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[enclapp-blog]

Blog post one

Food and wine in Italy has been different from what I originally expected. I did not come in to this expecting every meal to be like Olive Garden, but I did think it would be more similar to how we do Italian food in the United States. A big surprise for me was the bread. I LOVE bread in any form especially with garlic and butter! I figured I would be snacking on some bread with every meal. The reality was different though. I found out very fast that I am not a big fan of the unsalted crunchier/stale bread. I learned that Italians mainly use bread at a meal to wipe up the extra sauce remaining on their plate. I have tried this a few times, but I really do not prefer it. On the contrary, something I love here are the tomatoes! I am a big fan of eating them at home whether its slicing them up and eating them or having them in a sauce. Since being in Italy I have gotten to enjoy them quite frequently and even eaten them how I thought I didn’t like them (roasted or cooked whole with seasoning).

The whole meal culture is different from what I am used to. Usually I eat three meals a day around 8am, noon, and then 6pm. Since the meal times are different here, I have had to adjust. I thought I would be starving by the time lunch comes around after eating only a pastry for breakfast but its managed to keep me comfortable and not too full. I was also surprised that most nights I don’t have an issue waiting until about 8pm to eat dinner! With the way the meals are set up I have not found myself miserably full after my meals like I usually am at home. I absolutely love the relaxed atmosphere of meal times and that we can just sit and eat without feeling rushed or pressured. Especially since we do not have phone service much, it’s been nice to sit and visit and get to know everyone better without all the distractions our phones cause. In Orvieto, all the restaurant employees have been very friendly and seem to enjoy us sitting and hanging out. My favorite place I have eaten so far was the underground cave restaurant. (sorry I do not remember the name!) Pictures are shown above. I enjoyed a glass of rose’ wine with my meal which was very tasty. It was a little sweeter, but not too much. My friend and I each ordered something and then we shared. We ended up choosing ravioli with meat sauce and steak. The sauce for the ravioli was not creamy but more solid. The food was very delicious and simple. The steak was not over seasoned so I could enjoy the good quality of the meat! I have been getting pasta a lot so it was a nice switch up to have some steak! For dessert I got a white chocolate mousse with crushed walnuts on top and drizzled with chocolate. This was by far my favorite dessert!

Our eating experiences in Rome were not the best. Unfortunately, we fell victim to some very Americanized places. Friday night we ate at a restaurant where we got four courses all for 20 euro. (This should have been a hint for us to maybe pick somewhere else, but we were trying to be somewhat frugal and were very hungry). The antipasti was a slice of bread with cheese on top, carbonara for the pasta, a breaded piece of chicken for the main course and then a piece of chocolate cake for dessert! The food was very good, but was definitely more like what we were used to at home. Also the environment was different. We felt as though we were being rushed through so that they could get more people in.

   Saturday night we were able to enjoy a more authentic dinner. We were walking around more in the downtown area and came up to a cozy little restaurant off a side street. The older man was very welcoming and excited for us to sit down. He did not really want us to look at the menus, but was instead naming everything off and wanted us to say yes. He seemed a little grumpy towards us at first because we wanted to look through the menu but once we got our food and he saw how much we were enjoying it he perked up. I ended up choosing the carbonara and loved it. The sauce was light and creamy. I also added a side order of zucchini. I have missed eating my veggies so this was a nice treat. We let him pick out a few of his favorite desserts and we split them among the table. They were all very good, but my favorite was this white and chocolate cake with a whipped cream type filling! Overall Rome was fun, but a lot to take in. I’m glad we got to go and see all the history and sights, but I am very appreciative to get to live in Orvieto and was glad to get back!

          So far I am loving my experiences in Italy and being able to try new things. I am looking forward to the next few weeks of continuing to explore the country and all it has to offer!