So I know I'm so far behind on my blogs. But bear with me. I've been so incredibly busy, and just really haven't had a time where I'd rather type than sleep....and I would so love to be sleeping right now. But today was so absolutely incredible. So my next few blog will totally be out of order, but I've taken notes and tomorrow when I'm just chilling overlooking the valley or sitting at a cafe in the square, I promise to catch up on my blogging. And get my work done for camp that I am so far behind on. I keep telling Drew to be expecting all my work sometime soon...ha, well let's just say he keeps waiting on it.
But today was our second field trip out of four, I think. And so our schedule goes, we had a test yesterday, and then a field trip today. Our first stop this morning, leaving at 8:30am, in which I thought Caroline was seriously going to leave me because I got up to shower this morning and definitely ran down the huge hill with her for the bus...and were there before any of the teachers, but our stop was at the Agricultural High School here in Cortona (which is a lot bigger region than I thought it was). But our stop there was so interesting. No one at the school spoke any English, so everywhere we went we had to have a translator. The first part of our day was spent in the high school's computer room where the Vice Principle and two students gave us a presentation about an eco-friendly winery that they will be planting on the school grounds here in the next year, and a second presentation about a GPS system that will help winemakers know where to dump chemical wastes, and something else about knowing where certain things can go and can't go in the field.
The school is enormous. It sits on like 600 acres I believe. And it's so weird to hear them call it their high school because the kids are just hanging out outside, smoking a cigarette, and listening to American pop music. And the land is gorgeous. The best part - the school's areas of study are all agricultural based, with viticulture and winemaking, restaurant and hotel management, and culinary skills. The school actually has it's own wine making and barreling facility. Ha, thinking of Wesleyan having a vineyard and winery on campus just makes me laugh. But we got a tour of their "winery" where they crush and ferment their grapes, and then bottle and store them. It was crazy to actually see all the work that really goes into making a wine in person. And seeing actual wine barrels storing wine, so crazy. The smells were so amazing, and I could have stayed there forever. Until they told us that the culinary student's lunch they prepared for us was ready...
So we walked into one of their buildings, which they use for educational purposes, and they had set up an appetizer and wine tasting for our group. These students were like 14 and 16 years old, in their first years of restaurant management, and were practicing how to serve wine and serve appetizers to use. I can't complain at all. In addition we got to actually taste some of the wine that we had just seen in the winery being bottled. For enjoyment, the school makes a sparking wine that apparently isn't very easy to make, but is so enjoyable, that they do it anyways. And when we sat down for lunch, we all knew we were in trouble when we looked at the three course menu, and there was so much food about to come out, along with three more wines. Wasn't sure how we were going to survive after we had trampled through their vineyards for an hour previous to lunch. But I got so excited to see lasagna. I was ready to challenge theirs to my spinach and sausage lasagna that I've enjoyed making...these first year culinary students showed me up. The lasagna was so good. And you want to keep eating it because it is so good, but you also know that there is so much more food coming. And I would really love to not explode. But then they brought a strip steak looking meat over a salad and cherry tomatoes and roasted potatoes. I have never seen such amazing looking food, and the few bites I took because I was already donezo from the lasagna, were so delicious. So when I heard it was just pineapple for dessert I was excited I wasn't going to have to miss out on some delicious dessert if I didn't have any, until this boat shaped looking 1/4 of a pineapple came out, sliced and drizzled with what looked like strawberry daiquiri, and I knew I was going to feel my lunch for the next two days. This pineapple dessert was so amazing. They had cut them in fourths, and then sliced pieces of the pineapple and positioned them to make the fourth to look like a boat with seats and sprinkled it with a strawberry daiquiri topping. First year high school students made this....
Not to mention the wine. But I can't even describe in any details after that lunch.
So we all piled back on the bus after lunch, and I think almost every person on the bus was laying in their seats, asleep and holding their stomachs hoping it wouldn't explode because we all ate way too much of this amazing food. You just couldn't stop it was so good. Thank you Chris for waking us up after what felt like two minutes laying down. But we made a quick bus trip down the road to a local winery.
Caroline Collins and I decided we would hike the short trip from where the bus left us off to the winery versus taking rides from the little shuttles because we felt we needed some air. And as I walked up towards this amazing winery, I couldn't help but feel like I was so out of place. This place was one of the most gorgeous places I have ever witnessed. This guy that greeted us and took us around his winery, was the only heir of his families winery business at the winery, and all the girls couldn't help but swoon over him. He owns and operates what we heard was maybe the 6th most sought out resorts in all of Italy. Dear future husband, I found our honeymoon destination. It's apparently 600 euros a night to stay, but it would be worth every single penny. This place was decorated with gorgeous flowers, and this crystal clear blue pool that I wandered over to by myself. Then in addition, this guy makes his own wine there on site. And he took us to all his wine making facilities. And at the end of the tour he goes, "ugh, all this has made me thirsty, let's go drink." He took us to the canopy deck decorated with flowers and crystal wine glasses all around, and had us taste three of his personal wines that he had harvested and bottled. What an experience to sit looking up to Cortona, in the sun, with an Italian winemaker and winery owner, as he describes his favorite white, sparkling, and red wine to each of us as his butler pours us another glass. Claire accidently broke hers, and he could have cared less. He was just enjoying our company as we still all tried to pick our jaws up off the ground. I'm still in awe thinking about it.
But honestly the coolest part of my day had to be when he asked if he could have a couple of volunteers to help him open his wines. Me, thinking...when will I ever be in Cortona, or even in this incredible winery and resort again, volunteers to help out. So out he pulls a massive machete and his sparkling sangiovese wine (the only ever made in the entire world). And he proceeds to tell that I have to take the machete and slice the top of and he would then serve it to everyone...ha. I was thinking, what did I get myself into, and he demonstrates how to hold the bottle and how to chop the top by sliding the machete down the bottle and hitting the lip of the bottle, and then telling me to wait and then hold the bottle upright. So he handed the bottle over to me, and I think about the time that I counted to two, my eyes were already closed, and I slid the knife down the bottle with probably too much force, and all I remember was laughing and screaming when I heard the top pop off and there's sparkling wine everywhere...because expert me dropped the bottle. Way to go. It was so hard to remember everything I was supposed to do without killing myself and everyone standing around taking pictures, and trying to grasp a huge chilled bottle upside down. But he told me I could still be hired. Done. To all those back home, when I'm not on the plane next Wednesday, it's because I'm machete-ing sparkling wine bottles in Cortona at one of the most famous and beautiful resorts I've seen. The two girls after me who tried couldn't get the top to pop, so at least I was proud that I did that. And I feel like I wasted a perfectly good bottle of wine spraying everyone, but literally, what an amazing adrenaline rush. I think Caroline caught a good picture of it. And I have my bottle top that I sliced...with a machete.
Made best friends with the winery owner. He came over and sat at our table after we had finished our wines, and asked if we wanted to see his falcon? Ha, yea. So his pet falcon, where the the resort gets its named, was just chilling on it's stoop right near our walkway. So he walks up to it and it tries to fly at him, and luckily she's got a leash tied to her foot. Apparently she's moody because the seasons are changing. And I wanted to turn to Caroline and be like, you wouldn't have to even pay me to sit on that stoop and watch the seasons change, if I could stay at that place forever. That falcon has the best job. She needs an attitude adjustment. But we went back to our canopy to enjoy some company, and the owner tells me he's so tired. So in apologizing for wearing him out, he tells our table that he's tired because he hosted a party for over 3000 people the night before. Ha, yea buddy, you can be tired. Perfectly legit excuse. Come to find out, he had his club opening last night. And then tries to tell me where it is off some exit near the city. No idea what he was trying to tell me - my Italian navigation skills were slightly hindered and not a top notch at the time - but I got to work on it, because he invited us next weekend to his club La Vista. VIP treatment and all. Thank you professor Frank for adding that we have our third exam the saturday morning after. But I'm feeling like again, you're only in Cortona once. And the girls are so excited about going to a real club, and VIP treatment. After today, I can't even begin to envision what a VIP treatment would feel like. I felt like I should have paid over 300 euros for what I got to do today. I can not believe that happened.
As the day was closing, we all had to say goodbye. So all the girls lined up, and we got our customary Italian double cheek kiss by the owner (who I'm not even going to attempt to guess at his name, but I got his card, so I'll figure it out later, but I don't want to completely butcher it), and we went on our way back to the bus.
I could have sit there all day. I have never felt so at ease and so happy in such a long time. There wasn't a thing on my mind but how lucky and amazing what I was experiencing was. Our bottle of wine from the night before when Caroline, Claire, Caroline C, Katie, and April and I all went to dinner said it right:
Two things in life are always sincere: Friends and Wine
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