I can’t believe it’s already March! It still seems like yesterday that all fourteen of us pulled into the Piazza Gramsci, embarking on a new experience that we’re told will change our lives. Now, amidst midterms and making plans for spring break, I thought it would be nice to look back on the past six weeks with a different perspective.
For starters, our intensive Italian classes have ended and our language classes have moved to the Università per Stranieri di Siena’s outpost inside the walls of the city making my commute only ten minutes long! Sadly, we did have to say farewell to our professors, which was sad because I really liked my professor, Simonetta, who was so patient with our questions and always went out of her way to show us her love for not only the Italian language, but also her love of Siena. Not to worry, her replacement, Vincenza, is just nice and has even sent us on little activities in Siena that have us interacting with Italians.
Life in Siena took some adjusting, but not much. The city’s little streets are filled with dozens of little shops and trattorias. The market each Wednesday brings out people of every age, but it is quite funny to see all the little old ladies wearing their fur coats and strolling from vendor to vendor with their friends. I’ve bought the most amazing rosemary honey and cheese there. The market is located around the fortezza, which besides offering some of the most spectacular views of Siena, is a great place to go running, which I do twice a week. My only problem with the fortezza is that the Sienese people move very slowly, which makes running on narrow paths a bit difficult, but then you look out at one of the most beautiful views on earth and you realize that having to wait for the Sienese people to leisurely stroll until you reach a point where you can pass them is the price you have to pay.
Outside of Siena, I’ve tried to do mostly day trips, my favorite of which so far has been to Montalcino, the makers of the best wine in all of Italy, or as my Italian roommate, Andrea, corrected me, the best wine in the world. I went with my fellow Wahoo, Sydney, on what would turn out to be a rainy day for a tasting inside the fortezza there. While much smaller than Siena, the drive up the mountain with the vineyards, the little homes and that picturesque view are no wonder that the first thing that greets you when you start walking around the town toward the fortezza is a real estate office. Montalcino was hosting a wine conference of some sort that day so it was buzzing with activity with people walking around with lanyards holding wine glasses. The wine, by the way, was so delicious that I couldn’t resist buying some.
Last week, we joined the CET students in Florence taking Italian Cultural History for a trip to Catania on the island of Sicily. It was a trip I’ll probably never forget. I went with the stereotype of Sicily that was formed thanks to watching movies like The Godfather. However, the city of Catania, despite not being as beautiful and well kept as Siena, has a brand of magic that I don’t think I’ll ever be able to properly describe. The CET in Catania students greeted us our first night in town and served as wonderful hosts until we departed Sunday. In addition to our discussions about the mafia on Friday, we were able to visit the fish market, a World War II museum focusing on the war’s Sicily campaign, try new foods like horse meat, eat the first of many true canolis, and go up to see the view from the top of Mount Etna as well as lava from previous eruptions. It was a bit colder than I had originally expected it to be up at the top of the volcano, but it didn’t matter because the world looks so different when standing among the clouds. It struck a bit odd, but also fascinating, that it is possible to ski down the side of Mount Etna. Part of me says I have to go back and try it, while another part reminds me that I’ll never ski fast enough in case there’s an eruption! The visit changed whatever weak opinion I once had Sicily and it’s definitely going to be a place to which I plan to return in the future.
As next week brings the start of midterms, I know nearly everyone is staying in town for the weekend following some day trips today. It’s still a bit cold out, but at least we haven’t had to face blizzard-like conditions! The narrow streets here in Siena block the sun a bit and make them a bit cooler, but as it continues to get warmer, I’ll look forward to that five-degree difference.
John David Quate, UVa
CET Siena Student Correspondent, Spring '11
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