Italy

When you hear Nonna yell that dinner is finally ready

When Margaret finds out it's panzanella.  With onions.

How you feel after dinner

At the table when someone mentions Colomba

The first time you hear someone speak really fast in that thick Tuscan accent

When you see some sketchy PDA in Piazza del Campo

When you stay up way too late watching Bollywood movies

When you see a hot Italian man on the street

...and another....

...and another.

When you go in for your interview with Bonomi

When you notice someone from the MENSA is creeping on you

After your last day of class at the Dante

When someone compliments you on your Italian

When you're reading the scriptures in Italian

When Limher's jam comes on

When you wake up and forget where you are, then you realize that you're living in Italy

Questa è l'Italia che piace...

This gives me chills every time I watch it.

"Le cose che costruiamo ci rendono ciò che siamo."

La neve

Missing this place... I might even not mind the snow if I lived here.

fotos from Corriere della Sera

Trani

Our second night in Puglia we visited Trani, a gorgeous seaside town just north of Bari.  We walked along the sea, ate granite and pizza, and watched little Marco goof around with his soccer ball in the piazza.

Marco:

Bari and Alberobello

After what was definitely the worst bus ride in the world (eight hours from 10pm to 6am, one row in front of some loud and very hygiene-deficient Algerians), we finally got to Bari, where we stayed with the most awesome Italian family ever.  We got a little nap in and then headed to the beach where we ate lunch (fresh fruit, lasagna, and Gabriella's delicious parmigiana) and played in the waves.  After several hours at the beach, we decided we'd taken in more than enough sun and then headed down to Alberobello.  

Alberobello is a little town in the region of Puglia (the heel of Italy) famous for its white-washed huts: i trulli.  How cool would it be to live in one of these?!  We walked around before heading back to Bari where we crashed.  It was a beautiful day, but we were so tired!  

Il Palio

The Palio is the oldest horse race in the world and happens right in the main piazza of Siena two times a year. The different contrade or "neighborhoods" compete for bragging rights and a tapestry which they hang in their church.  A Sienese's life practically revolves around this event that happens two times a year in July and August. Its a huge deal.  Like really huge: I have seen grown men cry and massive fist fights over this thing. I could go on and on about the contrade and more about the Palio, but instead I'll leave you this link.

There were so many people, we had to arrive over three hours in advance to secure a standing spot in the middle of the piazza (a seat on the bleachers starts at 400 euro!).  All for a race that was less than two minutes long.  But it was a blast and worth the wait, but next time I'd prefer to watch from one of the balconies.

The assignment of the horses to each contrada a few days prior:

The contrada flags on the Palazzo Pubblico

Bambini with their fazzoletti:

Sienese men discussing at one of the trials:

The horses were beautiful:

Waiting for it all to start:

The coveted Palio (tapestry):

Just a few people in the piazza:

Arezzo

So turns out I'm a terrible blogger.  But I visited way too many beautiful places that I didn't want to leave out, so I though I'd post a few more photos of my last month in Italy...

On a Saturday I took a day-trip to Arezzo, where Life is Beautiful was filmed and close to where the actor/director Roberto Benigni (I love him) was born.  It was a pretty little town and made me want to watch the movie again (even though me and Liz stayed up way too late one night watching it only a week before).

Roman Amphitheater:

View of Toscana:

A wedding in  the chapel of the cathedral:

Piazza Grande.  Recognize it?