So, fell behind in blogging again- surprise, surprise. But, I'll try to briefly finish up my first 10 days of spring break, before I forget my adventures. But to pick up, after Cinque Terre, Danielle and I took a train from Levanto to Milan (RIP stupid piccell phone), and headed down to Catania, Sicily, where we stayed with her wonderful extended family- Angelo and Gabriella, and their two daughters, Francesca and Anna. I forget their last name (of course), how they're related to Danielle (if we ever definitely figured it out), and how to spell the first names...whoops. It was a great 3ish days, for a variety of reasons. Here are some highlights:
1. (Danielle's) Family: Angelo, Gabriella, Francesca, and Anna- They were such wonderful, gracious
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| Roberto and Constanza |
hosts. Francesca, Anna, Danielle, and I taught each other how to say the parts of the face in English/Italian, and had a great time exchanging bits of culture and language. Gabriella made homemade spaghetti carbonara one night (around 11pm, Italians eat LATE!) and it was absolutely delicious!!! We went out to eat and got to sample some real Sicilian pastries, and they showed us around their city. It was great to experience a different side of Catania, since we stayed with a real Sicilian family in an apartment RIGHT in the center of the city, as opposed to experiencing only the surface, most touristy part of the city from a hostel. I also got to meet Roberto, Angelo's brother, his wife, and their two kids, Victoria and Constanza (spelling again), and Roberto and Angelo's father, and learn all about Danielle's huge family!
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| Giovanni (left) cooking delicious pizza |
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| Sicilian pizza! |
2. Lunch party, Sicilian Style- On Sunday, the day after we got there, we went with Roberto and his family to a BIG lunch party at the house of his boss (former boss?) up on the hillside of Catania, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. It was absolutely incredible- the house was so open and airy, and had a big, Italian kitchen- perfect for cooking the MOST FOOD I HAVE EVER SEEN IN MY LIFE! We met lots of Sicilian people, and enjoyed Sicilian pizza (which is actually like a closed pizza, or with another layer of crust on top- see picture- not the rectangular thick pizza we call "Sicilian" in the US), pasta, wine, a delicious bread appetizer thing, LOTS of pastries, strawberries and more :) It was so unreal, but so amazing that we got to have a glimpse into that part of their life. We did, however, find out that a lunch party that extravagant is not normal.
3. The oranges- are purpley red inside! And so, so, so delicious and fresh (since they can grow right in your backyard!).
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| yum! |
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| volcano and beach in the same picture! |
4. Seeing the sites- We took an afternoon trip up to Taormina, a
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| Mount Etna |
town nearish to Catania that is up on the mountainside overlooking the Mediterranean, and it was beautiful! Danielle and I went to the old Roman ampitheater, which was so cool, and Angelo and family met us for a delicious dinner. The next day, before we left, Angelo took us up to see Mount Etna, an active
volcano- it was incredible to see, and slightly daunting to see firsthand the unstoppable power that is contained in the earth. There was still some snow up on the volcano, which was ironic, because we then headed down to see the beach, where there were people sunbathing in the warmth.
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what a volcano can do- that was someone's house! |
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| ampitheater at Taormina |
5. TRAFFIC!- Not one of my favorite parts, but the traffic is worth mentioning! It was craaazy! I see
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| gridlock from the bus window |
why people drive mopeds, though I would be terrified to do that. Angelo said the rule of the road was the bigger car won, and it was true- you really just had to force your way in when turning. There were virtually no controlled intersections anywhere; I think we saw 2 stop signs in Catania in 2.5 days! It took us about 40 minutes to go a few miles when Angelo drove us to the bus station!
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