part 2! oh myyyy!

ok so nothing exciting that i can remember happened on thursday..so don't worry about that day..fast forward to friday...we had our first field trip! now usually when i think of field trips i think of the st. chris days when moms would carpool us to some spot but this was different..we had to be at the school at nine o'clock and there were two huge buses waiting to take us to tuscany! we left around 9:15 and drove past the plaza michelangelo (tops places in the world) and then drove out to the tuscany area (no big deal..just my backyard! haha) ok and if you have ever seen Under the Tuscan Sun..its just a beautiful but maybe times that by 10..GOORGEOUS! the vineyards are all full of grapes right now and its just prime time here! so our first stop was volterra..its an etruscan city from suuch a long time ago and is beautiful..we did a walking tour and had one of our teachers show us around..it was cool to see the history of this city..we had lunch at a cafe in one of the centers and we wanted to order a glass of white wine cuz the area is known for their white wine and we each got mini bottles! they were so cute and we also shared a pizza with proscutto..my fav obviously! haha so then we got back on the bus and we drove for about an hour to san giamiano which is another famous etruscan city...but this city is also known for their worlds best gellato! sooo of course the first thing i did when i got there was get the gellato..i got lemoncello and chocolate! sooo good! like i was in gellato heaven for about an hour after that..AMAZING! ok so then we walked around the town, it was super cute..the stores had a lot of painted tuscany style pottery and i picked up an oil and vinegar bowl with a cute little stopper..so we walked around some more, there was a beautiful wedding going on in the church downtown which of course i had to take pictures of! we then got back on the bus and went to the casa di machiavelli..the author of the prince (political book)..we got there and checked out the house and wine cellar..got attacked by mosquitos of course and then went across the street to a restaurant for a full course meal! we first got pieces of bread with olives, cheeses, tomatoes and one was liver! i definitely passed on that one..then they passed out this soup that was to DIE FOOOR! it was a vegetable and bread soup that was amazing..it was thick and so they said put some olive oil on it and it was soo good! then we got meats which were chicken, sausage and ribs..they were all so tender and seriously magical..it was amazing! sidenote: i ate a tooon of food but it was all over the period of a three hour dinner! we then got back on the bus and didn't get home till about 11 o'clock..we were all exhausted!
the next morning we had to wake up at 6:20 cuz we had a hiking/wine tasting day in chianti with this student tourist group (not through the school)..we got to the train station on time and then left on a bus for chianti..we stopped in a small town called Pisano and then started our hike..it was about a two hour hike all through vineyards and towns and was just amazing! it reminded me a lot of sonoma/napa area just minus the huuuge villas! apparently sting just bought a villa in the area and they only go for 4 million to 12 million euros! so we walked what seemed like forever up hill and it was pretty hot too and then stopped at a church on the way back! (grandma i know you would be proud!) it was pretty small and cute! i lit a candle and said a little prayer for all my friends and family back at home..we then walked to a house to have lunch at..we were first served salami and proscutto, then some bread and garlic olive oil (chianti is also known for their oil i guess) and then pesto pasta, then red sauce pasta..AMAZING! it was funny because we were with a huge group of other college students and they barely ate anything like we kept asking them to pass down the food cuz it was soo good! haha we then had biscotti and vin santo (yes like the restaurant in downtown willow glen) which is a sweet dessert wine..not my fav but i gave it a try...this lunch was about three hours too! the meals here are soo long its crazy...but i looove it! we then got back around six pm..and i am soo tired! but i knew that i had to update my blog! and upload pictures!
so tomorrow i am going back to chianti for the official chianti festival! i know more wine tasting but it is such the culture here and why not just embrace it? the italians drink molto (a lot) of vino but over a looong period of time i am learning from those three hour lunches and dinners! haha i am having such an amazing time here and i feel like i have been placed here for a reason which is to find out what i want to do with my life..i am not rushing the process but i know that this is what i am meant to be doing right now..everything feels so right and i am not taking any minute for granted!
thanks for reading...i promise to update more often..also check out my facebook for pictures! grandma..just ask mom and dad to show you! haha molto almore a tutti! (much love to all)