Ciao! Take Me to the Peneatery

Susannah and I had a lovely time arguing (and drinking) our way through Italy. We made a personal vow to ourselves that, no matter what should happen, we would eat gelato at least once a day. I had also made a personal vow to myself that I would drink at least once a day throughout my entire trip (though I think we managed to outdo ourselves at least a couple times). I am happy to report that I haven't gotten horrendously sick or hungover and am still enjoying sampling the local beverages of each country I visit!

Rome was historical, warm, and best of all, full of food and fun. Despite the many amazing sights and loads of fountains we saw, one of the best parts was cooking dinner in the tiny hostel with our international friends (until I beat Susannnah over the head with a frying pan- photo to follow shortly). Boxed table wine for a euro, chicken piccata, limoncello, and Francis making us curry and chai at midnight make for a very memorable evening. While in Rome, San made the mistake of asking me if we had reached the Sistine Chapel yet (as we were winding through endless hallways). So far we have reached at least 17 Sistine Chapels and she'll never live this one down. We have a plethora of ridiculous photos of ourselves desecrating ancient monuments and "taking the piss out of" (as our Brit friends would say) various historical attractions.

Florence was also historical, and even warmer! I think I can never spend another winter in NYC. Throughout my trip, I have decided to move to at least 3 different European countries and now I'm entirely confused! Luckily, I no longer care about the age-old bother of "what to do with my life" and am instead trying to figure out where I want to live next and how to go about doing it. Anyhow, back to Florence. Despite the four year gap, most of my local sense of direction returned and amazingly, almost all of my "old haunts" were still around. I had a great time leading San around to various places, both touristy and not, and she had a great time making fun of the fact that almost every time I pointed out something I recognized, it was somehow related to wine or drinking in general (except when it had to do with food). "Oh, that's where I used to run out for a cheap bottle of wine... I loved that bar! Once I drank in this piazza."

It was lovely remembering these excursions, seeing my old apartment building, and trying to speak Italian again (though even more poorly than before). We made friends with an Aussie named Jessica, and briefly, with two Americans who were living in Rome. Our giant dinner at Trattoria Za Za was amazing, until about 10 hours later when I was regretting eating so much (mirroring the great guacamole incident that many of you have heard about). However, the next night we were feeling better and Susannah and I had a romantic dinner for two at my favorite Florentine restaurant, Aqua al Due, and we both voted it "better than sex." Better than sex?! Yes, better than sex.

We're now on day 4 of a 7 day jaunt through Spain, so more about Priya's sweet flat, Ramon's jamon, and the healing powers of paella and sangria in Valencia soon.