Abe's Adventures in Florence

Arrivederci, Italy

2009-05-08T09:00:00.000-07:00

My time in Italy has now come to an end. Thanks for reading this blog, and you can continue to follow my frequent writings at Movies with Abe and TV with Abe. While I'm on my flight home, reminisce with me below as I take one last walk through NYU's campus, Villa La Pietra.

Favorites of Florence: Places in Italy

2009-05-07T15:00:00.000-07:00

My time in Florence is quickly coming to an end, with only one day in this city left. For my last week, I’d like to focus on some of the best things Italy has to offer. Today let’s take a look at my five favorite places in Italy, in descending order.

Lucca
This city in Tuscany is a remarkably peaceful and quiet town with barely any visible life to it, at least on the Sunday I visited. It is famous for the staggering number of churches and its city walls, and I just found it completely enjoyable. I had a very positive experience at the restaurant and the gelateria I went to. It’s like a calmer version of Florence, with the same kind of pacing but nothing that really needs to be done. I’m not sure how long I’d love to be there, but my day-long visit was quite appropriate.

Amalfi
This town was my favorite part of the coast of the same name. Sorrento, Positano, and Pompeii were all cool, but Amalfi was really fun. The small town center has so much robust life to it, and all the shops and restaurants open out into the street. It’s a perfect vacation spot that doesn’t feel too trite or touristy. The food, gelato, and souvenirs it offers are supplemented by an incredible view of the water and the coast.

Rome
This legendary city is bustling with energy, and its vastness makes me feel like I could go back a number of times and find more to discover each time. It’s an ideal Italian city because it doubles as a living museum of ancient empires, with its countless monuments and historical context, and a current functioning (slightly) metropolitan city. The sights are all worth it, and when I return, I’d like to go when the weather’s warm, and I can just walk through the streets and experience the memento parts while inhabiting the living ones.

Venice
Venice is a truly unique city for the obvious reason that it’s a city built on water. The lack of cars and traffic is a really special phenomenon, and I loved it. The city’s waterways are dazzling and a city built on walking is completely incredible. The water buses are quite cool, and provide a nice, quicker alternative to weaving your way through the winding roads connected by bridges. The museums and Murano glass don’t hurt its impressiveness either.

Cinque Terre
This is actually five places, and I only made it to three, but I was stunned and overwhelmed already by the first glimpse I saw of the first town. If Lucca seems relaxing, the Cinque Terre (five lands) are at least a hundred times more so. The coastal view rivals and probably beats the Amalfi Coast, and the atmosphere is just completely serene. The sciachetra raisin wine is delicious. I’m not sure if anything gets done there, but it’s quite possibly the most relaxing place on earth.

I’m leaving Florence tomorrow, but there’s still an extremely exciting post coming up! Check back for the final post of this blog! You won’t want to miss it!

Favorites of Florence: Restaurants

2009-05-06T15:00:00.000-07:00

My time in Florence is quickly coming to an end, with a mere two days in this city left. For my last week, I’d like to focus on some of the best things Italy has to offer. Today let’s take a look at the best restaurants I’ve been to in Florence.

Honorable Mention:

La Giostra
This one is a runner-up only because I tried it for the first time so late (three nights ago), and while my first experience was wondrous, I can’t officially endorse this restaurant since I’ve only been once. The food was delicious, but a big part of it is the experience. Moments after Zandi, Blair, and I sat down, they poured us each a glass of champagne and had water on the table before we even opened our menus. This very fancy, classy place brought us a plate of free appetizers, including bruschetta, eggplant, and a number of additional delicacies. For my main course, I ordered the highly buzzed-about pear ravioli, which also contains pecorino cheese and nuts. The aura of the restaurant is terrific, and the food is just as good. It’s a bit expensive, sure, but if I was here a few more days, I’d definitely check it out again.

My Top Five Restaurants in Florence (in descending order)

Trattoria da Benvenuto
This place was recommended to me by my parents, who ate here over twenty years ago when they visited Florence. It has a very nice interior, and the tables are rather fancy, even though prices are really very inexpensive. This is one of the only restaurants where I actually order a secondo (second course, usually meat or fish) instead of a primo (first course, usually pasta). I went here first for Lara, and then returned this week with Drew and Nicole. The first time, it was great; the second time, it was absolutely incredible. The veal cutlet is simply delicious, and I’ve heard reports that the pasta with rabbit sauce is also quite good. You wouldn’t necessarily come across this place in the more touristy areas, so if you’re in Florence, head towards the Palazzo Vecchio, turn on Via dei Neri, and make sure to stop at this one.

Amor del Vino
This one was an especially pleasant surprise because it’s located in an entirely touristy area, right outside the Mercato Centrale, where most of the restaurants are overpriced and not so terrific. Amor del Vino, located right across the piazza from the overrated Zaza’s, has not one but two wonderful options for seating, outside in the tent area or inside in the nice little dining room. I’ve tried both areas, and they’re equally great. The food options are hardly expensive, and there’s no cover charge. Regarding foods, I can highly recommend the penne al salmone, tagliatelle ai funghi porcini, and the ravioli rose, though I’m sure everything’s really good.

Acqua al Due
This is the first place that was recommended to me upon arriving in Florence, though it can’t necessarily be called Italian. There’s another restaurant in San Diego, but that doesn’t mean this isn’t fully worth the experience. It’s the only place where I’ve ordered both a primo and a secondo, and both were amazing. This is one of the few places in Italy you can find penne alla vodka (actually maccheroni, but no matter), and Drew is particularly fond of a dish heavy with egg. The two main courses that have catapulted this place to fame are the bistecca al mirtillo (blueberry steak) and the bistecca al balsamico (balsamic steak). Everyone has their own particular preference, but I still love the blueberry. You’ll end up spending a bit of money, but you get a lot of food. If you’d prefer to try a lot of things, they have pasta, steak, and dessert samplers that I’ve heard are legendary. Make a reservation, tourists like this one!

Caffe Italiano
I realize the name isn’t terribly original or specific, but that doesn’t mean anything. Dan cites this as the best pizza in all of Tuscany. The restaurant is pretty small, and you may have to wait a while for a table for two. It’s well worth it, though. There are only three options on the menu – margherita, marinara, and napoletana. The chef there sits down and makes all the pizzas by hand, and then throws them in the oven. Usually, you can watch him make it, and it’s really cool. Most importantly, the pizza is truly spectacular. You can find this one on Via della Condotta, right past Via Della Vigna Vecchia, where Acqua al Due is located.

La Ghiotta
I discovered this one by chance with Blair one night as we were strolling along looking for a nice place to eat. I’ve been back at least ten times, and I’m going there tonight, in fact. In addition to good, friendly service, something unusual in Italy, they have dishes with any kind of pasta and any kind of sauce for a mere €5 or €6. Pizzas are 4 or 5 euro, and they also have great vegetables, according to Blair. There’s no cover charge, and you can even get a quarter liter of wine for €1,50. The low price doesn’t mean anything less in terms of quality of food; it’s still possibly the best penne ai funghi porcini I’ve found. This one’s on Villa Pietra Piana right near the dead-end of Via degli Alfani. You don’t even need a reservation most of the time.

Two more posts left – I’ll definitely have to take a look at my favorite places in Italy.

I Climbed the Duomo!

2009-05-05T14:25:00.001-07:00

After being in Florence for nearly four months, I finally climbed the Duomo! This magnificent structure with a dazzling interior has an incredible winding staircase to the top, with about 460 steps on the way. Tragically, I forgot my camera, but thankfully, new friend Seta Bairimian was kind enough to let me use hers, and therefore I have a number of exciting photos to share with you! First of all, climb with me up the stairs, passing slight previews of the view along the way, and looking up at the dome and down at the cathedral itself.

We’ve reached the top! Look at the fantastic view! We even tried to find the NYU campus, which is hidden somewhere in those green patches in the distance. Otherwise, the city looks pretty wonderful from this height! See for yourself!

A few more posts left, you won't want to miss them!

Favorites of Florence: Gelaterias

2009-05-04T14:46:00.001-07:00

My time in Florence is quickly coming to an end, with a mere four days in this city left. For my last week, I’d like to focus on some of the best things Italy has to offer. Today let’s take a look at where you can find the best gelato in Florence!

I’m a man of consistency, and therefore once I find somewhere I really like, I’m bound to return. I stray away from the not-so-great chain Very Goo (there may or may not be a “d” on the end, but it’s been spray-painted over on every sign I’ve seen), and I only went to Grom once, and it was so-so, plus they have it in New York. Nonetheless, I have managed to find some great spots. In fact, two of my most recent finds have been so completely reliable and excellent that I’ve been back to each sometimes two or three days in a row in the past few weeks. There are tons of great gelato places in Florence, but here are the five that I’ve returned to deliberately on multiple occasions, in descending order.

Gelateria dei Neri
Roommate and peer advisor Dan Cavagnaro actually took me and my other roommate, David Zandi, to this place after our trip to one of my favorite restaurants in Florence (you’ll find out about that in a couple of days). It’s a really nice-looking place, and I like the very friendly manner in which the employees greet and serve customers. The tiramisu gelato there looks incredible, and the chocolate flavors, especially the chocolate mousse, are very tasty. They even put a little waffle crisp in the cup. This was one of my first gelato experiences in Florence, and I’ve since found some places with a more diverse collection of flavors, but I’ll still remember this one as my introduction to gelato in Italy, and a place that I got lost trying to find and coming back from at least four times.

Vivoli
This is listed in guidebooks as the best gelateria in Florence, if not Italy. It’s actually located about ten blocks down the street from me, and the first time I went was actually a Borgo Pinti (my residence) official event. The sole attendees were me and Zandi, and so we accompanied Dan, residence hall manager Daniele, and housing administrator Antonello for our free trip to gelato. Since there were so few of us, they allowed me to get a super-sized 5 euro cup with several flavors, including cinnamon (which I don’t think they have anymore) and banana. It wasn’t quite the splendid insane goodness it was made out to be, but it was still a cool experience. If ever you’re going – make sure you go early, since it’s been closed nine out of ten times I’ve tried to go.

Le Parigine
This gelataria, located on Via dei Servi, is an interesting case for several reasons. First off, it’s the only one I’ve been to where you actually can’t see the gelato because it’s contained under the surface of the table. It’s also currently the only gelato place in Florence that reliably has cinnamon gelato, and it’s really good. The big attraction, which I tried but didn’t quite get the full experience of, is some sort of hot chocolate with gelato mixed in. I tried ordering it once, but I think they misunderstood and just gave me hot chocolate minus the ice cream. Regardless, the excitement of the cinnamon is pretty much worth the trip, and it’s located only seconds away from the Duomo, therefore easily accessible wherever you’re headed.

Festival del Gelato
There’s no place I’ve been to quite as “decked out” as Festival del Gelato, located right next to Piazza della Reppublica.. As you can see from the above photo, its sign is quite colorful and the lights inside are pretty bright. It’s always really crowded, and I actually have one friend who left once without getting anything because no one catered to her because the place was so abuzz with customers. I’ve always had positive experiences there, and another friend has successfully tried several flavors, a practice prohibited at many gelaterias. The flavors this place has, however, are the real delight. Green apple, rose, peach, kiwi, and my favorite macedonia are the real highlights. If ever you go there, sample something, and then get one flavor you know you’ll like and another you just want to try. It’s well worth it.

Corona’s Café
The name makes it sound sort of shady or sleazy, but it’s absolutely not. It’s an open area that looks right out towards Piazza della Reppublica, and it’s actually just around the corner from Festival del Gelato. Those with more sensitive wallets fear because the cheapest size costs a hefty €2,80 but it’s an enormous amount of gelato for your money. I’ve been there literally three or four out of the past five days, because it’s just so delicious. Try the blueberry if you want, because it looks delicious, but I’d recommend instead the mousse di yogurt con arancia e pesca (yogurt mousse with orange and peach). Strange, I know, but interesting and tasty. I’ve fallen for the dark chocolate-banana combo, and ordered that every time I’ve been there this week. This is the place to have banana gelato.

In the spirit of food, I’ll probably have to look at my favorite restaurants in Italy next!

Favorites of Florence: Gelato Flavors

2009-05-03T13:55:00.000-07:00

My time in Florence is quickly coming to an end, with a mere four days in this city left. For my last week, I’d like to focus on some of the best things Italy has to offer, beginning with my favorite gelato flavors.

Honorable mentions:

Popcorn
This very odd idea for a gelato flavor works one hundred times better than the similar Jelly Belly experiment. I’ve only found it at one place (in Sorrento), but it merits a mention because it was so much better than it could or should have been.

Cioccolato Fondente
Dark chocolate is a particularly tasty flavor, and in my opinion much better than similar tastes like traditional chocolate and stracciatella (chocolate chip). I definitely prefer the fruit flavors here, but if you’re going to go for something more like American ice cream, your best bet is dark chocolate.

Tiramisu
This has been, for the entire semester, the best flavor for me to try at nearly every place I’ve been to. I don’t actually like coffee, and therefore tiramisu itself doesn’t quite appeal to me. Once I taste the coffee, I’m done. Up until then, however, it’s marvelously delicious. At one place, Gelateria dei Neri, the tiramisu looks particularly incredible, and that first sample is just as good.

My Top Five Gelato Flavors in Florence (in descending order)

Pesca
Peach is a relatively new addition to my repertoire of frequently-consumed gelatos. Fruit flavors here in Florence are delicious, and really taste like the fruits themselves. While I might be up for eating a real strawberry, blueberry, or apricot, I don’t find the gelato to be as delectable. Peach, on the other hand, is a great balance between tartness and juiciness. Since discovering it, I’ve ordered it almost every time at gelateria Festival del Gelato.

Cannella
Cinnamon is a bit of a strange flavor, but it’s absolutely worthwhile. It’s very strong but a good surprise, especially among the flurry of fruit flavors I usually consume. I’ve found it at two or three places, and each time, I’ve been slightly worried by the first stinging sensation on my tongue, but it’s ultimately pretty delicious, and goes well with my favorite flavor, which you’ll learn about below.

Macedonia
The Italian term for fruit salad is dominated, when I’ve had it at least, by watermelon and strawberry flavors. As I mentioned above, fruit-flavored gelatos are excellent, especially if you love the fruits themselves, and so what could be better then combining them all into one? It’s a bit alarming if you suddenly taste kiwi or green apple, but the refreshingly full taste is worth the risk.

Melon
One of my first days in Italy, I decided to try this odd cantaloupe flavor. Fortunately, it was one of the best decisions of my trip. Cantaloupe, when it’s really fresh and if you stay far enough away from the rind, can taste really juicy and good, and that’s what melon gelato is like. Sometimes it tastes a bit too sorbet-like, but generally it’s been the most reliable flavor I’ve found.

…and my number one gelato flavor…

Banana!
I really do love bananas, and I had already sample banana ice cream back in the United States. Banana is a tricky flavor since it can be wonderfully delicious but also rather blah at times. I’ve heard a theory that banana gelato is only good if it’s white, and that yellow gelato is a sign of poor mixing and bitter taste. I haven’t found that to be true, since some white banana gelatos have been so-so and yellow banana gelato from the bowling alley I went to was fine. When I do find the good banana, it’s really, really, really good. There’s a place I’ve recently found, Corona’s Café, where the banana is incredible, and I think I may get it several more times before I go.

Up next…we’ll see. Gelaterias, perhaps? Stay with me in the final week of this blog!

The Amalfi Coast

2009-05-02T18:00:00.000-07:00

For my final weekend trip in Italy, I signed up for a EuroAdventures excursion to the Amalfi Coast. EuroAdventures runs organized trips for college students to places like the French Riviera and Greece which includes transportation and lodging. Laura Schneebaum had been interested in the location and picked this specific trip because someone else recommended the itinerary over the same outing run by Florence for Fun. Laura, Alana, and I headed to Santa Maria Novella, the train station in Florence, at around 6pm on Thursday evening to board the bus for the long journey. My first surprise was by the bus when I ran into former Holliston High School classmate Catherine Shaw, who is studying in Florence this semester as well and had signed up for the same trip. Quite the coincidence! Later on in the trip, I also ran into and recognized the roommate of another former Holliston High School classmate, Cortney Nadolney, who I had met when I had dinner at her apartment a month or so ago. Returning to this trip, we left Santa Maria Novella at about 6:15pm, and because we made only one stop along the Autostrada, we arrived in Sorrento, near Naples, at around 1:15am. Our highway bus traveling and stopping at the Autogrill on the side of the road was very odd and unlike Italy so far, reminiscent of being back at home and driving long stretches of highway (though never quite this long). The American movies, which went from horrible to decent (starting with the unbelievably dismal "Grandma's Boy" and ending with "The Bourne Ultimatum), also reminded me that we were traveling with Americans. Once we arrived at our destination, we checked into our bungalows, which were basically cabins. We had two additional roommates, Stephanie and Lisa, who were both quite nice. Since the hour was very late, we went right to sleep to prepare for our next day.

EuroAdventures doesn’t actually plan much for its participants beyond a suggested itinerary for the weekend. We opted not to go to Capri and see the Blue Grotto, but instead to try to fit in two places on Friday since we weren’t going to be traveling on Shabbat. Laura, Alana, and I left in the morning to walk to the train station, and boarded a bus to the town of Amalfi. We planned to take the bus all the way to Amalfi, and stop at Positano on the way back, since it was halfway in between Amalfi and Sorrento. The bus was a unique and devastatingly nauseating experience. It’s basically like winding up and down a mountain for an hour and a half, and the roads are ridiculously thin. The bus honks like crazy as it comes around a corner, and at least twice we could almost touch people on another bus because both buses tried to occupy the road at the same time. At one point, we even stopped for about fifteen to twenty minutes since the road up ahead was closed. I never found out why it was closed, but I heard some people say that it’s closed regularly for fifteen minutes at a time so that falling rocks can be cleared away. It was a needed stop, however, because we were all ready to throw up. Once we got moving again, we only had about twenty minutes left on our trip. We were dazzled by the view once we got to Amalfi (just wait until you scroll down to see the pictures), and were relieved to find out that a ferry boat services operates in between Amalfi and Positano and that we wouldn’t have to brave the entire hour and a half rollercoaster ride back. Amalfi was a really cute and charming town, and very picturesque. We walked through the streets on this really nice day (heavy rain had of course been predicted), and stopped into a number of delightful souvenir shops. One shop owner was thrilled to hear me speak to him in Italian despite my being a tourist, and engaged me in conversation for a moment. We sat down to a great lunch of pasta with fresh salmon and traversed the town for about an hour or so. We arrived back to the port early, so we sat for a while and took some great pictures. Below you’ll find snapshots of the odd bus intermission, the town of Amalfi, the super-cool convertible tour bus, the view from the port, and photos from the ferry ride over to Positano.

The ferry ride to Positano was about half the length of the bus ride would have been from Amalfi, which was great, and also lacked the motion sickness. Our first sight upon coming into Positano was of the beach on this wonderfully sunny day. After getting a coffee and a pastry for Alana, we laid down on the beach for a bit, which was absolutely great. We weren’t in Positano for terribly long because the buses only ran ever hour or so, but we did see a lot of Positano on our walk to the bus stop, which everyone seemed to tell us was in different directions. We stopped for some gelato and to purchase some much-needed water bottles, and waited at the bus stop overlooking the coast. I took a lot of pictures, and I hope you’ll agree that these are some incredible views.

We got back to Sorrento at around 6:30pm, and I was excited to find a carton of ACE (the fantastic orange-carrot-lemon drink) at the small market on the way back to our bungalow. We had a relaxed evening with a meal of turkey, turkey-pastrami, pickles, and other side dishes and found ourselves all exhausted from all the sun and the walking. The cabin was a decent place to stay, but it was absolutely freezing every morning. We got up late and grabbed our towels, bathing suits, and suntan lotion and walked down to the town. We found a small but nice beach and laid down on our towels in the sun for a serene fifteen minutes, at which point the Navy came and made us leave, directing us to the free beach. We followed some Italian kids to the very unclean, tiny free beach with not a hint of sun. We set out for greener pastures and found ourselves at the port, where we had a light lunch. We sat for a long time, relocating to a different section of the port no less than three times as huge, threatening boats coming from Naples threatened to take us out as they docked. It was a very relaxing afternoon, and the weather was really perfect. We returned to the free beach, and I made an ill-advised foray into the water for about thirty seconds, during which time I froze completely. I did manage to air dry quickly so that I wouldn’t need to get my towel wet or dirty. We hadn’t brought quite enough water with is, so we went back to our room. Laura and I sat outside on our porch and played several very intense games of Bananagrams. In the early evening, our roommates returned and told us of their adventures in Positano and Amalfi and demonstrated the excessive amounts of sun they got. Laura, Alana, and I “hit the town” for dinner and found some very nice outdoor seating a restaurant near the center called Sodil Dominova. I had a nice ravioli caprese dish, and we enjoyed some music and watched one table get very into the atmosphere, with one couple even getting up and dancing for a moment. We strolled back towards the center, and found a gelateria where Alana purchased her first gelato in Italy and I found a unique flavor which was much better than I could ever have expected: popcorn. It was weird, especially with a few popped kernels inside, but I actually thought it tasted good. We walked back up to our bungalow, and made plans with Lisa and Stephanie for the next day. We got up in the morning and they brought us to a very pleasant café where we all got coffee or hot chocolate, and then we went to the train station for that day’s excursion. But first, some photos of where we stayed, Sorrento at night, and the bar, ending with our row of beverages.

Sunday was reserved for the ancient city of Pompeii, which was preserved by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius and excavated in recent years. We took a train, not a bus, which was a relief, to Pompeii, and realized we were among a huge number of tourists. The great thing about the specific date of this trip was that it fell on the last Sunday of the month, where museums are free. Instead of the 11 euro entrance free, we went for a tour guide for 10 euro. Michele had a lot to say, and told us a lot about the ruins. We walked for about two hours, stopping often to hear stories about how civilization used to work and what all these remnants used to be. We saw the roads, and even went into a home. Michele ended the tour by showing us where hot wine and other beverages used to be made, and directed us to a former brothel on the way out. It wasn’t terribly exciting, and we waited in line behind people to see some grand sight that turned out just to be an unimpressive toilet seat. I hit my head while leaning it to see it, and worried that the ceiling might do permanent damage. Luckily, it wasn’t a problem. Exiting the ancient city, we found ourselves near a pizzeria where the manager offered to waive the cover and service charge. The pizza was great, and I ran into fellow Florentine study abroad student Cory Weiss. We shopped for a bit in the surrounding area before heading back to catch the return train to Sorrento. I took hundreds of pictures from Pompeii, and I whittled the number down to about fifty below.

We made it back to our bungalow for the last time and, after a long wait, boarded the bus. We left on time but hit a lot of traffic on the way back, making the journey, interrupted again by only one stop, take a little over eight hours. It was great to see this area of Italy that’s a bit farther away, and it was definitely an incredibly beautiful place. For my final week and a half in Italy, I’ll be exploring some restaurants and locations in Florence before returning to the United States this coming Friday. I’ll post some final thoughts in the coming week!

Trip to Berlin

2009-04-30T12:00:00.000-07:00

My good friend and roommate Sam Kessler Gilbride, known to many as Tall Sam due to his towering stature, signed up for NYU’s pilot study abroad program in Tel Aviv this fall semester. In the second week of January, his program was cancelled due to security issues and, I believe, low enrollment. As a result, Sam headed to Berlin for the semester. As a result of this, I was able to make an unplanned visit to Germany.

My flight from Florence was quite a cool adventure. I had an hour-long layover in Frankfurt before my second flight to Berlin on Lufthansa Airlines. Air travel from Florence doesn’t exactly operate on schedule when the threat of rain exists, so my flight (which roommate David Zandi, on his way to Prague, happened to be on as well), was delayed by forty minutes. To this point, I hadn’t yet experienced paper-thin layover times, and therefore was somewhat worried about making my connecting flight. Fortunately, employees of the Frankfurt airport picked me and several other passengers up on a shuttle bus to take us to our next flights. I ran into the gate for a second and showed my boarding pass before boarding the plane, which promptly took off. I was delighted to be ferried so officially, and all the Germans along the way were quite friendly.

I arrived at about 11pm, and took a bus and a cab to Sam’s address, where, despite some cell phone connection issues, I met up with him. He lives in a nice apartment building on Adalbertstrasse (unpronounceable by me) with a roommate. On Friday morning, we got up and spent the day walking around Berlin. I snapped a number of photos, and I’ve collected about 35 of them and posted them below. Among the sights I saw were the Reichstag, the Brandenburg gate, and the Holocaust memorial for the Jews who were killed. The weather was nice, and it was cool to see the city. Sam is quite interested in history and made for a terrific tour guide, telling me all about what we were seeing and pointing out the remnants of the Berlin Wall. That evening, we went to a synagogue where I got my first taste of Jewish life in Berlin. The services were slightly more energetic than in Italy, though the tunes were similarly hard to sing along to. We dined that evening at Sam’s friend Yehoshua’s apartment. He was quite hospitable and the food and environment were great. He’s fluent in German, English, and French, and works as a doctor. We had many interesting conversations, and finished off the meal with lots of singing with interesting German tunes. As I might have assumed, I was offered alcohol at the end of the meal, and elected to have something light and sweet. My drink was a blueberry liqueur which I found fairly strong, Sam’s was a Scotch of some sort, and Yehoshua had an “advanced drink,” which was a pepper Vodka. We stayed pretty late, and returned to Sam’s apartment to head right to sleep before getting up the next morning for services. At the synagogue, one of the members came over and attempted to speak to me in German. I requested an English speaker and was asked by someone else to lead Shir HaKavod, also known as Anim Zemirot. I accepted, and was surprised to find laughter emanating from the congregation when they were responding during the prayer. Apparently in Germany they sing very slowly and melodically, and my joyful, exuberant singing was interpreted as American rushing. My aliyah to the Torah was also deemed quite speedy. The services were followed by a terrific Kiddush with lox (!), and we proceeded back to Yehoshua’s apartment for lunch, and remained for a while reading some of his books that afternoon. Later on, we hung out with Sam’s roommates until Shabbat ended, at which point we found a pleasant Mexican restaurant with a British waiter and some delicious food. Sunday morning, prior to my departure, we took the Berlin subway to the bus station, where I ate a great omelet. My time in Berlin was well spent, and I hadn’t even planed on going before the semester, therefore I consider it all a great bonus. I’m happy to share all these pictures below, so please enjoy them! Coming up next, I’ll be blogging about my final trip from Florence, to the Amalfi Coast! Check back later this week for that!

Passover in Israel

2009-04-28T12:00:00.000-07:00

Back in February, I decided that I wanted to go to Israel for Passover, regardless of what my plans there might end up being. Less than a week before my trip, everything came together. I flew with Alana, Ilana, and Leora, and we luckily went for a last-minute flight change to avoid unbearably long layovers in both directions in Athens. We decided instead to fly direct on El-Al from Rome to Tel Aviv. Getting there was quite a lengthy process, which began with a train ride from Florence to Rome, and then the Leonardo Express direct train to the airport. Once we arrived, we had to head to a special terminal (Terminal 5) where the airlines that fly to Israel operate a very intimidating security check far from the rest of the airport. It was very much like a warehouse, and we arrived about forty-five minutes before we could check in. Once check-in started, we were each questioned extensively about our motivations for going to Israel and tested on our ability to answer questions quickly without seeming suspicious. Our bags were also dusted and tested for bomb residue. Once we checked our bags and made it through security, we entered into a bleak waiting area which we thought we would have to occupy until the departure of our flight. Fortunately, we were mistaken, and soon boarded a shuttle bus to the main terminal to be mixed back in with the general populace. Our flight was delayed about an hour to somewhere like 10:45pm. Boarding the plane, I noticed a sign that said “this aircraft has been Kashered for Passover,” which I thought was really cool. On the flight, they served us surprisingly decent food (beef or chicken, I clearly chose beef) and offered the option of matzah on the side if anyone wanted it. We landed in Tel Aviv at around 2:30am, and after passing through customs, I found a comfortable spot in the airport and forced the wrong adapter into the wall plug in order to watch TV on my iPod for the next few hours. Once the sun came up around 7am, I set out for my destination.

I found the first of two buses I needed to talk to get to the nearby town of Hod-Hasharon, and waited outside Tel Aviv for about 45 minutes for my next bus. The drivers in Israel are evidently crazy, but I still wasn’t prepared for the bus drivers who sell people tickets while they’re zipping down the road instead of giving them their change before they start driving again. The bus ride was fine, but I tragically missed my stop in the center of Hod-Hasharon and ended up at the bottom of a big hill that I walked back up while communicating with my hosts the Shilors, who are relatives of Rabbi Liben, the Rabbi at my home synagogue, Temple Israel of Natick. Soon enough, they found me, and we stopped to pick up some delicious-looking strawberries before returning to their home, where I promptly took a nap. When I woke up, I snapped some pictures of the incredible view from their porch:

In the afternoon, I went out with the two Shilor daughters, Inbal and Michal, to a restaurant where I ordered my last pasta dish before Passover, which had a nice rose sauce that isn’t very common in Florence, as well as a delicious glass of chocolate milk, which is something I haven’t had in a while. I aided in the setup of the seder table, and spent time speaking to some of the arriving guests, including Jonah, the Rabbi’s son who is my age and is spending his semester at Ben-Gurion University. Also attending the seder was Jonah’s grandmother and the family of the Rabbi’s oldest son, Micah. Micah is in Israel for the year studying at rabbinical school with his wife Deborah and their newborn son, Dov (equipped with a bib that said "My First Passover"). Deborah’s parents were visiting them, so they were present too. The seder itself, which began at about 6:30pm or 7pm, was really great. I have been home in Holliston every single year of my life for Passover up until now, and usually we go to the Libens’ home for the first seder. This year, their group was actually quite small, composed of almost as many members of my family (my parents, sister, and grandparents) as of the Liben family themselves. Almost everyone at the Shilors’ seder, with few exceptions including newborn Dov, was at the Libens’ seder last year. Therefore, this seder was very similar in tone, feeling, and energy, which I really enjoyed. Micah led the seder, and the usually lengthy Maggid section wasn’t nearly as long as it typically is, so it was a fairly quick (approximately five hours) seder which was enjoyable and full of lots of singing. This was also a vegetarian seder, a fact which had me slightly worried, but everything turned out to be perfectly delicious. The food was totally and completely excellent.

The following morning was immensely relaxed, filled with a casual brunch, outdoor afternoon meal, cards, Scrabble, and Connect Four. In the evening, I left with Jonah and Michal to head to the bus station to meet up with lifelong friend Elyse, who’s studying for the semester in Haifa and was at a seder in the neighboring town of Kfar Saba. We took a bus to Jerusalem and a subsequent cab to Hebrew University, where similarly lifelong friend Miriam welcomed us to her dorm room. Miriam made some scrumptious matzah pizza for us, and it was pretty late by that point, so we took advantage of the late hour to Skype into our respective seders back home. I was able to lead Kiddush for the attendees of the seder at my house, and then Miriam’s parents got very excited by the fact that they could communicate with this seder two towns over via Jerusalem. The connection was lost shortly after that, but here’s a fun photo courtesy of my family:

The next morning, we left Miriam’s room to head into Jerusalem. Miriam went to Poland for the latter half of Passover, and she was headed to Netanya beforehand to meet up with fellow travelers. Before she departed, we went to a Kosher for Passover restaurant called Joy on Emek Refaim. This was my first time going to a restaurant during Passover, and it was a really cool experience. They served matzah on the tables instead of bread, and had a full menu. I ordered the special of the day, a T-bone which proved to be incredibly expensive but well worth it in terms of deliciousness. We parted ways with Miriam and found our way to the home of Ken and Paula Arbit, who are cousins of friends from our synagogue. We spent the rest of the afternoon walking around Emek Refaim and finding Kosher for Passover gelato from Max Brenner ad Ben and Jerry’s ice cream. We even found the Mount Zion Hotel where we stayed the previous time Elyse and I were in Jerusalem, as well as Shira Hadasha, one of the synagogues we went to and liked.

We returned to the Arbits’ home before Shabbat. They brought us to their synagogue, Yedidya, for Friday evening services. We returned back to their home for a very pleasant meal, which was also vegetarian but equally terrific. The Arbits were very wonderful and hospitable. The next morning, Elyse and I decided to walk to the Kotel (Western Wall). It was nice to be there on a Saturday morning, even if all the various services were at different points and it wasn’t quite so easy to join in with any one minyan, but I did manage to intersect with one of them during Hallel, which was very nice. Walking back to Emek Refaim, we spent the rest of the morning at Shira Hadasha, which was really great. I even ran into Rabbi Dan Smokler, who works at the Bronfman Center at NYU. We had a great lunch at the Arbits’, and a relaxing afternoon followed by afternoon and evening services at the nearby Nitzanim synagogue. After Shabbat ended, the Arbits were kind enough to drive us to the bus station so that we could hop on a bus back to Haifa and make it there before midnight. On Sunday morning, Elyse, her friend Debby, and I went into Haifa to head to the beach, which was incredibly nice and relaxing. We made a stop at Burger Ranch, where I enjoyed a delicious hamburger and fries. An interesting stop along our way was the supermarket, where aisles with hametz (non-Kosher-for-Passover items) are covered up. It’s quite a sight. A few pictures of the day, followed by a few shots of Haifa in the early evening from near the University campus:

I had a flight extremely early the next morning, so after a quick nap, Elyse and I had some salmon and matzah pizza. I took a cab to the airport and jumped on a train to the airport, where I spent about four hours hanging out before my flight back to Rome. While I was waiting, I got another hamburger and fries from the Kosher McDonald’s in the airport, which was great. I didn’t spend too much time in Israel, but I’m happy that I made it to Hod Hasharon, Jerusalem, and Haifa all in one trip and got to see a decent amount of each of them. I had originally planned to study abroad in Jerusalem this semester, so I’m glad that even though I was elsewhere, I got a chance to visit anyway. I’m sure I’ll go back sometime soon.

My time left in Florence is extremely limited at this point, but I still have tales of Berlin and the Amalfi Coast to recount! Keep on checking back this week for more tales and pictures!

Assorted Adventures in April

2009-04-26T14:00:00.000-07:00

The first week of April (along with the last two weeks of March) was full of exciting little trips within and outside of Florence. The flurry of activities is probably best described in photo journal format, but I’ll insert some commentary and captions.

Immediately following Lara’s departure, I set out on a day trip with Drew and Nicole to the nearby town of San Gimignano. We took a train to the nearby town of Poggibonsi, where we waited about an hour for a bus to continue on our journey. Luckily, vicino al (right near) the train/bus station in Poggibonsi, there was a café which offers 32 different gusti (flavors) of hot chocolate. I chose the banana hot chocolate, which was quite syrupy and rather delicious and flavorful. As soon as we arrived in San Gimignano, we headed for the highest point where we could look out at the hills in the distance. At this point, my camera tragically died. Drew and Nicole did take some good pictures, and I’ve selected a few for this post, below. We spent the rather chilly afternoon walking around the small, extremely low-key town and looking out at the incredible views. We stopped for lunch at a small restaurant “off the beaten path” and had an authentic Italian experienced devoid of any English conversation ordering and consuming our pasta dishes. After walking along the city walls, Drew and I climbed up a tower. San Gimignano is a nice place to visit, but hardly a terribly exciting one, and it was an especially cold day. Regardless, we had a nice trip back, during which time I stopped once again at the 32 gusti hot chocolate place and once again ordered the banana hot chocolate. This time it was hardly as syrupy but still just as good, despite the fact that I burnt my mouth quite a bit in my excitement to drink it. The day wasn’t over once we got back to Florence. We joined forces with David, Ellie, and visiting NYU student Mitch and headed to check out House of Sizzle, a restaurant recommended by Florence for Fun along with that delicious Angels American Brunch I love so much. Feeling hungry and seeking a large amount of food, I bravely ordered the 700-gram steak (priced per 100 grams, 700 gram minimum). It was quite large, and also pretty good. Drew did help me out with 100 grams of it so that I didn’t eat my body weight in steak. That weekend day was a good instance of a packed day full of new experiences without the necessity of traveling far away and staying anywhere overnight.

32 gusti di cioccolato caldo! Gusto di banane!

A shot from a high point in San Gimignano

Another shot from a high point in San Gimignano

One more shot from a high point in San Gimignano

Talking with Drew; hills in the background

Drew and me exploring a tower!

700 grams of steak!!

The following Thursday, I took part in two first-time experiences (that I have yet to repeat) in Florence. The OSL (Office of Student Life) organized a trip to go bowling at a (or rather, the) nearby alley. I took the bus for the first, and still as of now only, time. It was a fine experience, and after taking buses in a number of countries and cities this semester, I’m not actually as against them as I originally purported to be. The main thing for me is that I tend to get very bad headaches when I’m on buses, but I think that’s mostly relegated to stop-and-go city driving. Something to note about Italian, and for that matter European buses, is that you carry a ticket which you have to validate in order to show proof of payment for the specified ride. Most people I know who take the bus to campus daily carry around unvalidated tickets and risk 50 euro fines in order to avoid paying the 1,20 euro ticket price. I haven’t had to deal with this yet, since all of my bus and train experiences thus far have been properly validated (save for a train to Pisa, but I quickly validated mid-trip once I realized). The bowling alley itself, approximately a half hour ride away, was very much like an American bowling alley, and interestingly, cheaper than usual. 5 euro covers a game and shoe rental. The game was a lot of fun, and though I started out quite poorly, I was the first to manage a strike in my lane, and managed another strike and two spares before the end of the game. I ended up coming in second place, behind Laura’s impressive streak, which included the “turkey” of three strikes in a row. Banana gelato was also sold and consumed by me at the bowling alley, and its great taste went against the rule I’ve often heard about yellow banana gelato being far inferior to the whiter mixes. All in all, it was a good experience I wouldn’t have expected to have in Italy.

Validating my ticket on the bus for the first (and only) time!

Me, Nicole, and Laura at the bowling alley

Alicia, me, and Nicole

Bowling

Due to my attempts to catch up with my blog after falling behind, the weekend at this point in the timeline was my trip to Venice. The next weekend I opted to stay in Florence for a few days before the following two weeks of intense inter-country travel (more on that in the next blog post). Drew, Nicole, and I divided each day into different day trips. Friday we went to Arezzo, a small town about an hour away from Florence. It’s famous as actor-director Roberto Benigni’s hometown and the setting for many of the scenes in Life is Beautiful, as well as bronze statues of the mythical chimera composed of body parts of three different animals. It was a calm day where we walked through the town and took lots of pictures, and had a nice and shockingly inexpensive meal (my veal was quite scrumptious). The best part of the day was our authentic Italian experience with a woman at an antique shop who spoke no English and interacted with us completely in Italian. The conversation was fully effective, and I think that’s one of my favorite things about being in Italy. It’s nice to speak the language, and it’s even better when people actually speak it back to you.

Arezzo

View from Arezzo

Another view from Arezzo

The famed Chimera

Nicole and Me

Saturday our plans to go to Bologna were foiled by unpromising weather reports of heavy rain. Drew and Nicole actually stopped in Bologna on the way back from Venice the week before, only to find their visit dampened, quite literally, by inclement weather. We wasted no time in finding alternative plans, permitting several extra hours of sleep in the morning before beginning our day in Florence. Since I’ve been here the whole semester and still haven’t done some of the requisite touristy activities, I decided it might be good to visit the Accademia. Our handy Amici dei Musei (friends of museums) cards allowed us to skip the incredibly long line for the gallery and waltz right in (for free!) as if we had a reservation. We looked around at the paintings and of course stopped to see the famed David sculpture. Lara, in her visit several weeks earlier, was brave enough to sneak a few pictures, but as a straight-arrow rule-follower, I declined to do so. It was quite a sight though, and as many say, it’s much bigger than you might expect. Before and after the Accademia, we sought out cinnamon gelato, in the morning for Nicole and in the afternoon for Drew. In the evening, we dined at Amor del Vino, the fantastic restaurant in San Lorenzo that Lara and I had found a few weeks earlier. Most of the recent weekends I’ve spent traveling outside of Florence, but it’s clear that Florence does have a fair amount of activities to offer, and there are still things are have yet to do in this city.

Sunday morning, I made an enormous effort to eat at my beloved Angels American Brunch, and even managed to encourage Nicole to join me after I had already sat down. After a perfectly satisfying French toast meal, I met up with Laura Schneebaum and Nicole Haslett (with all these Lauras and Nicoles, it’s very easy to get confused). We had planned out a two-and-a-half hour trip to Siena, coordinated with respect to hourly train times. The train part was easy, but once we got to Siena, we wandered uphill through a deserted town for a good forty-five minutes until we saw any hint of civilization. In Siena’s defense, it was Sunday, and Palm Sunday at that, and therefore most of the residents were in church when we arrived around 3pm. Once we found people, we found a lot of people. We walked through the streets and located the Duomo, where we went inside and took a look around. After that, we got gelato and made our way to the central piazza where we sat for a bit. I got my token melon and banana flavors, and decided to be adventurous and sample the albicocca (apricot) gelato. It wasn’t for me – far too strong, but Laura and Nicole liked it quite a bit. We took the “short way” back to the train station after our brief visit, and made it just in time for our train back to Florence. It was perfect for me, because I was able to go to La Ghiotta, the very inexpensive but terrific restaurant where I go every Sunday night. I’m proud to report that this past Sunday, the waiter was able to recall what I ordered before I even said a word. I’m making a mark on Italy. It’s great. Photos from Siena, the Duomo and the main piazza:

Since then, I’ve made it to two entirely different countries, but I’ll have to save that for future posts. I’m coming home in less than two weeks, so I’ll need to really get my act together and post about those in the coming week. I’m also headed to the Amalfi Coast for my last out-of-Florence weekend adventure. Several more blog posts coming, so check back frequently!

In other exciting news, I had another Florence first – I went to go see a movie! The Odeon theatre shows movies in English on some Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. I went to go see The International with Clive Owen, which was dismally terrible. The Italian movie-going experience was interesting in that my 5 euro popcorn was great, the seats were comfortable, and the intermission at an exact moment right in the middle of a scene was abrupt but not an awful idea, in my opinion. My first “Movie with Abe” in Italy was quite successful, with five attendees plus myself, including Laura Krule, Nicole Haslett, Nicole Reddick, Drew, and Blair. Laura filmed a Minute with Abe outside the theatre, but tragically realized that she filmed it vertically rather than horizontally and it won’t be easily possible to rotate (if anyone knows how, let me know!). That Minute with Abe will become a lost artifact in time – maybe you’ll be able to buy it from eBay someday! I have two movies I’d like to try to see in the coming week, and once I’m back in the United States and finished with this blog, I’ll be returning to updating my movie and TV blogs regularly. I’m sure I’ll also have a lot of movies in the U.S. to catch up on!

For the moment though, I have less than two weeks left in Italy, and I’ll try to fit a lot in while updating you on my recent travels! Now is the time if you have any restaurant recommendations, and I’ll try to make it everywhere I can!

Celebrating belated March birthdays with cake: Laura, me, Ellie, and Zandi

Weekend in Venice

2009-04-23T18:00:00.000-07:00

My plans for the last weekend in March actually came together at the last minute. I had planned initially to go down to the Amalfi Coast, but a lack of detailed scheduling led to the decision to go to Venice instead. I traveled with Laura Krule, and we left early on Friday morning to get in as much as possible on the first day. The weather when we got there was terrific, and we dropped our bags off at the new branch of the Leonardo Hotel, where we were staying. We made a quick trip to the Jewish ghetto in order to get some food before setting out for the afternoon. In order to maximize our trip, we opted to save the museums for Sunday and explore the neighboring islands on Friday. We took the very awesome water bus to Murano, where we got to see glass being blown, which was incredibly cool. Our next stop was Burano, where all the houses are different colors. It’s quite a sight. Here a few photos to recap the exciting experience:

Laura

Me

Glass-blowing

More glass-blowing

It turned into a horse!

A second glass-blowing location

Burano

Burano again

Can you find me?

Orange!

Burano on the water
Friday evening we headed to the Jewish ghetto for services. They were very similar to the services in Florence, though the much smaller space was considerably more crowded and densely packed. Dinner was quite an experience. The local Chabad, who pray in their own space right across the ghetto from the synagogue, take over the kosher restaurant, GamGam, and offer a free Shabbat dinner for everyone and anyone who walks in. The restaurant was completely full and packed with people. Laura and I encountered a number of familiar faces and realized we were hardly the only NYU in Florence students visiting Venice that weekend. Leora was traveling with her sister Maya and her friend Tzippy, and there was an entirely different crew composed of Shayna, Jenn, Blair, and Esther. When we were being seated, I was separated from all of the NYU people because they wanted to sit males and females apart. As a result, I ended up outside sitting with all the Yeshiva boys stopping in Italy on their way home from Israel for their Passover break. It was pretty incredible sitting out on the water, especially with the energy of all the Yeshiva boys. There was so much singing and dancing around, and it was quite incredible. People actually had a hard time getting by us on the street. The food was great and eventually I meandered back inside to join with the girls, and scored some iced gelato dessert. We heard rumors that Piazza San Marco, one of the main squares in Venice, was flooded and that it was a sight worth seeing. After some encouragement and enthusiasm from certain members among our crew, we (Laura, Leora, Maya, and Tzippy) decided to head down there. It was rather cool, because they put down tables for people to walk on.

Saturday morning we got up and caught the tail end of services at the synagogue. As soon as services were over, we followed the rabbi over to the Kiddush, which was extremely lavish and entirely delicious. Laura and I ate lots of food and enjoyed all of it. The best part of the Kiddush was the rabbi leading Birkat Hamazon (grace after meals). This is a clearly respected man with a thick white beard who looks a bit like a wizard pouring all of his energy and spirituality into singing and leading the community. It was a very moving experience. Now after having eaten all of this food, we returned to GamGam for the actual lunch served by the Chabad. I managed to get a seat inside this time with all my female friends, and we met this British guy named Andrew who was finishing up three-month-long internship at the Guggenheim in Venice. We went walking with Leora, Maya, and Tzippy after lunch and ran into Andrew on the way. He showed us around and took us on a nice walk along the water. It was overcast but the weather held up for that day. After a nice, long, refreshing walk, we returned to the synagogue for afternoon services, followed once again by a lavish and more-than-filling amount of food. Once Shabbat was over, we headed back to the hotel and planned an early evening, in anticipation of daylight savings time and an early start the next day. We went to GamGam for dinner, and I had a wonderfully delicious steak.

The next morning, we checked out of our hotel and headed to the Doge’s Palace. We beat the lines and got in very quickly. This was the first time since my trip in January to Rome that I used my International Student Identity Card, but it got me a great discount that whole day. We opted for an audio guide (highly NOT recommended) and even got the experience of an angry Italian woman cursing at us when we requested our money back since the sound quality of the guide we had picked up only five minutes earlier was rather dismal. We walked through every room of the palace, and then proceeded to Venice’s other museum sights. At this point, it started to rain quite a bit, but we walked regardless through the streets of Venice. Our next stop was the Guggenheim of Venice, which I thought was really cool. I’ve seen a lot of paintings this semester, and this was a chance to see some more modern art which I found much more engaging. The last stop on our whirlwind tour was the Accademia, which we waited on line for half an hour to enter. For some odd reason, the cashier thought that we were entitled to free entry rather even than the EU student discount we didn’t think we’d get. The Accademia wasn’t nearly as exciting as we had hoped, and we covered the twenty-plus rooms in under an hour. On our way back to the area of the Jewish ghetto, we took a water bus and stopped at the Rialto for a quick photo. The water bus in the rain was pretty incredible, and I tried to get a few pictures to capture the experience.

Laura

The tables they put down in San Marco, minus the flooding

Back in the Jewish ghetto, we went to one of the two bakeries, where Laura stopped to get some pizza. The owner of the bakery was impressed when I spoke to him in Italian, and he directed us to the kosher gelato that had long eluded Laura. We found the gelato place and Laura was beyond excited. She was fully satisfied with her long-desired ice cream. We had some time before our train and I was happy to discover that I could go back to GamGam for another steak, which was equally excellent to the steak of the night before. My dining experience there was conducted completely in Italian, which was a lot of fun. That was our last activity in Venice, and we made our way quickly afterwards to the train station. I really enjoyed Venice, and I think that it is certainly one of my favorite places in Italy, alongside Rome and Cinque Terre. The city-on-water notion is quite unique, and on top of that, it’s also a beautiful city.

Lara's Adventures in Florence

2009-04-14T15:04:00.001-07:00

Note: This entry includes additional reporting from Lara, in bold.

A few short weeks ago, Lara came to visit! She arrived on a Friday morning and our afternoon was spent taking a pleasant, explorative stroll through Florence. Friday evening we went to the synagogue for services and to Chabad for dinner. It was all very nice and exciting, but the fun really got started on Saturday morning. We got up to head to Cinque Terre, five lovely towns on the coast of Italy. When our train went through a tunnel right before we arrived, Lara and I both gasped in amazement when we saw the view. Photographs don’t quite do it justice, but here are two attempts at capturing its beauty:

There are trails in between each of the towns where you can hike for five or six hours. The path in between the second and third towns is currently closed due to a landslide, but there is a train that operates in between all of the towns. We decided it would be nice to take a relaxed approach to the day, and therefore to get in as much as we could without rushing to finish it all. Our first stop was in the town of Riomaggiore, where we walked through the pleasant and serenely peaceful town. We sat down for a wonderful lunch and ordered the unpronounceable but scrumptious local raisin wine, the sciachetrà, which I recommend highly (and I’m not a wine lover at all). After purchasing some strawberries and grapes for a potential picnic, we began walking on the trail to the second town, Vernazza, which was supposed to take about 25 minutes. The path is literally right on the coast, and it’s so wonderfully pleasant and amazing. We actually stopped about two minutes in to go down on the rocks towards the water and just lie down for an hour or so. It was completely and entirely relaxing. Our picnic occurred at this point, which was perfect. Once we started up again, we got a little further along and stopped at the rest area to get an ice cream sandwich (Lara) and an almond cake (me). After we finished our little snack, we made it to the second town, which we explored until the train for the third town came. Lara had her first gelato in Italy, and I found some good gelato. The third town was fairly abandoned, but this is really the most stress-free place on earth. We purchased some raisin wine to bring back to Florence. For any who are in or ever plan to visit Italy, make sure you stop at Cinque Terre. It’s simply incredible.

Sunday morning we got up and went to Angels American Brunch, the fantastic place which Lara found online a month or two ago. My friends from Italian class, Drew and Caitlin, were both there waiting for us even though we hadn’t made official plans – they were just ready for a weekly standing brunch appointment at noon. My main course of French toast was accompanied by the massive buffet of muffins, yogurt, fruit salad, and milk. Quite delicious! We spent the afternoon apart while I was catching up on work, but reunited for another meal. For dinner, we went to Caffe Italiano, the excellent pizza place my roommate Dan introduced me too. We arrived five minutes before it opened for the evening, which was really cool since there was already a line outside the door. The moment it opened, everyone rushed in and we just sat down at a table. The waiter hadn’t yet arrived, so the pizza chef took our order before sitting down to start making pizzas. It was a very fun, truly Italian experience. We also ordered completely in Italian, since the chef does not in fact speak English. Another terrific restaurant that I highly recommend for those visiting Florence.

As Abe caught up on work, I had a fabulous afternoon exploring the streets of Florence. Not only was the entire area poetically luminous, but the people were also of the ‘classic Italian’ variety. Everyone walked around, exchanging excessive hugs and kisses and engaging in wild hand gestures. I spoke to and befriended many individuals in the street, including an Italian merchant in Piazza San Lorenzo named Stefano who, after a long conversation and a friendly hug, sold me a leather jacket for a mere 5 euros!

The next few days I was in class, so the bulk of our activities together took place in the evening. Monday afternoon, we went for a pleasant stroll over the Ponte Vecchio, getting slightly lost purposely and ending up ultimately at Acqua al Due, yet another superb restaurant in Florence. We began with some red wine and first courses of pasta, farfalle ai funghi porcini (bow tie pasta with mushrooms) for Lara and maccheroni alla vodka for me. Our main courses were the signature steak dishes, blueberry and balsamic. Somehow, we even managed room for dessert. This was my second time at Acqua al Due and I do hope to go back at least once more before I depart this country.

Each morning, I would take a stroll to the river and sit in the middle of Ponte Vecchio for 15 minutes before starting my day. My activities varied. One day brought art galleries and walking tours. Another brought lunches with family friends. My favorite ‘solo afternoon moment’ was most probably listening to a classical guitarist in the vicinity of the Ufizzi play songs that my mom plays at home on the piano.

Tuesday night we went to Chabad for the student dinner, where a number of other visiting NYU students on spring break joined us. The later evening was spent with some non-food activities, beginning with some relaxing at the NYU dorm Ricasoli and ending with Bebop, a Florentine club with a Beatles cover band. Wednesday night, we went on the search for Trattoria da Benvenuto, a restaurant my parents ate at when they were in Florence 23 years ago and where they say they had the best meat of their lives. We located it by chance on our walk (we were of course looking for it, but we just happened to come upon it, which was convenient). We ordered the veal steak and the veal chop, and both were quite good. The place was small but had a very nice aura. After dinner, we went looking for gelato, and on our travels ended up near the Palazzo Vecchio, where there was a singer performing Simon and Garfunkel songs. Once we found gelato, we sat down on a bench in Piazza Reppublica and just enjoyed the scenery and energy. Our last stop that night was The Jazz Club, which is exactly what its name suggests. It’s located only two blocks from my apartment and several fellow residents perform there regularly. Yet another fun experience.

Thursday, Lara came up to NYU’s campus and explored the gardens. After a lunch where Lara encountered the many people she knew from home and met here, we walked down Via Bolognese back towards the center of Florence. We came across a lovely park where we spent some of the afternoon until rain threatened to pour down on us. We thought we’d be adventurous that evening and try to locate the intersection of Inferno and Purgatory, two streets in Florence, where we had heard there was a really good restaurant. There were two options once we arrived, one of which had Mediterranean food, so we opted for the other. It was a truly Italian experience, which wasn’t quite as exciting as perhaps we had expected. We decided on some veal entrée, but were told that we could only order what was being made that day. We chose the roast veal, which was immediately served to us. It consisted of five relatively flavorless thin slices of veal which clearly were not great. We finished quickly because there was barely any food. We left soon after, and the disappointing, over-priced experience was made not as bad due since they forgot to charge us for the wine. In order to save the night, we wandered back a different way and returned to Piazza Reppublica and that singer near the Palazzo Vecchio. Once we made it back to San Lorenzo, where Lara was staying, we went out for a second dinner. I had heard a lot about Zaza, which is right near the Mercato Centrale. The ravioli Lara got and my tagliatelle ai funghi porcini were pretty good, but I don’t think it’s the best restaurant in that square (I’ll get to that in a moment). Overall, it was a successful night and the second dinner also consisted of some pretty terrific dessert.

Near the Ponte Vecchio

At Bebop

NYU’s campus in at La Pietra is truly magnificent. Not only is there a grand villa, but they have their own olive groves and a landscaped sculpture garden! While Abe was in class, I was given a lovely tour by Laura Krule. I can’t imagine how any of the students there manage to get work done amidst such beauty.

For Lara’s last day in Florence, we had originally planned to go to the Boboli gardens for a nice picnic. Unfortunately, the weather didn’t hold up. Regardless, we went to the Mercato Centrale and found the elusive second floor where the fruits and vegetables are sold. We bought some rock-hard bread, cheese, tomatoes, kiwis, and dried fruit, including apricots, strawberries, mango, and three different types of raisins. Since the weather wasn’t what we had hoped, we used Lara’s hotel room as a base for our picnic. I got my first real taste of the San Lorenzo market as Lara purchased souvenirs for friends from home. Hotel Giada is in a perfect location, so close to the San Lorenzo market and the Mercato Centrale. Check it out if you’re coming to Florence! Lara’s trip was concluded with our return to Amor del Vino, the restaurant in the Mercato Centrale where he had dined previously following our return from Cinque Terre. On Saturday night, we ate outside in the tent area, and Friday night we ate inside in the very nice indoor room. Both were equally lovely. Lara tried two ravioli dishes, both of which were great, and I had a delicious penne al salmone and my token favorite, tagliatelle ai funchi porcini (each time, respectively). It was a perfect ending to a wonderful week. It was the most wonderful trip I could have hoped for.

A lot has happened since Lara’s visit, and I still have a few more weeks in Italy, so keep an eye on this blog for some much-delayed updates!

Spring Break - Part 2: London

2009-03-25T06:59:00.000-07:00

The second part of my spring break trip was a good deal shorter and less packed than the first part, but I still have a few good stories (and quite a few photos) to share. To pick up from last post, I took the Chunnel train from Paris to London on Monday afternoon with Lauren and Jamie. It was a good experience, however the one caveat was that we bought our tickets the day of our trip and they were horrendously expensive. Buying even one day early makes a huge difference, so be sure to do that (or even book weeks ahead) if you’re making the trip in the future. Lauren, Nicole, and Amanda actually booked a flight to London instead when they arrived at the train station. Regardless, we arrived safely in London to find people speaking English! I took the directions given to me by my friend Meghan and took the Tube to Hammersmith, and then jumped on the 72 bus to Roehampton University. The campus is very nice, and I stayed with Meghan, who was a cinema studies and journalism major with me at NYU before she graduated last year. She’s spent the year in graduate school at Roehampton. Since it’s fairly far from central London, I spent the next day, my twenty-first birthday, relaxing on the peaceful campus. Meghan and I went out for a nice dinner at a restaurant called Il Mascalzone. I ordered a rack of lamb, which was quite good, and the dessert wine, the Veneto, which contains smooth and subtle apricot, honey, and pear flavours (British), according to the menu description. It was a nice fun meal, and while it’s not how I might have imagined celebrating my twenty-first birthday, it was still quite pleasant. That night was very cold but Roehampton really is quite a nice place, and it’s an interesting glimpse of a campus.

A shot of Roehampton University at night

Me and my dessert wine

Meghan and me

Wednesday I had an extremely packed day as my only sightseeing/touring day in London. I got up early and took the bus and the train to near Buckingham Palace. I walked around and saw Big Ben and other major sights in London as I headed toward Buckingham Palace. I met up with all my NYU in Florence friends there, though we were disappointed to find that the changing of the guard ceremony wasn't happening that morning. Instead, we walked to Trafalgar Square and then over to the London Eye. We got our own private orb to go up the London Eye, which was quite cool. After seeing London from up high, we ran into three of the bros (my suitemates) from BC and I got a quick photo of them looking really excited. Amanda’s friend Skylar, who’s studying abroad in London, joined us at this point, and it turns out she’s actually a cinema studies major and we recognized each other so that was fun! We searched for a nice restaurant where we could get fish and chips. My dish was incredibly good, though it’s quite strange because they come with mushy peas, which aren’t that bad, they’re just a bit strange as a food item. After lunch, we walked around some more and saw the Millennium Bridge (cool) and the London Bridge (not cool). Our final attraction of the afternoon was Madame Tussaud’s wax museum, which is apparently the original and predates the one in New York. I’ve uploaded a few fun photos below.

"Hello?"

Big Ben

Buckingham Palace

The guards weren't changing, but they're certainly moving

Guards marching as we left Buckingham Palace

Winston Churchill

Gardens along the walk

Lions in Trafalgar Square

Amanda, Nicole, Lauren, and a lion

London from the London Eye

Another shot of London from the London Eye

A third shot of London from the London Eye

Standing in front of London

Matt, Nick, and Jack (a.k.a. the bros)

Lunch! Fish and chips!

Amanda and Skylar at lunch

Me and Lauren at lunch

Relaxing with Steven Spielberg

Hulk smash?

Telling Jim Carrey a joke

Answering the call for Obama

My last night in London granted me the opportunity to do something I haven’t done all semester, and haven’t even done much in New York: a play. Lauren and I went to go see Three Days of Rain, starring James McAvoy (Atonement, The Last King of Scotland). We got our tickets only an hour before for twenty-six pounds. The play was terrific, and it was really a fun experience. I headed back to Meghan’s school after that and we had a quick brunch the next morning before I went to Gatwick Airport for my flight to Florence. It was a good break, but it was also nice to be back and just relax in Florence. The next morning, Lara arrived – but that’s an entirely different story for the next blog post, coming soon.

Three Days of Rain

Spring Break - Part 1: Paris

2009-03-18T07:50:00.001-07:00

I had a very exciting time over spring break traveling outside of Italy, and here’s a recap of the first half of my trip, spent in the wonderful city of Paris, France. I’ve been to Paris once before, eight years ago in the summer of 2001, traveling with my French Immersion class. This trip was an altogether different experience, because, in addition to being considerably older and theoretically more world-savvy and mature, I was traveling with friends and by myself instead of a big group. I traveled with new friends I made on the program – Lauren, Lauren, Nicole, Amanda, and Jamie, all girls as usual since there are so few males on this program. We were, however, joined by a male in Paris, a friend of some of my fellow travelers from home, Ryan, who’s studying abroad in Madrid for the semester. You’ll find a photo of all of us by the Seine below.

We departed Florence for the airport in Pisa last Thursday night. Our EasyJet flight was rather pleasant despite a fifty-minute delay before we boarded the plane. Other NYU students Drew, Nicole, Alicia, and Christina were also on our flight, and we arrived in at around 11:15pm. The bus system in Paris stops running at 11:30pm, so after a fruitless search, I hopped in a cab to Rue de la Butte Aux Cailles, where my friend Jesse lives. He’s studying abroad with NYU and lives in a single apartment with a bedroom lined with books and a washing machine right next to his dishwasher! He was kind enough to let me stay for the duration of my time in Paris. His apartment is located far from tourist areas but close to a Metro station and it was nice to get a glimpse of real Paris life.

On Friday morning, I got up early to meet my fellow travelers at the Louvre for our 9am reservation. It was a cold morning and complications with their hotel led to my friends being quite delayed, but I got to shoot a few pictures of some large groups and just take in the exterior of the Louvre in all its grandeur. I walked through some of the streets around the Louvre while I was waiting, and it was cool to take in Paris at around 9:30am on a Friday morning. Once my friends arrived, we journeyed through the halls of the Louvre and I took countless pictures of paintings and sculptures. I was prepared for the lackluster nature of the Mona Lisa but not prepared for the overjoyed reaction my friends had to the existence of a Starbucks. We exited the Louvre after a few hours and took a quick look at the gardens on the way to our next destination.

The Louvre!

Becoming one with the art

The day was warming up, so we walked outside for a while past the beautiful Seine, and made it to Notre-Dame. We went inside only minutes before a mass so we didn’t stay for long, but it was still quite impressive. Our travels that afternoon brought us to a gyro place for lunch (my first ever! Pretty good, I say) and the Luxembourg Gardens for some relaxation and sun intake. That evening, I met up with Jesse, who brought me to a local restaurant called Chez Les Filles where I met some other NYU in Paris students. My dinner of lamb ribs was not the gourmet highlight of my trip, but it was still filling and I was positively overwhelmed by the good-tasting bread that’s thrown at diners, since that’s one thing that doesn’t really exist in Florence. A few photos from that afternoon:

Sitting on the Seine

The Seine

Lauren, Nicole, Ryan, Amanda, me, and Lauren

Notre-Dame

Saturday morning I didn’t meet up with my NYU friends but instead saw two friends of mine from Holliston, dating back to before high school, Alison and Katie. Alison is studying abroad the year in Paris, and Katie was visiting her for her spring break. Katie’s roommate Teja from BU is abroad in Madrid and stopped by for the weekend as well. I met up in the morning with Katie and Teja at Place d’Italie, a shopping center very close to where Jesse lives, and where I picked up the Metro each time I traveled around Paris. We walked around Paris and picked up some fruit on the way to Notre-Dame. Since I had already been there the day before, I was glad to have the opportunity to go see the Mémorial de la Deportation, the Holocaust memorial for the 200,000 French people deported. Unfortunately, I only got to see the outside since it was closed, but it was still an interesting experience. We met up with Alison outside Notre-Dame and walked through Paris for a while. I had my first crepe of the trip (with butter and banana) and we sat down for a bit in the Luxembourg Gardens. That afternoon marked one of the most worthwhile parts of my trip – the Catacombs. We waited in line for a short while and then headed down a lot of steps to walk through the underground tunnels. It was really cool, and there were quite a lot of skulls and bones. When we came out (far from where started), we stopped at a stand on the street and I got a gaufre (waffle) with sugar, one of the things I remembered loving about my trip to France in seventh grade. Our last stop of the day was at Sacre-Coeur, the church at the top of Paris where you can look down and see the whole city. Unfortunately it doesn’t come out as well in a picture, so I’ll just have to recommend you go see it for yourself! The inside of the church was very nice and I left Katie, Alison, and Teja as they were exploring the villages near the church. I returned via Metro to Rue de la Butte Aux Cailles, and Jesse took me to one of his favorite restaurants, Chez Gladines, where I ordered the confit de canard (duck) which was delicious and accompanied by some terrific potatoes. A highly recommend dish!

Walking through the Catacombs

Skulls!

Sacre-Coeur

Alison, me, and Katie

Sunday morning I reunited with the NYU girls at their Best Western hotel. Before jumping on the Metro to meet them, I went into a boulangerie and purchased a person-sized baguette for a mere 87 cents. It was entirely delicious and I like its on-the-go nature. Our itinerary for the day was to head to Versailles. While the weather in the morning was overcast and it rained for a bit, it got much nicer by the afternoon. We purchased tickets for the Chateau de Versailles right near the train station and got to skip the line to get in. We walked through the palace for a while and it was quite an incredible experience. After seeing the castle, we hopped abroad the shuttle that goes through the surrounding area and got off at the house of Marie-Antoinette. Purely by chance, I ran into Kaitlin, an NYU student abroad in London who I had class with during freshmen year, waiting in line behind me. It’s really fun to see all of the paintings and rooms in Versailles and I have tons and tons of pictures that I’ll hold on to but aren’t quite worth uploading or sharing here. On our way out, we couldn’t resist stopping at a crepe stand and I got one this time just with sugar (simple, but sweet!). When we got back into Paris, we split up and I went with Lauren and Ryan to the Arc de Triomphe. We walked down the Champs-Elysées, which was great, and to really ensure that I tasted all the great French food, I got another gaufre. From there, we headed towards the Eiffel Tower. We got there at a perfect time, just as it was getting dark, so we got to see in the day and then when it got lit up at night. I opted not to go up the Eiffel Tower since I got a headache just looking up at it, but I did go up last time I was in Paris so at least I did it then! The Eiffel Tower was our designated meeting point so I hung out with Mitch, Jamie’s friend, as we waited for everyone else to arrive. Kim, a friend from Holliston who used to go to NYU, now goes to BC, and is currently studying abroad in Paris, met up with us as well. While we were waiting, I even ran into fellow NYU-in-Florence student Alana Weber! It got pretty cold and started raining a bit, so we headed to find a restaurant as soon as our large group of eight was together. We dined at a fairly touristy restaurant, and Lauren sampled escargot. I was satisfied with my decent steak and fries. I took the Metro back with Kim most of the way and turned in for the evening to get some sleep before my last day in Paris.

The Chateau de Versailles

L'Arc de Triomphe

The Eiffel Tower!

The Eiffel Tower, lit up at night

Kim!

I parted ways with my gracious host Jesse (who I sadly never got a picture with) on Sunday evening since he had to get up early Monday morning for class. I left Jesse’s apartment in the morning and purchased not one but two baguettes for the day and for our impending train to London. I had instructions to take the 6 Metro line to get to Mitch’s favorite restaurant where we would have our last meal in Paris. I got on the train as planned, but was promptly kicked off because the line was shutting down indefinitely. Fortunately, I was able to re-chart my route and reach my destination as planned. Everyone except Ryan, who had left already to return to Madrid, met up at Tribeca, an Italian restaurant walking distance from the Eiffel Tower. I decided that in light of my ability to have Italian food every day this semester, I should go for something else, and ordered the confit de canard once again. It was just as delicious this time. I ended my time in Paris with a fourth and final crepe. Lauren, Jamie, and I took a cab to the Gare du Nord to take the Chunnel to London, where further adventures would continue! Check back soon for exciting stories!

Confit de canard!

A parting shot of Rue de la Butte Aux Cailles

A Brief Teaser

2009-03-12T15:26:00.000-07:00

I have plenty of stories and pictures to post from my spring break trip, but here's a quick fun bit in the meantime!

What Exactly Have I Been Up To Lately?

2009-03-03T14:34:00.000-08:00

Clearly, not writing on this blog, which is unfortunate. Luckily, I've been doing a number of exciting things with my time. I'm in the midst of midterms now, but spring break is a mere two days away and I'm jetting off to Paris only a few hours after my last exam. I'll try my best to recount all the exciting things I've done lately. I haven't taken many pictures lately, but I do have a few good ones.

I used my student museum card to get into the Uffizi for free, and walked through the entire gallery with Leora. It was really nice outside, so we walked along the Ponte Vecchio over the Arno and explored some of the pleasant-looking shops and sites along the bridge and over the other side. I sampled a number of different gelato places, favoring tiramisu, banana, and my new choice of cantaloupe. I certainly plan to go back and see more of that area, especially when it's warm.

I participated in a far rarer opportunity through NYU to tour the Vasari Corridor, a secret passageway built by the Medici family in the 1500s. It's lined with portraits of dozens of renowned artists and extends for more than a kilometer. It was certainly cool and it's amazing to walk over the whole city of Florence and hear about how it's easy to see out but near impossible to see in. The weather is getting warmer, and with the exception of nonstop rain forecasted for the next five days, the lowest the temperature gets now is 45 degrees at night, so after spring break I'll be doing a whole lot of walking around and exploring Florence on foot. I stil have a lot to see here, including the David and the inside of the Duomo, so I'll be prepared to do all that on my weekends in Florence during March and April.

I took a day trip to Pisa with NYU in Florence to see that famed leaning tower. It turns out Pisa isn't all that exciting, and the tower looks sort of cool from certain angles. It's very expensive to go up the tower, so we didn't, and otherwise the city is rather bland and the street vendors with their sunglasses and flowers are devastatingly pushy. It's good that I went to go see it, and we did have some decent pizza. Unfortunately, our stop later that afternoon at a Vespa museum in between Pisa and Florence were derailed (quite literally) by missing not one but two trains, waiting at a sketchy train station in the middle of nowhere that looked as if it were taken right out of the Old West. It wasn't a big deal to skip it though, since we were tired and we got to see Pisa. Perhaps I'll go check it out sometime in the future. NYU is planning more trips for our last two months here, and I'm hope they're exciting, because after this and Lucca, I'm certainly in.

This past Friday, I went with friends Nicole and Drew to quite an interesting experience - Florence's own serial killer museum. We saw it one of the first days we were here and it looked intriguing. Nicole, a PA, wanted to plan an event but NYU thought it might perhaps be too violent. The sign outside, hanging above a wax statue of Hannibal Lecter, says it closes March 18th, so we wanted to take advantage of it now. It turns out it's an exhibit devoted to 10 different serial killers as well as a panel focused solely on Italian serial killers. For each famed murderer, the audio guide details an extensive history of their killings, and then moves on to a scientific method that was used to catch them. It's interesting, sure, but otherwise more than a bit long-winded. They even have chairs set up so that you can sit down while listening to the stories. I expected freaky wax serial killers to jump out and scare me, and instead I found it somewhat...lackluster. We also skipped the ending part which showcased different methods of execution, which just isn't something we needed to see. We got a parting shot of each of us with the wax statue of Hannibal, and we're content to declare it an exciting enough experience. If you are in or ever go to Florence, it's probably okay to skip it.

I must say that I've found some terrific restaurants here that I plan to return to several times during the remainder of my time here. La Ghiotta is a mere five minutes away and offers a choice of any pasta with any sauce for only 5 or 6 euro and no cover charge. I of course have ordered penne ai funghi porcini each time, and that is now my favorite dish over my initially preferred tagliatelle ai funghi porcini, since I am a fan of penne pasta over spaghetti. I went to dinner with several freshmen from my Italian class and Drew at a place called La Bussola, where I ordered an extremely delicious and delectable veal cutlet. Others ordered pizza with pecorino cheese, pear, walnuts, and honey. Some interesting food they have here in Italy. Walking home, we located a place with signs that screamed "milkshakes" outside. We went in and asked for milkshakes, and we were told they didn't have any by the clueless waiter. It turns out they do, they're only 3,90 euro, and the banana one is incredibly tasty. I've already been back once, and I plan to return several to many times throughout the semester.

The single greatest food find, however, has been Angels American Brunch. Originally scouted by Lara through some enterprising Internet research, it is, as advertised, an American brunch place. It looks quite fancy inside, and for an affordable 10 euro, you can get (and I did!) french toast, cereal, yogurt, muffins, milk, and fruit salad. It's simply scrumptious, and I plan to go back every Sunday I'm here. I've also heard great things about the Florence Diner, so I imagine I'll try that sometime soon as well.

Speaking of great food, the Chabad has started a weekly Tuesday night meal for Jewish students. It only costs 8 euro and I eat more there than I likely do the entire rest of the week. There's a pasta appetizer, meat entree, and delicious dessert, as well as wondrous bread rolls. A few weeks ago they gave me a whole bunch of rolls to take home, and last night I left with 8 or 10 pieces of cake (I ate maybe two or three and shared the rest with hungry Borgo Pinti residents). I've been attending Chabad Friday night dinner and Saturday lunch the weekends I've been here, and I've made a new Italian friend named Shimon who's there every week. We (the NYU students) have befriended several non-NYU people, including Valerie, who's a few years older and currently working in Florence, and two guys, Tamir and Andy, who go to Indiana and are here on a different program. This past weekend we had a special treat - Simcha, the owner of the Kosher restaurant, made us an excellent dinner which was held upstairs from the restaurant. There were about 20 or 25 attendees, and it was terrific food with some truly supreme potatoes and fruit salad as side dishes. It was a nice community event, and while it may not happen again, I enjoyed it thoroughly. A few quick photos:

Valerie and Jenn

Shayna, me, and Leora

The whole table

I have only an Italian written midterm coming up on Thursday, and before that I'll be watching Slumdog Millionaire in my Italian cinema class in lieu of a midterm. Pretty cool, right? On Thursday, I depart for Paris, and then I'm headed to London on Sunday night. Tuesday is my 21st birthday, which should be fun, and then I'll be back in Florence on Thursday night, with Lara arriving on Friday morning. I'm in the midst of attempting to organize trips to locations such as Cinqueterra, Venice, Naples, Pompei, Capri, and wherever else I find people are interested in traveling. I'll try to update more frequently in the future, but for the moment, I'm headed to France without my laptop but with my camera reading to take many, many pictures.

The Castle

2009-02-18T07:51:00.000-08:00

I've planning a number of exciting activities and experiences for the coming two weeks before my spring break, but for the moment let me present something a bit more nostalgic: a parting tour of the now-departed The Castle, where a number of my friends here use to live until they were untimely evicted. Enjoy!

Familiar Faces

2009-02-11T06:42:00.000-08:00

I know it's been a while since I've posted on my blog, and I'm sorry about that. The Internet's been slow and classes have been time-consuming, but I've also come down with a cold this week. An exciting tidbit from this past week is that I found a nice restaurant where I had a delicious penne ai funghi porcini (with mushrooms) dish for a mere 6 euro and there's no cover charge! I'll certainly be returning there. I also had the wonderful fortune of seeing a slew of familiar faces. A friend from a summer program 4 years ago spotted me on the street and contacted me via Facebook to find out whether I was in Florence. It's been a long time since we've spoken but we're getting together for dinner tomorrow night and we'll use this chance encounter to catch up on our lives. Another participant on that program is also here for the semester, so I may see her as well at some point. This program, Career Explorations, seems to have sent quite a few of us to Italy: Kate is studying with Syracuse, Jenna with UMiami, native Italian Alberto at the University of Milan, and Chris (a film major) and I at NYU. It's pretty cool.

Even more fascinating and coincidental, however, was completely randomly and unexpectedly running into Allison Greiner-Ferris, a Holliston native who attended high school with me, on the street last Tuesday night. She's studying in Madrid for the semester and was on some sort of break, and we happened to bump into each other on the street! I like when those kinds of things happen.

When I saw Allison, I was actually already in the midst of catching up with an old friend. Miriam Iken came to visit from Israel for her winter break, and despite some trouble getting in touch, we got together on Tuesday night. It turns out she was traveling with two other friends of mine from USY - Tova Stark (from Providence) and Ruthie Edelstein (from California). It was great to see all of them, and we went to get some gelato on Tuesday night. I'm happy to report that I have a new flavor which I love - cantaloupe! It's quite delicious. The weary Israeli travelers, who were a few more than just the three I knew, were delighted to be able to use my Internet on Tuesday night (which, on a rare occasion, was working). We met up again on Wednesday night at Ruth's, the Kosher restaurant, and took advantage of the nice 10 euro Wednesday student deal for a pasta (penne alla vodka) and dessert (that cheese and cinnamon blintz which was even more delicious the second time around!).

Other happenings from the past week: the residents of the Castle had to move out and relocate to a long-term hotel for the duration of the semester. Apparently the landlord hadn't payed his rent in years or something like that, and he was going bankrupt, so NYU had to move them. I haven't heard too much about their new digs, but I'm sure I'll be visiting soon, though it's hardly as close. I made a video tour of the Castle on Saturday night to commemorate its awesomeness and I'll post that in a couple of days if I can get Internet working fast enough to upload a two and a half minute video.

I've booked my spring break plans, which are very thrilling. I'm traveling with peer advisers Lauren, Lauren (there are two), and Amanda, as well as fellow normal student Jamie, as always all girls since the female-male ratio here is about 260-40. We're headed to Paris aboard EasyJet on Thursday, March 5th (only three weeks from tomorrow) for a weekend, then taking the Chunnel to London on Sunday or Monday. I've confirmed that I'll be staying with NYU friend Meghan Mucciarelli in London, and I'll also be celebrating my 21st birthday while I'm there. The four ladies are continuing on to Ireland on Thursday night, and I managed to find a great direct flight back to Florence on legitimate airline Meridiana. Lara's coming to visit the next morning, and after she leaves, it's only two weeks until I head to Israel for Passover! Time will fly by! In the meantime, I'll try to update some more on my adventures here, and I'm headed to the Office of Student Life to pick up an extra blanket so I can combat the unexpectedly cold nature of the indoors in this country and get better right away! As always, a few quick photos:

I snapped a quick photo with Allison when I ran into her!

Ruthie, me, Miriam, and Tova

Miriam!

Weekend in Rome

2009-02-02T05:41:00.000-08:00

This past weekend I headed to Rome, and I must say with absolute certainty that it's the definitive highlight of my trip thus far. Rome is a fascinating place and I like the city there quite a bit.

I traveled with friends Laura Krule and Alana Weber, and every piece of the trip was fantastic. We got an early start on Friday morning, meeting at 7am to walk over to the Florence train station. We successfully boarded a 7:49am train to Roma Termini. The Eurostar train was really nice and clean. The scenery along the way was dazzling as well. Despite miscalculating the direction of the train and ending up seated facing backward rather than forward, I had an entirely pleasant experience on the train.

Laura was our designated planner and guide for the weekend, and her excellent directions took us to the Metro Linea B, and we got off at the Bologna stop. The Metro trains and bus only cost 1 euro a trip, which is great and makes traveling around really easy and nice. Our Kosher hotel, Bed Breakfast & Cappuccino, was located literally moments away from the metro stop. We exited the first few times at the wrong part of the intersection, but we quickly got the hang of it and were pros by the end of the weekend. We had a wonderful room all to ourselves, with a large bed in the middle for the girls and a small bed tucked against the wall for me. There was a mini-fridge with milk and peach juice (delicious!) as well as a croissant breakfast each morning. We had our own bathroom right across the hall. It was a lovely experience, especially considering we could have ended up in some shady hostel somewhere for nearly the same price. Our triple cost only 20 euro each a night. Our accommodations, pictured below, were wonderful. My internal frame backpack was great - I carried it on my back for the walks to and from our lodging, and then zipped off the mini backpack to take around during the day!

Our first stop after depositing our luggage in our room was Pane al Pane, a quaint Kosher bakery just about five minutes away from the bed and breakfast. Laura was our official communicator, speaking Hebrew to both the people at the bed and breakfast and at the bakery. We ate some impressively-looking and slightly mild-tasting lasagna for lunch, and planned to return later to get some Shabbat snacks. We were told that we locate both synagogues easily by looking for the police car parked right outside, and it turned out that both of them were literally seconds away from the bakery. Our next stop: the Vatican.

The metro took us to the Vatican, and we arrived probably around 1pm. We had a nice, leisurely, awe-filled stroll through all the hallways and while I didn't have the chance, I believe that both Laura and Alana snuck a picture or two inside the Sistine Chapel. Here are a few of my photos:

After spending a few hours at the Vatican, we headed back to the bakery and purchased some delicious cookies with fruit and chocolate filling for consumption the following day. We returned to our hotel to change and then walked to the synagogue. The services were a lot of fun since they use the same tune for the entire Kabbalat Shabbat service, but it never quite ends and as a result just starts over every few words. It's incredibly difficult to sing along to because of the quick pace, often indistinguishable melody, and accented pronunciation of each word, but I had a great time. For dinner, we joined with a Bnei Akiva youth program with about ten high school seniors from Milan and Rome. The purpose of the weekend was to encourage them to come to study in Israel for a year before college. We simply joined them for meals and participated in a few of their programs. Introducing ourselves and naming our favorite ice cream flavor and movie, I had the option of either speaking in Italian or Hebrew and I opted to give my Italian a shot. Apparently, I did pretty well, despite some later flak from Emmanuel about my accent. I made my best effort to speak in Italian as much as I could, and some of the girls spoke back to me in English in order to practice their own command of a foreign language. Dinner was great, though I was woefully unprepared for the way it mirrored traditional Italian meals. I had some challah, some pasta, and some fish, and then was shocked to find out that the main course of meat was still on its way! After dinner, we headed back to the hotel and I'm pleased to report that I got the best night of sleep I have in months, even before coming to Italy. It was infinitely quieter and warmer than Florence, and sleeping for ten hours was a glorious thing.

Saturday morning we awoke shortly before 11am, and slowly made our way to the synagogue, where we found services still underway and caught the tail end of some interesting rituals with which I was completely unfamiliar. Before lunch, I went with Emmanuel to join an early Mincha afternoon service. I was asked to open the ark, which normally wouldn't be too much of a problem, but I have no idea how these keyhole Italian doors are made, and it ended up taking a little extra time, though it was hardly a problem. Lunch was very much like Friday night's dinner in that I was still not expecting further courses at every turn, but it great to eat a whole lot of food. We returned briefly to our hotel room on Saturday afternoon to play Bananagrams, and I'm very proud to say that I managed to get two Zs at the end of the game, and even though Laura won first, I put them both into the word "frazzled." We went back for a minute only to leave right away to go to the students' bed and breakfast, which was very nice. When we returned, we had already missed Havdalah but had an extremely brief ceremony ourselves. We parted ways rather abruptly from our new friends, but we hope to get their contact info from the Bnei Akiva coordinator or the Shaliach, Rafi.

After changing at our hotel, we took the 62 bus to the Jewish ghetto. We passed a number of Kosher restaurants after locating the synagogue, and saw some ruins of an arch right near the Largo Ottobre 16 1943, dedicated to the memory of the Italian Jews deported from there by the Nazis. We ate at Nonna Betta (advertised as the real Jewish ghetto's tradition), and what a terrific meal it was. We began with the highly recommended fried artichoke, which was tasty. Alana ordered penne al salmone (penne with smoked salmon), I tried the ravioli all'aranciata (ravioli with orange sauce) and Laura got the vegetable lasagna. All the dishes were great, even though mine only had four or five raviolis. The meal wasn't terribly expensive and was well worth every penny in my opinion.

It was late by this point and we had an early day of exploring ahead of us, so back to the bed and breakfast. We awoke at 8am the next morning and headed out a bit later to our first sight-seeing stop. The woman at the bed and breakfast was kind enough to let us leave our stuff there until the afternoon, which was really great. We went to the Coliseum and got a guided tour from an entertaining guide named Vito. We explored the Roman Forum and all the gardens as well. Our return to the Jewish ghetto for lunch was a wondrous decision because we went to a place called Fast Kosher, which had Kosher fast food! The Jumbo Burger with fries and pineapple juice was one of the most satisfying meals I've had here so far. It was quite filling and entirely delicious. We walked from there to the Pantheon, the Trevi fountain, and the Spanish steps. I actually heard someone calling my name at the Trevi fountain - we ran into some of the peer advisors who were there on a weekend trip too! It was an exciting but tiring day, so we went back to the hotel to pick up our stuff, made one last trip to the bakery for some cookies to go, and then made it to the train station for a 4:30pm train back to Florence. We were back in our rooms before 6:45, though we admittedly got delayed a bit by our coincidental meeting with Joey and Eddie, Brooklyn College students studying in Florence for the semester, on the walk back. Joey is a good friend of my former roommate Hal. I'm sure we'll be seeing them again this semester. All in all, a terrific weekend! I think I'd like to go back to Rome and see some more of it, or even just experience the culture again, maybe sometime in April. Some more photos below:

The Coliseum

A view from the Roman forum

The Trevi fountain

We were all ready to leave, but Laura almost fell off a ledge!

A cool metro train car with graffiti

Pictures from Second Weekend

2009-01-29T11:06:00.001-08:00

These pictures accompany my post from earlier today. I'll try to post as many pictures as I can, but these alone took me an hour and a half to upload. Enjoy!

The restaurant Acqua al Due

Antipasto maccheroni alla vodka at Acqua al Due

Blueberry steak!

Ellie, Drew, me, and David at Acqua al Due

Puccini was honored last year for his 150th birthday

A church in Lucca

A nice shot of Lucca

Composer Luigi Boccherini sitting still in Lucca

Me, Laura, Mara, Nirali, Nicole, and Laura in Lucca

Second Week in Florence

2009-01-29T10:46:00.000-08:00

My Internet access is dwindling by the minute, and I may have to begin blogging from the on-campus computers in the future in order to provide more frequent updates for my devoted readers. I have had a number of interesting experiences this week, so here are the highlights.

On Saturday night, I finally made it to highly recommended restaurant Acqua al Due. I made a reservation for 7:30pm and was accompanied by roommate David and new friends Ellie and Drew. The aura was very pleasant, and the walls had tons of plates with writing and drawings on them. Luckily, our waitress spoke very good English, though she was not able to comprehend “nutmeg,” which Ellie is allergic to and has yet to research the Italian word for in order to avoid unfortunate aftereffects. Drew, in his quest to master the language, spoke Italian with a flawless accent to the waitress the whole meal. He apologized to her at the end of the meal for not being fluent and she laughed at him, noting that he’s very proficient, especially compared to his tablemates. The menu was all in Italian, but it wasn’t too complicated. I ordered as an antipasto the maccheroni alla vodka. It wasn’t terribly big, but it was extremely hot and delicious. The moment we finished, the main course arrived. I very boldly ordered the bistecca al mirtillo (blueberry steak). I feared for the worst when I saw that my peculiar dish was not lightly cooked in but instead smothered with a monstrous flood of blueberry sauce. Upon tasting it, I discovered it was actually rather delicious and not quite as scarily exotic as I had initially thought it might be. Drew was delighted with his balsamic steak, and Ellie enjoyed the blueberry steak best out of her three steak selections that came with her sampler (blueberry, balsamic, and another one with rosemary). Non-meateaters will appreciate David’s meal, which was the pasta sampler. Five courses of four to seven pieces of pasta cooked in different vegetarian sauces, such as broccoli and cream, were served to him while the rest of us were eating our meals. It seemed small to me, but apparently it was more than filling. The bill was a tad expensive, to be sure, but it was an exciting experience and I’ll be happy to go back there perhaps once a month during my time here.

On Sunday, I went on the NYU-run trip to Lucca, a nearby city. We were given an hour and a half tour upon our arrival, and I was interested to learn that the small city once had 99 churches. I took several photos which you’ll find in the accompanying photos post. This was the first really sunny day we’ve had thus far, and everyone was constantly taking pictures of the blue sky, though of course we did photograph the sites as well. We went into two churches, though our tour bled into noontime and therefore mass was going on and we did not enter. The churches we did go into were rather nice. We had the opportunity to walk on top of the city walls and oversee the pleasant-looking, calm city. After our tour, we proceeded to find a restaurant, and Emily swiftly located a nice place call Osteria del Neni. The menu was available in English as well as Italian, which was fortunate, though I did attempt to compare the two to improve my knowledge of the language. I chose the spaghetti with cherry tomatoes and aromatic herbs, which turned out to be a bit small but certainly delicious. Emily put some olive oil on her copper underplate and it was quickly yanked out from under her and replaced sternly by the waitress with a side plate. I’ll be careful not to learn from her example and not make this mistake in the future. After the meal, we explored the city a bit and ended up in a nice piazza. We got some gelato and I found both the banana and tiramisu flavors to be excellent. We departed late in the afternoon, and upon our return headed straight to a chocolate festival which was intensely crowded. I sampled only some hot chocolate and some chocolate liqueur, both of which were fairly tasty. The evening was finished off with a nice dinner at Piazza D’Azeglio with Laura Krule.

My Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays are booked up with classes until the evening. On Monday night, I once again ate dinner at the Ricasoli NYU apartment, and discovered a new talent that I will use as often as possible in the future: I’m an excellent pizza-cutter. It sounds simple, but I do a great job of it. I imagine that this weekly dinner will become a staple, and all of the residents are very nice and it’s actually quite close to Borgo Pinti. On Tuesday afternoon, I discovered that my immigration class has now dwindled to only five people, which should make for some interesting discussions. The following day, I attended the first Wednesday Mensday in Borgo Pinti, where chef Zach cooked everyone hamburgers. It was definitely a very manly event, and I may frequent it on occasion in the future. This afternoon I made a trip to the most supermarket-like supermarket I’ve seen so far here, and stocked up on some food.

I’m headed to Rome early tomorrow morning with Laura Krule and Alana for the weekend, and I’ll tell all about that next week. I’ve also booked a flight to Israel for Passover, so if you’ll be in Israel between April 8th and 13th, please let me know! Next weekend I presume I’ll start really exploring Florence and see all the sights I’m supposed to see while I’m here! Pictures from last weekend coming in the next post tonight, and then more adventures next week!

First Week of Classes

2009-01-23T15:48:00.000-08:00

It’s been a busy week, and my plans to blog throughout were foiled by time constraints, need for sleep, and devastatingly unreliable Internet. Regardless, it’s been a good couple of days, taken up mostly by the start of classes. I’m enrolled in four classes, running from Monday to Thursday every week. First up was Media and Society: TV & Democracy in Italy, which counts as a non-departmental journalism elective for me, looking at the way that public television is influenced by the various political figures in Italy. The first session left me uncertain, but the second proved to be thoroughly interesting and I believe it’s a class I’ll enjoy very much. I actually have a presentation for this Monday, since we were all assigned two readings throughout the semester to present on, and I of course volunteered to go as early as possible (my second chapter is at the end of February). The one very unfortunate thing about this class is that it begins at 9am every Monday morning. This week, we had the class on Friday as well to make for an Italian national holiday in April. That’s a lot of getting up at 7:30am. Regardless, it’s a good class and I think I’ll like it.

My second class, which is held four times a week at noon, is Intensive Intermediate Italian. I’ve already taken both elementary Italian courses, and thus I qualify for the six-credit intermediate option in Florence, where a language class is required. I’m very pleased with the course, and have already become friendly with several of my classmates. The professor, Caterina Sani, is very energetic and fun. Yesterday, she had us leave the classroom and come back in as if we were dining in groups at a restaurant. I ate with Kate, Katia, and Andrea (actually Drew, but he goes by Andrea for easier comprehension by the Italian natives). I ordered the risotto ai funghi (rice with mushrooms) since it seemed a safe vegetarian option unlike the penne alla carbonara and the pappardelle al cinghiale. Caterina brought us a beer instead of the vino bianco, and then at the end of the meal handed us a check for an outrageous 183 euro. I swiftly cried out “molti errori!” and she said that the amount of quarantatre e cinquanta euro (43,50) would be fine. These kinds of exercises will be quite enjoyable, I’m sure.

My third class is History of Immigration in Europe and the US from WWII to the Present. A mouthful, I know. It was pitched by the professor during orientation last week and it sounded interesting to me. It’s officially my first class taken as a completely irrelevant, not-for-any-sort-of-requirement elective. I think I have some interest in the subject, and it will certainly be a learning opportunity. The cool part of it is that there’s an immigration conference being planned in conjunction with Syracuse University and a whole bunch of seriously knowledgeable authorities in March, and that’s something I’ll take part in as part of the course. My fourth class is of course Italian Cinema, which looks to be great. We started off watching “L’Ultimo Baccio,” which was remade in the United States as the dismal Zach Braff film “The Last Kiss.” The professor, Tina Fallani, was a sound editor on “Dead Poets Society” and “The Godfather: Part III” and the first thing she said to us was that she didn’t believe in semiotics. That’s a very good thing, since our class will focus more on film history and culture. There are plenty of well-known directors on our film list, including Fellini and Bertolucci. I’m sure it will be an altogether pleasant and educational experience for me. The one weird thing is that our Monday night screening time appears to be something we do completely on our own, as in head to the front desk and check out the movie and pop it in the DVD player. It doesn’t sound too hard; it’s just a bit unlike previous classes I’ve had. Things are of course different here though.

I’ve started eating on a regular basis here, which is good. Mondays through Thursdays, I’ll be dining on campus for lunch and probably for dinner as well. Lunch is priced by the amount and type of food you get, usually from 2,50 to 5,00 euro. Dinner is all-you-can-eat, set at 6,50 upon entry into the dining hall. They do have some good food, but my selection is often limited due to the high ham content in all of the choices. On the plus side, I’m unintentionally eating more vegetables since that’s always a safe thing! I’m walking to and from class everyday, which is a 2-3 mile walk each way, uphill on the way there, so I’m getting lots of exercise. The weather is pretty good, but it’s sort of cold now and thus freezing in my room at night. The noise is unbelievably loud and I’m pretty sure that even when I’m deep in sleep and dreaming I can still hear the cars outside.

In addition to classes, I’ve done a few things this week. On Monday, I went to go get my books at the Paperback Exchange store, and encountered two students from my Italian class nearby. We finally located the elusive Grom (pronounced ‘groam’ according to my roommate Dan) and both Kate and Katia got some gelato. I’ll be returning there at some point when I’m really craving it. Tuesday was inauguration day, as I’m sure you all know, and we gathered together in a packed room at Villa La Pietra’s Villa Sassetti building to watch Obama getting sworn in. It was fun and reminded me just how many college students are liberals. Wednesday roommate David and I went to another NYU apartment for dinner, and some lovely girls cooked us a ridiculous amount of pasta. With help from my new friend Ellie, I consumed approximately three lavish portions of spaghetti. Thursday evening, we had a roommate dinner where Dan took us to what he claims is the best pizza in all of Tuscany. I think I believe him. The unexcitedly-named Caffe Italiano did have a scrumptious pizza margherita with soft crust (!), and of course the company was good. After dinner, we went for gelato, and despite my desire to hold off on getting gelato for a while, I purchased a small cup for only 1,50 of dark chocolate and chocolate mousse. The flavors aren’t my favorite, but the consistency was delectable and I’ll be sure to return to Gelateria dei Neri. Dan sure knows his stuff. We parted ways when Dan and David stayed out afterwards, and I got hopelessly lost on the way home. Fortunately, I happened to spot the Duomo and made my way home without the usage of a map since I’m now officially an expert on how to get home from the Duomo. Not terribly useful for navigating the rest of Florence, but at least I can do that.

The week concluded with some excitement this Friday evening when we had a dinner with most of the guys in Borgo Pinti, my apartment building. Zach cooked a huge, delicious-smelling meal for all fourteen of us, and it was nice to get to know all the people who live on our floor. I hastily began doing dishes after dinner to avoid the usual disgustingness that amasses in a kitchen used exclusively by fourteen males. We’re planning on doing more of these in the future, and that should be lots of fun. Check out the photo from tonight below! I’ll try to post more regularly in the coming weeks. Coming up: a fancy dinner Saturday night and a day trip to Lucca on Sunday! Please leave any activity recommendations in the comments section. I’m here for a few months, but I always appreciate suggestions!

Busy Time, Slow Internet

2009-01-22T01:21:00.001-08:00

Hello everyone! Just wanted to let you know that this week has been a bit hectic with the start of classes and every night when I return home to my apartment, the Internet isn't terribly reliable. I'll begin updating again soon! Stay tuned!

Photos from the First Weekend

2009-01-18T12:01:00.000-08:00

A Florence street photographed from the red bus tour

A shot of the Arno

Another shot of the Arno

A nice shot of the Duomo in the day

Another shot of the Duomo during the day

Gardens in Villa La Pietra NYU in Florence campus

Walking up the Valley of Death in Villa La Pietra

Group shot overlooking the city. Left to right: Jenn, Blair, Shayna, Mara, Laura S, Ilana, Nirali, Leora, David, Emily, and I

A friend we made

Blair and I

Laura and I outside the restaurant right near the Duomo!

First Weekend in Florence

2009-01-18T11:21:00.000-08:00

There are just over twelve hours left before I start my first class and dive into the culture of Italy through my academic studies. It turns out that I'm actually taking all Italy-related classes even though my initial estimates had me thinking I was barely taking anything relevant to my location. I'm sure I'll have lots to say on the subject tomorrow evening. For the moment, let me recap my weekend with some highlights.

Friday on campus wasn't terribly exciting, but I signed up for a day trip to Lucca occurring next Sunday. I'm also proud to report that our group mastered the crosswalks and I hope that my 8am walk to campus tomorrow morning should be error-proof and that we'll always be on the correct side of the street. Friday evening I had the pleasure of attending the Florence synagogue, which is located only a few blocks away from my apartment, right next to Ruth's Kosher restaurant. The synagogue is incredibly beautiful inside, and also possibly the coldest place I've ever been. Apparently photos are not allowed even on weekdays due to security reasons, so that's one thing you'll have to come and experience for yourself. The services were interesting though not terribly engaging, and there were only two melodies, one of which was interesting but hard to since along to (the tune of Hatikva set to Hashkiveinu during the Ma'ariv service). Services were attended by about 14 men and maybe 30 women. After services, we headed to the nearby Chabad house for dinner. We were warmly welcomed along with a number of visitors from various countries for a lavish meal, the likes of which I hadn't yet had here in Florence. The food was all of course delicious, with an appetizer course, soup, and main course of either turkey or chicken (mine was turkey). We chatted with the rabbi and two Australian high school students named Arun and Dani, both originally from South Africa. They were very interesting people and David and I walked for a while with them afterward over to the Arno river. They sent us back to our apartment via a church we didn't see so we ended up somewhere completely unfamiliar which turned out to be a mere few blocks from Borgo Pinti. Maps are quite helpful, and I'll be carrying mine with me every day.

Saturday afternoon we went with a few other Borgo Pinti residents to one of the walking tours offered at noon, and had the opportunity to glimpse the neighborhoods around Piazza Della Liberta. We were given free gelato and I think I've had my fill at this point, at least for a while. I tried three flavors, and liked the chocolate a lot, found the banana inferior to my previously tasted banana gelato, and heavily disliked the white chocolate. I sampled someone else's grapefruit and strawberry gelato, and while I find fruit an intrusive ingredient in my own ice cream, I must admit that the taste was extremely rich and sweet. I should also note that this gelateria has vegan flavors made with soy, for those interested. We stopped next at a cell phone store and I returned many hours later with my temporary Motorola phone to find that the Wind (a major provider here) SIM card in fact worked and the purchase of a 29 euro crappy candybar phone was thus unneeded (thanks again JB!).

Sunday's excitement began considerably later in the day due in part to the fact that it's nearly impossible to sleep with all the street noise outside. The sound of someone walking or the very angry fighting going on in the street around 2 or 3am last night sound as if they're right in the room. It's also rather cold in the room, so this whole sleeping thing will take some getting used to. Our early afternoon trek was to the train station to take a free red bus tour (which apparently costs 12 euro, so thanks NYU!) around the city of Florence. It was quite delayed in its arrival, but once aboard, it was cool to get to see the city and some new places. We made a brief stop to take some photos overlooking Florence, and you'll find some of those pictures below. In the evening I was fortunate enough to meet up with Laura Countway (a good friend from home), whose University of Delaware winter session program has her in Italy for the month of January. She left Florence the day I arrived, but took a train back today with a friend and we met up at the Duomo and went to a great restaurant called Lo Scudo right near the Duomo (you'll see how close it is when you look at the picture blow; it's right in the background). I ordered my new favorite dish, sampled from Serena during one of our first meals, tagliatelle ai funghi, or spaghetti with mushrooms. It's slightly difficult to eat due to the slippery nature of spaghetti, but it has a delicious flavor. I'm sure I'll be getting that again soon, though my plans for the next few days involve trying the food on campus for lunch. I'll report on how good that is.

I returned home to learn that a bomb was found in front of the Chabad house here on Saturday afternoon. Everyone is okay, and it seems the bomb didn't even go off. The news is jarring, but I'm fine, and I'm glad to hear that everyone else is alright as well. Hopefully, things should calm down and no such future incidents will occur. Since my classes begin tomorrow morning and it's already almost 9pm, I'm determined to make it an early night to try to grab some sleep. My pictures aren't uploading due to an unstable Internet collection, so I'll post them in a separate post when I can. One last piece of interesting information: it would appear that our apartment, Borgo Pinti 66, is right next door to the Slovenian consulate. Who knew?

Day Three in Florence

2009-01-15T14:07:00.001-08:00

An interesting thing happened to me after I finished all my posts last night. While I was sending messages to let people know about this blog, Facebook kept prompting me for confirmation that I was really here. All the suspicious international activity made Facebook think that perhaps I was an impostor. It requested a cell phone to text a confirmation code to, but I have no cell phone here yet, so no luck. Eventually, it logged me out and changed my password. My solution, thanks to reader Gabriel Slamovits, was to insert his phone number and have him e-mail me the confirmation code. I just found it odd that Facebook of all things reacts quicker to identity theft that perhaps a credit card company might. Unfortunately, it appears that Facebook is still prompting me with captchas every time I send a message or post on my wall from my laptop, so the best way to reach me is most definitely not Facebook, since I may well get locked out again. Contact me via Skype at any point; my username is movieswithabe.

The third day of the trip began rather unexcitingly, with a walk to the campus which resulted in many a poorly thought-out crosswalk decision and extensive presentations on personal safety and NYU abroad policies. The afternoon's highly buzzed-about passport-required event was hardly a thrill, and was over in about ten seconds. A large group of us walked back to the campus and made a trip to a nearby supermarket and the 99 cent store. We do have a lot of cool things located right near our apartment. After both our visits, we were quite hungry after a long day of walking and ready to go out.

We received several recommendations from people for dinner and decided to head off walking to find a restaurant. We arrived at a place that looked nice, Il Capriccio. Sadly for our stomachs, we arrived a little after 6:30pm, only to find that all the restaurants were closed between 6pm and 7pm. We opted to walk for a bit, dropping off several among our crew at a cafe. Sadly we got quite lost trying to find our way back after peeking at a few other menus, but after a while, we located our missing people in a different cafe and finally made our way back to the restaurant.

We walked in to find that the restaurant has a ton of orange components (check out the picture below). All eight of us sat for a long time with tiny Italian dictionaries trying to decipher the menu. When the waitress came and we asked her a question, she deferred to the bartender, who said in a perfect American accent, "You guys need any help?" It turned out he was Greek and had lived in the United States for a portion of his life. Our translating fury had been in vain, and he quickly translated everything for us. I asked about penne alla vodka and he told me it was an invented American dish. Several of our group ordered the pizza margherita, some with funghi (mushrooms), another without cheese. Other dishes ordered included a pasta with vegetables, a pasta with mushrooms, and a gnocchi dish. After I had ordered, the bartender returned and told me that the chef would in fact be able to make penne alla vodka, and both not wanting to be rude and excited to try such a delicacy in Italy, I agreed to the special request. We ordered a bottle of white wine (I'm not a big fan) which we split between all of us, but before we knew it, the food came out really quickly. That seems to happen a lot here. I'm proud to report that all the food was uniformly delicious, though I nearly burnt my mouth when I consumed some of the penne alla vodka from the center of my plate. We all passed plates around to try everything, and I must admit that Serena's pasta with mushrooms was my favorite out of everything. We sat for a nice long meal, and then several members of our group split off to head home, while five of us (me, Laura Schneebaum, Mara, David, and Nirali) decided to go looking for gelato to finish off our meal.

The recommendation given to us was Grom, but we didn't have directions and decided to our best to locate it ourselves. We headed down the street we were on for a long time, before turning left when it seemed we had gone far enough. As it turned out, we were headed straight for the Duomo, which was cool. Laura in particular was delighted by the sight of it, and we circled the massive structure for a good long time. My pictures unfortunately didn't come out, but I'll go back during the day a number of times and share some shots here. We located an exciting gelato place, Black Bar Tavola Calda, where I got some delicious banana gelato and the others in our group got tiramisu and vanilla chocolate chip. It was all very good. We headed back a slightly different way, straight up the road we had come down to get there, making only one turn to get to the road that intersects with Borgo Pinti. Very convenient to know for future return to the area.

I'm sure my experiences over the next few days will be lots of fun, but I may not be able to blog for a day or two, so keep checking back and eventually there will be new posts! For the moment, here are some pictures from today:

Borgo Pinti, the street where my apartment is located

The fresco on the ceiling of the girls' castle

The arch at Piazza della Liberta

A shot of the NYU campus

Another shot of the NYU campus; more to come, don't worry!

Orange restaurant!

Our dinner crew at the orange restaurant! Clockwise from left: Mara, Serena, David, Alana, me, Laura, Nerali, photographed by Emily

My dinner!

A perfect shot of our gelato consumers: me, Laura, David, and Nirali, photographed by Mara

DInner at the Kosher Restaurant

2009-01-14T16:17:00.000-08:00

Our group at dinner the second night!

Left to right: David, me, Mara, Laura Krule, Alana, Laura Schneebaum, Erica, Ilana, Leora, and visiting Binghamton student Evan

Day Two in Florence

2009-01-14T15:37:00.000-08:00

Our first full day in Florence began with a 10:30am orientation at La Pietra, NYU's campus. David and I got up around 9am, with a planned departure time of 9:30am. We had been instructed to take some bus to the number 25 bus using a bus pass given to us by the staff, but in keeping with my usual nature, I decided it would be a great idea to walk. I charted out an easy route (right on Borgo Pinti, left on Via Giacomo Matteotti, right on Via di Ponte Rosso, which becomes Via Bolognese, NYU is 120). The walk was great, and we only got derailed a bit around a huge arch at Piazza della Liberta. It took about forty minutes, and the last part of the walk is a pretty steep uphill, but I think forced uphill walking is probably a good thing. We passed the stop where the #25 bus lets off at about 82 Via Bolognese, right near a gas station. We learned later that we should actually have entered at 106 rather than 120, so our uphill walk won't be quite as bad since we can enter earlier on and a bit lower.

We walked into Villa Sassetti to search for our orientation group, the green group. I noticed some lunch set out for us, and was delighted to properly translate the word 'carciofi' as artichoke. I have no idea how I remembered that one (my most recent Italian class was last spring, and I haven't reviewed at all since then). David and I proceeded into the same room where we had waited for taxis the day before and sat down. It was just us and two of the staff members, housing assignment coordinator Antonello and housing supervisor Nicola. We waited and waited as no one else came for 35 minutes. At 11:05, about 60 students strolled in, fresh off the very delayed bus. Lesson learned from this: walking is clearly the better way to go. I'm very glad I did it, and plan to do it every single day I'm here.

Orientation was quite amusing, as Nicola was hilarious and constantly spoke of us blowing up if we left our gas on or killing old ladies if we put stuff on our windowsills. It was long, but thoroughly entertaining. Antonello's presentation on getting around Florence was considerably shorter and rather madly dashed-through. It was still informative, and though he didn't say it out loud, I caught the important bit of information that a monthly bus pass (23 euros) means for the month of January or February, unlike the Manhattan subway system where you get 30 days from the day you purchase it. Any NYU in Florence students reading this, keep that in mind. I plan on taking the bus a grand total of very few times, so I doubt I'll need that, especially if, as they said a number of times today, this is pretty much the worst the weather is going to get.

Lunch was next, which included that sandwich with the artichoke and another one I went for with tomato, mozzarella, and some pesto. I was not into it and barely ate it, therefore becoming quite hungry after consuming only an apple, a banana, and the exterior of a hamantaschen-like raspberry pastry. I'll have to work on finding a way not to get too devastatingly hungry during the day, or perhaps I'll attempt to expand my pallet, though I doubt pesto will ever fall under my acceptable foods category. I was able to purchase a small snack from the bar in Villa Ulivi later, which was a decently satisfying wafer-sandwiched chocolate snack. After lunch, we walked around for a bit before proceeding to our next stop, the aforementioned Villa Ulivi, and we saw some very pleasant, nice gardens which we'll explore to a much fuller extent in the coming days and weeks.

The next part of the orientation included information from the academic director, who I found very interesting, and pitches from some teachers whose classes have very few people registered for them. I was particularly interested in a class about immigration in the United States and Europe, and one about Fascism and Anti-Fascism in Italian Cinema. I think I'll probably swap my Intro to Marketing class for the immigration one, since the cinema course would mean a straight 9am-8pm schedule on Monday for me with only an hour and a half break, and still having class Tuesday and Wednesday nights. I don't think I want to do that to myself. I'm abroad; I'm supposed to be taking in my surroundings and getting to explore, not staying in class all the time. Classes don't begin until Monday, so I have some time to think about it. Orientation activities for the day concluded with a Survival Italian intensive for an hour and a half where David and I wrote unimpressive dialogues in the formal and informal. It was somewhat useful and a good refresher for the intensive intermediate course to come.

Our walk back to our apartments was less successful than on the way there. We had to travel the 'valley of death' across from Villa Ulivi back to where we entered, since we had bypassed that section of the trip by exploring other areas on our way over. It's a remarkably thin, steep-on-all-sides path that really puts a lot of stress on the knees, as pointed out by one Laura Krule. I think it's most tasking than the Via Bolognese hill to get up to La Pietra. I'm not too worried; I'm sure I'll become an expert in no time. The walk back, where we were accompanied by Laura Krule, Alana, Ilana, and Leora, was very difficult because we had so much trouble finding crosswalks. We ended up in areas where there was no crosswalk or traffic light, and traffic was likely never to stop or even thin for any reason at all. We found a way around it, and will be more ardent in the future in our planning to minimize our travel time and brighten our collective moods.

On the way back, we stopped in at Ruth's, the Kosher restaurant in Florence, and alerted the very friendly owner, Simcha, of our plans to return with a party of eleven at 7pm. He directed us to the Kosher market, which is a small outlet right around the corner and next to the Chabad. These places are literally two or three blocks from our dorms, which is terrific. After stopping at the Kosher market, David and I proceeded to search for a larger supermarket and located a 99 cent store to which we'll surely return. We found a big supermarket where I purchased several different types of granola bars and chips. Anyone who's planning to be in Florence over the next few months, do me a favor and line your back with a few Chewy granola bars for me, I should have brought them as a reliable snack. We passed an even bigger supermarket on our way home, and returned there later that evening only to find it closed. We'll be back.

We stopped off briefly at our apartment to drop off our groceries, and proceeded to head right back out to go to Ruth's. We turned out only to be nine people, but invited someone else who walked into the otherwise empty restaurant to join us. He recognized Laura Krule from Ramaz high school, and every subsequent group of people (mostly students) who entered the restaurant knew someone from our group (not me, sadly, but that will change soon! I always run into people I know). Simcha came over and talked to us a lot, showing us mementos from previous students and guides to what's Kosher in Florence. He explained to us his Wednesday night deal for students to have a dish and a dessert for 10 euros flat. Upon hearing that penna alla vodka was the pasta of the day, seven among our party decided that we knew what we wanted. Someone shared a pizza, and Evan boldly ordered the salmon, which he said was quite tasty. The penne alla vodka was also good but somewhat small. Everyone else for dessert tried the chocolate cake or the cheesecake, but I adventurously opted for the cheese blintzes with cinnamon. They forgot about my order and it turned out to be only one crepe-liked blintz, but it was nonetheless exciting and I imagine I'll be ordering it again if we receive a similar deal the next time we go to the restaurant. The restaurant was nicely decorated, and we noticed a bizarre but cool thing: the clock is completely backwards so it ticks backwards and time seems to move in the order direction. I was personally fascinated.

After our lengthy dinner (we arrived at 7pm and departed shortly after 9pm), we returned home. After some brief Skyping with Lara, all the girls came over to our apartment to use our Internet, since theirs is not working. All the guys in our apartment seemed quite impressed that six girls just flooded into our room. We couldn't get all the computers connected, but with eight computers, everyone managed to get on for at least a little bit. After they departed, I created this blog and am just now beginning to wrap up to go to sleep. It's past 1am here, and I must wake up at 9am. Oh dear. It's worth it, I suppose, since you can read all about my adventures! I'll be posting at least once a day if possible, so check back and hear more about my exciting time here!

Again, please leave restaurant recommendations in the comments!

Day One in Florence

2009-01-14T15:08:00.000-08:00

We caught our first glimpse of the city of Florence during our half-hour bus ride to La Pietra, NYU's campus. The villa is located on a hill, and walking down the path to the first building was really pleasant. The weather was about 50 degrees, far more comfortable than freezing New York or Massachusetts. NYU's check-in process was remarkably swift and well-organized. We started by checking our visa materials, receiving orientation packets and new ID cards with enormous photos of our faces, and making a free phone call home to our parents. We then waited in one of the rooms in Villa Sassetti, the building where all of this excitement happened, for a van to take us to our apartments. I parted ways with all the girls I had been traveling with at this point, and was thrilled to discover that there are in fact male participants on this trip. It turns out that many of them are from Massachusetts (Foxboro, Concord, and Newton lead the pack), and that some of the kids in my dorm go to Boston College, so my proclamation of my Holliston heritage was met not with puzzled looks or mistaken for Allston but rather with an "oh, yes, I'm from Newton."

My apartment is located at Borgo Pinti 66 (Google Earth it if you'd like). Laura, Laura, and Alana (for those who didn't read earlier posts, friends from NYU also on the trip) live along with many other people I know (Ilana, Leora, and Shayna) at Piazza D'Azeglio, which is a mere three minutes and three rights away from us. There are two floors at Borgo Pinti, and the all-NYU apartment houses 22 males. There's a monstrously huge communal kitchen and somewhat random but nice loft space accessible from the first floor. I had forgotten this bizarre European thing about the first floor actually being the second floor, on top of the ground floor, but it doesn't matter too much since it's not a terrible flight of stairs. The only real problem is that the door at the top of the stairs requires a key that is near-impossible to use, and it's equally impossible to locate the light switch to turn on a light to see what you're doing. Put simply, it's an adventure just trying to get in to our apartment. I'm living at a room near one of the corners of the building with two roommates. David Zandi and I met back at NYU in early December, and as of this writing, we've been sticking mostly together. The other roommate, Daniel, is a PA (peer adviser), which is pretty much the equivalent of an RA. He's been asleep or absent for most of the time so far, but from what we've seen and heard, he seems cool. Our room comes equipped with three beds, night desks, and desks. A mini-room to the side includes closets for all three of us, and leads to our own personal bathroom, complete with toilet, sink, and a shower that appears to zip closed through two perpendicular doors. It's sort of cool, but a bit alarming. There's not really enough room to get out of the way of the water to let it warm up before standing right in front of it, but it shouldn't be a grave problem. Overall, the room is fine.

The girls' room, on the other hand, is cray. It's like a castle. They're located on the second (in European terms: first) floor of a huge building overlooking a park (Piazza D'Azeglio, the name of the apartment per NYU). There have an enormous common area, with a lengthy table that could easily host a large Passover seder, and two big couches with plenty of room to pull up chairs. There is a fresco on their ceiling, and it's pretty incredible. There are 14 of them there, and one resident, Michelle, has her own room up the stairs with her own bathroom. She wasn't too pleased about the room's size when looked at based on the price of her housing, and upon talking to the housing coordinator, it appears the room will be stocked with all-new furniture of her choice. Good deal for her. I realize this description may not seem as relevant as that of my own room, but they basically live in a castle and we (David and I) will likely be there all the time, especially given the proximity.

We met up around 6:30 or 7 and then went out for dinner. We walked down Borgo Pinti in search of restaurants. We finally located one, and though its name began with pizzeria, I can't quite recall exactly what it was called (I'll be sure to remember from now on). There were nine of us, and our meal turned out to be a fairly low 64 euros. I went for a safe spaghetti with garlic, basil, and tomatoes because I was craving pasta and they didn't turn out to have too much of it, so I thought I may as well pick something that would be decently satisfying and still pasta-y, and that it was. We ran into some confusion when Alana and I said "same" following an order of a bruschetta and the pasta dish, and the waiter thought we meant both the appetizer and the dish, when of course we only meant the latter. Not a problem though, as we explained it all and his English was fine. I tried someone else's pizza, which was rather good. We're not quite clear on the tipping policies in Italy, so we left a bit extra money, but not too much. It was a positive experience to be sure, though I'm looking forward to more exciting restaurants in the coming weeks.

Day one ended with our return to our rooms and a brief Skype call to my family at home (4pm for them). We were all heavily jet-lagged, so 10:30pm seemed an appropriate time for sleep. Unfortunately, I awakened at around 12:50am, but luckily fell back asleep until my alarm at 9:00am.

The Flight

2009-01-14T14:26:00.001-08:00

I departed on a flight from Newark bound for Frankfurt at 6:10pm on Monday, January 12th. I was traveling with fellow NYU in Florence students Laura Krule, Laura Schneebaum, and Alana Weber, three characters who you'll be reading quite a bit about on this blog. You can read Alana's blog over at http://soreoozer.blogspot.com (ignore the content warning; she just thought it would be funny). Returning to the subject of my flight, tragically I was rather congested and had the most terrible headache of my life throughout the devastatingly lengthy seven and a half hour flight. My iPod battery lasted long enough to watch several shows, and despite the broken nature of my personal seat television, Laura Schneebaum was kind enough to switch with me to allow me to view the film "Ghost Town." Not so great, but then again, the purpose of this blog is to talk about Florence, so in the grand scheme of things, it's really not a big deal.

We had a three-hour-plus layover at the Frankfurt airport, during which we all got super-tired and most of the people napped. We had already made several new friends at the previous airport, including Katie and Danielle, and I ran into Sheila, who was in my Italian class last spring. We all camped out together in the terminal and finally prepared to board the plane at 11:00am German time, a.k.a. four in the morning for all of us. Rumors had abounded that we'd be taking a bus to our plane, and it was true! We all climbed aboard a ridiculous large bus which turned out to be bigger than our plane! The ride to the plane took about seven minutes, which inspired me to question why the gate itself wasn't simply at the other end of the airport. I was becoming delusional at this point due to fatigue, and fell asleep for several seconds several times during the bus ride. When we finally arrived at our aircraft, we were collectively shocked by its small stature.

In stark contrast to our ten-seat wide huge airliner on the first flight, this plane had a mere eighteen rows with six seats each. It was rather cramped and I sat in between Laura Krule and some German fellow who immediately pegged us as Americans. Due to my extreme sleepiness and dreadful headache, I actually fell asleep for the first time ever before we took off. I believe I slept for about an hour or an hour and a half, and when I woke up I was entirely delusional, and frantically asked my German neighbor what was going on when I realized that I had missed both the beverage and food service. He didn't quite respond, and I promptly fell back asleep before finally awakening shortly before our landing.

When we landed in Florence, we once again boarded a bus to the gate. This time, the ride lasted about 20 seconds and piling us all into a bus for such a short distance seemed in hindsight foolish. We were greeted by excited staff members from NYU who told us to leave our luggage somewhere and board a bus to the campus. It was all quite exciting.

In Florence for the Semester!

2009-01-14T14:11:00.000-08:00

The author of popular blogs Movies with Abe and TV with Abe is traveling to the great city of Florence, Italy for the semester. I'll be studying at NYU in Florence from January 13th to May 8th. I'm certain I'll be neglecting both of my other blogs due to time constraint issues and the whole being away from American television and movies factor. I plan instead to devote my energy to keeping this blog, chronicling my daily adventures here. Feel free to check back to keep up with all the exciting things going on here, and please comment with your greetings, feelings, or restaurant suggestions!