food, food, and more food.

Christmas Eve Lunch - 2008
1. Raw sea food
2. Salmon
3. Fried Pettole (Pancake)
4. Turnip with olive oil
5. Royal shrimps with light tomatoe sauce
6. Lobsters with white sauce
7. Spiced perch fish alla Rossella
8. Stockfish of the house
9. Fried minced zucchini
10. Local raw foods with olives
11. Dried fruit
12. Fresh fruit
13. Panettone centre piece and iced Italian sparkling wine Spumante

Well, there you have it. The complete menu from our Christmas "lunch." Boy, it was exhausting! I have never eaten so much food in my entire life. I am fully prepared to not eat for at least a month, but needless to say, it was absolutely delicious and I don’t regret the inability to move last night. I am currently in Bitonto, Italy. I don’t have access to my laptop and so pictures of Milan, Bari, our lunch, and my upcoming journey to Rome will be posted shortly. I am staying at Celestes house. For those of you who don’t know, she is my Italian sister. Megan and I have been nothing but loved from the minute we stepped into Italy. I was afraid the holidays were going to be depressing and lonely without my family, but Celeste and her family have done an incredible job of making us feel right at home.

Milan was so much fun. We walked around the Duomo, had plenty of cappuccinos, shopped, and toured an amazing cathedral. I cant wait to post all of the pictures, words just do not do justice for its beauty. On Tuesday morning we woke up and boarded the train to Bari. That was an unforgettable experience. The train we were on had no heat, and the ride took 9 hours. The temperature couldn’t have been over 50… I had 4 pairs of pants, 3 sweaters, a vest, 3 scarves, and 2 blankets on. It was miserable. Upon arrival into Bari, we were greeted by Celeste and her family, taken to a fish market, and cooked up an amazing dinner. It made the events of the day disappear in minutes. In Italy Christmas is celebrated on the 24th. So yesterday was our enormous lunch. After we ate from 9am to 11pm, everyone opened presents. Celeste bought me a gorgeous crystal bracelet… We then played cards until 2 am. Today was another day of food!! We only had a 5 course meal, but this time including pasta and lamb. It was so delicious. Tomorrow will be our last day in Bari, and Saturday morning we are on the 7am train to Rome. Hopefully we can get some rest in, because our list of 8 places to see in Rome must be accomplished in 3 days. Our room in Rome has internet that I can access from my laptop, so photos will be up by Saturday night. Megan and I are excited to see Rome, we are planning trips to the Vatican, Sistine Chapel, Spanish Steps, and many other famous attractions. Saturday truly begins our journey of being real tourists, no more staying with family or friends, and a lot of sight seeing, saving the best destinations for last!

I hope everyone is having an amazing Christmas and Santa brings you everything you deserve, I am keeping each and every one of you in my heart throughout this amazing journey.

Hugs and Kisses to all, and to all a goodnight…