tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18705470879061383432024-03-12T23:49:08.090-07:00la mia avventura italianaBeckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.comBlogger59125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-19465863891878885452010-09-10T12:37:00.000-07:002010-09-10T13:28:33.813-07:00my favorite reading spotThis spot is one of my favorite places in Siena. It is just outside Porta San Marco on the south side of the city. There is a little playground that kids are always running around and benches that nonnas are sitting on, watching the kids play and chatting. Surrounding this area is a beautiful view of the Tuscan countryside. The valleys and hills around this area are filled with silvery olive trees that seem to almost shine in the sunlight. It is such a relaxing place to sit and do some thinking or to sit and read a book.<br />I have been coming here lately in the afternoons to do either of those things. I usually go with the intention of reading, but easily get distracted by the olive trees and the laughter of bambini.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgakLJiVMyKcyceXyw3Txxvc2kF2YH4GOmEeZou2EoUIC-O4LOKo7Afrmom1huw8EB-EbynI41X7JGLj8Vpifw3XaNwx2ghYGOMFRMyVBEyHGrBspoyxo1GlbaRlM6k-FaCETB0-haBryk/s1600/italy+036.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgakLJiVMyKcyceXyw3Txxvc2kF2YH4GOmEeZou2EoUIC-O4LOKo7Afrmom1huw8EB-EbynI41X7JGLj8Vpifw3XaNwx2ghYGOMFRMyVBEyHGrBspoyxo1GlbaRlM6k-FaCETB0-haBryk/s320/italy+036.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515375891262111218" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0P5vxfTfcGa4KYwHKVNKrgLi2OchXrDoY7AQ1Vr2O7b_-GXIIJf-ZffDQE73R-FuNSuzpFnxG9IFRPVyKmH8Vp9rzYFh7cKpx7366_eeeeMdK4qDhzrxWhDUKCR2YbXSFxEK8s4pfcwQ/s1600/italy+037.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0P5vxfTfcGa4KYwHKVNKrgLi2OchXrDoY7AQ1Vr2O7b_-GXIIJf-ZffDQE73R-FuNSuzpFnxG9IFRPVyKmH8Vp9rzYFh7cKpx7366_eeeeMdK4qDhzrxWhDUKCR2YbXSFxEK8s4pfcwQ/s320/italy+037.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515375882118186002" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnQZpvAd8Uu9OMP5DhVAtjrQUBiXD_ABa3TEUeapKB56Py2XW9dnyFsKd7-JOhsIaZRD8AGvINLleuNzCJidCLmihyphenhyphen73BOHyQfOZanG6doUA5uyCTg4BNGCmOfgFSXwbYQq_Ov0-BjVZ0/s1600/italy+040.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnQZpvAd8Uu9OMP5DhVAtjrQUBiXD_ABa3TEUeapKB56Py2XW9dnyFsKd7-JOhsIaZRD8AGvINLleuNzCJidCLmihyphenhyphen73BOHyQfOZanG6doUA5uyCTg4BNGCmOfgFSXwbYQq_Ov0-BjVZ0/s320/italy+040.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515375872444394642" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip1ukxHu-YDrT_cTrdFIDprHoNYHNFf7NqQIFZp_a3rjKDooZTXABo9vQqUbQhHXYelvjUIYnTIGbDgC1iXRRkSKGn7aPm7MY27F2OIkXinlOQbQVqAfjze1HmQ9ii3Y0zqs-dzBpY2IM/s1600/italy+038.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip1ukxHu-YDrT_cTrdFIDprHoNYHNFf7NqQIFZp_a3rjKDooZTXABo9vQqUbQhHXYelvjUIYnTIGbDgC1iXRRkSKGn7aPm7MY27F2OIkXinlOQbQVqAfjze1HmQ9ii3Y0zqs-dzBpY2IM/s320/italy+038.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515375865102570418" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqq6onCoRvLdebDXc_4_zhdwRnWU7LwYlOeVCa5h3Uv8BwODZ9bTkAJhGOJ57EUow9gv4LlsA-XPVHy8uMc-t1Bm-ddxbzXB5thrDukjQoCc6mGDFCN8uUtfQM-7FwRquLu7T2x0dlm7U/s1600/italy+042.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqq6onCoRvLdebDXc_4_zhdwRnWU7LwYlOeVCa5h3Uv8BwODZ9bTkAJhGOJ57EUow9gv4LlsA-XPVHy8uMc-t1Bm-ddxbzXB5thrDukjQoCc6mGDFCN8uUtfQM-7FwRquLu7T2x0dlm7U/s320/italy+042.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5515375855090516722" border="0" /></a>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-72491448106040589152010-09-09T15:40:00.000-07:002010-09-09T16:12:43.269-07:00Lots of fun things to look forward toFor the last while, we have been trying to figure out what exactly our plan is for the upcoming few months. While this plan is still being worked on, we have come to the conclusion that we will probably, most definitely be in Siena until the end of October. After that, we are hoping to spend some time in Germany before moving back to the states in December, sometime before Christmas.<br />So, being here through October gives us an extra month to do lots of fun things in Italy. Tonight we did some internet searching for events that might interest us, and found a lot to keep us busy!<br />Here's what we have coming up: (0r at least all of the things we found that we would like to do)<br />Alghero, Sardegna- September 17-20<br />Impruneta grape festival - September 26<br /><a href="http://www.barcolana.it/contenuti.php?view=foto">Barcolana Regatta, Trieste</a> - October 9-10<br />EuroChocolate festival, Perugia - October 16-17<br />Fiera Nazionale del Tartufo Bianco d'Alba - October 23-24<br /><br />This next month and a half is going to go by way too quickly. I really can't believe that our time here is almost over!Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-12922950336600687992010-09-05T11:17:00.000-07:002010-09-05T11:37:53.235-07:00Figs are delicious!Figs are one of my favorite fruits. This is something that I have discovered only in the last few years. When I was working at Gratzi in Ann Arbor, we had a pizza one week on the menu that had fresh figs, ricotta, walnuts and honey. After having that pizza, I have been hooked on figs.<br /><br />Lately, we have been seeing fresh figs at the fruit stands and in the markets. We bought some last week that were absolutely perfect. They were almost bursting out of their skins; they were so juicy and ripe. We ate some of them just plain, but for a few others I dressed up a little bit. The resulting dressing up was pretty high up there with some of the best things I have ever eaten.<br /><br />I quartered the figs, placed them in a baking dish, put a tiny piece of gorgonzola on top, then a piece of prosciutto over the cheese. Then, it all got drizzled with balsamic and a little bit of honey. It all went into our little toaster oven to warm up, melt the cheese, and crisp up the prosciutto. It was pretty much anything you could ask for in a food. Sweet, juicy, salty, cheesy, and delicious!<br /><br />We were going to make this again tonight, but by the time we decided to, all of the fruit stands were closed for the night and the grocery store was out of figs. I have all of the other ingredients here waiting for the perfect figs to be found again.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCfK3DCq2HEXek6-Sf9tZ45aiYRk8l4bwtWBVWp2lGhkcEQHeB0QBi4XfyZ7sqx09dSpJ35RCmj35LeFJ7k4rfd8zfICXcGHr0N8gdEAoR7qUzRaQdUCNYbqM6aKtlrNqRBNwZLnXbhAo/s1600/italy+094.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCfK3DCq2HEXek6-Sf9tZ45aiYRk8l4bwtWBVWp2lGhkcEQHeB0QBi4XfyZ7sqx09dSpJ35RCmj35LeFJ7k4rfd8zfICXcGHr0N8gdEAoR7qUzRaQdUCNYbqM6aKtlrNqRBNwZLnXbhAo/s320/italy+094.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513496429340316610" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheJfHClGU8ARtw1KfF5Z23_Z41nJWuQyyUBVpNhM7ko_EODwutZCf12nb-bgctHi0cWux687dZSkEMJ6iZLB4ba0EtFN-0pk5BzvP5935HGC-RM81ZLoXFYdAe7iR-KWVhqJKFcVkggpc/s1600/italy+093.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheJfHClGU8ARtw1KfF5Z23_Z41nJWuQyyUBVpNhM7ko_EODwutZCf12nb-bgctHi0cWux687dZSkEMJ6iZLB4ba0EtFN-0pk5BzvP5935HGC-RM81ZLoXFYdAe7iR-KWVhqJKFcVkggpc/s320/italy+093.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513496447973822322" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieQdOd8QJkm4xV8ZW5nkwVTBM7c6Pb3Kd8w0s4JJtKLu4AytY8yv5X48CqrU4fhjy_f6eOMVFTjyjUsb6oePU_r22AvEyNGGBO9ncSIxgymF9m4VPKw2L4dN3afijJ0RdZeMOK_ldo8Kg/s1600/italy+092.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieQdOd8QJkm4xV8ZW5nkwVTBM7c6Pb3Kd8w0s4JJtKLu4AytY8yv5X48CqrU4fhjy_f6eOMVFTjyjUsb6oePU_r22AvEyNGGBO9ncSIxgymF9m4VPKw2L4dN3afijJ0RdZeMOK_ldo8Kg/s320/italy+092.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5513496436742444738" border="0" /></a>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-70686866728273760522010-09-03T15:11:00.000-07:002010-09-03T16:13:24.982-07:00One year later and we are still here!So I really meant to write this post yesterday because on September 2, 2009, we arrived in Siena on our year long (plus!) italian adventure. In some ways, it seems like the year went by at an incredible speed, but other ways, it seems like we have been here for quite awhile. Either way, this past year has been amazing in so many ways.<br />The first thing is, I am so proud of myself for actually doing this. Moving to Italy has been a dream of mine for the past 7 years. There were many times when I thought it would always remain a dream and never actually be more than that. I am so lucky to have such a wonderful husband who will support me and push me to follow my dreams, and be willing to move across an ocean with me. This year abroad has not always been easy. In the beginning, actually, it was pretty hard for me. I am so glad I stuck it out through the hard times and have come to a point where I really enjoy my life here.<br />So, now, this is where I am. I really like living here, and can't imagine leaving soon. I can't imagine not being able to go across the street for a gelato on my way home from work, or stopping at my favorite bar in the morning for an espresso and pastry, or laying in the piazza on a sunny day, or taking an evening passegiata.<br /><br />la vita e' bella in italia, sempre.<br /><br />These pictures are from our first night here a year ago. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijDzYKJyjDdGl8a8OqdCFV1QjcczPBNVxeoybHOqQ79Z5dGSBgM07Dm-wjjVb2IVr4YJ0TPDwPwnkqw2-Ufpn5QJXzXzhDG6t2L1URC9Y4Z1nwcksEl2HVqfG6s4NBb5AHQO4-fJgzfno/s1600/Siena+009.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijDzYKJyjDdGl8a8OqdCFV1QjcczPBNVxeoybHOqQ79Z5dGSBgM07Dm-wjjVb2IVr4YJ0TPDwPwnkqw2-Ufpn5QJXzXzhDG6t2L1URC9Y4Z1nwcksEl2HVqfG6s4NBb5AHQO4-fJgzfno/s320/Siena+009.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512828642409320914" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGVBW4RQAsddijRHjkK-pq7mc93fVFJbF1b3D6gsGgYRp_oM1Uani9E8jwjMS4I0Xzg2ov7hH65KOEoS2lgCamalV0WltDuPqYnWDTfZsibvZjAjPqpc84er8vFxWriTVWQdEWu3Vs6Ek/s1600/Siena+010.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGVBW4RQAsddijRHjkK-pq7mc93fVFJbF1b3D6gsGgYRp_oM1Uani9E8jwjMS4I0Xzg2ov7hH65KOEoS2lgCamalV0WltDuPqYnWDTfZsibvZjAjPqpc84er8vFxWriTVWQdEWu3Vs6Ek/s320/Siena+010.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5512828629334944050" border="0" /></a>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-16600201776021248422010-08-27T15:10:00.000-07:002010-08-27T15:46:45.425-07:00A day at the beach<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghg83XmbkeKkFjkcUzs35W5pJZuIngWx4vOZGob1c9syNU1wJqcaLu8dGU_KCVOeAyLu8nTtZIThup6EcC_f_4lZiUnYB6o65PSHwy1z9yQErMOHByEvR7fAng8EfzRSxBD9ecXUcgtU8/s1600/italy+054.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghg83XmbkeKkFjkcUzs35W5pJZuIngWx4vOZGob1c9syNU1wJqcaLu8dGU_KCVOeAyLu8nTtZIThup6EcC_f_4lZiUnYB6o65PSHwy1z9yQErMOHByEvR7fAng8EfzRSxBD9ecXUcgtU8/s320/italy+054.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510216817428817986" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO2ZuBxJTz-HuORp7xfZH2PjU8Q24armSUL5w0IHS1Ny0kD6XBMmU1-XLKZOss00ZtazFnSUDMtSpaogE_J3lye1vkvSbmLWAj6reDrrRSHlvRQUgQyRpMNzdjAmYsYOimkhBdi75IJtY/s1600/italy+060.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO2ZuBxJTz-HuORp7xfZH2PjU8Q24armSUL5w0IHS1Ny0kD6XBMmU1-XLKZOss00ZtazFnSUDMtSpaogE_J3lye1vkvSbmLWAj6reDrrRSHlvRQUgQyRpMNzdjAmYsYOimkhBdi75IJtY/s320/italy+060.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510216809922979458" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmyWi3K6Ikn1kGoX6aJEmfsVmrFEeCIKo9aI5BW42-OL2YFCWcWF0_G-kE7vLtea7-v_Tmj1uGMjeuapN96ACm8QuzvpVCkcPWYn_LO22q_Dir5jJ4Zv6RO8AjwVeG7mxlsn89ruUkEyg/s1600/italy+064.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmyWi3K6Ikn1kGoX6aJEmfsVmrFEeCIKo9aI5BW42-OL2YFCWcWF0_G-kE7vLtea7-v_Tmj1uGMjeuapN96ACm8QuzvpVCkcPWYn_LO22q_Dir5jJ4Zv6RO8AjwVeG7mxlsn89ruUkEyg/s320/italy+064.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510216806960675362" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSGhf8Lkzsl-yOf50J_vNYB17BQgPG3c41uJNGJ7_w3p5CA4BPmXDqyIVAESGqm57uxmFM2VKZS5S2Ik5Bj8qunsetUzJL7UMyWPToRuc-IgmyjeOyNkwdcYM9tMDaXQ-D70xfwW1lQtM/s1600/italy+057.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSGhf8Lkzsl-yOf50J_vNYB17BQgPG3c41uJNGJ7_w3p5CA4BPmXDqyIVAESGqm57uxmFM2VKZS5S2Ik5Bj8qunsetUzJL7UMyWPToRuc-IgmyjeOyNkwdcYM9tMDaXQ-D70xfwW1lQtM/s320/italy+057.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5510216800993447602" border="0" /></a><br />I have been wanting to go to the beach for quite awhile. I have been talking about it and planning on going, but just hadn't actually gone yet. Today, I set my alarm to get up early, got on an early train to Viareggio, and spent the day at the beach.<br />Viareggio happens to be the same seaside town that Justin and I went to back in February for Carnevale. It is completely different in the summer. Also, while Nadine and Simon were visiting in May, we spent a day at the beach here.<br />I had such a nice relaxing day at the beach today. I should have done this much sooner. Now the summer is winding down, and I don't know how many more chances I will have for beach days as the weather cools down.<br />Going to the beach in Viareggio is much different than going to an American beach. Here, almost all of the beaches are private. You can't just lay down your towel where ever you feel like it. You have to rent a beach chair for the day from one of the many private beach clubs. In Viareggio, there is a tiny area sectioned off for a public beach, but it is literally only about 20 feet wide, and people are packed in. It is a much nicer beach experience to pay 5 euros for a chair and umbrella and a little bit of personal space.<br />So, I spent the day sitting in my beach lounger, reading a book, listening to music, and watching the waves. I took a few breaks to go swimming in the sea, which was just the right temperature to be refreshing and cool you off, but not too cold that you don't want to jump right in. I also had the perfect lunch at one of the beach clubs of spaghetti alle vongole (spaghetti with clams, one of my favorite pasta dishes) with a nice glass of white wine followed by an ice cream sandwich back on the beach. (It's kind of funny, whenever I go to the beach in California, I ALWAYS want a hot dog, but here, I always want fresh seafood with garlicky, spicy pasta. Italy wins, sorry hot dogs.) After lunch, more swimming, reading, and relaxing.<br />Another thing about the beach going experience here, there are always people walking around trying to sell things. There are guys selling sunglasses (reasonable at the beach) but I also saw another guy selling puffy, down winter jackets (and a few ladies interested in buying them. I guess they were a good deal?) At the beach you can buy knock-off designer bags, clothing, shoes, food, jewelry, beach toys, and even massages. Yep, a nice Asian lady was walking around offering her masseuse services, so I thought why not? So for 15 Euro, I got a full body 30 minute massage right on my beach chair in front of the Mediterranean Sea.<br />Life is good here. :)Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-91791755093998984252010-08-26T09:30:00.000-07:002010-08-26T09:53:54.551-07:00StomennanoThis morning, we did a cooking lesson off-site. This particular place was a villa/agri-tourismo/winery right in the middle of the Chianti area of Tuscany. It is called Stomennano. It was beautiful. I wanted to spend the entire day just sitting in the garden enjoying the beautiful surrounding views. The entire estate looked like something that you would see on a postcard or in a romantic movie. There were little tables and chairs set up in their own private gardens, overlooking olive groves or vines of grapes. There were rows of lemon trees, fountains, statues, rose framed windows, and views of Monteriggioni. It was SO nice. I just keep thinking of this lovely place and how I would love to spend much more time there.<br /><br /><a aiotarget="false" aiotitle="" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUtCRDLc-Yw0ZbJ68vI_mubqhlgEuk5YiEDkfT6bVbVPSTlhFaV6Z2h9laZiyh_Gbd-CDyiCaf2SbN9LdHOnts48o1-n84ew_HhYkSxYixyB5ER9B9Z-3vfpfuWTd5LtX-1YmryMPHKis/s1600/italy+039.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUtCRDLc-Yw0ZbJ68vI_mubqhlgEuk5YiEDkfT6bVbVPSTlhFaV6Z2h9laZiyh_Gbd-CDyiCaf2SbN9LdHOnts48o1-n84ew_HhYkSxYixyB5ER9B9Z-3vfpfuWTd5LtX-1YmryMPHKis/s320/italy+039.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509758245454770354" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFYj3smaHnE8lU6Yj3qPDwpD56_XWX_8L0XPC2SWEcYo7ZLNg2EioRUeBohzs7NP2VoQFpcmGgOj5rK7fP8iEK0gndETpbjr-GckcN2YckMrj6YQq8MKU3sJN_6KUFmmx3Xuv5ZyQQhao/s1600/italy+051.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFYj3smaHnE8lU6Yj3qPDwpD56_XWX_8L0XPC2SWEcYo7ZLNg2EioRUeBohzs7NP2VoQFpcmGgOj5rK7fP8iEK0gndETpbjr-GckcN2YckMrj6YQq8MKU3sJN_6KUFmmx3Xuv5ZyQQhao/s320/italy+051.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509758236906079010" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBBn5hyaErz1hAiKDK8IEK5pE_wkkAh9zTqEXgTLy6kSteu89ocjCMc1pSgUIOvv7XeHGYaLWico6Q3nN2TLRz2QRnE1HwIArhtUAMLq9n0AIIT_VW7yDcOnj3Kfm_cVu7RHhNAGgOF28/s1600/italy+042.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBBn5hyaErz1hAiKDK8IEK5pE_wkkAh9zTqEXgTLy6kSteu89ocjCMc1pSgUIOvv7XeHGYaLWico6Q3nN2TLRz2QRnE1HwIArhtUAMLq9n0AIIT_VW7yDcOnj3Kfm_cVu7RHhNAGgOF28/s320/italy+042.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509758226284695010" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCj5lSCuh74V2O71altJDGrD96zIynQmEJzGFgEfW13qtRm8lBCBu_6LImSfKQXJar3rfIs9QdHb-5KykEvno6bzas6kMl5-qCYP5FmQjRjyy9fPPRaUSL6dy49Z6T4V7EkYPhetWXkUc/s1600/italy+040.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCj5lSCuh74V2O71altJDGrD96zIynQmEJzGFgEfW13qtRm8lBCBu_6LImSfKQXJar3rfIs9QdHb-5KykEvno6bzas6kMl5-qCYP5FmQjRjyy9fPPRaUSL6dy49Z6T4V7EkYPhetWXkUc/s320/italy+040.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509758220543076434" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4b6gNe21YSOVOUV9seO5OfcRXIFGfdsHVg7QoDFFMPJR73T2NfQj8BP0JGi5KscaegHx1ecGUNoynXCbbh5TxqnOyiVbRCAwWkZdVyZUH6SmtcKjtjc7O_jUAsxS66qJzTFz8GiNb9gM/s1600/italy+046.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4b6gNe21YSOVOUV9seO5OfcRXIFGfdsHVg7QoDFFMPJR73T2NfQj8BP0JGi5KscaegHx1ecGUNoynXCbbh5TxqnOyiVbRCAwWkZdVyZUH6SmtcKjtjc7O_jUAsxS66qJzTFz8GiNb9gM/s320/italy+046.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509758214004918706" border="0" /></a>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-25819452558969041712010-08-25T05:23:00.000-07:002010-08-25T05:37:18.852-07:00market day in SienaEvery Wednesday morning, there is a huge market in Siena. Before today, I had never been to it. Usually if I don't have to get up for work, I am sleeping in. But Lella and Livia are always talking about how nice of a market it is, so I figured I should get myself out of bed early one of these days and check it out. Today was the day.<br /><br />There was a little bit of everything at this market, from clothes, to shoes, to tablecloths, to plants, to food, to knives, mixed in with a lot of junk. It was huge! Justin and I wandered around for at least a couple of hours, looking at everything. We didn't really buy anything (like I said, a lot of it was junk), but it was still fun to walk around and see everything that there was.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj87ZRl58A-cjQDyTZZvzmIlyZhNn6RaJ4h73esmHrg813kFSqsKtheoQqVmb4M-hCOljdOJcwf-CmYtojP7hVJ_tsjLOUQ2kl8mfiuigdRpxEiyWDCsEEmxGyAUvueNjvpBfw2IVIU6QI/s1600/italy+033.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj87ZRl58A-cjQDyTZZvzmIlyZhNn6RaJ4h73esmHrg813kFSqsKtheoQqVmb4M-hCOljdOJcwf-CmYtojP7hVJ_tsjLOUQ2kl8mfiuigdRpxEiyWDCsEEmxGyAUvueNjvpBfw2IVIU6QI/s320/italy+033.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509324222965716642" border="0" /></a>Really pretty plums!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0nV1GaugjM42S0uI6obgaFt8cYThFMu8Gx4wtzjahp22c1JivW-t22mbeOlpyAX3UEN7UtxR8ywOLTyGeeo1QjsNDRt6wqlsrva8e0iT56YxKtVqPiW4Px-arLsOdqnD68ZqTmz4MM98/s1600/italy+034.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0nV1GaugjM42S0uI6obgaFt8cYThFMu8Gx4wtzjahp22c1JivW-t22mbeOlpyAX3UEN7UtxR8ywOLTyGeeo1QjsNDRt6wqlsrva8e0iT56YxKtVqPiW4Px-arLsOdqnD68ZqTmz4MM98/s320/italy+034.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509324229631914018" border="0" /></a>Sausages and cured meats.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizFQ0PVHAKexqmvmlF-b2yW2n-e_OfjoDNRkD9ftD2qIDxDzHx5UT0_Vfpq_pLZYb_OoRni5DOrC-65Crzyc-FQ_vu3EwQ-fS6rjL-SeH3coP5PwlX9Tf-Fd6N2rqOhAFITMLOfJJrxiY/s1600/italy+032.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizFQ0PVHAKexqmvmlF-b2yW2n-e_OfjoDNRkD9ftD2qIDxDzHx5UT0_Vfpq_pLZYb_OoRni5DOrC-65Crzyc-FQ_vu3EwQ-fS6rjL-SeH3coP5PwlX9Tf-Fd6N2rqOhAFITMLOfJJrxiY/s320/italy+032.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509324213354014866" border="0" /></a>Baccala and sardines.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD92FII1-oK2ycNKyjgwmfbJSjQEVvlxvn2PiE8jTTNO0OAoQJ95k3oiL0LPRQYOEIFrKTvfHTkfms6jUdBk6H7HtVxJU7ag-5OhnlvBSJJ_rB0hrqQc1TBZiv3mgnIsdt6BCfi2XC9ls/s1600/italy+030.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD92FII1-oK2ycNKyjgwmfbJSjQEVvlxvn2PiE8jTTNO0OAoQJ95k3oiL0LPRQYOEIFrKTvfHTkfms6jUdBk6H7HtVxJU7ag-5OhnlvBSJJ_rB0hrqQc1TBZiv3mgnIsdt6BCfi2XC9ls/s320/italy+030.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509324206323114610" border="0" /></a>Veggies<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhreL7mXTrcymxUCbDWvlHKL-SL9BoyuXcNr8Ub0VB4DXcMew8F-GXweIMYMN-6OL4uuk7XvNQMhzmSRQztSTxYeTnrcM_SuvQls5BZoSk9EgUKRf-r5fE-0cvR2PdeGLPM7fAZk-rJBmI/s1600/italy+029.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhreL7mXTrcymxUCbDWvlHKL-SL9BoyuXcNr8Ub0VB4DXcMew8F-GXweIMYMN-6OL4uuk7XvNQMhzmSRQztSTxYeTnrcM_SuvQls5BZoSk9EgUKRf-r5fE-0cvR2PdeGLPM7fAZk-rJBmI/s320/italy+029.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509324201329999362" border="0" /></a><br />I'm not sure what kind of plant these are, but I thought they looked really neat.Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-39129571652247918042010-08-22T10:11:00.000-07:002010-08-22T10:52:02.923-07:00PanzanellaOver the summer and throughout the seasons, the menus seem to change around here. Instead of seeing so many hearty soups such as pappa col pomodoro or ribollita, they are replaced with summery salads. Many of these salads still are based on the poor cuisine of Tuscan farm families, but are a little bit better suited to the hot summer days. Believe me, when it is so hot here, you do not want to be eating a heavy, hot soup. But on these summer days, a salad such as panzanella is perfect! We have been making this salad quite often in the cooking school, and a couple of nights ago, Justin and I decided to try it at home as well.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPKTBgK6GvA3nK_MMK750olgS7UYzqAe0bn_cQrRiPZzAlJDUNzTbyb1GZfiszUH5b5CiNmx5hnr20qqdeozifQklcfLpPeUO9AqMWhiicVikeJBY7pg7TCLmZeVk2-0KjR4cqMyWhZno/s1600/italy+009.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPKTBgK6GvA3nK_MMK750olgS7UYzqAe0bn_cQrRiPZzAlJDUNzTbyb1GZfiszUH5b5CiNmx5hnr20qqdeozifQklcfLpPeUO9AqMWhiicVikeJBY7pg7TCLmZeVk2-0KjR4cqMyWhZno/s320/italy+009.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5508292856347254882" border="0" /></a><br />Here's what you need:<br />- stale bread (really stale, rock hard is perfect)<br />- red wine vinegar<br />- extra virgin olive oil<br />- salt and pepper<br />- tomatoes (I like cherry tomatoes because they are a little sweeter)<br />- red onion<br />- cucumber<br />- basil<br /><br />Cut the bread into thick pieces or chunks. These can even be an inch or so thick. Place the pieces in a large bowl and cover with cold water. Also add a few dashes of red wine vinegar. Put something over the bread to weight it down into the water. Let the water soak into the bread until when you touch the bread, it is almost falling apart. The amount of time will depend on the bread, but it shouldn't be more than 30 minutes. When the bread has reached this point, take handfuls out of the water, squeezing as much water out of it as possible. You can even use a salad spinner, after squeezing, to get even more moisture out of the bread. The bread should be kind of the consistency of cous cous. Add to the bread the tomatoes, which should be halfed or quartered, depending on their size, sliced red onion, peeled and sliced cucumber, fresh basil, salt and pepper. Mix everything together and dress with olive oil and vinegar. Cover lightly and let chill until cool. Drizzle with olive oil before serving.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh_taAs4LVC-f3TZLQ89TU-RtAB5og-wDfdGSA9GbM1_uep_fqiM6q9zZQKXsy1Q6y4D9_yHJtuyDvLqtog70ur05_jrzoQzeIfTcWaieNgLNMwzzSZOxzCVJXkxOWxkwH8sVSycRYXEs/s1600/italy+012.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh_taAs4LVC-f3TZLQ89TU-RtAB5og-wDfdGSA9GbM1_uep_fqiM6q9zZQKXsy1Q6y4D9_yHJtuyDvLqtog70ur05_jrzoQzeIfTcWaieNgLNMwzzSZOxzCVJXkxOWxkwH8sVSycRYXEs/s320/italy+012.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5508292865322316594" border="0" /></a>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-29962455803391048282010-08-03T15:15:00.000-07:002010-08-03T15:49:07.681-07:00HelloWow, this blog started off with such good intentions. I guess I have been neglecting it lately. We have just been doing way too much lately and once I had gotten behind on writing, it felt like there was no way to ever catch up. So, instead of trying to catch up on everything, I am just going to try to restart with where I am now. August 3, 2010. I am also going to try to do shorter posts, or maybe even just a few pictures every more frequently. If I feel like I have to write a lot about one particular place, I think I will be less likely to do it. And I am getting to the point where I just want to start using this to keep track of what we have been doing, so I will remember everything in the future.<br /><br />So tonight, we had a cooking lesson with Darren McGrady. That name might not strike anyone as familiar, but he was a pretty neat guy. He was the head chef at Buckingham palace for the Royal family and also the personal chef of Princess Diana for the 7 years leading up to her death. I can't imagine what it would be like to have such a job. I guess the royals are people just same as everyone else and probably like to eat some of the same things, but just to think that he was cooking for the Queen of England every night!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCG1mMA7zSpVt109hwh39i0YoCEMmBA5gVhwr1Oo5jRNTP_5XJAWAKZ6EhuvhiWNXFOA5ov1WdfjzJ5oKqHztioRJG7HRej7-XB-IWUD1kcheh9WU-BuUfh17c-X2QJUiqEXtuR1gr8Uo/s1600/italy+006.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCG1mMA7zSpVt109hwh39i0YoCEMmBA5gVhwr1Oo5jRNTP_5XJAWAKZ6EhuvhiWNXFOA5ov1WdfjzJ5oKqHztioRJG7HRej7-XB-IWUD1kcheh9WU-BuUfh17c-X2QJUiqEXtuR1gr8Uo/s320/italy+006.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5501313959171882866" border="0" /></a>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-32677718508978910592010-04-29T05:16:00.000-07:002010-05-03T10:43:37.007-07:00RomaOur next stop was Rome, the eternal city. There was so much to see and do in Rome, and it seems like you could spend weeks there and still not see everything there is. Definitely one of the highlights of Rome was Katie joining us in our adventure.<br />Early Saturday morning, I headed to the airport to meet Katie and bring her back into the city. I was afraid that I would be late and that she would be already waiting for me at the airport, but when I got there, I saw that her flight was delayed over 3 hours! After what seemed like forever, she finally came through the gate and after lots of hugs, we headed back into the city to meet up with the rest of the family for a full day of sightseeing.<br />Our first stop was the Vatican, where we went through the Vatican museums. The Vatican museums have everything from Egyptian antiquities to Etruscan collections to works from Raphael <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6JaI_ipxwRDHhtQDQQULBLIjDTFTTdsWR5dTQkxpntCsVNAaLw8nnfwLcEpRGG-wbl2Cb-ipEKmRQIzUetvFlXO-KruxwtJaM_2bip-73-Zb1mG2OOV1kgSDPREZApbOCvVJMvavMqek/s1600/roma+030.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6JaI_ipxwRDHhtQDQQULBLIjDTFTTdsWR5dTQkxpntCsVNAaLw8nnfwLcEpRGG-wbl2Cb-ipEKmRQIzUetvFlXO-KruxwtJaM_2bip-73-Zb1mG2OOV1kgSDPREZApbOCvVJMvavMqek/s320/roma+030.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467088747516708018" border="0" /></a>to modern art, finishing with Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel. The Sistine Chapel always seems surprisingly small to me. It is just a chapel, that happens to be painted by one of the most famous artists of all time. Pictures were not allowed in the Sistine Chapel, and there were guards walking around stopping people with cameras, but I was extra sneaky, and got a couple of pictures.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRKAza4N11W2bZyjVf1qPF2aoKOuvEILQKBwQ2Xbzblei2C5KBbeY3jOsxT3KEAmRn_tgYC47kyi8TGu5q07gAqZE15j6Mq0-zViOUtlawUQUlnUEyV_RgvRz1CmGITc6SkWRQPXsRrGA/s1600/roma+032.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRKAza4N11W2bZyjVf1qPF2aoKOuvEILQKBwQ2Xbzblei2C5KBbeY3jOsxT3KEAmRn_tgYC47kyi8TGu5q07gAqZE15j6Mq0-zViOUtlawUQUlnUEyV_RgvRz1CmGITc6SkWRQPXsRrGA/s320/roma+032.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467084584215599106" border="0" /></a><br />After the museums, we went into St. Peter's Basilica just as mass was starting. You can't help but be impressed by this magnificent church. It is huge- the largest church in Christianity. It is also very ornately decorated. Pictures don't really do it justice, but here is my best attempt.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjswTa0MyLzh_JHYPiw1LRhZSHsWGuGAclRLlwYa3uTgrimbM53JEBKH6AZcecH4Dc8TFQKLqPKDgfuEIlbUK2mEmRFj65D24L2B3xQADjlA29cPRUAjfw2ztnMRHK0ENckub5RQwua1Mc/s1600/roma+037.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjswTa0MyLzh_JHYPiw1LRhZSHsWGuGAclRLlwYa3uTgrimbM53JEBKH6AZcecH4Dc8TFQKLqPKDgfuEIlbUK2mEmRFj65D24L2B3xQADjlA29cPRUAjfw2ztnMRHK0ENckub5RQwua1Mc/s320/roma+037.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467088780637357746" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9AgJFWqOShRvZ9FLiZSGVZvvGcPqW2bLzBBNSV-KnRZIiHqqZsGZYOjC13usMenJrp97uszzApZViz1YToIINQ1o5JUlLx24s266wej3G9X_XlUEFIThyrgOSxmMxsAtdHDfPyx1K_sI/s1600/roma+045.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9AgJFWqOShRvZ9FLiZSGVZvvGcPqW2bLzBBNSV-KnRZIiHqqZsGZYOjC13usMenJrp97uszzApZViz1YToIINQ1o5JUlLx24s266wej3G9X_XlUEFIThyrgOSxmMxsAtdHDfPyx1K_sI/s320/roma+045.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467088758528362530" border="0" /></a><br />After our tour through the Vatican, we headed out on foot to explore the city. We crossed the Tiber at Castel Sant'Angelo<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTD56GD7vcyzHi1636NlUMOxLuaAiCUR-5U5FjMTgDfDuuevdpeqrZsipn6OvENQYimWpb5B0LH0X1UCc0N1DRwJitylYX20z9bm6EMslABaRyfqa4wykqmFF0PqN-fVVo56NlI0WLcCA/s1600/roma+067.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTD56GD7vcyzHi1636NlUMOxLuaAiCUR-5U5FjMTgDfDuuevdpeqrZsipn6OvENQYimWpb5B0LH0X1UCc0N1DRwJitylYX20z9bm6EMslABaRyfqa4wykqmFF0PqN-fVVo56NlI0WLcCA/s320/roma+067.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467088787264709122" border="0" /></a> and then walked through Piazza Navona, and then saw the Trevi Fountain. We all threw coins into the Trevi Fountain over our shoulders, which means that we will all be returning to Rome someday. The Trevi Fountain is huge, and you can hear the rushing water before you can see it.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfrVVch2odWBYFpv4Hd56LUifVzFtcWDz2PCwzEo8-tbEW7MTm3yfDytILhdIf9sfuFAyceNI6bgr5AlIU3IjqA9x_e0r0rOLuin_vQ-VdNqLP2ULDkqMGnNEfEsxyak8TX4oyB_bHYlk/s1600/roma+096.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfrVVch2odWBYFpv4Hd56LUifVzFtcWDz2PCwzEo8-tbEW7MTm3yfDytILhdIf9sfuFAyceNI6bgr5AlIU3IjqA9x_e0r0rOLuin_vQ-VdNqLP2ULDkqMGnNEfEsxyak8TX4oyB_bHYlk/s320/roma+096.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467094388105333202" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyAZEXt14ZgQ4mw008zRzKXKrrzVqoiKdJ9QLIztFXkn8QnoSm0wsx6UWmeG5KR2rMNdxCm0Pn5o33QrfU0hDVuBESvSinjZDeWjmzthpJqc8VrqC-KgLEjhUPq6WeSJYTDmk8WRRWbxo/s1600/roma+090.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyAZEXt14ZgQ4mw008zRzKXKrrzVqoiKdJ9QLIztFXkn8QnoSm0wsx6UWmeG5KR2rMNdxCm0Pn5o33QrfU0hDVuBESvSinjZDeWjmzthpJqc8VrqC-KgLEjhUPq6WeSJYTDmk8WRRWbxo/s320/roma+090.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467094401139558866" border="0" /></a><br />Near the Trevi Fountain is the Pantheon, so that was our next stop. The Pantheon was originally built over 2000 years ago as a temple for the Roman gods. Today, it is one of the best preserved buildings of ancient Rome. One of the reasons that the Pantheon is so impressive is the mathematics of it. The height from the floor to the open oculus is exactly the same as the diameter of the circle. Still today, the dome of the Pantheon is the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQsMgadOKiuQatyH2TEH_Q5JYZwD_1_0KXc9tXLAmK3QmwxghcHfMms5A9PXnlfE0hfErPNWf_QeTMEp0gY4crOQMKnNLTprYX4FuRaBv708K59GMpxa6RFB8_zFp4bEY2K98L-MQPHGY/s1600/roma+076.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQsMgadOKiuQatyH2TEH_Q5JYZwD_1_0KXc9tXLAmK3QmwxghcHfMms5A9PXnlfE0hfErPNWf_QeTMEp0gY4crOQMKnNLTprYX4FuRaBv708K59GMpxa6RFB8_zFp4bEY2K98L-MQPHGY/s320/roma+076.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467088798615393810" border="0" /></a><br />After a nice dinner, we decided to walk to the Colosseum to see it lit up at night. It was quite a site to see.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSQVYGu3zkzX-KVgZlM1M43EtNGrBvGJdaey-kJbMPkYpNMs_Ut-hYj2X-v8C8z8sCXvK7fNRxFG5eqsVVAFaE42gCfTJURam9lXjd5Wnmh-jBWFiKng5JzxMwqHcZhTAsr7oMG1J3fs0/s1600/roma+125.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSQVYGu3zkzX-KVgZlM1M43EtNGrBvGJdaey-kJbMPkYpNMs_Ut-hYj2X-v8C8z8sCXvK7fNRxFG5eqsVVAFaE42gCfTJURam9lXjd5Wnmh-jBWFiKng5JzxMwqHcZhTAsr7oMG1J3fs0/s320/roma+125.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467096343750432834" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8sLn2h8E7FZsQz9qsdNTs9d6E9V_k4-pEQZMVw2sYzvTzHLGHgLn9U1qaBWfOxjK0_BoLxFqy8iIc1poetjuo4oIQHJDkdMuS08hXjiVjLYONukMb7TzkzgEeuJSEASLN9Q5ERIZiKwA/s1600/roma+104.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8sLn2h8E7FZsQz9qsdNTs9d6E9V_k4-pEQZMVw2sYzvTzHLGHgLn9U1qaBWfOxjK0_BoLxFqy8iIc1poetjuo4oIQHJDkdMuS08hXjiVjLYONukMb7TzkzgEeuJSEASLN9Q5ERIZiKwA/s320/roma+104.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467096331149456482" border="0" /></a><br />The next day was another full day of sightseeing. We spent some time walking around the Spanish Steps, <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUn1u7i2pKBkLA5ti7cY6V1kK1ZAd7TKJd4pdXaEyADOT_7X8KlyM1acnHrid_1BwL5vmijS4vk-GFq5g7W7Q0ajW0FnHzcpITngZzEq0i9i9El7BdaoA26tGmWd5Um4-fS1PuIuSED8w/s1600/roma+141.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUn1u7i2pKBkLA5ti7cY6V1kK1ZAd7TKJd4pdXaEyADOT_7X8KlyM1acnHrid_1BwL5vmijS4vk-GFq5g7W7Q0ajW0FnHzcpITngZzEq0i9i9El7BdaoA26tGmWd5Um4-fS1PuIuSED8w/s320/roma+141.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467096351258679378" border="0" /></a>and then walked past the Pantheon and stopped at the Trevi Fountain for a gelato. The main portion of our day was spent around the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. For me, it is incredible to think that you are walking in the same places that Caesar once ruled. There is so much history in this area, and the feeling is hard to describe.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-DoAguupGA02ol4PgGbBVPSC-45KBjQP-Bcg_fmHqm2ptiPkf30hIFVHFoBDeEaM9Q_xpNiFBSpv0sNZAsChx9eb0WzI1jiT5vCE_01gn76X3fnYZEtMzwFoswLyxLbgpshEKuJ_y_mI/s1600/roma+164.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-DoAguupGA02ol4PgGbBVPSC-45KBjQP-Bcg_fmHqm2ptiPkf30hIFVHFoBDeEaM9Q_xpNiFBSpv0sNZAsChx9eb0WzI1jiT5vCE_01gn76X3fnYZEtMzwFoswLyxLbgpshEKuJ_y_mI/s320/roma+164.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467096361673587298" border="0" /></a><br />I have so many more pictures of Rome, and I can't post them all on here, so if you are interested in seeing more, you can check out my picasa web album at <a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/recarlisle/Roma#">http://picasaweb.google.com/recarlisle/Roma#</a>.Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-37202490672066958472010-04-27T10:42:00.000-07:002010-04-28T06:28:40.656-07:00A pit stop in Orvieto<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhIfcLcr4xGzfdSGHNHFNST37Pog0QgQDXDrek7lEwdouJXOvo4LJFTqLWkEKypl0Ekeu7MVzZBeCcAGvexCkt25ilSnuQ2mfCymPQ71hzgj_umB9Y5cx6_nggp30Fj2966FjZYM_etYo/s1600/IMG_9841.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhIfcLcr4xGzfdSGHNHFNST37Pog0QgQDXDrek7lEwdouJXOvo4LJFTqLWkEKypl0Ekeu7MVzZBeCcAGvexCkt25ilSnuQ2mfCymPQ71hzgj_umB9Y5cx6_nggp30Fj2966FjZYM_etYo/s400/IMG_9841.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5465175411468526978" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv4LGaJGNJpBjoTT2XA5WnS37qfamkd_SjbnpCGgMEZj9SHO71PFO5www5Tn5VVyzFKGArWr8R4KrrQvgDBiem5gsvGhTmHZMuc07_eSKCFkQduWY-sbzor_QxryZv-CS9GC6YtfUKwcc/s1600/dad's+531.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv4LGaJGNJpBjoTT2XA5WnS37qfamkd_SjbnpCGgMEZj9SHO71PFO5www5Tn5VVyzFKGArWr8R4KrrQvgDBiem5gsvGhTmHZMuc07_eSKCFkQduWY-sbzor_QxryZv-CS9GC6YtfUKwcc/s400/dad's+531.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5465175402427377938" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvRljNh_0wW3U3KVu48_OuiUuMZO3dsGnnMkLgXR3IwsZCWj0C4a4I-4Xlva0Egfu_qV6DwS9NIq_6yclEwx6mHq7Xb7iPuyoRAoPHH0tCdTZ-5RgMP_BwrTLLPd8NVlhifVm-Nv8ZES4/s1600/roma+010.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvRljNh_0wW3U3KVu48_OuiUuMZO3dsGnnMkLgXR3IwsZCWj0C4a4I-4Xlva0Egfu_qV6DwS9NIq_6yclEwx6mHq7Xb7iPuyoRAoPHH0tCdTZ-5RgMP_BwrTLLPd8NVlhifVm-Nv8ZES4/s400/roma+010.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5465175389369004850" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV9zlmeU-wGYajHrfUT7VP3R-rtt-melc9IJVU4w9BdQkEHRj2d9lPuWM3W7C3tKrRRU3VNFH2uiPR5LDHS4H8K98FhXbzQ85A43JbbgsvaStsH9G5oFUmFcQd9xxuD53TbCuUxe_OVEU/s1600/roma+012.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV9zlmeU-wGYajHrfUT7VP3R-rtt-melc9IJVU4w9BdQkEHRj2d9lPuWM3W7C3tKrRRU3VNFH2uiPR5LDHS4H8K98FhXbzQ85A43JbbgsvaStsH9G5oFUmFcQd9xxuD53TbCuUxe_OVEU/s400/roma+012.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5465175376746635282" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitrAzDxbn5fn_zQZ2TD-8zcnKYX0tKkyJ_sL8TBPsyvdkxjLkttCwFF_bT3gXaYF2jP3Tr9x1pHvI2s18PwRONoc3Xe5n1bQ2Mvu939Wd0K7_ut0eG9nb4Lu6CeNL3WY7uIikRhygH4I4/s1600/roma+013.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitrAzDxbn5fn_zQZ2TD-8zcnKYX0tKkyJ_sL8TBPsyvdkxjLkttCwFF_bT3gXaYF2jP3Tr9x1pHvI2s18PwRONoc3Xe5n1bQ2Mvu939Wd0K7_ut0eG9nb4Lu6CeNL3WY7uIikRhygH4I4/s400/roma+013.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5465175373353748978" border="0" /></a><br />The next part of our adventure with my family had us heading to Rome. We left Siena early Friday afternoon with the intention of taking our time and stopping along the way to see a few places. It was another cold and rainy day, so we decided on just one stop in Orvieto.<br />In Tuscany, there are many hill top towns. Orvieto is just south of Tuscany in the region of Umbria. And it is not on a hill, but a large rock.<br />We headed up the giant rock that Orvieto sits on and proceeded to explore the city. We walked around for a while, and then found the main cathedral. The cathedral of Orvieto is considered one of the best romanesque gothic churches in Italy. To me, the exterior looks very similar to the cathedral in Siena.<br />After exploring the church, we were hungry for some lunch. By that time, it was well past lunch time, so our options were limited. We found a small cantina in the main piazza right next to the church that seemed to be open, although quiet. We shared a bottle of the local Orvieto Classico wine and had sandwiches of prosciutto and pecorino. During our lunch, the owner brought us a plate of pasta to share. It was something that she had made for herself to take home for dinner. She wanted to share with us and we were certainly glad she did. It was penne pasta with an artichoke sauce; very simple, but very good.<br />After our<br />delicious lunch, the owner's son brought us downstairs to show us the old wine cellar. It was filled with huge barrels and dust covered bottles. He told us that it had been his grandfather's and that most of the bottles were over 50 years old. The wine was no longer drinkable, but every once in awhile they would open a bottle just for the fun of it. It was really neat to see all of the old bottles and barrels.<br />Even though it was a quick stop in Orvieto on the way to Rome, I was very glad that we stopped. It is a very nice quiet town with really nice people. It was nice to experience a real town not on the usual tourist track of stops where people will gladly share their pasta and their family history with you over a simple lunch.<br /><br /><br />Sorry the pictures are so weird in this post, I can't figure out how to change them.Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-13489346708114176982010-04-27T10:03:00.000-07:002010-04-27T10:41:28.938-07:00Hello, I am still hereWow, I guess it has been awhile since I have updated anything on here, and I am so far behind now! We have been traveling all over Europe the last couple of months, that it just seems like I have so much to write about, and it is so overwhelming that I just haven't done it yet.<br />Still coming up are my accounts of Rome, Florence, Cinque Terre, Paris, Madrid, Toledo, and then Cinque Terre again. And then in a couple of weeks, we are going to Germany for a week to visit my friend, Nadine.<br />On top of all of this traveling, I have been busy helping Lella out at the cooking school. As the weather is getting nicer and it is getting closer to summer, Siena is becoming more and more of a tourist city. There have been many more groups of foreigners coming to learn how to cook. I want to share some of the things that we have been making because I have been eating very well!<br />So, to catch up on all of these recent travels and adventures, I am going to try and post something every night until I am caught up. So, here goes for lots of postings! Next up, Orvieto and Rome.Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-59334137458184488392010-04-04T06:11:00.000-07:002010-04-04T15:40:39.415-07:00Rain and wine in TuscanyAfter having a lovely day seeing a few cities north of Siena, the next couple of days, we headed south to explore more of Tuscany. We weren't as fortunate with the weather these days, as it turned cold and rainy. Despite the weather, we still had a nice time visiting Buonconvento, Montalcino, Abbia di Sant'Antimo, Pienza, and Montepulciano. The day before, our landlord, Paolo, had come by to pick up our rent for the month when we told him we were planning on driving to Montepulciano. He was very excited, and told us all of the other cities to stop at on the way. With his recommendation, we were able to see a lot of small sites that we would have otherwise missed out on.<br /><br />We ended up stretching this southern Tuscany sightseeing trip into two days. Our first stop was Buonconvento. This is a very small town just south of Siena that was originally part of the Republic of Siena. There is not much to see here but an idyllic, quiet medieval village. This town seems less touched by tourists than some of the other Tuscan villages.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibFtWrienda9ttt2y8uhuYuKINbnjGSoT-b5MMjQNOH_uWTsS4amwgeRcCwkxv_l0XEt9BaHDX9eQqL-2FBmBEfqFGpulyb6-mX5ucg9FxFHVdm8aYyA5DfO4RS45Q-ddpi5PonV3PcMM/s1600/Tuscany+238.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibFtWrienda9ttt2y8uhuYuKINbnjGSoT-b5MMjQNOH_uWTsS4amwgeRcCwkxv_l0XEt9BaHDX9eQqL-2FBmBEfqFGpulyb6-mX5ucg9FxFHVdm8aYyA5DfO4RS45Q-ddpi5PonV3PcMM/s320/Tuscany+238.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456318130474128450" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiCiKmncWdQ8hDhRzg3O2kXDbg6h865iTk6qDZ_5Y-ZcX6X4MezxSnX40nU6_8MKAXU9Pg_ZB_ImvSxfpcG1wjxo5fvv6JSFKuNsawjvJykqjQb-qOqi5hCb7qEZtEiMRuM5iq2zIVVho/s1600/Tuscany+348.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiCiKmncWdQ8hDhRzg3O2kXDbg6h865iTk6qDZ_5Y-ZcX6X4MezxSnX40nU6_8MKAXU9Pg_ZB_ImvSxfpcG1wjxo5fvv6JSFKuNsawjvJykqjQb-qOqi5hCb7qEZtEiMRuM5iq2zIVVho/s320/Tuscany+348.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456318145231069250" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Bkr2QsiBV8jibjS5ubhBYaXGFYho2Th-Gw-IcMs5a_8Kbi4GsC95M2TnL6RCOfCW_9EoMg2aiO8q68pBLxyFQvvudb3LZEEqsac8Qy81GXHetbCik80DtsMjfWsEMAx0ubKEYJCp3tQ/s1600/Tuscany+241.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Bkr2QsiBV8jibjS5ubhBYaXGFYho2Th-Gw-IcMs5a_8Kbi4GsC95M2TnL6RCOfCW_9EoMg2aiO8q68pBLxyFQvvudb3LZEEqsac8Qy81GXHetbCik80DtsMjfWsEMAx0ubKEYJCp3tQ/s320/Tuscany+241.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456318137814121234" border="0" /></a><br />Our next stop was Montalcino, farther south from Buonconvento. Montalcino is situated on top of a hill, looking out over vineyards producing some of the world's greatest wine, Brunello di Montalcino. As it turned out, we arrived there just in time for panini for lunch with a glass of Brunello. One of the things that I love about Italian food, and more specifically, Tuscan food, is the simplicity of it. The panini that we ate were delicious; simply some salumi toscani between two pieces of bread that were slightly crunchy and warm. Paired with a glass of Brunello, and we had an excellent lunch! After lunch, we walked around for a bit, explored the fortezza, then headed back to the car for our next stop.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCYWRZG1ppqERKAnaCrrHx1sYFHSFRyRtdeieQLBnwy270Phcb3yzqwvlbOaoyvsrIqQhWfp38_F2Q_IeX_GoQjVlOc5i1dFZ674-H3q1XMwiPThRV9wkTSlG6R5P1TSCA5NuO4eX59tA/s1600/Tuscany+244.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCYWRZG1ppqERKAnaCrrHx1sYFHSFRyRtdeieQLBnwy270Phcb3yzqwvlbOaoyvsrIqQhWfp38_F2Q_IeX_GoQjVlOc5i1dFZ674-H3q1XMwiPThRV9wkTSlG6R5P1TSCA5NuO4eX59tA/s320/Tuscany+244.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456315804092951394" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8k8gaDUgiJf1zjpY-xpMC7FXYSWb5uDq6F5ylVwfTLLkQeug1d6ib4IDP-RYcZ8d6Qp6Y5SgnsK_fQMjm3Opp5yX0QGFlnYpIhARXpqValT2s67TireUc6RHDGuj8k98GKnInDAP7FW0/s1600/Tuscany+353.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8k8gaDUgiJf1zjpY-xpMC7FXYSWb5uDq6F5ylVwfTLLkQeug1d6ib4IDP-RYcZ8d6Qp6Y5SgnsK_fQMjm3Opp5yX0QGFlnYpIhARXpqValT2s67TireUc6RHDGuj8k98GKnInDAP7FW0/s320/Tuscany+353.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456315824613661346" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnwmDdNy9j8qwFywlbk_rcmtL6zCBfxScICqR0Mw5pTZLqQPF0R4yXjrPj_IgHPHxWdf0_P4blSS2ZNyvc1YgovgTtcZ-VQ5nZywKOKqwb6z2z_x3gj6JwTgfqn-nURe6Ks8cdK6zZE8U/s1600/Tuscany+275.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnwmDdNy9j8qwFywlbk_rcmtL6zCBfxScICqR0Mw5pTZLqQPF0R4yXjrPj_IgHPHxWdf0_P4blSS2ZNyvc1YgovgTtcZ-VQ5nZywKOKqwb6z2z_x3gj6JwTgfqn-nURe6Ks8cdK6zZE8U/s320/Tuscany+275.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456315818878365858" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBF8lwwePrvYHcxTrZTCkWzg_wUlMxVpQOXXGmivRV0ATf2N3dW_OnyEvKXj2MFCdNCteb4ifh-NtbE7pPMRLztDeoJrTyLfdYt9Cp15heeyJ9DM80gUwex_Scn_ROwGnQtSK1X8226lg/s1600/Tuscany+364.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBF8lwwePrvYHcxTrZTCkWzg_wUlMxVpQOXXGmivRV0ATf2N3dW_OnyEvKXj2MFCdNCteb4ifh-NtbE7pPMRLztDeoJrTyLfdYt9Cp15heeyJ9DM80gUwex_Scn_ROwGnQtSK1X8226lg/s320/Tuscany+364.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456315813371293202" border="0" /></a><br />After following some small winding roads south for a little ways, we came across the Abbia di Sant'Antimo. There is record of this abbey as early as 813 AD, although a new abbey replaced the original structure in 1117. There are still monks who live and work here today. It is a very calm place, located in a beautiful valley.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY1jRedb9Pis-RDTQcj0U9Lipdx-460gnB2yfruFwCVsNVN61fKaG3rU66JY92MnF4qLh5VN0AxScy99WGY6SjgA7SvM6NqN5htwASXSEenTAHweKJJRkxJzQuXDsTLxJ7ZBYiRwyp-Qc/s1600/Tuscany+391.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY1jRedb9Pis-RDTQcj0U9Lipdx-460gnB2yfruFwCVsNVN61fKaG3rU66JY92MnF4qLh5VN0AxScy99WGY6SjgA7SvM6NqN5htwASXSEenTAHweKJJRkxJzQuXDsTLxJ7ZBYiRwyp-Qc/s320/Tuscany+391.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456313270055562002" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsdLyqWutArx0gwcTjYdkZ4rEA_j_3vEb9NsuRMzNFSpKnsPQDBU2ooKuW5D7WHTPCflQMQB7pnEZ8F9Cr_pUdDzilOWhgOn3NoLOSi2CqCu36LB6EOo7mdjOtBPSt9fFy42OzrqgWf1U/s1600/Tuscany+398.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsdLyqWutArx0gwcTjYdkZ4rEA_j_3vEb9NsuRMzNFSpKnsPQDBU2ooKuW5D7WHTPCflQMQB7pnEZ8F9Cr_pUdDzilOWhgOn3NoLOSi2CqCu36LB6EOo7mdjOtBPSt9fFy42OzrqgWf1U/s320/Tuscany+398.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456313274634463250" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil1o5uW2dOlAhfFo8UUWrdmLOCRsJ0e4FKGBbbC56hgR_niYB_JE-Zh7GzZYc1biDSS4xw5fsQ2uYBRO5cW2QN45OLWW3uFP80CoTw4kf9H-EcTgH2-4HOjTEAdqVKMt70QeGhxhR6V5c/s1600/Tuscany+373.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil1o5uW2dOlAhfFo8UUWrdmLOCRsJ0e4FKGBbbC56hgR_niYB_JE-Zh7GzZYc1biDSS4xw5fsQ2uYBRO5cW2QN45OLWW3uFP80CoTw4kf9H-EcTgH2-4HOjTEAdqVKMt70QeGhxhR6V5c/s320/Tuscany+373.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456313261269363362" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeDch83TSsZDHdwst2ZvMIcSA29JCbPGVdyuPWviIbMxHqqkL1fxAU8zjhrEXcG58Tc92o8_uhwJbtbPlSWv3Ei8UuSBX-zYIH0ckQLZv0uwtr6OWe0Ykk8pA-Nwelx1v9hcc_UBobPm8/s1600/Tuscany+303.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeDch83TSsZDHdwst2ZvMIcSA29JCbPGVdyuPWviIbMxHqqkL1fxAU8zjhrEXcG58Tc92o8_uhwJbtbPlSWv3Ei8UuSBX-zYIH0ckQLZv0uwtr6OWe0Ykk8pA-Nwelx1v9hcc_UBobPm8/s320/Tuscany+303.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456313258415984882" border="0" /></a><br />Our final stop for the day was Pienza, a city rebuilt for Pope Pius II in the 1400's. He was originally from this area in Tuscany, and wanted a retreat from Rome. He had his hometown rebuilt as an ideal Renaissance town. It is located in the Val d'Orcia, a UNESCO world cultural landscape. These rolling green hills studded with cypress trees are exactly the type of scenery that you would expect from Tuscany. Here, we walked around, bought some cheese (Pienza is famous for its pecorino), checked out the cathedral, and then headed home.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidz-ux5zzbEL-BEaXtzWVWpqkb5RBSt5DYs3RdU0ocmn08PQkrsNc6X068CVE0_c95dtC9sXSKvQ0P3lfPhfvnqSka4wI1BSew_Cfkoev07T_ihvhyqs8LVxJesWewjLT3t1P9gGK5Njw/s1600/Tuscany+379.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidz-ux5zzbEL-BEaXtzWVWpqkb5RBSt5DYs3RdU0ocmn08PQkrsNc6X068CVE0_c95dtC9sXSKvQ0P3lfPhfvnqSka4wI1BSew_Cfkoev07T_ihvhyqs8LVxJesWewjLT3t1P9gGK5Njw/s320/Tuscany+379.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456310152782416402" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicRErRv0SdwJqdULivwqHhyTueCjaEzZalfoU2IUXm_gKkaoIxL9FE4oyEPqUBxMaqC0i0hJC2-PoE67pzs2ENfP4_BaoJDusqwBSQWwKyNck8Acq5jjIg7CkwALSI9N1zeUJustpD2JU/s1600/Tuscany+386.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicRErRv0SdwJqdULivwqHhyTueCjaEzZalfoU2IUXm_gKkaoIxL9FE4oyEPqUBxMaqC0i0hJC2-PoE67pzs2ENfP4_BaoJDusqwBSQWwKyNck8Acq5jjIg7CkwALSI9N1zeUJustpD2JU/s320/Tuscany+386.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456310192295876322" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx1VZzYQcGw5O44OzVmNf0FFEjkh-AXjrGDkmvU_DYiE4Fvhgtr5Cn7pifoTQj1SqEdXYz_vnhwfRAkrffIN0vf1e5sbAqeFeHq2Y7QGtobfZarRxRlWoiSt8dc6tXPDix2MK3Ww4U7JU/s1600/Tuscany+385.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx1VZzYQcGw5O44OzVmNf0FFEjkh-AXjrGDkmvU_DYiE4Fvhgtr5Cn7pifoTQj1SqEdXYz_vnhwfRAkrffIN0vf1e5sbAqeFeHq2Y7QGtobfZarRxRlWoiSt8dc6tXPDix2MK3Ww4U7JU/s320/Tuscany+385.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456310176823336386" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIhyphenhyphennW3iuoqEuAuaktAGpoVeYYpbYFsKb5y0h_UKKyckVp6C6orfJA8qwyxhWJ5WZsLZaZTlxCdE-7f7QvNNRG9DcuBZ50ltbnu4qlmuSNizhp3b9cUNUzrT-FromcHsG0vukukL9C-u0/s1600/Tuscany+382.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIhyphenhyphennW3iuoqEuAuaktAGpoVeYYpbYFsKb5y0h_UKKyckVp6C6orfJA8qwyxhWJ5WZsLZaZTlxCdE-7f7QvNNRG9DcuBZ50ltbnu4qlmuSNizhp3b9cUNUzrT-FromcHsG0vukukL9C-u0/s320/Tuscany+382.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456310174279332530" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1qOskyUCrUJCi8MG_mjwOr13EuBOBrh9-n3xeHxhXX0Opy_PeX4lfF51UgiEoEVTcel1i0O5IOPilFLAy_jDrkv1P9AsADmN6_LL7B6Q2Ka5MUDqTsDpI9JqoAj9sRTVPfYlKsESzT_s/s1600/Tuscany+378.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1qOskyUCrUJCi8MG_mjwOr13EuBOBrh9-n3xeHxhXX0Opy_PeX4lfF51UgiEoEVTcel1i0O5IOPilFLAy_jDrkv1P9AsADmN6_LL7B6Q2Ka5MUDqTsDpI9JqoAj9sRTVPfYlKsESzT_s/s320/Tuscany+378.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456310157559578290" border="0" /></a><br />The next day, we decided to take it a little slower, after seeing so many places the day before. As we headed to Montepulciano, we drove through the Crete Senese, the rolling clay hills south of Siena. Montepulciano is another town that is situated on top of a hill surrounded by vineyards. Here, they produce vino nobile di Montepulciano, another well-known red wine. Once there, we checked out some shops, saw an Etruscan tomb, and of course, had some wine with lunch, this time pizza. After lunch, we headed to the main piazza to check out the cathedral and the Palazzo Comunale. Parts of this city looked very familiar, as it was used as a backdrop for movies such as Under the Tuscan Sun, and more recently, New Moon. After taking in the vistas of Montepulciano, we headed home to get ready to leave for Rome in the morning.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin8ux0Wwj6no5betV1h9Yj4v1zj-Sjavfy3y-moVvVbNjh7eMTth9j-EmfHatTZGRS7jxf6XExe2F3rmbEM-CHx-lyxIIotrkE21A6Go8h438EtWxPd3AiQcQOurKy3T8KZ3CWzxlTJEU/s1600/dad's+480.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin8ux0Wwj6no5betV1h9Yj4v1zj-Sjavfy3y-moVvVbNjh7eMTth9j-EmfHatTZGRS7jxf6XExe2F3rmbEM-CHx-lyxIIotrkE21A6Go8h438EtWxPd3AiQcQOurKy3T8KZ3CWzxlTJEU/s320/dad's+480.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456306417677822274" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWxFvpKOX3pWICi9XyM737YZiJ8hz9QJpPonE5Lyka9trVEqyBlFOt4axRqB853sS4PYrqOCmCik2LtrIQhndoKdbCeAmT8Vhyphenhyphen6xdHPr5XWvz6OZXPEsHIcLidd3W2jJkYyb2szRgW8Gg/s1600/dad's+496.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWxFvpKOX3pWICi9XyM737YZiJ8hz9QJpPonE5Lyka9trVEqyBlFOt4axRqB853sS4PYrqOCmCik2LtrIQhndoKdbCeAmT8Vhyphenhyphen6xdHPr5XWvz6OZXPEsHIcLidd3W2jJkYyb2szRgW8Gg/s320/dad's+496.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456306444929808386" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIiVsoCBDnSB_DYU6N1TXrprJSBtIhR5kP0sscKde_o3f31SrDpomNPFgICOwBpLRP2lEf9GxX8Acdqh4xmHU2WPsnW182KqJ3ZJ3nLT1pX5HVtUkMVmvDT4dmx48hYNNol6Jn_3zfC9U/s1600/dad's+492.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIiVsoCBDnSB_DYU6N1TXrprJSBtIhR5kP0sscKde_o3f31SrDpomNPFgICOwBpLRP2lEf9GxX8Acdqh4xmHU2WPsnW182KqJ3ZJ3nLT1pX5HVtUkMVmvDT4dmx48hYNNol6Jn_3zfC9U/s320/dad's+492.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456306442013840338" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVGOmYvL-Z9W5KUMXUegDdKwA7mE0LQt25BbsFxv8TgSqs7Yd2kgYnf7AE2hMniSkLPxrV9AT6NDRxgD5gKejQxT4EuOJHMd0Knw_6Iw6bOLHUpW-tuG5tVXAzdrBZUcdNe8tSlEwJbFI/s1600/dad's+484.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVGOmYvL-Z9W5KUMXUegDdKwA7mE0LQt25BbsFxv8TgSqs7Yd2kgYnf7AE2hMniSkLPxrV9AT6NDRxgD5gKejQxT4EuOJHMd0Knw_6Iw6bOLHUpW-tuG5tVXAzdrBZUcdNe8tSlEwJbFI/s320/dad's+484.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456306426076381218" border="0" /></a><br />To see more of my pictures from these days of traveling around Tuscany, check out my online album here: <a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/recarlisle/Tuscany#">http://picasaweb.google.com/recarlisle/Tuscany#</a>.Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-2653232637134588742010-03-24T16:35:00.000-07:002010-03-31T12:54:07.603-07:00A day under the Tuscan sunAfter a wonderful trip to Venice and Bologna, we returned home to Siena to explore some neighboring Tuscan towns. For the next three days, my mom, dad, and I (Justin had to work) drove all around Tuscany seeing some cute villages, seeing beautiful scenery, drinking great wine, and having some great food. This is the first day of our Tuscan adventure.<br /><br />Monteriggioni, San Gimignano, Volterra. Three very different cities located north of Siena in the beautiful Tuscan countryside. Justin and I had been to Monteriggioni and San Gimignano before, but every time, we were cursed with rainy, cold days. This was our lucky day, because we experienced a beautiful day under the Tuscan sun.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKoa8Zr5BbHuQ3h-S2fuwrK7-9Az3_IikehuUcFSClSzpa2enNVy8XJej5aMbtDGop32BCW-lf9P0k_g4f56uvaKJp-joGCbKy-SGzPuqeFEQgUu3NQk8EdlwQJhCiTJbERFfKulnhD6Q/s1600/Tuscany+018.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKoa8Zr5BbHuQ3h-S2fuwrK7-9Az3_IikehuUcFSClSzpa2enNVy8XJej5aMbtDGop32BCW-lf9P0k_g4f56uvaKJp-joGCbKy-SGzPuqeFEQgUu3NQk8EdlwQJhCiTJbERFfKulnhD6Q/s320/Tuscany+018.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454887245065771858" border="0" /></a><br />Our first stop was Monteriggioni, a tiny hill-top village that is completely enclosed within it's ancient medieval walls. This walled village was originally built in 1203 as a fortress for protection against the raging battles between Siena and Florence. As soon as you walk through the first gate to the village, you can already see the gate leading out. There are a grand total of 80 people who live within theses gates. There is a cute little church, a cafe, a few shops selling pottery and wine, and grand vistas of the Tuscan countryside all around. Monteriggioni is easily passed on a grand tour or Tuscany, but a great stop to see a tiny medieval village.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipCWq9x0cQj4Z8HHFemr4R7kz_Ina_H3zZLBYhVYGwPs6sPhkOkfrLwuNYJqOB5PvCTga_dLU6_jWYXTa8FH_DCNfpxWCmCUsCsLCVEEKLMEiNlUj5f1cQbBto_9rAk79sZ1z-cs-Ekrg/s1600/Tuscany+133.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipCWq9x0cQj4Z8HHFemr4R7kz_Ina_H3zZLBYhVYGwPs6sPhkOkfrLwuNYJqOB5PvCTga_dLU6_jWYXTa8FH_DCNfpxWCmCUsCsLCVEEKLMEiNlUj5f1cQbBto_9rAk79sZ1z-cs-Ekrg/s320/Tuscany+133.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454887275874854258" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil6w2wXy3JAr6wIbbX6evsiLv9rU6ARmFDJLL0hxVf2dNMD_L5asqPLEKVMEuPfPLM5LWQVuKE3ZAgET9txGKBmYW7Jmz1mQy5EytYGiLdaMuEwAhGXAHHSxzwR5eJOlRCcdA7-MedmKU/s1600/Tuscany+124.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil6w2wXy3JAr6wIbbX6evsiLv9rU6ARmFDJLL0hxVf2dNMD_L5asqPLEKVMEuPfPLM5LWQVuKE3ZAgET9txGKBmYW7Jmz1mQy5EytYGiLdaMuEwAhGXAHHSxzwR5eJOlRCcdA7-MedmKU/s320/Tuscany+124.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454887259563738498" border="0" /></a><br />After enjoying a cappuccino and a sweet in the cafe, we headed to San Gimignano. San Gimignano is another very picturesque medieval hill town. Many years ago, the residents of this city were dyers (they dyed cloth), so they built towers to hang the drying dyed cloths from. Originally, there were over 70 towers in this small city. Today, there are 13 of the original remaining.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMrU0d15wq_CSm96IqexbSMFfcCGyK9nBJzt5yi6DxPKpTNaMeMzeJDDDGZ73aBrvf_83Z0KYiX6rTckML5CPFGrI2Cv5RekfBr5tDhqjJ8D9zYoVrEItCX9IzScimZUJSzP_ckWnc42o/s1600/Tuscany+069.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMrU0d15wq_CSm96IqexbSMFfcCGyK9nBJzt5yi6DxPKpTNaMeMzeJDDDGZ73aBrvf_83Z0KYiX6rTckML5CPFGrI2Cv5RekfBr5tDhqjJ8D9zYoVrEItCX9IzScimZUJSzP_ckWnc42o/s320/Tuscany+069.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454885224818421618" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi30qRXLdhNXz0SccbZUk-DlkaBYrp7Y53g5KCwftEOqVTYAS7Nt7loNUEgVpuxw4z0kK48EE0LvF92Bk37471C9QKGjnERlSLMQ1upXdPSdOhcQwkmh4ZTcFCa1QB8VCWMyTv8ck2re0U/s1600/Tuscany+206.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi30qRXLdhNXz0SccbZUk-DlkaBYrp7Y53g5KCwftEOqVTYAS7Nt7loNUEgVpuxw4z0kK48EE0LvF92Bk37471C9QKGjnERlSLMQ1upXdPSdOhcQwkmh4ZTcFCa1QB8VCWMyTv8ck2re0U/s320/Tuscany+206.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454885209772694626" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZCKJM3Pv7tB3FaP4IgTgKJCA4BrI7kKV8gK0D-Cdb0bdXdEHZUDdj5qgAswL8hXCkHSAwgt9qStffwm8vzAaX_domAu4p4HN39T2QpBWI4ai_UaU2KMZ4ytM09MNzozYUnuAt44Zs1Jc/s1600/Tuscany+218.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZCKJM3Pv7tB3FaP4IgTgKJCA4BrI7kKV8gK0D-Cdb0bdXdEHZUDdj5qgAswL8hXCkHSAwgt9qStffwm8vzAaX_domAu4p4HN39T2QpBWI4ai_UaU2KMZ4ytM09MNzozYUnuAt44Zs1Jc/s320/Tuscany+218.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454885199926524290" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHt6ft5-khP5b7PBnw_i_xoRnoL5vhgbBgKP5pgAOgjrTgMTaF_dAEGX_FsPtxRDTXWhBkt4mRVSgfHMvFmnRREyKnD9-dbRzj0mWxssIVl3l4ePTPAaRsvoP1kO4xkqtosyTedHP_TaQ/s1600/Tuscany+047.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHt6ft5-khP5b7PBnw_i_xoRnoL5vhgbBgKP5pgAOgjrTgMTaF_dAEGX_FsPtxRDTXWhBkt4mRVSgfHMvFmnRREyKnD9-dbRzj0mWxssIVl3l4ePTPAaRsvoP1kO4xkqtosyTedHP_TaQ/s320/Tuscany+047.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454885192450028610" border="0" /></a><br />By the time we arrived, it was lunch time, so we found a cafe and had panini with Vernaccia, a white wine produced around San Gimignano. We spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around the town, through olive groves and into wine shops. As I said earlier, Justin and I had been to San Gimignano before, but it really is a much nicer city to see on a nice sunny day. After finding some paintings and wine to spend money on, we headed to Volterra.<br /><br />On a map, Volterra looks very close to San Gimignano. The roads tell a different story. Although very beautiful, these roads are not for the weak stomach or someone who gets motion sickness easily. These Tuscan roads are some of the curviest and winding roads that I have ever driven on.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx361rBf2Mdlg-9MrCpLBCuLe2XBRQV2yuLC5UzwCMli2hubmBrxr8gwRnbvtUjzNBImjt-HqEws2CrSo5maLCqwIs3ZPBkvmESAT5blQSuDAGlUXJmqi4qItN2LvUUukQeF_zCZYK8bE/s1600/Tuscany+103.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx361rBf2Mdlg-9MrCpLBCuLe2XBRQV2yuLC5UzwCMli2hubmBrxr8gwRnbvtUjzNBImjt-HqEws2CrSo5maLCqwIs3ZPBkvmESAT5blQSuDAGlUXJmqi4qItN2LvUUukQeF_zCZYK8bE/s320/Tuscany+103.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454882554012544498" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMPK5AkPKDX1FPvhtkT1VQw4R3RAmq1GeJV7KAMY_d-TVvTLziL-lg8kd8pc03iINM3JvXcN_j2AQtvch-RkfpncaUIBhhMvZR-iXmvd7PwIZ8F5SFqcDUDyDv0rySgKg8EUybM1KQbjk/s1600/Tuscany+228.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMPK5AkPKDX1FPvhtkT1VQw4R3RAmq1GeJV7KAMY_d-TVvTLziL-lg8kd8pc03iINM3JvXcN_j2AQtvch-RkfpncaUIBhhMvZR-iXmvd7PwIZ8F5SFqcDUDyDv0rySgKg8EUybM1KQbjk/s320/Tuscany+228.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454882549074372834" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwud8Q_FhQSbZRbSZgvnUvMkbGPVOiNOMOECGWC-jVjbJbWLQ8vLsZArdzjtEdgKCmcrTJUtxHdBxEHYr9TZu9_UoMWbLqKtuUi7UUQ1lMGz97WDjK39ZiDmVvycVM2Kf6DGif_Ijl_Wc/s1600/Tuscany+106.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwud8Q_FhQSbZRbSZgvnUvMkbGPVOiNOMOECGWC-jVjbJbWLQ8vLsZArdzjtEdgKCmcrTJUtxHdBxEHYr9TZu9_UoMWbLqKtuUi7UUQ1lMGz97WDjK39ZiDmVvycVM2Kf6DGif_Ijl_Wc/s320/Tuscany+106.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454882539829676274" border="0" /></a><br />When we finally arrived in Volterra we found out that we were just late enough for everything to be closed. Volterra is famous for alabaster, a roman theater, etruscan museum, and, if you are a Twilight fan, the Volturi. We did have enough time to walk around and see the theater from the outside. We also explored a few shops and took some pictures before heading home on the windy roads back to Siena.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpDcfi30vVAra4ZnvvfX-PFXKb31w0q0n8otLeZJrpHtLrFGCDSR89BRYriKaK1bsUIYqjm3XgAOEZa10Y9i6Y6iy2FdbspcjzLPOs4d93GOfojBLeLI1JcHF-tzTOYK14_sD7L4FyZRk/s1600/Tuscany+150.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpDcfi30vVAra4ZnvvfX-PFXKb31w0q0n8otLeZJrpHtLrFGCDSR89BRYriKaK1bsUIYqjm3XgAOEZa10Y9i6Y6iy2FdbspcjzLPOs4d93GOfojBLeLI1JcHF-tzTOYK14_sD7L4FyZRk/s320/Tuscany+150.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454879162677833314" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqH7RGy2v3tsKmsg_LPL4g1ybyYLweTgZb7TON39Axc-E0b3gMwTunwk6TmJR9pMqdz_0tQMzl_HFv6z3Y0Cv9AB-ZTGyDojLlNzzhtlrJ1GFhJM9fKKz267nQCXEyDhbNAM4emVGxUJ4/s1600/Tuscany+158.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqH7RGy2v3tsKmsg_LPL4g1ybyYLweTgZb7TON39Axc-E0b3gMwTunwk6TmJR9pMqdz_0tQMzl_HFv6z3Y0Cv9AB-ZTGyDojLlNzzhtlrJ1GFhJM9fKKz267nQCXEyDhbNAM4emVGxUJ4/s320/Tuscany+158.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454879190079461490" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUxjEhpHs_kmm94zIf98w3f1mnAgBJ04RcWzvd1y3Do0j5HGKrg5I3xHSjcvabR7RwlOfDocTp1ZEO4BKFFImPSd0xH4JYntBDnzEXMIf7-Zcu3gxMYI8JvpZTk3RqsfZ8j9ttjPrYMGU/s1600/Tuscany+155.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUxjEhpHs_kmm94zIf98w3f1mnAgBJ04RcWzvd1y3Do0j5HGKrg5I3xHSjcvabR7RwlOfDocTp1ZEO4BKFFImPSd0xH4JYntBDnzEXMIf7-Zcu3gxMYI8JvpZTk3RqsfZ8j9ttjPrYMGU/s320/Tuscany+155.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454879176375278482" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy2Jxa0xXuG80eEpuNTC6sxMshSCTCbRoEbIo0yJ1Ws3l8V_ahve6U-63K6d7SgA4gKhcX1gXVlHhgcDV3PS8CVKCQqg-EvYPr2KvojkVykETb0lXpcr3URcz7dELiM4b1TpxVunaTcio/s1600/Tuscany+115.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy2Jxa0xXuG80eEpuNTC6sxMshSCTCbRoEbIo0yJ1Ws3l8V_ahve6U-63K6d7SgA4gKhcX1gXVlHhgcDV3PS8CVKCQqg-EvYPr2KvojkVykETb0lXpcr3URcz7dELiM4b1TpxVunaTcio/s320/Tuscany+115.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454879151431834546" border="0" /></a>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-34966439782245895082010-03-22T13:02:00.000-07:002010-03-22T15:31:45.264-07:00Bologna......mmmmmmmmmmm......BolognaAfter our wonderful time in Venice, I didn't have too high of expectations going into Bologna. I had never been there before, and I thought it was going to be more of a stop-over/place to sleep on our way home from Venice. My guide book on Italy had only one page on Bologna, without many major highlights and I had heard that there is not much to do there with the exception of eating. I was pleasantly surprised at all that Bologna had to offer. The food was definitely the highlight of the stop for me, but there were many things that I loved about Bologna.<br />I was excited to get some great food and I was not disappointed! Bologna is located in the region of Emilia Romagna, which is considered the food capital of Italy. It is the home of fresh egg pasta specialties like lasagne, tortellini, tagliatelle, and cappelletti, just to name a few. Bolognese sauce comes from here and prosciutto di Parma along with Parmigiano Reggiano are made just up the road in Parma. Bologna also has its own charcuterie specialties including mortadella.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJk6G3U9DTCjNP0oyEGXCPnaLjnVjz2K4UOjemTT_IHK9XSZ6q2oWUHOtTOH5VSYJM2s-P6ecyS3BClq1U6ARVmY8XVibKfifpONW3CFoFXtQcQeICEr6NwPzd-PyFBdxsZjlQG2nqeoc/s1600-h/Bologna+089.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJk6G3U9DTCjNP0oyEGXCPnaLjnVjz2K4UOjemTT_IHK9XSZ6q2oWUHOtTOH5VSYJM2s-P6ecyS3BClq1U6ARVmY8XVibKfifpONW3CFoFXtQcQeICEr6NwPzd-PyFBdxsZjlQG2nqeoc/s320/Bologna+089.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451580738580198930" border="0" /></a><br />Our Bolognese culinary adventure started late Sunday night. After we arrived from Venice, we decided to look around for somewhere for dinner. We walked up a main street near our hotel for a little bit, but decided to return to the small, cozy looking restaurant that was next to our hotel. We walked in and saw old wood paneling on the walls and families eating pizza; it was a very relaxed atmosphere. Little did we know that we were about to have one of the best meals of our life. We started off with a liter of the house red wine, a plate of mixed charcuterie including, proscuitto, salumi, mortadella, and braesola, and bruschetta with tomatoes. It was very simple, but excellent. Next up was the pasta course. Oh, the pasta course. This is usually the high point in any meal in Italy and this was no exception. I had tortellini (probably made by hand) with Bolognese sauce which was everything that a pasta should be. Maybe even better than my tortellini was my mom's tortelloni (big tortellini) with a cream sauce and prosciutto. We were happy after the pasta, but we had already ordered a second course, so then we ate scallopini, prepared 3 different ways. One with mushrooms, one with asparagus, and one with lemon and wine sauce. After this amazing meal so far, how could we say no to dessert? We finished the meal with two different mascarpone mousses, one with berries, and one with chocolate. This meal might not sound like anything fancy or incredible, but that is the thing that I love about Italian cuisine. They make really great food that doesn't have to be fancy to taste good. And boy, does it taste good.<br />The next day, we woke up ready to experience the city of Bologna. It was a beautiful day, and we set off on foot to explore. The first thing that we noticed about the city is that almost every sidewalk has a covered portico. In the historic center of Bologna, there are over 38 kilometers of porticos!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPYqn2hiwBNvan3rVqWuxkCr2m916eenVknjnZMYex1KLg4dcnzD5nddXISBlo2bXlqTdAlFE_oKVf8JikxeMk-Gle2nxjm4tajO4r4WtJ4a-X-U04V5akPpSNpDgyfe46LRhoI3rJyQI/s1600-h/Bologna+068.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPYqn2hiwBNvan3rVqWuxkCr2m916eenVknjnZMYex1KLg4dcnzD5nddXISBlo2bXlqTdAlFE_oKVf8JikxeMk-Gle2nxjm4tajO4r4WtJ4a-X-U04V5akPpSNpDgyfe46LRhoI3rJyQI/s320/Bologna+068.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451580708128227218" border="0" /></a><br />Another thing to notice in Bologna is the towers. At one point there were close to 200 medieval towers in the city. Today, there are much less, but they still are a highly studied point of the city. Two of the most famous are situated near the center of the city and are called le due torre (the two towers). The taller of the two is open for climbing. After 497 steps (I counted!), we made it to the top to discover a beautiful view of the city below us.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnK0x-u_IWktVsZZtpZnxPRXGmVA_AFiB3XDFcsNWNJWnRQHVi7aSOsbPAgdpxfOy1fs1HcyQ8ldsofBfLkieR8h96k4ugvP7ydP0M_tT6yxsmtJbFb1-gCxxyvGmV5oILpJ8Gc7tRQB8/s1600-h/Bologna+104.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnK0x-u_IWktVsZZtpZnxPRXGmVA_AFiB3XDFcsNWNJWnRQHVi7aSOsbPAgdpxfOy1fs1HcyQ8ldsofBfLkieR8h96k4ugvP7ydP0M_tT6yxsmtJbFb1-gCxxyvGmV5oILpJ8Gc7tRQB8/s320/Bologna+104.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451583882621609666" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7A385rw9V1sfyKJMA2ZnhAA84Q-viHoSUJjLaXl1tfPlSDXPWCkGolhBfh9F5POpSIam6D568uAgwSnDVXaURZ-oVSwKdVj5S0ozZIRv43tM8eaj3xkGs-ik_9fMn4K5fZl3zjx9yPZY/s1600-h/Bologna+102.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7A385rw9V1sfyKJMA2ZnhAA84Q-viHoSUJjLaXl1tfPlSDXPWCkGolhBfh9F5POpSIam6D568uAgwSnDVXaURZ-oVSwKdVj5S0ozZIRv43tM8eaj3xkGs-ik_9fMn4K5fZl3zjx9yPZY/s320/Bologna+102.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451583875698121682" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYH0R02Co9ytX5U7A_mWO05hdZIgVSCHwZkGufFQIVz27_D2WMHd2i0vmR7ocw6fPMSxPcdIcjLPKtxB6ccvcHJd0dZmnfkAXlmKOWYcQ42RABjoLFy3M6bvkJzbQHK_1KCwWKznt_J9Q/s1600-h/Bologna+050.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 239px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYH0R02Co9ytX5U7A_mWO05hdZIgVSCHwZkGufFQIVz27_D2WMHd2i0vmR7ocw6fPMSxPcdIcjLPKtxB6ccvcHJd0dZmnfkAXlmKOWYcQ42RABjoLFy3M6bvkJzbQHK_1KCwWKznt_J9Q/s320/Bologna+050.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451580719827750258" border="0" /></a><br />After our climb, we were hungry for lunch, so we headed over to Tambourini, a market that specializes in Bolognese specialties. There we purchased an assortment of salumi, cheese, and bread for a picnic lunch in Piazza Maggiore, facing the half finished facade of the cathedral. It was another great and memorable meal in Bologna.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOStCVLdfxVIuwMN-WdhSFN1Mt6mikKtgFgoaMRHLdn0gqvp1A4IPuWTs8ICsqCGXG8P2ET0gZRTSKWBP-lDhgJg468P_JHXf3KKAlJtHnDXtnOC2WBxybWae_sgVnSVoC6oomOSamqIk/s1600-h/Bologna+109.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOStCVLdfxVIuwMN-WdhSFN1Mt6mikKtgFgoaMRHLdn0gqvp1A4IPuWTs8ICsqCGXG8P2ET0gZRTSKWBP-lDhgJg468P_JHXf3KKAlJtHnDXtnOC2WBxybWae_sgVnSVoC6oomOSamqIk/s320/Bologna+109.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451583868610236130" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2in2xO1ETHS0JegXwbkW6bf_V2TQ2IkgQcI5-YxUinTAU-m8BiBxKsofr_2CccBJiq7Fy7QRxgfKS2sXfpfX4EXm4ng_PlGl7ZA8z7tHH-qnRuPoDJXxcZcSCOJB4ATy4IemTAEa_zKE/s1600-h/Bologna+112.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2in2xO1ETHS0JegXwbkW6bf_V2TQ2IkgQcI5-YxUinTAU-m8BiBxKsofr_2CccBJiq7Fy7QRxgfKS2sXfpfX4EXm4ng_PlGl7ZA8z7tHH-qnRuPoDJXxcZcSCOJB4ATy4IemTAEa_zKE/s320/Bologna+112.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451580735603540498" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfAQVC7ow5G8sR2mwJ3_ThLWOrRn0oitp5z-G238VaDM8t4udtR3knBjrMJCoDX6UUwNg4V7awiSsw8j68aRDY8GKkBgTV33dUugliUPfVsx2tDpPtMFEKcQUqyZwQbDyqRY2wFMnaGTw/s1600-h/Bologna+081.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfAQVC7ow5G8sR2mwJ3_ThLWOrRn0oitp5z-G238VaDM8t4udtR3knBjrMJCoDX6UUwNg4V7awiSsw8j68aRDY8GKkBgTV33dUugliUPfVsx2tDpPtMFEKcQUqyZwQbDyqRY2wFMnaGTw/s320/Bologna+081.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451580724491033618" border="0" /></a><br />After our lunch, we headed inside to check out the cathedral before heading home to Siena. Bologna was a great stop as part of our trip home from Venice. I would love to spend more time there, walking along the porticoes, checking out markets, sitting in the piazza, and finding great meals in cozy restaurants. To see more pictures from Bologna, check out my web album here <a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/recarlisle/Bologna#">http://picasaweb.google.com/recarlisle/Bologna#</a>.Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-79023163573702222642010-03-21T08:01:00.000-07:002010-03-21T11:48:23.898-07:00VeneziaOk, here I go writing about the first of our many wonderful stops. I have been putting off writing about this for the last few days because we have done so much in the last few weeks that I just don't know where to even start! Here's my best shot at what I can remember from the beautiful city that is Venice.<br /><br />On Saturday, February 27, my mom, dad, Justin, and I left Siena in our cute little Fiat Panda rental car and headed for Venice. This was going to be my third trip to Venice, but I was just as excited as I was the first time. My parents had just arrived in Italy the day before and everything was new and exciting for them. Also, this was Justin's first time to the city built on water. By the time we arrived in Venice, it was mid-afternoon and the sun was shining; it was a beautiful day. Our apartment hotel was just a few minutes away from St. Mark's Square on a cute and quiet canal.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinVnpcaXT8wCu3ey4Zng-uqnrnO5NX4gOPDFQLZb8R0PNCf_mQGUnIHHliHez_4njl_7jhJ29VBQrJIEN9GOzW20JRZBbHegy8vVi0ZlWECLv1pYFnfFgVLNVeEDOVNRB8NZlAA_Q7VWg/s1600-h/Venice+005.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinVnpcaXT8wCu3ey4Zng-uqnrnO5NX4gOPDFQLZb8R0PNCf_mQGUnIHHliHez_4njl_7jhJ29VBQrJIEN9GOzW20JRZBbHegy8vVi0ZlWECLv1pYFnfFgVLNVeEDOVNRB8NZlAA_Q7VWg/s320/Venice+005.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451121288266219634" border="0" /></a><br />After settling into our room, we decided to explore the city before the sun was gone. We first headed to St. Mark's Square, "the most beautiful drawing room in Europe," according to Napoleon. Stepping into this grand piazza for the first time (or even the first time in a few years) is breathtaking and leaves you awestruck. All of a sudden, after walking through narrow alleys and over small bridges, you come out to this great opening filled with people, cafes, pigeons, and one of the most beautiful Byzantine cathedrals in the world. This great square looks out on the lagoon of Venice, which is a reminder of where you really are. As it gets later and the sun begins to drop in the sky, the mist from the lagoon starts to take over the city giving it a magical glow. Pictures and words can't really do justice to the feeling that Venice gives you.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMcsoZt6SlgAh5PiXjT70dBZBVxErfd7gVoHWI_-5Uut_8nWT7T4QQ4KMhXwhaISVdVsk-fKtfYhA1URlTFo5SvubkWroyz_wIA8p3cbhUWhLaW72A89jWG1UBAmR-2eU8hPITaPuM3K8/s1600-h/Venice+203.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMcsoZt6SlgAh5PiXjT70dBZBVxErfd7gVoHWI_-5Uut_8nWT7T4QQ4KMhXwhaISVdVsk-fKtfYhA1URlTFo5SvubkWroyz_wIA8p3cbhUWhLaW72A89jWG1UBAmR-2eU8hPITaPuM3K8/s320/Venice+203.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451129227802080770" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwS7RP4nV-HS1Yw5wje_dCso9GUipOg1CmQ1VQk8Qh9wOThz9-rnMesYR0aZZXhoaYWQOd0o6frRQQHUBTWFCu3pVrhzlVfItaMK2LdD0pM2BkCmDJN6dkarnLWOp7Z4LnRK7N5pnyN5E/s1600-h/Venice+176.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwS7RP4nV-HS1Yw5wje_dCso9GUipOg1CmQ1VQk8Qh9wOThz9-rnMesYR0aZZXhoaYWQOd0o6frRQQHUBTWFCu3pVrhzlVfItaMK2LdD0pM2BkCmDJN6dkarnLWOp7Z4LnRK7N5pnyN5E/s320/Venice+176.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451129210725261330" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqL-_PXVg2Zs3Zg7FpvwNsanEo8CNxQUzmzOXV40kbE4yNLv5U1fCOO5FUW55lZ_KJjlukRSm0ddlxG1RkFCRjhRHKYSbBholtdW5tNQ5Lg8H2aIfViZHVPj5C8ET0JYxWH7UZwxcrDJQ/s1600-h/Venice+197.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqL-_PXVg2Zs3Zg7FpvwNsanEo8CNxQUzmzOXV40kbE4yNLv5U1fCOO5FUW55lZ_KJjlukRSm0ddlxG1RkFCRjhRHKYSbBholtdW5tNQ5Lg8H2aIfViZHVPj5C8ET0JYxWH7UZwxcrDJQ/s320/Venice+197.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451131337845915170" border="0" /></a><br />After walking around Piazza San Marco, exploring the lagoon area, and sneaking into the basilica right before it closed for the night, we decided to head over to il Rialto. Il Rialto is the most famous bridge in Venice, crossing the grand canal and also home to a huge market area. Here, we did some shopping (mostly window shopping), picture taking, and then stopping in a cafe for a bellini. The bellini is the drink to have in Venice. It is simply prosecco and peach puree. It was originated in Harry's Bar, a famous bar at the mouth of the grand canal that Ernest Hemingway used to frequent. Now, it is served for tourists all over Venice.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgB9goa4P0Fz8G5N_3glsW9MQgUjZrv09mBX21dsPqIArmGLR7qL8DxOBn7Abii7pIM_YA4ZWCuPZkZaRHPA8TwfSzNEIhQe-bCqhsDGqlYTi9j3b-iLNS3b1CZsZ2b8PBjv1K9EgNGfM/s1600-h/Venice+060.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgB9goa4P0Fz8G5N_3glsW9MQgUjZrv09mBX21dsPqIArmGLR7qL8DxOBn7Abii7pIM_YA4ZWCuPZkZaRHPA8TwfSzNEIhQe-bCqhsDGqlYTi9j3b-iLNS3b1CZsZ2b8PBjv1K9EgNGfM/s320/Venice+060.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451137786874699026" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8RunXb5EKW-EzXpzp04BoWisOjXNYiW1QgjjSPVEEP4rricX1Xb8Lq8qbYj6AZ3U2bA8dG3lDe90yMsHDr9P7YAF59R7KYB3gBHlsk7RhstLs1Ik1eT1DFCLrg92KXz7bJxejb77lZsc/s1600-h/Venice+212.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8RunXb5EKW-EzXpzp04BoWisOjXNYiW1QgjjSPVEEP4rricX1Xb8Lq8qbYj6AZ3U2bA8dG3lDe90yMsHDr9P7YAF59R7KYB3gBHlsk7RhstLs1Ik1eT1DFCLrg92KXz7bJxejb77lZsc/s320/Venice+212.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451137793681797170" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgePivemI1WgJy0ceLl9YOSczn80PX-oJsAoA4diNDJ5nqXLE6cXX4MQ4gg3M-RSoMgQjGhgdjYuU_6lSkdYSou4-M__fC-dtAtiZFrg7_1dT68wM4F6vyuXM8nQi3GYL3Pj-9VScJ38nM/s1600-h/Venice+215.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgePivemI1WgJy0ceLl9YOSczn80PX-oJsAoA4diNDJ5nqXLE6cXX4MQ4gg3M-RSoMgQjGhgdjYuU_6lSkdYSou4-M__fC-dtAtiZFrg7_1dT68wM4F6vyuXM8nQi3GYL3Pj-9VScJ38nM/s320/Venice+215.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451137806854846354" border="0" /></a><br />After wandering around for awhile longer, we started to get hungry and found a restaurant near our hotel that served Venetian seafood specialties. We started our dinner with a mixed plate of small seafood bites. It included polenta with baccala, anchovies, crab cakes, stuffed mussels, and other regional seafood specialties. Then, I had a black tagliatelle with squid, zucchini, and tomatoes. It was a very nice Venetian style dinner.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjITjcJs-9U9VehUQk0ZLzJ12h4sPr5gGLnNZ0nFHTEnWqHEeQvS9dwTie99DyIZhQEaFXQ-Py3-D1x7djgR62iTddo3e8yp_Cv4mHn9wpqsn1aM5IozQd_I6rmS5iUWM8yNuCKP2QuyjQ/s1600-h/Venice+221.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjITjcJs-9U9VehUQk0ZLzJ12h4sPr5gGLnNZ0nFHTEnWqHEeQvS9dwTie99DyIZhQEaFXQ-Py3-D1x7djgR62iTddo3e8yp_Cv4mHn9wpqsn1aM5IozQd_I6rmS5iUWM8yNuCKP2QuyjQ/s320/Venice+221.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451140261292429394" border="0" /></a><br />The next day, we woke up to a very different Venice. The sun was gone and the streets were wet. No, it had not rained over the night, but the lagoon was taking over the city. This is a daily fight for Venice as the tide comes in. We passed shops that the entire floor was covered in a couple of inches of water. You couldn't tell where the sidewalks ended and where the canals began.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIuJkedkLEQ4CHM27iHH_Hkmym56gtQXQT8VkCSIlTZPbt3yLAovPX1cK43ynqhqrWF1r8GTzS9PvRvKkb8JzJIz4fGzt0iydwXGjqg9Rtdv1925uSIEDjC9pVfc8CGEGUogWYQjSQgEw/s1600-h/Venice+222.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIuJkedkLEQ4CHM27iHH_Hkmym56gtQXQT8VkCSIlTZPbt3yLAovPX1cK43ynqhqrWF1r8GTzS9PvRvKkb8JzJIz4fGzt0iydwXGjqg9Rtdv1925uSIEDjC9pVfc8CGEGUogWYQjSQgEw/s320/Venice+222.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451146826234887378" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNgPgA_UnGWBeylyDl_FmTOSMr6wJpzgQ3pXtiaDYlY_975OW7sA4JIuGJPAJuo7PWifxfl5slvhMBxOp2kueMtGV31cooJu9quB4dV3qZrqnHus806uI534vok4u04wFJSKQj2__wx8g/s1600-h/Venice+110.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNgPgA_UnGWBeylyDl_FmTOSMr6wJpzgQ3pXtiaDYlY_975OW7sA4JIuGJPAJuo7PWifxfl5slvhMBxOp2kueMtGV31cooJu9quB4dV3qZrqnHus806uI534vok4u04wFJSKQj2__wx8g/s320/Venice+110.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451146818778863298" border="0" /></a><br />We made our way through the water to the Doge's Palace right off of St. Mark's Square. As we toured the palace, the water slowly made its way back into the lagoon. After this, we walked around, found some delicious pizza for lunch, and then took a gondola ride through the canals. As touristy as this seemed, it was a great way to see the city from a very different perspective and a very memorable experience.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOjHFcvdt368kL9TC2Ijii1R3KsxXhock8ZuhuqDAfzOxZaerfvexozm1cu-Y08_JJUdcaypkU9DiBtZBjkJdd460t_iHJEnBQv7lJIthV0hIQhyphenhyphenKzcs3OasA1Tm7Ol-7I7NuAtdlyjsY/s1600-h/Venice+151.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOjHFcvdt368kL9TC2Ijii1R3KsxXhock8ZuhuqDAfzOxZaerfvexozm1cu-Y08_JJUdcaypkU9DiBtZBjkJdd460t_iHJEnBQv7lJIthV0hIQhyphenhyphenKzcs3OasA1Tm7Ol-7I7NuAtdlyjsY/s320/Venice+151.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451153230583523954" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU1FzNdmfmHhF-ypGLDH_3BvA4U0ESjCn6hyphenhyphenDNgCqztBWLqnu8G3nc-8U146Ek6PamI65Ws7NEKoa12MdC0tjuxl-GwbYMpA2LTO-Hi1yFL308PHtYfQgmvrVRT_L5stsGPxeKyYhqj_4/s1600-h/Venice+267.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU1FzNdmfmHhF-ypGLDH_3BvA4U0ESjCn6hyphenhyphenDNgCqztBWLqnu8G3nc-8U146Ek6PamI65Ws7NEKoa12MdC0tjuxl-GwbYMpA2LTO-Hi1yFL308PHtYfQgmvrVRT_L5stsGPxeKyYhqj_4/s320/Venice+267.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451153213873716690" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAFIpz4Y-Ke8UOtxDoxHItnm89dbZRUP47FxEhPzneFtJPRd9IPF-7yeP7WahEr3VPfO4_45Dtf0HuEBKIq2BymIl2yI-xTKnqZsTrzsaiFnDjztKZ5O-3Wav7J61cJaW1U_DVAeC5gKA/s1600-h/Venice+145.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAFIpz4Y-Ke8UOtxDoxHItnm89dbZRUP47FxEhPzneFtJPRd9IPF-7yeP7WahEr3VPfO4_45Dtf0HuEBKIq2BymIl2yI-xTKnqZsTrzsaiFnDjztKZ5O-3Wav7J61cJaW1U_DVAeC5gKA/s320/Venice+145.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5451153221746060114" border="0" /></a><br />We left Venice early that evening just as it was starting to rain. Venice is a city unlike any other that I have ever been to. It is absolutely crowded with tourists, but very unique and still truly it's own. There are many people who work and live there and still have to fight back the water everyday. To see more pictures from our trip to Venice, you can visit my Picasa web album here: <a href="http://picasaweb.google.com/recarlisle/Venezia#">http://picasaweb.google.com/recarlisle/Venezia#</a> . Next stop on our road trip: Bologna for some amazing food!Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-18974346121947437172010-03-20T04:42:00.000-07:002010-03-20T04:52:38.700-07:00A new feature of my blogWell, I didn't get the post written about Venice yet, but I hope to do that today. But, I have been working hard on uploading all of my pictures for you to see. If you look to the right side of the screen here, you will see a slideshow playing of pictures. If you click on one of the pictures, it will take you to my Picasa site, where I am uploading all of the pictures. Depending on what picture you click on, it will take you directly to that album. To see the rest of the albums, click "my photos" on the top left of the Picasa site. There, you can look through the albums with my pictures. They will be organized by each place we visited. I will still be posting some pictures with my regular blog updates, but this way, you can see more than the 5 or 6 that I upload per post. I hope you like the pictures, I am still working on getting them all up here, I am working with quite a few! Ciao!Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-44550053124543770922010-03-19T06:35:00.000-07:002010-03-19T06:43:12.921-07:00Yes, I am still hereCiao Amici!<br />Well, here I am finally, back from our last three weeks of traveling. We had a wonderful time with my parents here and I have lots of exciting adventures to blog about, and they will be coming soon with a lot of pictures. Right now I am trying to catch up on everything from the last 3 weeks and trying to figure out a good place to start with everything. I have probably over 2000 new pictures on my computer between my camera, dad's, Katie's, and Justin's. I think I might just post a lot of them to an internet site like Picasa and then link to it here, so you can check out more than just the 5 or 6 that I usually put on one post.<br />This is just a quick post to say that I am still here and that more is coming soon. I will try to write about Venice tonight and figure out something to do with all of these photos! So check back soon!<br />Thanks for being so patient with my lack of writing lately. And welcome to my new readers via the Citizen Patriot! Ciao!Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-48484847008220542342010-02-19T12:20:00.000-08:002010-02-19T13:27:49.252-08:00update on our lives in SienaSorry I haven't written much in the last couple of weeks. Nothing much exciting has been going on around here to blog about. That will be changing soon because next Friday my parents are arriving and we have a lot of stuff planned to see and do! My mom will be here for 2 weeks, dad for 3 weeks, and Katie for one week. During this time we plan on going to Venice, Bologna, lots of little Tuscan towns, Rome, Florence, the Cinque Terre, and then Paris with my dad for the final week. We will be very busy, but I'm sure it will be a blast! So check back for updates on our travels! :)<br /><br />What we have been up to in the meantime:<br />I have still been helping out at the cooking school, usually at least 3 nights a week. Now all of the classes are for groups of Italians. One night is a pastry class, one night a basic cooking class, and then the third night is a special lesson. The people taking the class are mostly just taking it because they are interested in learning how to make some new things. This is not a professional culinary school by any means, but I am nontheless very glad to be able to help out and learn things along the way. I have lots of new recipes and get to eat a very filling dinner every night thanks to Lella's cooking school. Would you want me to continue posting recipes on here like I did the first week? I don't know if everyone who reads this blog is really interested in cooking or more of our adventures over here. Leave a comment and let me know what you think. I wouldn't mind posting more recipes but I don't want to bore anyone. thanks for the feedback :)<br /><br />The weather around here has been very strange lately. Last week we got quite a bit of snow (for Siena standards) and then yesterday it was almost 60 degrees. I don't know if spring is on its way or just teasing us here. I am hoping for the first one.<br /><br />and since I don't want this blog post to be too boring, I will leave you with some pictures of Siena.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0boiFL-zN5VfI5I69ZWzJ8PatedzGQZap0aZdRLBRz-27fEmOZ2VZUrxLmyLuWcC6Z3q1UCWFNQLhhRQEME5ChTEjkGbd2QzyAQg7l9MyoDeGfP13ptL-UGK3UlaKI0TtJ_gQ4G2Gk6g/s1600-h/Brussels+125.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0boiFL-zN5VfI5I69ZWzJ8PatedzGQZap0aZdRLBRz-27fEmOZ2VZUrxLmyLuWcC6Z3q1UCWFNQLhhRQEME5ChTEjkGbd2QzyAQg7l9MyoDeGfP13ptL-UGK3UlaKI0TtJ_gQ4G2Gk6g/s320/Brussels+125.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5440068739582569042" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJwJA3JzHtfDtT0cCkCSspXLEUFWY17bjBp8jxp7o1ofb1yoze-aHWVgo7ZXscej3OXqvBZ05XO5KsiUWp8qI_C0ueceOc9B2xsSlhpVuDL14ZEYCNeAn58c0zaCrzOrAZb4Nhwk1-Bv8/s1600-h/Siena+009.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJwJA3JzHtfDtT0cCkCSspXLEUFWY17bjBp8jxp7o1ofb1yoze-aHWVgo7ZXscej3OXqvBZ05XO5KsiUWp8qI_C0ueceOc9B2xsSlhpVuDL14ZEYCNeAn58c0zaCrzOrAZb4Nhwk1-Bv8/s320/Siena+009.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5440068759728517442" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh8VAajqfAr4IU3Ft9WWkXOmJC9EIoXY-Qw4ywEIBSRvDFZUNe8pa14SwK-y09BvOiJqn68EOXnaEz-yC85T-Lntg6WaR8d0YURVGq9wcm2UqhpKXeFSUWiiYsVtSJEZoJuDSH3Lm675c/s1600-h/Siena+015.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh8VAajqfAr4IU3Ft9WWkXOmJC9EIoXY-Qw4ywEIBSRvDFZUNe8pa14SwK-y09BvOiJqn68EOXnaEz-yC85T-Lntg6WaR8d0YURVGq9wcm2UqhpKXeFSUWiiYsVtSJEZoJuDSH3Lm675c/s320/Siena+015.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5440068754052874178" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzo5g9K4jfBJ-zUS4vLI8Q56vPNRwKwvUODH1eOf4ItfYUnHXSFlh6Yh9AFEmN-oI1_UCpHCrJfWJKROgm0CWic6OLGBjN6BKE7NPKVBaTC4ttguJihyphenhyphen1QZ5gFp7FlXj_YvnnhyfabLKE/s1600-h/Siena+008.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzo5g9K4jfBJ-zUS4vLI8Q56vPNRwKwvUODH1eOf4ItfYUnHXSFlh6Yh9AFEmN-oI1_UCpHCrJfWJKROgm0CWic6OLGBjN6BKE7NPKVBaTC4ttguJihyphenhyphen1QZ5gFp7FlXj_YvnnhyfabLKE/s320/Siena+008.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5440068746002267906" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicGWn_d04WQoZoOOgw6yZfDx7V55a2T8hKUhvBsKp-eWFvLx2cNy-MGgHXbuAhW-DixBVcjNJd6k7u7o1Z-QfuxX9LF28JM3U0bsSqR9kwYCVGEKbaSE6dakqirORbLQLb7BGFzb7pIQw/s1600-h/Siena+186.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicGWn_d04WQoZoOOgw6yZfDx7V55a2T8hKUhvBsKp-eWFvLx2cNy-MGgHXbuAhW-DixBVcjNJd6k7u7o1Z-QfuxX9LF28JM3U0bsSqR9kwYCVGEKbaSE6dakqirORbLQLb7BGFzb7pIQw/s320/Siena+186.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5440068733145915842" border="0" /></a>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-5072048261025586402010-02-08T10:58:00.000-08:002010-02-08T12:21:33.750-08:00Carnevale, Viareggio, Cenci!In Italy, the celebration of carnevale has started. Carnevale (or carnival) is the weeks long celebration before the start of lent. It is celebrated by parades, costumes, masks, confetti, and fried sweets. A couple of weeks ago, I started to notice confetti all over the streets every night. I asked Lella what it was from and she told me that Carnevale had started. Then on the weekends, we noticed kids running around the piazza, dressed up like it was Halloween. Now, wherever I go in Siena, I can't help but notice streets sprinkled with confetti, stores selling masks, and bakeries frying all sorts of sugar coated dough.<br />While it is a fun time in Siena, there really isn't any sort of public festival or huge celebration. For that, we headed to Viareggio this past weekend. Viareggio is a small resort town just north of Pisa on the Mediterranean coast that is famous for its Carnevale celebration. As soon as we arrived, we saw buildings with flags and people in costume. We made our way to the parade area on the seafront boulevard and realized that we were in for quite a celebration. Most of the people there were in some sort of costume, mask, or crazy wig, there were people selling confetti or silly string, there were stands set up where you could buy any type of sweet imaginable, music was playing; it was going to be a fun day. Since we had arrived quite a bit early, we took our time looking around at all of the stalls and also spending quite a bit of time people watching and checking out all of the costumes. Finally at 3:00 the parade started. By this time, the crowd had grown and there were a lot of people. It was such a festive atmosphere. There were huge floats that made their way around both sides of the boulevard. These floats were amazing! Most of them had moving parts, lights, music, and a group of people dressed in costume dancing and singing. The parade lasted for almost 3 hours, ending just in time to catch the sunset over the sea. Here are some pictures:<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgomwh01sBRENAD_yBjjt8yfKG4ECy4Mj4J3qM1a_3WIHhJbiGUZtv1tOSyQAajgm9j6z1CHzsu-3TlQH1SFH5AZbzwE-7gpoK4P57rCTvN_rww1wQVaR9XzFQ0Pn1K3CxzSl6fX_-t_0g/s1600-h/Siena+110.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgomwh01sBRENAD_yBjjt8yfKG4ECy4Mj4J3qM1a_3WIHhJbiGUZtv1tOSyQAajgm9j6z1CHzsu-3TlQH1SFH5AZbzwE-7gpoK4P57rCTvN_rww1wQVaR9XzFQ0Pn1K3CxzSl6fX_-t_0g/s320/Siena+110.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5435964758379485874" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8HiQbxUaSJQXhR4hrQa6SVReyqiLpp-beWx3V2BgCHWR2uQBCvOA_TDv9r2NHDAGySqhwZMEf-EOZWozFyLcoHvn-_Jrl-Sl73knrMrETm140rO17zGcsCaOlG0xmsg3UGmtl8aVgh0/s1600-h/Siena+105.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8HiQbxUaSJQXhR4hrQa6SVReyqiLpp-beWx3V2BgCHWR2uQBCvOA_TDv9r2NHDAGySqhwZMEf-EOZWozFyLcoHvn-_Jrl-Sl73knrMrETm140rO17zGcsCaOlG0xmsg3UGmtl8aVgh0/s320/Siena+105.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5435964747782753074" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBPETZ4wKJHAB_5ia08PGUN-0a2be070nRMVp7r6lp8H2BTqSuXEzESl2jkjhItH6KU8cM5nTqoKIDUilelcFAj9cK9OhNB1sz0rrok_hNXUBaZnNzF0pLU0Ti9I0qVOVnesbXxESkaKg/s1600-h/Siena+097.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBPETZ4wKJHAB_5ia08PGUN-0a2be070nRMVp7r6lp8H2BTqSuXEzESl2jkjhItH6KU8cM5nTqoKIDUilelcFAj9cK9OhNB1sz0rrok_hNXUBaZnNzF0pLU0Ti9I0qVOVnesbXxESkaKg/s320/Siena+097.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5435964743260745218" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4hrz5scrJICxAB23RjVJjTdEMJ418p-SPey_SQmbYrXFXQMFGzHPVLWP3DsD9rLsK__XmlGqjlxHrGaFa1A3DGiG3397Eny3MSmpqPWYhrJW1w5tZlDgChFrsmamho9FBOGnsZ4qcSE4/s1600-h/Siena+092.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4hrz5scrJICxAB23RjVJjTdEMJ418p-SPey_SQmbYrXFXQMFGzHPVLWP3DsD9rLsK__XmlGqjlxHrGaFa1A3DGiG3397Eny3MSmpqPWYhrJW1w5tZlDgChFrsmamho9FBOGnsZ4qcSE4/s320/Siena+092.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5435964731094310610" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg19Ube4DatgiKer4yMSS_1QjOp97Yyd0OyXXksoyK4xhguy4rta8ZCzeJIapKAaf4TyqQ0d4ouW-d_XbirwUoQrlgxoRCiz0f0Y6YZROSAIoeLyYMDMMuyC-z-x9LgB1pUUY-a_zJu24/s1600-h/Siena+106.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg19Ube4DatgiKer4yMSS_1QjOp97Yyd0OyXXksoyK4xhguy4rta8ZCzeJIapKAaf4TyqQ0d4ouW-d_XbirwUoQrlgxoRCiz0f0Y6YZROSAIoeLyYMDMMuyC-z-x9LgB1pUUY-a_zJu24/s320/Siena+106.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5435964740937032146" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMNewetJT41aQKnAL_KxM7h1e7j_jhyGYcdPgv7SF8MjQOwRoi0WAuOEutJs5GlRvWOfrOtV7_koJl3-K0fxownjDmpIBt5GSzx4_G2iDnhRjGliQz67PIHvNQay9YjGy6ghk6iEWje5o/s1600-h/Siena+114.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMNewetJT41aQKnAL_KxM7h1e7j_jhyGYcdPgv7SF8MjQOwRoi0WAuOEutJs5GlRvWOfrOtV7_koJl3-K0fxownjDmpIBt5GSzx4_G2iDnhRjGliQz67PIHvNQay9YjGy6ghk6iEWje5o/s320/Siena+114.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5435967079760107090" border="0" /></a><br />Like I said, Italians like to eat fried sweets for Carnevale. One of the most popular in Siena are called cenci. This literally means rags. They are just little pieces of sweet pastry dough that are fried and then covered with powdered sugar. Here is the recipe:<br /><br />300 grams of flour<br />50 grams of sugar<br />2 eggs<br />50 grams of melted butter, not hot<br />maybe a half glass of Vin Santo<br />zest of an orange<br />a pinch of salt<br /><br />This dough is made like a pasta dough, not really like a typical pastry dough. Combine the dry ingredients on a flat work surface. Make a well in the middle and add the eggs, vin santo, and butter. With a fork, mix these together, gradually mixing in the dry ingredients to form a dough. Bring everything together and knead for a minute or 2 to form a smooth dough. Cover this with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. After refrigerating, roll it out on a floured surface with a rolling pin. Use a knife or a pasta cutter to cut into diamond shapes. Fry immediately in hot oil (peanut oil works the best for this). Turn them and let them fry until they become nice and golden brown on both sides. Remove from the oil and let them drain for a minute on paper towel before transfering them to a sheet where you can sprinkle them generously with powdered sugar. These are only to be eaten during carnevale!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmfWbPCwNGmLhAD_z_QtqufKbX5AC2QggH5R4EbDSOAJC6WWMJh6Yx4YDUjhODh7kGoUNrzQWaPH11KObsE4PdzO-4sy7DklCig-N9tppE6X3dTSuIVxk6hI0v2xwLKnCJ_6YJgeEwpoY/s1600-h/Siena+034.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmfWbPCwNGmLhAD_z_QtqufKbX5AC2QggH5R4EbDSOAJC6WWMJh6Yx4YDUjhODh7kGoUNrzQWaPH11KObsE4PdzO-4sy7DklCig-N9tppE6X3dTSuIVxk6hI0v2xwLKnCJ_6YJgeEwpoY/s320/Siena+034.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5435967088322216898" border="0" /></a>Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-28325997381400093732010-01-27T13:59:00.000-08:002010-01-27T14:44:28.211-08:00Tiramisu: me vs. the ItaliansFor years I have been making tiramisu. My own recipe has evolved throughout the years, but I have come to a standard recipe that I really like using and that I think makes a really good tiramisu. My recipe differs quite a bit than how the Italians make it. After eating Lella's tiramisu everyday for the past week, I might be switching to her recipe. I haven't quite decided yet, and I might have to make them both at the same time to do a taste test. Anyone up for helping me decide?<br /><br />My Tiramisu:<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBIS0wbXSTQ3eLmH9eAwHfxbdXTzh1S8cemVOu8WrbZmF7sIBT1lRYDWPjGTnIoR1TWbRiFX7FaXCv_qGeLBintK8LSOYrk5iCsO_Z3LqaMlrkm9uMnsRsliE_FEQ-pWf8NE8inxSxDUQ/s1600-h/Siena+043.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBIS0wbXSTQ3eLmH9eAwHfxbdXTzh1S8cemVOu8WrbZmF7sIBT1lRYDWPjGTnIoR1TWbRiFX7FaXCv_qGeLBintK8LSOYrk5iCsO_Z3LqaMlrkm9uMnsRsliE_FEQ-pWf8NE8inxSxDUQ/s320/Siena+043.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431545438334197362" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPqgnEGDt12thjR0mGLE3CxnBkAkXY5s4tzr6voNP0dlt3nlcOVTqiBLj5LtI5KpKZNqtm73SWMsTj5bghSahfoQx6eeyaWLRR0O8eJwvoXer1IuDOne8HACsV2aHLMnxtOyHBU3DrjJk/s1600-h/Siena+044.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPqgnEGDt12thjR0mGLE3CxnBkAkXY5s4tzr6voNP0dlt3nlcOVTqiBLj5LtI5KpKZNqtm73SWMsTj5bghSahfoQx6eeyaWLRR0O8eJwvoXer1IuDOne8HACsV2aHLMnxtOyHBU3DrjJk/s320/Siena+044.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431545432835178450" border="0" /></a>you will need:<br />ladyfingers<br />espresso<br />brandy<br />mascarpone cheese, approximately 500g<br />eggs, 5 yolks, one whole<br />sugar<br />heavy cream, one pint<br />cocoa powder<br /><br />- Start by lining a serving dish with lady fingers. Using a pastry brush, soak them with espresso, using enough until they feel soggy.<br />- Mix 5 egg yolks and one whole egg together with a few tablespoons (maybe more than a few, sorry I don't really measure this) of sugar, a little bit of the epresso, and brandy. Cook this very lightly over a double boiler, while whisking, until you can tell the eggs are thickening up. Be careful with this step because you don't want scrambled eggs in your dessert! When they start to thicken, take them off the heat and let them cool.<br />- In a large bowl, whip the cream together with sugar (sweet enough to your liking) until it has thickened up and you have whipped cream. Not too stiff, but definitly thick. Add the cooled egg mixture to this, and then the mascarpone. Continue to mix until you have a nice thick cream.<br />- Layer half of the cream mixture over the soaked ladyfingers. You can sprinkle this first layer with cocoa powder if you want, sometimes I do and sometimes I don't.<br />- Make another layer of soaked ladyfingers and top with the remaining mascarpone mixture. Cover this layer with cocoa powder.<br />- Cover and place in the refrigerator overnight or for at least a couple of hours.<br /><br />Lella's tiramisu:<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgId0WpRczBoO69o0_R8nDbCt5MFFRfBKqSzAqsBTaWBxi2rhCU8sPw3dBs2v3ALqXJTvB4hYmIFAVAaM2yMoLVXeiMge_eyiG7XT-Vp7xB5PDZhbL-vqnKj0FuVFm7G72kEG3bilN_jbY/s1600-h/Siena+019.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgId0WpRczBoO69o0_R8nDbCt5MFFRfBKqSzAqsBTaWBxi2rhCU8sPw3dBs2v3ALqXJTvB4hYmIFAVAaM2yMoLVXeiMge_eyiG7XT-Vp7xB5PDZhbL-vqnKj0FuVFm7G72kEG3bilN_jbY/s320/Siena+019.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431551829095324786" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDiS7IbFMVLe6qgcvWedTGnUTaZBgsanD8WkarNJ67bIBzp2lc9eW6su-DqkGkYX6ibb7bSwiofXsfSIRQxA2Lkm6lGEYNRjk_IqHXqXO9JGPCF4aSZJU0JZCauOZatpYHQRmOgcPDu7o/s1600-h/Brussels+141.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDiS7IbFMVLe6qgcvWedTGnUTaZBgsanD8WkarNJ67bIBzp2lc9eW6su-DqkGkYX6ibb7bSwiofXsfSIRQxA2Lkm6lGEYNRjk_IqHXqXO9JGPCF4aSZJU0JZCauOZatpYHQRmOgcPDu7o/s320/Brussels+141.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431551826059712578" border="0" /></a><br /><br />You will need:<br />ladyfingers<br />espresso<br />rum<br />5 eggs, seperated<br />150 grams of sugar<br />500 grams of mascarpone<br />mini dark chocolate chips or chunks<br />cocoa powder<br /><br />- Start by arranging the ladyfingers to cover the bottom of a serving dish. Soak them with espresso and them generously douse them with rum.<br />- In a large bowl, mix together the egg yolks and sugar, beating them together with an electic mixer until the yolks are a nice pale yellow color.<br />- Add the mascarpone to the eggs and beat for another 5-7 minutes, until you can tell that it has thickened up.<br />- In another bowl beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff peaks have formed.<br />- Gently fold the whites into the mascarpone mixture by hand.<br />- Spread this mixture on top of the ladyfingers.<br />- Sprinkle the chocolate chips on top.<br />- Cover with plastic and place in the refrigerator.<br />- Sprinkle with cocoa powder to serve.<br /><br />Ok, so here are the two recipes. Which one wins? Who is going to help me test them? :)Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-30220428024208744552010-01-26T13:56:00.000-08:002010-01-26T14:34:28.641-08:00Pici all'aglionePici is a type of pasta very specific to Siena. Pici is the pasta of Siena, and you won't find it many other places. Every restaurant in Siena has their own version of Pici, and this is Lella's. It is a very thick type of spaghetti that is rolled out by hand. This pasta goes back to the Etruscan times, before the Romans, and before Marco Polo brought spaghetti back from the orient. Of course, you can serve this pasta with any type of sauce. Many Siense restaurants serve it with a ragu, porcini, or even a cheese sauce. In Lella's class, we made it with sugo di aglione, which means garlicky sauce. This is a basic tomato sauce that is spicy with garlic and chili flakes.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja1Nw7SEwd_jaSGs1x3TN3W5doSZjmu4aJ2xQIcI6EBgiIbvUgXG4-o8KsHBiNOjO5qXFQLaUE0MVfWfuIpJYv1gWzmOj3uhmaExqA6_4LJhMpcSriTme902xqR1XbO11ESUJHoSSxhC4/s1600-h/Siena+018.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja1Nw7SEwd_jaSGs1x3TN3W5doSZjmu4aJ2xQIcI6EBgiIbvUgXG4-o8KsHBiNOjO5qXFQLaUE0MVfWfuIpJYv1gWzmOj3uhmaExqA6_4LJhMpcSriTme902xqR1XbO11ESUJHoSSxhC4/s320/Siena+018.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431179549729377810" border="0" /></a><br />For the pici:<br /><br />100 grams of all-purpose flour<br />100 grams of semolina flour<br />approximately 130 grams of water<br />a pinch of salt<br /><br />Since this is a pasta that is made with only flour and water, you use two types of flour. The AP flour will give it the gluten to stretch out, and the semolina will give it a little more taste and texture. If you don't have semolia, you can double the amount of all-purpose flour. Making pasta can depend on many things. The humidity, the temperature of your hands, even the age of the flour can change how the pasta is. It is better to have a wetter pasta than a drier one, because you can always add more flour, but you can't take any away. So, to start this process, it is best to work on a flat surface that you don't mind getting floury and messy. Dump the flour right onto your work surface, and make a hole in the middle. Start slowly pouring the water into this hole while mixing in the flour with a fork. When the dough becomes too thick to use the fork, you can use a spatula or even you hands to bring everything together. Once you have everything incorporated, start kneading by hand. You should work this dough until you have a nice smooth texture and it does not stick to your hands. You can add more flour as needed. Cover in an airtight space and let it rest for at least half an hour. After it has rested, cut off a small piece at a time, keeping the rest covered. Start working this small piece in your hands and then finish by rolling on a table or other flat work surface. You should roll it back and forth working from the middle outward to form a long thin tube. You can cut this if it gets too long and keep rolling both halves. Roll it until it is a thick spaghetti like noodle. When you are done rolling all of the dough, cook in boiling salted water for at least 7 minutes, maybe more depending on how thick your pasta is. Remove directly from the water and put into the sauce.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMvDEek3kIMADDJ-UB_GFxeWEsrxWQFeNmq6NRdBwcMA3W3RCWc428ungzMRhV6NzC7ttMKt2GWLOYxh38trWDu7vwdGG7U8aazWPgIcHFklpp3Hh0igjcuQsYpNIlA1_Wj0usK6QA1_w/s1600-h/Siena+013.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMvDEek3kIMADDJ-UB_GFxeWEsrxWQFeNmq6NRdBwcMA3W3RCWc428ungzMRhV6NzC7ttMKt2GWLOYxh38trWDu7vwdGG7U8aazWPgIcHFklpp3Hh0igjcuQsYpNIlA1_Wj0usK6QA1_w/s320/Siena+013.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431179560001510226" border="0" /></a><br />Sugo di Aglione:<br /><br />Extra virgin olive oil<br />garlic, whole cloves<br />chili flakes<br />tomatoes, canned or fresh, depending on the season<br />a little bit of stock or broth<br />fresh basil<br /><br />This is a very easy sauce to make but also very good. Start with a good amount of olive oil and add the whole garlic cloves and chili flakes. This sauce is called sauce of the big garlic, so don't skimp on this ingredient! Only cook until you can start to smell the garlic. You don't want to burn the garlic at all because it will give everything a very bitter flavor. As soon as you can smell the garlic, add the tomatoes and a little bit of broth. Cover the sauce and let it cook for at least 30 minutes. The sauce is done when the garlic is tender with a fork. The final step is to add some chopped basil in the last minute of cooking. Add the pici directly to the sauce and served with a grated pecorino toscano cheese.Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-81358806790371786322010-01-25T13:34:00.000-08:002010-01-25T14:21:06.672-08:00Gnocchi al GorgonzolaFor the second recipe from la scuola di cucina di Lella, I am posting gnocchi al gorgonzola. Gnocchi are a type of pasta that are really more dumpling-like than pasta-like. They are made with potatoes which give them a completely different taste and texture than other types of pasta. This is a type of dish very typical of northern Italy, especially with the gorgonzola sauce. Although I am giving these two recipes together, they definitely can be used seperately. You can serve the gnocchi with any type of sauce you like. You can also use the gorgonzola sauce with other types of pasta, or even with rice or polenta. But in my opinion, the creaminess of this sauce goes well with the smoothness of the potatoes in the gnocchi. Don't be afraid of the gorgonzola because it is a blue cheese! It is mild enough in the sauce and melts well to be nice and creamy.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAISaRtnlaycwiqSDtTkJjBh-V_TVp-_SMElRiy__tFr19O9RJb35JdFMjvq2tD5_Ktf9bbW9wee2xreNe9NtPHgvowmjD6CI3Ev9mj4wiIIOLTNh44E9I7zpoOvQa9oVYfnZtjYmEkLc/s1600-h/Siena+012.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAISaRtnlaycwiqSDtTkJjBh-V_TVp-_SMElRiy__tFr19O9RJb35JdFMjvq2tD5_Ktf9bbW9wee2xreNe9NtPHgvowmjD6CI3Ev9mj4wiIIOLTNh44E9I7zpoOvQa9oVYfnZtjYmEkLc/s320/Siena+012.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430805816645418946" border="0" /></a><br />For the gnocchi:<br />potatoes<br />flour<br />egg<br /><br />Start by boiling the potatoes whole with their skins still on. When they are done (tender with a fork), drain them immediately. Let them cool for a little while, but not too long. When making the gnocchi dough, you want the potatoes to still be warm, but not hot. When they are an appropriate temperature, use a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Oxo-Good-Grips-Potato-Ricer/dp/B00004OCJQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1264456549&sr=8-1">potato ricer</a> to mash them onto your work surface. (This little machine really makes a difference, it's like a huge garlic press, but for potatoes.) Make a well in the middle of the pile of potatoes, sprinkle generously with flour, crack an egg in the hole, and add a pinch of salt. With a fork, start mixing the egg in the middle. Gradually push the potatoes and flour into the egg and work together to make a dough. If it is too sticky, add more flour as necessary. It should be a little sticky, but not too messy. When you have the dough formed, cut off one small piece at a time to make the gnocchi. With the piece you have cut, start rolling on a well floured surface into a long tube, something like a sausage, that should be about the thickness of your finger. At this point, cut the tube of dough into small pieces, a little smaller than an inch in length. Each of these pieces will become the gnocchi. You can use a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Adamo-Imports-Gnocchi-Board/dp/B000FRSRBM/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1264457313&sr=8-4">gnocchi board</a> or the back of a fork to form the gnocchi. First roll them gently in a circular motion, and then roll them off the gnocchi board or the fork to give them the lines that will make the sauce stick to them better. Cook in a large pot of salted water. The gnocchi are done as soon as they rise to the surface. This will be very quick, maybe a minute or less, depending on the size of the gnocchi. Use a slotted spoon to fish them out and place directly into another pan containing whatever sauce you want to serve them with. In this case, the gorgonzola.<br /><br />For the sugo al gorgonzola:<br />butter<br />gorgonzola dolce cheese<br />cream<br />black pepper<br />parmesan cheese<br /><br />In a pan over a low flame, melt together the butter and gorgonzola cheese. This should be just hot enough to melt them, not to cook them. When they are starting to get nice and melty, sprinkle generously with black pepper. (Note: this sauce will not need salt because the cheese should be salty enough.) Add just enough cream to make it saucy and mix everything together until it has a nice smooth consistency. Add a handful of parmesan and remove from the heat. Add the gnocchi and enjoy!Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-66988600047739001572010-01-24T04:36:00.000-08:002010-01-24T05:43:27.393-08:00Pappa col PomodoroFor the first recipe from la scuola di cucina di Lella, here is the story and recipe behind pappa col pomodoro.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Vf71qPTqBieCKrBl-178brio-wXt7LyMmagPQN3V-ZcEiUvHA8L_938GAJOtFaLCsmfTRbMofQobGHG_VAoHAePrcWlYBLNqENQYIW_Z1jr7tLa-VTBPVYwJdETlPx3kFfmolo-MH0k/s1600-h/Siena.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Vf71qPTqBieCKrBl-178brio-wXt7LyMmagPQN3V-ZcEiUvHA8L_938GAJOtFaLCsmfTRbMofQobGHG_VAoHAePrcWlYBLNqENQYIW_Z1jr7tLa-VTBPVYwJdETlPx3kFfmolo-MH0k/s320/Siena.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430301222071024242" border="0" /></a><br />Pappa col pomodoro is a traditional Tuscan tomato and bread soup. It's origins are very poor as it is made with stale bread. Tuscan families would make bread once a week, and then at the end of the week, when the leftover bread was stale, instead of throwing it away, they would stretch it even farther by using it to make soup. The result is many tasty and hearty Tuscan soups which rely heavily on stale bread, including this one.<br /><br />Another important thing about this soup is where it is from. All Italian food is very regional. There are 21 different regions in Italy, all of them with their own type of cuisine. There are definitely some similarities between dishes from some regions, and there are some things that you can find all throughout Italy, but Italian food is much more diverse than just spaghetti and lasagna. As I said, this is a traditional Tuscan soup. More than just being Tuscan, pappa col pomodoro is very specific to the area right around Siena and Florence.<br /><br />This is a very easy soup to make with not too many ingredients, but it is very delicious.<br /><br />Here's what you will need:<br />Extra virgin olive oil<br />Whole garlic cloves<br />A couple of chili peppers, crushed<br />Stale bread (the older, the better)<br />Tomatoes<br />Basil<br />Stock<br />Salt<br /><br />A note on some of the ingredients-<br />The bread should be from a very simple, country style, hearty loaf. If you only have fresh bread and want to make this soup, you can dry out the bread in the oven for a few minutes- not enough to toast it, but just enough to dry it out.<br />In the summer when you can find really nice flavorful tomatoes, use fresh, but in the winter, canned tomatoes are better than fresh ones without flavor.<br />Also in the summer, the basil is going to be more aromatic and flavorful, so you won't need to use as much.<br />You can use whatever kind of stock you like, vegetable or chicken. In a pinch, you could even use water, but a good stock will make this soup better.<br /><br />Here's how to make it:<br />- Start with a good amount of olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot. It should be at least 2 tablespoons of oil per person.<br />- Add one or two whole cloves of garlic per person (depending on how much you like garlic), and the crushed chili flakes. The heat on this pot should be very low, you don't want any color on the garlic, it should stay white throughout the cooking process.<br />- After a couple of minutes when you can start to smell the garlic, add a couple of handfulls of fresh basil.<br />- Add the bread and toss in the hot oil to evenly coat it. There should be enough bread to soak up all of the oil.<br />- Add the tomatoes and mix well to coat the bread.<br />- Fill the pot with enough stock to cover all the tomatoes and bread. The stock should be warm, so it doesn't stop the cooking process. It will depend how much stock you will need on how stale the bread is. Really stale bread is going to absorb more of the liquid, so keep an eye on this and don't let it get dried out.<br />- Cover the soup and simmer for at least an hour. Stir occasionally and add more stock if necessary.<br />- When the soup is done cooking, you can serve it as is, or pass it through a food mill for a smoother texture. According to Lella, it is very important that you do not use an electric blender, but do this step by hand with a food mill. This is meant to be a hearty soup and it should not be pureed.<br />- Serve the soup with a thread of extra virgin olive oil on top.Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1870547087906138343.post-52050259543097498692010-01-23T15:58:00.000-08:002010-01-23T16:26:04.810-08:00Scuola di Cucina, week 1As I mentioned a few posts back, this week I started helping at a local cooking school. The past 5 nights I have helped out the teacher, Lella, with a different group of American students every night. Each night we have had around 25 students and we make 4 dishes. Since there is a different group each day, we have been repeating the same 4 dishes each day. I figured it was time to start sharing my experiences at the school, along with some of the recipes.<br /><br />Before starting, I wasn't quite sure what to expect from this experience. I didn't know if I would be in the class as a student, or as a helping hand to Lella. It turns out I am a little bit of both. Lella does not speak any English, and I was a little nervous to have to translate everything on my own. Luckily for me, there is another girl who comes every night to do most of the translating. I am mostly there to grab things for Lella, watch, and help the students a little. One night I was on my own to translate, and it actually went pretty well. I am a lot better at understanding Italian and translating from Italian to English than the other way around. This class is a great way for me to practice Italian and also learn some new things about Italian cusine.<br /><br />These classes for the American students will go for a few more days, and then next week, on the 28th, a session of classes for Italian students will start. Lella has invited me to attend these classes as well, to help her, and learn more than these same 4 recipes. But, these 4 recipes are really great, and I have enjoyed making them and then eating them every night. My dinner every night this week has consisted of pappa col pomodoro, gnocchi al gorgonzola, pici all'aglione, and then tiramisu. :) So, stay tuned for recipes and photos! I will try to post one each night this week.Beckyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08341776327437450304noreply@blogger.com0