FOODIE ALERT.

I spend entirely too much time thinking about food! My life seems to revolve around it here. Between thinking about spending money on it, planning what to buy or cook at home, and having dinners and lunches with friends, it's a wonder that I can ever think of anything else!


Last night, for what my roommates and I have effectively established as "Ethnic Tuesday", we decided to try the Greek restaurant down the street, partially because Gillian and I had a serious hankering for hummus, and partly because the weather was so disgusting and nasty that we had little motivation to go any farther. I wasn't HUGELY fond of the meal that I ordered, but I must say that the warm, fresh pita they served, and the Greek salad I got as my side were phenomenal. Sam and I finished it off by splitting a baklava.....holysogood.


Then this afternoon, I went to my Wednesday lunch place, Trattoria Sergio Gozzi with Mary and Bethany. I was quite disappointed becuase they didn't have the soup I've gotten the past two times, but I was assuaged by the deliciousness of the soup I ordered instead, minestra di farina gialla or something along those lines. Not exactly sure what was in it, but my tummy was happy.


Wednesday nights always mean one thing: cooking class! The pictures I took this time turned out really yellow for some reason, so the food doesn't look so appetizing :/ I promise you, though, it was delicious! This week, were were studying the region of Toscana, or Tuscany, of which Florence is the capital.


Antipasti this week was trenutta, which is essentially just toasted bread with olive oil, salt, and pepper.

I personally found it a little too salty, which should tell you something.

Next up, for primi piatti, we cooked up a pappa al pomodoro, which is a tomato soup made with stale bread mixed in. Sounds weird, WAS TOTALLY AMAZING. I'm legit going to make it for my roommates next week, after Verona. We started by browning some garlic in olive oil in a large saucepan, then we added tomatoes that had been peeled and chopped. After allowing it to stew for awhile, we added about a liter of chicken stock, and then an entire loaf of Tuscan bread that we had sliced and toasted to simulate staleness. It turned out exactly like I eat my soup at home: tomato-soup-soaked mushy bread. I forgot to photograph it because I was so busy chomping it down, but it probably wouldn't have been very photogenic, anyway.


Our secondi piatti was (not veal!!) arista alla fiorentina, pork chop cooked Florentine style! We cut small holes into the pork chop and stuffed them with cloves of garlic and sprigs of rosemary. The chop was roasted in a pan with olive oil for about 15 minutes on each side before the teacher added some white wine to the pan. From there, it cooked probably another 45 minutes.

I'm not generally a huge pork fan, but this was mm mm good.

Finally, for my favorite course, we made torta della nonna, which technically translates to "Grandmother's cake" or something along those lines. It is actually a custard-filled DREAM of a pie. We started by handmaking the pie crust from flour, sugar, eggs, and butter. The dough needs to sit in the refrigerator overnight, though, so the teacher brought out some dough he had made previously. Roll the dough ball out and line a pie pan. The custard filling was made from milk, vanilla, sugar, eggs, and flour. Heat in a saucepan until thick and creamy, then allow to cool. Fill the pie pan with the custard and then bake for about 45 minutes. Optional: Top with pine nuts and add a sweet liqueor, which we did.

Wowza!

Today was also my jeans-shopping expedition. What a complete and utter failure. Not only did I NOT find jeans (I am just too big for this country), but Sam got her shopping bag from Zara stolen while we were in H&M. How rude! I ordered a pair from Express instead, which my lovely mother will be shipping to me once again (thanks, Mom!). I'll also probably look for a pair while I'm in London; maybe the Brits actually have some junk in the trunk.

Just to prove I did actually rip my jeans and I'm not just a money-sucker!

Tomorrow, after my class ends at 2:30, I'm going to see Alice in Wonderland with Bethany and her roommates! Then I will be spending the afternoon prepping and packing for Verona, and securing my last minute spring break plans, which seem to be changing by the second. AHHH SO MUCH MONEY!

For now, I'm about to put a pot of coffee on before settling down to some history homework and Law&Order:SVU. You wish you could live my life. Boom.

P.S. Also, I will be making posts ASAP with pictures of me being an obnoxious Gator in front of monuments, as well as creepy photos that I surreptitiously take of local Florentines while eavesdropping on their conversations. Thanks for your suggestions! I live to serve.

mish mosh.

So it's not that I have been remiss in my blogging so much as...these past days have been pretty chill. We have mostly been hanging in the apartment, avoiding the sudden onslaught of cold. Apparently Florence was merely teasing us with the hints of warm weather these past couple of weeks, but more on that later.


Last Thursday, my history class, The Rise and Fall of the House of the Medici, took a little field trip to the Medici Palace. This class is growing on me; I was really frustrated with it at first, but as it has gone on, I'm liking it more and more. We rarely have class in the actual classroom. More often than not, we are getting lectures on historical grounds, which is probably the best part about taking classes in Florence. It is one thing to learn about a historical event or family, but it is quite another to learn about them while standing in their magnificent palace.

Just to give you a little history lesson (and review for the quiz I have on Thursday!), the Medici were a family that actually originated in the hill town of Mugello, just outside of Florence. The patriarch of the family, Giovanni di Bicci, came to the city sometime in the early 15th century when he established the Florentine branch of the bank that would originally became one of the largest and most powerful in not only Italy, but all of Europe. His descendants gained political power through a combination of arranged marriages and the growth of the bank's power. Though never official rulers of the city, it was understood throughout the entire region that they wielded a significant amount of power, and were seen as many by tyrants.





Cosimo the Elder, the son of Giovanni, commissioned the building of this palace in the mid 15th century to the architect Michelozzo. The palace itself is three stories high. The immediate, important family members lived on the first floor (second floor, to Americans) while guests and lesser family members stayed on the second floor (third floor). It is also home to a private chapel on the first floor, where Benozzo Gozzoli, a relatively small-time artist, decorated the walls with a large fresco known as The Procession of the Magi.





The Medici were all well-known sponsors and patrons of the arts, and were close friends with important artists and architects such as Michaelangelo and Brunelleschi, who completed many works for them over time. They also funded small-time artists like Gozzoli and Beati Angelico, who became one of Florence's most important Renaissance artists.

There, now don't you feel educated?

On Sunday, Gillian, Marissa and I decided to attempt to make ribollita, a typical Tuscan soup made with a cabbage and white bean base. We followed a recipe sent to us by Monica, one of the API advisors. We had to improvise a bit because the market is closed on Sundays, and we were restricted to what our local supermarket offers in produce.

Don't we look like real chefs, with all of our pots going at once?

Turns out we aren't much of chefs. Or the recipe was a dud. Either way, the soup was edible, but I wasn't all that impressed. To me, it just needed...MORE. More vegetable and spice variety, more bread, more time to cook, just...yeah. Worry not, however; the ribollita will not defeat us! And if it does, we will just get it at Sergio Gozzi's, our new favorite lunch place. I'm actually going to meet Mary and Bethany there for lunch tomorrow afternoon, and I'm already craving me some soup!

[Subject change] This morning, I woke up to the sound of my alarm, and very seriously started considering skipping class. It is already almost midterms, and I've yet to skip one yet! (Good job, Alaina!) But I hauled my cookies out of bed and went to go make breakfast, knowing that I am likely to want to skip a class again later in the semester, and I only get two absences without penalty. But in the middle of breakfast-fixin', I managed to smash a glass all over the kitchen floor. By the time I got it all swept up (and spent a good 5 minutes trying to dig a shard out of my foot), I was running late...and then I noticed it was snowing! It just seemed like a sign from God that I should skip Italian class this morning.

I reasoned that this was likely the last time it would snow in Florence while I am here, and that I should enjoy it. So I took my sweet time getting ready, watching my new episode of House before grabbing my book and heading to Nabucco to get a cappuccino.

Ahhh, coffee and literature. My favorite combo.

I finished my book, then spent the hour before my second class just walking around. I checked my mail, and received a postcard from ONALEE, who was in Boston a couple of weeks ago. Thanks! I enjoyed the snow during my walk, but I was feeling it less when my writing teacher dragged us out of class to the Piazza della Signoria to "observe" people and be inspired for an in-class exercise. I almost froze to death, so I hurried back to the class as soon as she was out of sight (don't worry! I still managed to observe enough to write a little something).

Also of note, I ripped my jeans today. Not just "Oh, look, a little tear"...I ANNIHLATED them. Apparently there was a little like...pre-made tear in them up by the pocket, you know, to make them look old or something, and when I went to adjust them before I sat down in my writing class.....RRRRRRRIIIIIPPPP! Almost all the way across the top of my leg. Fabulous. So now tomorrow, I really have to go shopping to find a new pair, since I only brought two pairs of jeans wth me.

This weekend, me and the roomz are headed to fair Verona, where we will spend one night in the city of Romeo and Juliet. We booked an adorable little B&B and will catch the train back on Saturday night, in time to attend some sort of gastronomic festival going on here in Firenze all weekend! [Pssst, Gillian, you got plans for this yet?]

Well, this was quite a random post. But that's what's been going on here this week. With midterms coming up, I expect to be doing quite a bit of reading/writing. I'm also working on another piece for my travel writing class, entitled Portrait of a Place. We get to choose any city, place within a city, or country, if we are feeling ambitious and we have to portray it as though it were having its portrait painted (metaphorically, of course). I'm pretty sure I'm going to do London, especially since Florence is off-limits, and Gainesville isn't exactly portrait-worthy (I can imagine it now...."So, um, everything is orange and blue, and our idea of fine dining is Chili's..."). Maybe if you're lucky I'll share my portrait with you when it's done :]

Ciao, bellas!

P.S. If you have any questions or requests for particular subject matter in the blog, PLEASE leave a comment! I'm open to photographing/discussing pretty much anything :]

and the fail award goes to...

Um, me. Obviously.

Failblogger here did not photograph herself in the new jacket or the purchases made today at H&M. SORRY! SORRY! SORRY! At any rate, I will be wearing The Jacket and two out of three new shirts this weekend in Rome, so you are likely to see pictures when I post those. My apologies, for real.

I had class all day from 9 AM until 2:30 PM...when I got home I was STARVING, so I whipped myself up a fancy lunch of an apple with vanilla yogurt and a bowl of brussel sprouts (thank you Gillian, my new obsession). Sam and I hit the streets after that, searching for clothes to wear in this newly-warm weather. Oh, Italy, why so humid? Found a few good deals; paid about 30 euro for a light dress and a couple of tops, suh-WEET.

Dinner with the roomies....I made bruschetta! Gillian put together a kind of veggie lasanga/casserole/pie that my hungry tummy fully appreciated. And for dessert....KINDEREGGS! (And nutella crackers and coffee, later on.) We all avoided packing together for a few hours, but we finally got down to business. I'm all ready to go!

Tomorrow morning we depart at 7 AM for ROMA until Sunday night. I'm sure I'll be blogging/uploading photos upon our return that evening. Until then....arrivederci!

the walking justifies the buffet.

Today, I had set my alarm to go off at 9 AM, despite the fact that I had no class. Clearly I was deluding myself. I hit snooze and slept until 10:30, but I got going pretty quickly after that. Put laundry in, showered, ate, and was out the door by 11:30 to do some shopping. I hit what felt like every freakin' boot store in Florence, searching for anything that was reasonably priced, in my size, and not repulsive. I came up empty handed. I intend to try once more on Wednesday, but after that I'm throwing in the towel and having my mom ship me a pair of boots from the US.

The nice thing about Florence is that even while you're huffing about, completely frustrated at the lack of attractive boots, you run across things like this, which have a calming effect:




This is an outdoor museum located right next to Palazzo Vecchio. You heard me right: an OUTDOOR MUSEUM. You aren't allowed to eat up there by those statues, and they have guards there to make sure you don't. It is still so weird to me to be walking and just come across ancient pieces of art. Spend a day just walking around Gainesville and you are likely to come up with little more than empty Natty cans and discarded Alligators.


After my fruitless search for boots, I bought some groceries and headed back to the apartment, where I made a quick lunch. I then went to the library to make copies of this book I need for a paper. I spent about three hours there and got NOTHING done (oops). It is so hard to concentrate in this country! I'll be paying for that as soon as I get done blogging.


My roommates and I were hell bent on having sushi tonight for dinner, but it turns out that every sushi place in Florence is CLOSED on Monday for no apparent reason, so we settled for the aperitivo place across the street from our apartment.

I had a glass of prosecco, or sparkling wine.

Great spread!

We love this place because it is only 8 euro for a drink and unlimited access to the buffet, which is one of the best we've seen as far as aperitivo goes.

Like I said, now I'm off to procrastinate some more before finally settling down to do my Italian and writing homework. Wednesday, Gillian and I are planning to go exploring on the other side of the river to try and find this restaurant she ate at with her parents the last time she was here. We are also going to hit up the market at San Ambroggio, which is similar to Mercato Centrale, which is where we usually go, just to try something new.

just another day in italy.

Today was fairly uneventful, so no photos to add. Sorry.

We all slept in today, which was glorious. Sat around the kitchen table, munching, watching TV shows, reading books, doing homework. Then Sam, Gillian and I decided to venture out in search of boots. The other two found a pair each, but I was again unsuccessful. My own pickiness (and genetic-mutationally-large feet) make it quite difficult, but I'm sure that if I am patient, I will be rewarded with a pair of boots that I love.

Speaking of falling in love, I also tried on my first leather jacket since I arrived. This is an action I have been avoiding, often running through the open air market with my head ducked, all but singing "I CAN'T HEAR YOU I CANT HEAR YOU," trying not to look at the jackets or listen to the salespeople desperately trying to arouse my interest. The problem is that my interest is already aroused, but I want to take my time and find the best jacket for the best deal. Of course, I fell hard for the real-leather bomber jacket that I put on today. At a special price of 120 euro (NOT BAD, BELIEVE ME) I almost fell for it. But no. I just booked a flight to Barcelona today, and trips to Amsterdam, Prague, and Vienna are all in talks. And I'd rather have those than a leather jacket.

Tomorrow morning, the API program departs for Venice at 6 AM sharp. We are all extremely pleased to be waking up this early, but at least we'll get to spend better part of the day there. Carnivale is supposed to be crazy, so I'm really looking forward to it. I won't have my computer, so no updates until Sunday night, probably.

coffee, creeps, and el mercato centrale

So I really wanted to post my entry first, and the pictues last, but you'll have to look first and read about them at the end.

The Uffizi museum, from the Ponte Vecchio. My sad lack of photography skills does it no justice.

The actual Ponte Vecchio, or Old Bridge, from another bridge over the Arno River.

My first Italian caffe latte!



Haha, the apple martini from the previously mentioned aperitivo.

Fresh bread at el mercato.

The dried fruit stand in El Mercato Centrale

Just as a note, everyone who said that Italian men are creeps was not exaggerating. Every time that I have dared to set foot in an Italian street alone, I have been catcalled, whispered to suggestively, and one particular creep used a very cruel (albeit clever) pick-up line. I was walking to El Mercato Centrale (The Central Market -- pictures to follow) yesterday through a large area where people come to sell things like jewelry, leather goods, postcards, etc. I was rifling through my purse looking for my wallet to pull cash out to use at the market, when one vendor stops me by saying (in English), "You dropped something!" Anyone who has ever lost anything important abroad (as I have, many times) knows that this is a horrible thing to say to a tourist whose entire existence in a foreign country is dependent upon a credit card and passport. So when I understandably went into a mild state of panic, the vendor laughed and said, "You lost my phone number. Here, let me give it to you." Case in point.

So far we have been taken on several tours...historical tours, survival tours, orientation tours, tours galore. I'm fairly certain that I could tell you the exact name of a store where you could find any particular product, but I could never in a million years lead you to it. I am getting very handy with the map though, and I maanged to truck it across half of Florence in less than 10 minutes yesterday.

It has sadly been too cold for me to even crave gelato, but I can tell you that Italian coffee is amazing. If you want a lesson in the contradictions of Italian life, I suggest that you head into an Italian coffee shop, which they call bars. On our first full day in Italy, we were introduced to the pace of Italian life, which drives me, the fast-paced American, completely insane. They are late everywhere and have no concern for the time. One of my traveling companions noted on the first day the complete lack of clocks anywhere in public space. However, put these slow-moving, relaxed people into a crowded bar, and you can watch them order, receive, pay for, and knock back an esspresso shot in about 60 seconds flat. It is quite a sight. I'm sure that even now I'm very conspicuous in the bar that I'm at, as I slowly sip my caffe latte (with no sugar! I'm turning into such an Italian already).

The coolest thing I have seen so far (besides the view off the Ponte Vecchio -- again, pictures momentarily) is el Centro Mercato. It is FULL of the most amazing and cheap fresh fruit, vegetables, meat, dried fruit, olive oil, and pretty much anything else you can want. I purchased a nice bottle of olive oil while my roommate bought some super delicious balsamic vinegar for the salad we made last night. We also went halves on a loaf of fresh whole grain bread (delicious for breakfast with some nutella...mmmm). I also bought some fresh green olives, bananas, pears, romaine, and was given a clementine for free by the owner of one fruit stand, hah. I was going to buy some dried fruit, but there was a pair of women taking their sweet Italian time at the stand, and the market was about to close, so I'll have to go back later this week.

My computer is about to die, and I finished my latte, so I'll have to update more about the apartment and post photos of that later. Classes also start Monday, so I'm sure I'll have a lot to say when that happens. Arreviderci, for now.