Buongiorno tutti!
Fall has officially come to Milano! On Saturday morning I woke up, stepped onto the balcony off the kitchen, and took a giant breath of crisp, autumn air. I do so love this season! The rain has yet to come, but my little Coloradan self can't help but do a little jig that the skies are still blue.
A beautiful yellow rose from Lago di Como....
Starting last Tuesday I have been working as a babysitter after school of an Irish-Italian family! They have two little girls, with a boy on the way, ages 1.5, Margo, and 3.5, Isabel, years old. They are adorable!! Most days I am at home with the girls, their mother's mother, and their mother's mother's mother! Haha, it's a great Italian family. Apparently, Isabel currently goes to the same school that her mother, Connie, attended as a child! They live right around the corner from the house where Connie was raised! It's a very sweet family, and Isabel has the CUTEST Irish accent. I've been able to practice my Italian with the family as well because the grandmas don't speak English, and Go-Go (a.k.a. Margo) doesn't speak very much English either. It's great for vocab! My job is primarily to play with the girls and speak English around them, works for me! And now I'm making enough money to help me go travel on the weekends!
Wow, it has been quite a while since my last post! Let's see...time for the highlights!
* "Der Rosenkavalier" at La Scala!!!!
DU girls at the opera!
In my box!
The gorgeous stage.
As part of my History of Italian Opera class we were required (!!!) to go see the dress rehearsal of "Der Rosenkavalier" by Strauss at La Scala! It was wonderful! We got to sit in boxes on the second floor. The mezzo soprano, portraying a boy, was absolutely fantastic. She was by far the best mezzo I've seen because you could always hear her. I feel like the mezzo often gets lost in the orchestra and ensemble, but she held her own! Very impressive :). The regular opera season opens on December 7th with "Don Giovanni," anyone feeling generous?? I'd love to go. I'm going to have to figure out some way to get there!
* Lago di Como!
A couple girlfriends, Maya and Nicole, and I went on a day trip to this beautiful lake! How beautiful? Let's just say that George Clooney has a house there! It was magnificent. We left Milan, via train, around 8:30am and made it to the lake by 10:00am. It was a beautiful, and quick, train ride! Upon arriving, we made our way around the lake, leaving the little town behind us. We were there early enough that it was just locals out and about, walking their dogs, jogging, and feeding the ducks. It was so peaceful, and quiet! A nice break after living in the bustling city. Maya, Nicole, and I were snapping photos, giggling, and soaking up the cool breeze coming off the water. We walked all the way up to this really cool fountain, found a neat terrace in the hillside, and climbed up several flights of stairs to sit on a wall looking out over the lake. Again, it was so beautiful!
Me, Maya, and the fountain!! I love the rainbow....
The sun started to heat things up as we made our way back towards the little town. We walked into the town, thinking that we could find a little place for lunch. It was packed with American tourists! I couldn't believe how many Americans were there. It was hustling and bustling so we decided to turn back and go find a quieter place on the water. We ended up at a little restaurant where we decided to have a proper sit down meal. Maya and I ordered pizzas and Nicole ordered a pasta dish with oysters, clams, octopus, etc.! It was a giant meal, which was yet another perfect aspect of our day at Lago di Como. After eating our main course, we decided to go crazy and get some dessert. We settled on the Chocolate Pyramid. Yup. It was a pyramid of chocolate mousse with a truffle inside!! Sooo decadent. After our major pig out we were all in a bit of a food coma. So what does one do to get rid of said coma? Sleep in the sunshine under a giant tree of course!! We found a beautiful spot and crashed on the grass. It was spectacular! You see, in Milan you are not supposed to sit on the ground. Even in the beautiful parks! So it was really quite wonderful to lay on the green, green grass and feel the sun on my face.
Dopo a luxurious nap, we made our way back towards town and the train station to head back home. We still had some time to burn, so we ended our excellent day trip to Lago di Como with AMAZING gelato! I cannot wait to go back. It was so gorgeous. :)
Lunchtime!
A panoramic shot...
At Lago di Como!
Looking towards the town from the little harbor.
Our napping spot! Everything was soooo green!
It warmed up and by mid afternoon we were dangling our tootsies over the wall in the sunshine!
* This past Saturday I went down to the Duomo with Nicole to do some shopping, eat a panzerotto, and enjoy some gelato! It was wonderful! And there was this giant area covered in canvas with buckets of paint spread around. The idea? Express yourself! There were thousands of contributions! A very cool project. Still not too sure what it was for, we think perhaps mental health awareness? But it was wicked awesome! We both added something :). We also stopped in this little bake shop that makes brightly colored French macarons! I'll definitely be returning...
* Navigli! These are the famous canals in Milano. I went out with a group of friends the other for aperitivo at navigli. It was really fun! There were about a million different pubs to choose from, we chose the Viola Bar. It was great! Definitely one of the more delicious aperitivos I've been to. They had a wide selection of food, from pasta con tonno e pomodori to zucchini and eggplant! So delicious!
* Rearranging my room with Theresa! As those of you who know me know (hehe), I have a tendency to change up my room fairly frequently. Let's just go ahead and say every two months... So thankfully Theresa also has this tendency! We rearranged our room last night at around 8:00pm! It was a very spontaneous and wonderful way to avoid homework. Haha! Now it feels very open and yet also very cozy. I like it!
My side (from the corner)
Theresa's side (from the door)
* Exciting travel plans are coming up! I booked my plane ticket to Dublin last night!!! So if you know any good pubs, hostels, things we must do, please let me know! I will be going November 11-13 with Cailey, Emily, and Ellen (all besties from DU)! I am so, so excited! Also coming up: my SAI sister Elizabeth is flying down from Finland to spend Thanksgiving here with me! And a Paonia local, Tracy, will be staying here while she explores Milan. AND Ellen will be coming to visit and stay for a while! I can't wait!!! It will be great to see some familiar faces and share my world with friends from back home.
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!! (Can you tell I'm excited to go to Ireland??)
Well folks, I think that's it for now! School is going well, I am performing in my Music Ensemble class on Tuesday, I have a little test in Italian on Friday, and I am loving Italia. Hope this post finds you all in good health, sound mind (with a dash of crazy mixed in), and great company.
Ciao tutti!
