lucca e pisa

My live alarm clock.

Lucca

Thursday March 7

Today Marissa and I decided to go to Lucca where her family lives. It’s just under two hours by train, so leaving at 4 pm got us there around dinner time. Nancy and one of the two children met us at the train station to drive us home. It was strange being in a car—besides 2 taxis, I haven’t been in one since January! She drove just as crazy (to me) as all other Italians do, but me and 6-year-old Gretta were just along for the ride in the back seat. I was scared for my life but she seemed fine, as 6 year olds seem to do. She drove us about 15 minutes away and we finally arrived at the house. Supposedly it’s a beautiful drive, but it was rainy and dark getting here so I’ll have to take their word for it. The family all lives in one house, each floor it’s own “apartment” with a kitchen and all. Flora (my roommate Marissa’s cousin) and George are in their 60’s and live on the bottom floor. The next floor belongs to Flora and George’s daughter, Nancy, and the third belongs to Flora and George’s son Roberto, his wife, and their two kids. The house is beautiful…I’m kicking myself for not bringing my wide-angle lens to show it off.

Almost immediately after arriving, they insisted we eat dinner—I was starving, so that was fine with me. We all sat down and the first course was soup with vegetables and noodles. It was made from scratch and delicious of course, but Marissa advised me to not take Flora’s offer for seconds because she knew how much more was probably to come.

And…she was right.

Next came veal steaks, fried crab meat (comparable to a chicken nugget in texture and looks), pork and vegetable meatballs, quiche, grilled eggplant and salad. Before I started taking anything, Flora insisted that I shouldn’t be shy and should grab anything I wanted. After nearly filling up my plate and picking up my fork to begin, she told me to take more.

“No, no thank you this is perfect,” I told her.

“More meatballs?” she asked.

“I’ll start with this, thank you.”

We started eating, and just as I suspected, everything was absolutely delicious. I was so hungry that I did take seconds, but for a little old Italian lady, that is not good enough.

“Take more! Want more salad? Do you need ketchup or mayonnaise?”

I told her it was all fine and great, and the family all continued talking. I forgot to mention that all of this was in Italian—George can speak English very well, but everyone else knows almost none. And I mean none. So basically everything anyone said to me, I’d turn to Marissa and she would translate. Usually when I asked for translations, Marissa would tell me they were asking me to not be shy, to take more, to make myself at home, or something along those lines.

As I went to pour myself a glass of water, Flora insisted I have wine instead.

“Why you no have vino? It’s more better for you.” So of course I didn’t argue with her. One of the children brought out white and milk chocolate spreads, similar to what I could only compare to Nutella. Marissa and I asked if they were the same, and they said no, brought us spoons and asked us to try the chocolate spread. After our spoonful, they brought us a spoonful of Nutella and said “See? Different.” I still think they’re similar…both delicious, but yeah. The same thing. After, Nancy brought Marissa and I each a truffle. When I thought the meal was over, Flora began bringing slices of Mimosa cake: a sweet pudding/cake treat made to celebrate the International Day of Women. On top of the cake it said “viva la donna”. The day is technically tomorrow, and I know in Florence men are going to be passing out Mimosa flowers to women solely to appreciate their existence.

“Do you have these Mimosas in Stati Uniti?” George asked Marissa and I.

“No, in America, Mimosas are typically only champagne and orange juice as a drink.”

“Oh you Americans and your screw drivers, I know. Forget about it!”

So, I heard the typical “forget about it” phrase that I thought only existed in the movies, too.

Over dessert, Flora asked if I wanted another glass of wine. I hesitated, but she said “oh, you are not driving tonight!” So as she poured me more, George told me I had “good blood”.

All throughout dinner, George also asked us about our boyfriends. I swear this family wanted to see us married before we were 22.

“Marissa why you no have boyfriend in Florence?” he’d ask.  Or he’d say, “Leah, your boyfriend is so far. Why is he in Stati Uniti? Ciao ciao.”

When I TRULY thought the meal was over, Flora started making coffee. I told her I couldn’t drink any at night or else I’d be up for hours (they’re espressos). She made me a chamomile tea instead and it was perfect…I have never been this full in my life.

George asked us, “What will you girls do tonight? Go dancing?”

“Tonight?! Tonight we will sleep! We are so tired,” Marissa told him.

“Marissa you will meet a boyfriend if you go dancing tonight,” George said.

I was really cracking up at the boyfriend obsession they had. Italians (especially the grandparent generation) are curious and have a lot of questions—they want to know where we’re from, why we’re here, what we study, where our families come from, and perhaps most importantly, who our boyfriends are.

It’s not even 10 pm yet and I’m writing this from the comfort of my queen sized guest bed…buonanotte!

Friday March 8

Today I woke up at 11:30. Or anyways that’s the last time I woke up. I went to bed at 10:30 pm last night, fell asleep no earlier than 11, then woke up at 1 am, 4 am, 6 am, 7:30 and finally 11:30. Marissa tosses, turns and snores in her sleep and we shared a bed…nuff said. After I showered and got downstairs, lunch was ready to be served. We had pasta with muscles as an appetizer, fish and peas for the main course and biscotti with nutella for dessert. (In this country they dip their cookies in a glass of wine instead of milk. And no, I’m not joking.) And an espresso, of course. Flora’s father was here for lunch and he is a funny old man! He’s in his 90’s and still acts as young as can be. Age is really just a number. The afternoon was rainy and I got further into my book Water for Elephants, which I’m really enjoying. After lunch, Flora’s son Roberto came home from wherever he had been with Mimosa flowers for all the women in the house! Today is Festa della Donna, which is celebrated every year on this day as I explained yesterday. The flowers are beautiful and it really made my day to get them! Around 3 or 4, Flora made us a cornetto (croissant) with MORE Nutella, and an espresso. Marissa couldn’t finish her coffee because it was too strong, so I had the second half of hers, as well. Shaking a bit from the caffeine intake, we packed up our umbrellas and headed out to see the town of Lucca. It was quiet and quaint compared to the touristy crowds of Florence. There were trees lining the walkways and lots of good shopping—I’m actually glad I left my card at the house. We came home and I changed my sopping wet socks, warmed up by the natural fireplace and then we ate. The appetizer was leftover soup from last night, main course was chicken rotisserie (George raised the chickens), and then we had breads, jams and cheeses. I am eating GOOD this weekend! For the rest of the evening we watched a game show called Rosso o Nero. Just being in this house where the majority of the people can’t speak English has made my Italian better. I’ve listened to it non-stop for over a day now and have had plenty of opportunities to practice. I’ve definitely got the Italian conversation -“you don’t like your food?” -“No, I do!” -“Then eat more”, down pat. I came up to my room and there was already a fresh bottle of water, snacks, and a heating pad (pre-heated up of course) waiting for me. Being in an Italian home has showed me how hospitable they are…everything is so neat, clean, and they make sure you eat well! Italians are very family-oriented (hello, there are 3 generations living here and there were 4 at the lunch table together), but it’s making me miss my own family. It’s nice to be getting babied a bit since it’s been almost two whole months since my own mom has been able to do it! Hard to believe I’m about halfway through the semester. Time is really flying by.

Saturday March 9

We woke up at 9 am and had yogurt and an espresso for breakfast. Then we hopped in the car and headed to Pisa! It’s about a 15-minute drive from Lucca, so it was convenient. It’s rained all day but Pisa is such a small place (the only real attraction is the leaning tower) so I’m glad I got to check it off my bucket list without having to buy a train ticket to get there. After we took our classic touristy pictures, we went home to homemade French fries, some kind of eel that comes from a lake, and beef. For dessert we had raisin bread, which is apparently Lucca’s specialty. After lunch, Marissa and I packed our bags and George drove us to the train station. We all did the kiss-on-both-sides-of-the-face thing for our goodbyes (I always awkwardly go the wrong direction first) and then ran to catch our train to Florence. Now it’s time to study for midterms…four more days of school before spring break! I think I can handle it.