Touring the countryside

Its been a busy week of nights out, concerts in the Campo, group excursions and of course school. The weather is finally nice and sunny here so Ive been enjoying more gelato and sitting in the Campo. On Thursday we took a group excursion to Bologna, Rimini and San Marino. We got caught in a thunderstorm in Bologna but our group lunch definitely made up for it. This picture shows us caught in the rainstorm with nothing but our sweaters to cover us, the result made us look like nuns. We stayed the night in Rimini, a small beach town on the east coast of Italy known for the best discotechs in Italy. Somehow me managed to fail miserably at finding the "rocking" nightlife and instead walked 45 minutes around the city and ended up in a club full of middle schoolers. Needless to say the night ended with some gelato and nutella crepes to put us in a better mood. The next day we visited some churches and museums and had a few hours free time to hang out on the beach. It was wonderful although there was no one else in town it seemed, must not have hit the tourist season yet. After lunch we boarded the bus again to head for San Marino, a small independent republic within the heart of Italy. It has always been independent and the San Marino people are very proud of their heritage and independence. While touring the city we were caught in yet another thunderstorm however a nutella crepe made it all so worth it. We took the bus all the way back to Siena and arrived late Friday night. Yesterday we spent just walking around town and climbing the tower in the Campo, giving us gorgeous views of the town and countryside. bunch of us headed outside the city walls to the boys apartment where we cooked dinner and watched the sunset. We took the 930 bus back into town and cruised around the Siena carnival for the evening. It is beginning to feel like summer and with my upcoming trip to Barcelona I have to constantly remind myself that I need to do my homework because I actually do go to school sometimes :)

weekends that turn into weekdays that turn into weekends

With only a few weeks left in the program it seems that the days blend together more and more. I live for the weekends when I get to travel to some amazing place in Italy and yet the weekdays are just as fun, hanging around the Campo, eating gelato and exploring more of the town. I can't believe I'm going to have to leave this amazing place. It feels like I just got here. Here is a brief update of the past few days:
FRI - took the train to Cinque Terre with Lanie and Rachel and a few other girls. We got to Riomaggiore mid-afternoon and after checking into our hostel we headed for the beach in Monterosso. We spent the afternoon lounging on the rocky beach and exploring the tiny town of Monterosso.It is the northern most town of the five. We even stopped by the wine bar where mom and I had made friends with the people and had rented a room from them. The wife immediately recognized me and gave me a big hug and kisses. It was so nice to feel like I knew some people in this small town. When the sun finally set we took the train back to Riomaggiore (the southern most town) and ate dinner at the "most happening nightlife" bar in town. Bar Centrale happened to be right below our room and really was where everyone in the 1000 person town hung out. For some reason there was a huge group of college students also staying in our town so it was a fun atmosphere. We discovered an AMAZING gelateria right next to bar centrale - possibly the best gelato I've had all trip. Homemade and delicious, I definitely recommend it if you are in Cinque Terre.
SAT - Got up early and after breakfast we headed out along the Via Dell'Amore, the first leg of the 7 mile hike between the 5 towns. We saw some amazing views of the coastline and the turquoise water. It is more like a stroll than an actual hike and is decorated in one part with hundreds of locks that people have locked on with their lovers. is a popular tradition. This hike took us to the town of Manarola, very picturesque, and we continued on to the town of Corniglia. More amazing views and lots of pictures. Sometimes I worry that everyone back home looking at my pictures wonders why I take so many of the scenery; but you can't help it here, everywhere you turn is beauty. Since the last few hikes were closed due to mudslides we took the train to Vernazza and then to Monterosso where we spent the afternoon in the sun, swimming and enjoying a lemon festival. This included free tastes of Limoncello, chocolates, lemon cake and of course just plain lemon. We stayed and had dinner at a restaurant overlooking the ocean and enjoying fresh pesto pasta. Sometimes I forget that I'm in school here. After dinner we took the train back to Riomaggiore, got gelato of course, and watched the game at Bar Centrale with the rest of the town. And by "the game" I mean the Inter Milan vs. Munich for the Euorpean Soccer Title. Milan won 2-0 which made everyone extremely happy. As I said before, soccer here is the true religion.
SUN - Got fruit and crossiants from the local market and headed down to the shore where we sat upon the giant rocky cliffs and gazed out at the ocean. It was so peaceful I didn't ever want to leave, but unfortunately our train left at 1. to Siena was nice as it feels like returning home after any trip and the sun was still out giving hope for a beautiful week ahead.

Tuscan cooking

While here in Siena I have been taking a weekly cooking class with an adorable woman named Elisabetta. There are four of us in the class and every wednesday after class we head over to her kitchen. Adornded with aprons we begin the process to create a typical 3 course Tuscan meal. Throughout our five classes we have learned how to make several pasta dishes (including actually making homemade pasta), sauces, meat dishes and several delicious desserts. Elisabetta has us help her chop vegetables, grind nutmeg, stir sauces and even peel grapes. Usually we are all starving and just want to lick the bowl while we are still making the cake or tiramisu but alas we resort to simply gnawing on a piece of bread and sipping on white wine. My favorite part was making the pasta. No bowls or utensils were involved, simply a mound of flour with an egg in the middle and then you mix it together with your hands. After this has become a dough like substance, we ran it through the pasta machine several times until it comes out pasta! Amazing. After laboring over the dishes we finally get to enjoy all the food. We all sit around the table, sometimes accompained by Elisabetta's husband or daughter, and eat our way through the first, second and third courses all with some excellent red wine and italian converstaion. Elisabetta is sure to make sure we don't go hungry which means we finish most all of the food and defintely all the dessert. We happily wave goodbye as we make the steep climb back into town, with protruding but happy stomachs. Unfortunately we have no more classes but Elisabetta enjoyed us so much that she invited us to have a party at her own house ina few weeks and I promptly requested we make tiramisu again. Can't wait.

Top 10 of the past week

10. Daily cappucinos at meetlife with marmelade crossiant
9. Having a pizza and movie night with the group - watching "Francesco's Italy", a funnier, more entertaining Italian version of rick steves
8. Discovering a new gelateria - with amazing dark chocolate gelato- and enjoying it while basking in the sun in the campo
7. Art history class monday morning with Piergiacomo-my adorable Italian professor
6. Cooking class, making homemade ravioli, chicken with grapes and a creme tort for dessert
5. A four course group lunch during our all day excursion to some nearby towns, the only part of the day when we weren't in the pouring rain
4. Watching the inter milan vs. Siena soccer game at the cafe even though the game was in Siena we couldn't get tickets, too many people wanted to see Milan
3. Hanging out at the tea room, everyone with their own personal teapot and of course delicious dessert too accompany
2. Listening to "live" music at meetlife cafe, aka a dj and drum machine, while finishing off a bottle of red wine with my roommate and then getting take out Chinese for dinner
1. Visiting Brolio castle in Chianti to learn how the wine is made as well as the history of the baron who lived there and invented Chianti and finishing the tour with a private wine tasting

It has been a glorious week and the sun is finally deciding to show up. Can't believe I only have one month left here.
What will I do when I have to go back to living a normal life?

time marches on

It has been rather cloudy and gray the past few days in Siena, not at all like the picture but we can hope. We're all anxiously awaiting Spring's arrival which hopefully is any day now. Despite the weather we have all been furiously planning every weekend and side trip imaginable. It is hard to comprehend that we only have a few more weeks left. Every weekend from here on out is planned - group excursion this weekend to nearby small towns, cinque terre the following weekend followed by 2 days in Bologna/Rimini, Barcelona the weekend after that and then finish it all off with a weekend in Florence. As a group we have all gotten so close over the past few weeks and it will be weird to suddenly break off and go our separate ways. But I shouldn't dwell on that now, there is still plenty of time.
Siena is starting to perk up a bit with the Palio right around the corner and despite the fact that I feel more and more like a local everyday I still have my adventures - counting out the correct change in the grocery line, buying contact solution at the sunglass store, haggling for jewlery at the wednesday market or playing italian trivia at the nearby bar. Life has become "normal" and sometimes I have to remind myself that I am in Italy. I start to forget that I am in this amazing city in this amazing country and need to take a step back and take it all in. This in turn leads to my problem of wanting to take in everything - and thus may get stuck here trying to see it all. Oh well I guess there are worse things.

ciao for now!

the sinking city

This past weekend I took the train up to Venice with a few other girls in the program. Luckily the train was extremely simple and we made it safe and sound despite having to wake up at 5 am. (the joys of being a broke college student). The forecast had predicted rain but someone decided to smile down on us and we only experienced wet weather for a brief stint on Saturday.
Friday we spent the afternoon roaming around the tiny streets and looking in all the shops. Everywhere you turn it is either a glass shop, mask shop or water. My favorite part was turning a corner and seeing a tiny bridge across a little canal. Venice is absolutely gorgeous and I could have taken about 1000 pictures. Over the weekend we saw several brides and I can only imagine how beautiful their pictures must have been.
Friday night we paid 5 euro and had dinner at the hostel. It was basically like one huge family dinner with all the others staying there. We had all you can eat pasta, cake and sangria and had the chance to meet tons of people from Australia. The next morning we wandered over to St. Marks Basillica, toured inside and upstairs gaining a lovely view of the square below and then hopped on a boat to Murano Island. We watched a brief glass blowing demonstration and perused the shops. They are dangerous however, the more time you spend inside the more the jewelry starts to sparkle and call your name. Luckily I got out of there just in time.
On our way back we took the boat all the way up the grand canal and got the grand water tour. The buildings were all built to be seen from the water so you don't get the true essence of the city until you've traveled it by boat. Although you can see where the water is silently creeping up the steps, Venice is still standing and still as glorious as it once was.
Sunday we meandered and wound up sitting on the dock by the Rialto bridge just taking in the scene. It seems that every new city I go to in Italy I fall in love. It never ceases to amaze me how beautiful and unique every town is. It is truly unbelievable.

Unfortunately we could not afford a gondola ride as they are more than 100 euro but I guess that gives me something to come back for...that and enough money so that I don't have to spend the night on the top bunk :)

The Palio is what makes Siena famous. It happens twice a year but the town gears up for it year round. Within the walled city of Siena there are 17 contrade or neighborhoods. These contrade are small, lasting only a few blocks, but it is important to distinguish where one ends and the other begins. All Sienese belong to one of these neighborhoods depending on where they were born. Each contrada has their own mascot, flag, church, museum, club, government and saint. I currently live in the Elephant district and my school is located in the Porcupine district - where my teacher is from and according to her, the best contrada. The flags that adorn the town starting in early spring and continue through the summer show the different mascots. Every contrada has one main enemy - the contrada that is its neighbor. So, for example, the Porcupine and the She Wolf are enemies and also located physically right next to each other. This could make for some tension between neighbors.
The Palio started in 1329 and the actual "Palio" is a silk banner that is hand painted every year. It must have either the Virgin Mary or st. Madonna on it as well as the symbols of the contrade who competed that year. The Palio is the prize for winning but pride is the real achievement. Every year on July 2nd and August 16, 10 of the 17 contrade compete in a 3 lap horse race around the Piazza del Campo. Thousands of people are jammed into the center of the campo as well as in bleachers set up around the shops. One horse from each contrade races around the track furiously to make the finish line. Usually horses wipe out but luckily only some of the riders suffer mild injuries.
The days leading up to the Palio are filled with parties, celebrations and traditions. There are flag throwers, drummers, parades and many medieval costumes. The night before the Palio, hundreds of people gather in the streets to take part in an outdoor dinner with lots of food and music and socializing. The actual day is filled with excitement, anticipation and lots of emotion. The horses and their riders are blessed within their churches (yes the horses go in too) and then make the parade down to the Campo. After a brutal, loud, adrenaline filled three laps the winner is crowned - there is yelling, joy, laughter, excitement as well as tears, rage and sometimes fights. This is serious business and an integral part of these people. The winning contrada spends the next week in full out party mode and has bragging rights for a whole year. The also begin to plan a giant celebration in September to commemorate their win. The winning jockey is paid over 300,000 euro and the second place contrada goes into hiding.
It is an exciting tradition that these people take extremely seriously but also in good fun. It has gone on for centuries and only ever stopped due to war. At one point the Pope found out that the Sienese were letting horses go into the church to be blessed for the race and he condemned it. This outraged the people so much that when the Pope did come to visit, no one showed up to see him.

My goal is to come back in July to see the Palio and take part in this lively tradition!

Soccer - the real religion of Italy

Today I ventured to my first Italian soccer game. Soccer, or calcio, is widely the most popular sport here in Italy. There are several teams, one from most towns, and fans are die hard. Today AC Siena was up against Palermo. It was a rainy Sunday but that didn't drive anyone away. We sat in the cheap seats section, near some Palermo fans. A few sections away was the real Palermo section - hundreds of individuals decked out in pink and white with hats, scarves and signs. Starting an hour before and not ending until hours after, those fans were screaming, chanting, singing and whistling. They continued throughout the whole game and not only put our fans to shame but were most likely just as tired as the actual players by the end.
The actual game was quite exciting. Three goals, several penalties and overall exciting, fun soccer. Despite the pouring rain and a loss 2-1 for Siena, it was an exciting atmosphere and I can only imagine what it would be like sitting in the stands at a Rome or Milan game. In a few weeks Siena will play their last home game before gearing up for the world cup. There last game is against Milan and would be amazing to see but getting tickets may be a trick.
I love how much emotion goes into everything people do here. Life is all about the things and people they love..nothing else matters.