Two weekends ago was actually one of the best weekends I have had so far- I had such an adventure! We had a three day weekend because of "The Day of the Dead" holiday, so I had Thursday night, Friday, Saturday and Sunday to do whatever I wanted- and I wanted to go exploring!
Thursday night, Anika and I got invited to go to a Disco/Club in the center of Vicenza. Thursday was Halloween, and so this club was having a huge festival. Around 10pm, I was dropped off at Anika's house, and we got ready together. At 11, Anika's host dad picked us up and Anika's host cousin Davide. We got in the car and drove about 20 minutes to this club, and on the way, I asked Davide how many people usually go to the club. He told me "Hmm, abbastanza", which means "not all that much", and then he said about 1,000 people!! I was in shock!!! Ususally clubs in America only have about 100-200 people on a good night! But 1,000 people! I couldn't wait to see it. We arrived outside this warehouse that was apparently the club, and there really were a lot of kids everywhere. They were all about 18, and not much older than 22. Most of them were in cool costumes- zombies, witches, and more! Anika and I didn't get the memo, but next time we go, we will dress up for whatever the occasion is! We waited then until around midnight before we could enter into the disco. We were one of the first few people in there (Anika and I were in a group with her cousin and all of his friends...I met a lot of new kids!) and the music was really strange, slow techno music. But when more people entered, the music picked up, and soon everyone was jumping around and fist pumping to cool techno music! I could definitely tell the differences between American clubs and Italian discos, but they are both super fun! Anika and I are going back soon :) That night, I spent the night in Anika's hotel (she lives in a house that is right next to the hotel her family owns, but whenever I come over, we can have our own hotel room!).
The next morning, Anika and I decided to do some exploring of our own. We woke up super early (it was 7 am, but it felt like 5 am to us!!), and we took a bus to the center of Vicenza. From there, we bought a bus ticket to the town of Asiago. We got on the bus and started our 1.5 hour drive up there. It was a BEAUTIFUL day!!!! Really nice days are quite rare in the winter in Italy, so we got lucky. :) The ride up there was fantastic-this was the first time I had really gone into the mountains! When we arrived in Asiago, the first thing I noticed was how Swiss/German it looked. The houses had cute little decorations on the side of them and they did not look like the Vicenza style homes I have been seeing. It was quite strange to me, because Vicenza is not far away at all, and yet there was such a different. The second thing I noticed was the fresh mountain air. I have gotten quite used to the cigarette, car exhaust and coffee smells. But it was quite refreshing to breathe in clean air! Anika and I decided to get a cappuccino (we had only gotten 4 hours of sleep!!) and start looking around the town.
This is the image of Asiago- as you can tell it is in a beautiful part of the country full of hills and trees. It is beautiful here.
This is the big church and the city center fountain.
Another view of the pretty fountain!
These are the typical streets in Asiago with lots of cute little shops!
After we looked in the city, we wanted to go walking in the countryside. We found a trail that took us into the hills where we saw dairy cows and beautiful views.
Another view of the country side :) I think this may be my favorite place so far!!
This is what Asiago cheese looks like (I had to get Google picture of the cheese, but next time I will take real pictures!). It looks JUST like this- soft, a little bit sweet, and so delicious.
Another picture of delicious Asiago cheese. I think I might be addicted! We also can buy it here in Povolaro, and it is fantastic.
Anika and I walked around for a few hours, saw a couple of churches and cows and countryside, and then around 4 pm, we met up with her host family. Her host mom, dad and little brother and Anika and i went around the city again, looked at stores, had hot chocolate, bought some cheese, and then went to their mountain home. Their home was very cozy and mountain-y!! I really enjoyed it. Apparently many Italians have a summer/winter home where they go for vacation! That was the end of the day in Asiago, but that night I had a surprise for me!
When I got home that night, my entire host family (cousins, aunts, uncles, everyone!) was in the large family room. It was November 1, which is Day of the Dead in Italy. Day of the Dead is a popular holiday here to remember those who have died and to enjoy the company of those who are alive, so all the family gets together. It was a cozy and nice night, talking to my family and having good food and a good time.
This is the usual table arrangement for Sundays and holidays.
Leonardo and my uncle grilling fresh meat over a big fire!!
More grilling. Man, did it smell good!
The next day I visited VERONA!!!! I was so excited to finally see the city of Love! It was fantastic! :) It was a very beautiful city with lots of interesting side stories and facts. I also got to be with most of my Rotary exchange students friends from this area, and so it was fun to see them too!!
This is a sky view of the city of Verona- and it looked JUST like this! Red roofs, old buildings, statues and fountains, and shops upon shops because Verona is a fashion city!
First thing in the morning, Anika and I met up at the train station and we sped off to Verona at 9 in the morning (YES we took the right train this time!!). It was about a 45 minute train ride, and when we got to the train station, we were greeted by our friend Thomas who lives in Trieste! We then walked down together and met the rest of the group at McDonalds/cafe, where we had our breakfasts. Not everybody got to go on this trip, but it was quite a few people from our region none the less. After breakfast, we walked down to the edge of the city center and began our tour of Verona. Here are some of the pictures I took from that day! :)
This is the view of one of the most famous bridges in Verona- it was very beautiful!
A castle wall protecting an ancient home.
This is the beginning of the bridge on which we walked on.
A view of Verona from the bridge.
Me and Julian! :)
Our group from kids from District 2060!
Maddie, pretending to protect the city of Verona from attack! :P
The ancient emperor's home, surrounded by castle walls.
Me and Maddie :)
A real drawbridge!!
Me and Emily!
A street view of some buildings in Verona.
An ancient wall that has been around since the beginning of Verona itself.
Claudio, our guide and our Rotary district organizer!
This is some ancient decorations on the side of one of the walls on the street. It always blows my mind how well preserved these things are even after centuries.
Now THIS was really cool for me (being a science nerd). Back when the citizens of Verona were constructing the city, they cut blocks of rock out of the nearby mountains, and they had tons of ancient fossils of snails and other sea creatures. They didn't realize what it was at the time, but today, lots of the ground and walls in Verona have ancient animal fossils!!! How coooool!
Street view of Verona!
Me and Julia!!
The old clock tower in the center of Verona!
The center of Verona.
And ancient building of Verona with the symbol of Venice (the winged lion) meaning that at one point, Venice had over thrown Verona.
Beautiful decorated walls in Verona.
This is quite common in Italy- the ENTIRE body of the pig is roasted so you get to see the lovely head too.
A statue of the man who was famous for protecting the city of Verona. What was creepy though is that his remains are in a coffin right underneath this statue!!
Me and Tomas!
Booths in the center of Verona. They are there everyday, because Verona gets so many visitors!!
Julian, trying on some stylish hats!
Creepy street performers....
The Verona arena- it was very intimidating!!
The wall near Juliet's statue where you can write your messages of love or wishes for love.
The famous Juliet balcony! How Romantic!
This is the statue of Juliet. Supposedly if you touch her breast, you will have good luck in your future. It is a very common tradition, but unfortunately since so many people touch her, she is beginning to be worn down and even has some hole in the metal.
Yay!! Now I have good luck! :)
More of the Verona arena- we were really close to it by now.
Inside the arena. The coliseum in Rome was actually built after this one was made, so this is the original. The same things happened here that happened in Rome- killings and fights and gory things just for the bored spectators to watch. I cannot imagine life back then. I like Verona just the way it is now! :)
A view of the colorful Verona streets.
More of the arena.
Me and the area!! It was actually quite large!
A beautiful clock tower.
Another fossil- these were so cool!!!!!!
After we had explored the city through and through, we said goodbye to some of our friends because they had to go home early. The rest of us- Maddie and Emily from Verona and Anika and I, met up with Claudio's son and we went to have dinner at a nicer restaurant. It was a beautiful night and very relaxing. That night, Anika and I took the train home, and slept like babies again! The next day, I don't think I move very much from my couch-I was exhausted!!
So that was my weekend, and boy was it fun!! More to come about my other adventures- stay tuned! :)
