Electronic Chores

Classes always just seem to be getting in the way of my time here in Europe, I would so much rather just live and travel… So the last thing I want to come home and do is write and actually use my brain. I was first excited to keep all my friends and family updated on my fabulous life abroad until I was informed of about 5 more blogs I have to keep for different classes and projects, hence the dreaded act of typing and a major dose of procrastination. However, I know all of my avid followers are itching to hear about my next adventure and on a much more exciting note, I have many to tell!

In class we visited the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. It was incredible to be standing in some of the most historic spots in the world. Our teacher lectured and told ancient stories and then slyly added in that we were standing exactly where Julius Cesar’s body was burned. The Colosseum is an astonishing structure that I can’t believe still exists. I stayed in Rome that weekend because we had a lot of visitors come from Granada, so I toured my friend Jenna around the city. On Saturday night I experienced my first futbol game! And I really do mean my first because if you don’t already know, the Carr’s are not quite a soccer family. Although it hasn’t made its ranks into my favorite sports, it was a very cool experience because it is such a huge deal here, especially this game against Naples. The Naples fans are notorious for outrageous behavior at the games and were once banned from coming back to Rome’s stadium. Earlier that day there was a big group of people on the Spanish Steps shouting chants back and forth at each other rooting for their teams. Or so we thought that was happening….

 The Italian couple sitting behind us at the game taught us all of the cheers throughout the game and were getting a huge kick out of how clueless we were. “Odio Napoli!” is pretty much all I remember, which means “I hate Naples!”

It is safe to say that this past week of classes was my favorite. On Wednesday, class was held at a bar in Testacchio and we had a wine seminar! This class was a true test to my will power, with my glass filled with wine and a basket of bread next to me and I had to sit and listen to the teacher talk and analyze for 20 minutes between each glass before trying anything. And let me tell you, it was not easy people. I learned all about the fermentation of wine and the grapes used for specific types. The 3 senses you use for wine tasting is sight, smell, and taste. When our teacher asked what we smelled in one of the red wines I replied, “Rich mahogany and leather bound books.” After everyone laughed he was confused and asked me to repeat it and I told him it was just a joke, but he said I was absolutely right! You really can smell the wood from the barrels it is aged in. The last wine we tasted was a sparkling wine used for dessert and it was deeeelicious! If you are not already wanting to trade lives with me, let me tell you about today. We spent the whole day at a vineyard outside of Rome for this same class. It was beautiful

 to see the countryside and rolling hills of Italy. The vineyard, Castello delle Regine in Umbria is 1100 acres and the house of the owner contains 42 bedrooms. Not only did I get to see the fermentation machinery and barrels upon barrels of aging wine, but cows too! The vineyard also breeds cows and bulls. We ate a beautiful lunch and had of course more wine tasting! I purchased a bottle we tasted of San Giovese for my parents, but it’s questionable whether it will actually make it into their hands after 3 months. It’s the thought that counts, I guess. J

Welp, I wake up in a few hours to go to Siena, San Gimignano, and Pisa, so stay tuned. Until next time… Ciao a tutti!