Month of November Recap

So I realized I haven't blogged in over a month!  The month of November went by in a haze, so I decided to briefly recap what I've been up to.  In between Italian classes, teaching English to kids, and helping keep David organized (which is a job in itself!) I've managed several trips in the last month.

The month of November started with a chocolate festival in Bologna.  Some of the best chocolate makers in Italy crowded into Piazza Maggiore to show off their goods.  We indulged in rich hot chocolate with 'panna' (whipped cream), fondue, truffles, and more!  Here's just a sample:

The next day, still on a sugar-high, I boarded the frecciarossa speed train to Rome.  Now, one day in Rome is not nearly enough; but I did get to see the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, Piazza Navona, and the Trevi Fountain.  Sadly, my camera battery died soon after the Colosseum, (I blame this on my sugar-high), so I'm definitely going to have to return to Rome.

I also visited Verona, which I highly recommend to anyone travelling to Italy.  Verona is such a cute little town, and much cleaner than Bologna.  My friend Staci and I wandered through the German Christmas market while sipping mulled wine to keep warm.  We also saw a gorgeous sunset over the river:

Last Sunday I went on a school art trip to Firenze.  We visited the Uffizi art gallery and saw many works by Michelangelo, Caravaggio, and Botticelli.  We also saw the David, which I must admit, was quite impressive.  Here's the replica of David in Piazza della Signoria (I was not brave enough to sneak past the guards to take a photograph of the real one!)

Last night, David was actually home for dinner to eat with me, which never happens.  I was so excited that I ran out and bought fresh pumpkin tortellini from a local bakery.  I've had pumpkin tortellini several different ways in Italy- with butter and sage, with ragu, or with gorgonzola.  I asked the girl at the counter which way she recommended serving it.  She said the best way is simply with olive oil, salt, and pepper.  And you know what?  She was right.  Simply the best!

Cinque Terre Part Due

  Last weekend, while our friend Evan was visiting, we made a last minute decision to go to Cinque Terre.  And I do mean last minute.  Friday morning, while David was in class, Evan made the arrangements for our trip and forwarded the car rental information to David by e-mail.  David sent him an e-mail back saying, "Great...where are we going?"  

As soon as David got out of class, we ate a quick lunch and zipped over to the airport to pick up our car.  Here's what they gave us:

Just kidding...I wish!  This was on display at the airport.

Driving to Cinque Terre was an experience, to say the least- going up and down these incredibly narrow, curving roads.  We finally got down the mountain, after a harrowing 30 minutes, only to find out the GPS led us astray.  After several old Italian men yelled at us, we realized we weren't supposed to be driving in that area of the town.  To get to our hotel, we had to go all the way back up the mountain and come down a different path.  Needless to say, our nerves were a bit frazzled after that.  Evan and I toasted David's excellent driving skills!

David's trying to decide if all that driving was worth it...

We also had some amazing tiramisu- the first time I've had it in Italy!

Evan found an excellent hotel for us- the room was really nice, and they served an actual breakfast, with scrambled eggs and American coffee!  This is the view from our room:

Since we had limited time there, we decided to take a ferry between the towns, instead of hiking.  I really enjoy being out on the water, but the waves were fairly rough that day.

Still, it was worth it to see this place again- it's so beautiful!  I fell in love with it a second time.

It was a great road-trip- great friends, great food, amazing views.  

Memories that will last a life-time :)

Emiligia Romagna

Our friend Evan is visiting this week, so today we took a whirlwind food tour of the region of Emiligia Romagna.  We started in Parma and sampled some delicious parmeggiano reggiano cheese:

And of course, prosciutto di Parma:

Also, oranges are now in season in Italy!

After shopping all morning, we were ready for some lunch.  We went to Trattoria Corrieri for some amazing home-made pasta (see my blog on Parma).

On the way home from Parma, we stopped in Modena, which is known for the best balsamic vinagrette in Italy.  At a local enoteca, we learned a little about the aging process of balsamico and the owner allowed us to sample some!   

Modena has some beautiful churches as well- I was too busy searching for food to explore them, so I will have to go back at some point.

At the end of the day we came back, exhausted but satisfied, and were able to sample our souvenirs!

Halloween!

The annual SAIS Halloween party was a success!  It was held in the beautiful Palazzo Gnudo, right in the center of Bologna.  I was impressed by the creativity of everyone's costumes- especially considering how busy the students are, and how hard it can be to find costume supplies.  We partied into the early hours of the morning, and enjoyed great music, costume contests, and bobbing for apples!  David and I went as the Joker and his girlfriend Harley Quinn, from the Batman comics.

I thought it was hilarious that Jag, a young man from India, dressed up as an American Indian!

Meaghan is dressed as Salvatore La Ferlita, our eccentric housing supervisor
(she's wearing David's polo shirt!)

Week in Photos

Hey all!  Here's a photo recap of how my week went:

1.  The Chinese students hosted some people for a traditional Chinese meal.  We had rice, chicken with vegetables, spicy potatoes, noodles, sauteed cabbage, and more!

Great job ladies!

2.  After 5 rainy, foggy days in a row, the sun finally came out!  My friend Bryn and I decided to take advantage of the nice weather and go for a hike.

3.  Bologna had it's first ever mortadella festival!  Surprising, since this is the city that invented this tasty meat!  Of course I just had to sample some!

4.  Piazza Nettuno is in the center of the city, so I pass it frequently.  I just had to take a quick photo of this guy on my way to get groceries:

5.  David and I ended the week with a quiet dinner at home.  I made pasta with chick peas and tomatoes, another great recipe courtesy of Pasta Harvest.

Coffee Craze

For those of you that know me well, you know that I love coffee.  That I am addicted to coffee, in fact.  So after 6 weeks of living in Italy, I have finally come to terms with Italian coffee.  Coffee is a huge part of Italian culture, and there are many norms associated with ordering/drinking coffee.  Some things I knew before I moved here- I read Rick Steves and learned that ordering 'un caffe' will get you a teeny cup of espresso.  If you want a more standard size, you need to order 'un caffe americano'.  I also had read about Italians' aversion to drinking coffee with a meal- it is only appropriate to order coffee after you have finished your sandwich.

But some things I had to learn the hard way- such as: never EVER drink milk with your coffee after 11:00.  Milk is to be enjoyed at breakfast time, and only at breakfast time.  After that- it's straight espresso.  This was hard for me to come to terms with since I love cappuccino.  But, it was also a motivation for me to get out of bed early- I did not want to miss my morning cappuccino at the bar next door!  I've also learned that 'latte' is the Italian word for milk, and if you order a 'latte' here, that is what you will get- a cup of steamed milk.  A 'latte macchiato' is steamed milk with espresso.  Conversely, a 'caffe macchiato' is espresso with a little bit of milk.  Macchiato literally means 'stained' in Italian.

Italians for the most part drink their coffee standing up at a bar- a quick sip of espresso and then they continue on their way.  Or they will leisurely sit with a cup of cappuccino and a brioche at a cafe table while reading the paper or chatting with friends.  But they do not have coffee to go- no Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts here.  I think that is what I miss the most- being able to carry around a hot cup of coffee with me as I walk to school.  Now, as the weather is changing and autumn is here, I also miss pumpkin spice coffee.  So sit back and enjoy a Dunkin Donuts Pumpkin Spice Coffee with cream and think of me :)

An Encounter with a Priest

Yesterday my friend Bryn took me on a hike up to the hills surrounding Bologna.  It was another beautiful day in Bologna- perfect for a hike.  Bryn has done this hike several times before, so she knew the path to take to get an amazing view of the city.  Not only was it great to see the city from above, it was also nice to see some green!  Bologna has hardly any trees within the city center.  We passed some vineyards along the way, and some still had grapes on the vine.

On our way back down the trail, we saw a small church with a fountain out front.  Near the fountain we saw a priest and another man doing some yardwork.  The priest yelled out a cheery "Buongiorno!" and waved to us.  We waved back, filled our water bottles at the fountain, and headed into the church.  The church was quaint and had some old murals on the walls.  The murals were not in great condition- they were faded and chipping away.  As we were looking at the artwork, the priest walked into the church and introduced himself as Father Ettore Torrini.  Father Ettore is a short, elderly man with snowy white hair and a welcoming smile.  He spoke English really well, which surprised us.  Then he started telling us his life story- how as a young man he moved to the Brazilian Amazon as a missionary in 1955 (he was 30 years old at the time- he proudly told us he is now 89).  He met and worked with Pope Francis in the Amazon.  He was then diagnosed with leukemia and sent to Chicago for treatment.  In Chicago, he was told his form of cancer was rare, and was transported to the Mayo Clinic for further treatment.  He stayed in the Mayo Clinic for 6 months and had racked up a bill of over $2,000.  The hospital asked him if he was able to pay for the bill, and Father Ettore said no, he had $85 in his wallet, but God would find a way.  During this time, a reporter from the Chicago Sun Times heard about Father Ettore and asked if he could interview him.  Father Ettore's story was published in the Sun Times, and a few days later the hospital told him not to worry- his bill had been paid.  God had found a way!

Father Ettore also told us a brief history of the church.  It was built around 1100, and was later used by Napoleon- not as a church, but as more of a "discotec".  Apparently Napoleon would entertain guests with music and dancing there.  He had painted over the religious murals, which explained why they are in such poor condition.

As we left, Father Ettore told us if we ever need food, to come around and see him.  He sang us a hymn in Italian, preached (briefly) on the importance of love and peace, and the evils of money and war.  It was quite the multicultural exchange as we all were speaking a combination of Italian, English, and French.  I love these little multicultural exchanges!  I hope to run across more while in Italy.

Cinque Terre

           

   

 David and I celebrated our 6^th anniversary in one of the most beautiful places on earth- Cinque Terre.  Cinque Terre is collection of five small villages built into the cliffs on the Mediterranean.  It used to be a hidden gem in Italy, but it’s becoming more popular with tourists.  Long ago, cars were banished from the villages, so visitors can either take the train or hike between the villages.  I’ll explain more about the train service later.  The villages are only a few kilometers from each other, and it’s 7km to hike from town #1 to town #5.  The names of the villages are (starting east to west):  Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corneglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso. 

                We arrived in La Spezia, a town just outside of Cinque Terre, late Friday afternoon.  We checked into our hotel and then took the train to town #5, Monterosso, for a quick swim.  All of the villages except Corneglia are on the water, but Monterosso is the only one of the 5 to have a sandy beach.  After a quick dip, we walked over to Monterosso’s old town to have dinner.  We ordered mussels as an appetizer, and I had seafood ravioli as my main course.  David had gnocchi in crab sauce.  The food was good- it didn’t wow me, but it was good.  We headed back to our hotel early since we had a busy day planned for Saturday.

                Saturday was our big hike day.  We checked out of our hotel and took the train back to Monterosso (#5).  We planned to hike from there to Corneglia (#3).  Unfortunately the trail from Corneglia (#3) to Riomaggiore (#1) is closed right now for renovation.  The towns had a lot of flood damage in 2011 and the trails suffered from landslides.  However, the trails from towns 5-4 and 4-3 are the longest and most scenic.  We started from Monterosso because we read that it was easier to go from 5-3 than from 3-5.  We ran into a group of SAIS students on the trail going the opposite direction.  They also said the trail was tough.  Boy, was it tough.  It was a lot of steep climbing.  I don’t know why I was surprised by this- the towns are built into a cliff after all.  Not only that, but we couldn’t check into our hotel until 4:30, so we had to carry our backpacks.  My sweet husband took my bag and transferred some of the weight to his. 

                The trail was tough, but beautiful.  Once we got high enough, we had an amazing view of the sea and the cliffs.  The sun was warm, the salty ocean breeze was refreshing, and it was so quiet.  All we could hear were the waves crashing and insects humming.  It was so peaceful.  About 2 hours later we came to Vernazza.  We walked through the town all the way down to the harbor and the rocky beach. 

On the trail to Vernazza

View of Monterosso

                After a brief rest, it was time to head back on the trail.  I was happy knowing the hardest part was behind us.  The trail to Corneglia  was challenging, but not quite as difficult as the first one.  It was also a bit greener and wilder.  Cacti lined the cliffs facing the sea.  We passed through vineyards, and saw a man carrying a giant tub of green grapes on his shoulder.  We looked back and saw Vernazza in the distance; its sunset-colored buildings nestled in the cliff.  The sea was a brilliant blue-green, and the sunlight sparkled like diamonds on the waves. 

Classic view of Vernazza

                Eventually we made it to Corneglia - it took us a little less than 2 hours.  We stopped at a quiet little bar along the trail before the town for a drink and a bite to eat.  We ordered a plate of bruschetta topped with local ingredients- olives, peppers, garlic, and onion.  We ate outside facing the sea, under an awning covered with grape vines.  We walked a bit through the town, but didn’t dawdle because we needed to take the train to Riomaggiore  to check-in to our hotel. I felt so elated after such an amazing hike- little did I know my spirits were about to fall.  Cinque Terre has local trains running between the towns that come through every hour…at least in theory.  Rick Steves warns in his book that the trains are notoriously late.  But I was not prepared for the train to be a half-hour late, and then cancelled.  The next train was also cancelled.  Finally the train to Riomaggiore was announced, 2 hours later than originally scheduled.  At this point I was starting to sweat a bit because we had to be at our hotel no later than 4:30.  We watched 2 trains pass by and not stop.  It was agonizing, especially because we could have walked to Riomaggiore in less time if the trail was open.  We debated going back into the town to pass the time.  Remember when I said Corneglia was the only town not on the sea?  We would have to walk up 359 steps to get from the train station back to the town.  So we decided to wait it out at the station.  I’m thankful we made this decision- I’ll explain why later.

               Finally we got on the train and arrived in Riomaggiore.  We quickly found our “hotel”.  The Italians have always wanted to protect the Cinque Terre, realizing how unique they are.  Long ago the towns banned any further building- which means no hotels.  However, many people own apartments and rent them out to tourists.  We rented a room from a nice woman named Patrizia.  When we arrived, she said she had a cancellation and would upgrade our room to a suite with a balcony.  She called her husband to take us to our room.  Patrizia does the administrative work and her husband does the hard labor.  He told us our apartment was high up in the town- up 360 steps.  That’s why I’m glad we skipped the steps in Corneglia.  I was so glad David was with me, because when we reached the apartment, I was so exhausted that it was hard to concentrate on what the man was saying.  Our room was really nice, and the view from the balcony was spectacular.

                For dinner, we decided to head back to Vernazza.  We had read about a restaurant in an old castle up on the cliff, with a view of the ocean.  I had the best lasagna there I’ve ever had- it was lasagna with pesto and béchamel sauce.   David had spaghetti with pesto, which was also excellent.  After dinner I ordered an espresso to fortify myself for the steep walk back to our room. 

                After our hard work-out on Saturday, Sunday was devoted entirely to leisure!  We checked out of our room and headed back to Monterosso for some beach time.  Even though it’s almost October, the weather was warm and the water was refreshing- perfect for a swim.  The waves of the Mediterranean are so calm and the water so salty you can just lie out and float along.  The water is clean and crystal clear and, unlike my friends who went in August, we didn’t encounter any medusa, or jellyfish.  After a few hours of soaking up the sun and playing in the surf, I was ready for some lunch.  We took the train back to Vernazza, which seemed to have better food.  I ordered a sampler of fried fish to go, which they wrap up in a paper cone.  It was bursting with fried prawns, calamari, and anchovies and topped with a lemon.  I happily munched on my fried fish, washing it down with a frosty cold beer.  To me, it was a perfect day.  I will look back on that day a few months from now when Bologna is cold and foggy. 

                I feel that you can’t truly feel like you live in Italy until you experience a train strike, which we did on our way home.  We got a message on Facebook from another student saying that the train workers in Emilia Romagna (the region where we live) were on strike on Sunday.  We weren’t sure how else to get home, so we decided to just show up at the train station and see what happened.  We were able to get home, although we had to pay a few more Euro and arrived later than we had planned.  All in all, we had a great trip- an experience of a life-time.