Again, this week has been nuts. I spent the first few days adjusting to my new home, family, and city. I've fallen in love with Bologna and the carefree and open minded people here. I did something a little nuts, made a CouchSurfing.org profile, and met up with a few Bolognese students for tours of the city and the nightlife. I've met a few friends, but unfortunately a lot of them have already left for summer vacation, heading home to other parts of Italy.
the iconic Statua di Nettuno
Piazza Maggiore
glued to the TV!
post-bath moped ride? :)
We went to the family's ranch (only 30 minutes away) for an evening!
Mati loved the chocolate on top of her birthday cake (at the ranch)
the old gate from the medieval city
remains of the original wall around the city
"Little Venice"- a small canal in Bologna!
Just as things were starting to settle down, I took a 5am flight on Friday to Paris where I met up with Eve (who has been au-pairing in Milan). While in Paris, we spent time with some great friends from Berkeley, and were lucky enough that Meredith let us crash at her apartment instead of shelling out even more money for a hotel. However, even with lodging taken care of, Paris still found a way to devastate my wallet. Anyway, a few pictures from one of the most incredible weekends of my life:
started our day off with an unintended but super excited run-in with some fellow DGs!
Luxembourg!
Palais
l'Opera!
seeing this in person was absolutely surreal
DG meet up in Paris!
After only a few hours of sleep in Bologna after my Parisian weekend, I worked for a bit and then rushed off to the train station to meet my dad in Venice. We had a great afternoon walking around, admiring the breathtaking canals, and enjoying a delicious Italian dinner sandwiched between two trips for gelato. It was sad to leave him, not knowing when I'll be able to see him again, but I had to get back to Bologna for work in the morning!
nothing quite like a nice Italian dinner with dad!
beautiful view to end the day!
The past week began with a few days of quiet recovery from Paris and Venice, followed by meeting some new friends (including some Berkeley girls!! :) ), getting my Italian library card (!!!), and spending a lot of time wandering the city, reading in the piazzas, and chatting with random passersby. I had a nice rooftop barbeque, where a new friend, Ian, grilled up some fabulous prosciutto-wrapped, gorgonzola-stuffed figs! I also enjoyed my first apertivo experience, where you buy a drink for about 7Euros and then have buffet-style appetizers!
Friday: Open Air market!
La Due Torri, or "Two Towers"- iconic buildings of Bologna- notice the one on the right is tilting!
Piazza Maggiore- the city's main piazza, and my favorite spot to read!
Piazza Maggiore by night: free outdoor movies! Last week, I enjoyed a silent movie with an orchestra & opera singer and all: Phantom of the Opera!! :)
I had a super bizarre experience last week where a man approached me in the piazza while I was reading and asked if he could draw me. I obliged, but used gestures to say that I would continue reading. After about half an hour, he started trying to style my hair for his photo, but I was completely stunned and didn't know how to communicate that I was fine with him drawing me, but not touching me! Eventually I started pointing at my watch and just got up, then had to undo all of the braids he had painfully put in my hair. What an awkward situation... Looking back, I don't know why I didn't just get up immediately. Here's his final work of art:
please reassure me that I don't actually look like that...
Today is July 4th, so I'm missing America more than usual. Of course, I'm wearing my red, white, and blue, and when I get off work, Eve is coming into Bologna. I'm planning on showing her a few of my favorite sites before we go to an independence day BBQ with some of my new American friends. I'm not sure how it can live up to last year's July 4th in Newport beach, but there's never a boring day here in Bologna!
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