The night is young and so are we

Another weekend spent in Bologna, and it just never gets old. I'm not sure whether it's more the beautiful pallet of colors, my happy memories of studying abroad, or the heavenly smells wafting through the streets, but Bologna has a charm and an energy that makes me fall in love anew each time I visit.

Touring the city becomes superfluous, so instead on our first day together we enjoy just walking around and popping into some shops. We also, of course, indulge in gelato at Castiglione, an experience that continues to surprise me with its awesomeness each and every time. Some other Bologna highlights included Gio preparing Turkish meatballs, encountering a man I believe was Father Time out dancing one night, hanging out in Villa Spada's lovely park, and eating at a Bolognese restaurant near Gio's house. Just imagine-tortelloni filled with pumpkin and covered in a balsamic reduction, maccheroncini dressed in a creamy sauce with sausage and porcini, and ricotta-and-eggplant-stuffed ravioli with a cold, pink tomato sauce.

Villa Spada, and the view over Bologna

While we had a great time in Bologna, the climax of the weekend was our evening in Padova. Giacomo, a Bolognese that studied abroad at UCSD our senior year, drove us to Padova for a big reunion dinner with several other UCSD alum, both Italian and American. Having always wanted to visit Padova, I was glad to have the chance to explore the town center, even if just for an hour before dinner. Padova was actually my alternate option for studying abroad, and while I'm infinitely glad I ended up in Bologna, I can see now that Padova would have been a wonderful place to study as well.

Padova has one of the largest squares in all of Europe, filled with a sort of moat and a plethora of statues. It seems like a lovely space to have a picnic or spend an afternoon reading.

Daniele, Ryan, Gio, me, Giacomo

We stopped for aperitivo in one of Padova's bustling piazzas. The city felt so alive, brimming with people and markets and outdoor tables for everyone to enjoy. I got such a hard time for ordering a Bellini instead of a Spritz, but I do not appreciate the taste of aperol. Plus, then my Bellini was AWESOME, garnished with delectable tropical fruit, so I didn't care.

After aperitivo, we piled back into the car to drive through the Veneto region and find the restaurant. We fortunately made a couple wrong turns, because we got to see increasingly beautiful landscapes and breathe in the freshest air, many scents of which reminded me of home. It was an ideal summer dusk, warm with a cool breeze, and we found ourselves driving among vineyards and mountains suffused with countryside smells, looking up at the stars with the wind blowing through our hair.

Dinner was a treat, not only for the cuisine but the fine company. The owner of the restaurant, a rotund, rumpled lady who at first appeared austere but was easily-charmed, rattled off the menu like an auctioneer and then promptly took our orders. We tried some interesting new things, including pasta with a duck ragu' and stuffed dove. It was fascinating catching up with everyone and hearing of everyone's travels; one guy is interning in Austria and another was about to move to Munich. I also thought it was so neat that three out of the eight UCSD people at this reunion are Americans living in Italy. Study abroad will do that to you-everyone's scattered all over the place!

Go Tritons!