Buon Compleanno, papà!

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Venezia

Ciao, tutti!

Sorry it's been so quiet...it turns out that my Canon actually did meet its end of days in VERONA, and I have spent the last week aggressively battling with la doggana (customs) in Milano so that I can receive a package with my new camera. Argh!

But aside from the technical difficulties, I spent last weekend in VENICE, having what was easily one of the most fun and memorable weekends of my entire life.

Rachel, Lauren, and Rachel K. headed to Venice last Friday morning to celebrate the giant festival of Carnevale, an all-out celebration that occurs annually, 10 days before Ash Wednesday. And a celebration it was...the entire city was packed (Venice's population apparently doubles and triples during Carnevale!), and everyone, young and old, seemed to be donning some kind of costume, or at least a type of mask. Clearly, we had to join in the festivities:

The girls and I on the Ponte Rialto at sunset

Since Carneval is so popular, we weren't able to actually stay in Venice, but on a campground in little place called Fusina, about an hour from Venice by bus and twenty minutes by boat. Don't worry, this wasn't tent-style camping - we were able to secure a two-room cabin with a space heater and without running water or outlets! Yes!

Let's just say that when we returned to Bologna on Sunday afternoon, none of us had showered since Thursday or Friday. Ew. Although we were "roughing it," Camping Fusina definitely added to the fun of the trip - it was full of other Carnevale travelers such as ourselves, and many a good joke was made about our accommodations, even by strangers. For example, take the conversation we had with a taxi driver on our way back from Venice Saturday afternoon:

Me: Chi vive a Fusina? (Who lives in Fusina?)
Driver: Only little mouse.

Look for pictures of the infamous Camping Fusina on the webalbum, which will be up next week.

On Saturday night we decided to stay in Venice late to check out some of the Carnevale parties, and it turned out to be one of the best decisions of the trip. The entire city was celebrating - every piazza seemed to have its own DJ, and people in all sorts of masks and costumes floated from piazza to piazza celebrating and engaging in the festivities.

The nightlife at the piazza near the Ponte Rialto

Aside from the Carnevale craziness, Venice is probably the most beautiful city I have ever seen, and definitely the most unique. It's no wonder it was such a place of inspiration for so many great artists and thinkers - the city's architecture is stunning and the colors everywhere were absolutely brilliant. We got into some of the major sites such as la Basilica di San Marco and il Palazzo Ducale (the Doge's Palace), but the most fun was had just wandering the tiny streets and bridges of Venice. Beautiful canals and great cafes waited to be discovered around every corner, and we had a lot of good times and good laughs just getting lost.

Today I am headed to INTERLAKEN, SWITZERLAND, where I plan to ski the Swiss Alps this weekend! Those of you that know me well understand what a huge deal this is for me...!!! I'm going with a friend from Cornell and fellow skiing enthusiast, Jamie Brooks, and neither of us can wait to get there!

A presto!

Signs of Spring...

Today during my walk to class I noticed something new...a gelateria (gelato store). On the next block I noticed another, and yet another before I reached the corner. Initially astounded that so many new gelaterie were springing up all over the city, it suddenly dawned on me...

When I first got to Bologna I was shocked (and disappointed) over how few gelaterie there were - I had heard great things about Italian gelato and was surprised to find that aside from a couple of national and international gelato chains, there weren't many around town.

It turns out that there ARE a lot of gelato places, they were just hibernating for the winter! Now that it's mid-February, the time is clearly ripe to re-open up shop. There are now 2-3 gelaterie up and running on any major block in Bologna; 1-2 gelaterie on the random blocks. Go figure.

Good thing I have already invested in a membership at the local palestra (gym)!!

Verona

Ciao, tutti!

I am back in Bologna after spending a very sweet Valentine's Day in Verona, home to none other than Romeo and Juliet themselves! Due to an unfortunate camera accident I am currently unable to post any pictures, but shout-out to my good friends Lauren Claps and Rachel Kubacki for letting me steal some of their facebook photos!

With most of the people in my program in Venezia for Carnevale or away on other trips, some friends and I rallied the troops and planned a day trip to Verona, famous for ancient Roman architecture and Shakesperean romance. After arriving we visited the Arena (pictured above), an ancient Roman amphitheater (the third largest in Italy), and climbed all the way to the top to experience the amazing view - Verona is surrounded by mountains, and so from the top of the arena we were able to see some of the incredible snow-capped peaks.


The climb was well worth it, but it was no joke. Each step was about 2 feet tall, making it somewhat difficult for someone of my size to make the climb! I think this picture pretty much says it all...

Rachel K., myself, and Mayrav, trying not to tumble down 2,000 year-old steps.

After completing our climb in the Arena, we headed to La Casa di Giulietta, the home of Juliet. Tourists young and old crowded around the site, eager to touch the gold breast of Juliet's statue (which is apparently good luck - I however, did not know this and was somewhat concerned to see so many people consecutivelly violating Juliet) and pose on her famous balcony.

The four of us on Juliet's balcony: Lauren, Mayrav, myself, and Rachel K.

Needless to say, Verona was the perfect place to be for Valentine's Day - the streets were even flooded with red confetti and heart-shaped balloons!

I hope you all had a very Happy Valentine's Day as well! Now that I am back in Bologna, I plan to go first thing tomorrow to il fotografo, the photo shop, to see if my camera can be nursed back to health after its detrimental lens-first tumble onto cobblestones. Cross your fingers for me!

Tanti Auguri, Francesca!

Happy Birthday, Francesca!

One of my roommates, Francesca, celebrated her 27th birthday last Friday and we had a small party for her here at our apartment.

The delicious lemon and nutella torta (cake) that my roommate Serena made for the birthday party

Even Jab made an appearance!

Today marks a month since my arrival in Bologna, and I must say, I am getting along incredibly well in my apartment. I usually eat two meals a day with Francesca and Serena, and last week I went to a discoteca with our last roommate, Cristina (a Spanish exchange student), and her Spanish friends. Once in a while something will be lost in translation, but my roommates are both very patient and very willing to correct my Italian errors, without being condescending. I am having a great time with them, and am extremely glad I chose this apartment!

Milano

Ciao, tutti!

I am back in Bologna after a very fun weekend in Milan. The trip was somewhat spontaneous, as my classmates and I were busy studying last week for our Pre-session final exam (I know! I can't believe that my Pre-session course is already over!), so pressed for time, nine of us headed to Milan Saturday morning for a short getaway.

Although the lack of planning definitely made for some obstacles (such as some of us staying in a hotel, and others being forced to stay in a nearby hostel due to documentation issues), it made the trip that much more fun. The spontaneity definitely provided a lot of laughs! Check out the photos:

Milano

In other news, now that my Pre-session course is over, I am beginning my classes at UniBo - the University of Bologna. Our program's director has encouraged us to shop around for classes before committing, and so I am spending this week auditing classes to see which ones I like. Today I went to Storia della Chiesa Medievale (History of the Medieval Church), and tomorrow I plan to sit in on Storia dell'arte Contemporanea (History of Modern Art). Storia della Chiesa Medievale was okay - it was a little frustrating being unfamiliar with the detailed vocabulary used by the professor. Each department, or facoltà, has its own academic calendar and so many courses, including the political science courses, do not begin until next week. As I am majoring in Government and minoring in International Relations at Cornell, I definitely plan to take a political science course here at UniBo and am excited to see what it will be like in the classroom next week.

Stay tuned, and a presto!

Non è sempre una dolce vita

Ciao, tutti!

I am proud to say I have successfully survived my first major crisis since arriving in Italy: lack of internet access.

As the Wi-Fi in my apartment was installed by my room's previous tenants, it promptly turned off right before February 1st, leaving my roommates and myself without a connection. Unable to function without e-mail or Skype, my primary methods of communication with loved ones back home and friends abroad, I purchased a USB modem to use until my apartment's normal connection is back up (in 2-3 weeks!). The problem was that this very expensive USB device only worked intermittently, and no one at the internet provider's store could explain why. Finally, today I spoke to someone completely new and she was able to get my internet up and running for good!

Throughout my ordeal, I couldn't help but laugh as I noticed that I was exhibiting symptoms of what my handy-dandy BCSP program handbook describes as the second stage of culture shock ("irritation and hostility"),  characterized by:

"...differences becoming irritating and frustrating. Small problems loom as major catastrophes."

Now that I am back online, I hope I can move from stage 2, "irritation and hostility" to stage 3,  "adaptation and biculturalism," LOL!

Modena

Ciao, tutti!

I am blogging from my apartment, back from another fun and eventful weekend!

Yesterday, some friends from my program and I did a day trip to Modena, a town only 20 minutes north of Bologna by train. Modena is mostly famous for four local products: Ferrari, Maserati, opera star Luciano Pavarotti, and balsamic vinegar - the best in the world. Needless to say, it was definitely worth a visit!

We started off our day at the Ferrari museum, where we got a first-hand peek at some of the fastest and most expensive cars in the world.

A 2000 Ferrari Spider

The museum featured dozens of cars of all different ages, models, and purposes. We also got to take a peek at the engines inside the cars and a glance into the production process.

Next, we stopped at l'Acetaia di Giorgio, a balsamic vinegar producer that has been in the vinegar business since the 1800s. The daughter of the vineyard's owner was our host, and gave us a lesson on the balsamic vinegar making process: we were educated on the different types of wood used to produce balsamic vinegar, and saw the different barrels used for production and aging. Last but not least, we got to taste!


Although most think of balsamic vinegar as a cooking ingredient or salad dressing, this vinegar was in a league of its own. We tasted vinegar aged up to 25 years (older than me!), and our host explained that depending on the age of the vinegar and woods used in the process, they recommend some vinegars as condiments for foods such as pancakes, fruit, and even gelato!

Completely coincidentally, we happened to visit Modena during la Festa di Modena, the day of their annual festival, and thus were able to spend our afternoon strolling though the market and tasting delicacies from the various stalls.

The two Rachels posing with some of the delicious cheese we bought

Visiting Modena was definitely one of the coolest and most memorable things I have done since arriving in Italy; although it isn't a huge tourist destination, it was great to explore the region of Emilia-Romagna outside of Bologna and get some insight into some of the most famous and important Italian exports: fast cars and fine cuisine!

To see more photos from our day in Modena, check out the web album:

Modena

Now that it is Sunday evening and I am back in Bologna, I'm a little sad that I don't have a Superbowl party to go to! Kickoff is around midnight my time, so I guess I won't be watching the game. Hope you all enjoy your respective festivities!

A presto!