The Chocolate Festival comes to Bologna.

Last week the inhabitants of Bologna were treated to five days of a chocolate festival which took over the three main piazze in the centre of the city. I had the best white hot chocolate I have ever tasted and indulged in crystalised fruit covered in chocolate, chocolate coccoretti (which I had never had before but were absolutely DELICIOUS - and on which the sign said 'eat 2 and lose a pound' - I highly doubt it!) and many, many free samples of the different types of chocolate on offer. Chocolate in the shape of tools was a big theme - slightly random I thought - along with shoes and musical instruments.

Two friends who are working in Florence for their Erasmus came to visit for the weekend for the chocolate festival and with one I took a trip outside of the city to Cesena as some of her family live out there in the country. It was a wonderful opportunity to explore a part of a Italy that is just as beautiful but isn't a major tourist attraction. We were treated to a lovely typical italian lunch (at her relative's) with pasta as the first course and meat and salad as the second followed by coffee. Then, we went to explore Cesena and had a walk around the Piazza del Popolo, past the Biblioteca Malatestiana (the first public library in Europe) and the Malatestian Fortress. Having done that we decided to go to Forli - Cesena isn't the most happening place - and I was interested to see what all the fuss was about when people complained about being placed in Forli (for Erasmus) instead of Bologna! The first thing that struck me walking into the centre was that I felt like I was on a film set. I later found out Mussolini was born in the province of Forli and, during his rise to power, fascists went to the province and gathered there and certain architecture was rebuilt to reflect the new regime. The town feels very modern, orderly, square and slightly cold - and honestly like it had just been built for a new film in a big warehouse. Very strange but also fascinating to look around a city which is so close to Bologna yet feels worlds apart.

Another small, slightly disheartening observation is that though my language is definitely improving - it seems that the Italian language is just a very difficult language to learn with many small, fiddly grammar rules in addition to the range of dialects, all of which seem to seep into 'standard Italian.' During lunch in Cesena, I witnessed one of the family correct his younger sister saying 'nella spiaggia' (on the beach) instead of 'in spiaggia.' I felt better to see that even a native makes such grammar mistakes!

I went to see another film this week; another french one, however, this time dubbed in italian called Giovane e Bella (Jeune et Jolie). I loved it and it was another one which had been shown at Cannes this year. I'm also lucky in that there is a cinema twenty seconds away from my flat so I braved the rain (for which the majority of italians normally will cancel their plans) and enjoyed another wonderful french film.

It has been quite a food orientated couple of weeks. Ivana (one of the friends who came from Florence) and I went to a little 'pop-up' type specialist tortellini place - tortellini is a specialist food from Bologna - and we had the tortellini in brodo which was absolutely delicious and so so simple to make I will definitely be copying it at home. It was chilly and rainy and we were sat in Piazza Maggiore with warm pots of the tortellini looking onto the tents of the chocolate festival which would supply us with desert! Last week I also went to the Osteria dell'Orsa which is one of the most well-know typically bolognese osteria's in the city. Bologna has osteria's and trattoria's and traditionally you could only buy drinks in an osteria and you would bring your own food, and the trattoria would sell food and drink. Nowadays, however, there is only one 'original' osteria left where this tradition still stands. The Osteria dell'Orsa is less expensive and so very popular with students. I trusted the six italians I was with to choose my meal for me as I didn't recognise a few of the dishes and they did well as the food was delicious. We had crostini  and beef straccetti which was yummy but very filling - and I had also eaten a big margherita for lunch so I was completely full. When in Italy though....might as well eat like an italian. (Bologna also offers a good range of all-you-can-eat sushi restaurants and I could honestly live on sushi so I may have been twice in the last couple weeks... )

Other than that...the days are getting colder, the christmas market on strada maggiore is now open and people are starting to study for the odd exam in december. I start my 12 hours a week (in two 6 hour sessions) of conservatory classes on friday, I had a concert last week and have spent today learning a very difficult part for a concert next tuesday! Busy as always!

Un grande bacio xxxx

chocolate objects - cool but not practical

Italian countryside just outside Cesena

Piazza del Popolo

Piazza Aurelio Saffi - Forli

Piazza from a different angle

la Basilica di San Mercuriale

Aung San Suu Kyi

Time is going by quicker and quicker. I can't believe it's November already and I've been here for nearly two months! I have set myself a target that from the 1st of December I will speak only italian until I go home for christmas (including text messages) so I have one month to study as hard as I can! Then I will have January to cement my italian before I go off to France (as I'm so worried about losing my italian while I'm there...).

Last Wednesday (30th October) I played in a university ceremony accompanying a horn, clarinetist and a small choir. What I didn't realise when agreeing to play was the importance and scale of the ceremony. Security was tight - including sniffer dogs - and the press was plentiful. I discovered two days before that it was going to be broadcast live and my face would be projected onto a large screen making it about ten times the size. Even more important was the guest, of whom the ceremony was in honour. Aung San Suu Kyi is a Burmese politician who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991. She was detained under house arrest for 15 years and was only recently released in 2010. I found her speech very moving and among other things she mentioned how although her father was assassinated by his rival politicians when she was just two years old, she doesn't hold a grudge and understands that they too wanted independence for her country but were just going about it in the wrong way. In Burma, she explained, there is a focus on finding culprits and on condmanation. They seem to think that condamnation is essential for the solution of problems. Aung San Suu Kyi described how it actually just fuels fires of fear which then develop into hatred. What people really need is understanding and compassion. She is an incredible women and actually studied PPE at Oxford, married an englishman and had two kids before going back to Burma.

To see her speech, have a look at this link (google translate if you want to read more info there as well):

http://www.magazine.unibo.it/Magazine/Attualita/2013/10/16/Laurea_d_Aung_San_Suu_Kyi.htm

One point of the ceremony which I found a bit ridiculous was a young burmese pianist who played after the speech as a tribute to Aung San Suu Kyi. She played an awful arrangement of Pachebel's canon...I don't need to say anymore.

On Friday 25th October, I went to milan for a quick trip with ESN (erasmus student network). My first visit back to the city where I was born! It was hideously embarrassing going around with ESN leaders who are so keen to have big group photos and carry massive flags around everywhere we go but I loved the city. It doesn't feel like a typical italian city as it feels much more metropolitan but it still carries an essence of italian culture. I have felt that other italian cities I have visited have are beautiful and full of culture and history, however, they feel like they are stuck in the past whereas as Milan was very much in the present. We went for aperitivo and then went to a club called Alcatraz - which apparently is very famous - and was absolutely huge and exactly what I expected from a big european club which cheesy music but it was great.

I wanted to comment on how often I hear english words with an italian accent used as part of the italian language as a translation simply doesn't exist. 'Flash back/forward,' 'in versione low cost,' 'babysitter,' 'sexy,' 'slot machine,' all are common examples and I find more and more all the time!

I went to giardini margherita which is a lovely park quite close to my house and I love it. It's not absolutely massive but has a really nice feel and a couple friends brought their guitars so we had a nice play and sing-along. I then made them sunday roast. They had never had it before but they absolutely LOVED it - even the vegetarian who couldn't get over how good gravy is!

On the weekend I went to watch La vita di Adele (La vie d'Adele) which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes this year and it's a long film but absolutely amazing. I don't want to give anything away however the main actress is younger than me (which is a bit depressing) and she is incredible and unbelievably convincing. I highly recommend watching it - though a couple scenes may feel a bit uncomfortable...

In other news, I am now officially a student at the Conservatory of Bologna and my course starts this week. My piano was tuned (finally!) and I started my italian language course so I have lots to do...

Duomo in Milan

Sunday Roast with Italians...

Empty ceremony hall - sound check

Full ceremony hall...

Bombocrepe - YUMMY.

Giardini Margherita

Giardini Margherita at night..

Ci sentiamo dopo,

xxx

SHAMELESS

Phoebe (another friend from Bristol who is also studying in Bologna) and I have decided that our key word in Bologna is shameless. This stemmed from our constant underlying fear to speak to italians in our lessons and our worries about not being able to produce a proper sentence when we actually did. We decided we had to be shameless to just start talking to people we sat next to in lessons and to ask for phone numbers/facebook profiles in the hope that it could develop into a friendship. It has worked and continues to work, and if at anytime one of us feels slightly apprehensive or would rather sit something out we remind each other of our word and we just go for it.

As a result, it's in this past week or so that I have suddenly felt a great improvement in my language. I speak english to only two people here (one of them being phoebe) and even when other friends are around we speak italian to each other and it seems to be helping. I'm starting to be able to convey more or less what I'm trying to say and there is a lot less stuttering and blubbering as I search for words and correct grammar! I'm also no longer terrified of going into a shop/post office/bank and not understanding what the person at the counter might ask me... So all in all, these are good signs! I had dinner last night with phoebe and a group of italians and I understand 99% of what was said - so happy!

Another plus to having a good group of italian friends, aside from improvements in my language is the amazing food which they enjoy cooking for me (they have promised that they do). The first meal together was an authentic southern italian lasagne which was honestly better than any I've ever tasted in the UK. Since then risottos and pastas have all been amazing including last night where I was treated to orecchiete e minchiareddit (types of pugliese pasta - more specifically from Salento) which my friend's mother had brought all the way from Salento for her as you can't get them in Bologna.

I do appreciate this was a while ago, however, the 4th of October was a holiday in Bologna to celebrate the day of San Petronio - the protector of Bologna. San Petronio was the bishop of Bologna during the 5th century and the Basilica of San Petronio was then built in 1390 in his owner and can be found on Piazza Maggiore in the centre of the city. On the day, the streets around my house felt strangely quiet, however, when I walked into the centre it was a completely different story and with the centre closed to cars there was music and dancing taking over the streets, not to mention the many cameras set up in the Basilica itself in order to televise the main service of the day.

I must mention how incredibly beautiful the classrooms are here. In the DAMS (Art, Music and Drama) department I am taken slightly a back when I enter the room - though of course I try to act normal as I do want to make friends - and each one has beautiful frescoes on the walls and ceiling. When the lecture becomes to much I sometimes find myself just looking around at all the beautiful artwork. It makes a welcome change to the dull, concrete, standardised classrooms you often find yourself in... and helps with the creativity of the students as well of course!

Last weekend, I was lucky enough to be able to spend three days in Florence visiting two friends from Bristol who are working there and another who came from Genoa. I've never been there before and it is an absolutely stunning city and very different to Verona (where I visited a couple weeks before) which was also absolutely beautiful but in a completely different way. The Duomo (or 'the dome thing' as a couple english boys which my friend has met the week before called it) really takes your breath away - the size and intricacy of the decoration more than anything. We also visited Giardino Bobeli and we decided we all wanted to get married there - the view of the city is stunning and yet the garden feels like you are in a world of your own! The Uffizi was a highlight for me. I was so excited to go and somehow my friend spoke to a man who worked there about how the ticket system worked and maybe because he appreciated an english girl's effort to speak italian, he let us straight in past a long ticket queue to buy our tickets. We then flashed our Bristol Uni student cards which conveniently say 'Faculty of Arts' on them which got us in for free. Incredible. One of my friends is even keener then I am and it felt like we had our own personal tour guide through the museum. The weekend was also great because it felt so refreshing to be able to speak english for a couple days and to be able to speak so freely! However, once again (like Verona) the city was far far too touristy for me and I was so happy to come back to Bologna...

Yesterday I had a little adventure slightly outside the city as I went to see San Luca (formally the Sanctuary of the Madonna di San Luca) which is a small basilica church situated about 300m high just south west of the historical centre of the city. What should have been about an hour a half walk, including 666 arches spanning 3.5km forming the portico of San Luca, became an over three hour walk as it turns out one of my friends is completely useless with directions. It was also another friend's 'name day' as his name is Luca and yesterday was the day of San Luca so we felt it absolutely necessary to make it up there and to not give up! It was beautiful at the top, although it was a bit misty so the view wasn't crystal clear. It's such a calming, tranquil place and nicely removed from the main city so I will definitely will be visiting again (but doing the directions myself, of course).

A last (slightly embarrassing) story which occurred two days ago in my class of laboratorio di teatro yesterday. One exercise involved us shaking people's hand in certain ways and really thinking about how your mannerisms would change whether you are angry, happy, or meeting someone for the first time etc. The teacher then tells us to do it alla mafioso (so as if it was between two people working together in the mafia) and after doing mine the teacher commented about how I obviously had no idea as I'm a foreigner because my example wasn't even close and the whole class laughed at me - probably not the best start in my second practical class of only twenty people!

Anyway, a piano arrived in my room yesterday and I haven't played properly for a month and a half so I'm going to spend this afternoon playing lots of music (even though it hasn't been tuned and some notes actually sound like two and so it sounds like I'm making lots of mistakes!).

A presto ragazzi,

xxx

"The dome thing" - Duomo in Florence

Gates of Paradise - Florence

A card from one of the cute paper shops dotted around Florence

Michelangelo's tomb

The ceiling of one of my classrooms

Dress rehearsal of Nabucco at the Teatro Comunale of Bologna

New addition to my room 

Secondary Thoughts.

I meant to do a weekly update every sunday - always ambitious in my case to try to keep something going on a regular basis - but of course I got distracted doing other stuff. I will now endeavour to do an update every couple weeks without a specific day in mind - hopefully that will help.

Last Thursday I went to a special ceremony for the signing of the Magna Charta Universitatum which is  a document of fundamental university values and rights, and was first signed in Bologna in 1988 by 388 rectors of main worldwide universities. It was actually a great ceremony because different heads of universities were there wearing their finest, and not least because Umberto Eco showed up to give a speech (he's very important in the world of literature and academia) and the first thing he did was to say "pardon the pun but there is a loud echo in the room" - everyone laughed. Anyway, he went on to explain how amazing universities are (as a body of people wanting to learn and share their learning with each other) in terms of developing thinking and bringing people together. A university is a place where everyone has come to learn. They have come to share ideas, develop current ones and be exposed to knew ways of viewing and understanding things. Bologna University - the oldest university in the western world, founded in 1088 - started with a small group of academics who came together to learn and research honestly and independently from any other establishment. I never really considered before how lucky we all are to have the opportunity to also go to such an establishment with completely liberal access to such an amazing amount of knowledge.

I was lucky enough to spend two days (one night) in Verona which is a mere 9€ train ride away. I was blown away. It is unbelievably beautiful, like a fairytale in fact! No wonder Shakespeare set his story of Romeo and Juilet in this very place. I did indeed go to visit 'Juliet's house' and I did have a picture taken on the balcony. It has to be done of course, however I have to say I was much more impressed by the beautiful churches the city had to offer. One dating back to 1117 A.D., they were absolutely stunning inside and though when I returned and showed pictures to my friends the reply I got was that 'they all look the same', personally my breath was blown away every time I stepped inside one of the churches. Chiesa San Fermo even had an underground church which had been preserved from the Roman times! Unbelievable. The amphitheatre was, of course, also very impressive and I'm already planning to return next summer to watch an opera there. I was with a family friend and with stayed with a women who was so kind and generous and typically italian, giving us an unbelievably big meal including the starter, pasta as a primo, meat as a secondo, and dessert. Waking up in the morning, I walked into the kitchen to find the table laden with a grand spread of food for breakfast. It would have been enough to feed at least ten! The only downside to the city was the amount of tourists. I saw about five or six groups of german school kids alone which seems to suggest that german schools are having a few days off...? After two days of trying to fit in seeing as many sights as possible and taking close to 200 pictures (75% are probably of churches), I was ready to return to Bologna where I'm already starting to feel at home.

A few last little things:

Contrary to popular belief that one will only find 'eurotrash' music in the clubs of european cities, I managed to find a couple places with some great house music (I'm not trying to be 'edgy', I just like the music) and I have been promised there are many more to be found. I met a girl who's in her fourth year of studying at the university and has lived near Bologna all her life and she has promised to show me all the secrets Bologna has to offer - I'm so excited. She also warned me about learning italian from southern Italians... I'd better beware.

The blond thing seems to be a big thing here. The majority of my italian friends are calling me 'bionda' (blond one) and I have benefited from a sufficient number of free drinks because of it. I'm not complaining but it is bizarre!

I've taken to trying to watch some Italian TV everyday in the hope that it will improve my listening skills and it is very very bizarre to watch Dr. Who, The Big Bang Theory, and Desperate Housewives (all favourites over here) dubbed over in Italian.

I got into the orchestra which is good news! Although I'm slightly worried as the rehearsals will be in italian and I've recently realised that they have different name for all the keys and some instruments so I might struggle to keep up! 

I have met an unbelievable amount of spanish people (there are probably 3 spanish people to every other erasmus student), and italian is so similar to spanish that they speak in spanish and we reply in italian and everyone is understand no problem. In fact, I seem to be slowly learning spanish without even trying - wish that could happen with the others languages!

Thank you for reading :-) 

baci e abbracci from a russian abroad xxx

Umberto Eco - no need for a gown/cape

Beautiful church at night

Excessively large train ticket

Main Piazza in Verona

Verona is beautiful

Apparently it's good luck to touch the hump of a hunchback

View from La Torre dei Lamberti

Duomo

Beautifully ornate organ

Underground Roman church

Enjoying a brightly coloured Spritz Aperol

Back home in Bologna with italians

Initial thoughts.

After much deliberation I have decided to cave in, follow the trend and start a year abroad blog. I am now sat at the desk of my freshly set-up room after having spent a week living in the living room of my flat waiting for the previous girl to move out of the room. My room is great, nice size with plenty of spare space for visitors and in the centre of the city, and my flatmate is a girl who speaks French and Italian which is perfect for me...  I finally feel settled and yesterday I made my first few italian friends... so things aren't looking too bad.

I have learnt that Italians are the kindest, most generous and open people who always have time to chat and to help you. They are also unbelievably relaxed. Lunch lasts at least an hour, preferably two, and everything closes during that period, as well as on a Sunday - so Sunday really is a day of rest.

Surprisingly I have understood much more italian than I thought I would but I have found it difficult to speak as it doesn't come as easily to me as french and english do but hopefully that will come with time. I've spoken a lot of french with my flatmates which is good, however, I now have a mix of three languages in my head so I can't seem to form a proper sentence in any of them without a struggle!

I have learnt that mosquitos here seem to attack all foreign girls the minute they arrive. None of the Italians have a problem with them and they don't seem to really affect the guys but somehow I managed to get ten bites on one leg alone by the end of my second day.

Setting up a bank account was difficult because as a 'non-residenza' most of the banks essentially have no interest in setting up an account for you which you will use for just a few months and probably not put very much money into it and which, as a student, you want for free (most seem to charge about 20€ a month) but after some to-ing and fro-ing I managed to find one - n.b. UniCredit for those coming to Italy in the near future.

Also, for anyone planning to getting a sim card abroad - get your phone unlocked before you go!

I have chosen my courses to study at university - all music/theatre related of course - and have discovered a completely foreign system of attending university. Lectures are essentially open to the public and being a student merely means that you can register for the exams. It's up to you to register your modules online and then proceed to find out when the lectures are scheduled or email the teachers to try and find out. I emailed one professor to confirm that he would be teaching this semester (as it said that he would be online) and he proceeded to reply that he thought he was teaching in the second semester, but he wasn't sure so he said he would double check and that I was more than welcome to take the exam either way! I have also been told that if I leave my flat (which is a good 15 mins walk from the university area) at the time that my lesson actually starts, I will still arrive in good time. No wonder all the lectures are scheduled to be 2-3 hours long - half of that time is taken up with people waiting for the lecturers to arrive!

I have learnt that it is completely unacceptable to order a cappuccino after 9:30am in the morning - 8 am is the more acceptable time, with your breakfast and that is all.

I have been baffled by menus. Faced with twenty to thirty different pizza toppings I realise I should have focused more on learning food vocabulary back in Bristol instead of the many tenses which would get better grades in exams. It's embarrassing having to ask what the many different options are!

I have found the best ice cream I have ever tasted - that's one reason alone to come and visit.

All in all, Bologna is an absolutely amazing city. There is so much history in every building and it's absolutely beautiful, and very very red. I decided I was allowed to be very touristy during my first week so my mum and I took a ride on the red tourist bus around the city - it was worth every penny. I have decided I'm going to visit a different museum/historical point of interest every week; I can then treat you lovely readers to a story about each place I go to! The food stays true to the Italian stereotype. There are pizzerias absolutely everywhere, at least two every block and I have had pizza at least once a day since I've been here. I also had the famous bolognese the first evening I came (as it comes from Bologna) and it was absolutely delicious. The wine is cheap and in the evenings and the majority of bars around the city, you pay slightly more for a glass of wine or beer - about 5-8€ depending on the place - and then you help yourself to a buffet of aperitivi and often resulting in not needing to have dinner as you simply sit and have some and help yourself to the buffet.

Drinking in the street also seems to be the common done thing. Yesterday Strada Maggiore, one of the main streets right near where I live, was closed for a street party. When it finished the people seeped into streets running into Piazza Verdi which was packed full of people in their 20's drinking with police walking by without a second glance. Apparently the Piazza being so packed full of young drinkers is a daily occurrence and there are never any problems.

I do feel very safe here. I have noticed that there are few blond people here and the majority of people are shorter than me so I have got a few stares here and there, however I do feel a lot safer than I do in any other major european city. All the Italians seem far to relaxed to feel the need to start any trouble!

Anyway, enough from me. I hope you enjoyed reading my first post and I congratulate you for making it to the end. Alla settimana prossima, Ciao!

View of Bologna from afar.

View from the taller of Le due torri - La torre degli Asinelli

The most delicious ice cream I have ever tasted.