Follow the not quite so yellow brick road

I leave the school about one o'clock with two jackets on and my big travel bag in hand. On my way down the hill I suddenly remember that I left my traveling money back in my room. I make my way back up the hill rush into my room, grab the money and start down the hill again. I decided to walk to the train station because it wasn't too far away. At the bottom of the hill I realize it's an incredibly warm day out. I walk on in my discomfort because for the moment I couldn't take me coat off. I turn down all the right streets and make it to the train station. Once I find the platform I'm suppose to be on I sit down and take my backpack and coat off. As soon as I made myself comfortable it started to rain. It didn't bother me much. I was protected by the shelter and I had a nice book to read. Suddenly the temperature dropped like hot sauce and it was freezing! Look at the change!

I look worried in both of them but I'm much warmer in the first one. Once on the train I was pleasantly surprised to find my ticket was for first class. I had soo much room in the seats they had. I read the entire way and when I finally got to Venice I was dismayed to find I had finished my book. The first night in Venice my friend Gian took me around the town. Technically this wasn't Venice it's like a side city supper that's super close. The first thing he took me to was the Christmas market there. I saw cool chocolate that looked like tools, an ice skating rink, and a cute little train that I got to ride. We went back to his house and he made me a yummy pesto dinner! After that we played with playdough and talked for a bit. Eventually bed time rolled around to I fixed my cot and went to sleep. The entire time I was there sleep came as a restless task for me. I think I was too excited for the adventures I'd be having. The next morning I woke up about 9am, jumped in the shower and then ate breakfast. We stopped at a bakery store first so we could get our lunch in advance. Today he was taking me to the mountains!

Bread store :)

It was a bit colder than I thought, but the day was beautiful. We hiked for most of the day. The woods were beautiful. As I walked I munched on my slightly cold pizza. We came across a small village that looked abandoned. I found a side path and started to follow it through the woods. We stumbled upon random workout equipment scattered throughout the woods. It reminded me of Colorado (without the random equipment) The top of the mountains were snow capped and they were very tall. In some parts of the woods the trees were so dense hardly any light was coming though. The deep earthy smell was amazing and there was a calmness that surrounded me. I missed the woods and the solidarity of it all. I was content to just stay there the entire day.

 

 

After our hike we drove all over the region. I had no idea where I was. I was just along for the ride. I was very content to just play music from my ipod (and of course sing), and watch out the window. I wish I could have taken a picture of the amazing sunset that we kept driving towards. Unfortunately my camera died quickly and my ipod was on the verge of giving out.Our stop was this quaint little town with another Christmas market. The town's bridge was beautiful. It was covered and was paved with cement and stone. I would've stayed longer but the wind was awful and I was slowly starting to freeze. To end the day we drove back to his house, ate yummy pesto pasta again, and I quickly fell asleep. Tomorrow we were going to Venice and I could not wait!

Buon Natale! in other words Merry Christmas

Paper lights at the Christmas market

     As Christmas day neared less and less people were to be seen. The days were long and yet they seemed short if you imagine that sort of thing happening. I filled my time with books, tv shows, and random trips to the center. I didn't usually go out for any reason in particular besides the fact that I knew I needed to see the outside world more than just traveling from my room to the cafeteria. The food was mostly leftovers, but it was free so I couldn't complain. I traveled to the local Christmas market in front of Santa Croce several times. For the most part I just wanted to take pictures.

It was great seeing what interesting items would be at the market and what lovely foods would be presented. Around the 20th my roommate came back for a day before heading off to Rome and Germany with her brother. On the 23rd Andrea came back with her brother! I was so excited to see her. We all went out for crapes that night. (the crapes are AMAZING) I "helped" her pack the rest of the things left in the room. Really I just sat on her bed and talked to her while she gave me things she wasn't going to take with her.

I won't lie I got a lot of neat stuff. Christmas eve we had dinner at Graciela the cook's house. It was amazing and we had a full course meal. There were about two or three students left at the school including myself. I really got some Italian speaking practice in. When we came into the house everything was decorated so nicely and the heavenly smell that wafted from the kitchen almost made you want to cry.

 

The next day was Christmas and while I knew that for some reason I kept forgetting. I woke up very sad because this was the first time I really felt homesick. I don't remember much of the morning, but for lunch I was invited to one of the deans house. The meal was great! I especially loved the deserts which were made out of nutella. I couldn't wait to skype my mom though. I got on and we only skyped for about 30 minutes before she had to go. I then got on with my great aunt and spent most of the afternoon talking with her. I gave her a small tour of some of the amazing places I've been. When I got off with her it was about time for dinner. The day went by quickly and before I knew it, it was over. The next day I packed my stuff and made my way to the train station. It was time for me to start having some holiday adventures of my own!

The beginning of a break

        Break started early in the month. Now that all the test had been taken and bags were packed, people were free to breath for a bit. A few people had already left on their long journeys. Those of us that remained took up the art of movie watching and pizza eating. I had held out on tv shows for the entire semester. I must have caught up on at least 5 or 6 seasons of different shows in total. A semi large group decided to meet for dinner at Gusta Pizza (The most amazing pizza in the world). It was one of the last nights we were able to spend with Andrea (the amazing person) before she left to go back to the Americas. I left early with a book in hand. It was slightly chilly outside, but the environment meshed perfectly with what I was reading. I was in the center with kids running all around, people busy shopping, a band setting up nearby and the quiet song of the carousel beside me. The book was called Night Circus. As I read through the pages I felt a deeper connection because of where I had placed myself. When I eventually looked down to see what time it was I noticed I was already a few minutes late. I made my way through the warmly light cobble stone streets to Ponte Vecchio. The jewels and gold jewelry glittered brightly as I walked past the dozens of fancy shops. I turned down a few roads and eventually found myself at our designated meeting spot. No one was there. I looked in to see if perhaps they had already sat down or something. Nothing. I had a small panic rising because I knew I had no way to communicate with anyone about a change of plans. As soon as that thought entered my mind it was washed away with the reassurance that the group I was with was always late. Time went by ever so slowly. 15 minutes passed when I finally saw Andrea walking down the street with her brother. She handed me a bag of cookies they had just bought at the Christmas market. I pulled one out and stuffed it into my mouth. I don't play around with my sweets. It's a serious business, but I was also starving at that point. I had no relief from the fresh oven baked pizza wafting through the door to meet my nose. We had to stand outside and wait a little bit longer for the rest of our party to arrive. FINALLY I see them come around the corner. Hunger has taken over my mind and I can't even talk straight at this point. I'm basically just standing there going, "yeah, yeah, ok, hjejekj, nom,what? PIZZA!" I'm pretty sure that was my exact thought process. We go in order at the counter and pay. (that's the way you do it at this place..pay then eat)  Everyone ordered, we got our number, then we had to wait around for a table to become free. This is not an easy place to get a seat at. So maybe an hour after we said we all would meet we finally get some noms (food) give or take a couple of valuable minutes. The end result was a masterpiece in and of its self. Cheese pizza with friends! What could be better? Before I inhaled my pizza I decided to exercise what little control I had left to finally snap a picture of the art work in front of me.

Oh! the noms were amazing

We even got a group picture! 

Obviously the excitement was well contained

After we all had our amazing pizza meal we went out for gelato (it's a tradition) and looked over to bridge to gaze at the Ponte Vecchio. Una bella giornata! It was a beautiful way to start our break. Sadly most everyone left the next day to begin their travel adventures. We all gathered on the bus to make our way back home. For the rest of the night I had my nose stuck in a book until I finished it. It's days like these that leave me thankful. Thankful for friends, relationships, food! and so much more. I'm blessed to be on this adventure with the amazing people that surround me. 

A Christmas dinner

         The very next week we had a Christmas dinner and a secret Santa exchange. It was really nice to take my mind off of the stress of finals. We were told in advance to pick a name and buy a gift for our special person. I am no good at shopping for others so naturally my first option was to get them chocolate. I decided to join a small group to the center. My second thought was to buy a scarf. One of the most predominant items in Italy. Literally everyone has a scarf. Women, men, homeless people, children, and even dogs have scarves here. As I wondered down the cobble stone street with my small pack I got the feeling that I should get my person (Janet) something better. I wanted to get Janet something unique that hopefully no one else would get, so chocolate was definitely out. I followed our group to a store called LUSH. I had never heard of this store before, but they had amazing stuff. It was somewhat like an organic bath and bodyworks. I'm not sure if that's an accurate description, but that's all i can think to compare it to. As soon as I walked in a strong perfumey smell smacked me in the face. For a second the air was so thick with scents that I could hardly breath. They had everything for bath stuff there. There was even solid toothpaste! The bath bombs were amazing and I really wanted to buy one, but alas there is no bath here. After browsing around for a good 15-20min I finally bumped into it. It looked like galaxy jello from Mars. I picked the giggly mess up to examine it closer. It smelled amazing and was fun to play with and the best part was that this little jello thing of soap was right in my price range. I grabbed the bottle I wanted and took it straight to the counter. I made small talk with the lady at the counter who told me to take their catalog so I could "study" it and learn Italian better. Good way to make americans look through and by more things that they don't need.
        The night of the dinner was also an ugly sweater contest. I don't really have an ugly sweater here and I was in no position to buy one. I did wear my grey sweater, but I don't think I qualified for anything. As we waited for the dinner a few of us stole the cookie ornaments off the center piece and munched on those. It was a beautiful night. After eating we passed out our gifts, took pictures and even had a little dancing. I even got to try my first cup of real Italian hot chocolate! Which is hot pudding you drink more or less.

Even though I was away from my family and friend I still had a great time. It really helps when there's lot's of other people just like you. Also good food helps cure homesickness! Tutto Bene!!

A day of thanks

It started out as a lovely fall day. I woke up a bit late. I could afford to do that this day. There was no school for the day and my only job was to help with decorations. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and started to get ready. I got out of the shower only to put a different pair of pjs on. I make my way downstairs into the Solentino (a living room type place) to see if anyone was up and working. No one -_- I wasn't quite sure what to do so I just waited until after lunch. A few people came around to help after that. I was working upstairs making nifty little objects while also playing the role of DJ. 90's music was heard all throughout the dorms first floor. I then made my way downstairs to the kitchen. There was so much to do before dinner! The bland dining room had to be transformed into a magical place for people to come and enjoy the holiday. We had leaves that hung from the ceiling, special napkins, beautiful place setting and a bunch of other little details.

Thankfully there were quite a few people helping at dispersed times. I think the main decoration leaders were Andrea and Clarissa though. I know they were cooking in the back, but I stayed far away from there. I am not a cook. We were trying to make space for at least 90 people. We took chairs from where ever we could including, but not limited to peoples personal homes. 

It took forever and we almost didn't finish in time. At the end everything came together though and it was a spectacular event. The details were so important to make this feel like just a little bit of home. A few minutes before we opened the door I rushed through the kitchen, grabbed a lighter and lit all the candles. It was amazing. The decorations were amazing, the food was amazing and the entertainment was amazing. After eating dinner we gathered upstairs and played games. I even won one of the games! It was who did the best turkey impression...obviously thats my type of game. We had relay races, pin the beak on the turkey and even our own photo shoot area! The evening went well and everyone went to bed with full stomachs and happy memories. The next day I even went to class late blaming it on the food coma I had been educed in. The teacher didn't like that response too much, but it's a REAL thing! 

AND GOOD TIMES WERE HAD BY ALL :)