Gelato flavors I
had within 4 days: vanilla bean, melon (those two were tied for the best),
strawberry (duh!), chocolate, mascarpone cheese, bilberry, pistachio,
raspberry, cream, coffee…Jac & I have given up on recalling the list as
this point.
"Cherish your solitude. Take trains by yourself to places you have never been. Sleep out alone under the stars. Learn how to drive a stick shift. Go so far away that you stop being afraid of not coming back. Say no when you don't want to do something. Say yes if your instincts are strong, even if everyone around you disagrees. Decide whether you want to be liked or admired. Decide if fitting in is more important than finding out what you're doing here."
--Eve Ensler
--Eve Ensler
On Friday, October 28th, I was in Seville speaking Spanish with the waiter at Las Golondrinas as we ordered rebojitos (white wine spritzer…popular alternative to sangria, which is better in Northern Spain so I’m waiting!) and had pork cutlets, marinated radishes and garlic stuffed mushrooms (typical tapas, didn’t bother with the names of the dishes because half the words in SPANISH are still unfamiliar to me). Jaclyn and I were staying with some great friends we met at orientation that night and boarding a flight to Milan the next morning. Little did we know that flight would be one of the most random introductions to a country! One day later, after a bus ride from our “hometown” of Chiclana to Seville, a new take on boarding a plane… and SHEER EXCITEMENT & ANTICIPATION we landed in Italy after flying over stunning scenery and were greeted with the crispest green apple I’ve ever had.
It was like, “Oh you don’t have a chauffer waiting for you with your name on a white paper? You’re not missing out. Here’s an apple in a box to hold you over. Welcome to italy.” At this point I have to mention how giddy I was about being in a true foreign country for once. Honestly, Spain is in its own category because I do not feel like a visitor anymore and hardly strive to take pictures of everything anymore (although I do wish I would carry my camera around more often because this weekend we went for a hike to a salt mountain of sorts…and it was a petting zoo along the way with random cows and donkeys - another blog post)
So italy was finally a place where I lost some control. Incidentally, the language barrier was quickly broken down when Spanglish saved the day yet again. It was FASCINATING listening to people talk to me in what they thought was Spanish even though it with sprinkled with Italian 75% of the time or the same situation with English. I now know what we must sound like to Spaniards – ultimately it’s heartwarming :-) Anyways, here we were just one day later, exploring Milan for an amazing first meal (SUCCESS) and finding the Duomo just a quick metro ride from the train station. After a few hours, there I was on Saturday, October 29th, feeling like I was taking a train by myself to a place I’d never been. Jackie and I were in and out of sleep on those 2 hours after the initial awe of our first Italian sunset disappeared with our view. Once we arrived in Florence, my trip felt like it has begun all over again. Our friends from Cadiz had already checked into the hotel, which was across a beautiful local park with trees that had ACTUAL changing colors of the leaves.
My simple dinner of ravioli with Bolognese sauce and birra a la spina (beer on tap) was the perfect ending to my initial travels towards one of my dream destinations. We wandered the streets of Florence that night, were tempted by a scoop of Nutella gelato on a waffle from a few street vendors, and crawled into bed as we all looked up and realized even the cheap room has beautiful (and slightly creepy cherubs) Italian decorations on the ceiling. Sidenote, yes I missed out on the waffle dessert because I was probably on my 4th gelato by then on day 1 1/2…it was all research… oh yeah and we had a late dinner of dessert actually – panna cotta with fresh strawberries which is sadly the first time I’ve had some since I got to Europe but I’m holding out for the fields I’ve heard of in Huelva, Spain.
After that nighttime adventure, the city felt so familiar by daylight. At this point in my European adventure, I’ve decided every city has a smell that defines it, with a few exceptions on the sense description. As I mentioned earlier, Seville smells like olives and Chiclana smells like moscato. Florence smelled like leather, tempting Italian leather. We immediately distracted ourselves and looked for breakfast: canolis and cappuccinos.
It was now Sunday and we decided to split up and pursue our to-do list. Half of the group took a tour bus and I joined the other half that signed up for a wine tour in the countryside. We didn’t have to be there until 1400 so we walked over to the main bridge over the river and then Megan led us to another one nearby where couples have been leaving locks with their names on them to promise each other their hearts forever. Barf. Cute though, cute…
We climbed up the Rocky stairs - I mean the path to Michaelangelo Plaza - for an epic view of the city.
Then we found pizza to go (artichokes, mozzarella and tomato chunks), and more gelato/Nutella treats and ran over back to the train station to meet our tour bus. I was officially in “Under the Tuscan Sun”! The tour guide was this beautiful older blonde woman with a great Italian accent to her perfect English and told us interesting stories as we left the gates of the city (literally giant wood& iron gates they used to have in practice) and past a monastery where she proceeded to call the happy 211 monks in there “fatty fattys” because they make their own food all day long. The country side was breathe-taking, which is an adjective I don’t just throw around. This literally took my breathe away as the perfect rows of trees amidst the colorful acres of land framed the grapes harvest, olive bushes (trees?) and quaint little red roof homes. 
We arrived at a Chianti winery and sampled about ten wines that truly set the bar. As an added bonus, the tour stopped at the local village of Castellina as well. It was such a relief to be in a secluded area without a single salesperson on the street and just the huge moon casting shadows on these old buildings while I continued my coffee research. I mean look at that foam!!
The trip ended around 1900 and the whole group met at the hotel before heading out to dinner. The place we found was slightly touristy but the famous Bistecca Florentina has a lemon-thyme-something flavor I couldn’t put my finger on (and plan to replicate!) and the simple pizza was unbelievably good. There’s just no describing it…you have to go to Italy. You have to go because Florence quickly becomes familiar to you with it’s small neighborhoods and the feeling of safety it gives off, all while knowing an escape to those hills is just minutes away like the best of both worlds. 
The next morning was Halloween (irrelevant, because we didn’t see much of the holiday there but I was good without it this year. It’s not exactly my favorite and in Spain, it was introduced to the culture about 10 years ago so they’re still out to scare you with costumes – pass.), so we tried to go see David’s statue. There are plenty of replicas around the city and those made enough of an impression…regardless, the museum was closed for the “holiday”. Figures. Luckily, Erica suggested dropping in to the market and we were floored by the spread. Immediately, we were drawn to the dried fruit stand. Italy stole my heart strategically with fragole because I got strawberries, bananas, and mangoes (Mendiii!) that were sugar coated but not….they weren’t freeze dried but moist and with a hint of their own sweetness. I don’t know. 
Then we sampled cheeses at the next stations and everyone got a chunk for the train. At this point we’d spread out and realized the picnic we’d created once we were on our train to Rome: sundried tomatoes, Tuscan bread, Chianti wine, grapes, Nutella packets we took from the hotel breakfast, etc. Our initial impression of our last city was endless graffiti from the arrival station of course we were astounded the minute we actually walked out into Roma. This is the exception: there is no certain scent, there is just art. The city oozes of talent from the streets to the walls, buildings, the ristorante’s way of presenting their food, the street musicians, the museums. One of the nights, we stumbled upon a "first friday" of sorts on a street down an alley and it was one of my favorite things! I can't wait to order prints from some of these artists. 
That evening we looked for the Colisseum because it was near our hotel on the way to dinner. The shades of yellow light over that building made for a memorable view. We went on to the Travistere neighborhood, which boasts great local family owned restaurants and it definitely surpassed our expectations. For how thoughtfully slow their service was, the food was honestly just as good. The next morning, we went to Vatican City on the metro and tried to find a mass service for the group to attend. Megan and I wandered….and fortunately half the group found their service in a garden at the Vatican…while Megan and I jumped on the free (?) bus to the Pantheon nearby, made friends with 2 Norwegian mothers who were in Italy for a 3 week language school (Eat, Pray, Love!) and just so happened to stumble into a small mass service for the Holy Day at the Pantheon. Nbd. Halfway through my respectfully confused state, I glanced back towards the entrance and saw a large crowd trying to get a peek in. I did appreciate the moment when an English speaking priest read from the book of Matthew 5:3, ""Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
We went back to the hotel because Matthew was leaving earlier than the girls back to Spain and luckily, we timed it just right. At this point it was still an early afternoon so we stopped for pizza again (rosemary potatoes and roasted red pepper with tomato sauce) and headed to a museum with a free entrance. We saw memorabilia from World War 1 and even learned about Cavour, the man our hotel’s street was named after, and how he influenced Italy’s freedom. The best part was that the girls and I just sat on a bench halfway through the display and discussed history, leading up to the second war. Megan was a history teacher and the conversation that this tour sparked was just incredible. Next we went to the gardens, after picking up a few pastries along the way…and I was in my sugar coma when I realized we were climbing up a hill, looked around from the dramatic angle I stood at, and asked “why are we doing this?!” haha I quickly took it back when I realized the picture I got, with mini croissant in hand: 
At this point, Erica and Megan decided to go to the Opera while Julia, Jac and I looked for the Trevi Fountain. Cue the classic moment of asking for directions, as a father and daughter believe they’re telling me in Spanish “ve al derecho…so…::enter Italian words here:::” but it worked and we heard the fountain before we even turned the corner. At this point I have to point out that Rome would be better with less street vendors, and while you want to support their jobs, it just really takes away from the moment when you’re getting nagged to purchase a plastic toy that sings a random song. That’s my take on this city, it’s not as warm as Florence but it’s full of surprises and you can not get bored. They’re tied!
Next we went to dinner at the best restaurant I’ve been to: Trattoria Giola Mia. Our dessert was a pear soaked in red wine overnight over a homemade spongecake and covered in dark chocolate…ridiculously good. This of course was canceled out by the incredible vegetable appetizer the owner insisted we try first. Somewhere in there we each had a pasta dish that probably can’t be replicated. I had one of the best cappuccinos there of course, and got the owner to reveal where the best coffee beans were from (volcanic area, Napoli and Southern Spain in Europe). All along this trip, I consumed quite an amount of caffeine and tasted great espresso, but I can happily say that there is still a barista back home that makes some of the best I’ve ever had. 
On our last morning, we set out to see the Sistine Chapel and had to work out way through many pushy and attractive Australian tour guides who tried to sell us on a 45 euro package to cut the line at the Vatican and blah blah blah. Lesson: check the original website. The place opened at 9 so we were in a short line anyway by getting there at 8 am and using our student cards to only pay 8 euro! It’s kind of like touring the Lexington museum back in Corpus where you have to walk through the whole thing to reach your end goal (I’m sorry but mine is getting back out on the beach for the aforementioned) and in this case, the Sistine Chapel. We saw Raphael’s “The School of Athens”, Matisse’s work, Diego Rivera, and more. At the Chapel, there were too many guards yelling about not taking pictures but we did get to stand there as long as we wanted. We had time for one last lunch before finding out bus to the airport and before we knew it, the slightly scary plane ride back (thank you Ryanair) was over and I was back to work like it was any other day. Next goal: Ireland, London, France, and Greece. Turns out these trips are expensive haha so the list might shorten but you still have time to book a flight over here!
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