Hellllllo ITALY!

So, I went to Italy for 6 days. During the middle of the semester. I had a biochem exam the day I got back to Ireland. No big deal...I could get used to this Irish lifestyle :) I'll try to recap the highlights of the trip:

Friday: woke up at 3am to catch a 4am bus to Dublin. The 4 hour ride was actually quite nice-I tucked myself into a corner in the back of the bus and slept the whole way there. We left Dublin for Bologna, Italy, around 9:30am and the flight was pretty interesting. When I wasn't napping, I was snapping picture after picture of the Swiss Alps that were RIGHT outside my window. The snow-covered peaks could be seen above the layer of clouds that had settled on the mountains. SO BREATHTAKING! By the way, this was my first Ryanair flight, and while everything was alright, I could definitely see why they offer low airfare--the plane is barely furnished, and if you want anything to eat or drink, it'll cost you an arm and a leg. They also have super strict luggage regulations, although we managed to squeeze by with our purses and bags without too much of a problem. Halfways through the almost three-hour flight, somebody stupidly tried to smoke in the lavatory, and the man right across from me had an epileptic attack and had to be put on oxygen for the duration of the flight. Oh, and did I mention the entire Connacht Rugby team was on the flight with us? Yeah. talk about some body odor...The rest of the day involves more forms of transportation (trains, taxis, walking, etc.) until we FINALLY made it to Florence!

Saturday: Two girl friends and I woke up early and explored the streets of Firenze, stopping for a tart and coffee in a typical Italian restaurant for breakfast. Surprisingly, most Italians knew at least a little English, so we really had no trouble getting around. We window-shopped and heckled with street vendors till lunch time, at which point we made our way to one of the Piazzas to embark on our Florentine cooking class adventure! We wound up in a tiny alleyway in Florence, and entered the In Tavola cooking class center. I had two crucial epiphanies at this cooking class: 1.) I am NOT a great cook. 2.) Cooking can be the most disastrously fun pastime everrrr. Our instructor told me right off the bat that I needed "a little less play, and a little more attention," which of course ticked me off. I paid him to teach me, after all, so I felt I deserved to have some fun. Anyways, the rest of the class went great and I learned how to cook the following:

Fresh egg pasta with meat sauce bolognese

Eggplant and ricotta ravioli

Tomato, basil, and garlic fetucinni

Panna Cotta with strawberry sauce

The food was SO delicious. I may or may not have eaten my body weight in pasta that day..

Sunday: My roommate Mo and I split from the group and headed to Venice on Sunday afternoon; the train ride from Florence to Venice was complete with fantastic views of the Italian countryside, and when we pulled into Santa Lucia station in Venezia, I couldn't stop smiling. Venice is a city unlike any other; it is absolutely gorgeous!! We hopped off the train and immediately got onto a water bus which took us to Lido, the island where we were staying for 3 days. Lido is precious; it is off the mainland of Venice and it's such a quaint town-we stayed in a cute little hotel that was only a ten minute walk from the main street in Lido (where we ate pizza and gelato every chance we could..)

Monday: Mo and I jumped on another boat to San Marco Piazza in Venice and proceeded to "shop till we dropped." The piazza was cool because during high tide, everything floods, and people walk on tables to get around the square. In the afternoon, we took a walking tour of Venice and learned some of the history behind the unique water city; our tour also included a delightful gondola ride through the Grand Canale. Mo and I felt like we had found the perfect honeymooners spot, haha! We headed back to Lido in the evening for calzones and gelato (the straciatella flavor is my personal fav) and then got a whopping 10 hours of sleep---let me just say that sleep is a rarity in Ireland...

Tuesday: We headed back to San Marco for some more shopping, and then took a boat to the beautiful island of Burano that afternoon. Burano is an island where all of the houses are different colors and the Italians showcase their laundry on clotheslines. It was a beautiful island. We caught a ferry back to Lido and got to watch the sunset on the water--perfect ending to a perfect day. We truly felt like we were on vacation and did not want to leave.

Wednesday: I took every form of transportation short of a camel ride on Wednesday: Walk-->Boat-->Train-->Taxi-->Plane-->Bus. Let's just say it was a LONG day of traveling, but I really didn't mind. I actually LOVE the train system in Italy--it was so fun! And the ridiculous 5 hour bus ride back from Dublin (we got stuck in rush-hour traffic) was actually quite entertaining-we all played games and recounted our adventures and fun things like that.

Of course I'm leaving out many MANY details, some more interesting than others, but the moral of this story is that Italy is a truly enchanting place, and I can't wait to go back.

What's on the agenda now?

Tonight: Movies

Tomorrow: Dublin

Tomorrow evening: Joshua Radin concert!!

Sunday: Guinness factory

Next week: class

Next weekend: Mountain biking trip to Killarney

That should keep me busy! Until next time:

May you always have work for your hands to do.
May your pockets hold always a coin or two.
May the sun shine bright on your windowpane.
May the rainbow be certain to follow each rain.
May the hand of a friend always be near you.
And may God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.

Lindsey