We Came, We Drank, We Conquered

Well folks, I am back in Florence after a very short and sweet trip to Munich, Germany to celebrate BEER, amongst other things, at the one and only- Oktoberfest!

Yesterday marked my first time for many things, including visiting Germany, experiencing Oktoberfest, drinking beer before breakfast at 9 a.m., drinking beer from a 10 lb. mug, eating a German bratwurst, and never wanting to get off a coach bus more in my entire life.
This whirlwind of a weekend was by far one of the coolest, and an experience that I will remember for many years to come. It went by so fast, I almost feel like it didn't happen. We bused it through the night on Friday, arrived in Germany early Saturday morning, spent the day at Oktoberfest, bused it right back to Italy Saturday night, and arrived in Florence at 8 this morning. Quite the adventure, I know. Let me start with how we got there...

Friday night, my roommates and I packed our bags and headed to the bus station for our 11:30 p.m. departure to Germany. Just in case you were wondering, we dressed in the clothes we'd be wearing through that night/all Saturday/ride home, not wanting to leave valuables on the bus...TMI? Fifty of us students packed into the full bus, and tried our very best to get comfortable, bracing ourselves for the eight hour ride ahead of us. Much to my surprise, there was no bathroom on the bus which got everyone worried about the bus ride back from Germany... the size of my bladder + beer + other drunk people= we've got ourselves a SITUATION.

The man, the myth, the situation.

For the most part, sleeping wasn't pretty difficult regardless of the cramped quarters. After eight hours of traveling, a dead leg, and a severely cramped neck... we finally made it to GERMANY. We were so excited to get off the bus and into the madness. Upon entering...

Sportin' fresh clothes. Yeah, right.

I really had no idea what to expect when getting there. Sure, I've been to an "Oktoberfest" in America, but I know they're nothing like the real thing. I was shocked to see SO many awesome rides, food stands, beer gartens, and beer "tents" (which are essentially huge wooden buildings).
I also wasn't aware  that the good-looking people convention was going on the same day. Seriously, I have never seen so many good looking people in one area.  Everywhere you turned, there was a hot couple, or groups of hot guys and girls dressed up in the traditional German costumes, relishing in their hotness.
The smells throughout the festival were unreal. The sweet aroma of fried dough, and candied nuts mixed with Bratwurst filled the air. Upon entering the city you could even smell the beer brewing.
First on the to-do list? We practically sprinted to Hofbrauhaus, which is the second largest tent and more widely known amongst Americans/tourists. We ordered our first beer (er... stein) outside while waiting in line to get in inside the tent because that's where all the magic happens.

Initial thoughts on the beer? Foamy & beery? I mean, I have nothing else to say other then it was cold, delicious, and tasted like beer.

BEER ME...please

...and it definitely hit me after the few sips. Four beers in one stein+ higher alcohol content= tipsy girl in braids.

Thumbs up, dooood.

Inside was a whole different world.

 We got into the tent around 10 a.m. For the next five hours while drinking we watched chugging contests, wandered around meeting people, devoured roasted chicken, bratwurst, and pretzels, darted the feisty waitresses- hands filled with steins/food, and stood in our fair share of bathroom lines. The music was traditional, loud, and awesome. People were always dancing and standing on the benches (tables=escorted out).

By the time we left the tent, I was more then ready to hit up a ride. I was totally tipsy and totally fearless... you could've taken me sky diving and I probably would've done a gainer out of the plane. A friend and I made our way to the swings for a little joy ride. It was just great.

This morning I received an email from Char that read, "Make sure you take a picture of 'black-out hill'-a hill where everyone passes out on." Well Mom, it indeed is a hill that everyone passes out on.... and I don't know how to say this but... that hill and I are good friends now. Here's your picture (sans Kelsey):

Black-out hill

The hill spreads out along the back side of all the tents. It reminded me of Central Park in the summer, accept that everyone was in a deep sleep rather then sun bathing. We took a nice little power hour nap on that puppy. What? Everyone else was doing it...
The rest of the day was spent walking, eating, and buying souvenirs, all in the midst of hot German boys.
Towards the end of the night, the police and ambulance were kept busy. People were constantly being escorted out of the tents or carried out on stretchers. Drunk boys would surround a tree and pee n'sync. There was a lot of stumbling, laughing, crying- all of which I am accustomed to from going to my fair share of DMB concerts. Twas quite the site.

All in all, Oktoberfest 2011 was an awesome time and will be always be remembered.
No problems with sickness or bladder explosion on the way back home so I guess you can call that successful as well. We got back to our apartment around 9 this morning. Myself and Florence stayed hydrated this afternoon. As it poured outside, I took an excessive five hour nap while throwing back a blue Powerade of sugary goodness. I have yet to move.

A Day Worth Noting

Yesterday, my Food, Culture, and Society class went on a little field trip around the city to a few of the best food markets, sandwich shops, and gelaterias.

We started our excursion at the San Lorenzo Mercato Centrale, where I fell in love with all things Italian. The market is indoors, and they have countless vendors selling EVERYTHING including: fresh/dried vegetables & fruit, pasta, cheese, bread, baked goods, quality balsamic vinegars & olive oils, a huge selection of sun-dried tomatoes/mushrooms, meats, fish, wine, limoncello, & even flowers. Oh, as well as whole ducks, whole baby pigs, pig heads/feet/ears, & cow stomach/liver/brains/intestines... I said everything, didn't I? If you're a vegetarian, I would use precautions when entering this market or looking at the pictures below. Everywhere you turn there's another [dead] duck head staring at you. I was fortunate enough to get a lovely view of a butcher, dressed in an apron stained with blood & guts, slamming his large knife into a pig and dismembering the head from the body. I'm sorry for the graphic details, but it's just not possible to make this sound beautiful.

Heads up!

Delectable livers, brains, & tongues

Assortment of cheeses

Fruits & Vegetables 

Freshly prepared pastas

PEANUT BUTTER!!

Dried Fruits!

Needless to say, the food is to die for, and very reasonably priced. My class was given a balsamic vinegar, and olive oil tasting. We also tried delicious breads, and pastries. We weren't able to wander the market and shop so Jess, Katie, and I returned this morning to stock up on some yummy foods. As you can see above, my favorite and most unexpected find of the day was peanut butter!!! It's pretty much impossible to track down in all of the other stores, but because this market has a good mix of ethnic foods, we were able to score the most wonderful jarred food on earth. We were also given abnormally small bananas that we never want to go bad because they're just so damn cute. 

Good thing we took a million pictures with them...

The markets are one thing about Italy that I can't get enough of. For me, it has more to do with the experience of interacting with the butchers & bakers, immersing myself in the culture, and purchasing fresh, organic products- rather then simply "grocery shopping." Sure, it is a lot easier and faster to walk two minutes to the local grocery store but you are sacrificing a lot in doing that. The food is not as fresh, the store isn’t the most appealing, the prices are higher, and you don't get to see pig heads. 

The next stop on our little field trip was to Procacci.

http://www.procacci1885.it/index.php

Procacci is considered to be one of the most famous delicatessens in the city, and has been in business since 1885. It sells the most delicious little sandwiches with truffles that we inhaled, like ladies. I don't know if you've ever tried black truffles but if not, you need to get on that because you are seriously missing out on the most unique taste. 

We ended our adventure at a specialty sicilian gelateria for a gelato tutorial. When we entered the kitchen, the only ingredients on the table were cucumbers, feta cheese, milk, coarse salt, garlic, and sugar. Just like anyone I thought, "now THAT'S a recipe for gelato." No. I did not think that, and to be honest, I was a little apprehensive in seeing what was about to go down. The chef himself whipped those ingredients effortlessly together in true Italian fashion, popped it in the ice cream machine, and out came a light green cucumber and feta gelato. He assembled the gelato with toasted brioche bun slices, a sprinkle of pepper, and handed it over. It. Was. Awesome.

The sweetness of the sugar, and savory of the feta/cucumber totally worked. I asked him what the craziest gelato combination he ever made was. He bounced back with, "There is no combination too crazy when you have a creative mind and preference. The best gelato is the one you prefer." Ditto, gelato man! But then he mentioned something about an oyster and chocolate combo he made for the President of Pakistan. Ooookay, I like seafood, and would marry chocolate but combining the two is where I draw the line. He wants to eventually open a gelato restaurant in New York City one of these days. Gelato meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner? Sounds like heaven to me.

As I made my way back to the apartment after class, I walked through the San Lorenzo outdoor market to browse their leather bags/jackets/wallets, clothes, shoes, etc. I had nothing planned for the rest of the day so I figured I'd take my time. I never usually look through the artwork but for some reason I decided to stop at one vendor to watch him paint water-color poppy flowers. They were so bright and beautiful, and I loved the fact that he was painting them right in front of me. Authenticity at it's finest. We started talking, and I learned that he has been painting for thirty years. I looked through his pieces and found one that I liked and wanted. He took the painting, put it down, and started a fresh one for me. 

I love its color and simplicity. I love that it was painted for me, in front of me, on the streets of Italy, by an Italian painter. I love that I'll be able to hang this in my apartment or house one day and remember how it came about. It's the little things in life...

He sketched and painted me a business card, and told me to come back for a water-color lesson at some point. I will be doing that next week!

And as for our plans this weekend.... It involves a little of this:

 A lot of that...

 And definitely those....

Off to Munich, Germany tonight- Oktoberfest, see ya tomorrow!

CSI- Florence

Let me quickly address last night's adventures.

After the soccer game, we clearly had a dance party in the apartment for a hot minute...

 Of course, every party has a pooper and the pooper was this girl:

....we then continued on our way to Central Park- an uhhhhmazing outdoor club/bar here in Florence. Where there was more dancing...

And lots of pick-pocketing. When we went to leave the bar, I searched through my purse for my money, and black card. The black card is a drink punch card. Every time you order a drink, they punch the card and you pay at the end of the night. If you don't drink, you still have to pay 1 euro to leave. If you lose the card, you have to pay 50 euros. Just my luck...everything in my purse was taken and I was left with a hair tie and crumpled receipt.
Now let's play a little game of detective, shall we? After looking at these people's mug shots, try to determine which one were the culprits:

Exhibit A (definitely questionable)

Exhibit B

Exhibit JACKPOT

Either this mission was really easy or you guys are really good little detectives.
I talked my way out of shelling out 50 euros to leave the place. However, I did have to give 10, and then find a way to borrow money for a cab ride home. Luckily, my roommates friend accompanied me on the ride and spotted me the money. :)
When sharing my story with the cab driver, he told me to be careful of young Albanian and Roman boys because they are known for doing these types of things. Check and check.

In case you were wondering how much money they confiscated, it wasn't much. Such a shame that they went through all that effort to dance with me, and ended up with only 5 or 6 euros. Kelsey's done it again!

Food Therapy

Let me address my apartments Sugar Wafers & Nutella obsession really quick.

Artificially flavored. Even better...

Never in a million years would I have thought, “hey- make sure you pick up some vanilla wafers on your way back” would be the most common sentence used here. Maybe pasta, fruit, or wine- but never… sugar wafers. It is said just about every day. Which means every day an entire pack of those dang wafers is inhaled, and enjoyed by six (but mostly three) girls. “Good thing” there’s a convenient store right next to our apartment. The “good thing” part of that sentence is in quotes because it’s most certainly debatable. And as for the Nutella... well that stuff is just deadly and should be illegal in some households, including this very one I'm sitting in. It's chocolaty, creamy, nutty goodness is just that- so very, very good. And then when you combine the two...I need to stop.

Pre-going out munchies 

Shove it in there, Jess.

So, in conclusion, if anyone knows of a hotline we can all call to get us over this sugary obsession- don't be shy. PLEASE. It would be greatly appreciated. Our thighs would be ever so grateful, too. ;)

And before I end this post, Jessica just walked through the door and screamed "I GOT WAFERS!" I kid you not. This is just embarrassing. Proof:

What's also embarrassing is that I just informed her that there were nuts in NUT-ella. She thought it was straight up chocolate sauce. You live, you learn right Jess???

Time to fly away on this sugar high.

A Night of Boys & Balls

What I mean is: a night of soccer players, and soccer balls, ya sickos.

Last night, myself and a handful of other FUA students joined thousands of fans in the stands of the Florentine Soccer Stadium to watch our very first game. Soccer is huge here, which made it all the more exciting to attend. I think the walk there was just as exciting, though.
Twenty American ladies (accompanied by a few handsome boys) + a sea of purple shirts + thirty-minute walk + unnecessary large beers= great way to kick-off a game. I mean, it was no American tailgate of hotdogs, burgers, and mini kegs but we're talkin Italy here. Walking + Beer = skinny Italian women. Sitting in foldable chairs + Beer = .....America.

No, the beers could not be any bigger.

Furthermore, I think we can all agree that any sporting event is a good excuse to drink beer & eat more then your fair share of salty popcorn. So, we did just that. As we walked through the stadium looking for the food stands, you knew you were most definitely not in America. Rather then seeing people guzzling superdidooper-venti Starbucks & sodas, people were sipping on teeny cappuccinos and espressos. Italy-2. America-0.
Apparently, Italians are so enthusiastic & loud at the games that they have a separate section for the crazy animals. Unfortunately, we didn't get to be part of the zoo, for once- we actually ended up sitting far from it but saw the action from a distance. Next game, I hope to surf the crowd or something. Here's a little glimpse into crowds and their chanting:

To be honest, while fidgeting through this game, I discovered that I don't really care for soccer. I love playing the sport, I just don't love watching it. I do, however, like that the clock always runs so the halves fly by. I hate to say this but the only other exciting parts of the game besides goals, which don't happen often, is when someone gets hurt (eeek). That sounds pretty awful, doesn't it? Well, as I felt my eyelids shutting, two guys ended up knocking their heads into each other which woke me right back up!

As the players took a knee and waited for the ET team to hurry onto the field, fully equipped with stretchers, the boys bounced back after a minute or so. Nap time!
We were fortunate to be seated right next to a chain smoker though. That was nice! Right before the game started, he opened a fresh pack. By the game's half time, it was his pack's half time (he made a guest appearance in the video above).
Now, what I am about to say next doesn't really get addressed that often (unless you're in my house, Char & Al, you can back me up on this) but I know every single one of you has thought about it excessively at one point or another. Butts. Straight up. In this particular context, I'm talkin' about athletes bootays, but you can let your mind wander.

Whenever I attend a Yankees game, I'm not there solely for the game. I am there to take a perverted amount of pictures of Jeter and A-Rods back drops and I KNOW you are, too. Well anyway, I went into this game thinking...hoping...praying that we would be blessed with a show. This is what I got... 

And frankly, I was disappointed. Baby do NOT got back. Italy-2. America-1.

All the sudden I had ants in my pants (seriously!) so we left at half time. Sad, I know. We made our way back to the apartment where we dolled ourselves up for the night. And what a night it was....

Nerd Alert

This summer I made a goal for myself. I was to spend less time on the computer, or should I say Facebook (let's be real here) and spend more time with my entire head in a book when possible.

I feel that I succeeded as I finished three books during my commutes in and out of the city. I loved every single one of them. When you come across a good book, it's a great thing. 

I started with Water for Elephants,

followed by The Help,

and lastly Sarah’s Key.

I highly recommend all three if you haven’t already read them. Boys? Stick to ESPN.

Not surprisingly, all three of the books were made into movies. I have yet to see Sarah's Key in the theatre, but I saw the other two with Char and thought they were really well done. Although, in my opinion the books beat out the movie. That's pretty typical though.

Now that I am here in Italy, I want to continue my goal. I want to read as much as possible during my free time. I think it's safe to say reading is a little more productive then stalking people on Facebook, no? I recently started Safe Heaven by Nicholas Sparks. 

Anytime I read a Nicholas Sparks book (A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, Dear John, among many others) I am always satisfied at the end. So, I figured I wouldn’t be let down with this read. So far I’m likin’ it. When searching for the picture above, I saw that it's being made into a movie at the moment. Go figure.

I have a long list of books I want to read so I hope to do a routine book review on this blog after every book. It might come as a help to you if you’re looking for a new read, or just be a complete waste of your precious time ;) I'll keep ya posted on Safe Haven!


Nerd Alert: Jess & I are starting a book club when we enter the real world in a year. Any takers??

Can you repeat that, please?

Last night, Jess and I decided to head out for a beer at the Lion’s Fountain, an American pub, for a little gossip sesh. We didn’t find it necessary to shower or give a rat’s a$$ about looking presentable because talking to boys was not on our to-do list. Boy, were we mistaken.

Spandex and oversized sweatshirts seemed to be the theme for the night. Hot, right? The weather went bipolar on us over night & decided it was done being in the 90’s/ humid & is now pretty chilly. I’m not complaining, though. Bring on the fall!

We both ordered Italian beers on tap, and sat ourselves down in an enormous booth. 

As we sipped & chatted, I noticed we were getting eyed by bigger groups of people, probably wanting our seats. I mean, the booth could comfortably fit 8 people… and there was just two of us. But hey, you snooze you lose.

DIBS!

Then I noticed a particular little group (of pure boy) that was eyeing us for what I suppose was a different reason. After their eyes practically burned holes through our heads, I told them to take a seat and stay a while.

They eagerly took me up on that offer, and made themselves extremely comfortable.... as you can see.

Easy there fellas

We quickly discovered these boys were German, and spoke very little English. Well, this was going to be fun.

If only this night could have been recorded. The remainder of the night was spent constantly asking each other to “please repeat,” attempting to teach each other our native languages, and a whole lot of “Como se dice” (how do you say…). It was fun & a good challenge to interact with people who barely spoke English. It was also entertaining watching them get increasingly drunker.

Ciao, bello

Of course, all good nights must come to an end. Eventually, we parted ways. I think they left convinced we would see them again. Sweet dreams, suckers boys!