FRIDAY: Kristie and I were finally off to Perugia for the weekend to visit Nicki. We caught the 2-hour train and I napped the majority of the way. We arrived in the hilly city and took the MiniMetro (very similar to a tram car from Disneyland) to the top of Perugia, where Nicki was waiting. Ah! It was so great to see her, but also kind of strange to see her somewhere besides Penn State. After a quick shop through the grocery stores, we headed back to Nicki’s apartment. I am INSANELY jealous of the tiny four-person fourth floor flat. It is slightly retro, slightly posh and very cozy. Also, the view is absolutely incredible.
We were informed that we all were going to a potluck dinner with some of her friends from school so we had some cooking to do! Nicki and Kristie, along with my sporadic assistance, made eggplant parm and an eggplant/pepper/onion dip. Once the food was ready, we got ready and headed down the hill – of course – to the dinner.
Quickly enough, I learned that Perugia is all hills, no matter which direction you walk in. You are guaranteed to go down a hill, then up a hill, then down another hill to reach your final destination. It’s ridiculous. We arrived at the potluck and met a bunch of other students from Umbra. We chowed down on some fantastic foods – tuna cristini, eggplant parm, mixed salad – and chatted for awhile. The night got rowdier, as did we, and soon enough we ventured out towards “The Steps.” These steps are the infamous landmark of Perugia where the locals go to drink and chill. I LOVE THIS. So, we walkd past the center and towards another friends’ apartment, but quickly did we smell the sweet, sweet aroma of a secret bakery. So it’s not only Florence that has them! We took a quick peek into a hole-in-the-wall place and saw a man baking up some cornettos. We each got a chocolate croissant. The greatest. My first secret bakery experience.
Onwards, we ended up at the guys’ apartment and learned some names. I ran into some people from Penn State and we all, weirdly enough, hung around in the kitchen, making jokes and such. I even fit a call into Dane, thanks to the help of Ryan. Yes! After some broken glasses and Barbie sticker faces, we walked to The Steps and headed home for the night. Completely exhausted, the three of us fell straight asleep.
SATURDAY: We woke up some-what early and had a breakfast of blood oranges, my favorite. Nicki, Kristie, and I headed out to the train station to meet up with other students from Umbra and to catch the train to Spoletto. Nicki, a great planner she is, had arranged for us all to go on a hike in Spoletto, another Italian town about an hour from Perugia. The hike would be led by one of the professors at her institute. The train was entertaing and the three of us made some jokes nad caught up. We arrived in Spoletto and met our guide for the day, Cinzia. The fifteen of us walked through the quaint town until we reached the base of the mountain and took about eight escalators up. I honestly thought that was the hike, just how the Italians do it. I was wrong.
After our final escalator ascent, we walked along past a café and towards this incredible bridge. The view was beautiful and we hadn’t even hiked yet! We crossed over the bridge – which would never be allowed in the States – and finally got onto the hiking path. I certainly didn’t think the hike would be intense. Yet again, I was wrong.
After ten minutes, I was already out of breath and I’m nearly positive that my muscles were detaching from my body. Of course, our guide said the hike up to the top is “only an hour.” Wonderful, only fifty more minutes to go!
Although it was a challenging hike, it was a beautiful day out and the views from the path were incredible. Despite the complaining, near disasters, and sweat, the hike was more than worth it. Our group finally reached the top (just when I thought we had been walking in circles) and found the restaurant where we’d be eating lunch. There were a herd of cats that patrolled the place and also a Dalmatian, if you can call it that. The poor dog was extremely un-proportional that I wasn’t sure if it was a dog.
We all sat down to what was perhaps the best meals I’ve had in awhile. We started with wine, bread, and bruschetta. Next, I ate my lemon and porcini raviolis. They were heavenly. After Cinzia ordered our table another bottle of wine, we finished the 3-hour lunch with dessert. I had crescionda, which is an Italian dessert that you can only get in Spoletto. The owner of the restaurant all gave us free dessert, to celebrate St. Joseph’s Day, as well as his birthday. Buon Compleanno! Grazie Mille!
It was a fabulous lunch, but the time came to go down the mountain. Cinzia told us – more than once – that you hike up the mountain and roll down. It was too true for our group. Some mishaps and near-fatal experiences later, we reached the wonderful bridge and arrived at the café, only to find out that we had missed our return train and that the next train home to Perugia wasn’t for another five hours. Well, there’s nothing we could do so we all headed to Spoletto’s local bars for some aperitivos and nibbles. We spent the majority of our time just chatting, napping, or eating. Not too shabby if you ask me.
We all boarded the 10:19pm train from Spoletto to Foligno, where we had to transfer to a bus for the final hour to Perugia. It was a warm ride back home to “the Ruge.” A taxi ride later, and Nicki, Kristie, and I changed into our jammies, made some pasta, and watched the Amanda Knox Lifetime Original. After spending the day discussing the entire incident, it was only logical to end our way with the cinematic portrayal. The movie was surprisingly accurate, from my knowledge, of the chaos from a few years back. It’s actually pretty surreal as to the scope of the entire thing. I can’t imagine. After the movie, I quickly fell asleep, not without dreaming some bizarre dreams. In hindsight, watching the movie probably wasn’t the best idea. Worth it though.
SUNDAY: we slept in a bit and quickly headed into the center for Nutella. This might sound strange, but since Italy just celebrate it’s 150th birthday, the Nutella jars have special stories and pictures on them, very similar to the jam jars I used to collect of Pokemon and Looney Tunes. The three of us found the Nutella! Kristie and I bought four jars each because there are four different stories. Yes! We walked ot the edge of the main street and had a delicious breakfast of Nutella and fruits. Afterwards, we walked through one of the oldest places in Perugia, which is a fort filled with prison cells and shops, making for an interesting building.
Rushing back to Nicki’s for some espresso lessons (Great Job Nick!), we had to pack up our bags and head home. After dropping Nicki off at The Steps, we had 15 minutes to get to the MiniMet, take it down four stops, get to the train station, buy our tickets, and find our track. I definitely didn’t think it was possibly, but we’re just that good. The MiniMetro felt much slower than usual and after getting off at our fourth and final stop, we literally ran off of the MiniMet, down the stairs and bolted towards the train station. Kristie ran like the wind (really, I was impressed) and got our tickets, just as the train reached the station. We sprinted down the steps to get to the track and pushed past people exiting our train. We hopped up onto the stairs and, as soon as we did, the train took off. Wow! I honestly can't believe we made it! We found two seats and sat down, sweating and exhausted from the most stressful 18 minutes of the weekend. Well, we made it. High-Five!
We got back to Florence around 4pm and decided it was too nice outside to ignore. We wandered around the leather market and grabbed some kebobs for dinner. We even discovered a wonderful new grocery store near the Duomo. Sweet! I came back last night, Skyped with a bunch of people, and called it a night.
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TODAY!
This morning we had apartment checks and for the first time, our apartment got a Green Card! Good thing! So today was pretty much a lazy day. Had classes and then grabbed lunch. I finally updated this blog about Spring Break and that takes me to now. Five of my roommates, including myself, have our very first cooking lesson tonight with Mrs. F. I CAN'T WAIT! I have no idea what we're making, but it will be delicious.
I'll be sure to update later about the cooking. As for now...ciao!
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