Chianti and Firenze

Tuscan countrysideBiodynamic Farm

Gatto in the sun...
Taco the wiener dogPonte Vecchio

Morning on the Orno
Smallest car I've seen yet...
On top of the DuomoView from the top of the Dome- check out the shadow! Fresco in the Dome- "The Last Judgment"- doesn't it look the Gods are coming out of the painting??

This past weekend we did our first “real” traveling. I woke up at 6am on Friday to go to a field trip with my “History and Culture of Italian Food” class. My teacher is awesome- he’s from Germany but lives in Florence, and has a really thick German accent that all the students try to imitate. We took a bus to Chianti, a region in Tuscany; the ride there was amazing- rolling hills, vineyards, and rows and rows of olive trees- exactly what you would imagine Tuscany to look like. Our first stop was a biodynamic farm. Biodynamic agriculture is a method of organic farming; manure and compost are used instead of chemical fertilizers, and seeds are even planted during certain lunar phases. We were able to see goats and cows- only used for their milk- and I fell in love with the farm wiener dog named Taco. (Why am I always taking so many pictures of animals?) After touring the farm, we sampled cheese that was made from the cow and goat milk. I wonder what the farm workers would think of our powdered cheese that comes in the Kraft macaroni boxes…

After we said goodbye to Taco, we were off to lunch at the Macelleria Cecchini- a butcher shop run by world famous butcher, Dario Cecchini. He greeted us with tons of excitement and a huge smile. I’ve never met someone with such a love for meat… Dario has been a butcher for the past 33 years, and butchery has been in his family for 250 years. When he started speaking, it was evident how much he loved being a butcher and how he wanted to share his love of meat with us…or with some of us. At one point he said, “And to the vegetarians… I quote Hamlet: to beef or not to beef, that is the question.” Good one Dario…
You can read more about Dario and see pictures here:
http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-cecchini12mar12,1,4734851.story

Lunch marked the end of our field trip. The bus took us to Florence, only 45 minutes away, and dropped off those who wanted to stay for the weekend. My friend and I met up with our roommates who had taken the train earlier that day and we walked to “Hostel Veronique”… only 14 euro a night! Veronica, the owner of the hostel and past model, showed us to our room- not much to see, five beds and a chair in a room- pretttty good… I was expecting a blanket on the floor for 14 euro a night…

We only had one full day in Firenze, so all time was spent wisely. In the morning we walked to the Orno River and took pictures by Ponte Vecchio, Florence’s oldest bridge. Then we visited the Uffizi Gallery, where we saw amazing artwork by all of the Ninja Turtles- Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, and Donatello. The “Annunciation” and “Adoration of the Magi”, both by da Vinci, were incredible to see in person, but “The Birth of Venus” by Botticelli was my absolute favorite. Right next to Venus was “Spring”, also by Botticelli. Seeing such famous paintings in person was kind of mind boggling… I just sat and stared.
Birth of Venus: http://abm-enterprises.net/artgall2/botticelli_birth_venus.jpg

Spring: http://arturovasquez.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/botticelli.jpg

Visiting the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore was probably the coolest thing we did in Florence. Construction of the Basilica began in 1296, and it was not structurally complete until 1436. This cathedral is larger than life… 375 feet tall. I was on a bus with friends when we rounded a corner and saw it for the first time- everyone let out a simultaneous gasp. After viewing the inner architecture, we decided to take the 436 steps to the top of the dome. The view of the city was unbelievable. You could see for miles and miles. One million pictures and 45 minutes later, we decided it was time to leave and began the 436 steps down.

Overall, Florence is a beautiful, beautiful city, but I’m glad to call Perugia my home. Florence is very touristy and it was strange walking around and hearing English being spoken. I love the small shops, family-run restaurants, and seeing the accordion-playing man with dreadlocks on a daily basis. It was good to be “home” after a weekend of travel.

And that’s all I have to say about that.