When I first read about this program, I was extremely excited to learn that we would be taught how to cook. Our cooking classes were taught by Christina, the head chef at a restaurant called Glass in Trastevere. The first lesson might have been my favorite because we learned how to make two classic Italian dishes- risotto and carbonara. I had never really cooked anything more complicated than Mac n Cheese, so I was a bit nervous when the classes started. However, after a few minutes in the kitchen, I became more confident. Christina was a great teacher, and taught us some important cooking techniques that can be used in many different meals. Overall, the cooking classes were a lot of fun, and I learned a lot. I cannot wait to impress my family with cooking them carbonara when i get back.
This picture was taken during our first trip outside of Rome. A group of us from the program went to Florence, and we had a big lunch together in between all the sight seeing. Everyone ordered a glass of wine and a different kind of pizza or pasta. Although we hardly knew each other at this point, we shared our food as if we were family. This is my interpretation of Italian food and culture now- tons of food, wine, and an atmosphere of family, no matter who you’re with.
A couple weeks ago, our program took a trip to Cilento. An area of Italy credited with the invention of the Mediterranean diet. Through the busy weekend, we stopped in many different areas of food production, such as a buffalo farm where they make fresh buffalo mozzarella every morning. After watching some workers making the cheese, we tasted the freshest buffalo mozzarella available, as well as yogurt and gelato made with buffalo milk (all were delicious).
We stopped at a kiwi farm, a fishing dock, an herb garden, and Paestum, an ancient Greek colony reminiscent of Pompeii. One of my favorite stops of the entire journey was our final dinner Saturday night. We were able to watch a master chef make delicious pizza out of the finest ingredients. We also got to taste 5 different unique pizzas. Overall the trip was a good way to get to know the Mediterranean diet in a hands on way.
Last week, our class got the chance to visit a vineyard called Castello delle Regine as part of our Food & Culture course. The weeks leading up to the visit, we had been learning about how wine is made, and experimenting with wine tasting.
For the past decade, it had hardly, if ever, snowed in Rome. However, the morning of the vineyard visit, huge flakes were falling from the sky as if I were back home in Chicago. Because of the unexpected weather, we got off to a late start.
After arriving at the vineyard, we got a look at the grape vines that were planted over nearly 300 acres of land. We were greeted by our tour guide who then told us about the company and explained the wine making process.
After seeing tanks, barrels, and bottles of wine (all at different steps in the wine making process), the group was divided into 3 teams and allowed to experiment in making their own bottle of wine. We were given 5 different kinds of wines that we tasted and then mixed together to form our own bottle. My group was paired with some French students from our school, and together we came up with a few bottles of experimental wine that we were allowed to take back home with us. 
After a lunch at a beautiful restaurant, we headed back to Rome. Despite the weather, visiting the vineyard was a great experience that gave us good insight into how wine is made.
For the next four months, I will be living in Rome, Italy and traveling around Europe as much as possible. I am taking classes in Italian culture, society, food, and media. So far, the classes have been interesting and the city has been amazing.
The first weekend in Italy, about 18 people from my program and I went to Florence. The city of the Renaissance, there was so much to see there. The landscape and sights were beautiful as well as the rich culture that burst from every street corner. My first 10 days in Europe, everything mundane thing seemed beautiful and important. The view from the Duomo was like nothing I had ever seen before. All the shingled roof tops looked the same, but huge churches and cathedrals made their presence known. Tours, museums, and hikes around the city were exhausting, but worth it.
My second weekend, I stayed in Rome and explored around the ancient city that is now feeling more like home. On Sunday, the entire Food & Culture program went to the AS Roma game together. Roma played Sienna. When Roma scored the game winning goal with only minutes left, fans went crazy. It was unbelievable being in the fan section, cheering with those who have been in love with the sport, and the team, for years.
