So, we made it to Italy....

Hectic beginnings

                Though I am starting my reflections a little late in the game, I believe my experiences have left enough of an impression on me that I still might retain the more important details and musings. It is now August 7^th. My good friend Alayna and I left for Italy on the 31^st of July and have since seen all variety of things. First some background explanation is necessary. While we were roommates our junior year at Central College, Alayna and I hatched the plan of WWOOF-ing in Italy. WWOOF is an organization that connects people with organic farms all over the world. You arrange stays with different farms you are interested in and they provide you with room and board for your work. This idea was inspired by several of our professors who have enjoyed WWOOF-ing in the past. Being somewhat seasoned travelers, we were eager to take on the new and different experience. Also, we have a great interest in sustainability, which is heavily tied to our relationship with food and our relationships with others. We hoped that such an experience would open up new avenues and understanding in these areas.

                Having communicated with many farms, we carefully selected two and were looking for a third to span a total length of three months. We were feeling fairly secure as our departure date approached, but suddenly our first stay cancelled not more than ten days prior. This had us in a panic as we were doing the normal arrangements before travelling alongside our jobs and then having figure out where the heck we were going once we got to Italy! Fortunately we came in contact with a couple of farms and acquired a beginning destination. We were also able to reschedule our first stay as our last since they were the people we had been most in contact with and were most eager to meet. Unfortunately it was too late to change our plane tickets for a city closer to our farm, so we had to get creative. We were first flying into Bologna, Italy in the region of Emiglia-Romagna. We decided to stay there for one night and then travel to Venice for two more nights before taking a train to our first farm along the northeastern border of Italy.  To better explain what has happened so far, I will divide the rest of this post by destination since each place we have been, though relatively close, has been extremely different.

Bologna

This was a wonderful city in which to start our travels. It is full of the antiquated architecture that tends to just blow your mind. Everything was of stone. Buildings were lined with grand elegant archways and the sidewalks lined in marble. All the sweeter were the gelaterias around every corner. For those of you who do not know the joys of experiencing gelato (a sad existence indeed) it is like American ice cream only with less air whipped in. This gives it its intense flavor and dense creamy texture. Alayna and I partook at least once or twice a day, but it was of no consequences since we walked EVERYWHERE. I don’t think I’ve ever done as much walking in my life as I have in Italy. No wonder so many Italians are so skinny! Another thing to remark upon is that I have also never in my life seen so many attractive people all in one place. It must be something in the water….or the gelato (probably not the gelato).

I got to practice a little Italian while asking for directions from the airport and from our bus stop which made me feel rather savvy. After finding our hotel we set out on the town. We did a walking tour of the many beautiful cathedrals and climbed an ancient tower that gave you a view out above the city. There used to be many more of these, but many are inaccessible because they are now leaning (like the tower of Pisa) or are completely gone.

After all that walking we were pretty sweaty and tired. (Actually I don’t think I’ve stopped sweating since I’ve been in Italy, but we won’t get into all the gory details) We retired to the hotel and napped till later that evening. We washed up and sexified ourselves to head out for dinner and to check out the night life. Upon our wandering we encountered a quaint little restaurant called Café Bolognese. Here we got our first taste of true Italian pasta and wine. It was all we could do not to kiss our fingertips and shout “BRAVO!”. The food was FANTASTICO. I got thick flat noodles in mushroom sauce while Alayna went with classic Bolognese sauce. The house wine was the cheapest and still quite magnifico. We each got a nice little pitcher full (about 3 glasses) for 2.5 Euro. I was feeling nice and toasty after dinner and in good spirits. I didn’t even realize that my feet hurt anymore (h_h). 

It was about 9:30 when we finished and then went to the main square where to our surprise there was a live orchestra and people crowding in bars. We of course stopped for Gelato and sat and enjoyed the ambiance. We wandered about while window shopping and people watching until about midnight and finally returned to our room to succumb to sleep so that we might be prepared to leave for Venice the coming afternoon.

Venice

 Bologna was not much of a tourist city, but we knew once we saw the hordes of people coming from the train station at regular intervals that Venice would be a different story. It was easy to see why since the city was so stunningly beautiful. Narrow and winding streets led you in circles and neighborhoods were lined with canals (as the city is famous for). When we first entered our quaint, canal adjacent hotel room, we were already being serenaded by a man with an accordion on a gondola. It was pretty much magical. We resumed the walking marathon that we started in Bologna as soon as possible so that we could drink in all that was Venice. Though we were there only two days, I think it is fair to say that I have passed through the majority of the streets of Venice at least twice. You cannot hold still when you are surrounded by so much gloriously enthralling stuff! One of the most visually striking places was San Marco square which looks out upon the Adriatic Sea. The grand marble buildings were so ornately carved and painted that you wouldn’t believe. The attention to detail is almost excruciating. What is wonderful is that when you walk amongst such fine things you almost feel like everything else in the world is fine as well. You enter a new reality.

                That night we continued our adventure, though we had been warned that Venice shuts down early. We thought that strange for such a bustling place, but as we came to find out also very …..neat. We found a bar that was mostly locals and grabbed a drink. After chatting and people watching for a while as I drank my Americano, we came across another foreigner about our age. His name was Mark and he was from New Zealand. We all got to chatting and were glad for the easy conversation. Unfortunately the bar closed too soon for our tastes (around midnight). And the three of us decided to look for another spot to hang for a while. We came across a tiny little pub that was still open and got a round of beers. They were 8 Euro each, which may have been because of the late night service, but it was also one of the most kick ass beers I had ever tasted! Unfortunately I was a little bit toasty at that time and forgot to ask the name of it. I think the owner said it was a sort of Venetian beer….anyways. An hour or so passed and we were kicked out, but not before the owner gave us some great advice on where to go the next night (Lido Beach!). We were wandering around the empty streets again with a couple beers to go, trying to come up with a game plan when we encountered another group of English speakers looking for late night entertainment. That was when we all headed to San Marco square.

It felt very surreal as we sat at that infamous square that had hours earlier been nearly impassible due to tourist traffic. It was almost as if for those couple of hours that the city belonged to us. As we sat in some café chairs near the water we reveled in how astonishingly quickly you feel endeared to other foreigners abroad. Under any other circumstances, the group of us may likely never have spoken. But at that time and place we were friends. The additions were Ben from New York and Hayley from Alaska. We chatted and got to know each other and decided to go to Lido beach together the next night like the bartender had suggested. Eventually everyone headed back to their respective hotels to retire for the night, but Alayna, Mark and I decided to watch the sun come up since it was only a couple hours till sunrise. At first we sat on a tall bridge near the train station but we decided we wanted to head to the coast. I lead the way as we chased the sunrise. I really should have known better than to trust my sense of direction, but I trudged forward with other two in tow sure I just needed to head where I saw the sun. As it turns out we went in a big circle and ended up right near where we started. So….we didn’t get to see the sun come up over the water, but I guess you could say we got even better acquainted with the city. Eventually we turned in to the hotel to have breakfast and commence sleeping till 5PM in order to go out the next night.

We prepared for our night at Lido beach and then met mark at Rialto bridge, where we left him the night before, and went to grab some drinks. We then met with Hayley and Ben at San Marco square to take the boat taxi to Lido. It was a long, beautiful beach where many young people went to have fun. We walked up and down the sand that was smooth as silk and then went to grab some pizza. Italian pizza is the stuff! We learned that there was a night club just down the beach, so we followed the sand to where we heard the thumping music, but there was a problem; there was no way to actually get to the club from the beach. We attempted surmounting a wall to get to the street to no avail, except for Alayna and Mark who persevered. Ben, Hayley and I walked up to some ritzy beach-side hotel and quietly ascended a side staircase unseen. We made it to the club and were suddenly surrounded by people in white clothes. I’m not sure if that is regular going out attire for young Italians or if it was a theme of sorts, but it definitely made us stick out even more. We stayed and danced until late in the night when nearly everyone was cleared out of the club. We decided to head back to the beach and put our feet in the water. There we met even more travelers enjoying the cool water and smooth sand. We messed around in the water for a while and were thoroughly soaked when we decided it was time to head back, once again with new acquaintances in tow.

Our night ended up in San Marco square again where we found a pizza place open late and partook in another slice before chilling at the tables. We chatted till the sun came up and there I said farewell to my Venice friends and headed back to the hotel: still soggy and very tired. We did not sleep much before our train to Monfalcone near the eastern border, but it was worth it. Venice rocked my world and I’d like to think I rocked it a bit too. ;D