ROME is where the ♥ is

Rome is pretty much the coolest capital city anywhere. I hadn't remembered it that well because the last time I was there 6 years ago was such a whirlwind, but this time we made the most of it! The first day the weather wasn't terrific but we still managed to go to the Vatican, the Spanish Steps, and the Trevi Fountain. The Vatican was really inspiring, especially when we got to see the tomb of Pope John Paul II. By the time we made it to the Trevi Fountain, we were drenched and miserable and decided to eat at this cute little place that ended up having great service. We shared (quite) a bit of wine and it was a great night. I warmed up right away!

St. Peter's Basilica

One of our Popes

Spanish Steps in the rain

Romance at the Trevi Fountain
How cute are they?

The really sweet guys working at our restaurant

The next day was the day to end all days. We saw everything! We got to the Colosseum and were lucky enough to have this guy usher us over for a cheap tour of the place. He gave us tickets, we did the tour, and we were never asked for money! Not to mention, right after, we got to tag along with the same group to tour Palatine Hill and the Forum! It was great to have a tour guide instead of playing tour guide out of my Rick Steves book!

The Colosseum is SO cool. Rome is the place for me because I'm a much bigger fan of architecture-type art than I am of painting-type art, if that makes sense. Our tour guide had such a funny accent, and was constantly pointing and saying, "Deeese is original Roman wall. Dis is not." Over and over again. My brother made a point of doing that for almost everything we saw from then on out. "Deeese is original Roman bus. Dis is not." It was hilarious. Here's just a few of the amazing photos from the Colosseum:

More family embarrassment :)

Our costly photo op
I think it was worth it though.
Except that he tried to kiss me.

The forum blew my mind. I hadn't really remembered it at all, and I think it was the most striking thing we saw on this trip. Absolutely gorgeous:

Afterwards we headed to the San Sebastiano Catacombs which were cool, but maybe not worth the headache we went through to get back into town! Once back, thanks to a taxi, we went to the Campo dei Fiori and followed a few monuments (Piazza Navona, the Pantheon) on our way back to the Trevi Fountain, where we had found a Calabrese restaraunt we wanted to eat dinner at. The Pantheon was extremely neat, I hadn't even known what it was before going to it. It's a beautiful church with an oculus where Rafael, the artist, is buried, along with the first two kings of Italy. Plus it looks like this:

Then we went to that Calabrian restaurant. Since my roommates are Calabrian and that's where I spent Christmas, I was excited to share a little of that culture with the fam. The antipasto plate was to die for. My mom said it was some of the best food she's ever tasted, and she's had some pretty good food!

The next morning we headed to Florence on the way back to Bologna. We only had time for lunch, the Duomo, and some market shopping. My mom and I stocked up on Tuscan pottery, it was great. Here's Daniel on the train:

Us at Trattoria Anita

Multi-themed Davids

Ponte Vecchio

On the way home our train didn't make it very far before it was stopped for an hour because of some sort of accident on the tracks. Eventually we made it though, and spent the evening packing, eating, and willing the hours not to pass! Early, early this morning they were off to make the journey to San Francisco via London. I miss them already, but we had such a spectacular trip that I couldn't have asked for more.

We lost all our pride in the Venice train station

On Friday, after recovering from the driving escapade through Tuscany, my parents headed to Venice for a romantic evening just the two of them, and Daniel and I prepared for a laid back day in Bologna. We hung at home a bit, and then we toured Piazza Maggiore, climbed the tower, ate some gelato, and went grocery shopping.

At gelato, there was this really cute little boy there with his grandma. He was sitting on the bench and I wanted to as well, but I decided to ask permission. I said, "Posso?" May I? And he gestured out his palm, smiled, and said, "Si!" in the most chivalrous, genial way possible! He was adorable sitting there eating his gelato.

Friday night was supposed to be Daniel and Kelly's Big Night Out, but it ended up being Daniel and Kelly's Regular Ol' Night In. None of my friends were really up to anything and I had just started feeling a cold coming on, so we invited Andrew over and ate dinner and watched LOST together. We had fun, so I don't think Daniel was too disappointed.

Meanwhile, Mom and Dad were having what they called a "magical" night in Venice. They wandered around the canals, had a top notch dinner, drank Bellinis at Harry's Bar, and got to go to Good Friday service at St. Mark's. By the time we met up with them on Saturday morning, my Dad had the city pretty well figured out!

Venice was quite crowded, but we managed to see the Duomo, the Rialto Bridge, and St. Mark's Square. We were getting hungry and so decided to stay for dinner. This was where it all went wrong, hehe. By the time we finished dinner, picked up their luggage, and made it to the train station around 9, the only train left that night was at midnight! So we had three hours of waiting in the cold train station ahead of us. Goody.

We go around the food area, buying a few snacks and waters, and my Dad says he's going to go "secure us some seats" because there were a lot of others waiting for this train and not quite as many benches. So eventually my mom and I are over by the bathrooms when Daniel calls me over and says, "Oh my God, Kelly, you have to come see this. Dad has officially done the most embarrassing thing ever," while he's busting at the seams with laughter. So I'm thinking, "the most embarrassing thing ever?" Well, that's saying something.

So I follow him away from the bathroom and the trains and into the main station. Daniel's dragging me along, and I say, "What can it be?!" and he responds, "Let's just say, when I saw Dad I started laughing, and then I noticed that other people around me were laughing at him too." So now I'm super excited to see this train wreck (excuse the pun) of embarrassment unfold before my eyes. Finally we turn the corner, and there he is:

practically spread eagle on a luggage cart, napping! He reminded me of the bird lady in Home Alone or something! So now Daniel and I are Laughing Out Loud and calling even more attention to ourselves until mom finally catches up (while on the phone with Tia Diane) and adds to the hilarity of it all by narrating the situation to her! Dad looks up and says, "What? Tthose other people were doing it! It's the only seats I could find!" So one by one, we each grab a luggage cart and fall (literally) to the embarrassment, sitting in a circle, and laughing so hard we cry.

And then it was Easter Sunday! Brittany's family (her mom, cousin Melissa, and G-Pa Willy) came to visit her for Spring Break and since they were vacationing in Italy anyway, they ended up coming over to my apartment to join us for Easter lunch! Charlotte also has her friend, Sarah, visiting the week, and so they joined us as well. I wanted to give them all a very authentic Italian meal, and I think I succeeded. It was so nice seeing them, although Brittany and I felt cheated and tortured by the shortness of a 5 hour visit. I don't have many pictures from Easter, so to all who were there, please e-mail me any good ones you have!

The dangers of renting a car in Italy

Well after seven months...my family is finally here! We stayed in the first night and I cooked pasta al forno for them and Charlotte. Mom didn't feel very well (not because of my cooking) and so the next day we actually called the American doctor and got a house call! He was quite the character and we're pretty sure laughter was the best medicine because mom had started feeling better already. At one point, he coughed and said, "Sorry I'm just getting over a case of TB." We all started laughing and then he said, "Tiny Bladder." We ate lunch at a great place right around the corner from my house where they'd make any kind of pasta that struck your fancy. Afterwards I left the family napping and went to Alessandro's graduation thesis presentation. It's been the topic of conversation for the past month, and the day had finally come. I was so nervous for him but he did great!

Me and Ale

Later my family and I did a tour of Bologna and then I got them set up for dinner before leaving with a friend (on his motorino!) for Alessandro's graduation party. The motorino ride was probably the highlight of the evening because I had never ridden on one before. It was thrilling!

The next day we began the adventure of driving a car in Italy. Rick Steves should have written in his book, "Warning: it may be bad for your health." I think my dad might now have problems with ulcers, hehe. First stop was San Luca, in Bologna. We drove up through the hills, but found the church to be closed. Like I said before though, it's the journey and the architecture outside the church that make it so incredible.

Our Alfa Romeo

In front of San Luca

After that, we attempted to head to San Gimignano. We started right off the bat going the wrong direction and had to ask a man that owned a bike shop where the freeway was. He gave me directions and said, if you follow those, you can't mess up. HA. We get to the freeway finally heading towards Florence, and we come to a toll. However, there wasn't a person there and we couldn't figure out how to make the barricade go up. So everyone's honking and we're freaking out so I get out of the car and look around but I don't know what to do and so I go to the guy in the big truck behind us and tell him so. He asks if we have a pass and I say no and he says well you're in the pass lane. Great. At this point my dad's yelling at me because apparently there was this help speaker and so he yells, "Kelly, they're talking to me!" And rather quickly the help people give up on him and just lift the barricade...so I run up to the car while yelling at him to go through the barricade and finally I jump in the car and we're off! Oh my God it was so stressful. My mom is laughing so hard because she said my dad might as well have yelled, "Kelly, they're picking on me!" when the help people spoke to him in Italian. So basically we got lost a couple more times and finally end up in San Gimignano, which is a very cute little walled city. We walked around, looked into some shops, and had a very yummy dinner.

And then we headed for Camp Darby, the army base near Livorno. Easier said than done. By this point it was already dark. We went to visitor's information in San Gimignano for directions and they gave us several names of towns whose signs we should follow. That worked for a while but at one point we got confused so we pulled off at this restaurant that ended up being hidden in the forest and I asked this group of guys who all wanted to give me different directions and they would be thing like, "when you come to a really old building, turn left and follow that road through the forest until it dead ends, then turn left...blah blah blah"--no street names, no specifics, nothing. One of them also told me, "If you do that, you can't mess up." HA. It was impossible but we're again headed in the right direction. So then we're trying to follow the directions the hotel gave us. But we end up in some random town unable to find any more helpful signs. So dad tries to turn around but we end up in this alley blocked by a truck loading. We get out to ask the men loading the truck where Camp Darby is, and then an ambulance drives up behind us and is also blocked so we ask them instead, and the man driving--God Bless Him--says he will lead us most of the way! There's seriously no way we would have made it without him.
Here's Daniel's Russian celebratory dance for having arrived:

The next day we did a ton of food shopping at the commissary on base...I bought baking mixes, Mexican food, and various other requests from my American friends. Then we headed to Pisa, saw the Field of Miracles, took our corny tourist pictures, and then left for Lucca.

We made it both to Pisa and Lucca with practically no directional problems in the car! Lucca is the small town my dad's grandparents, the ones who immigrated to America, are from. I was completely charmed by the city and could see myself living there one day! It's just lovely.

Dad and I walking in our native land

That night we headed home for Bologna and said good riddens to that rental car!

San Luca

Yesterday I decided that I would finally make the trek up to San Luca, the church that is atop the highest hill in Bologna and thus quite a significant part of our city. It's like a beacon. Leading up to San Luca is the longest portico in the world; it's 3.5 km and has 666 arches. However, I had never been before and for some reason decided that instead of taking the portico up the normal way, I would take the (back)roads. I didn't realize what that would entail. So I'm walking. And walking. I'm passing houses and parks and singing along with my ipod. And after about 45 minutes I'm not even sure if I chose the right direction or where on Earth I'm heading. At some point I see a sign telling me I'm leaving the main city of Bologna! So I'm walking up and up, which I figured was a good sign since San Luca's on a huge hill, with motorinos and bicyclists passing me like crazy. I kept wondering if I should turn around for fear I was going the wrong dirction and of getting to the top and being too exhausted to ever get back down! But I was determined to find San Luca. You can't tell people you're going to San Luca and then come back declaring you couldn't find it. It just doesn't make sense! So I'm walking. And walking. And along the way I see giant worms, frantic lizards, and beautiful butterflies. Not to mention gorgeous villas and sprawling green hills. I turn around and can see the whole city of Bologna, far away, nestled between the two hills closer to me. But where is this church? How can this road be so looong? So after walking for 1.25 hours, I see a sign. A sign! And it says, San Luca --> and I jump in the air because it's my first sign in a long time that I'm actually on my way there! However, I have still yet to see the actual church. All the while I'm wondering how it is possible that I can't see the church high up on the hill from everywhere. So I keep walking. And walking. And after another 15 minutes...I SEE IT! But how can that be? It's on a different freaking hill than the one I'm on! And there's an entire valley between it and me! Nooooooooo! So I keep walking. And walking. And shooting desperate looks over my shoulder at the church, as I walk farther from it in an attempt to get closer to it. I come across a couple and breakdown and ask if I'm going the right way. They say, yes, and there's only 15 more minutes until I get there, which I don't believe because it looks like it might as well be in another land. So I keep walking. And walking. And I get to a plateau with a gorgeous view of what's behind the hills, outside of Bologna. And I see a couple of houses I wouldn't mind moving into. And I hear something crawling in the bushes that freaks me out. Oh it's just the lizards. And I come across a tiny neighborhood and think of what wonderful lives these people live and it practically moves me to tears and I think that this cannot be the last time I live in Italy. And I keep walking. And walking. And finally I turn the corner, and what do I see? San Luca!-

-beautifully golden and magestic shining on top of its hill. It's terribly moving. I see a couple taking photos and offer to take one of the two of them and they are so thankful it's cute. And I wish for the thousandth time that I had brought my camera because I've seen the world through a different lens on this beautiful walk and would love to have been able to record it. So I keep walking. And walking. Now in disbelief that I actually made it there in a record 2 hours. So I pass by the pizzeria (who knew?), and the guy selling candy, and I enter the complex, climb the spiral staircase, enter the church. The altar is beautiful, but other than that it's actually a small church on the inside and I'd have to say I prefer the exterior but I'm so happy to have finally reached it that the whole thing is shining like a first place prize. I go up on the altar, say a prayer thanking God for finally getting me there, and then proceed to go down the hill the normal way-down the portici. It's something else, a portico that long. So after 2 hours to go up the hill, it took me only 45 minutes to get down, if that! It was quite the conquest...I seriously don't even know how I made it through a 3 hour walk over the hill and far away!

What's new, you might ask? Well, my family arrives TOMORROW! I cannot believe it. I remember when I was leaving California and knew it would be 7 months before I would see my dad and my brother. And now it's tomorrow. Life sure flies by, doesn't it? We're gonna have such a great time touring Tuscany, Venice, and Rome...not to mention Bologna! But really we're just excited to see each other.

Honeymoon in Tuscany

This past weekend I went to Tuscany with my friend, Julia, on what was practically a honeymoon since we went just us two! I should tell of how we first met. I was walking through Piazza Maggiore with my girlfriends this past summer, eating gelato and talking. Up pops this girl, excaiming, "You speak English!" She's from Baltimore and had just gotten to Bologna and needed some advice on finding an apartment. Well that was Julia and we've all been friends ever since!

The weather here has been quite ugly this week, and Tuscany was even worse. It was cold and rainy the whole time. We made the best of it, however, and spent our time strolling, eating, and sleeping. It was a very relaxing weekend. Siena is beautiful.

Some of the highlights of Siena were the Cathedral, the Piazza, and meeting up with my friend Giuliana who was also there for the weekend.

We also took a day trip to Perugia. We had an amazing meal there of spinach gnocchi baked in the oven with tomato sauce. Mmmm.

The best part of that day was wandering the small alleys...they are all so cute! It's exciting to know that around every corner there will something new and even more beautiful! In the afternoon it got so cold it started snowing...which I could hardly even believe. It was cool though. We just ducked in for some tea and hot chocolate and then made our way back to Siena.

There's a special pasta that's particular to Siena called Pici. It's kinda like spaghetti but SO much thicker. We made a point of buying some before we left, and the guy we bought from was so sweet, offering cooking suggestions and telling us about Chianti.

The only time the weather cleared up a bit was the morning we went to climb the tower, most fortunately. We took a ton of photos to justify the price of the ticket!

I'm pleased to say that the photos don't even do it justice. Tuscany is totally what it's cracked up to be.