Salut!Pop! The cork flying in the air elicited applause both from the SAIS group sitting on Piazza Santo Stefano and the locals who were also enjoying a piazza night... the strolling minstrels played their recorders and danced in the center of the area.
But lets back up a bit...
My birthday technically started at midnight, where I salsa'd my way into my 26th year. Somehow word got out and a friend actually stopped the music and announced to the whole bar that my birthday had officially begun and the whole (basically populated by us) broke into song!
The following morning began what was one of the best birthdays I could ever imagine. After class, many amici joined me for a gelatto and I was treated by my two girls from the D.C. study group- the ever wonderful Rachel and Yumna. Nutella, praline, and mascarpone (now THAT'S a neopolitan!) adorned my cone with three colors and made me one happy girl as I sat in the sunlight near the town's famous two towers (one of which is leaning).
After spending the afternoon cleaning and preparing for my weekend visitors, I ventured out to Piazza Santa Stefano, one of the most beloved of the town's many piazzas, and the one I find to be the most beautiful.
But lets back up a bit...
My birthday technically started at midnight, where I salsa'd my way into my 26th year. Somehow word got out and a friend actually stopped the music and announced to the whole bar that my birthday had officially begun and the whole (basically populated by us) broke into song!
The following morning began what was one of the best birthdays I could ever imagine. After class, many amici joined me for a gelatto and I was treated by my two girls from the D.C. study group- the ever wonderful Rachel and Yumna. Nutella, praline, and mascarpone (now THAT'S a neopolitan!) adorned my cone with three colors and made me one happy girl as I sat in the sunlight near the town's famous two towers (one of which is leaning).
After spending the afternoon cleaning and preparing for my weekend visitors, I ventured out to Piazza Santa Stefano, one of the most beloved of the town's many piazzas, and the one I find to be the most beautiful.
Portico's make two diagonal sides to the triangular shaped area. Wine bars allow people to sit outside and enjoy the evening with aperitivi. The last side of the triangle is the old church- while there is a main facade that faces the piazza, four additional churches all join one another to make up the entire structure.
Those who who choose not to patronize the wine bars make themselves comfortable on the cold cobblestone or on the smooth brick semicircle and pathways. The university scene brings in many students who fully embrace a more 'alternative' grunge scene. Some among them fancy themselves as minstrels and play recorders, guitars, or whatever they have in their possession and set an atmosphere that the moonlight enhances. Good spirits abound among all who share wine and hospitality.
Some very considerate friends bought me a plant for my room, and others
brought a cake... which was really prettier than it was tasty. Also, a random drunken man presented us with a poem that even the Italians among us couldn't quite make out... but we gave him some wine anyway.I fell into bed that night utterly exhausted but overcome with gratitude that so many people who were strangers just a few weeks before all made my day so special and have become such blessings.
1 comment:
It's so good to see you've already met so many thoughtful people who took the time to make your birthday special! Happy Birthday again a little late :-)
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