Rave and Pope Francis

Nov 5 - Nov 18

Welcome back to the blog!

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Pumpkin Risotto Cooking in Class

Risotto alla zucca, or pumpkin risotto, was by far my favorite dish to make in my cooking class. The simplicity, presentation, and taste of the dish were perfect. This was only my second or third time ever having risotto-- and my first trying a vegetable one-- and I greatly enjoyed it. To add more flavor and texture, we topped the dish with crushed Amaretto cookies. This is a recipe I will definitely try to recreate when I'm back home.

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Trip to Barcelona

Along with two other friends, we managed to get extremely cheap flights to Barcelona and secured a hostel for three nights. On our first night, we made some Belgian friends who invited us to join them at a festival the next day. The Blackworks Festival was the first festival I had ever attended, and it ws both exciting and chaotic. Barcelona is famous for its vibrant nightlife-- it truly is a city that never sleep. Unfortunately, we didn't find out until it was too late that nearly every shop and supermarket is closed on Sundays. We were able to make the most of it by visiting the Museum of Natural Sciences.

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Foods of Spain

Spanish cuisine is known for its blend of Mediterranean ingredients, with a focus on seafood and a variety of spices. Paella is the most well-known dish in Spain, and there are many variations of it. My first meal in Barcelona was chicken paella from a restaurant in the Gothic Quarter. This dish, in particular, reminded me of biryani. Empanadas were also very popular in Barcelona, which surprised me. I especially enjoyed their array of churros and other sweets.

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Trip to Rome

It didn't feel right to leave my study abroad journey in Italy without visiting Rome, one of the most popular destinations in all of Europe. Three friends and I took a convenient three-hour train ride down to Rome. During our three-day trip, we visited Castel Sant'Angelo, Vatican City, the Pantheon, the Villa Borghese Gardens. We also had the chance to see the premiere of Gladiator II after having visited the Colosseum, which felt like a fitting activity. On our final day in Rome, we visited St. Peter's Square and were fortunate to see Pope Francis make his weekly appearance and deliver a speech over the crowd.

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Foods of Rome

One of my favorite Italian dishes is spaghetti alla carbonara, and Rome is the birthplace of this iconic dish. Having lived in Florence for the past two months, I began to recognize the telling signs of "tourist trap" restaurants, and with how touristy Rome is, the city was full of them. We only managed to find one restaurant we liked and ultimately settled for pizza. I don't have many regrets about what I did and didn't eat in Rome; much of it was similar to what I had in Florence, so we treated it like an ordinary day. That said, I had some of the best gelato I've ever tasted here in Rome.