Dans Le Noir- Dinner "in the dark"

Have you ever ate in the dark? Complete and total darkness. When stripped with one of your five senses, everyday tasks change a great deal. Having to rely on touch, smell, taste, and sound is very difficult for someone who is used to having the gift of sight. However, some people do it every day and get along fine. Dans Le Noir is a dining experience where the two roles are reversed, and you can enjoy dinner in the dark, led by a blind server. This experience may sound a little strange at first and not everyone wants to step out of their comfort zone. As soon as I heard about this I immediately wanted to go. This experience is supposed to enhance your taste buds and allow for you to enjoy a dinner without first judging the food by the looks.

I made reservations a month in advance and had been stoked for this dinner for a long time. Finally is was Saturday night and Laura, Sarah, Maria, Nolan, and I headed out to dinner. Since we have adapted to the Italian lifestyle, we were running about 15 minutes late and missed the introduction about the restaurant Luckily, I had briefed everyone about the experience and the menu options. You can choose between the Meat Lovers, Fish Lovers, Vegetarian, and Chef’s Choice surprise dinner and whether you want a 2 or 3 course dinner. We ended up choosing a good variety of 2 meats plates, one vegetarian, 2 chef surprise, and also appetizers, dessert, and a bottle of red wine. We put everything we had on us in a locker and headed to the dining room.

Right before we entered we were introduced to our wonderful server, Thomas. Standing in a line, with our right hands on the shoulder in front of us, we were led through the 3 layers of curtains into the dining room. It was indeed, pitch black and your eyes never adjust. Here we immediately heard forks scraping, glasses clinking, and chatter from the other guests. I’m guessing there were about 10 other tables with guests that were just as confused as we were. We were told to wait and then Thomas came over and led me to my chair. I immediately started feeling the table to get my bearings. The HRA girl in me went crazy. First of all my knife was horizontal, which was strange. The fork was on the left. A napkin was placed in the middle with a simple tri fold I’m guessing. We had two glasses, a bigger one for water, and a smaller cup for wine. It was driving me crazy not actually being able to see the room, but I drew up a layout in my head. I listened to the other guests to gather their reactions. Throughout the night we heard other tables drop silverware, glasses, and lots of “Ohh noo”. Not us, we did pretty well. Thomas returned with a bottle of wine. He handed me the bottle and told me to pour and enjoy. HOLD ON. I just ordered red wine and he wants me to pour it in the dark… He then politely explained that I hold my glass with my finger in it and simply just pour until it touches my finger. Ya, it is that simple, as long as you make it in the glass... which I thankfully did.

Our dinner conversation was quite interesting. It’s strange to communicate without seeing someone else’s reaction. Sort of like a 5 way telephone conversation I guess. It was kind of fun because you can react however you want and nobody will ever know. Later I found out that Sarah was making faces and rude gestures the whole night. Jerk. We had a great time discussing our food and trying to guess what it was. My favorite memory is when the table next to us (at least we think) decided to start singing “The 12 Days of Chirstmas”. I’m pretty sure that everyone in that room joined in. I’ve started to notice that when people are in situations that are different from their normal life they seem to bond real fast and act like they’re been friends for a long time. I guess it’s a way to find comfort in a situation.Antother fond memory is when Maria informed us that if you lick someone and they don’t see it, that  they won’t actually know. So guess what, it’s true. No details though. What happens at Dans Le Noir, stays in that room. Although, I would pay a great sum of money to watch a video of that dinner. I can only imagine how silly we would all look attempting to eat.

Attempting to eat… well this was quite an experience. All I knew was that I was getting a “Meat Lovers” dinner and a dessert. Once my entrée arrived I picked up my fork and knife and hit my plate. Missed. Opps. Once I found my food I started to cut and took a bite. I liked it. Not sure what it was, but it was good. I continued to eat bite after bite. After awhile I gave up and just started pushing things on my fork with my hand. I kept tasting many different flavors, but I couldn’t detect them. I knew I was eating some sort of roast and I tasted some balsamic vingerette. Even when I recognized a flavor, most of the time I couldn’t figure out what is was. We rely so much on looking at what we eat that our taste buds are often overlooked. There was only one thing on my plate that I didn’t like, and I’m still not sure what it was. The “red wine” we had was a simple wine. I was extremely excited to try and figure out what it. In my wine service class we taste 2-3 wines and class and describe them. However, without seeing the wine I felt lost. I’m not sure why since I was searching for the aromas, but I didn’t really smell much. However, once I started eating my meat platter, the wine changed. It was very flavorful and brought out the flavors of the meat. The mystery wine was a good choice. Then the dessert came. OH MY was it good. I broke the faint chocolate shell and tasted the chocolate and raspberry mousse. I got so excited because it was delicious and I actually knew what it was that I announced it to the table… a little too loudly. Sorry to everyone else in the restaurant for ruining the surprise. Luckily we were one of the last tables there, so it wasn’t a big deal. I wanted to lick the plate and I really should have. Or maybe I did, no one will ever know.

After the meal, Thomas led us back out and we were able to see what we ate. It turns out the meat plate was split into 4 sections, each with a different meat and sauces. Thinking back I guess that’s how the plate was set up, but I don’t really know because at the time I was just scraping my fork around until I found food. I was spot on with my guess of the dessert, right down to the strawberry and jello on the sides. I can’t exactly say what I ate for the sake of secrecy, but it was good. And the experience is priceless. I can’t stress how much I would recommend this place. It was great with a few friends or would be a really funny date (especially a first “blind” date). Talk about really getting to know someone. If you have the chance in New York, London, Paris, or Moscow be sure to check it out. http://www.danslenoir.com/index.php

Tag me in at "Africa" - Morocco Fall Break Part 1

Sarah, Laura, and I spent many hours trying to plan a fall break adventure. After going to a SnoworSand travel group presentation we fell in love with the idea of going to Morocco. This was unlike any of our other trips and we were really excited. I honestly could not think of a better way to spend my fall break. One of the best parts about my trip was the 12 other people I spent the trip with. We laughed, danced, and became a little Moroccan family for the week.

The trip started off well with a train ride to the Pisa Airport and on the train this little head pops up and asks "Are you guys going to Morocco?!? Ya? Ok My name's Stef, I'm going to film you this week. I'm with Snow or Sand." It turns out our trip was being filmed to be used in the promo video for Snow or Sand. Sounds good to me! Plus, Stef a.k.a. Hookah Mama turned out to be a good addition to our little Moroccan family. We ended up meeting with the rest of the Florence crew at the airport and got acquainted. We all bonded with the complete chaos at the airport. Most of my flights have been on this budget airline called RyanAir. Yes, you get 9 Euro flights, but you have to play their insane game. This includes booking in Italian, not adding on luggage, you only get 1 bag (under 22 pounds and no other items on you like a purse or shopping bag) or you get charged more. You also don't have assigned seats, so you must stand in a line at the terminal so that you can get a good seat. Well, our flight was majority Moroccans and Moroccans don't really follow the line concept. Once the flight attendant opened the gate a mad dash of pushing and shoving occurred. Flight attendants were yelling in Italian, Moroccans yelling back in Arabic, and the 10 little Americans just shimmied our way through and made a dash for the plane. The flight was a circus, as usual, with them trying to sell you anything you can imagine and coming on the intercom every 10 minutes announcing something ridiculous. My personal favorite is the jingle that goes off when you land, "Do do do...Congratulations!!! You're one of the many on time flights of RyanAir. RyanAir is the #1 airline for on time flights in Europe!" This went off when we landed... 10 minutes late. Anyway, the plane landed and we met our guide Mohamed a.k.a DJ MOMO.

The airport was gorgeous! Later we found it is the airport where Sex and the City 2 filmed their scenes, in addition to many parts of Morocco that we saw! Of course I watched the movie last week and got really excited when they were in the airport and shopping in the souqs. We drove through the town of Marrakesh and were dropped off in the city center. It was a beautiful chaos. Street vendors everywhere selling fresh squeezed orange juice, spices, lamps, cds, and everything Moroccan you can imagine. We headed to our Riad (basically a Moroccan Bed and Breakfast, you won't find very many hotels here, the local Riads are the way to go) through the streets and alleyway. At dusk it seemed like it was so far away, but by the last day we were roaming the streets of Marrakesh like we lived there! We arrived to our Riad and were immediately greeting with a Bonjour and welcoming arms. I was so so so excited to use my french, which is slightly better than my Italian. Sedia, the Riad owner, doesn't speak any English, and I enjoyed the broken conversations I had with her. We went from room to room admiring how beautiful our Riad was. Moroccan decorations are so full of color and have such detail, I wanted to buy everything!

The first rule of Moroccan hospitality is to serve Mint Tea. That night I had my first taste of tea and fell in love with it. Mint is one of my favorite flavors and combined with a little bit of sugar the tea is fantastic. The trick to it is the pouring method. You pour a glass, put in back in the pot, and pour again lifting the teapot high up to avoid getting mint leaves in the glass and for perfect presentation. We headed back into the city center for dinner in the souqs. DJ MOMO lead us through big white tents full of people with food being grilled and tables everywhere. Each place we passed we were asked to sit down for "the best food" and "good price". DJ MOMO lead us to a stand where we enjoyed our first Moroccan dinner. We started off with olives, bread, and some salad. Everything was so flavorful and extremely different from all the pasta and pizza I had been eating in Italy. We were then served meat and vegetable kabbobs followed by potatoes, hard boiled eggs, sausages, and fries. We thought is would never end! We all got acquainted and talked about the excited week we had ahead of us! After dinner we went to a local restaurant for some more Mint Tea. Mohamed attempted to teach us some Arabic and Berber. I officially know 3 words in Arabic: Assalamu'alekum (hello), Shukrun (thank you), and Haram Baram (cheers). But my personal favorite is "cheers" in Berber: Libito Bito Limabito Mabito. Try saying that 3 times fast.

Our first morning I woke up around 5am for the call to prayer. I knew of the call to prayer, Adhan, but I had never actually heard it in person. Five times a day all practicing Muslims repeat this summary of their statement of faith. I fell back asleep and woke up in time for my breakfast of bread, butter, honey, and tea. A nice change of pace from Italian croissants and espresso! We headed out for our tour of Marrakesh. First up was the Musee Dar Si Said, a museum of ancient art and crafts. Here we saw old woven rugs, pottery, clothing, and original decorations of the palace. Once again I was amazed by the beauty of Moroccan artwork!

 From here we walked around the streets of Marrakesh, which are always a great adventure. Always be sure to watch out for the bikes and donkeys. I was almost run over multiple times. Along the way you are sure to pass a dozen street cats. They are EVERYWHERE. And so adorable, unless you're a hater *cough Stef*. Even in the desert, which is why every cat on this trip is now referred to as "desert kitty". If you want to feel popular, just take a walk through the souqs. Every vendor will call out to you and call you beauitful. Talk about a self-esteem boost. If you tone out the noise and just look around you will notice the amazing products. The spices, clothing, lamps, jewelry, and decorations are all so incredible and you just want to buy everything. Bartering is an experience you will either love or hate. Most things are priced way high with the expectation that you will barter. I always start off with confidence and suggesting a ridiculous low price of about 20 Dirhams (about 2 Euro) for everything. This either starts off with laugh or makes them angry. I figure it's a good strategy because then I decide whether I like the guy. Chances are the same thing is being sold a few stands down, so I choose what to buy based on a fair price and if I liked the vendor. If you really want a good deal take my friend Izzy. She seemed to always walk away with a deal!

     

Next up was the Herboristerie for some Moroccan herbs and medicine. We were given a short explanation about different Moroccan medicines and how they were used. I'm a big nerd and was fascinated by everything. I typically hate taking pills and getting shots, but I love herb medicine. It's natural and I feel like it's better for the body. Not only was there medicine, there was tons of beauty supplies from argon oil to eyeliner and lipstick. I think the group spent a couple thousand Dirhams there! The shop was great and I was sure to walk away with some mint tea, package of spices, argon oil for my hair, and some special Christmas gifts!

 

 One thing we were promised and very excited for, was to see some snake charmers and take picture with monkeys. We sure got our money's worth! I am slightly afraid of snakes, but I figured... I'm in Morocco, why not. He put the snake around my neck and I lasted about 10 seconds before I decided I was done. We also got to hold monkeys. I'm usually a big fan of mammals, but these guys were crazy. The monkeys pulled hair, bit people's faces, and peed on Caitlin! But at least it was a good photo opp, especially for Sarah.

That afternoon we got lunch and we all experienced fresh squeezed ___ juice. Apparently you can juice just about anything. I ordered Jus de Pomme (Fresh squeezed apple juice), but the most popular was Jus de Banane which was delicious! We also enjoyed kabobs and fries. Yumm. The gorgeous Jardin Majorelle were the next stop in Marrakesh. The gardens were originally the painter Jacques Majorelle's, but after his death they were restored and now open to the public. They were filled with green everywhere and the prettiest color blue for the buildings. They were truly a sight and these pictures do not do it justice! On the way back to the city center we all decided to take a horse drawn carriage so we could take in the city view!

 Our next experience was one for the books. Keep in mind we met each other less than 24 hours ago, but we truly bonded over our Hammam Bath experience. We had all heard a little about the Hammam Bath. Most Moroccans go at least one a week to get extra clean and it's a typical cultural tradition. For an American, it's quite a bit out of your comfort zone. In the words of Ryan Gosling on Jimmy Fallon describing a Turkish Bath. (http://blogs.indiewire.com/carynjames/ryangoslingfallon) " I expected to walk into a spa with palm trees being waved at me and being fed grapes." Not quite. It was more like clueless American girls being sent into a empty tile room and meeting a large Moroccan woman who only spoke Arabic. Not a bit of English or French. We stood there in our swimsuits with our little bags of soap and scrubbers from the herboristerie and followed where the lady pointed. After walking into the next room we clearly saw that our swimsuits weren't needed. We decided to go for the Moroccan experience and lost our tops and headed to the "hot room". There were buckets everywhere and most women were sitting around the buckets and scrubbing the dead skin off. We all sat around and started to do the same while we chatted and giggled. Just when we thought we figured it out, a Moroccan woman came and gave us instructions in rapid Arabic. Finally she grabbed Caitlin and started scrubbing her until her skin was red. One by one we each got flopped around like a fish on the dirty tile ground and scrubbed 5 layers of dead skin off. Since we couldn't communicate, we were just pulled and flipped and got real close to this very large, very naked woman. Although this may sounds little terrifying, I have never felt so clean. We all were a little shocked at first, but now it's just a funny experience and I would recommend it. Heck, they do this every week!

After being scrubbed clean we came back to the riad for some henna tattoos. Most of us got cool hand art, but I think the winner went to Carly and the snake on her arm! We had dinner again in the souqs. Multiple course were served once again, but my favorite was the soup!

Hookah Mama enjoying her soup.

Which leads me to our next activity. Hookah! DJ MOMO led us across town and into the basement of a building where we found a pool hall and hookah bar! I have never actually smoked hookah and was excited to try our apple and mint flavors. We had a great time and were all full of laughter. DJ MOMO and Stef had quite a show down for who could smoke the best. This is how Stef received her nickname: Hookah Mama. I tried and tried, but could barely get good smoke rings until the end. At one point I realized that I was holding my hookah like a clarinet, which was strange since I haven't played since Jr. High. I guess some things just naturally sneak up on you. This led to Sarah and my extremely impressive musical number. Needless to say, my first Hookah was a success. 

                             Hookah Mama and Me                  DJ MOMO and I face off... guess who won

                                Sarah and I Hookah together!                           Champs.

Next up we head to the Sahara, but more to come on that later! Hope you enjoyed the photos/ me rambling!

Yeahhhh buddy! Ireland!

Last weekend Laura and I went to Ireland! To sum it all up- everyone was extremely nice and the pubs were fantastic!

We started off the trip in Galway to see some Ireland country. When we checked into our hostel, the front desk man gave us a map and circled the pubs we needed to go to and "have a pinttt"  (in his cute Irish accent). We started off at The Skfff. This was your typical Irish pub, with a couple singing Irish folk songs and everyone drinking Guinness and cider. I liked to pretend that I knew the songs and get into them, but the only one I recognized was Galway Girl. Perfect first Irish pub to go to. Here we ran into a group of girls from the college nearby that wanted to show us a good Irish time. One of the girls loves Americans and seems to think that we all go around saying "Yeahhh buddy". We humored her and continued to use that phrase all night and taught her to start saying "for sure" when agreeing with someone. They led us to a nearby disco, Karma. Here we finished the night with lots of dancing and talking to some Irish boys. :)

The next day we booked an all day tour of Connemara. We wanted to experience old Irish towns and this trip included a castle, a true Gaeilge speaking town, and lots of countryside. It did not disappoint! Our tour only had about 12 people and our tour guide was quite funny. He kept saying to yell at him to stop the bus if there was anyplace we wanted to stop and take a photo. We started off with a quick tour of Galway and then  went on our way. The first stop was the bridge from the John Wayne film "The Quite Man". I've never seen the film, but it sure was pretty! We went on to a tiny town where we stopped for an Irish coffee (delicious!!!) and went on to the Abbey Castle. It was built by a young couple that were in love and had a large chuck of money. From there is was sold a lot and turned into an all girls boarding school until a few years ago. It was very pretty and the gardens were amazing. The rest of the tour included sheep, Connemara ponies, and some Irish history lessons.

That night we took a bus back to Dublin and were ready to see the other side of Ireland. Dublin was a perfect mixture between a historic and modern lifestyle. I loved it, and I still can't get over how nice everyone way. Everywhere we went we were welcomed with open arms and people wanted to show us around. For dinner we went to an Irish pub (go figure) and got some typical Irish food... sort of. I got a ceasar salad, because I haven't had one since the states. Dublin gave me a little taste of American foods to hold me over. I also got Quiznos (honey mustard!), McDonalds, and Starbucks. Starbucks did laugh at me when I asked if they had Pumpkin Spice Lattes... I guess I'll have to wait until December for that one.

We met up with Aideen, a friend of Laura's friend Clare, who was kind enough to let us stay with her and show us Dublin. We had a typical Irish breakfast of sausage, eggs, brown bread, and black & white pudding. Not the pudding like Americans have, these were different and I can't say what was in it. It's best if you don't know until after you try it. Not bad though! This hearty breakfast gave us energy for our tour of Dublin. We walked around the city center and looked at the main points of Dublin. Aideen took us to a pub that has flea markets on Saturdays. They had the cutest stuff and I was sure to buy a scarf for a souvenir. The rest of the day turned into the drinking tour of Dublin. The Guinness factory was first on the list. I learned all about the art of making, pouring, and drinking Guinness. I successfully drank my first Guinness on the top of factory with a 360 degree view of Dublin. Up next was the Jameson Whiskey factory. At the end of the tour Laura got to take the official whiskey tasting where she compared the Jameson with a scotch and some American Jack Daniels. Luckily she didn't finish them so I could have a taste of them all. Jameson was my favorite! Sorry American, Dublin wins this one. I also got my complimentary drink of Jameson and cranberry which was delicious. We headed back to Aideens where she had dinner waiting for us. It was absolutely delicious! After dinner we went to her friends house and met a few other girls for drinks before we went out. They were a lot of fun and we chatted a lot about American/ Dublin life. She brought us to a Reggae bar where her friend was playing. After a few songs there Laura and I headed to an Irish Pub. We figured if you're in Ireland, you have to hit up Temple Bar! We walked down Temple Bar street and found a place with live music, Gogartys Pub. Here we met 3 Irish guys - Steven, Alan, and Henry that wanted to show us a good Irish time. They were a ton of fun to hang out with. We listened to the band, did some dancing, and had a good time. Afterwards we went to a disco with them and walked around Dublin. What a perfect Irish night!

My time in Ireland was amazing. I walked away singing Irish tunes, with a rugby jersey, and a Starbucks in my hand.

"You Must Have Been A Gladiator In A Past Life"

Rome was unbelievably great! I can't believe I also didn't go back. I had been on a trip in high school, so I almost decided to pass but this trip was amazing and I appreciated it so much more this time.

Let's start off with Thursday. I started off the day at 9AM interviewing tourists for my Sustainable Tourism class. I was actually very excited for this and it did not disappoint. We were split into groups of 2 and sent to different tourist areas of Florence. My partner, Alexis, and I were assigned to San Lorenzo market and the special project of exploring the the tourist offices of Florence. We set out to the first tourist office to ask if they had any brochures on sustainable tourism. Nope. He said the website might, and it did. But he couldn't recommend any places that focus on sustainability and didn't have a map of the public water fountains (one of Italy's great features is providing free tap water to the public). He did however have a very outdated brochure to give us. He also gave us a number to his bosses that could help. It looks like we are meeting with them this week to further discuss. Our professor came to the conclusion that they have sustainable information, but they just don't realize it. Many of the hotels and shopped are locally owned and rather eco-friendly, but it is just so common here they don't realize that they are living sustainably. The second tourist office was very busy and not quite as nice. The man actually told us that he didn't have time to talk to us and to tell our teacher "he is not playing games today". We brushed that rudeness off and headed to talk to tourists. Our first attempt was a group of  Canadian women on vacation through Tuscany. They were thrilled to answer our questions and a delight to talk to. We interviewed a variety of travelers mostly British, Canadian, and American. We came to the conclusion that most people prefer comfort, but choose to be sustainable if it is convenient for them. My day ended with a typical night out. This time to the ever so American pub, The Lion's Fountain. We met a few American guys that were in town for their friends wedding. We gave them an unexpected tour of Florence where we led them to Twice, one of the disqoteches. I love that I finally actually know the city well enough to show people around! It also helped that in return they paid for all of our drinks. I like to think they were just being nice, but it's probably because he kept saying the money looked like Monoploy money and he didn't realizing how much he was spending.

Friday, Sarah and I took advantage of one of our school's day trips. This time we went to a vineyard in the outskirts of Florence. Absolutely adorable place! Pictures will be all over my facebook. We had wine tasting there, a cake made with olive oil, and lots of cheeses!

ROME!
Megan, Sarah, and I got up early to catch our 6:30 AM train to Rome.We chose such an early train so we could spend all of Saturday exploring Rome, and it was slightly cheaper. Not to worry, because it turned out to be an overnight train coming from Austria. We got in our cart and slept till Rome. On a side note: this was very similar to the Happy Potter train to Hogwarts. I kept waiting for the food trolley to come by so I could get some chocolate frogs! We got to Rome, bought a map, and headed straight to the Colosseum. We didn't really have a game plan for the trip, just a short bucket list including the Colosseum, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Vatican City,Capuchin crypt, and the Roman Mcdonalds, as featured on the Travel Channel. We found a cute little cafe for our morning cappuccino and developed a game plan. Somehow I became the keeper of the map and official navigator and we did not get lost once. I cannot even express how proud I am. I have awful sense of direction and usually get lost. But looks like I'm doing some self improvement abroad! We made our way to the Colosseum and were immediately in awe. We sprung 25 euro for a guided tour and skipping the line that would have taken a hour. So worth it. Our guide was really good and I learned so much. Our tour guide is the reason for my title. At the end of the tour an older man thanked him for the tour and complimented him "you must have been a gladiator in a past life". It took some self control not to laugh out loud. Our tour guide was rather muscular, but even though he spoke perfect English there is a language barrier  when it comes to certain jokes. Back to the point, The history of the Colosseum is crazy! We learned about the structure and what it was all used for. The Colosseum was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock sea battles, animal hunts, executions, re-enactments or famous battle, and dramas based on classical mythology. I was soaking up the history all around. Actually being in the Colosseum while learning about it was incredible. On top of that, the tour included a guide through the Roman Forum. I knew very little about this, but it was one of the best history lessons I have ever gotten. We learned about the beginning of Rome and the two brothers, Romulus and Remus, who fought each other. Romulus killed his brother, named the city Roma, and claimed Palatine Hill. From there we looked all around the remains of the palace and the Roman Forum. I keep thinking about everything I saw. I am so interested in the Roman history and I don't want to forget it all! I keep researching more about it and added a list of about ten movies set in Rome that I want to watch/rewatch.

We grabbed some lunch and headed to Hostel Alessandro Palace and Bar to check-in. I was very impressed with the hostel. It was really impressive for a hostel and the staff was great. Our 8 person dorm was just fine! From there I googled our options and we came up with an official game plan. First up was our hike to dinner in Piazza Del Popolo. Here we came across the end of a protest. We had seen people all day wearing these red shirts and we tried to ask what it was about. The most we gathered was that people didn't like the prime minister. Megan worked at a restaurant this summer and met a man who lives in Rome. He gave three recommendations for dinner and we chose Pollarolo Pizzeria. This was a great decision. It was a little family run tattoria and the place was mostly filled with Italians. I chose a ham, egg, and cheese calzone. Great choice! And of course we got some wine and tried a fried zucchini quiche.

Next on our Rome bucket list was the Trevi Fountatin. I remembered that you were supposed to throw 3 coins in, but I wasn't sure why. Later we found it that the rule is 1 to come back to Rome, 2 to find love, and 3 to get married in Rome. Whoops. I hope that Sarah and Megan are ok with #3! I was sure make at lease one of my coins a Euro so I would have some good Karma coming my way. So here's to good things in my Italian future! We also wanted to check out the McDonalds nearby because we had seen it on the travel channel as one of the top unique McDonalds. Everything in that part of Rome has certain standards, so the inside was supposed to look like cobblestone and have elaborate decorations. It wasn't quite like travel channel painted it, but it was much better than any McDonalds I've been in to.

The one thing I had to do since I was returning to Rome was go back to the Spanish Steps at night. This was some of my favorite memories form my high school trip. So the girls and I were on a mission to get a few bottles of wine and people watch on the Spanish Steps. After quite a search for wine we found some from a street vendor and headed to the steps. Sarah's friend Jiff is studying in Rome so we attempted to meet up with him, but he was too far away. Instead  we got more wine and made some new friends. My map reading skills were still great because we stumbled our way back to the hostel with no problems. We decided to check out the bar at out hostel and made some friends there. I was surprised with how many people we talked to that were traveling alone. I met a girl from Canada that is studying in Nice and was traveling all through Italy for her fall break alone. Another girl we met had just finished her medical schooling but wasn't ready for full time work, so she's just traveling for while. I made friends with the bartender and we switched roles so that I could do some bartending. The place wasn't very full, but between me bartending and Sarah taking over the ipod blasting Lady Gaga we were having a great time.

The next morning we hopped on the train and went to Vatican City. We were a little bummed because we found out everything but St. Peter's Basilica would be closed since it was Sunday. But this was on our list of things, so we went anyway. Everything turned out great because we arrived in the middle of mass. Seeing mass at the Vatican was incredible. Looking around the Vatican, seeing so many people, and hearing the service just gave me chills. We toured the Basilica using headphones that explained the different works of art. We ended up having a good day in Vatican City. We headed out for lunch and came across a little tattoria to grab some food. The staff was very friendly and it turned into a day of compliments. I'm not sure if it was a "Sunday fever", like how people get "holiday fever" and are so nice around Christmas, or what, but everyone was so nice in Rome. These two guys we were chatting with were asking about America. I'm getting tired of trying to explain that I'm from St. Louis or Missouri. I've resorted to saying I'm from Chicago. It's pretty much the only city people know from the midwest.

Our last stop was the capuchin crypt, a recommendation from my friend Amanda. This was a little creepy, but very cool. It is a cemetery for 4000 monks, but their bones are all hung on the walls in different way. It's sort of like artwork. Different body parts were in the different rooms. We kept wondering why someone would do this, but then we learned it was  built to honor them. People were digging in the graveyard and ruining the graves, so someone took the bodies and arranged them in this cemetery below a church. I couldn't take photos, but if you google it some of the rooms are shown. After this we were exhausted and headed to the train station. I caved and finally got some McDonalds in Italy. It was pretty fantastic. When I returned to Florence I was on cloud 9. I still can't believe that I'm studying here and get to see all these amazing things. I'm so incredibly thankful!

The Art of Non-Verbal Communication

I have accepted the fact that I will never be good at Italian. I tried the whole "power of positive thinking" thing, but I have to face the reality. I am continuing to learn and I am attempting to study, but I will never be great at it. As long as I can get around, I am okay with that. Lately I have noticed how much I rely on non-verbal communication when I interact with Italians. At first glance, a lot of Florentine's are hasty towards tourists (especially Americans). However, they are probably just fed up with the amount of tourists constantly wandering their city. Most of my encounters with Italians have been positive. I always say hello, thank you, yes, and any other words I know when I speak with Italians. In Europe especially, it is considered rude not to at least say hello in the local language.

I have mentioned before that Italians are extremely expressive with their facial reactions, hand motions, and body language in general. It makes me think a lot more about how I express myself. I tend to show my true, honest feelings in my facial expressions. In America we are such a kiss ass country that it is almost "rude" to express how you feel. You wouldn't want to be "politically incorrect" or hurt someone's feelings. And in the service industry you would never be rude to the customer, because the customer is ALWAYS right. This is not the case here. Everyone is very free to express how they are feeling and they have the right to refuse any customer. And they will, no problem.

I have no problem getting around Florence anymore. My sense of direction is good, my broken Italian is enough, and I know where to go for most things I need. What worries me a little is when I am traveling to Morocco and Germany. These are the only places where I don't know the language at all. But I'm pretty sure we will figure it out. If I just flash a smile people are usually nice back to me. It's true that smiles are contagious.

In other news. I'm missing my little lion cub and husky like crazy. My mom managed to snap a photo of them cuddling to hold me over for awhile. It's currently my background and I'm showing it to anyone that will look at it, because they are so stinkin cute.

I did get my animal fix in the other night. My friends Megan, Kylie, and I went out to a pub for the night and we walked past some guys with a little black pub. It wasn't on a leash (like most dogs here, because they are so well trained) and it ran up to us. We talked to them for a bit and played with the puppy. It was so adorable and I held him and he licked my face all over. We made it to the pub just in time for the Cardinals game to start. I was the ONLY Cardinals fan there (proudly sporting my shirt) and the only person watching the game. It was off to a slow start but I never gave up. I yelled at the TV a lot and was clearly outraged when the Phillies won. It all turned out okay because we found one of Florence's "secret bakeries". At 2-3 AM these factoires start making baked goods for the bakeries in the morning. You must follow your sense of smell because there is no sign and it isn't a real business. You just knock on the window. A man opens. You make a request, they shut the door, come back about 5 minutes later with a plain white bag. You give them a Euro for each item. It sort of feels like a drug deal. By the time we left there were about 20 people waiting. Not much of a "secret" around here, but it's very sneaky. We got nutella filled doughnuts. Amazing!

Enough rambling for one day. Going to Malenchini Farm tomorrow for wine and olive oil tasting and Rome for the weekend. Ciao!

And it just keeps getting better

Well agenda for this weekend was: Mokaflor coffee tour, Florence walking tour, and Venice!

This was one of the only weekends that I didn't have a trip planned and it turned out to be absolutely fantastic. My school offers a lot of little day excursions and activities around Florence. Usually I try and stay away from big group trips, but I stumbled across a small trip to the Mokaflor Espresso factory/store on the outskirts of Florence. Some of my friends had signed up and since I didn't have any plans I went to sign up the day before and barely got a spot because someone backed out. Lucky me! At 9AM we met at the train station and took a short trip to the outskirts of Florence. We actually got there early (a first in Italian history- everyone is ALWAYS late) and were escorted down to their little cafe/ waiting area. The room was filled with information about different espresso beans, the history, and different machines used. Our tour guide was fantastic and he explained to us all about the history of espresso and bragged about Italians of course. Italians only drink cappuccinos until 11 AM and after that it is frowned upon. An Italian cappuccino is what we would call a latte. He said American or "Starbucks" cappuccinos are awful and just foam. Which is true. I remember that from the short lessons I got at Caffinas, the coffee shop at the Marriott this summer. When then got a tour of the factory where they roast the beans and package them. It smelt so amazing and made me very hungry. Which was perfect, because next up was learning to make a proper cappuccino. I had the basic knowledge but he explained each step in detail and taught us how to get the milk steamed without much foam so you can pour and make designs on top. He made hearts, leaves, animals, and many designs. After awhile he just poured the milk in, handed us a stick and said to create something. I somehow managed to make a dove, pretty sure it was just luck. Later he let anyone who wanted to make their own cappuccino. I decided this was a useful life still and gave it a shot. Turned out pretty well. Even my heart looked good for a beginner. I have a step by step photo resume, so I'm sure Starbucks will hire me when I return home.

 The whole group at the Cafe

 Roasting Coffee beans

 Our tour guide,Gabriele, showing me how to make the heart on top.

Success!

That night my study away program offered free Florence walking tour, led by one of the professors. She showed us a lot of little local shops across the river, where is it typically less touristy. This woman was absolutely adorable as she showed us her favorite Florentine places and greeted all of the shop owners like they were best friends. We went to a marble table shop which had been in the family for generations and they made beautiful tables and art all by hand. Next up was a leather shop full of 100% genuine leather. Then off the her favorite gelato shop that uses all natural ingredients and stores gelato the proper way (covered, not displayed in huge mounds). Then she brought us to a metal shop that didn't even have a sign on the door. They make all kinds of different metal decorations and made all of us little coin souvenirs out of our Euro coins that have the Florentine crest on them. Lastly, she showed us a sketch art shop and we met the artist.

 My Euro souvenir.

Chocolate and raspberry gelato. Delicious!

Venice! This has to be one of the top 10 most beautiful places on earth. I found it incredible peaceful to walk or boat everywhere. No car, no bikes, nothing but boats. I saw the police cruising by and boats transporting a stage for some concert. I couldn't get over how colorful and pretty the architecture was. It was a mixture of Italian and middle eastern style. It's ironic that Venice, a city meant to be hidden, has become such a tourist attraction. I'm glad we went a little later in the season because there weren't "quiet as many tourists as usual". Even with the crowds, it was so pretty. We went with a tour group Florence For Fun because they provided transportation, water taxis, glass blowing demonstration, and a tour guide. Great decision because the train to get there was so expensive anyway and our tour guide was great. He gave us some brief history lessons and walked us through the city. We managed to get away from the crowds into the residential areas which were great to see. Venice is known for their carnival and glass blowing. It wasn't carnival season, but we were lucky enough to go a glass blowing demonstration. I wasn't sure exactly what it was and it turned out to be exactly what it says. It requires a lot of skill and takes years to learn. We watched a guy take a ball of glass out of a furnace, blow on the end of the stick, and shape it into a vase. As if that wasn't impressive enough, he got a second piece and added a decorative handle. They then showed us their store of all original hand made products. They had colorful glasses, gorgeous chandeliers, and a lot of jewelry. It was incredible and just as pretty, if not more, than diamonds. We couldn't take photos of most of the stuff but I got a few of their samples. Lastly we finally got a gondola ride. Everyone has to do it in Venice. It turned out to be about 45 seconds and only across the Grand Canal. But hey, I've been on a gondolas in Venice!

 On the water taxi, boating through the city.

Crossing bridges everywhere!

 Glass blowing!

 Some of their glass art.

Gondola ride!