Venice Friends...and feasts

11/23/08
wakeup 12am brunch3pm/girls.shopping w/omid.home. relax
So I role out of bed at 12 and get an invitation to have brunch at one of the girl's house at 1pm. So we all go out there about 9 of us and have this awesome brunch on their terrace which over looks the Duomo!! We made eggs and potatoes and we used 30 eggs!! It was glorious. The best part is that it only cost us 3 euros each!! We had Momusas which is Champagne with orange juice which wasn't too bad actually. Then after that me and my friend walked around looking at shops and it was like 4 by now. We were impressed with the amount of people that were walking around. There were so many people we went to a cafe and I had a cappuccino and some Tiramisu which was really good. We then went walking around he bought a jacket that was really cool at Zara's. Then we came home I decided to stay in and just relax and work on stuff that I need to take care of.

Then I realized that I am going to miss the people more than the place now... I feel like this is too good to be true. I am sad to know that this will all end soon. I have to cherish every moment and make the best of it. I realized that I have to have a lot of love for everything. Everything is so beautiful and it's going to be hard for me to go back now aaaahhh so many emotions so many dilemmas that I don't know what I am going to do. But let's see what happens...

11/22/08
I woke up early and we got going for the train station. We get there and the ticket machine said it was sold out. So we decide to just buy a ticket on train...no big deal right? WRONG. It turns out that there is a 50 Euro convenience fee so we had to pay double for a normal ticket!!
We sucked it up and paid for it but it none the less left a sting. Then we ran into one of our classmates who was also going to Venice alone so she joined us and it was all that much more merrier. The ride up to Venice went by so fast I felt like we were on the train for like 30 minutes. Me and my friend were exhausted from the nights before and thus were running on adrenaline. So we were all giggly and tired so anything made us laugh. I felt like I was high or something. But we weren't.
We had such an awesome time on the train that it was one of our highlights of the trip.
So we get in and I was just awed by the splendor and sheer beauty. I have never seen anything like this and I don't think I can see something like this anywhere else. It was so cool to see these houses in the water. I could not get over it! Boats everywhere!! The houses on the Grand Canal were all so pretty and unique. I felt like I was in Disneyland!! It was so unreal! We take a "boat bus" to San Marco's Plaza which were they have the main Basilica and center of government.
We passed under the Rialto Bridge which is the most famous bridge of Venice and then we get to the plaza which was amazing!! The church was something else all covered in GOLD mosaic. We go and eat because we were starving and had some good food.
We then go to the top of the tower that over looks the whole city. It was cool to see all of Venice from up above. I was in awe and surprised that the city was so small. We then take another boat bus to Murano which is famous for their glass blowing. We get there at 4:30pm and the sun was setting so we took some pictures. But we missed the glass blower people. :( So we had some pastries and went back to the Train station. We did some shopping and I got everyone some presents I had to sell some body parts to afford it all but it was worth it though. We then get back on the train and knockout for a couple of hours. We get off in Bologna to get on another train and eat at an American Restaurant of which I won't name. Then we catch our train and open up a liter of wine to celebrate and play some card games. Time flew so fast that by the time we got into Firenze we were like "Were here?? Wow that was fast" even though it was an hour trip or so. That just goes to show time flies when your in good company and having fun. My friend took some hysterical video clips. We then went home but that was just to get ready to go out... But before I get into that here's some info about Venice.

About Venice: it was FREEZING COLD!! I had a T-shirt and a thin jacket so I was cold pretty much the whole time, everything cost me an arm and a leg, we went around the islands on our way to Murano (glass blowing islands) there are no cars at all (obviously huh), it's super easy to get lost because the "streets" are about two people wide it's so small and they live on top of each other. But since the city is slowly sinking there are only about 50,000 people who live in the city. It's basically a playground for the world or a Disneyland of sort...a fantasy land. It was magical being there, I just wanted to run around all over the place.

So my roommates are going to go out to a club called YAB but I didn't want to go so me and Nick stay behind and chat it up. We were having one of those intellectual conversations that we like to have when we heard my friend and one of my roommates coming up the stairs. It turns out they they didn't get in because they showed up a bit too late. So they said they were going to go to the bar we always go to and this time I did join them.
So I get ready and head out, this was around midnight just so you can get an idea of my day. So on the way to the bar one of my friends calls me up and she invites us to go to the Loin's Den, but instead they come to us and we drink at the bar we like to go to. My friend and I have a rivalry about who has the better drink I like the Caipirinha and he likes the Mojito, so we all agree that they are both good and drunk for different reasons.
From there we we then head out to Club 21 and they were playing techno music which wasn't too bad. I dance it up and had a good ol time but then we decide to leave at around 3:45 we get to my house and I was so tired by now. We watched a few youtube clips and they talked and talked while I was literally falling asleep until I knocked out on the couch at around 5am. My friend brought me a blanket and took my shoes off and I didn't wake up until like 10 am to go right back to sleep. The funny thing is that I had a headache when I didn't even drink.

11/21/08
Well considering the fact that I got out of bed at approximately 1pm I don't think I will have much of a day to talk about. hahaha But last night was awesome though and it was worth it.
It was about 1:30pm when my friend got out of bed and we started to watch a movie called Pineapple Express. We were done with it around 3pm and then we started to cook our first meal of the day!
We had eggs and potatoes with salami. It was really really good. I love these breakfasts' oh wait we had it for dinner so it was.. Breanner hahaha. By the time we were done the sun was setting!! It really didn't matte because it was cloudy so the sun never came out. It would of been sad. I actually think its funny that we did this. We are living so carefree that it's ridiculous. After dinner/breakfast at around 5pm I was done with my blog entries. Meanwhile my roommates and friend were watching a movie!! Tropic Thunder!! It's a funny movie.
We went out to dinner to this place called Il Gato e La Volpe we had a good time except for me because I was in the freakin corner of corners. I had no room to move and my food was literally boiling hot!! It was canneloni and it was good we then shared a pizza afterwards.
After that we went to the same bar from the day before and we hung out and then we went to the Loin's Den to hang out. I placed soccer with a rock with some random Italian girl. It was a very chill night we just hung out with the roommates and then I left to crash out because I didn't want to stay up too late.


11/20/08
Today in my Italian class we learned about prepositions and that was exactly what I wanted to learn about. After that class I was all confident with my Italian. I am so confident that with 3 more months here I'll pick this language up really well.
But anyways we'll see what happens in the future.
After that for my Leonardo Da Vinci class we went to Santa Croce. This is crazy because we were going to go on Tuesday, but decided not to because we had to pay. Now we got free entrance and an expert art teacher to show us around!! I love life for those simple things.
Anyways, we saw the most famous leather school and one of the oldest last suppers and a bunch of other frescos.
Then we went back to school for my last class, food and wine. It was the best one that I have had yet. We learned about food pairing and what wines go with what kinds of food!! I was so excited when I got out of class that we went to eat some pizza and pastries, then went home.
One of my roommates and my friend needed a haircut as did I so we went to some salon place and it was interesting. We didn't know if we could trust this guy. I went first because I really don't care too much and I loved my haircut!! It is very European and I just love it. We had a good time messing around and making fun of each other for a while.
We then walked out feeling like a million dollars all looking so fresh and so clean. We go to the house and met up my other roommate Polly and we go to town to shop. We find this really cool store that reminded me of a Ross because it had a bunch of stuff that was moderately priced and it had a wide selection. My roommates get some pants and shirts. I didn't get anything but I will definitely be paying it a visit before I leave.
We had a home cooked meal that consisted of some home made salsa and penne pasta with some bruschetta. It was so cool to be able to just share a meal and hang out over a meal with some wine. We talked about all kinds of things and just got to know each other even more. My best friend visiting has become one of us and he is like a roommate now.
After that we all took a nap and then woke up to get ready to go out and party like a rockstar. We went in search of this bar were we can get 5 shots for 5 Euros. We make a big circle around the block and then find it. We get a total of 20 shots because there were 4 of us and then we each get a Caipirinha which is pretty much pure alcohol!! I honestly didn't feel anything. I know I am suppose to feel it later but I never really did...I felt a slight buzz by the time we were leaving though. I think it was because I had an awesome dinner.
Anyways, we make way to the club and it turns out that our original destination was a private party so we then went to club 21. There we had a Negroni which is made up of Gin, Vermouth, and Bitter. Boy was it bitter!! It was strong but I felt really good. Honestly, I could not believe how little effect all that alcohol had on me! I wasn't complaining though because I felt just right.
My goal was to have at least one dance so I was on a mission. I talked to a few girls each having their own issues. It was fun though because I talked all kinds of bullshit and had fun with it. This one girl was so ridiculously dancing that I went up to her and asked her why she was alone and then I gave her shit for having shitty friends, then they came when they saw me.
Another girl just wanted to dance alone. But went I went to the dance floor I just got a girl and started to dance with her and we actually kind of clicked except that she was from Spain just visiting here. Then here lame friends kind of C-blocked even though I was trying to get my friends to dance with her friends. All in all I had a lot of fun bullshitting with everyone I talked with. I realized that I can't think because when I think it doesn't work out. I learned to just do what feels right and be me. Then we get bored and leave, we hang outside for a little bit and I bullshit with some more girls and it was funny because I say some crazy stuff. The way I see it is I'm not going to see them again so why not might as well have some fun.
We talk to the security guard man who by the way when I was walking into the club I got profiled. I had to prove that I was a student!! Can you believe that? I was looking fly I must admit ;) I just laughed and gave them some shit but not too much. I showed them my ID and then Polly asked them why they profiled me. They said that it was because they hadn't seen me there before!!! But my friend who NEVER has been here walked right in!! and he's Persian!! We got a good laugh and then at the end of the night we were bullshitting with him.
We leave near 4am and go home. We get home and then cook up a feast! It was quite literally a breakfast. We had pasta and water hahahaha. We then watched a movie for about 20 minutes and then we all went to sleep.

I am thankful that I have good people to hang out with. I feel good about everything around me and I am in absolute peace with myself, the world, and people. I love myself, my friends, life, food :), and family. I think I have found the real purpose to life....

11/19/08
class.uffizi ticket.market.sandwich place/wine.hmework. homecook food.
I went to took a test and did very well on it and I only reviewed for about an hour with out reading a page of the book. I love how this stuff just sticks to my brain cells. I finished my test and I was all excited. I went and got an Uffizi ticket for my friend and then we went to San Lorenzo Market for food. I went to my usual people and practiced my Italian. We then went to Antico Noe's Sandwich place and had an awesome sandwich with a Montalpucino wine. This wine was absolutely rich in flavor and dry. It made the meal so much better!!
We then went home and I did homework until late into the night.

My friend and one of my roommates went to have an aperitivo and I cooked up some pasta and had that for dinner. It was really good because it was fresh and I got the salsa to go with it too.
After dinner I went back to work on my journals for one of my classes and then my best friend took off to an 80's party. I stayed behind because I had class and when I was done I crashed out. My friend came back like at 3 or something but I was knocked out.

11/18/08
I went to class and after class me and one of my friends went walking around and we ran into this leather store. We got some cuffs and then we went to the place where I ordered my leather jacket. My friend was all excited to get one and he did. I got 3 pairs of leather shoes and he got some boots to go with the jacket. Ours were customized so we have to wait for them.
Afterwards we went home and got some more shoes for my friend.
Then we went to a restaurant with the roommates. We didn't know where we were going to go we kind of just went for it. We end up at this restaurant call Casalinga which translates to home cooked. And let me tell you...Why am I not surprised, the food was phenomenal! I had Ribolita to start of my meal and it was really great especially when I added the olive oil that the waiter lady told me to add but with no cheese. I found the wine to be a very nice compliment to the meal. With medium body and a smooth not to dry taste. We all shared our dishes with one another and it was really like a family event. Lately have been feeling really good about everything, it's unreal almost. I really feel at home and being with these people just makes me want to stay here longer. I actually feel like I can stay here I speak the language conversationally and can get by.
Then we came home and went to a Beatles cover band show at a club called B-Bop. It was so cook to be in the company of great people listening to great music that I just sat back sung and cherished the moment. The place was dripping with sweat all over the walls and I met a girl from Mexico who studied in Italy and now is living with an Italian and a German girl. I was tripping out.
I said I was glad to meet her and her friends and I left. It was weird because I will probably never meet these people again. In the past I felt bad because it felt like a loss, but now its like whatever. I want to be around good people and that's good enough for me, I don't need more.
We went home and just crashed.

11/17/08
Today I didn’t do much other than hang out, relax, and do work on the internet at school. I had a piece of pizza at a pizzeria that is near where I live and it was awesome it is so ridiculously good. It is not the “authentic” Italian pizza but it’s still really good and I really liked it. I really like how now I am eating more often and in less portions. I am starting to think that it’s better for me like this.

For lunch me my friend and Brian went to San Ambrogio to eat at Da Rocco's and we had an absolute feast for 10 Euros each. That is a deal considering we had a 1.5 liter of wine and a 2 course meal with 3 baskets of bread. We bonded lunch and had a really good time sharing stories and just shooting the wind.

We watched an episode of Entourage and it was really cool because we all were really into it and knew what was going on. I got into the show and now I am hooked but its for a good reason because we bond when watch the show all together.

After I was done doing all my boring work I went to an aperitivo with the roommates and this place was by far the best place we have gone to. It had everything under the sun. Basically, it was the ultimate aperitivo on steroids because some places only have pasta while others have only cold cuts and cheeses, but this place had it all. Cold cuts, warm pasta, sausage, cooked veggies, and a variety of cheeses. We all had Chianti to accompany our meal and it wasn’t that great actually, but for all the great food we had it was worth it most definitely. We talked about food about half the time and the other half we just talked about other things. We were pretty loud at times but we were at the back of the bar where we were alone and it was a very private reserved ambiance. Definitely a place that I would like to go back to. I had two plates of a wide arrangement of food that consisted of meats, pastas, and veggies. They even had dolci and fruits!! We were so excited to eat there that we didn’t want to leave, but we did.

11/16/08
So we wake up and start our adventure to go to the next towns in Cinque Terre. It was really cool because we walked along the via d'amore and then hiked to the next town. They were all very beautiful and picturesque. The water was absolutely amazing and very cool with some amazing views of the ocean and the cliffs. In one town we went to scale a person's garden on the cliffs. It was really cool to see the vines and gardens up close and personal. We then went back and hiked another trail after that we got a train to the next town. So we go to the farthest town and then decide to eat at the 4th town and the unthinkable happens. We miss the train, but no worries we'll take the next one right. Well that next one took us to the first town and then it would take us while to get back to the fourth one and then back because we had to leave by a certain time. So we ended up just getting our bags and eating some pesto pizza that was BOMB it was so good that I got a second piece. We then realize that we are going to miss the bus to take us to the 4th town and sure enough we miss it. So now tensions are running high and people are getting peeved. I was like whatever I had a good time and am thankful that I got to see half of what I got to see. There is no way I can allow myself to get upset because the mere fact that I am here is a blessing and for me to be upset would be very selfish of me. We get the train to go back home and in it there was this cute little kid that was absolutely adorable. He was flirting with the girls and we were all laughing and enjoying ourselves. My favorite was when he said Ciao Ciao and that brought a lot of joy to all of us in lieu of all our mishaps that had just taken place.
We then get off and wait inside a McDonald's I left on another train by myself to Firenze and had a sad farewell.
The ride back was long and boring. I then got into Firenze and got a Taxi to pick up one of my best friends from home that came to visit me. I felt bad because I arrived so late and he had to wait for me. But I met him and we rejoiced at the sight of each other.
I got him settled in and then we went to Yellow Bar restaurant and we each had a pizza. We talked until the restaurant closed it was awesome to be able to catch up with those you miss from back home. I asked the waiter what her favorite pizza was and I didn’t even look at the menu and told her to bring me that. For wine we had 2 regular nothing-special glasses of red wine. She never told us the name but I think it was some kind of house wine. I thought it was very unique; it had a medium body to it and a very strong pepper aftertaste but I loved it because it was something different that I had never had before. The waiter was very nice and made our meal so much more enjoyable. When we had to leave she gave us a box for our pizza and then After that we went home and then to a bar and had a drink. I felt really adult like and grown up because we just talked about a bunch of stuff from back home and about our past experiences that we have lived.
I was really thankful to be able to hang out with him and to have good people in my life.

11/15/08
We woke up late and the first thing we did was go and get a coffee over by San Lorenzo Market. We then went to the train station to check on the times of departure. We then all met up and went to the Accademia to see David. It was really cool because everyone loved it. Since they were Roman I felt like I had to show them the best of Florence. We don't have any ruins but we have a lot of erected beauties. We then made way towards the Pitti Palace hitting up all the famous spots on our way there. We go to the Bobili Gardens and get some really nice views of the city and then make our way out from the top of the hill.
We were all hungry so we ate at this hole in the wall pizza parlor. It was so good it was super small and there was barely enough space to sit. I got a sausage pizza and the other got some calzones. I was amazed by how large they were and not that expensive. We shared and I think that I was converted to calzone lover. I thought that they were really good. It was very unique and had a very juicy non-dry feel to it.
The waiter brought us chicken nuggets that were amazing! It was kind of spicy but yet juicy and flavorful. We were surrounded by locals and I felt good finding a place that caters to locals.
We then went home and then to the station to leave for cinque terre. We get on our train and play some games that were pretty fun actually to kill some time. We then get to Pisa and then go on one of the craziest missions ever! We decide to go and look at the leaning tower of Pisa...which is literally on the opposite side of the city. We power walk there and then as we get there we realize that we are not going to make it back in time so everyone starts to get nervous and panic. I calm them down and they get a taxi to take the girls to the station. Meanwhile me and Nick literally ran back to the station! We literally ran across town as the saying goes. We were so exhausted but we didn't stop and we missed the train BUT we got the next train to the next town we needed to get to and it was all good. We reminisced on the times when we were traveling through Europe and had to go through similar experiences. It was really fun because it reinforced my belief that if I let life happen and just trust that things will pan out as long as I go with what is in my control, I'll be fine.
It turns out that when we got on the next train in the next city we got on the same exact train that they were on that we had missed earlier!!! We rejoiced as if we hadn't seen each other for a long time. It was the coolest thing ever and again it proved my point that there is no need to get all worked up about things.
We then go to our hostel/apartment which was on the 4th floor and up some really creepy old looking stairs. It was a really horrible entrance but a very nice hostel actually.
We then went down to the beach/rocks after dinner with two bottles of wine. I hung out and stargazed with one of the girls that wasn't drinking wine since I wasn't either we hung out. During this whole time I felt like I was in a movie it was absolutely unreal I tell you unreal!! Everything was so peaceful and friendly. I felt so jubilant. It was like we all knew each other for years and years and I felt so comfortable and right. Living in the moment, during my whole stay I didn't think of anything else other than the moment. We then went home and went to sleep.

11/14/08
I wake up late worried because today we are going to San Gimingiano and we were going to leave soon. But it turns out that my roommate had some stuff to do at school so he wasn't back until like 11:30am. So I took advantage of this time to do my laundry and catch up on some things here i.e. eat/cook. So he gets home and we leave to find the buses that are going to take us to San Gimingiano. We get to the station and we are lost we don't know where to go we just have a vague idea from what our friends had told us earlier.
We see some buses pull up to this building and one of them said San Gimingiano so we followed them and BAM there was the bus depot. So we get on board and start our journey...
We got to see some awesome scenery and got to see a lot of cool characters on our trip there. A bunch of 15 year old high schooler kids got on the bus and I enjoyed watching them interact with each other. I learned some new words and got an idea of how it would be like to go to school in Italy.
The scenery: the scenery was impressive to say the least. It was interesting to see how all the towns were on top of the hills and the farmland was on the side of the hills. The road we were on was going along the top of the mountains and it was bumpy, curvy, and really breathtaking all wrapped up in an old bus. But not just any bus we were riding in style inside a Mercedes-Benz bus.
We then arrive at our destination and we get out and the first thing we do is take some panoramic pictures. We then walked along the city wall and saw some olive pickers. It was funny because it was three men picking the olives off of one tree!! No wonder olive oil is so expensive. It must take forever to make it at the rate that they pick them.
We then went to an old Medieval fountain that stunk like dirty water. We then made our way back into the city and just started to walk around. We then walked by a wine bar that was selling New Olive Oil Bruschetta. So I just walk in and get my fresh olive oil bruschetta. It was really interesting and this is how she made it: Toasted Tuscan bread then she smeared it with garlic poured a bunch of salt on it and then the olive oil sprinkled with black pepper. It was interesting because she said that the real bruschetta did not have tomato or cheese.
I had it with a glass of red wine and I practiced my italian with her for a while.
It was really fun because it was just us and I was casually talking about where I was from and about how life in San Gimingiano/Tuscany was like.
Afterwards, I met up with my roommate at the top of the only tower that we can climb in the city. It had absolutely amazing views that were breath taking and stunning of the entire region because San Gimingiano lies literally on top of one of the most elevated hills in the region.
We then came down and went on a mission to look for the world famous gelato...well it turns out that they were closed until February. We were bummed but it didn't bother me too much I just went to another spot and it was really really good. I liked it a lot. We then went around a little bit more and then left for the bus stop. Before I left the city wall I got some wine.
At the bus stop we ran into some Americans and it was cool because instead of me figuring out where to go and how to do it I just asked her and I didn't have to think about it. For most of the way back I was listening to music trying to rest up. At the end of the ride I had a conversation with some lady from southern Italia, she had bad breath and I learned a few words.
So I get home and settle in. I do some household things and wait for my roommate to come from Rome.
I pick him up and we go out for a walk around town. We ate at this pizza place called Yellow Bar and had some really good food late at night. It was a really cool meal that I enjoyed with all my friends. We talked about a lot of things. I felt like I was with good people, with good positive energy, and sharing a good meal. It was among the most delightful meals that I have had in a while. Afterwards we walked around in search of gelato and then went home and to sleep.