Paradise in Cinque Terre

    Last Sunday (9/12) my roommates and I went on a day trip to the beautiful city of Cinque Terre. Cinque Terre is located on the west coast of Italy and is a 2 hour drive from Florence. The city name translates to mean "5 Lands" because there are 5 small towns spread along the cliffs of the coastline: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso.

   Our day began bright and early (or should i say dark and early?) at 6:00am. We all crawled out of bed, threw on our clothes, gathered our things and were out the door by 6:45 in order to meet our bus at the train station at 7:15. On our way to the train station we saw a side of Florence we had never seen before. The streets that are normally crowded with people and vehicles, were completely empty. Although it was very different from the typical hustle and bustle it was quite nice being able to walk the streets without having to worry about being run over by a car, vespa, motorbike, bus or a combination of the four. Anyways, it was a side of Florence I really enjoyed!

   After a two hour bus ride we made it to Cinque Terre. Because the city is located on the cliffs we had to take a train through the hills to reach the first town. Riogmaggiore is more of a pit stop to the rest of the towns so once we got there we grabbed a small bite to eat, lathered on some sunscreen and began the hike to the next town. We climbed a small set of stairs, turned the corner and got our first view of the ocean. It was absolutely beautiful!

First view of the ocean in Cinque Terre

   The path to get to the next town of Manarola was cut into the side of the cliffs so we were able to enjoy the beautiful view during the entire walk. Here are a few more pictures: 

Me, Caitlin, and Stesha

The water is so blue!



  The next two towns we visited were Manarola and Corniglia. Manarola was a cute little town with colorful apartments that dotted the sides of the street and Corniglia was pretty much just a train stop with a pretty view of the ocean. We spent a few minutes wandering around each, but we wanted to get to the more popular towns of Vernazza and Monterosso so we could enjoy their beaches.

The girls and I in Manarola

Manarola

   The next town we went to was Vernazza. Vernazza is much larger than the previous three towns and is located right on the water. Caitlin, Stesha and I walked through the streets, visited a few shops and then decided it was time to eat lunch. We each bought a slice of pizza and sat down right on the dock to enjoy our meal and the beautiful view:

Our view of Vernazza during lunch

   After we finished our pizza, we took the train to the last town of Monterosso which is famous for its beach. When we got off the train and saw how beautiful it was, we immediately decided that we would spend our remaining few hours swimming in the Mediterranean and soaking up the sun. We ran to the bathroom, threw on our suits and headed to the beach. We grabbed the first empty lounge chairs we could find and then decided to take a dip in the Mediterranean. We tiptoed our way to the water (the beach is made of rock, not sand, so it hurts your feet!) and walked right in. The water was turquoise blue and clear and was so much warmer than in California. We all took a dunk and enjoyed ourselves for a little while before we went back to our lounge chairs and relaxed. Here are a few pics from Monterosso:



  After a few hours of paradise it was time to leave Cinque Terre. We rinsed the salt off our bodies (the water was so salty you could literally see it on your skin!), grabbed some gelato to go, and took the train back to the first town where we met our bus to go home. We were sad to leave, but were so happy that we had experienced the beautiful city.

   When got back to Florence it was 9:30 at night. We were all very tired after our long day, but little did we know, it wasn't over yet. We were all about to crawl into bed when three bats flew through our living room window and into our apartment! We all screamed like girls, ran out of the room and closed the doors leading into the living room. We watched and waited for a few minutes, hoping that they would fly back out the windows, but we had no such luck. Instead they flew up into Stesha's room (her room is a loft and is connected to the living room). We were all freaking out (and laughing so hard at the same time!). None of us knew what to do and nobody wanted to be the one to chase them out! Eventually Caitlin decided she would take one for the team. She would go up to Stesha's room and open the window and try to chase them out with a broom. She grabbed her broom, suited up with a rain jacket, pulled the hood over the towel that was wrapped around her head (she had just gotten out of the shower), and headed up. The next 5 minutes were a blur of Caitlin screaming, army crawling across the floor of Stesha's bedroom and running up and down the stairs as she tried to avoid the flying bats. It was probably one of the funniest things my roommmates and I have ever witnessed. We were all DYING of laughter. (Thank God we have it all on video! hahaha) Unfortunately Caitlin's attempts to coax the bats out the window were unsuccessful and we weren't able to get them out until some of my roommate's guy friend's came and took care of them for us. To say the least the whole experience was absolutely hilarious and was definitely the perfect ending to the perfect day.  



"Andiamo a Chiesa.... e Mangiare!"

   Last Saturday night was one of the best nights I have spent in Florence so far. First, Caitlin, Stesha and I went to the 5:00 mass in English at the Duomo. When we first walked in, I remembered the first time I visited the church two years ago with my family. It was even more beautiful than I remembered it, especially the dome itself. It is lined with a magnificent fresco of the Last Judgement and is so tall, it seems endless. Here is a picture: (Yet again, this picture doesn't do it justice... you really have to be there in person.)

   Mass was held in the right wing of the church and the entire building was closed to tourists during the service. The priest spoke perfect English and gave a great sermon on forgiveness. It was such a cool experience getting to go to mass in such a beautiful and historical church. I definitely want to go again.

   After mass Caitlin and I went across the river for a cooking class we had signed up for earlier in the week. These classes are a birthday gift from my parents, but Caitlin thought they they sounded like a lot of fun so she decided to join me. (I'm so glad she did! It's so much more fun cooking with a friend!) The class was in a cute little kitchen with 4 cooking stations and there were 8 other people who signed up for the class. They were all from different parts of the world (Spain, Mexico, Australia, England, and the United States) which was really cool. We split into two groups of five (with one instructor per group) and began cooking! First, we made gelato. Our group made vanilla, while the other made a melon sorbet. After the vanilla had mixed in the ice cream maker for a while we added some melted dark chocolate to make stracciatella gelato (vanilla with chocolate chunks). Here is a picture of it being made:

   After the gelato was finished we started making our pizza! We rolled out some fresh dough (it had been made the day before because the dough tastes the best when it is given enough time to rise), spread a yummy tomatoe sauce on the dough, and topped it off with some fresh mozzarella cheese and basil. Here are some pictures of the preparation:

Mmmm fresh mozzarella and basil

   We stuck the pizza's in the oven and 10 minutes later it was time to eat! We all sat down together and enjoyed the delicious meal we had prepared as well as some great conversation. First we ate our pizza which came straight out of the oven. I was so hungry and excited that I didn't wait for it to cool and burnt the top of my mouth... but I didn't care, because it was so good! The crust was not too crispy, but not too soft and the simple flavors of the sauce, mozzarella and basil made for the perfect pizza.

   After we finished our pizza (Yes, I ate the entire thing) we ended the meal with our homemade gelato. It tasted just like the gelato from a gelateria (for those of you who haven't had gelato before, it's DELICOUS!). My favorite was the stracciatella.  

   Once we had finished eating I was completely stuffed, but 110% satisfied. When Caitlin and I left we couldn't stop talking about how much we had enjoyed the class and decided that we would have to return for another. After this next class I'm hoping to be a pro at making some Italian dishes so I can come back to the United States and make some delicious food for you all!

"...That's Amore"

   Last Saturday night (9/4) my roommate Caitlin and I met our friends Emily and Janine at Piazza de la Republica. The piazza is an 8 minute walk down our street and has become one of my favorite places to go at night. The architecture is stunning and is lit up by a warm gold light, and there is an antique looking carousel that is absolutely beautiful. There are also a bunch of cute little restaurants that surround the square. Here is a picture:

   That night we had dessert at one of the restaurants. Now, I’m not usually a fan of Italian pastries, but the cannoli I had was the most delicious Italian dessert I have ever tasted. The crust was flaky and melted in your mouth and the filling was so rich and creamy. Mmmmm it was so good! I wish this picture could do it justice!

   After we finished our dessert, we walked over to the Mercato Nuovo where the famous bronze boar is located. According to legend if you roll a coin down the boar’s snout and into the fountain, you will have good luck and are guaranteed to return to Florence one day. Even though we are already in love with the city and couldn’t image not coming back to visit, we all took our turns rolling a coin in the fountain.

The next day Caitlin and I woke up early to join Emily and Janine for a trip to Piazza Michelangelo. The Piazza is on top of a hill on the other side of the Arno River and overlooks the entire city of Florence. After we grabbed some paninis we began our trek up the hill. It was a little bit of a climb, but once we reached the top we forgot about how hot and sweaty we were and just enjoyed the amazing view. We walked around for a while, took a ton of pictures and decided that the view would be even more spectacular at night and that we would have to come back. After visiting the Piazza we continued our hike up the hill to San Miniato Church. It was very beautiful and out of all the churches of I have been to in Italy, this one had the best view. 

View from Piazza Michelangelo

Caitlin, me, Janine and Emily in front of San Miniato Church

   After a day of site-seeing, all of the roomies and I went to dinner to celebrate our last night of freedom before classes began. On our way to the restaurant we passed by the Piazza de la Republica. There was a gorgeous sunset that we all stopped to enjoy for a few minutes. As I was standing there taking it all in, I realized for the first time that I was in love with this city. I felt so at home and at peace with my new surroundings. I finally started to realize that I'm not just going to be here for a week or two of vacation (it has often felt like this), but that I will be living here for four months. I will get to experience all that Florence has to offer and will be able to enjoy all of it to the fullest... and I was so excited.  

"You Can Sleep When You Die!"

   After a very long and tiring day of traveling I finally made it to Florence! My trip went very smoothly and thankfully I had no problems. I made all of my connections, my luggage arrived safely, and I even got to sit next to a friend from USD on the 8 hour flight from Chicago to Madrid.

   When I arrived in Florence I went straight to school to pick up the keys to my apartment. I met two of my roommates there (Claire and Shannon) and we shared a taxi to our new home. When we walked inside we were amazed at how HUGE it is: We have the entire top floor to ourselves. There are 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a huge family room, a dining room, and a kitchen. It is the perfect size for the 7 of us. My room is at the back of the apartment and I share it with my friend, Caitlin. In order to get to my bed you walk past Caitlin’s bed, up a small flight of stairs and into a loft. Here are some pictures of my room and the rest of the apartment:

   For our first night in Italy my roommates (Steesha, Cami, Claire, Emma and Shannon) and I went out with a group of people from USD. We hung out at one of the girls’ apartments and then began making our way to a popular night club named “Ventuno” (21). After getting lost for a good 45 minutes, we finally found our way there. By that time it was probably 1:30 in the morning and I was exhausted from the long day of traveling, but I decided to be a trooper and check it out anyways. (As my cousin Catherine would say: “You can sleep when you die!”) Once we got into the club, we walked down a flight of stairs and into a room packed with people dancing to a song by Frank Sinatra (That sounds really lame, but it was actually pretty cool!). The music was blasting, there were black lights and flickering strobe lights everywhere and everyone seemed to be having a great time. I had a sudden burst of energy and all of my roommates and I pushed our way through the crowd onto the dance floor. For the next 2 hours, the DJ played all American music that was a lot of fun to dance to. Despite the many relentless Italian boys, we had a great time and danced the night away. It was the perfect beginning to our Italian adventure!

Steesha, Cami, Emma, Shannon and I on our first night out!