First Day Part 2
So after i went and bought some little foods at a teeny mercato, made myself a wonderful sandwich, i ended up passing out for three hours. got up in time to join my new roommates, George and Hunt, on a walk to a LdM dinner at a place called La Spada. so we got totally lost, walked all over Florence, ended up asking for directions at a hotel, where we got a map and finally figured it out. Apparently, the easiest thing to do is go to il Duomo and find your destination from there. The Duomo (the Dome) is AMAZING. i cant wait to see it in the daylight. i almost fell over trying to see it. Let me tell you, cobblestones are not conducive for dawdling and gawking, i tripped a lot! We finally found the restaurant and enjoyed a 4 course traditional Italian meal. Crustada was first (kinda like bruschetta), then there was three kinds of pasta. a delicious spinach and cheese ravioli with a mushroom cream sauce (OH MY GOOODNESS sooo good) and two types of penne with tomato sauce. i think one had some squash in it. they were very good. I learned that bread dipped in olive oil and salt and pepper is good. i also learned that Italian table wine is not any different tasting than our table wine. Im such a wine snob! after that, we got some Brie with prosciutto, very rich and very tasty. finally we got a meat dish with some roasted potatoes. i think it was pork. that was pretty good too. as a treat, someone bought us a bottle of Grappa (a very potent alcohol produced from the leavings of a wine pressing.) Smelled and tasted like nail polish remover, and probably just as potent! We ended up leaving La Spada and going to a little bar, i think it was called Miala...but im not sure. The owner was a very attractive bear like man, who was very friendly! i don't know if he was a bear, but still, very nice to look upon. Drinks are just as expensive in Italy as in the states. 5 euros for a vodka Redbull. we stayed there for about 2 hours i think, i talked to a few people. mostly kids in the study abroad programs. Apparently, this time of year, 90 percent of the population of Florence are study abroad kids. Finally, George and Hunt wanted to check out a little club called "21" and so we walked over there. turned out kinda lame, and we were all spent, so we made the trek home. Let me tell you, if i walk as much as i did today, coupled with the 120 some odd stairs i have to climb to get to my flat, i will be a skinny little cub when i come home! Anyway, thats it for today. I have orientation in 6 hours. gonna try and get some sleep. Arrivederchi.