Tuesday, September 25, 2012

The Luck of the Irish


This past weekend was absolutely amazing! Jade, Katie, and I met Sherri and Kenna in Dublin, Ireland!  Although traveling there was a bit of a hassle, we made it to Dublin in one piece.  Once we landed, we headed to downtown Dublin and were on the search for food.  The food in Ireland was much different than Italy......in a bad way.  The menus have weird items and lots of funky meats.  We eventually found a little pub where I got some weird mixed salad plate, but it definitely wasn't memorable.  After lunch, we headed to a famous pub called the Brazen Head.   We loved the coffee here!

 The next day we headed to Galway to do some exploring.  Galway was absolutely breathtaking.  Our first stop was to the Dunguaire Castle!  This castle was magnificent and a great place to snap some pictures!  



At the beginning of our abroad journey, we made it our goal to collect a bracelet from every place we traveled to.  Here are our Ireland bracelets!  I love them!

From the castle, we headed to the Cliffs of Moher!  On the way, we stopped at the cutest cafe called Vasco.  This was one of those natural, organic cafes with a different menu each day based on what was in season.  We all got the most amazing lattes and shared two of their delicious pastries. 


Jade, Katie, and I shared the summer berry loaf with homemade ice cream, which was out of this world.  The loaf was moist and it was a perfect combination of sweet and tart.  Needless to say we absolutely devoured ours!  The ice cream was great too!


 After we stopped at Vasco, we were back on the road to the Cliffs of Moher.  On the way, we saw this castle!  Ireland is truly one of the most gorgeous places I have ever been.  The greenery goes on for miles and miles!


If we had a postcard for Ireland this is what it would be!  I dont think it can get more beautiful than that.


We finally reached the Cliffs of Moher!  This is a big tourist spot in Ireland, but we were excited to see them!

The view from the Cliffs of Moher was absolutely incredible!  We took way too many pictures, but how could we not?  The scenery was something like out of a story book.


After a day in Galway, we headed back to Dublin.  For our last day in Ireland, we visited the Guinness Factory.  This factory was enormous, but it was really cool to see how everything was made. 



Each of us attended the Guinness Academy to learn how to pour a perfect pint of Guinness.  Ick...I didn't drink my beer, but it was fun to learn how to pour it!  There is definitely an art to being a bartender.  I was nervous I would overflow mine, but I think I was a natural!  Jade, Katie, and I received certificates from the Guinness Academy congratulating us on our perfect pint skills!  Of course Katie overflowed her Guinness haha but honestly we all expected that!



Here we are at St. Patrick's cathedral in Dublin!  The grounds were beautiful and there was an adorable park located right next to it.  We asked some guy to take this picture and he decided to make it look quite artsy with the flowers!  I think it turned out great!


Ireland was more beautiful than I could have ever imagined.  Although it wasn't on my list of top places to visit, I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to go there.  It is definitely somewhere I would love to go back to when I'm older.  Everyone in Ireland was so nice and welcoming, which was refreshing.  It was nice to be in a country that spoke English too because we were lost quite a few times.  The whole driving on the opposite side of the rode and opposite side of the steering wheel thing was not easy to get used to.  The food was nothing impressive, so I learned to have a greater appreciation for Italian cooking.  I loved the night life in Ireland.  The pubs were really fun and full of interesting people.  Everyone was super polite and helpful everywhere we went!  I loved Ireland and I would definitely recommend that everyone venture over to the land of green someday!


Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Mama Mia!

On Monday night, I finally did a little of my own authentic Italian cooking!  Our school offered a cooking class for us to take at a placed called In Tavola Corsi di Cucina, which is located on the other side of the Ponte Vecchio.  I didn't really know what to expect because I've only taken one cooking class before, but I figured I was in for a treat.  

When we got there, Jade, Alex, & I suited up in our aprons.  We were excited to learn how the italians work in the kitchen!


We started by making our appetizer, which was an eggplant caprese.  It was AMAZING!   They provided grilled, thinly sliced eggplant and we topped them with fresh tomato, mozzarella, salt, pepper, and a little olive oil.  All we did was put them in the oven for a few minutes in order to melt the mozzarella and they were done!  I'm not a huge eggplant lover, but this appetizer converted me....we already decided to make them again tonight!  

For dinner, we made two types of pasta from scratch.  They weren't kidding when they said everything was homemade!  We made two types of sauces- a garlic, tomato, white wine sauce & a meat, carrot, onion, red wine sauce.  They were both out of this world.  Definitely something I would make in the near future.  After we made our sauces, we made the noodles...from square one.  Here is Jade and I learning how to make our own pasta noodles:


Our amazing teacher Fabritizio!  He was the best.  He was so knowledgeable and helpful with us in the kitchen.  Fabritizio was the man!


I was in charge of turning the little wheel on the pasta press....such a crucial role.  Here is our freshly made pasta dough going through the little pasta press.  I was absolutely amazed by this! Making pasta requires team work, but we were pasta professionals after this!


Here is our finished product before it was cooked.  Besides the amazing taste, homemade pasta is much faster to cook than store bought!  It only cooked for a few minutes before it was done.  


For dessert (my favorite part of any meal), we made tiramisu!  I never knew how easy it was to make.  We took the lady finger cookies and dipped them into the Brandy/coffee mixture.  Then we made the cream with mascarpone cheese, eggs, and sugar.  So easy & so amazing! 


After we finished making everything, we went downstairs to this adorable seating area to enjoy our homemade meal!
Our finished products!  Here is our appetizer, not sure if the picture does it justice, but it was absolutely delicious!  I can't wait to make these again!  They melted in our mouths.  


Here is the pasta with the garlic & tomato sauce.  I think I liked this on better because it was a little lighter than the other!


This was the pasta with the meat sauce.  Tons of flavor and it had a little kick to it! I loved both pastas...I definitely had to have a little of each. 


Here is our magnificent dessert!  I ate every bite.  The tiramisu was so moist and the creme was amazing.  YUM!  This picture makes me want to eat it again!  We had one extra at our table, so Jade, Alex, and I agreed to bring it home and share it so we could have another bite the next day!


Overall, my italian cooking class experience was wonderful.  I had so much fun being in the kitchen and the food was too good!  It definitely inspired me to want to cook more and I realized that cooking isn't as intimidating as it seems.  We all agreed to look into doing another class because we had such a good time.  I think when my mom & Maggie come to visit in October we may do another class!  

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Excursion to Cinque Terre, Italy




Yes...this picture is real and I took it myself.  Crazy, right?  Yesterday was my favorite day in Italy thus far.  Our school took us on a day trip to Cinque Terre, Italy!  Words can't even begin to describe how amazing this place is.  I have been to beautiful places like Hawaii and the Caribbean, but Cinque Terre doesn't even compare.  

Cinque Terre is made up of 5 small villages- Riomaggiore, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Monterosso.  While we were there, we visited all of the villages except for Vernazza.  We started our day in Riomaggiore and I thought it was absolutely adorable.  There were great shops and the cutest restaurants!  

We were a little hungry once we got there and we found the most delicious crepe cafe.  They were amazing!!! Alex & Jamie got a nutella and banana crepe and Jade & I got a mixed fruit crepe.  I haven't ever had a crepe before and I definitely wasn't disappointed.  The presentation really pretty as well.

After we indulged in our crepes, we did a little exploring around the first village.  The views were absolutely spectacular.  I have never seen water like this.  The weather was absolutely perfect and we had fun just exploring.  


 From Riomaggiore, we took the train to third village to meet up with Katie, Cort, Austin, Tyler, Max, & Kendal.  Even though they aren't in our study abroad program, they decided to go to Cinque Terre for the day to meet up with us.  From Corngilia, we took the train to the fourth village, Manarola. This is where the true fun began.  We decided to hike to the 5th village of Monterosso.  Let's just say we didn't have the slightest idea what we had gotten ourselves into.  This wasn't just a leisure walk from one village to another.  This hike was realistically 1,000-2,000 steep, high steps through the hillside, climbing over rocks and through trees.  Needless to say, there were a few points where we thought we would never make it.  Every muscle in our body was burning.  The hike took about an hour and a half, but it was definitely well worth it.  The view from unreal.  Definitely something off of a postcard.  The feeling once we had reached Monterosso was amazing.  All 10 of us made it.  Here is a 
picture of Jade, Me, & Katie during our hike :



This was a day I will never forget.  Even though my legs feel like jello today, I am so happy that we did  the hike!  The beaches in Monterosso were so pretty! The minute we touched the sand, we jumped into the water.  It was so peaceful to just float in the Tyrrhenian Sea.  All of us girls had a great time swimming in the gorgeous water.  From left to right- Jamie, Kendal, Me, Alex, Katie, & Jade.
 


Here are a few more pictures from the day!  I absolutely loved Cinque Terre.  Our program was leaving at 4, but we decided to stay back and take the train home later with our friends.  Somehow & someway, we all made it home in one piece!  I will remember this day forever and I'm so happy I have pictures to remind me of it.  





Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Me Gusta! Me Gusta!

Last night was so much fun!  A big group of us got together to go out for a delicious dinner.  We decided that we wanted to try "Gustapizza" because everyone had told us that it was the best pizza in Florence.  Bold title right?  With thousands of restaurants making pizza, we were interested to try it.  Gustapizza is located just across the Ponte Vecchio, so it was a little bit of a walk, but definitely well worth it.  Here is a picture of us before:

Me, Will, Jade, Alex, Katie, Jamie, Austin, & Max



 Here is us at Gustapizza while we were waiting for our pizzas to be made.  There wasn't room to sit inside, so we decided to get them to go and sit on the steps of a little church.

Here is a picture of our pizza!  Okay....the picture doesn't do it justice.  We ordered a funghi pizza...but it came with prosciutto on it.  I don't care for prosciutto personally, so I took it off, but other than that the pizza was amazing!   The ingredients were so fresh and it was only 5 euro!  I don't think you can get any better than that! 


After we indulged in our yummy pizza, we walked back over the Ponte Vecchio and I had to snap this picture.  How pretty right?  I feel so lucky to live in such a beautiful place!  


Thursday, September 6, 2012

My New Favorite Place!

I knew that missing 6 months of San Luis Obispo's amazing Thursday Farmer's Market would make me a little homesick.  Rain or shine, I am always there to get my box of strawberries, veggies, and other yummy fruits.  Coming to Florence, I had no idea what to expect when it came to produce and vegetables.  Let me tell you, I have not be disappointed in the least.  My new favorite place to shop is called the Mercado Centrale.  This is basically a huge indoor market with everything from meats, to dried fruits, to fresh fruits, to veggies, to homemade pastas, and more.  They have EVERYTHING & more here!  The market is open Monday through Saturday until 2 pm, so every day after class I head over there.  Today I got a fresh red bell pepper and zucchini for lunch! YUM! Everyday I usually get some strawberries, blueberries, and peaches.  It's all extremely reasonable too!  Slowly but surely I am making friends with the people who work at the various stands.  We love the little italian man who sells the dried fruit.  The dried pear is to die for!  Here are some pictures from the indoor marketplace:


Jade and I got roasted turkey from here...it was delicious!


Gotta love the italian pasta!


Our goal is to get fresh fish and grill it for dinner...we'll see if that happens....


Fruit galore!  This is my favorite section of the market....any fruit your heart desires!


Dried fruit.  Our guilty pleasure...how could you resist???


I am finally getting beginning to get my bearings around Florence!  I love it here!

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Buon Appetito!

It is only day 5 in Florence and I can honestly say that I am absolutely in love with this amazing city!  There is an unbelievable amount of beauty and history here and I feel so lucky to call this place my home for the next 4 months.  Slowly but surely I am beginning to familiarize myself with the streets and different landmarks.  Last night we took a walking tour around the city and learned the do's and dont's of gelato and food.  STAY AWAY from the tourist-y places...very over priced and the quality of the food is poor.  The bad type of gelato is stacked on top of each other and is really colorful.  That gelato is filled with nasty chemicals and preservatives and it lacks the good flavFor example, pistachio gelato should not be green, but should be brown.  The locals recommended this gelato place called "Grom".  


This was my first gelato in Italy!  Well sort of.  It was dark chocolate sorbet and raspberry gelato.  It was delicious! Such a yummy treat.  These flavors mixed great with one another.


This was a picture of a yummy pizza that our roommate Alex ordered at a cafe yesterday!  It was called the Tricolore Pizza (I had to try a bite of this just because of the name and how I love CPK's tricolore pizza) and it was absolutely delicious.  Pizza in Italy is so much different than anything in the states.  There is no grease or icky oil at all.  It is all fresh, light, and delicious.  I love how the crust is thin and the sauce isn't super thick.  People weren't kidding when they told me that the food in Italy was the best in the world.