Pranzo in compagna

Today was one of the best days I've had since my arrival here in Italy. The owners of CLIDA (Gabriella and Alberto Materassi) invited us to their villa in the countryside (a village called San Donato in Collina) for a relaxing day of eating and drinking. This couple is the one that I spent my first afternoon with when I arrived in August (because Maria Pia hadn't returned from Canada yet).

In order to get there, we took the bus from the train station for about a half hour. Then, Gabriella and Alberto picked us up at the bus stop and drove us up, up, up a windy road for another half hour. On our way up the hill, we saw the most breathtaking views of the city/countryside below us. When we finally made it to their villa, the air was crisp and much cooler than in Florence. I actually felt that I could breathe better as well. The air didn't feel as heavy. It was amazing.

Since I had been to their house before, Alberto and Gabriella asked me to show the rest of the gang around while she got lunch ready. Before we sat down, they had us try a pairing of cold sausage, peppered pecorino cheese, and sparkling red wine. The wine was awesome! It tasted just like sparkling grape juice. Allow me to also mention that in the kitchen, there was a huge metal barrel of olive oil for Gabriella's cooking. It just sat there like one of those huge water jugs that people have in their houses and offices! Unbelievable. They swear by their olive oil.

Once everything was set for pranzo, we sat down at a long table and the 2.5 hour eating and drinking process began. First, she brought out an antipasto with homemade crispy pasta, ricotta cheese, tomatoes and basil. AWESOME. The second antipasto was mozzarella burrata (buttered mozzarella), which was amazing. The soft outer shell seemed to taste like the mozzarella everyone knows here in Italy, but the inside was much softer and creamier and had a very buttery taste. The next dish, which I guess was a main dish, was lasagna bolognese made completely from scratch (pasta and all). I liked that the pasta was a little tough, and much thinner than the stuff that comes in the packages. Of course, the meat was unexplainably delicious and naturally, there was a good selection of cheeses in the center. After the lasagna came Italian sausages soaked in red wine and freshly crushed grapes (and their juices) with onions. Also served with that course was a potato puree which is soooo much better than the mashed potatoes in the states! After the lunch part, she brought out homemade Sicilian marzipan cookies (she had spent 3 days making the marzipan), homemade chocolate mousse with fresh pear and strawberry topping, and a raisin cake. She topped it all with homemade panna (whipped cream).

And that was the end of lunch. Yep, only 6 courses! No big deal. And all of it was indescribably amazing. After cleanup, we went inside, played some foosball in the basement (they love their soccer in all forms), and then migrated into the living room for some Wii Mario Kart in Italian. Almost all 8 of us kids managed to smoosh on their one couch. At that point, we were totally in a food coma and nearly dead, so Gabriella made us some incredibly strong espresso shots. Grace, Kevin, Carla and Maggie Wright all fell asleep after a few rounds of Mario Kart, but I wanted to go out an explore. So, Alberto took Maggie Rossi and me on a little nature walk. It was so peaceful and beautiful. I felt perfectly happy. I wasn't worrying about anything and it felt awesome! We trekked a little ways into the woods and the path started disappearing and getting steep, so we asked Alberto to go back. We weren't exactly dressed for a legitimate hike, but we definitely had fun. I had collected some chestnuts along the way, so when we returned, Gabriella started a fire and roasted them for us. They weren't that great because chestnut season doesn't start for another month. So, they were a little premature. Oh well, it was still fun!

After a little more Wii, Gabriella and Alberto announced that they had to bring us back to the city. :( :( They invited us back for another pranzo before Christmas though!

Being up in the countryside had such a great affect on me. Living in the city has created so many stresses (some that I didn't even realize), so a day in the hills really helped to calm me down. I am happy that something so simple could make me feel so alive. It helped to remind me why I wanted to study abroad in the first place. I am seeing so many things that a lot of people in the world will never get to enjoy. I'll enjoy it for them! :) That was the most perfect way to spend a Sunday in Italy.

We came back home around 7:30 and Maria Pia had dinner ready for us... UGH. We had caprese salad, toasted bread, and proscuitto. We had asked her to make something light because we knew she would never allow us to just skip out on dinner. So, we attempted to eat what we could, and now I'm in my room just doing some homework.

And, I have a terrible stomach ache.

A domani, or maybe a few days later!

Ciao :)