Leaving Lucca

Lydia, Erling, Lisa and I after Montecarlo 

Our Pane, Vino e Lingua course wrapped up on Thursday evening. We were thrilled to have  Maddalena as our teacher one last time! She is the perfect combination of quirky, bubbly and hysterical. Each one of us wanted to pack her up and bring her home with us. We had roles in helping to prepare the four course meal. Our Austrian classmate, Lydia was in charge of chopping up veggies (verdura) for the Panzanella salad, which turned out to be excellent Antipasto dish!

Eilidh, "Miss Parmigiano" grated cheese and helped to marinate vegetables for the first and second dishes. Lisa, "Miss Melanzana" cooked up the eggplant, which was our first plate, consisting of eggplant, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, tomatoes, and onions. Bellissimo! The second plate
was pollo and verdura fritta, or fried chicken and vegetables (including onions, zucchini, zucchini fiore, and sage).

I was referred to as "Miss Crema" and helped to prepare the cream for our "Zuppa Inglese." Translated as "English Soup," it was actually a dessert consisting of biscotti, a red liqueur, cream and chocolate powder. The entire meal took about an hour and a half to prepare and we sat and ate for around the same, enjoying Prosecco and white wine. At one point, the topic of gelato came up (surprise, surprise) and Lisa and I were asked how much we had had so far. We both responded "cinquantanove" or 59, and received a startled look from Lydia. She asked us to repeat the number, figuring we had simply said it incorrectly in Italian. When we repeated the same number, and further explained that we had each had around "trenta" or 30 scoops, she shook her head at us in disbelief (and perhaps even slight disgust). We couldn't help but laugh though...the number does sound ridiculous, even when we explain it's combined.

Maddelena...our Prosecco butler ;) 

One of the highlights came during cleanup, as we had just finished the dishes and were folding up the "tovaglia" when we noticed Maddelena was acting strange. She kept folding the ends of the tablecloth with quick, rigid motions that made it look like she was struggling to move her arms. Lisa finally
asked "va bene?" or "are you okay?" and Maddelena explained that she hadn't had a chance to get her armpits done. We were keeling over laughing, and Lisa to the point of tears. We are really going to miss her.

Koine School, 7.7.14- 19.7.14

Best focaccia in Lucca...bread will never taste the same.

We have not been short of laughter in Lucca... I was telling Lisa that I haven't laughed this hard, this consistently in a really long time (probably since Hawaii). Our final full day in Lucca was another example of this, while also being the perfect ending to an incredible two weeks. We had our final Italian class in the morning and took the afternoon to relax, do laundry and start to get things together.  We has made plans to meet up with other Koine students at 6:30/7 for apperitivo
(appetizers) at the "chicken bar." Lisa and I made a pitstop beforehand to "Unbiq," a local Lucchese bookstore and bought a children's book about Lucca. We both laughed saying that the book was definitely at our frustrational reading levels. However, it will be good incentive to keep learning Italian.

Last dinner in Lucca...

There were about 11 or 12 of us that gathered at the bar for appetizers, which was our typical hangout throughout the week. Afterward we ventured out to dinner at a restaurant over by the Koine School.  Lisa and I split gnocchi with pesto, a caprese salad and pork loin with roasted potatoes. We also ordered a bottle of the house red wine, which turned out to be more like a jug. Another guy at the
table had also ordered a bottle of the house red, so we had more than enough to go around the table.

Highlights from the night included...

-Of the 11-12 of us present at dinner, there were 10 countries represented... Switzerland, Austria, Netherlands, Norway, Italy, USA, Russia, Scottland, Estonia, and Spain.
- the waiter referring to one guy from our table as "Boy George" in Italian.
- watching a YouTube video man on the Italian Man in Malta
- Free Limoncello for the table (like an entire bottle). Woah.
- Eilidh drinking wine.
-Post dinner gelato outside of the wall at a place called "Le Bonta."
-The walk back to our places... At each drop off there were teary-eyed farewells, followed by three kisses on the cheek (because that is the Swiss, Netherlands, Norwegian way).

FP: 134, end count

SoG: 69

I am off to Florence for my last couple of days before the long trek back home. This trip has been one of the best experiences of my life, and thus it is hard to think that it is ending, however, I have a lot to look forward to in seeing family and friends that I have missed. Especially, these two....

i miei genitori 

I also want to express a HUGE thank you to Lisa....for encouraging me to take this trip, finally making my dream of seeing Italy come true. She planned every detail, navigated us through cities, and helped me to translate! :)  This trip would not have happened for me without you...and now, I am itching at the chance to come back!