Busy, busy days!

Lesson learned: not journaling and blogging for ONE day makes for a seriously tired hand and impossible blog. So here is a super fast rundown of the past two days.

Yesterday we met our art professor, Paolo in the morning for a historic tour of Castiglion. Paolo is an interesting man-- white hair, deep thoughts, and such a passion for sharing what he knows with us. He has the ability to enchant you with art by digging so deep into a painting or artwork your not really sure what your even talking about anymore, all you know is this lovely little Italian man is speaking to you with an adorable Italian accent and your in love with everything he talks about. I have a feeling I will learn a lot about myself and about Italian art from this man.

Lunch and dinner at the center continue to amaze me. Lunch yesterday= lentil soup, meat and the sweetest cantelope ever, and veggies. Dinner yesterday= egg pasta (actually enjoyed it for those of you who know how much I hate eggs), chicken, and veggies. They spoiled us by giving us dessert the first day and the last few meals we have only had fruit... dang you fruit.

After our trip with Paolo we went on a logistical tour of the town with one of the RC's, Jen. She showed us the important places in town... the tabachi, the post office, and best gelato shops. After that Lisa and I were treated with our FIRST gelato in Italia! I had strachiatella, of course, which is pretty much vanilla with chocolate chips. Amazing. Daniel, this may rival Tio's. I haven't even had the best place in town yet- Mondo's. Critique coming soon.

Last night was Elizabeth's 21st birthday, so of course this called for a celebration. We had local Castiglion Fiorentino wine from La Pievuccia (a local winery in town). It was a nice Bianco, a little spicy for my liking with a strong floral taste, but good nonetheless. It was also organic, so that was a plus.

That night almost our whole group ventured to the local bar, Rigirio's aka "Pirate Bar." Lana, Lisa, and I had a great time getting ready. After much complaining about "lame shoes" and changing we ended up all matching in black... which made for cute roomie pictures. Lisa was more goofy than normal and gave us some laughs. Our new saying "When in doubt, boobies out." This will surely come in handy. At Pirate Bar, it was full of Aggies and some other students from the center as well as a handful of locals. We were recommended the "cooli cooli" but they were out of ice and we decided to take a shot instead-- rume e pere. Rum and Pear. It was strong but doable. I shared a small pitcher of Maresco, a sparkling wine, with Lana which was wonderful. Dancing with the group definitely broke some ice. Funniest drunk awards go to Andrew and Rebekah for sure. I decided to test about my Italian and asked a group of local Italians for a shot recommendation (seeing how no ice=no mix drinks) and they suggested something I can't remember... but the bar was out so we were given another suggestion by Ritanoldo, the bar owner. He gave us a shot of Italian liquor and something blue and proceeded to light it on fire. Then he yelled instructions to me (in Italian... yeah, hard). Translation number one: put your hand on the fire. My reaction... WHAT THE HECK!? NO! Translation number two: pick it up and shake. My reaction... okay? Translation number three: Shake faster! My reaction...okay okay!!! Then I took this shot and my throat was on fire... hence I named the unknown shot "Dragon Shot."

Today we woke up for an Italian lesson in the local market. A lovely local lady named Rossello gave us some pointers and some basic vocabulary. The market had tons of meat, cheese, fruits, and even random panty stands. It was bustling with locals, which I enjoyed being around. I tried to save some money so I only bought a rug for our bathroom. Very cheap. Then after the market, round two of gelato! "Vorrei un coni piccolo de gelato." Not too shabby, getting better at this. The evening was full of class, an Italian lesson (Letsa Speaka Italian), and a travel meeting. Lunch today= Italian meatloaf, rice, and veggies. Dinner today= tomato bowtie pasta, mushroom chicken, and veggies.

We decided to stay in tonight. Tomorrow is a trip to Arezzo. So tired... can barely finish this blog. Arrivaderchi!