"I'M KING OF THE WORLD!"

Okay, so before today I didn't fully understand what the love of my life, Jack Dawson, was sayin' on that clear day aboard the S.S. Titanic, and although I was still on land, I think I may now have some idea what that bitty was tryna say.  Today after eating the DANKEST gelato complete with little kinder chocolate pieces in it, my language partner, Giulio, suggested that we climb up one of the two towers (the taller one on the left in the picture above) and see the city, a task even he had not done yet.  At first I was like.."Bitch, hold the fuck up...this boo is too afraid of heights to climb up like 10,000 stairs".  But then, almost instantaneously, I decided that I wasn't going to let anything, even a 16 year phobia, hold me back from doing EVERYTHING while I'm in Italy.  I've waited too long to be here to let anything get in my way.  So I sucked it the fuck up and said andiamo to Giulio.  Then we started our trek up to the top of the tour.  Now, it may have been the most physical labor I've done in over 7 years.  A fat old italian man even said that I shouldn't smoke so much because I was huffin' and puffin up a fuckin' storm...the fun part is that I don't smoke and that motherfucker was twice my size and three times my age.  Whatever...I'm already over it.  Anyway, after about 15 minutes of just walking up stairs we finally arrived at the top. After taking a minute to have my minuscule panic attack about being up that high up, my mind was blown.  It was such a clear day, and you could not only see the entirety of Bologna, the city that stole my heart, but also all the surrounding hills and small towns.  I felt like I was on top of the world, looking down at history, culture, and life.  It was magical.  It, above anything else I've experienced thus far, made me appreciate the opportunity I've been given to be here.  Yeah so I might not have the best luck in most situations, and things don't always go so smoothly.....but today I was king of the world.  All the mishaps in my life only happened so that I could appreciate this day the way I did, and so that I could appreciate what I have here and how much my life is going to change because of this experience.  Today was amazing...All thanks to Giulio's simple idea to "walk up the tower" <3

GLITTER ON MY EYES...

Well Saturday night turned out to be a night full of drinking, dancing, and inhaling large amounts of GOLD GLITTER! The Gold Party at Cassero was so fun.  We met up with the birthday boy, Fabio, and his friends at some bar and just took alcohol to the face for like an hour (you know my cheap, alcoholic ass had my "kiss my drunk ass" flask filled with limoncello in my back pocket for later though).  Then we headed over to da club and got our dance and glitter on.  The go-go boys in their skimpy little gold speedos proceeded to throw hand-fulls of glitter onto the extremely sweaty crowd...and as you can image getting glitter on you while you are that wet is almost like contracting herpes. Yeah, it was fun while it was happening, but this shit is NEVER gunna to go away.  There is glitter actually all over the floor of my room, all over the hallway floor, and is covering the bathroom floor as if Ke$ha came over and had a little accident.  I'm pretty sure I STILL have glitter on my eyes and it's almost been 48 hours since I contracted the glitter.  It was, however, an extremely fun and BNO night.  NOT TO MENTION, the lovely and beautiful EMMA RAMADAN graced the Bolognese people with her presence this weekend.  I'm obsessed with her in a serious way, and I hope she gets her ass back to Bologna ASAP! Anyway, still loving Bologna, and now I have some new Fabulous Italian friends, all thanks to Fabio being such a G with so many beautiful girl friends....you know I'm a sucker for pretty girls.  Pretty Girl Hag 4 Lyfe :)

Always top it off with a little Parmigiano

Another day trip with the program means one thing.....FREE LUNCH, complete with unlimited wine that Katie and I are 2quick to take advantage of.  Parma is a lovely, charming city.  The Duomo has a one of the most beautifully painted ceilings that I've ever seen (right up there with that little Sistine Chapel over at dat Vatican Citayyy).  This was the first day trip I did not hung over, so the tour preceding the amazing lunch was less excruciating than normal....but I still thought about the lunch the whole time. And then at about 1:30pm we started to pop bottles.  As soon as I heard that MARVELOUS sound of frizzante wine bottles gettin' popped, my adrenaline started pumping.  Then they proceeded to bring out the most tender, delicious prosciutto I've ever tasted (a specialty of the Parmigiani....along with....you guessed it....Parmigian cheese).  It was all and all a pretty good day.  There is also a Giuseppe Verdi festival in October in Parma, that you better believe my ass will be attending.  The theatres in Parma where magical.  Sitting in the seats made me miss seeing theatre so much! So I envision at least one opera in my near near future.  But tonight we're hitting up that Cassero Gold Party, 9pm-9am...breakfast included in ticket, gettin' shitty italian style! A dopo ;)

Giardini Margherita with Erasmusss

So last night instead of doing work I decided to take a bottle of Prosecco to the face and head to Giardini Margherita (a park in Bologna that also has a bar and dance club) with da Brown kids and some of the language partners.  When we got there it wasn't really poppin' yet...so clearly i proceed to take 5 shots and down another glass of Prosecco.  But once everyone had arrived we decided to go inside the dance tent and get our groove on.  There were so many Erasmus students (other European students studying in Bologna) there as well as some fun ass italians.  We met a group of girls from Scandinavia (as depicted above) that live very close to my apartment.  They were BNO and fun.  I obviously got a little carried away on the dance floor and met some awesome Italian girls who were impressed by my abilits (depicted to the right) in a state of sweaty madness. All in all though I had a GREAT MO'FUCKIN' time.  It was wayyyyy better than pretending to do work while doing everything but.  It's what I really needed to motivate myself to do work today.  It worked so well that I think I'm going to do it again tonight....Club Kinki (no it is not an S&M gay club, just a normal everyday discoteca with a peculiar name) is having its opening night tonight and I managed to obtain 4 free drink coupons. :)

 DAI BROOKE! 

Hold up, wait a minute, lemme put some "SCIOPERO" in it!

So Rimini was a blast and a mo'fuckin' half.  We all had a great time and the group was extremely chill, fun, and ready to go hard Bologna Shore style.

We spent all day at the beach.  The water was cool and refreshing, and the weather was almost perfect.  The only struggles we had were with the women that came around regularly throughout the day asking if  any of us wanted a massagio (massage).  We then proceeded to continue our BNO weekend by going out hard both nights to some pretty fun discoteche and danced our lives away. 2fun 2handle.  But as Sunday rolled around, things started to go a little less smoothly.  Some of us got up at the ass crack of dawn (after having gone to sleep 3 hours previously) to catch a 9:47 train from Rimini to Bologna Centrale.  When we got there, however, our train had been canceled.  I mean, it sucked, but it was manageable.  There was another train to Bologna Centrale at 10:41.  Then that motherfucker was canceled.  Eventually every damn regional train was canceled going in our direction.  Being the curious and inquisitive little students we are, we asked the caribinieri what was going on, and their bitch asses done looked at Mari and said (in italian of course) "It's a national strike (sciopero), don't you know...it was on TV".  Okay, hold up.  Our broke ass college student life is not conducive to staying in a hotel complete with a TV...is that a joke?  Why weren't there signs posted at the front door or something?  There were still so many people in the station, apparently we weren't the only people that didn't know.  So, anyway, we were stranded at the train station...until....my God of a language partner called and said he would come PICK OUR ASSES UP from Rimini (almost 2 hours from his house) so that he could take us to the Cook-out that other language partners were throwing for us (the reason we were taking the early train in the first place).  He is probably one the nicest most considerate people I've ever met.  So Giulio picks us up and takes us to his house for a hot minute and then we're off to the Cook-out.  We had officially survived our first sciopero, but the real fun didn't come until after we got to the cook-out.  These Italians be all sorts of crazy...my kinda people :).

The Cook-out was actually one of the fratty-est things I've ever partaken in...including some day time spring week activities.  We obviously got there late, so day drinking (my favorite kind of drinking) had already commenced.  After a few minutes of being there a ketchup fight had broken out...followed by a nutella fight.  After that, one of the language partners found an old squirt gun and filled it with Heineken. And since all the language partners are already aware that I am the resident alcoholic of the group, clearly they thought that I should be the first american kid to get sprayed in the mouth with beer.  Usually i would have refused the beer, but I figured, if I'm going to learn to like beer for my 450 Brookers, I might as well start by having it sprayed in my mouth via squirt gun.  Then the bottles of wine descended from some unknown location upstairs, 3 of which I probably drank alone.  Beer and wine were being sprayed all over the place.  Girls covered in beer, boys covered in wine, and everybody was covered in the mud that had been accumulating due to the rain and wasted alcohol.  Then the bottles of vodka came down....these kids really know how to go hard on a SUNDAY AFTERNOON (chris rock reference for all those interested...you know who you are).  Everything was consumed from the bottle...minimal cups necessary.  Everyone was just nursing (aka chugging) what ever bottle they had in their hand.  I taught some the italians how to "drop it, drop it low gurl" while my hips were not mothahfuckin' lyin'....so much dancing my thighs done still be burnin' 24 hours later.  It was actually a great way to end a somewhat stressful day and fucking amazing weekend.  Gettin' fratty in Bologna with mah new gold sparkly strap back hat with da bros da Bologna.  

Beaches, Adventure Hats, & Good Times

So obviously we headed straight to the beach from our hotel, and on the way found the most BOMB ASS 1Euro adventure hats complete with glitter and metallic colors (just add a lesbian in ankle boots, and i'm all set).  The free beach, Bagno zero, was beautiful and it was my first venture into the Adriatic since I've been here.  So excited to spend the entire day lounging on the beach, playing soccer, and not worrying about anything tomorrow.  But first we're goin' harder than Ke$ha up in the discoteca, party it up in Rimini! :)

And yes, this is a group of elderly Italians playing bocce in a hole at the beach.....2perfect...2italian

Bologna Shore!!!

Um so hold the fuck up...We decided to head out to Rimini this weekend because it's the first weekend we have off from Brown sponsored day trips this month.  So obviously being the BNO kids we are, we decided to come to the clubbin' beach town an hour and a half away from Bologna (aka Bologna's Jersey Shore).  And not only are we in the clubbin' beach town...we also decided to stay at the Jammin' Party Hostel.  The people at the hostel are AMAZING! The receptionist was completely surprised that we could speak Italian, and was so impressed with our knowledge of one of the clubs here that she decided to come out with us tonight....she's fabulous and a half!  All in all this is shaping up to be a really good choice for a weekend trip.  Stay tuned for some stories.... 

ALSO...just had to share this advertisement for a water park...

Gay or European? Don't nobody know...homoerotic themes be all up over this country, can't say I hate it :)

450 BROOK SHOUT OUT!

So yesterday a simple skype with my cheating husband, Mike Johnson, turned into an almost entire 450 Brook skype sesh, with the exception of kitty :( who was probably galavanting around the house purring and getting into mischief with poor unsuspecting gaybies.  Anyway, seeing everyone together in da house (aka brothel) made me so happy, so I thought it would be fitting to give them all a shoutout! They're some of the most amazing people I know, and them being here would make this unforgettable experience even better.  Since they can't be here, however, I'm so glad that modern technology can wrip down the geographical walls keeping us apart.  We've become friends without borders. After a summer and the beginning of a  semester with everyone in various countries, states, and cities throughout the world -- Ireland, Chile, Argentina, New York, Montana, India, Italy -- it doesn't matter where we go in the world, our codependency is stronger and more beautiful than ever.  Love you guys, ci vediamo pronto <3

"Dai, Brooke!" -- Una serata con Fabio

Okay, so one of the language partners, Fabio, invited a couple of us to have dinner at his apartment tonight, and it was actually the most adorable thing I have ever experienced in my life!  We got to his apartment and he had already set the table out on the balcony for us.  We drank some great rosé and white wine and ate a delicious meal.  We had fiori di zucca (pumpkin flowers) as antipasti which was followed by an amazing traditional bolognese pasta dish called tagliatelle.  Oh and by the way, on the table was a basket of bread that he had made HIM-fucking-SELF! Is that a joke? Actually 2perfect and 2good.  Anyway, booboo then brings a huge tiramisu made with gelato and a bottle of limoncello out to the table.  It was amazing.  Everything was so delicious.  He was so sweet and adorable.  It was a great night.  And every time one of the girls in our program, Brooke (obsessed with her in a big way), would say she didn't want to eat any more or take the limoncello shots, he would say "DAI, BROOKE" or "come on, brooke" in the cutest and most hilarious way (Just a little background on the title of the post).  He's a great guy and a lot of fun.  Can't wait to go out hard and get shitty with him for his birthday next week...ERRRRBODY IN DA CLUB GETTIN' TIPSY next week cause we GUNNA PARTY LIKE IT'S HIS BIRFDAY!!

Amiche Italiane

So last night we went hard hard hard hard hard hard just like the world was ours ours ours ours ours ours, and met these fun (aka CRAZY) Italian girls at one of the bars we frequent when we want to go out.  These girls, Guilia and Silvia, were so sweet and open to hanging out with us and helping us practice our Italian. They also kept getting free shots for us from the bartenders, so naturally my Italian was flowing quite nicely by then.  I'm just so excited that the students are finally returning to Bologna.  I hope I can make some legitimate friendships with Italians while I'm here.  So far they all seem fun and are very accepting of foreign students.  We all have so much to learn from each other, so I'm going to take full advantage of having all these different perspectivas and mentalità around to help me learn, grow, and reflect on life in general.  I got a feelin.....that tonight this semester is going to be a good night semester.

Struggle Bus Goes Intercontinental

It's official...the struggle bus makes stops all over the world.  My 10am Storia d'Italia class is 2hard to pay attention in.  Listening to someone speak for 2 hours completely in Italian takes more attention and focus then I have available due to my inability to create a legitimate sleep schedule (aka sleep at all).  I literally spend the last hour of the class writing the names of the people sitting around me in fun fonts and doodling simplified versions of various disney characters, including but not limited to...The Muses from Hercules, Micky, Minnie, Ariel, and Genie.  Let me just say...Grazie a Dio that there is a book about this stuff that I can read before the exam.  I cannot wait for the university classes to start...hopefully I can get my fat ass off the struggle bus and hop on the motivation express, but until then I'll just have to absent-mindedly doodle through these history lectures for the next 2 weeks.

Liquid Heroin?

So I have become COMPLETAMENTE addicted to blood orange juice: any kind, every kind, any time.  I honestly think they might be putting heroin in it in order to get foreign students addicted.  I go through an entire carton in every sitting.  Once I decided to take a sip....that's it, the carton's gone.  I crave it.  Its all I think about sometimes.  Its like a controlling, needy mistress.  It always requires my attention, even though I have so much other shit I should be worrying about.  My bigger, and more important question, however, is why the hell don't we have blood orange juice everywhere back in the States? I don't know how I'm going to survive without it when I return.  I wonder if they have a support group of some kind here...

il Museo Universitario

So yesterday our entire program took a little trip to the University's museum, and let's just say that it was ....interestinggg.  The museum had some really cool old hand written medieval books and some awesome old scientific instruments used by the University's professors in the 16th and 17th centuries.  But then we ventured into the medical section (Università di Bologna has a highly respected and well established Medical School) of the museum and I have never seen so many vagina's in my whole life.  Of course the vaginas were made of wax, but there was an entire room dedicated to l'arte of delivering children in the "olden days", as well as wax sculptures of like 50 fetuses in the womb in different positions.  I have kind of an issue with wax figures because they're WAY too much like dolls, so naturally I was uncomfortable for almost the entirety of the medical section, even though I found it extremely interesting.  Going to the museum, however, made me realize how long of a history this University has, and how many great minds have walked the halls I'm about to walk on a daily basis (Machiavelli and Dante, nbd).  I'm excited to become part to it's 923 year long history of higher education.  This was one of the best decisions I think I've ever made. :) A dopo.

A build your own vagina kit? Not really sure what's going on here...

And of course, in true italian fashion, a room containing wax figures of fetuses, vaginas and very scary looking medical tools has beautiful hand painted frescoes and a perfectly ornate ceiling to accompany it.

Cinema Italiana - Terraferma

They might have no idea how to govern their country, but Italians really know how to make a phenomenal movie.  It's no secret that Italian cinema has a long history and prestigious reputation in the cinema world, but today my language class went to il Cinema Odeon to see a movie that was just recently shown at the Venice Film Festival.  It was absolutely amazing!  The story was powerful, the images intense, and the acting some of the best I've seen in a while.  It depicts the struggles of poor southern Italian families in Italy today, and the increasingly serious immigration issues.  I highly recommend the film to anyone who speaks Italian or loves a good subtitled foreign film.  Check out da trailer, you won't regret it.

Sono diventato un caffè-oholic

So it's the moment that most of you have been waiting for....I have become obsessed with caffè.  I found this amazing coffee shop close to my apartment that not only has some bangin' coffee, but some of the most delicious looking pastries that I've ever seen.  The people who work there are also SO nice and friendly.  I envision this becoming mah spot for that early morning pick me up before class.  A quick shot of expresso and a cappucio da portare (cappuccino to-go) and I'm ready to take on what the world's got in store for me that day.  So far I've done all that was asked of me by my beloved 450-Brookers...I've learned to love wine and coffee in only 2 weeks of being here.  I don't think i will ever enjoy a beer (the thing the bros are most eager for me to enjoy), but who knows I'm open to everything Italy has to offer me...even a good beer once and a while...maybe. Ciao :)

Sunday Afternoon in the Countryside

So this afternoon my "language partner", Giulio, brought me to his house in la campagna about 30 minutes outside of Bologna.  It was BEAUTIFUL.  Fruit trees and golden waves of grain created an amazing image that actually only happens in books.  We spent the day sitting on his patio with freshly sliced prosciutto and a bottle of white wine talking about life.  Such a great alternative to doing the MOUNTAIN of homework that I have accumulated in the last week, but oh well.....it was a better alternative to procrastination than my usual obsessive facebooking. :)

La Domenica (Sunday)

So I've got a whole lot of homework to do, but the Italians don't seem to do work on Sundays.  They take that whole "day of rest"shit 2seriously.  The library is closed, there's no one studying in i bar (cafes), and I feel awkward going somewhere to do work today.  HOPEFULLY I can assimilate and have nothing to do on Sundays either, but until then I'm using this video to distract me in true Nick fashion....somethings will never change! :)

Day Trip to Ferrara!

 

So yesterday we took a day trip to Ferrara and it was pretty interesting.  Ferrara is only  8,80 euro round trip, 30 minute train ride from Bologna Centrale.  There is a bomb medieval castle and a beautiful historic center.  We went to the top of the castle and there was a BEAUTIFUL view of the city.  The best part of the trip, however, was the lunch.  We went to a restaurant, and in true italian fashion had a 4 course meal complete with antipasto, il primo (pasta), il secondo (meat), e il dolce (dessert).  I also casually got WASTED off the unlimited amount of white wine they kept bringing to our table.  Day drinking is my favorite activity, so naturally I loved every minute of it, and then proceeded to sing Disney songs through the streets of Ferrara on the way back to the train station after lunch.  All in all it was a beautiful day.  Afterwards I made dinner with some of the other kids in my program and then went to some fun bars, rounding out the night at the gay club Cassero.  The night scene here hasn't fully picked up yet because all the university students have not arrived (classes don't start until Oct. 3), but for the most part I've had fun going out.  Anyway, until next time....ciao! 

Le prime 2 settimane: The first 2 weeks

Everything about Bologna is AMAZING! I love the people, the history, the culture, and pretty much everything about it. I mean honestly though, who's surprised?  I've wanted to spend a semester in Italy as long as I can remember.  Being able to hear Italian every day and finally being able to use the language in a serious way has made me so grateful for this opportunity.  Classes at the Università have yet to start, but our language and history ProSeminars have.  The classes are manageable, but it is hard to listen to a professor lecture about modern Italian history for 2 hours straight completamente in italiano.  It has, however, enhanced my comprehension of Italian immensely in only 2 weeks.  This place is amazing, and I wish i could share it with every one.  But until I can I'm just going to have to share it with you through the wonders of modern technology.  A dopo! :)