A new kind of day...

Today is my first dinner service shift. I am very excited, not only because I get to be a part of it but because I don't have to be at work till 3:00 pm! Which means I get to have my favorite kind of lazy morning. Cleaning, catching up on my TV shows (the world of TV does not stop just because I've left the continent), and eating.
I am really writing you a note to say that because I won't be home till the wee hours of the morning this is all of the 'Revanna' you will get today. Last time I missed a day I got an angry email and I want to avoid those at all costs. And I know it's not a 'real' post but I honestly haven't done much this morning, although there is one more thing I wanted to say to you all:

HAPPY CINCO DE MAYO!!

Here's to hope...

There have been many days when it has rained for the past month and never have I seen a rainbow. Even after a sunshower!! This afternoon it stormed and I sat safely in my apartment and was all cozy. Then my brother called. I went outside to talk to him and look what I found...
I was so happy.

I stood outside for the whole conversation...it was wonderful having my brother's happy voice in my ear and a rainbow right in front of me.

Sunday...

This Sunday, actually the whole weekend, was awesome. We went on a couple different drives and stopped at a few markets along the way. Today we travelled through part of the Chianti Classico region, which like most of the Italy I've seen, is gorgeous.

We stopped in Greve to check out the flower market that was open in the square.

There were all sorts of citrus trees...
And no, those really big things on tree in the back are not lemons (like I thought), but a different type of citrus fruit.

And tons of flowers:

It was just beautiful.

We also stopped in at the butcher shop in Greve for some yummy salumi!

This is the ceiling:

Dang, I should have taken a picture of the ones with their tails still on!

And of course I had to take my picture with this gorgeous fella'!

It was another wonderful and yummy Sunday to add to the books...hope your's was too!

Food.

I have already in my one month of being here experienced many wonderful foods. I have never eaten so much and I have never felt better in my life. Today I had another amazing food adventure that I doubt I will ever forget. I debated whether I should just write about this experience along with the others from my day or whether to write about it seperately. I think it deserves its own post.

Today we travelled to a little town called Panzano in Chianti for lunch at Dario Cecchini's restaurant "Solociccia". Solociccia means "Only Meat" and that is what we ate for 3 hours.

There are only two seatings, 7pm and 9 pm, on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and one seating at 1 pm on Sunday for lunch.

There are a few different tables in the restaurant, each sit about 20 people, we sat upstairs and were the first ones at the table:

It was beautiful.

You do not order from a menu you simply eat what Dario decides to cook for that day. There is a menu of what will be served but I chose not to look at it and instead be completely suprised at what would appear and how long the meal would last. I didn't read it till I got home. On one side of the paper was the menu and on the other side was this:

This is the home of a butcher.

All that you will eat is the fruit of my work and that of my family.

You will not coose from a menu, though you will be treated well, and with great respect, if you return the favour. You will eat at the communal table, together in "convivio".

There will be six meat courses, chosen at my discretion, with seasonal vegetables, white beans with olive oil, focaccia, bread, cake, coffee, a quarter liter of our own wine, and after-dinner liqueurs.

All of the above is to be had for 30 Euro, with nearly 2 hours at our table, at the end of which you will turn over your seat to the next guests. We do not serve steak.

That pretty much explains the whole meal and the experience.

I am filled with great hope when I eat with a group of people who do not know each other but can spend 3 hours enjoying each other's company with no akwardness and no fear. It is there sitting around a table full of food and laughing people that I truly know everything will be alright
In the middle of the meal Dario came out to shake all of our hands and say "Bon Appetito" and...

"EAT MEAT!" He is a character.

I was so sad to leave that room. And to leave that security and happiness I felt for 3 hours. I would have gone in and done it all over again right away.

But I still feel that hope. I hope that I will be able to eat at Dario's at least once more, I hope that you can too feel how amazing it is to be surrounded by strangers and food, and although it is a tall order, I hope the world can realize that everyone needs to eat and that this is what makes us all the same, as James Beard said "Food is our common ground, a unversial experience".

Bon Appetito.

Wow.

Why have I not threatened you all before??? 7 comments in less than 24 hours. I am impressed!
Now, technically there are only 6 comments, Isabelle wrote an extra one, but because I made the rules I can change them too, and you guys did such a good job. So, thank for you for the comments and opinions. What I heard was that you like the picture but the new color wasn't so bad...so I added it back in and kept the color. Is it okay now? Maybe one day I'll get good at this and be able to make it just the way I want it...
And no, I haven't rearranged the apartment here...the set up is very strange and I spent an hour moving things around but got so frustrated that I moved them all back to their original place!
Keep up the comments guys! I like hearing from you!
(Real Post to follow...)

Experimenting...

Growing up I was constantly rearranging furniture in my room. Every couple of months I'd get this urge to move my bed or dresser or bookcase and just switch things up. And now I'm feeling that way towards this blog...but I want your input! How do you like the new color? Want the old one back? Should I just keep looking? Is there something you'd like to see on the blog? What do you think? Anything!
(This is also my evil plot to get more people to comment. Yup, that's right, until I get at least 7 comments I'm not posting anything new. Ha! You can be anonymous or you can use your name...I know you're out there! Oh, and Isabelle, don't try and cheat the system by commenting 7 times.)

What a wonderful day...

Yesterday there was not a whole lot to do at work so at 1:00 pm Tobey, Michael, and I headed out for an adventure.

Our first stop was to the Iper-Coop. The coop (they say "coop" here, in Canada it's "co-op") is the main grocery store in this region. The Iper-Coop is like the coop but with everything else thrown in. Tobey says that you can find anything you want in the entire universe at Iper-Coop.

Like carpet-whackers for example:
It is big, bustling, and exciting. We went up and down every isle, which is my favorite way to grocery shop, checking out all the nifty things you can't get in Canada. Wonderful.

Most trips that you take with Tobey usually involve gelato at some point...and a trip to Iper-Coop is no different.
After Iper-Coop and gelato we went to Tutti Giorni (I have no idea if that is how you spell it). Tutti Giorni is like a farmer's market that is open 7 days a week and is where we get the raw cow's milk, and get this, it comes out of a vending machine!

I was so busy smiling for the camera that I moved the bottle so milk squirted all over me and the floor. I think Tobey was slightly embarrassed...heck I would have been too if I hadn't have been laughing so hard!

Then we made a stop at just the coop to get peanut butter. I love peanut butter, love, love, love. And haven't had it for at least a month. Tobey mentioned that she found some in the coop and I had to get it. It was 3,50 Euro for a dinky jar of not so great peanut butter...but so worth it. We felt a little ridiculous in line surrounded by all these Italians and their full grocery carts...and there we were with one jar of PB. Heehee!

Following the PB stop was a bunch of little errands and fun shops.

At 8:30pm we found ourselves at Zagara's, the little cafe near our town, and I was hungry. There are two things you should know, firstly, Zagara's has unbelievable pizza, the same pizza we had truffles on a few weeks ago. It is amazing and ever since Tobey mentioned the plans of going my mouth had been watering. I was so excited. Secondly, I was starving. There are two different versions of a hungry Revanna. One version is where I am sad, distraught, and sometimes cry. It's bad. The last time I felt this was when my plane was cancelled to come to Italy from Charlottetown. Once a new flight was booked and everything was supposed to be okay there I was crying on the couch, Tracy rescued me with mac n' cheese and garlic shrimp, and after that I was happy. The second version is the one were I am so hungry that I become jumpy (foot tapping and leg jiggling), laugh like a maniac, and can't find the words to make sentences. I can't decide which one is worse. Last night I was the second version. Tobey and Michael enjoyed laughing at me while I struggled to stay still and talk normally. But I was so happy when that pizza arrived and I'm pretty sure pizza never tasted as good as it did in that moment...

I kinda look in pain in this picture, and I kinda was, but I was fine after I ate more than half a pizza.