Required to Eat and Drink

I am currently taking a Pairing Wine and Food taking course while here in Florence and I must say, it has been an awesome class. The course is centered around understanding the basic elements of tasting, describing and experiencing wine but also understanding how to pair wine and food to create a gastronomical explosion that resonates throughout the body. Over the past few months we have learned how to properly taste wine, focusing on the visual, your nose and your palate and have cooked various recipes that our teacher pre-pairs and we break down the pairing and rate it: no match (ice cream and wine--barf), refreshing (nothing too special but there is some balance and the mouth is cleansed), neutral (table wines usually fall here), good match (wine brings out flavors in the food and the food brings out aromas in the wine. wine isn't over powering and body is satisfied) and synergistic pair (gastronomic stars align and you go to food and wine heaven. rare, but very possible).

Now the reason I am blogging about my class is because we had a "field trip" to a restaurant where we put the skills we have learned in class to first-hand work. Basically, we got to eat an amazing four-course meal and drink wine all for academic purposes. I know, my life is very stressful. I love Italy because of its strong roots to food, wine, and the beauty of pairing them together. This class seems like an odd/silly one to take but it has really opened my eyes to Italian culture and has made me feel more immersed and appreciative of being here. The best way to learn about a culture, aside from learning the language, is to eat their cuisine and drink their wine! Back to the dinner...

We ate at Cosa Toscana and the atmosphere was very rustic, dim lighting and lots of wood. We have four courses, each with its own wine. I'll talk about each dish, wine and the overall pairing.

First Dish: Prosciutto di Pratomagno con Mozzarella 

Wine
Type: White
Name: Greco di Tufo
Grape: Greco Bianco
Region: Tufo in Campania
12.5% 2010 D.O.C.G.











The wine was a light golden color and smelled of sweet apples and had earthly aromas, more spring than heavy vegetation. The wine was not very strong in its aromas and the taste was similar to the smell. It has a light body, meaning it rests lightly on the tongue and a medium acidity. I found the wine to be semi/dry, meaning I could not taste the sugars in the wine and there was some residual salivation after I tasted the wine. Simple wine but when paired with the prosciutto con mozzarella, the wine balanced nicely with the meat, bringing out the saltiness in it but left my palate feeling smooth afterwards.

Overall, I found the pair refreshing because the wine brought out various flavors in the food but it was not over powering nor the greatest pair I have had. Simple wine and a simple dish. We learned in class that when pairing, you are supposed to look at the characteristics, aromas and textures in both the dish and wine in order to pair. So simple--simple can go together, complex and complex but also simple and complex. There is no exact science to figuring out what wine with go with what dish, but we can use the knowledge of the dish and the wine to hopefully choose an enjoyable, in not amazing pair. Practice makes perfect!











Second Dish: Penne with Meatballs! (no, they were not the size of my head)

Wine
Type: Red
Name: Borghi Nero D'Avola
Grape: Nero D'Avola
Region: Sicilia
13% 2010 I.G.T










This red was very complex and bold. It was a deep red, burgundy color (I always enjoy the various colors red wines have. Fun fact: red wines get their color from the grape skins being added for a period of time during the making of the wine) When smelling the wine, I picked up red berries and deep earthy  aromas. It is always difficult to fully express what you smell, sometimes it is difficult to find the exact word for the scent you are smelling. Taste can be challenging too, I was not used to having to really think about what I was smelling and tasting, it is not apart of the American culture to analyze what is going on in our mouths. I appreciate Italian culture more for doing so. This wine had a medium body, semi-dry, high tannins (gums felt very dry after drinking it) and medium acidity.

The wine had a bold taste and paired very nicely with the bold flavors in the pasta dish. Both the dish and wine were full of flavor and they balanced each other nicely. The wine brought out the flavors in the pasta and meat but the pasta did not bring out the alcohol in the wine, making it go down smoothly. I would consider this to be a good pair because the wine brought out characteristics in the pasta that the pasta did not have on its own. Unfortunately, the pasta had a large amount of peas in it, sadly I am allergic, so I was only able to take a few bites before my mouth got itchy. Luckily I had the wine to cleanse my mouth :]





Third Dish: Tagliata di Manzo con Rucola e Grana 

Wine
Type: Red
Name: Primitivo Salento
Grape: Primitivo
Region: Puglia
13.5% 2010 I.G.T










Compared to the first red, this wine was a deeper, rich red. The smell was also different, it had floral, sweet berry aromas but when I drank it, the aromas were more earthly than floral. It had a medium body, high acidity, low tannins and was semi-sweet. The people around me couldn't smell the sweet berries but maybe they tasted them because we found it to be sweeter than dry. I really enjoyed the wine but when I had the steak and wine together I found the pair to be fairly neutral.

I didn't find that the wine did much to the dish and my mouth felt clean afterwards, the wine was almost a little too powerful for the heavy meat. It is also personal taste, others liked the pair but maybe my dislike for red meat had an effect on my reaction to the pair. Pairing is a personal experience, one person may find the pair to be perfect, where another might find it neutral or refreshing, it all just depends on the person and their mouth.















Fourth Dish: Crostata di Ricotta 

Wine
Type: Liquoroso
Name: Zibibbo Sicilia
Grape: Moscato d'Alessandria 
Region: Sicilia
16% I.G.T

This dessert wine was very sweet, sugary tasting. It tasted like fruit loops almost and smelled like them too. It was a beige color and paired with this cheesecake type dessert, it wasn't my favorite combination but I liked both of them individually. Maybe there was too much sweetness going on at once, but the texture of the ricotta with the intense taste of the wine was not my favorite.

The overall experience of the dinner was very exciting and fun. I enjoyed thinking about what I was eating and drinking and using what I have been learning in class in a real life situation. Every time I go out to dinner I critic the wine and how it effects what I am eating and vise-versa. I enjoy being more knowledgeable about wine and feeling like I have deepened my understanding of Italian culture. I wish I could travel to every region in Italy and try their local cuisine and wine. I will definitely come back to Italy in the future and see more of this amazing country.

SKYDIVING

As you all know, hopefully, I went to Interlaken, Switzerland for Spring Break. The only reason I really wanted to go is because I wanted to do the Canyon Jump. Now, the Canyon Jump is similar to bungee jumping but instead of bouncing back up, you swing through a glacial canyon. Awesome.

interlaken

Now, before I get to the best part about my trip I will fill you in with the minor details. We took the train (three different ones) to get to Interlaken, the trip totaled about six hours which isn't too bad. We stayed in a really nice hostel and the weather was sunny and crisp. It was very refreshing to be outside, in the open air that is rid of smoke and city pollution. I felt as if my body was going through a nice detox. We walked around the city, I had an amazing sausage for lunch one of the days and we pretty much did nothing. On Tuesday the 20th we went to Bern, the capitol of Switzerland. It was a very nice, clean, uniform city and surprisingly quiet for how busy it was. We spent only a few hours there but it was still nice to explore more of Switzerland. On Wednesday we went to the bar the Hostel had and met two people from Canada, who are currently in Florence and we have gotten together with them a few times, their names are Sarah and Kris. 24/25 years-old and a couple. They are very nice and we enjoyed just drinking and talking with them. Oh, I also read the Hunger Games and by read I mean it took me two days to read it so I suppose I flew through it. It is a great book!!! I loved it. Cannot wait to go back to the States and watch the movie.

"be scared"

Now, the greatest and more exciting day of the trip and of my current life was Thursday, March 22. The canyon jump was canceled because the ice was melting and they said it was unsafe, however, they told me I could go skydiving. It was about 10:30 am when I was at the front desk asking about the canyon swing, and they told me skydiving was an option...at NOON! So talk about a spontaneous decision. I asked Alex if she would be down...then I started jumping for joy when she said yes! We signed up and waited an hour till the van came to pick us up and drive us to the skydiving place. Dan and Tim were the two guys who picked us up (Tim ended up being the guy I jumped with). They were hilarious. After a 20 minute drive we arrived to an incredibly large open rectangle of lang with a landing strip for a plane in the middle. There were 5 of us jumping that day so we all got out of the van and waited for further instructions. Hans (hanz) another instructor, whom Alex jumped with, showed us how to exit the plane and free fall properly and how to land. Then we suited up, I felt like a bada** (find a better word to describe the feeling and I'll use it) because walking down the landing strip, with a harness on and jump suit made me look like I was about to go kick some serious butt in an action movie. Maybe I hoped I'd turn into Laura Croft...

Timmy!

The plane was incredibly small and there were a lot of us in it. Me+Tim and my cameraman, Alex+Hans and her camera man, Another girl+Dan and her camera man, and two other jumpers going by themselves. Tight flight to say the least. All of the guys were trying to make me nervous by making comments about how this is Tim's first jump too or saying "he doesn't really have to do that" when he would adjust something on my harness or when he had me sit on his lap so he could strap us together. Now, none of their comments worked, for some weird reason I wasn't nervous until the moment the plastic sliding door (no, there wasn't even a real door to this plane) rolled up and I had to walk (well Tim walked since I was stuck on him) to the edge of the plane and looked down. I was outside of the plane mostly since Tim was the one sitting on the edge and I am strapped to the front of him, so he pulled my head back, rocked three times and off we fell. (he grabbed my head because when you jump you are supposed to arch back and become almost a banana in the air)

off we go...

I have never been so excited/happy in my life. I was laughing and screaming and beaming the entire fall. I loved it. We were in free fall for about 50 seconds before he pulled the parachute. That was the weirdest feeling, going from falling 120 km/s to shooting up into the air and almost floating because of the chute. My adrenaline rush was beyond ridiculous. I didn't each much before the jump, I didn't want to throw up or anything but I wish I would have eaten more because I felt light headed afterwards and I wanted nothing more than burger so badly! Burger craving aside, skydiving was probably the easiest thing I have ever done. Odd, I know but over the past few months my fear of heights has decreased and I have been waiting so badly to do something crazy. The whole experience was super short and I definitely want to do it again and try other things, like bungee jumping and maybe SixFlags? Hopefully I am over my fear of roller coasters now...

carpe diem

Under the Tuscan Sun

Okay, okay I know it has been almost a month since my last post and I have done some crazy things during this time, so HERE is my blog about when my Aunt Jenna came to visit. It was great to finally have some visit me, even though it was the week of my midterms. Jenna arrived on a Saturday night and we went out for some beers. I'll just leave it at: we had a nice evening.

atop the walls of Lucca

On Wednesday the 14th Jenna and I spent the day in Lucca. I was told by my grandparents that I HAD to go to Lucca. I am very happy that I did because not only was it a beautifully sunny day, Lucca is just a very quaint and beautiful city. The old city is surrounded by walls which are lovely to stroll along and overlook the grass and city below. We left for Lucca around 9 am and we stayed until 3 since I had a midterm at 6 that night. While we were there, we mostly just wandered the city, window shopping, talking and basking in the sun. We had lunch at Trattoria da Leo and I just ordered grilled chicken breast and a side of baked pumpkin. The pumpkin was delicious, it reminded me of the amazing pumpkin risotto I had in Venice but also of roasted butternut squash. Lucca was a quick trip but it was very refreshing, but sadly my white body was not used to the sun and my face was definitely a few shades of pink when I returned. The joy of being a ghost.

Thursday the 15th---

On Thursday we left for San Gimignano, the first stop on our wine tasting filled weekend. I think San Gimignano was my favorite city that we visited throughout the weekend. Not only was it a beautiful day, the city had a vibe that was different, calming and relaxing. The city sits on top of a hill that over looks Tuscany. The views were postcard perfect. Rolling hills, vineyards, and villa type homes spread out across the landscape. We went to a Enoteca (wine bar) for lunch and tried 5 wines while enjoying a sample platter of different meats and a cheese platter with this amazing mustard di fruitta (it isn't mustard but more of a spread that was very sweet and light).

San Gimignano

We also had bruschetta & lardo. Lardo, is delicious, sounds gross because its fat, but it is a very thin slice and tastes amazing (salty and buttery almost). Oh, and where we sat was on the edge of the town so while enjoying the amazing food and drinks we had a picture perfect view of Tuscany. No, I can't complain about my life, especially when sitting there. I also got a bronze fleur-de-lis ring from a shop in the city. (thank you Jenna for the birthday gift)
After San Gimignano, we headed through the Chianti region, small, winding roads but still GORGEOUS. Tuscany, just oozes with beauty. Every where we went was gorgeous and had amazing views. I understood that people found this region to be gorgeous but until you actually visit, you cannot fully appreciate it for all that it is, breathtaking. We stopped at a winery and had a free tasting but it was getting late and we needed to head to Siena before it got dark outside, increasing our chances of getting lost or driving off the small roads. As much as I love the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland, this drive was not as exciting or enjoyable after a while, especially after lots of meat and cheese and wine consumption. We made it safely to Siena where we stayed for the weekend. We enjoyed a nice dinner then headed to bed, we were exploring more cities the next day and needed sleep!

View from where we had lunch

Friday, the 16th---

I know I said that I fell in love with Tuscany, but it officially stole my heart after today. The hills, small medival towns and sunshine literally are just as stunning in person as they are on postcards. I could hold up a postcard, take it down and still see the same image. We left Siena around 10 am and hit our first city which was Cortona. Cortona is situated high up on a hill, making for some amazing views of the valley below. For those of you familiar with the movie Under the Tuscan Sun, this is the city she 'lives' in. It was a very steep, uneven but very worth while walk to the top of the town where the Fortress of Girifalco is, which overlooks the entire vast, valley below. Cortona was a cool city and it was nice to visit something very different from Florence.

View from Cortona

From Cortona, we went to Montepulciano, a city on a mountain (large hill) surrounded by rolling hills and vineyards and yes, extremely famous for their wine. We did a wine tasting here (obviously) and the place we went to was awesome. It has a great atmosphere and the outdoor space was lovely. We tried 6 wines and ended up buying one (Vino Noble is what it was called and it is a red). We sat here for about two hours, drank and talked. After we went into a few more shops, trying wines and one shop where we tried different types of Pecorino cheese.

Montepulciano

Oh my, I can do it no justice, but the cheese was the best I have ever had. Well almost the best, because after this stop we went to our next city, Pienza which is actually famous for their pecorino cheese. The city was small but still have gorgeous views AND turns out this was also where scenes from the Gladiator were filmed. Around Pienza are wheat fields, which inspired the location of Maximus' house and the scenes when he is walking home to find his family dead and when he meets them again in Heaven.

Pienza

Yeah, I just about died when I found out one of my favorite movies was filmed here. We went into two stores while in Pienza, one where we tried some amazing salami and sausage and another were we tried some amazing cheeses. After Pienza, we went to our last stop which was a little city called San Quirico. We just walked around here and enjoyed the golden sunshine and digested our food from a long day of eating and drinking. Definitely a day well spent.

San Quirico

Saturday the 17th--

Town Hall and Bell Tower

Happy Saint Patrick's Day! Saturday was our last day and we spent it in Siena. I think I like Siena more than Florence, one because it is less hectic and crammed and two for aesthetic reasons. The city is much more uniform and not nearly as "dirty feeling". Siena is famous for their horse races they have twice during the year, both during the summer. The horse races take place in their large main square and it is a competition between each of the 17 neighborhoods within the walls of the city. I bought a flag of the Lupa neighborhood, go she-wolves! We climbed the tower which is in the main square and it was a little nerve racking because I compared it to my soon to happen bungee jumping experience in Switzerland. After the tower, we stopped and had the greatest meal ever. We stopped in this small butcher & cheese shop that we had walked past a few times before and decided that this was something we HAD to experience. It was a total man cave, tons of meats hanging from the ceiling and cheese. We had a large sample platter of things like wild boar sausage, other various sausage and salamis and cheese.

best.lunch.ever.

It was an amazing experience and the large man with a mustache that worked there totally liked Jenna and I. Jenna and I bought the white wine we had with our lunch. After lunch we went to the Duomo on Siena and the church was gorgeous. The colors of the city are black and white, in stripes usually, thus the church has black and white stripes all over it. At around 3 we headed back to Florence. I was sad because I really just wanted to keep repeating the weekend over and over again. Sample platters and wine. 24/7. I would die a very fully and happy person. This weekend was probably one of my favorites. I tried so many new things such as lardo, liver (in a paste form mixed with olives), wild board meat and lots of cheese. I love cheese. I love wine. However, let this be a lesson, consume both in moderation or else you will feel like you are going to explode. But another lesson, consume both and you will be a very happy person.

Enjoy life. Enjoy the view. Carpe Diem.

ciao!

 

Roma & The Vatican

This past weekend I went on my second school trip to Roma and the Vatican. We left at 6 am on March 3rd (Saturday) on a bus, this trip the group was an entire bus smaller than the Venice trip which was nice, not as chaotic. The ride was 3 hours long and once we arrived in Rome around 10 am we were dropped off at the Coliseum. It was..wait for it...beautiful. This entire experience has been very surreal, for lack of a better word. I am visiting places, even living in a city, rich with thousands of years of history. I am standing where Romans once stood, some of the world's greatest artists, philosophers, heros, politicians and 'villains'. I obviously appreciate it now, but this trip will truly hold a special place in my heart for the rest of my life.

Obviously reppin the sorority inside the Coliseum

Back to the Coliseum, so we arrived at the Coliseum and there was a protest happening for construction labor unions, so that was really interesting to watch. We walked inside the Coliseum for about 30 mins, then we went to the Palace of the Emperor (well the ruins of it) right across from the Coliseum up on a hill, so we got some spectacular views of the city.

View from Ruins of Roman Palace, Coliseum in the background

From there, we went back onto the bus and headed over to the Vatican City. Now there really is no difference between saying "the Vatican" or "the Vatican City", they both encompass the same things...some girl asked the difference. Anyways, we had lunch on our own outside of the city walls and then we met up with our tour guides that took us on a 3 hour tour through the Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica and other various parts we were allowed to enter. The Vatican was probably my favorite place we went to all weekend. St. Peter's church literally took my breath away. I walked in and stopped in shock/awe. I know I have said other churches are gorgeous, beautiful, etc. but this...this was something else. Most churches I have been into have been gorgeous, but very simple and 'plain'. St. Peter's on the other hand was very elaborate, lots of gold, statues, and detailing from floor to ceiling. When we went in to the church it was around 4, so the afternoon sun was pouring in from the west, obviously I was then told that they build the church purposefully facing the east so that the sun would shine through the dome in the back and onto the alter.

Inside St. Peter's Basilica

Another fun fact, the main doors to the church are only opened every 25 years on the Jubilee (2025 is the next time that they will be opened). Also, the crest of the Catholic church bears two keys, the keys of St. Peter, one is gold and the other is silver. The gold opens the gates to heaven and the other to Earth...our tour guide seemed a little confused as to why one would want to go back, but at least you have the option. Anyways, the crest can be seen all over Rome on various churches and fountains. Fun game to play "spot the crest"..no?

Our tour ended in St. Peter's Square in front of the Church. We learned about the Swiss Guards who are in charge of protecting the Pope. They are all Swiss men between the ages of 18-30 years old. During their service they cannot drink, be married/have sex and they also much be attractive...not complaining but I have no idea why. I also sent Camille a postcard from the Vatican...I think she will like it :] hehe.

After the Vatican we went to our hotel and got our rooming assignments. Alex and I forgot about the meeting for the trip so we didn't get put together and I ended up rooming with a girl named Colette from New Jersey who is a Fashion major. She was really nice and I invited her to join Alex and I for the rest of the evening. We met up with one of my sorority sister's Kiernan who is studying in Rome and she took us to Scholar's Pub. They played great American music and had amazing food...drinks as well. Definitely enjoyed my evening in Rome. Even if we felt like we were traveling into the depths of hell when trying to figure out their metro system.

---Sunday March 4th---

Today was a jam packed day! First we went to Piazza Navona where we saw three gorgeous fountains. The main one depicted four rivers from the four corners of the Earth. Sorry, the only river I remember him saying was the Nile, the others..one was in Africa, another South America and the last...I do not know. The fountain was incredible, I really find it astonishing how perfect sculptors are when it comes to during a slab of stone into a masterpiece. From there, we walked to the Pantheon, which again, I was simply blown away by the fact that they could build such amazing buildings, without cranes and other pieces of 'modern technology'. Talent does not rely on technology, thats for sure.

Really awesome fountain

After the Pantheon, we walked to the Trevi Fountain. I gasped when I first saw it. Gigantic, majestic, white and perfect. I have ALWAYS wanted to go to the Trevi and throw in two coins: the first meaning I will return to Rome, the second meaning I will find true love and I am so happy to say that I was able to throw in my two cents. Camille told me to jump in the fountain but seeing as how I did not want to get arrested, my hand was all I was willing to risk. I could have sat at the fountain all day long, it was so beautiful and serene. I also did not realize how large it was and that it was made off of the facade of a preexisting building. Also, legend has it that a virgin is whom discovered the source of water that the fountain is connected to and she is depicted in the fountain in the top corner. The main element of the fountain being Neptune, as it is attributed to him. He is in the center with two tridents guiding the seahorses that pull his chariot (a seashell). The movement throughout the fountain is flawless and I would not mind having it in my house to stare at all day long.

pantheon

Our next stop was the Spanish Steps, also another place I could stay all day and people watch. The steps and surrounding area were lovely but the men hustling roses were not so beautiful. They would literally give you the flower as if it were a gift or shove it in your hand and then as for money for it. I told a girl to just throw it on the ground, lets just say the man shouted some not so nice things but serves him right to assume we are dumb and going to pay for something we clearly don't want. From the Spanish Steps we went to, what the Romans call, "the wedding cake". It is really a building that was built to honor the first King of Italy who helped in it's unification but Romans do not like it for it is very fascist looking and also is not rooted to the hearts of the citizens but really a political statement. However, after WWI it became the resting place of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and is now more of a memorial, which Romans seem to appreciate a little more since it represents something much more important.

Trevi Fountain

Finally, after a long morning we left to have a traditional four course Roman lunch which lasted..2.5 hours. I don't think I could have touched my toes afterwards I was so full of pasta, eggplant and tiramisu. Then we went to the catacombs, which were cool but we didn't see any bones or anything, just dirt and empty graves but they go on for 10 miles and are 100ft deep. We only went down to the second level and were in there for maybe 25 mins.

Rome was amazing. Aside from being rich with history, it was also a very lively city and a much different pace than Florence. I really hope that I can go back before I leave, possibly when my mom comes!

-----
Today is International Women's Day! An older British man asked us in Italian why we had yellow flowers (which we given to us at lunch) and that is why! Yay for being a woman and for him thinking we were italian and understanding what he asked!! Now it is time to celebrate with super happy hour for the ladies.

Ciao!

Paris, Je t'aime.

I know it has been two weeks since my birthday weekend and I apologize but life started to pick up over here (in a good way) so the constant traveling then diving back into school immediately has made it difficult to stay on top of blogging. SO, here we go: Paris 2012.

--Thursday, February 23rd--
I have Italian from 9-10:15 am on Tues/Thurs so both Alex and I had to head straight from Italian to the train station in order to get on a train to take us to Pisa to make our flight at 2:45pm. Considering neither Alex and I had taken a train before, we were a little stressed out about timing. We ended up getting to Santa Maria Novella (the name of the train station in Florence) at 10:57am...just in time to make the 11 am train to Pisa. The train was direct, so it only stopped once and we got to the airport by noon. Our flight was an hour behind, which was not super fun so by the time we got to Paris, we were a little irritated. Irritation quickly turned into confusion because we had no idea how to get from the airport to our hotel. We figured out how to get there, so I asked the man working the ticket booth for the tram/metro if he spoke english (in French) and he responded (in French) saying that he only spoke Chinese. I continued to speak in English and asked for two tickets and he laughed and said (in English) "I said I only speak Chinese!!" I was thankful that he was nice and funny, definitely made me feel more comfortable not having any idea how we were going to get to our hotel.

Once we got to the metro station, Alex and I jumped on and off trains unsure if it was the right one or not....after about 20 mins we realized that they were all the same...oops. We finally got to our hotel..two hours after landing but we were so excited to finally be at our home base for the weekend and looked forward to meeting up with my friend Aisha from high school who is currently studying at the American University, Paris. Aisha took us to dinner at Tribeca and then we all got bottles of really cheap 'sparkling wine' (the French only call Champagne, champagne, it if is from the Champagne region) and walked over to...the Eiffel Tower. I cried, a little...mostly on the inside..but regardless I was in shock. I could not believe that I had finally made it to the city of my dreams and I was standing in front of a landmark that covers the walls of my room back in the U.S. It was a perfect place to turn 21 :]

--MY BDAY! Fri. Feb 24th--

Cannot believe that I turned 21 in Paris of all places! Such a blessing, I wished that everyone I loved was there to celebrate with me. Today I went to the Notre Dame and it was just as beautiful in person. (running joke about the Notre Dame..."I returned home"...in reference to the hunchback and my gimp eye) I met up with two of my sorority sisters who were also in Paris for the weekend, they are studying in London. It was a joy to be able to spend the day with people from home. We all went inside the cathedral and I just about died when I looked up. The stain glass windows were the most stunning pieces I have seen. After the Notre Dame, I had a mission: to find this bridge covered in locks and place a lock on it for my father and I. It is difficult to explain and for many to understand but I do love my father and I am very proud to have both of the parents that I do because they have each taught me very valuable life lessons. My mother is a beautiful, strong, intelligent woman who I greatly respect and admire, even if I am very emotional and irrational with her at time. She has taught me the importance of drive, self-motivation and that overcoming adversity is always a better option than succumb to it. My father has taught me the importance of listening to my heart, being loyal to those who love you the most and to never stop fighting for what I believe in. I have learned that close relationships are what get us through the good times but more importantly the bad. It is really painful for me to live without him, I understand that we all make mistakes in life and that we have to live with the consequences of our actions, but he has missed out on a lot of important life events, so that is why this little mission he gave me meant the world to me. I was able to include him in my study abroad experience. I am lucky enough to skype my grandparents, facebook chat my nana, see my aunt Jenna in a few days and my mom is coming to visit in a few weeks! All he has are my blog posts, but now he also has this lock. Hopefully someday we both can go back to Paris and see it. I hope everyone can find and appreciate the beauty in that, life has not been easy for all of us, but the only way to move forward is to forgive each other of our trespasses and be thankful that we are all alive, healthy and I am accomplishing my dreams because of each of you. I had crepes in Paris, walked through the gardens in front of the Louvre, down the Champs-Elysse to the Arc de Triumph and back to the Eiffel Tower. I honestly could not have done any of that if it weren't for my family. I had the greatest birthday because of all the years you all have dedicated to giving me the best life possible. I have learned something valuable from each of you and I am forever grateful for that.

For dinner, I ate at Cafe Central with Aisha and Alena (my other best friend from high school also studying there). I had the most amazing meal of my life...chicken with creamy risotto. Seriously, I would fly back to Paris to eat it again.

--Saturday, 25th--

Another splendid day in this amazing city. I had breakfast at this place called La Marine. I had a ham & cheese omelette, croissant, coffee, and orange juice. The coffee was amazing (thank you Grandpa for telling me to get it) From there, we walked back down Rue de Rennes (our hotel's street) and I bought myself a birthday present (a watch). Bon anniversaire a moi! Then, we went to the Sacre Coeur which is a beautiful white church on top of a hill that overlooks the city. It was just as gorgeous on the inside, obviously every church is stunning, and I bought a few people some presents :]. The area the church is in was very San Fran-esque. Cute buildings, hills, great food and shops. After, we tried to go to the Musse d'Orsay but the line was an hour long and I wanted to walk around more, so I guess I'll just have to go back :]. So, unfortunately we just walked down the Seine river and had lunch (please note the sarcasm, the Seine is gorgeous). I had a croque monsieur, delicious and we then went to the Shakespeare and Company bookstore. A place that was frequented by Hemingway and other famous writers. I bought a book, of course, have to remember it somehow! It started to rain so we went back to the Hotel to change and figure out dinner plans. We met up with Alena and Aisha again and had sushi. SO GOOD! It was nice to be in a city with a diversity in cuisine.

After dinner, the magic happened...I accomplished a true dream of mine and I walked to the second floor (top was closed) of the Eiffel Tower. The man at security claimed that I was too beautiful to be French and that I must be American...in all honesty I think it was my childish giddiness about climbing a metal landmark that gave me away. Regardless, I had a very surreal moment when I finally reached the top. 669 steps and a dream was accomplished. I made it, to a city I have always dreamt of visiting. To a place a never thought I'd see. I was so happy that I swear I could fly. I had the greatest weekend of my life and a birthday I will never forget. I will continue to dream, simply so I can accomplish them.

Before I left for Florence, my little Madison told me 'carpe diem, seize every moment Brittany and accomplish your dreams because right now it is about you. Live it up because soon you will be back at home wishing you could go back, so don't for a moment stop. Have faith in your own life and tackle everything that you can'.

I did. 669 steps. A lock.

Thank you everyone for the love and support. I wouldn't have made it to the top of that tower without it.

Ciao.

Prague!

I know my posts are starting to become more spread out, but I cannot apologize because it is due to the fact that for four weekends in a row I will be traveling!!! On Valentine's Day, Lainey and I decided to book a trip to Prague through a company called Bus2Alps. Although it was last minute, it was by far the best decision I have made thus far. (obviously Paris is up there too but that is this weekend so lets not put the cart before the horse.) Lainey's two guy friends (Alex and Nick) whom she knows from back home, who are also studying here, joined us on the trip. I will try to break down my trip, but to be honest, it was hard to understand our Swedish/Czech tour guide who had a irish-esque accent when he spoke english.


Prague

Thursday, February 16th--

Buses left from the train station (Santa Maria Novella) at 8pm. The buses were actually really nice and since we had a 12 hour ride there, benedryl became Lainey and I's best friend.

Friday, February 17th--

Old Town Square

We arrived to our hotel, the Czech Inn (hahaha) around 9:30 am and had an hour or so to eat breakfast and freshen up before our walking tour at 11. Our walking tour was headed by a funny man named Christian, who was full of energy and really tried to make the tour as funny and educational as possible. Due to sleep deprivation, I am having trouble recalling exactly what we saw and the history behind it, so forgive me on my inability to be as descriptive. When we left for our tour, we had to take the tram in order to get deeper into the city, unlike Florence, Prague is not small enough to walk everywhere. Our tram dropped us off by the Old Town Square. One thing I really liked about Prague was how open it felt in comparison to Florence. The streets were wider, allowing more light to shine through, making the city seem a little brighter. Old Town Square was surrounded by buildings that reminded me of Disneyland, because they were bright colors and too perfect to be real.

Clock

There was an astronomical clock and beautiful church in the square, the clock was actually named the world's most disappointing clock. Yes, it was made around 1410 and is the world's oldest working clock, but when it rings every hour, it really isn't all that exciting. However, the clock is still gorgeous and the contrast of black/grey stones and the gold/green in the clock make it very pleasing to the eye.


We walked all over the old city, saw the Jewish Quarter, after eating at Bohemian Bagel (of course, I miss bagels) and saw a few famous synagogues, an unbelievably depressing Jewish cemetery and ended at the Rudolfinum.

Jewish Cemetery 

The Rudolfinum is a very famous landmark in Prague, it is a concert hall and is an example of neo-Renaissance architecture. Very beautiful building and is right on the river, allowing for some amazing views of the Prague castle and Charles Bridge.

Rudolfinum

Our tour lasted about 3 hours and after the tour, Lainey, Alex, Nick and I all decided to see the Jewish Museum since it is closed on the weekends and we had some time to kill before dinner. The museum consisted of a few different buildings but we only managed to make it into one, which was a small little synagogue that had the names of 100,000 innocent men, women and children who died during the Nazi occupation in Czech. To see that many names was overwhelming and I was shocked that I, of all people, didn't burst into tears. On the second floor the names continued but they also had a room housed drawings from children held in one of the concentration camps in the area. The pictures depicted hope, family, and only a few were about death or sorrow. The drawings are in museums all over the world and the Jewish woman who had the children draw as a form of therapy managed to hide over 400 drawings (my numbers could be completely wrong, so for that I apologize) in suitcases before her death in a gas chamber, in which we volunteered to enter since she thought her husband was dead. We also walked through the cemetery in the back of the temple that is at least 7 feet above ground and said to have 11 layers and holds over 100,000 people. The lot was a about 100 yards long (again bad at math but it was not very large) and the reasoning for it being up so high is because the Jew's were not given much land in the city and they also do not believe in cremation, thus they just piled up.

Nick, Me, Lainey and Alex on the Charles Bridge

After being very sad for an hour and a half, it was time to head back to the hotel and figure out what we were going to eat for dinner. After freshening up, we asked the front desk for a really good, traditional czech restaurant and we ended up at U Bulinu. Dinner was amazing. I had beef goulash, potato dumplings and hot raspberries with vanilla ice cream (for dessert) along with a beer. Hands down, best meal I have had since being in Europe. Not only was it nice to have a lot of protein (Italians do not eat a lot of meat) but the food itself tasted so fresh and light. Our waiter was also very good looking and spoke very funny english. He kept saying the "f" word but did not understand the meaning of it and we all died laughing. The boys also told the waiter is was my birthday and that I really wanted to take a picture with him...so embarrassing but sadly partially true. Bummer we never found out his name, oh well.

We ended up staying at dinner for 4 hours, missing the pub crawl (not that we needed to drink more) and so we just went back to the hotel and had more drinks in the bar. It was nice to be in good company and simply just enjoy Prague without having to spend a lot at clubs or freeze to death outside in the rain.






Saturday, February 18th---

Woke up at 9:30 am, had breakfast then headed off on a tour of the Charles Bridge, Lennon Wall and then we had a separate walking tour for the Prague Castle and the Lesser Quarter.

Lainey and I (charles bridge behind us)

The Charles Bridge was very cool. Unlike Florence, Prague doesn't seem to constantly keep their landmarks clean, meaning the stone was very black, giving it more of a Gothic, dark fairytale type feel. Most of the statues that were along the bridge were made of gray stone and had accents of gold (i.e. a crown, cross). The bridge lead to the other side of the river and from there we went down and had walked through this little street fair that I guess is there every Saturday. There was food, drinks, and a live band. Lainey and I got, Pikle, which is basically a small dessert that tasted like a churro. It was freshly made and very delicious.

"In My Life" my favorite beatles song

Then we walked over to the Lennon Wall, which is a large wall that has been graffitied, mainly with Beatles songs but also other words of love or funny drawings done by those who visit the wall. I tagged the wall with "Love Wins" from Tuesday's with Morrie. Here is the full excerpt from the book:

 "Have I told you about the tension of opposites?" [Morrie] says.
- The tension of opposites?
- "Life is a series of pulls back and forth. You want to do one thing, but you are bound to do something else. Something hurts you, yet you know it shouldn't. You take certain things for granted, even when you know you should never take anything for granted."
- "A tension of opposites, like a pull on a rubber band. And most of us live somewhere in the middle. Sounds like a wrestling match," I say.
- "A wrestling match." He laughs. "Yes, you could describe life that way.
- "So which side wins," I ask?
- "Which side wins?" He smiles at me, the crinkled eye, the crooked teeth."Love wins. Love always wins."

Love Wins

I loved the Lennon Wall. I got some really great shots and look forward to turning them into prints and hanging them in my room back in Orange. After the wall, we went on our Prague Castle tour which lasted about 3 hours and was on the other side of the river (also the more wealthy side since the houses were bigger and only the most wealthy families could live in the area around the castle). The church that sits on top of the hill was by far my favorite site that we saw. 

French Gothic architecture and neck straining due to its sheer size. I cried a little I was in such awe of the cathedral. From the gargoyles, to the gothic arches, to the detail and bell tower, the entire thing was a masterpiece. The outside was stunning but entering into the church made my mouth drop. The tall ceilings and various stain glass windows could make even the hardest heart soften. It was beautiful, heavenly (pardon the pun) to say the least. The view other churches we saw after that one were beautiful, but could not compete. We wandered more around the area, seeing places where the Nazis tortured people (well the outside of the buildings) and other important buildings to Prague's history and the final collapse of communism in 1989. We ended the tour outside a monastery which brews its own award winning beer, not for the beer but for the amazing view overlooking the city. 

By this time it was dark and the city was glowing. The feeling you get when you feel as if the entire world is gone and it is just you and whatever you are staring at and for a moment you feel completely weightless, that happened while standing there look out over this gem of a city I never dreamt I would visit. 

From there we walked to dinner, we weren't original at all and simply ate at the same restaurant. It was too good to not have again! We went to an 80's & 90's (American music only) club with Bus2Alps people after dinner. It was fun! They played Whitney Houston (r.i.p), michael jackson, Grease, and other very cheesy songs. It was a fun place to end our amazing weekend in Prague. 


Sunday, February 19th--- was spent entirely on a bus. 12 hours. we watched 5 movies (Forrest Gump, 50 First Dates, Blood Diamond, The Social Network and Jerry Maguire) Today was also the 1 month mark of being abroad. :] Great way to celebrate my accomplishment of finally making it to Europe. 


I still cannot believe that I was there. It went by too fast and I truly hope that I can go back to Prague before I die. It was a beautiful city, rich with history and amazing architecture. I had a smile on my face the entire trip and I am greatly looking forward to going to Paris this weekend for my 21st birthday. Now THAT is a dream come true. 


Ciao!

La vita è teatro. Tutti in maschera.

"Life is a theatre. Let's get masked."

So many of you were concerned about my last post. Understandable since you are not here and usually I would call half of you to talk about my problems, however since I cannot do that, I am challenged to face issues that arise head on (no, I am not blogging about a boy for those of you who assumed that, I am not THAT girly.) and I am really thankful for the challenges because I feel as if I am growing closer to myself, both emotionally and spiritually. So please, do not freak out, but I told myself I would blog my experience abroad, so that includes the good days, the bad days, but not the ugly days because I don't want pictures taken when I feel gross. (I hope you can sense feel my humor and are laughing)

Allora (that means "well/so" it is equivalent to saying "okay so/umm") on Friday the 10th I actually met up with one of my sorority sister's who is currently studying abroad in Rome for dinner with the group of friends she traveled to Florence with for the weekend. We had a lot of fun at dinner and it was really nice to get out and enjoy a fun meal with a group of girls. Jessi and Lainey spent the night at our apartment after dinner since we all were going to Venice together and the buses left at 6 am on Saturday the 11th.

--Venice-- (I'll break the trip down the best I can)

Saturday, February 11th 2010
6 am--Buses left Firenze. It was not easy waking up at 5 am to walk in the cold to go to where the buses were meeting, but the worst part was sitting for 3.5 hours. We drove through the mountains and countryside, which was really pretty but completely covered in snow! It was nice to drive through different parts of Italy since all I have really seen so far is just Florence. Also, two teachers were our guides for the weekend, Franco and Stefano. They bicker and talk like a married couple and Franco has the funniest accent when he speaks English that I just can't but smile and giggle when he talks. He is also very intelligent and I always made sure to walk close to him so I could hear all about the history of basically everything we walk past over the course of the weekend.

Piazza San Marco

10am-- Arrived at the boating dock where we had a boat take us from the mainland to Venice. Venice is completely surrounded by water (hence the gondolas) so getting to Venice and the other islands happen by boat. Once we got to Venice, we went to Piazza San Marco, the most iconic scene of Venice. (the large open square where all the pigeons are) Sadly, I did not get my pigeon picture due to the large amount of people celebrating the opening weekend of Carnival, which officially began on Sunday the 12th. (During my study abroad experience there are two pictures I want: one, a picture of me running through a large group of pigeons and two: storming the beach at normandy (probably won't happen so it has transferred to my 'bucket list') There is a church in the Piazza, Basilica di San Marco that we got to go inside of and I was in awe by the outside, but my mouth hit the floor the second I stepped inside and looked up.

Inside the Basilica di San Marco

The entire ceiling was done in a mosaic (the Italian's love their mosaics) and it took 5 centuries to complete. The tiny glass pieces that appear gold in color actually had gold in them, added during the glass making period. It is unbelievable the amount of detail, dedication and perfection artists had back then and they would start projections they most likely wouldn't see the end result of, unless you managed to live for hundreds of years. Renaissance and Gothic style are the two most common styles in Italy, personally my favorites because I love the mass amounts of small detail and symmetry. In other words, Europe is simply beautiful and I am excited to travel to other countries and revel in the beauty that is there. After the church I had lunch with Alex (not my roommate but one of my sorority sisters), Aubrey (another Alpha Phi), Lainey (who is actually an Alpha Phi and is technically my 'niece' since her big sis is my twin, meaning we share the same big Chelsea...don't think too hard about that one), Jessi and Alex (my roommate). It was good, we all had pizza since it was the only thing under 10 euro...Venice is too expensive for its own good.

2pm--After lunch we walked back to the dock where the boat first dropped us off in Venice to get back on the boat to head to Murano, a small island famous for its handblown glass. We got to go inside one of the factories and watch them make a vase and a small glass horse, then shop of course. I bought Mom a pair of earrings (knowing how picky she is, I hope she actually likes them :]) and I bought myself a pendant to put on a chain. I figured it was small enough that I could always wear it and remember my trip to Venice.

Murano Glassblowing 

3:30pm-- Back to the boat and off to another island, Burano. Burano is famous for their lace work but more importantly the brightly colored houses. If you google Venice, a lot of the pictures that come up are of Burano because the bright colors make for wonderful photos. The island was very quite and peaceful. So far, Burano has been one of my favorite places because of the calming effect it has on the mind and body. Also, I wouldn't mind living in an aqua colored house...just saying.

Burano--my favorite place

4:30pm-- After a long and very freezing day, we were back on the boat to return to the mainland in order to get back to our hotel which was more in the countryside, around popular places for summer vacationing. We had to wait for the buses at the bus stop for about 25 mins and I swear we were all about to collapse from exhaustion and delirium from the cold. We all huddled up like penguins and sang songs with the word "sun" it in, thinking it would warm us up. To be honest, I think it worked only because we were laughing so hard at how crazy we probably looked to everyone around us.

6:30pm-- We got to the hotel and got our rooms and had about an hour before we would leave for dinner. I decided to put on an extra pair of pants since one wasn't enough.

8:30pm-- I swear we got lost because it took us an hour to find this restaurant, but we finally made it! We had a delicious traditional Carnival dinner, four courses of course. The first course was a specially cooked radish with a cheese melted on the side, it has a similar consistency to brie. It was actually very good, I was a little nervous at first because I didn't know exactly how I would feel about this baked, cooked, I don't really know, radish but I was surprised by how yummy it was. It was flower shaped like an artichoke but tasted more like asparagus (in texture). The second dish was pumpkin risotto with smoked grated cheese on top. I was tempted to have seconds because it was unbelievable, but the two pairs of pants weren't very giving. The third dish, to be honest, I am not 100% sure what meat it was, it sounded like he said chicken, but I think it was stuffed hen to be exact, wrapped in bacon (obviously). Potatoes were served on the side and it was pretty yummy, but I was getting full since I am not used to having such large, long, filling meals. Dessert was tiramisu and fritters (pastries). Dinner didn't end until 11pm and I swear I lost my mind sometime during that period because I was so tired that nothing I said made sense. We all were just completely out of it and full. The second we got to the hotel, at midnight, I got into my pajamas and passed out.

---Carnival in Venice---

Sunday, February 12th.

7am-- Rise and Shine! We had a terrible 'continental' breakfast at the hotel and realized that our hopes of it being warmer were crushed by the sight of snow all over the ground. Oh well, the sun was out at least :] Never been so happy to see the sun before in my life.

10am-- Arrived in Venice to go to the Palazzo Grassi, which was a palace but it was bought in 2004 (If I remember correctly) by some very wealthy Frenchman who transformed it into a contemporary art museum. The pieces on display were very interesting, my favorite being a giant, metallic pink, balloon animal (a dog to be exact) and the artist's attention to the smallest details was mind-blowing. He got the tie on on the nose spot on and even included the ripples the balloon makes where the balloon-artist would twist to make the legs and head. Oh and the entire thing was made out of some very heavy, solid material...not sure what exactly...still impressive.

12 noon--After the museum we made our way back to Piazza San Marco to watch "Volo dell'Angelo" Flight of the Angel, which signifies the start of Carnival. A woman dressed in a traditional outfit was lowered from atop the bell tower down onto the stage on the other side of the Piazza. It was completely packed and the frenchman behind me was literally on top of me which his small child leaning on my head telling his dad all about what was going on. If I didn't love children so much, I would have been highly annoyed, plus he also had a cute little accent and spoke french. After, we all went to lunch at a caffe, had pizza again (I know, it's terrible) but it was amazing. It had brie and bell peppers on top of it and I was in heaven. The italian's really know what they are doing when it comes to cooking, except when they use too much salt. Alex and I ate at a restaurant right by our house and it was so salty that we couldn't finish our meal. I got sick after, I felt like I ate the ocean. But, the overall atmosphere of the city was amazing. Masks, costumes, laugher were everywhere. People were dancing and I was wearing my mask that I had bought in Burano. Funny story, a man was taking a picture and I thought I was standing in the way, when in actuality he was taking a picture of me and I just started laughing and he thanked me. :]

2pm--We headed back to Piazza San Marco to meet Franco and Stefano because the group decided that we all wanted to go inside the Palazzo Ducale, the Duke's Palace. The entire palace was done in Gothic style and I swear someone had to walk behind me and pick my mouth up so I wouldn't trip, the details and decorations were indescribable. From the grand entrance to the hallways to the CEILINGS, yes the ceilings were decorated more so than the walls. The purpose of the palace was not to only house the Duke but it was also used by the Senate and Grand Council. Venice was once a Republic, so the Palazzo Ducale is where courts were held (the court room was decorated with gigantic paintings, the central one depicting Christ) and it was also attached to the prison next door by a very tiny bridge that we were able to walk through and see the cells. Two rooms were my favorite, the first room had large maps (at least 10 feet tall and 25 feet long...probably bigger but we all know I am terrible at math and dimensions, just imagine GIANT rooms) on the walls and two giant globes in the middle of the room. The second room was the Grand Council, a room that could easily fit 2000 people and looked similar to the ballroom from Beauty and the Beast. I still am not sure how they did it, but the art work and decorations on the ceilings were jaw dropping. Seriously, it would bring tears of wonderment to your eyes to see every detail throughout the entire Palace, inside and out, it was beautiful.

Palazzo Ducale

Back row (left to right): Jessi, Aubrey, Franco, Stefano, Alex. Front row (left to right): Alex (alpha phi), me, Lainey

3:30pm-- We headed back to the hotel to pick up two girls who were sick and stayed there instead of joining us and then we headed back to Firenze.


Overall, the weekend was amazing. I loved Venice and although I was frozen, I enjoyed every second of the weekend. I felt amazing the entire time and I am happy to realize how positive of a person I really am. I love Florence, I love Italy and I am SOOOOOOOOO EXCITED FOR PARIS!!!! I cannot begin to describe how excited I am, I can't think about it because I'll start crying.


CIAO!


P.S.

I have had a lovely Valentine's Day so far. Alex and I went to Gusta's pizza which they made the pizza's into hearts and tonight we are having a girls night with Jessi and Lainey at our favorite restaurant.

Happy Valentine's Day from Firenze!! (Gusta's pizza)