our friends in english in class. If we speak italian then he is totally fine with it. It is great! One bummer is that I think I am starting to get a cold :(  My nose is a little stuffy and I woke up this morning with a sore throat. I hope it goes away! 

Pizza and Gelato

I just had pizza at a small pizzeria around the corner from me. It was a giant piece of pepperoni and it was delicious. All the tourists were staring at us gulping down our pizza, while standing in front of our apartment. Then after that, we went to get gelato! I got caffe and it even had some coffee beans in it. Sooooooo good. This was my first time having pizza and gelato in italy! But I'm sure my lactose intolerance will get back at me sometime soon. But o well, it was definitely worth it. This morning class was great, my teacher took us outside to a piazza. On our walk there, Devon and I had a full on conversation in Italian with our teacher. We were very proud of ourselves. So I found out today that my school is offering volunteer opportunities to get acquainted with italian culture. I am seriously thinking about signing up for a couple of them. I need any way possible to learn more italian! Also I am thinking of getting a meal card at the local university so that I can go eat there. 

Piazza di Michelangelo

Today, we hiked up to the Piazza Michelangelo. I went with Devon, Liz, Kelsey, Michelle, Lauren, Bruce, Sam, and Rudy. It was pretty much all uphill and it was very, very, hot. First, we went to the grocery store to buy food for the hike. We bought tomatoes, basil, bread, cheese, olive oil, salami, and red wine. Once we hiked up to the top, we sat down and enjoyed the amazing, breathtaking view. Then we all ate our delicious lunch. I've found out that when in Italy, all you need to have a good time is an amazing view, flavorful food, great friends, and some deep conversation. There is no need to rush anything. I plan on doing things like this a lot more. Today I also realized how close my apartment is to the Ponte Vecchio. If you walk right from my apartment you will hit the Duomo, and if you go left, you will hit the Ponte Vecchio. I am so excited to sit on the bridge and write, with the water as my inspiration. I think that's why I am so excited to go to the coast, because anything by water makes me happy. Italians culture is extremely relaxed, but I have found 2 exceptions- the grocery store, and driving. At the grocery store, they ring you up so fast! And they make you bag your own groceries, while they are moving on to ring up the next person. It is pretty stressful! Drivers here are insane! The cars get sooo close to the pedestrians! They seem to be in such a rush. They don't pay attention to the lane lines. They just drive right in the middle at high speed. No one in their right mind would even think about crossing the street without looking the entire way across. I swear the cars and vespas come flying around the corner at of no where! Tomorrow is back to school. I am so tired from the hike, that I am sure I will pass out early tonight.

Ciao

Ciao

yesterday I got to skype with my mom and Gianni, which was great. Then after, we invited a bunch of people from school over to our place for wine. So many people came, our apartment was completely full. After that we all went out and had a great time. Everyone went to Cinque Terre this morning, but I decided to wait for that. I need to get some priorities straight before going on any trips. So today we are going to Ikea to get some apartment essentials, then after that I am going to go grocery shopping. I think I am going to go to the outdoor market to get all the fruits and veggies. I can't wait to cook! I want to make bruschetta, yuuummm. I also need to see if they have soymilk here. I will update later.

Hello September

Ciao,

Last night we went to a club opening called "21" which was really fun, but waaaaay too many Americans, then today when we went to school, my teacher took us to the bookstore to buy our books and then instead of taking us back to class, he took us to a cafe for coffee and pastries. What a great teacher :) Today we are going to take it easy and relax. We have been on the go so much that we just want to catch our breath. We are finally in our apartment and it is great! The pic is of my new room!  We have a huge flat screen tv, but ALL the channels are in Italian! So I have a plan. I want to buy 2 of the same books (novels), one in italian and one in english and then read them at the same time to see how they translate. I love everything about Italy so far, but I only have one complaint. Everyone smokes here. The smell of it burns my nose, so I just have a constant burning sensation, pretty much every minute of each day. So that is that only thing that I wish was different here. We went to a great panini place today. It is literally a hole in the wall under a tunnel right down my street. I had a panini with mortabelli (I have no idea what that is, but I wanted to be adventurous and try something new) and ricotta cheese. It was delicious!!! I think I will probably try every panini they have there in these next nine months. So I think I need to invest in some good walking shoes. These cobblestone streets are definitely tearing up my American shoes.  So when we were touring this apartment, the Duomo bells were not loud at all. But this morning the loud ringing bells woke me up at 6am! and 7am! and 8am! till I finally got out of bed. They are a lot louder early in the morning when everyone is asleep. So I think I might buy some earplugs. Either that or wake up everyday at 6am, get an espresso and get the day started. Ha, we will see. 

Ciao Ciao