Genova & California Love

Well, I got back from Italy one week ago - I can't believe it ended so quickly. Let's go back in time and recap my final days in Italy and my first days back home, shall we?

The weekend before we all left, I took a day trip to Genova with Petra and Dara. It was really fun to have a girl roommate trip! Genova is absolutely beautiful, and we spent time wandering the streets, eating, and taking in the sights - like Christopher Columbus's house! We all had pasta with pesto sauce, which is the local specialty of Genova. I'm not usually a huge pesto fan, but it was amaaaazing.

We also headed to the aquarium, which is one of the largest in Europe. We saw lots of lovely animals, such as dogs of the sea (ie dolphins, manatees, and seals).

Genova at sunset was one of the most beautiful sights I've seen in Italy.

When we got home, Petra's boyfriend Luca had prepared homemade tiramisu. It was his first attempt and was so good! Thanks Luca! We had amazing pizzas and gorged ourselves on dessert.

I also tried to take in some last sights in Turin. I had a bicerin (Torinese drink with espresso, melted chocolate, and whole milk), found the famous lucky bull, and had a last gelato.

On my last night in Torino, Petra and I went out to dinner. I treated myself to some delicious food to celebrate my time in Italy. This is asparagus with cheese sauce, penne with fresh veggies and garlic, and roasted potatoes.

Coming home has been a mixed experience. Although I'm so happy to be back with my friends, family, and dog, I can't help but miss Italy and my friends there. I've been drowning myself in lots of typical California food (you may notice the prevalence of avocado in my life).

My family did our traditional tree decorating the after I got back, along with my bff Saria. She was the lucky one who found the unicorn ornament that my sister and I always used to fight over as kids!

We also had a delicious Christmas Eve dinner - shrimp scampi, asparagus, and potatoes - and an amazing Christmas day dinner that consisted of Thanksgiving food.

That brings us up to the present. It's pretty strange writing this knowing that it could be my last post - I feel like I've been writing this forever, but also like it went by so fast. My trip was amazing and I'll cherish the memories I made forever. I really enjoyed writing this, so I'll put it to my lovely readers: should I keep blogging? I still have to eat at home, right? Let me know in the comments!

Just in case this is my last post, I want to say thank you to everyone who's been reading about my journey. This blog has received about 2000 hits, which is so much more than I ever expected. I loved knowing that you were all out there following along with me and being jealous of my food! ;)

xo,
Randi

Friendsgiving, Thanksgiving, and the beginning of the end

Hello from wintry Italy! I always thought that people who told me "you don't know REAL cold" were just braggy jerks, but the truth is that I didn't. California is sooo much warmer than Torino in the winter! We're really close to the Alps, so we get lots of snowy wind blowing in. Brrrr.

A few things have changed around here since my last post. Edo and Giacomo are both gone, and I leave Italy in just 5 days. I can't believe how fast the time has gone by, and I'm starting to get pretty sad about leaving. Everyone here has been so lovely, and I've made amazing friends. On the plus side, I'm going to visit Dara, Bruno, and Agustin in Buenos Aires in March! I can't wait. Here's a look back at the past few weeks.

Giacomo's mom is, as far as I can tell, a typical Italian mom - she sent him cookies in the mail from a bakery in Sicily. Twice!

I also celebrated "Friendsgiving" with Joan, Pam, Jenn, and Carol. My contribution was crostini for the appetizer. I made two kinds: one with mushrooms, shallots, and cheese, and another with white beans and artichoke hearts. I might have gone a little overboard on the quantity... the girls made a delicious spread with corn, roasted potatoes, zucchini, pork chops, and mashed yams. They even found and cooked a turkey leg so we could be in the Thanksgiving spirit! Pam carved it for us.

I got another Italian cooking lesson from Giacomo, this time on tiramisu. OK, to be honest I only made it through half of the process because it was like 11 at night, but the end product was so good!

Soon after, we celebrated Thanksgiving and invited everyone from our school. It was the first time I've ever cooked for that many people, and it was a lot of work, but so fun to share with everyone! My contributions were more crostini, meatballs, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, and pumpkin pie. My mom brought me a can of pumpkin pie from the US when she visited and it was totally worth it - everyone loved the pie! We also had chicken, corn, green beans, another kind of stuffing, scalloped potatoes, ribs, rice, spinach dip, stuffed mushrooms, chocolate chip cookies, and bread pudding.

We had a delicious dinner to say goodbye to Edo. I hated seeing him go! My little finocchio! Dara and I shared two flans: one fish, and the other... some sort of vegetable that I don't remember. They were both really good, but I liked the veggie one better. I had branzino with artichokes that were obviously cooked in lots of butter, with roasted potatoes on the side. It was simple and amazing. Dara and Edo also shared their last dessert ever... so sad!

I also had a homecooked pasta meal with Tommaso, who I'm convinced is a culinary genius, and Hira and Emanuela. I made Tommaso promise to give me cooking instructions via Skype when I get back to the US. This pasta was cooked in wine (!!!) and served with sausage in cream sauce.

I've been seeing some pretty crazy and amazing sights here in Torino as it gets closer to Christmas. There was a Santa Claus motorcycle parade on one lazy Saturday I spent working in the library. There are also lights and Christmasy decorations everywhere, including a huge nativity scene and advent calendar in Piazza Castello.

Our AMAZING friends from China also prepared a feast for us. Me, Jenn, Joan, and Pam learned how to make dumplings! They also made fish, chicken wings, ribs, chicken with potatoes, and shrimp with eggs. I was in heaven. Here's the dumpling process and the finished products!

The other night we took a trip to the ice skating rink for a little good clean fun. It was the first time that some people had skated, which made it extra exciting!

I have really mixed feelings about leaving Italy. On one hand, I'm so excited to see my friends, family, and my little Hunter Bunter. On the other hand, I'm dreading my return to law school (sorry Hastings!) and I'm sad to leave a land of cheap prosciutto and wine. I've made such wonderful friends here, and it will be really hard for me to say goodbye. The end of this trip will definitely be bittersweet - I can't believe it's already been 4 months since I landed in London! Still, I'm looking forward to being home.

xo,
R