Ariccia Day 2

Ciao!
Day two was a busy, busy day! We woke around 8, got ready, and headed out to the market. It was great. Anything and everything you can sell they did! From door mats, to undies, to fresh fruit and veggies. After we loaded up with fruit for breakfast we headed back to the palace…did I mention that it was beautiful!?! Dr. B met with us to go over some rules then we were off to the other side of the palace to meet Maurizio and Francesco our professors. After touring the beautiful artwork and interior of the Chigi Palace we walked, and walked, and walked. We met the Mayor which was really cool and then walked some more.

Back at the palace we had met Bruno our “maintenance” man and he caught up with us and invited us back to his grotto for some of his home made wine. Delicious! The grotto was a looooong spooky cave, but it was very neat to hear how this is where he stayed while they were under attack years ago. The grotto was really cold which made the wine even better. He also gave us fresh lemons from his very own lemon tree. They smelt amazing! Even though I don’t really like lemons we cut them up and put them in our water bottles. We then walked up the street and had a nice lunch outside. The weather is amazing! There is a wonderful breeze coming from the Mediterranean Sea which keeps up from dying of heat. I shared a porchetta sandwich with fresh eggplant, mushrooms, and red peppers soaked in olive oil. Again YUMMY! While we were at lunch I tried some of Roberta’s wild boar meat and pasta. It was very tasty. (Betsy, when she asked if I wanted to try, all I could hear was your voice saying, I don’t care if it looks or sounds gross, EAT IT!) We then had an hour break which is when I tried to send an email, but the internet is so unreliable, but hopefully that will be changing soon. After lunch we met with Cinzia, our guide/translator, and walked through Ariccia to get a feel of town, and then we hit the grocery store. Ohhhh what fun and ohhh did the Italians hate us. After we loaded up on bread and cheese and strawberries, we hiked back down the huge hill to the palace. We filled our gigantic fridge with all our goodies and got ready for our next big hike to Albano, the neighboring town across the bridge. Albano is where all the shopping is done and where we would take the local bus to the lake where everyone goes to cool off. After an exhausting walk we headed back and were done for the day. Every chance we get we all run with our computers down to the other side of the palace and search for internet service. I am not so successful.

Tonight there was a beautiful sunset over the sea…I thought of mom…and now the full moon is shining bright over the palace. I feel so blessed to be here and I’m soaking up every minute! Day 2 and I’ve almost taken 100 pics so the new camera is definitely worth it! I can’t wait to share them with you but like I said internet is so horrible right now. I love you and miss you much! Ciao ciao! ~laura