Bologna

      I couldn't believe the last part of Italy was already here. In the blink of an eye everything I planned for months was coming to an end. Next would be France, Kate's part of the trip, but until then we hoped to make the most of our last week here. This also meant it was the last few days with Steph, Lauren, and Kristen. We all became so close that the thought of carrying on without them felt a bit strange; a bit unnatural. We did our best to ignore the nearing end and arrived in the gastronomic capital of Italy  with open hearts and empty bellies. Kate per usual was prepared with a list of gelaterias and dishes to try. We would at the least not be going hungry in the city referred to as "the fat".
    Although not a common visit for most tourists the five of us instantly felt connected to this diamond in the rough. Home to one of Europe's oldest universities  and laced in detailed architecture this historic city screamed creativity, beauty, and a genuine lifestyle. Of 100,000 university students 80,000 live in Bologna, which gives an idea to the young vibe that pulsated the arched covered streets. There was something so amazing about this place....it's beautiful in an old way and yet gives off a slightly edgy city feel. The buildings seem to contain no uniform structure yet the detail and trimming  of each provides for a unique balance. Its old yet new. More than anything it is alive.
     We spent as much time as possible strolling the different parts of the city and enjoyed grazing in and out of cheese shops, clothing store, cafe's,  and gelaterias. We licked down flavors like pumpkin and cinnamon, Sicilian cannoli, and the infamous Giuseppe- a swirl of chocolate and vanilla mousse transformed in to a light and fluffy gelato.  We found it only appropriate to take breaks from our long walks around the city to enjoy small pastries like mini chocolate cheesecake, croissants, and creme filled doughnuts. We slurped macchiatos  in the cutest coffee shops ( turns out i have become a fan of espresso) napped in parks, visited nearby towns, and walked until we were too tired to do anything besides sit and eat again.

     When our last meal together approached  we sat down at a pizza place we distantly  drooled over the previous day. Unlike typical Italian pizza, these were huge with a thicker dough to cushion the hefty toppings. Between the five of us we split three pizzas: 1. pesto 2. proscuitto with arugula and shaved parmesan 3. margarita with oregano and tomatoes. The pizza was mind blowingly delicious and eating it became somewhat of an explosion, an  uncontrollable American eating frenzy. It was a great last meal together.
     After the girls departed Kate and I were fortunate enough to find hands down the best gelato shop and restaurant in existence. Bold statements some may say but unless I find better I am sticking to it! We returned for gelato three times in two days and easily could have returned each day for the rest of our lives. With flavors like cream of pine nut and caramel walnuts, cream of ricotta with dried fig, marscerpone with coffee and cocoa beans, and ameretto egg cream and rice candy how could we possibly be unhappy?! The flavors were all so different than anything I have had before but the quality seemed perfected to a science. It was love!  The bliss continued our last night as we ate tortellini with pumpkin and ravioli stuffed with rabbit and a side of smoked goat cheese. The best wine, a Pignoletto, accomponied the meal and we had no choice but to joyfully raise our glass and give a big loving toast to our darling Bologna.

Cinque Terre

(I will keep this one short! I just wanted to put that out there before you all dread another ridiculously long post)

     We had three days to enjoy the beautiful oceanic towns of Cinque Terre, the "five lands".  A four hour trail linked the five villages together and offered beautiful views as well as an intense workout.
     Home base was a 9 bed mix in a hostel located 10 minutes from Cinque Terre. We felt comfortable knowing we would be five of the nine but soon learned we'd be sharing the space with the worlds worst snorer and a terrible night cougher. Between the two of them  the nights were long, but the enjoyable days made the sleepless nights well worth it.  Day one consisted of us wandering around our base town and enjoying a slow pace to life. After so much seeing and doing we looked forward to being semi-lazy and relaxing on the many beaches that surrounded the area. Our goals during our time there were to eat as much pesto as possible (this is the area pesto was created and most famous), hike the five towns, and relax. Three tasks i proudly say we completed in perfect composure.

    
     Besides loving the scenic hike and adorable towns I also had a number of great food experiences. Their pesto was down right awesome and everything it touched pretty much turned to gold. With pecorino silently hiding between the bright basil and Parmesan it really made every dish royalty. It accompanied the best meal of my trip which consisted of chestnut flour tagliatelle with clams, tomatoes, and parsley. Just the thought of that dish makes me salivate with excitement! Even better was that my appetizer before it acted as the perfect opening performance. Fresh muscles stuffed with parmesan, breadcrumbs, marjoram, and rosemary. YUuMmM!  Another surprisingly delicious meal was a lard pizza that Kate and I shared our last night. Salted pig fat laid hand in hand with arugula, cut cherry tomatoes, and shaved parmesan. With a quick spritz of lemon it innocently sat on pizza dough waiting for someone to give it a try. Intimated, yes. Hesitant, yes. Excited, hell yes. The other girls were just shocked, maybe even a tad disgusted by the thought of it.  It reminded me of the sad story you hear about the older kid at the orphanage that no one wants to adopt because they are not cute anymore. Then one kind soul puts their heart on the table and brings the kid home, making the two of their lives complete. Well my dear friends and family, I bravely gave this lard a try and i wholeheartedly tell you that my kind soul is now complete. Against all expectations it was the lightest and most refreshing pizza I've ever eaten. Of all the pizza I have had on the trip, and trust me I have eaten a lot, this one pleasantly surprised me the most and was one of my favorite dishes thus far. That evening I learned a very  valuable lesson...never judge a pizza by its toppings.

Tuscany

It's official, I died and went to Tuscany. This place is honesty what I imagine my heaven would look like. The landscape alone has the power to melt hearts and make any saddened soul shimmer with hope. Even more was that literally every second was better than the one before. Our five unbelievable days in Tuscany consisted of Montepulciano, Sienna, and Lucca.  We stopped in places like San Gimignano and Pienza along the way and as we went north we ventured to hike the great mountains of Garfanganca. Montepulciano was by far my favorite  so i decided to focus this post strictly on our time there.

   After a five hour drive from Sorrento to Tuscany we finally  arrived in Montepulciano. Kate, a now hero in all of our hearts, bravely conquered the unpredictable winding roads in our 5-seater Picasso. Even though this was her first time driving a manual in years her intense focus got us there safe and sound. I felt lucky to be in the backseat focusing solely on the scenery that passed by.  On the road my eye constantly remained fixed on the thatched pattern of the terrain. Shades of green and brown blanketed the land and seemed to form a puzzle among the horizon. It was undeniably breathtaking.
   For the first two nights Kate and I stayed with her family friends while the other girls where ten minutes away in our destination spot, Montepulciano. We dropped off their bags and did some brief exploring before grabbing dinner. Simply put, the town was as quaint as quaint can get. We ate at a terraced restaurant and watched the setting sun as we awed over a sensational meal. I started with a unique dish of black rice in a pecorino and truffle sauce followed by a local dish of stuffed Guinea-fowl. Still unsure of exactly what type of animal it was I can confidently say it was delicious. After dinner Kate and I departed to her family friends home where we were welcome with a glass of wine and the warmest hospitality. To be welcomed and treated so kindly was more than either of us could have asked for. We all chatted on their porch which overlooked the countryside before retiring to bed.

   Being in a famous wine town we woke up early and by 10:00am were seated for our first wine tasting. We drank, learned about regional grapes, the aging process, as well as different forms of wine certifications. From there we drove around the beautiful tuscan roads until we found the other vineyard suggested to us. We shared a tasting with an older couple and enjoyed getting to know one another over five delicious San Giovese (the local grape) wines. On the car ride back we stopped at a little shop that was filled with local culinary specialties. Our soon to be new best friend, Simone, provided samples of meats, cheeses, oils, and wine. One oil was laced with truffle and I went off about my deep undying love for truffles. The day was already amazing but at this moment  it quickly became even better....
   Turned out Simone was a truffle hunter and invited to show us how it was done the next morning. We then informed him (which i forgot to mention before) that it was Kristen's birthday and wanted somewhere special to eat. He suggested the restaurant above the shop, where his brother was chef and all locally sourced food including his truffles were used. After sitting he started us off with complimentary proseco and for the main meal Steph and I split egg yolk and spinach ravioli with truffle oil and fresh truffles. When it was brought out Simone took a big black truffle and shaved it over my dish until thin layers coated my entire plate. I was in heaven. No joke I have dreamt of the day when I would eat freshly shaved truffles. When it actually happened I smiled so large it almost hurt. By far one of the best moments in my life. The meal overall was incredible and as an extra  birthday bonus he gave us a sparkling wine and a chocolate molten dessert at the end. After a long meal filled of laughs and some of the best food, we departed and anxiously looked forward to truffle hunting with him the next day.
   Slowly we made our way back to the center of Montepulciano and passed the time walking up and down the small cobbled streets. Eventually we saw a church where a man dressed like Mozart was playing the most beautiful music on his flute.  We sat and listened almost in a dreamlike state. The day was sensational, beautiful, delicious, hilarious, and almost too good to be true. Among the smooth floating melody all I could do was cry. Out of joy, friendship, agriculture, food, music, i could go on forever. It was happiness stripped down to its core and marked a moment in time when everything made sense and felt right.

   The last song signaled our time to leave. We picked up flowers and all of us went to the house that Kate and i were staying at. The family generously invited the five of us over for a home cooked Italian meal with them and their two kids. The dinner was sensational. Seafood salad, couscous with zucchini and shrimp, and pasta with lobster in a light tomato sauce. It must have taken hours to cook and we could taste the love in every bite.
   The next morning we met Simone and drove to a plot of woods a few minutes away. He had two dogs with him and they excitingly sniffed around as he cheered them on. Within moments black truffles were appearing everywhere. It was fascinating to watch the dogs sniff, dig, and move on to the next spot. Simone then brought us back to his family home where we soon realized he was more than just a typical nice Italian guy. His family had a beautiful home with a mini museum of artifacts in the basement. The view overlooked a pond and all of Tuscany while their garden and vineyard remained close by.  He picked us fresh strawberries, gave us just baked biscotti, and offered to show us around his family shops. Turned out his family owns a very well known winery as well as a number of storefronts that sell artesian food.  We tasted everything there was to taste, saw their wine and cheese cellars, and then he toured us around another one of their small museums located underground. All along he answered our questions and was the perfect tour guide and gentleman.
   Before sadly saying goodbye we listened to a man play cello outside of one of Simone's shops.  The whole day was kind of like a fairytale and we all just kept laughing over how incredibly amazing our time in Montepulciano was. It was surreal and as we left we all agreed that this was by far the best place we have been. I don't know if it was the landscape, the people, the wine, the food, or just the five of us getting closer.... but I was definitely high off Tuscany.

Campania

Part two of our Italy trip was in the Campania region, an area famous for cities like Naples and historical sites such as Pompeii. We stayed in the town of Sorrento which was centrally located to all we hoped to see. Our five person bungalow at Santafortuna Campsite overlooked lemon and lime trees while the crystal blue ocean sparkled in the distance. A twenty minute walk took us to the center of town where numerous tourists and natives spouted English from every direction. Clearly we weren't the firsts outsiders to come exploring. Even more than Rome, this place seemed to be quite the tourist attraction...and it didn't take long to figure out why. 
Fig, olive, orange, and lime trees lined every street and the views of the water never seized to amaze us. After walking the town we grabbed a great dinner of green gnocchi with shrimp and tagliatelle with mixed seafood. The mix consisted of squid, clams, and muscles. it was some of the best I ever had. Buttery and smooth each bite slipped down my throat with full satisfaction. 
   After a wonderful meal we walked down to the water and caught a final glimpse of the most miraculous sunset. Never in my life have I seen the sun so large and fluorescent orange. We sat on the dock and took in the beauty until we were  interrupted by nearby shrieks of joy. Among the surreal view a boyfriend proposed to his now fiancé. To witness such a happy moment  made our night so even more special. On our way back we  saw a gelato shop with a big line out the door, of course we gave it a try. I started with nutella. It was so deliciously  creamy that it was almost impossible to resist...so we gave in to its powers and returned every night. Gelato was becoming quite the routine for us. 
   Outside of Sorrento one of our first attractions was the destroyed city of Pompeii.  Besides learning the history we were able to crawl on the ruins and take pictures, which we took full advantage of. Lauren had two people hoist her up on to a high ruin and after a few goofy poses she jumped off ready to see more. To our full enjoyment she belly flopped and landed face down on the dirt floor of Pompeii.  A man next to us screamed "take photo!" in broken english and he scrambled to get a shot of the crazy girl face first in the ground. If it is possible to imagine, it was hilarious. 
   The next few days we explored the beautiful island of Capri and the quaint town of Positano . We took a ferry to Capri and upon first glance I was in awe. Approaching it looked like a giant black rock, the largest I've ever seen. As we moved closer the docking port appeared in the rocks concave center. Houses painted the backdrop along with fruit trees and the most beautiful selection of flowers. We hiked about an hour up to the main square but took a break to enjoy some fruit on a stone wall that overlooked the whole island. It was breathtaking. The ride to Positano was equally as amazing as the bus zigzagged up the Amalfi coasts winding roads. Although slightly nauseating the scenery made the uneasy roads well worth the trip. The town was built out of the side of a mountain and had endless views of the coastline.  We walked around and eventually made our way to the beach. It's sand was blackened from past explosions of Mt. Vesuvius but the water remained perfectly blue and transparent.  As we relaxed I ate ripened figs and enjoyed the crashing waves as they cooled my feet . 
   Our five days exploring the region was even better than our time in Rome. The views were sensational and the food was incredible. Besides the seafood, the figs and olive oil stood out as some of the best... and don't even get me started on the buffalo mozzarella! It made every pizza  explode with flavor and a tasting platter transformed the buffalo in to an animal from the gods. Three types of buffalo mozzarella and ricotta drizzled with a light raspberry-honey sauce accompanied a fresh bed of arugula. As Kate and I shared this 3,000 calorie lunched (plus a pizza) the melting cheese and all it's glory forever made an imprint in our hearts. Sometimes, all it takes is a little local fat to make the world a better place :-)

Rome

After a sleepless flight I arrived in Rome anxious to meet Kate. As i waited, strapped in to my oversized blue backpack, I heard unfamiliar words pitter around my semi-conscious head. I was definitely overtired, slightly confused, and a part of me feared that Kate and I would never meet up. Our plan to meet outside the metro stop seemed a lot clearer before realizing their were five possible exits. To my luck, her familiar face appeared right on time and almost instantly I felt a little more at home. 

 Kate is a close friend from school and my original travel partner in crime. We would be spending the next three months together but had the company of a few tag alongs during our three weeks in Italy.  This included my cousin stephanie and kate's friends Lauren and Kristen. They would be arriving in the next few days and I will admit, a part of me feared how a group of five almost strangers would get along. 

After hugs kate and i went to our b&b, which turned out to a spare bedroom in an Italian family's home.  Three generations scurried around the house.  One warmly introduced himself while the grandma prepared a home cooked lunch for her grandchildren. We dropped our backpacks and immediately hit the streets. Spanish steps, Trevi fountain, Colosseum.  Gelato break...flavor: coffee. 

Four hours later we found ourselves  in Trastevere, a quieter section located outside the busy city center. Famous for food, this was a point of interest since our first moments in Rome. The area was slightly tucked off a main road and was spotted with tarnished shades of yellow, orange, and red. The buildings seemed to mimic the setting sun as we gazed down each street. Flowers hung from balconies and restaurants cornered each turn, reminding us that our first Roman meal was in order. We settled on a small pizzeria and shared two pizzas: one margarita and one with pancetta and olives. It was delicious and the carafe of house white wine was so good that even now, eight days later, we are still kicking ourselves for not finding out its name. It was one of the best wines I ever had, perfectly balanced and clean.  

It wasn't until 11:00pm that we finally made it back to our b&b. By then I was so tired that it took every inch of energy just to take a shower. After 28 hours without sleep I was exhausted, sweaty, and slightly delirious.

In the days to come the other girls would arrive. To my surprise we all instantly connected and i was amazed with how comfortable we became around each other. Friendships grew quickly and it seemed as though this trip of five (only two of whom i previously knew) was destined to happen. Through our time together we visited a number of sites, trekked over an hour for the city's best pizza (it was!), ate gelato for lunch four days in a row, and sat by the Tiber river drinking wine and learning about one another. 

As our time in Rome came to end I was sad to leave and amazed with how fast the first five days passed by. As we awaited for our train we grabbed food from an incredible market located a few blocks from the station. Surrounded by fresh produce and the aroma of salty fish i gazed around and took in as much as possible. From giant blocks of cheese to cow tongue and morning baked bread I floated between isles until time forced us to leave. The days in Rome marked the beginning of new friendships and this amazing journey. The company was great, the food always good, and the wine consistently flavorful. Six months  in the making I was finally here and all I could do was smile.