This week was by far one of my favorite weeks in Florence! I ate amazing food, did some great shopping, saw some incredible art, and was able to show my two favorite people why I love Florence so much! This past week was so wonderful because I was finally reunited with my sweet mama and Maggie! On Tuesday afternoon, they arrived in Florence and I rushed to their hotel. They stayed on the opposite side of town from me, but their hotel was beautiful! Tuesday night, we met Jade & Katie for dinner at a place called Coquinarius. The food was great...we all got salads and split some yummy pear ravioli! After dinner, my mom and Maggie headed home because they were tired from their travels.
On Wednesday, they went to Cinque Terre, Italy! I know that Cinque Terre is definitely one of my favorite places in Italy, so I was excited that they were able to go there and explore the 5 amazing towns! My mom and Maggie had gorgeous sunny weather, so they got really lucky. Cinque Terre is known for its pesto, so my mom got an most amazing pesto pasta that she raved about the entire time she was here!
On Thursday, I was able to be a tour guide for the day and show my mama and Maggie all around Florence. We met up at my school and I took them to the Mercato Centrale! They loved the indoor market with all of the fruit, veggies, meat, cheese, and pasta! It was unlike anything they had seen before. I was able to introduce my mom to the vendors I frequently shop from which was really cool. After shopping at the market, I took my them to the San Lorenzo leather market. We went by Massimo, who is my favorite leather man to check out all of his amazing purses and jackets. Coincidentally, Maggie and I fell in love with the same leather quilted jacket which was exciting. For lunch I took them to one of my favorite local sandwich/salad places in Italy called the Oil Shoppe. After lunch, we did some more shopping and then I was able to take them back to my apartment. They were amazed with how nice our place is and how much room we have! I was also able to introduce them to my best guy friends Cort and Austin. Later that night, we were able to have dinner at La Giostra with my roommate Alex and her mom who was visiting Florence the same time! La Giostra was SO SO SO good!!!! By far our favorite meal of the week! I think La Giostra is my favorite restaurant in all of Florence! For dinner, we got a pear penne & spinach gnocchi to share for the table and then we each got an entree. I got the apple sauce chicken which is unbelievably tasty and my mom got the seabass which she said was delicious. For dessert, we shared tiramasu and an apple cake. It is safe to say we were all stuffed after that incredible meal! It was so nice for Alex and I to be able to take our moms out to dinner together and for them to be able to get to know each other better!
Friday, my mom, Jade, Katie, Maggie, and I headed to Bologna. Bologna is supposedly "A food lover's paradise", but I'm pretty sure we beg to differ. The rain was out in full force which definitely put a damper on the day. Despite the rain, we all hopped on a train and headed to Bologna. I've never been there but my mom had heard that it was a cool place to visit. Don't get me wrong, Bologna had a little shopping and a few nice buildings, but would I ever go back? Absolutely not. Our lunch was okay, so I wasn't really impressed with the food and there wasn't that much to see or do in the city. It definitely made me appreciate Florence and all that it has to offer.
Maggie & my mom excited about their Italy train experience!
Once we got off the train, we headed into the city. We weren't really sure what to expect with Bologna, but we figured we would just explore. This was one of the main squares in the city!
I think our day of exploring would have been more enjoyable if it wasn't pouring the entire day. Umbrellas and rain jackets were a must. We were trying to do anything and everything to stay dry.
Jade & Katie in front of a pretty hotel
Rain or shine, we try to have a smile on our face and make the best of it. Bologna was not what we expected, but oh well!
Saturday was a great day in Florence! Although it was still rainy, my mom, Maggie, and I headed to The Mall! The Mall is awesome because its where all the high end outlets are found. They have stores like Burberry, Gucci, Prada, Dior, & a few others. It's a great place to get some good deals on some more expensive items. Usually outlets are hit or miss, but we all found some luck that day which was exciting!
For dinner, we had reservations at a restaurant on the other side of the Arno called Quattro Leoni! Quattro Leoni is a great restaurant with outside seating, which is fun for a little bit different of a dining experience. My mom, Maggie, Jade, Katie, and I split a few plates of pear ravioli as a starter. The ravioli at Quattro Leoni is my favorite pasta in florence by far. It has an amazing flavor and the best sauce in the world! For dinner, I decided to step out of my comfort zone and get a shrimp and vegetable stew dish. I actually enjoyed it and I was happy that I tried something new! My mom and Maggie got the avocado, pine nut, & pesto salad and shared a chicken dish. We decided against dessert at the restaurant because we were so close to my, Jade, and Katie's favorite gelato place in Florence! My mom and Maggie loved the gelato! My favorite flavor is the cookie gelato with huge chunks of chocolate cookie inside...yum!
Here's my mom, Maggie, and I on the bridge with the Ponte Vecchio in the background!
Dinner at Quattro Leoni!
My yummy entree!
All of us girls at dinner!
After our delicious meal and gelato for dessert, we were happy campers!
Sunday was Maggie and my mom's last day in Florence. Since they hadn't seen any art yet, we decided to head to the Uffizi Gallery bright and early. We were some of the first people inside, so it wasn't crowded and I was able to take them all around the gallery. Since I've visited the Uffizi with two of my classes, I'm familiar with some of the artwork and I was able to share my knowledge with them which was really exciting. I felt like the teacher for once! After the Uffizi, we did some shopping on the other side of the Ponte Vecchio and met up with Jade and Katie for lunch at our favorite pizza place in Florence. My mom and Mag had pizza one other time on the trip up until this point, and it was horrible, so i was hoping that Gustapizza would make up for it! I know that they weren't disappointed because they finished every bite of their pizzas! They both agreed it was one of the best pizzas they had ever had. The guys working at Gusta loved my mom, so I'm pretty sure that's why they decided to make our pizzas in the shape of a heart instead of a traditional circle. We all ordered the Gustapizza which was topped with arugula, mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, and parmesan! It was to die for. It definitely hit the spot to eat a warm pizza on a cold and rainy day. Besides the amazing pizza, the environment at Gustapizza is great and the people who work there are so much fun!
Sadly, my mom & Maggie's visit to Florence has come to an end. I had to say goodbye to them a little bit ago and it definitely made me sad. This week went by so quickly and I can hardly believe it is already over. Now, they are off to see Rome and I'm off to Paris & London for fall break. This visit couldn't have come at a better time because I've reached the halfway point of my semester abroad and I really needed a little time with my mom! I am so grateful that my dad was able to watch Skyler and let my mom make this trip to come and see me in Italy. I am also appreciative that my mom has a friend like Maggie who will take a trip to Italy with her and help her plan everything. I know that they have had so much fun being together, which makes me so happy.
I can't believe how fast this abroad experience is flying by. I feel like just yesterday that I was counting down the days until my mom got here and now her trip is already over. November is a busy month of travel for me...& I'm looking forward to every second of it!
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