After escaping the wrath of Voldemort/Rasputin/Hitler/Marcello...we took a train out of Orvieto into lovely Firenze. We couldn't have asked for a better change. All we can say is...WOOF (thanks for that one dad).
On the train we befriended an Italian girl. She was ten. Probably the nicest person we have encounter thusfar...and a great way to realize that not all people are like evil Marcello. We chatted with her via Google Translator. She told us we were beautiful and that she loved us. We are now facebook friends. She put us into a much happier mood. Thanks Martina.
We got off the train in Firenze, unsure of our plans, but ecstatic to be alive and safe.
We loved our experience on the farms and had an amazing time, but we realized that we were excited to finally have time to do whatever we want to do.
We found a "hostel" to stay in...more like a hotel...and called them to get directions. We got lost, of course...taking a bus OUT of Firenze, instead of further into the city. About an hour and half later, we finally found the bed and breakfast where we are staying. We were in heaven. The couple who owns it had the cutest baby and they were such nice people. We have our own room and bathroom (a rare commodity at such a low price) and it is in walking distance of EVERYthing we want to see in Florence.
We took our first shower in days and hit the town.
First mission: try to get a dinner without ANY oil. Not such a success. The salads we ordered, of course, came topped with oil...at least not as much as Cinzia's mother put.
Second mission: gelatto. After a reallllyyy long and dreadful day, we had to reward ourselves. The gelatto was...ok...but it made us appreciate the one we had in Roma even more (thanks for that suggestion Mal--now tell us where to shop in Florence)!
Third mission; follow all the American students to the cool places to go at night. After a period of awkwardly trying to follow people without them noticing, it was a success.
Final mission of the night: befriend fellow Americans. We brainstormed several icebreakers.
1. Is that a haunted house?
2. What time do the bars close around here?
3. I really like that yellow sweater!
4. Can you take a picture of us?
5. Oh my gosh, are you American too?!
6. Do you guys know how to bundle wood? We do.
7. Did you know there are 200 places in Brazil that sell pasta?
I think we spent too much time brainstorming and not enough time putting our plan into action. Mission four: not such a success. At least we had a great night.
We are excited to wake up at any time we want tomorrow (though it'll probably be early) and explore Firenze with no plans whatsoever!
Ariverderci farms...Hellooooo tourism!
-J and C
Monday, May 31, 2010
Day 13, Part One: The Escape From Alcatraz
Note: Mom, Dad, Grandparents, we are alive and safe. Keep that in mind while reading this.
This morning we woke up leisurley trying to not "go" in the bucket for as long as possible. We very awkwardly went into the kitcken without any greeting from Marcello. We grabbed some stale bread for breakfast (we quickly learned that he is not a very good bread maker, and that he definitely does NOT have the bread factory that Cinzia spoke of) and sat together in silence. We quickly got ready for work and then listened to Marcello list the chores that were ahead of us for the day, and as he assured us the night before there were never any "please's" to his requests. He mocked us when we didn't know what pruning was (hellooo, city girls), and told us he wouldn't be able to show us but we could collect the branches.
As we were walking to the yard he explained that he should have taken care of the lawn "two weks ago" but we think he meant two months ago. Since this was a job "for only one person" Jaime took hold of the the broken lawn mower and began mowing the shin-high grass pretty much blade by blade. He took me down into the wilderness through grass I couldn't see over and showed me how to bundle branches with string. So far very doable (although we were a little worried about the lack of coffee breaks and the no lunch thing). He got a little frusterated with my bundle making and called me a "lousy" knot tier (in all seriousness) and then blamed Jaime for breaking the lawn mower. Hans and Cinzia, we miss you!
After getting lost in grass and webs of the largest spiders I have ever seen I took Jaime up the mountain to teach her how to bundle branches and how to tie non-lousy knots. This is when we began discussing our true feelings about Marcello. It wasn't the lack of toilet, or lawn mowing that gave us uneasy feelings about this farm, but how unwelcome we felt in his home and his frequent references to nazi's and jewish conspiracies. We decided there was no need to go though boot camp or have an unenjoyable stay so we decided to put into action the Emergency Escape Plan that Jaime
had devised the night before in her head. It called for the need to leave due to an emergency back home. Simple enough right?
We headed down the mountain to find Marcello and told him that we needed to leave early due to an emergency and asked him if there was a nearby bus stop or if he would mind driving us to the train at some point. He laughed at us for a few minutes with a snide look before saying he would think about it and continued on his work. Now we really diskliked the man. We went into the house and contemplated what to do from there. We wanted to walk out and leave him a note with some tude but we only got about half way up his mile long dirt "driveway" before we were winded.
We turned around and asked him one more time if he would mind taking us to a bus or train and he said that he "did not care about our emergency" and that we had to do more work before he would take us anywhere. Fake tears were not necessary. Being about 40 minutes from ANYTHING we had no choice but to keep working. More bundles were made and more grass was cut until we were finally done. He told us that we would have to wait till the night for a ride or that we could walk on our own.
So we packed up and attempted the driveway one more time. We got only a few steps from the house before he came wildly chasing us and yelling. He called us crazy and demanded to see our WWOOF cards. We toured around
Roma without a map, you think we brought our WWOOF cards? After he accused us of being imposters and theives he comanded us (in true Hitler fashion) for identification. After showing him our liscences he proceeded to call the WWOOF Italia organization to "report" us for who knows what. We sat there while he tried to prove that we were not WWOOF members and to get us banned from the organization. He failed at his mission and after they assured him that we were indeed members he finally agreed to drive us away. if possible, it was even scarier of a drive than the night before as he chose to take notes and eat lunch while driving on the othe side of the road. The only thing he said to us the entire drive was "at first I thought you were just silly...but now I know you are liars and cheaters".
MAMMA MIA! We boarded the next train to Firenze and were constantly on the look out for big white vans and Hitler look alikes.
Like Hans says, every WWOOF experience is like a blind date. Two for three isn't too shabby. Firenze here we come!
-J and C
This morning we woke up leisurley trying to not "go" in the bucket for as long as possible. We very awkwardly went into the kitcken without any greeting from Marcello. We grabbed some stale bread for breakfast (we quickly learned that he is not a very good bread maker, and that he definitely does NOT have the bread factory that Cinzia spoke of) and sat together in silence. We quickly got ready for work and then listened to Marcello list the chores that were ahead of us for the day, and as he assured us the night before there were never any "please's" to his requests. He mocked us when we didn't know what pruning was (hellooo, city girls), and told us he wouldn't be able to show us but we could collect the branches.
As we were walking to the yard he explained that he should have taken care of the lawn "two weks ago" but we think he meant two months ago. Since this was a job "for only one person" Jaime took hold of the the broken lawn mower and began mowing the shin-high grass pretty much blade by blade. He took me down into the wilderness through grass I couldn't see over and showed me how to bundle branches with string. So far very doable (although we were a little worried about the lack of coffee breaks and the no lunch thing). He got a little frusterated with my bundle making and called me a "lousy" knot tier (in all seriousness) and then blamed Jaime for breaking the lawn mower. Hans and Cinzia, we miss you!
After getting lost in grass and webs of the largest spiders I have ever seen I took Jaime up the mountain to teach her how to bundle branches and how to tie non-lousy knots. This is when we began discussing our true feelings about Marcello. It wasn't the lack of toilet, or lawn mowing that gave us uneasy feelings about this farm, but how unwelcome we felt in his home and his frequent references to nazi's and jewish conspiracies. We decided there was no need to go though boot camp or have an unenjoyable stay so we decided to put into action the Emergency Escape Plan that Jaime
had devised the night before in her head. It called for the need to leave due to an emergency back home. Simple enough right?
We headed down the mountain to find Marcello and told him that we needed to leave early due to an emergency and asked him if there was a nearby bus stop or if he would mind driving us to the train at some point. He laughed at us for a few minutes with a snide look before saying he would think about it and continued on his work. Now we really diskliked the man. We went into the house and contemplated what to do from there. We wanted to walk out and leave him a note with some tude but we only got about half way up his mile long dirt "driveway" before we were winded.
We turned around and asked him one more time if he would mind taking us to a bus or train and he said that he "did not care about our emergency" and that we had to do more work before he would take us anywhere. Fake tears were not necessary. Being about 40 minutes from ANYTHING we had no choice but to keep working. More bundles were made and more grass was cut until we were finally done. He told us that we would have to wait till the night for a ride or that we could walk on our own.
So we packed up and attempted the driveway one more time. We got only a few steps from the house before he came wildly chasing us and yelling. He called us crazy and demanded to see our WWOOF cards. We toured around
Roma without a map, you think we brought our WWOOF cards? After he accused us of being imposters and theives he comanded us (in true Hitler fashion) for identification. After showing him our liscences he proceeded to call the WWOOF Italia organization to "report" us for who knows what. We sat there while he tried to prove that we were not WWOOF members and to get us banned from the organization. He failed at his mission and after they assured him that we were indeed members he finally agreed to drive us away. if possible, it was even scarier of a drive than the night before as he chose to take notes and eat lunch while driving on the othe side of the road. The only thing he said to us the entire drive was "at first I thought you were just silly...but now I know you are liars and cheaters".
MAMMA MIA! We boarded the next train to Firenze and were constantly on the look out for big white vans and Hitler look alikes.
Like Hans says, every WWOOF experience is like a blind date. Two for three isn't too shabby. Firenze here we come!
-J and C
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Day 12- Toto, I Don't Think We Are in Kansas Anymore
So now we being our true farming experience. We started in Paradise: on a lake, wireless internet, bare minimum of work, then went to a happy medium: good phone service, beautiful scenery and work with great people. Now we are on a true farmish type place: a toilet that doesn't work (he told us to go in a bucket), bread for breakfast lunch and dinner, and in and out phone service.
Shouldn't we have done this the other way around? Or maybe we were just eased in to this experience. Either way, we won't really know until tomorrow.
Our last day in Spoleto was yet another day off. I guess Cinzia's Sunday are like Sundays too. We were free to do whatever wanted, so we had a small breakfast and got to tanning. The lawn chairs were wet, so we pulled up a couple chairs in the driveway and sat out in the sun. We broke a few necks as the locals were driving by.
Then we decided to work of yesterdays pizza and gelatto and go for a serious uphill bike ride. This time we knew what was in store for us. After getting yelled at by a man in a tractor and being chased by crazy dogs, we returned downhill (back home) for lunch. Our last oilly meal of the trip. Hopefully.
After lunch, Cinzia invited us to come to a "party" on top of the hill with her friends. We drove up the windy roads to get to the top of the mountain. The views were gorgeous. After being at this party for serveral hours that we thought was a family reunion, we found out that it was a gathering of the Catholic church of Spoleto. We walked around the mountains looking for mushrooms with Cinzia and at the party we ate any food we could spot that didn't have pork in it. We were about to indulge in what we thought was turkey meat...until we saw the giant pig head right next to it. Yum.
It was a perfect day...until the minor camera fiasco...that may or may not have led to Cinzia and her boyfriend breaking up: we went to the mountain party in Maximillio's car, and Chrsitine left her camera case in there. Fine. We left in Rafaela's car, camera case not with us. Not fine. When we got back to Cinzia's house, Christine told her that she forgot her case in Maximillio's car. She called him, no answer. Our train was due to leave in about one hour. Cinzia went to her room to try to figure out everything with Maximillio, who was still at the top of the mountain. As we got our stuff together to leave, Cinzia rushed to get us saying he would meet us at the station to give Christine her CAMERA. Cinzia was really distressed about how big of a "crazy man" he was being because "of course this camera is very important." Oops. Awkward miscommunication. Let's just say the interaction at the train station was not the most pleasant note to leave on. Cinzia looked like she was about ready to kill Maximillio as she handed Christine the EMPTY case. Arriverdeci Cinzia!
So now we get to the good stuff. Marcello told us he would pick us up at the station in a big white van. Of course we had to guess what he would look like again (and of course Christine was right again) but when we were at the station, there were so many men we thought he could be! None of them! He was a little late, but he finally came in his great white van. The drive was...long...and well, maybe all I'll say is that I think he learned to drive in England. Or that maybe he should use his lights. We finally burst out into nervous laughter that we tried so hard to hold in, but Christine made a recovery saying that the roads were like a roller coaster ride! Ha ha haaaa!
To our great surprise, we managed to make it safely to the farm where we had a nice piece of hard bread for dinner and peed into a toilet that doesn't flush. Mamma mia. I think I would rather eat oil but we will see tomorrow. Everything is different in the daytime. Right?
-J and C
Shouldn't we have done this the other way around? Or maybe we were just eased in to this experience. Either way, we won't really know until tomorrow.
Our last day in Spoleto was yet another day off. I guess Cinzia's Sunday are like Sundays too. We were free to do whatever wanted, so we had a small breakfast and got to tanning. The lawn chairs were wet, so we pulled up a couple chairs in the driveway and sat out in the sun. We broke a few necks as the locals were driving by.
Then we decided to work of yesterdays pizza and gelatto and go for a serious uphill bike ride. This time we knew what was in store for us. After getting yelled at by a man in a tractor and being chased by crazy dogs, we returned downhill (back home) for lunch. Our last oilly meal of the trip. Hopefully.
After lunch, Cinzia invited us to come to a "party" on top of the hill with her friends. We drove up the windy roads to get to the top of the mountain. The views were gorgeous. After being at this party for serveral hours that we thought was a family reunion, we found out that it was a gathering of the Catholic church of Spoleto. We walked around the mountains looking for mushrooms with Cinzia and at the party we ate any food we could spot that didn't have pork in it. We were about to indulge in what we thought was turkey meat...until we saw the giant pig head right next to it. Yum.
It was a perfect day...until the minor camera fiasco...that may or may not have led to Cinzia and her boyfriend breaking up: we went to the mountain party in Maximillio's car, and Chrsitine left her camera case in there. Fine. We left in Rafaela's car, camera case not with us. Not fine. When we got back to Cinzia's house, Christine told her that she forgot her case in Maximillio's car. She called him, no answer. Our train was due to leave in about one hour. Cinzia went to her room to try to figure out everything with Maximillio, who was still at the top of the mountain. As we got our stuff together to leave, Cinzia rushed to get us saying he would meet us at the station to give Christine her CAMERA. Cinzia was really distressed about how big of a "crazy man" he was being because "of course this camera is very important." Oops. Awkward miscommunication. Let's just say the interaction at the train station was not the most pleasant note to leave on. Cinzia looked like she was about ready to kill Maximillio as she handed Christine the EMPTY case. Arriverdeci Cinzia!
So now we get to the good stuff. Marcello told us he would pick us up at the station in a big white van. Of course we had to guess what he would look like again (and of course Christine was right again) but when we were at the station, there were so many men we thought he could be! None of them! He was a little late, but he finally came in his great white van. The drive was...long...and well, maybe all I'll say is that I think he learned to drive in England. Or that maybe he should use his lights. We finally burst out into nervous laughter that we tried so hard to hold in, but Christine made a recovery saying that the roads were like a roller coaster ride! Ha ha haaaa!
To our great surprise, we managed to make it safely to the farm where we had a nice piece of hard bread for dinner and peed into a toilet that doesn't flush. Mamma mia. I think I would rather eat oil but we will see tomorrow. Everything is different in the daytime. Right?
-J and C
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Day 12- Conquering Roma
So today we woke up and decided we wanted to go to Rome. Saturdays are Cinzias day off so she told us we could sleep late and relax, but due to our hibernation yesterday we were up early and ready to go. We watered the plants in the greenhouse and went for another unbeknownst uphill bike ride. When we devised a plan to try to wake up Cinzia to ask if spending the day in Rome would be okay. Our plan failed but at least we got the peanut butter out of her kitcken. We decided to go and pack for our day trip despite not having asked Cinzia yet. After having our bags packed and outfit ready we decided to try and wake her one more time, trying to make as much noise in her kitchen as possible. Success! Cinzia woke up and agreed to our plan and told us whenever we were ready she would take us to the bus stop. To her durprise it took us about 40 seconds to run upstairs and grab our bags before we were ready to be on our way!
We took the bus to Spoleto and spent a few minutes before our train to Rome searching supermarkets for peanut butter concluding that we definitely should have bought more in Switzerland.
We boarded the packed train to Roma and we were off. Once we arrived in Rome we realized we had no idea where we were going or what we wanted to see. We denclined buying a map and began walking in hopes of finding something famous we recognized from the DaVinci Code. Surprisingly this tactic did not work and we ended up asking many nice Italian people how to get to some famous land mark.
This lead us to the Coliseum which came easier than expected as it was RIGHT out of the metro station! We had to ask about six different people before we got a picture of us that had at least a little bit of the Coliseum in it. We are now pros at spotting good picture takers and we use them wisely.
Pizza time. We ate at a cute Pizzeria overlooking the Coliseum and stuffed our faces with an entire pie each. Cinzia's mother has gotten the best of us, but who wants to carry around leftovers all day?
After a leiusurely lunch we began walking again, mostly following the crowd, to an unknown destination. How we were excited! We came upon the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Although we may never who's tomb it was it seemed important and so we joined in the tourist ooh-ing and aah-ing. Tomb, check.
Now off to find the Trevi Fountain! Somehow, after explaining to Italians that we were looking for the "T-r-e-vi Foun-tain" we stumbled upon an extremely overcrowded fountain and immediately felt like we were in that Hilary Duff movie. Check!
Then we set our sites on the Pantheon. After taking pictures of a few building that we thought very well couldd have been the Pantheon we finally found the real thing! Check.
After exploring the windy streets and shops of Rome it was time to visit the only country where there are more parking spaces, more jobs, and more water fountains than citizens. It was time to see the Pope! Although the Pope was not around we chilled with the nuns for a while while walking around the Vatican, and eventually decided that the Pope might be found at a gelato bar.
He was not found at Blue Ice, but we still endulged in what may very well hav been the best gelato yet. But they are all so good, we will have to continue comparing places.
After our gelato eating and people watching break (Italia really has great style and has perfected the solid color outfit) we were off to find the spanish steps. Again, having no map, we took pictures on about three different stair cases before finding the real Spanish Steps where we found hundreds of people hanging out and admiring a beautiful sunset. Bellisimo!
After contemplating a second round of pizza and/or gelato we headed for the metro to go back to Spoleto. If we had a nickel for how many people we asked for directions today we could buy pizza and gelato for all of you. Who needs maps anyway?
Step aside Caesar, we can conquer Rome in just ONE day.
-J and C
We took the bus to Spoleto and spent a few minutes before our train to Rome searching supermarkets for peanut butter concluding that we definitely should have bought more in Switzerland.
We boarded the packed train to Roma and we were off. Once we arrived in Rome we realized we had no idea where we were going or what we wanted to see. We denclined buying a map and began walking in hopes of finding something famous we recognized from the DaVinci Code. Surprisingly this tactic did not work and we ended up asking many nice Italian people how to get to some famous land mark.
This lead us to the Coliseum which came easier than expected as it was RIGHT out of the metro station! We had to ask about six different people before we got a picture of us that had at least a little bit of the Coliseum in it. We are now pros at spotting good picture takers and we use them wisely.
Pizza time. We ate at a cute Pizzeria overlooking the Coliseum and stuffed our faces with an entire pie each. Cinzia's mother has gotten the best of us, but who wants to carry around leftovers all day?
After a leiusurely lunch we began walking again, mostly following the crowd, to an unknown destination. How we were excited! We came upon the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Although we may never who's tomb it was it seemed important and so we joined in the tourist ooh-ing and aah-ing. Tomb, check.
Now off to find the Trevi Fountain! Somehow, after explaining to Italians that we were looking for the "T-r-e-vi Foun-tain" we stumbled upon an extremely overcrowded fountain and immediately felt like we were in that Hilary Duff movie. Check!
Then we set our sites on the Pantheon. After taking pictures of a few building that we thought very well couldd have been the Pantheon we finally found the real thing! Check.
After exploring the windy streets and shops of Rome it was time to visit the only country where there are more parking spaces, more jobs, and more water fountains than citizens. It was time to see the Pope! Although the Pope was not around we chilled with the nuns for a while while walking around the Vatican, and eventually decided that the Pope might be found at a gelato bar.
He was not found at Blue Ice, but we still endulged in what may very well hav been the best gelato yet. But they are all so good, we will have to continue comparing places.
After our gelato eating and people watching break (Italia really has great style and has perfected the solid color outfit) we were off to find the spanish steps. Again, having no map, we took pictures on about three different stair cases before finding the real Spanish Steps where we found hundreds of people hanging out and admiring a beautiful sunset. Bellisimo!
After contemplating a second round of pizza and/or gelato we headed for the metro to go back to Spoleto. If we had a nickel for how many people we asked for directions today we could buy pizza and gelato for all of you. Who needs maps anyway?
Step aside Caesar, we can conquer Rome in just ONE day.
-J and C
Friday, May 28, 2010
Day 11- Basta With Pasta
We woke up to the usual routine: poopy pants and breakfast, but today we introduced peanut butter to Cinzia. She loved it. JIF, you can thank us later.
We got to work transfering more plants for the shop and watering and feeding the tomatoes, beans, cauliflower, stevia, etc. We also planted more today, this time it was cauliflower.
For lunch we had what they told us was a special Spoleto meal: pasta and more oil. The pasta was homemade so it was really great, but the oil is starting to get to us. There is NOTHING on the table that isn't drenched in oil. Nothing.
After lunch, it looked like it was going to rain. We decided it was time to go into rainy day mode: hibernation. We fell asleep and work up to the sun shining and the land as dry as ever. Oops. After a THREE hour nap, we realized we should probably see if we could help any more.
Cinzia asked us to help plant more tomatoes on her brothers farm. Cinzia kept saying there was something different about his farm but she didn't explain to us what it was. We figured it out: his farm doesn't use cow manure!! Only...he uses horse poop. Our poopy pants are becoming so cultured.
After sitting in horse waste for an hour, we took a short bike trip to the supermarket in search of more peanut butter and chocolate. There was no sign of any PB in the whole (tiny) shop. Failure. At least we got chocolate (pretty cheap too).
On the way home, we learned that it was Spoleto's rush hour consists of mini cars driving actually rushing to get home, leaving barely any room as they passed us on our bikes. Yikes.
For dinner there was even more oil. I mean food covered in oil. Fried fish. Our faaaavvvvorite. Ahhh!!! In attempt to hide our fish under pieces of lettuce, the whole family was making fun of us and saying we never eat. Finally they didn't force feed us though!
Cinzia told us that her duck (she has FOUR ducks) ate the cauliflower plants we just planted today. Her friend made a joke and said that tomorrow we will eat the duck. This led to a big confusion of language when we starting saying yummm we lovveeee duck! Cinzia was scared we were actually going to eat the duck. Sarcasm does NOT translate well.
Dinner was concluded by watching strange Italian dance shows with the volume blasting and Cinzia's mother begging us to dance. She says she will join us on a jog tomorrow morning (yes, the mother). We will see how that goes...
-J and C
We got to work transfering more plants for the shop and watering and feeding the tomatoes, beans, cauliflower, stevia, etc. We also planted more today, this time it was cauliflower.
For lunch we had what they told us was a special Spoleto meal: pasta and more oil. The pasta was homemade so it was really great, but the oil is starting to get to us. There is NOTHING on the table that isn't drenched in oil. Nothing.
After lunch, it looked like it was going to rain. We decided it was time to go into rainy day mode: hibernation. We fell asleep and work up to the sun shining and the land as dry as ever. Oops. After a THREE hour nap, we realized we should probably see if we could help any more.
Cinzia asked us to help plant more tomatoes on her brothers farm. Cinzia kept saying there was something different about his farm but she didn't explain to us what it was. We figured it out: his farm doesn't use cow manure!! Only...he uses horse poop. Our poopy pants are becoming so cultured.
After sitting in horse waste for an hour, we took a short bike trip to the supermarket in search of more peanut butter and chocolate. There was no sign of any PB in the whole (tiny) shop. Failure. At least we got chocolate (pretty cheap too).
On the way home, we learned that it was Spoleto's rush hour consists of mini cars driving actually rushing to get home, leaving barely any room as they passed us on our bikes. Yikes.
For dinner there was even more oil. I mean food covered in oil. Fried fish. Our faaaavvvvorite. Ahhh!!! In attempt to hide our fish under pieces of lettuce, the whole family was making fun of us and saying we never eat. Finally they didn't force feed us though!
Cinzia told us that her duck (she has FOUR ducks) ate the cauliflower plants we just planted today. Her friend made a joke and said that tomorrow we will eat the duck. This led to a big confusion of language when we starting saying yummm we lovveeee duck! Cinzia was scared we were actually going to eat the duck. Sarcasm does NOT translate well.
Dinner was concluded by watching strange Italian dance shows with the volume blasting and Cinzia's mother begging us to dance. She says she will join us on a jog tomorrow morning (yes, the mother). We will see how that goes...
-J and C
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Day 10- I am a Crazy Person for Plant
This morning we once again skipped our "daily" run and went straight to Cinzia's for breakfast. We set the table for the four of us and began our nutella and bread feast. Once Angela arrived she refused to use the bowl we put out for her and instead got the exact same one from the cubbard and used that instead. I guess she is still not over the sleeping bag incident.
We had lighter work in the garden and spent our whole morning transferring plants to individual pots to be sold in the shop. The only down side was that we were in the shade so we didn't get to utilize carefully planned tan-line proof attire.
After a few pear-juice breaks it was finally lunch time and we learned the difference between pasta faggiole and minestrone. We got to the table and the bowls were filled to the brim with minestrone. Luckily we arrived before everyone else so we could dump as much of our soup into other peoples bowls as we could before anyone saw us. I still couldn't finish my bowl.
We had the rest of the day off and took a what we planned on being an hour bike ride off into Cinzia's "country". Our butts were do sore that we lasted about 10 minutes and instead had our own dance party in the Bed and Breakfast to Disney stars, or the "best pop stars in the world" according to Jaime.
We didint even attempt to bike to the lake again, and instead got a ride from Cinzia into the city of Spoleto! Immediately we found gelato and devoured it, being our usual dinner hour. We walked around the city, getting much attention since we were the only tourists there! Our cameras and flip flops were a dead give away.
As we awaited for Cinzia to pick us up we tried to distract ourselves from our grumbling bellies (and trying to resist getting more gelato) by practicing our Italian on a bench. We are almost fluent in our Hello's and How Are You's.
Once Cinzia picked us up we realized that we missed one of the landmark sites in Spoleto. We are bad tourists.
Finally it was dinner time! And we have figured out the secret to delicious Italian cuisine: oil and salt...in EVERYTHING. The meal concluded with Cinzia's mother actually chasing us around the kitcken with a plate of cherries in an attempt to feed us even more. She won and the plate was cleared.
She then took us on a walk to her brothers house, although we had no idea where we were going. I think he is the only person in Spoleto who speaks English. After guessing that we were 16 he promised he would "taste us" his wine tomorrow, but only a little because we are "bambini's".
Apparently it is a full moon tonight which means that its great for the plants to grow. Cinzia would know this, because as she told us, she is "a crazy person for plants".
-J and C
We had lighter work in the garden and spent our whole morning transferring plants to individual pots to be sold in the shop. The only down side was that we were in the shade so we didn't get to utilize carefully planned tan-line proof attire.
After a few pear-juice breaks it was finally lunch time and we learned the difference between pasta faggiole and minestrone. We got to the table and the bowls were filled to the brim with minestrone. Luckily we arrived before everyone else so we could dump as much of our soup into other peoples bowls as we could before anyone saw us. I still couldn't finish my bowl.
We had the rest of the day off and took a what we planned on being an hour bike ride off into Cinzia's "country". Our butts were do sore that we lasted about 10 minutes and instead had our own dance party in the Bed and Breakfast to Disney stars, or the "best pop stars in the world" according to Jaime.
We didint even attempt to bike to the lake again, and instead got a ride from Cinzia into the city of Spoleto! Immediately we found gelato and devoured it, being our usual dinner hour. We walked around the city, getting much attention since we were the only tourists there! Our cameras and flip flops were a dead give away.
As we awaited for Cinzia to pick us up we tried to distract ourselves from our grumbling bellies (and trying to resist getting more gelato) by practicing our Italian on a bench. We are almost fluent in our Hello's and How Are You's.
Once Cinzia picked us up we realized that we missed one of the landmark sites in Spoleto. We are bad tourists.
Finally it was dinner time! And we have figured out the secret to delicious Italian cuisine: oil and salt...in EVERYTHING. The meal concluded with Cinzia's mother actually chasing us around the kitcken with a plate of cherries in an attempt to feed us even more. She won and the plate was cleared.
She then took us on a walk to her brothers house, although we had no idea where we were going. I think he is the only person in Spoleto who speaks English. After guessing that we were 16 he promised he would "taste us" his wine tomorrow, but only a little because we are "bambini's".
Apparently it is a full moon tonight which means that its great for the plants to grow. Cinzia would know this, because as she told us, she is "a crazy person for plants".
-J and C
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Day 9 -Poopy Pants
Today we skipped the second annual morning run to get a little extra sleep. We ate breakfast and put on our poopy pants (our designated pants for working in manure).
We planted about 200 more tomatoes. Mamma mia. After getting great sports bra tan lines and building our biceps with the gardening tools (no, gardening is NOT for sissys) we threw in the towel for the day.
Today we skipped the grande pasta italiano feast for a "lighter" lunch. At lunch we asked Cinzia about the lake that we wanted to bike to. We were excited to bike and cool off in the lake, but she told us someone died in it and its too dangerous to swim in. How a lake could be dangerous? We don't know. She drew out a map for us to get to the lake consisting of squiggly lines and wished us luck. We went off on our journey to find the lake that we couldn't swim in. After about 5 miles of biking, our legs couldn't take it any more. The lake was at the top of a hill a couple more miles awat and at that point we didn't think we would be able to make it. So we turned around in order to have enough energy for the five miles back. It wasn't until we turned around and didn't have to pedal at all that we realized that we had been going up hill the whole time. Bene. I guess we will never know why the lake is so dangerous.
When we got back to the B and B, Cinzia saw us sweating and aching and she just laughed at us (in a friendly way). She told us that tomorrow she would drive us to the lake we can't swim in. Is it because of pirahnas? Sharks? Toxic water? Answer to come.
The rest of the day we got our tan on and relaxed. A few guests checked in and we helped prepare the room for them.
We eagerly waited for dinner and tried to distract ourselves knowing we would have to wait until 9. Christine got corn rows and we discussed the importance of having friends to not become obese. Still didn't help our hunger situation. Yesterday Cinzia's friends were laughing at the fact that Americans eat at 6. Ha Ha.
After being stuffed with bread and rice and the tiny piece of proscioutto I haddd to try (again, sorry mom) Cinzia's mother force fed me nutella. How horrible!
After today, we are down one less companion. Earlier, we came into the room to find Angela's sleeping bag in the exact formation of a human body. Thinking maybe she was napping in it, we tried to be quiet, while trying to figure out if it was actually her. Of course we had a laughing fit that lasted about five minutes. It ended when Christine came up with the only feasable solution: lift up the sleeping bag. And that she did. Although Angela was not in her sleeping bag, she was standing outside the bedroom door watching. Oops. At dinner there was no eye contact made and no communication whatsoever. Don't worry, Christine plans on confronting her by saying there was a bug on her sleeping bag that she was trying to get rid of. Hope it works.
Sonno stanco. (Look it up).
Arrieverdeci (say in a southern accent, like Brad Pitt).
-J and C
We planted about 200 more tomatoes. Mamma mia. After getting great sports bra tan lines and building our biceps with the gardening tools (no, gardening is NOT for sissys) we threw in the towel for the day.
Today we skipped the grande pasta italiano feast for a "lighter" lunch. At lunch we asked Cinzia about the lake that we wanted to bike to. We were excited to bike and cool off in the lake, but she told us someone died in it and its too dangerous to swim in. How a lake could be dangerous? We don't know. She drew out a map for us to get to the lake consisting of squiggly lines and wished us luck. We went off on our journey to find the lake that we couldn't swim in. After about 5 miles of biking, our legs couldn't take it any more. The lake was at the top of a hill a couple more miles awat and at that point we didn't think we would be able to make it. So we turned around in order to have enough energy for the five miles back. It wasn't until we turned around and didn't have to pedal at all that we realized that we had been going up hill the whole time. Bene. I guess we will never know why the lake is so dangerous.
When we got back to the B and B, Cinzia saw us sweating and aching and she just laughed at us (in a friendly way). She told us that tomorrow she would drive us to the lake we can't swim in. Is it because of pirahnas? Sharks? Toxic water? Answer to come.
The rest of the day we got our tan on and relaxed. A few guests checked in and we helped prepare the room for them.
We eagerly waited for dinner and tried to distract ourselves knowing we would have to wait until 9. Christine got corn rows and we discussed the importance of having friends to not become obese. Still didn't help our hunger situation. Yesterday Cinzia's friends were laughing at the fact that Americans eat at 6. Ha Ha.
After being stuffed with bread and rice and the tiny piece of proscioutto I haddd to try (again, sorry mom) Cinzia's mother force fed me nutella. How horrible!
After today, we are down one less companion. Earlier, we came into the room to find Angela's sleeping bag in the exact formation of a human body. Thinking maybe she was napping in it, we tried to be quiet, while trying to figure out if it was actually her. Of course we had a laughing fit that lasted about five minutes. It ended when Christine came up with the only feasable solution: lift up the sleeping bag. And that she did. Although Angela was not in her sleeping bag, she was standing outside the bedroom door watching. Oops. At dinner there was no eye contact made and no communication whatsoever. Don't worry, Christine plans on confronting her by saying there was a bug on her sleeping bag that she was trying to get rid of. Hope it works.
Sonno stanco. (Look it up).
Arrieverdeci (say in a southern accent, like Brad Pitt).
-J and C
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Day 8: The Big Pig
We started off the day on a good foot by running into the "town" of San Martino. We had a light breakfast with Cinzia and Angela and then got an official tour of the farm and garden. We shoveled, raked, hoed, and watered until we were sweating more than we had chopping wood. Once lunch time came around we were force fed an enormous pasta lunch where too much was never enough. Mamma mia! Once our bellies were stuffed with pasta we took a bike ride back into town, this time with our tourist gear. We made stops to take pictures in peoples front yards, barely escaping vicious dogs. After perfecting some self shots we got back to the farm to work on our tan for a bit. Cinzia wanted to take us on a "break" to get ice cream so we headed to the most delicious gelato bar everrr. It is safe to say that we will be back there again.
After the break we successfully planted 48 tomato plants! Only a few hundred more to go! An even greater accomplishment would have been if we successfully explained the "when in Rome" expression which we struggled with for a while.
Work was over and off to Cinzia's GAS meeting we went. The meeting consists of organic farmers from the area who gather and trade different items they grow. We left with two huge cartons of vegetables and bags of fruit.
We returned home just in time for a TEN o'clock dinner where Cinzia's friends brought over pizza. And by pizza we mean one pie per person. Is this real life? After failing miserably to eat six whole pizzas the group chatted over home-made absinthe which was followed by a digereedoo performance. An italian-english dictionary was a definite necessity to the night, especially when a discussion of the ninja turtles began. Much more exploring needs to be done, but so far we have great company and full full bellies.
Buona notte!
-J and C
After the break we successfully planted 48 tomato plants! Only a few hundred more to go! An even greater accomplishment would have been if we successfully explained the "when in Rome" expression which we struggled with for a while.
Work was over and off to Cinzia's GAS meeting we went. The meeting consists of organic farmers from the area who gather and trade different items they grow. We left with two huge cartons of vegetables and bags of fruit.
We returned home just in time for a TEN o'clock dinner where Cinzia's friends brought over pizza. And by pizza we mean one pie per person. Is this real life? After failing miserably to eat six whole pizzas the group chatted over home-made absinthe which was followed by a digereedoo performance. An italian-english dictionary was a definite necessity to the night, especially when a discussion of the ninja turtles began. Much more exploring needs to be done, but so far we have great company and full full bellies.
Buona notte!
-J and C
Day 7- Ciao Italia
As we said farewell to Hans, we bought tickets to Milan not knowing where we were headed from there (sorry mom).
On train number one (starting at 7:30 AM) we met two American boys...don't worry Reid and Henrik, they went to WPI. It was nice to hear a little bit of English and to make people jealous of our farming experiences.
They were headed to Milan as well, so we left train number one and headed to the second with our new friends. During the entire two hours on train number two, they were constantly talking to us as we were passing notes to each other trying to guess their names. We were wrong. Christine left a good impression as she fell off the second train. (Unlike her first wipe out, this time she managed to stay on her feet).
In Milan, I had to go to the bathroom...of course...only to find out that Italy charges for public bathrooms. The entrance to the bathroom was like the entrance to Disney World. We decided to hold it (ahhh)!
Then, we bought another ticket to go to ANCONA! After 3 and half more hours and much anticipation for the beachside dinner we decided we were going to have, we finally arrived in Ancona. What can I say? Ancona...how you say...there is no beach in Ancona! Nor much of anything in fact. We did learn something for our stop in Ancona, though: there is NOTHING open on Mondays.
After our two hour layover, we boarded yet another train. We finally figured out where we were headed when we received an e-mail from Cinzia saying she could pick us up in Spoleto. The ride was another three hours, but very entertaining with our head phones and karaoke session.
At 8 o'clock in the eventing we finaly arrived at our destination: beautiful Spoleto.
Yet again, we attempted to figure out what Cinzia looked like. I thought she would be an old lady with curly brown short hair, wearing a dress and an apron. Christine thought she would be a young woman with straight brown hair. ...and AGAIN Christine was exactly on point. Funny part is, her mother is exaclty what I thought Cinzia would be.
At the station, Cinzia and another women working on the farm, Angela, picked us up and drove us to the house. She owns a Bed and Breakfast called Le Rondinelle in a small town outside of Spoleto in the Umbria region.
Her family was extremely welcoming and they fed us a true Italian dinner...and then they fed us more. After tea with Cinzia, we are so excited to explore the area and work tomorrow!
-J and C
On train number one (starting at 7:30 AM) we met two American boys...don't worry Reid and Henrik, they went to WPI. It was nice to hear a little bit of English and to make people jealous of our farming experiences.
They were headed to Milan as well, so we left train number one and headed to the second with our new friends. During the entire two hours on train number two, they were constantly talking to us as we were passing notes to each other trying to guess their names. We were wrong. Christine left a good impression as she fell off the second train. (Unlike her first wipe out, this time she managed to stay on her feet).
In Milan, I had to go to the bathroom...of course...only to find out that Italy charges for public bathrooms. The entrance to the bathroom was like the entrance to Disney World. We decided to hold it (ahhh)!
Then, we bought another ticket to go to ANCONA! After 3 and half more hours and much anticipation for the beachside dinner we decided we were going to have, we finally arrived in Ancona. What can I say? Ancona...how you say...there is no beach in Ancona! Nor much of anything in fact. We did learn something for our stop in Ancona, though: there is NOTHING open on Mondays.
After our two hour layover, we boarded yet another train. We finally figured out where we were headed when we received an e-mail from Cinzia saying she could pick us up in Spoleto. The ride was another three hours, but very entertaining with our head phones and karaoke session.
At 8 o'clock in the eventing we finaly arrived at our destination: beautiful Spoleto.
Yet again, we attempted to figure out what Cinzia looked like. I thought she would be an old lady with curly brown short hair, wearing a dress and an apron. Christine thought she would be a young woman with straight brown hair. ...and AGAIN Christine was exactly on point. Funny part is, her mother is exaclty what I thought Cinzia would be.
At the station, Cinzia and another women working on the farm, Angela, picked us up and drove us to the house. She owns a Bed and Breakfast called Le Rondinelle in a small town outside of Spoleto in the Umbria region.
Her family was extremely welcoming and they fed us a true Italian dinner...and then they fed us more. After tea with Cinzia, we are so excited to explore the area and work tomorrow!
-J and C
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Day 6: Maybe They Sell Socks Up There
You would think that we are doing some of these crazy things for your entertainment. But I think we are just crazy.
Today we had the day off because Hans wanted to reward us for all of our wood cutting. He bought us tickets to travel up to the famous JUNGFRAUJOCH (say that five times, fast). It is the TOP of Europe. It is a two hour train ride from Interlaken, uphill the whole way.
Because it was our day off, we decided to wear our casual clothes: jeans, a light sweater and flip flops. Silly Americans. Of course the TOP of Europe would be -5 degrees celsius covered with snow. NOT flip flop weather.
As we we waiting on the platform, Hans noticed our lack of toe coverage and began wailing. He said he would give us his shoes but he only had one pair! He said goodbye to us and wished us luck with our bare feet.
We always like attention. Boarding the train, every single person was staring at our feet. Good thing our toe nails were painted. We were the most popular people on the train, making friends the whole ride.
Two hours later, we reached the TOP of EUROPE. It was gorgeous (and cold). We ran outside to soak in as much as we could of the breathtaking views of the Alps. It is really a site to see, and we are lucky Hans was so generous to pay for us to go.
While we were taking many pictures, there were also many pictures being taken of us. People thought our flip flops were as great of a wonder as the beautiful views.
We warmed our frozen toes inside while still taking in the sights (through a window) and finally headed back to Interlaken. We walked around the touristy city for about an hour and decided it was time to head back to beautiful Brienz.
Once again, we asked Hans to join us at the lake, but this time for a REAL swim. We were in the water for a whole...40 seconds. It was a beautiful day.
Tonight, Henriette is making us a Creole dinner, while we attempt to figure out where the heck we are going tomorrow. Tuscany? Bologna? We will let you know tomorrow!
-J and C
Today we had the day off because Hans wanted to reward us for all of our wood cutting. He bought us tickets to travel up to the famous JUNGFRAUJOCH (say that five times, fast). It is the TOP of Europe. It is a two hour train ride from Interlaken, uphill the whole way.
Because it was our day off, we decided to wear our casual clothes: jeans, a light sweater and flip flops. Silly Americans. Of course the TOP of Europe would be -5 degrees celsius covered with snow. NOT flip flop weather.
As we we waiting on the platform, Hans noticed our lack of toe coverage and began wailing. He said he would give us his shoes but he only had one pair! He said goodbye to us and wished us luck with our bare feet.
We always like attention. Boarding the train, every single person was staring at our feet. Good thing our toe nails were painted. We were the most popular people on the train, making friends the whole ride.
Two hours later, we reached the TOP of EUROPE. It was gorgeous (and cold). We ran outside to soak in as much as we could of the breathtaking views of the Alps. It is really a site to see, and we are lucky Hans was so generous to pay for us to go.
While we were taking many pictures, there were also many pictures being taken of us. People thought our flip flops were as great of a wonder as the beautiful views.
We warmed our frozen toes inside while still taking in the sights (through a window) and finally headed back to Interlaken. We walked around the touristy city for about an hour and decided it was time to head back to beautiful Brienz.
Once again, we asked Hans to join us at the lake, but this time for a REAL swim. We were in the water for a whole...40 seconds. It was a beautiful day.
Tonight, Henriette is making us a Creole dinner, while we attempt to figure out where the heck we are going tomorrow. Tuscany? Bologna? We will let you know tomorrow!
-J and C
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Day 5: Here We Are Family
This morning we woke up bright and early to head to the market to buy food for our Surprise American Meal for dinner. Hans (who we figured out was the former mayor of Brienz, not preseident of Switzerland) has told us many stories of previous WWOOFers attempts at making food. We have heard about "feggin" pizza consisting of only pizza crust and sauce, and dry chicken and crispy green beans. We did not want to dissapoint.
When we returned from the market we ate a quick breakfast and went stright to work to cut more wood. This time we actually got to cut the wood and not just stack it! We chopped wood with Hans` handmade machine while simutaneously trying to get a nice tan. After trying to perfect our self sun-dialing we turned ourselves until our shadows were directly in front of us and declared it lunch time.
We headed home from a lunch made by Michigo, another WWOOFer who Hans named "hexe", or witch. Then it was time to head to Ferdi's (the Swiss Brad Pitt) house for more ice cream topped with more cream. Not only is Ferdi the most famous actor in Switzerland, he also was treasurer of Brienz for 8 years AND an amazing wood carver. Although we never wanted to leave the most beautiful view that we have ever seen dessert time was over.
We headed home and put on our swim suits only to find out it was not swim time just yet, but more wood cutting! We cut wood with our strong muscles for two more hours and stayed just long enough to learn why wood cutting should NOT be done in swim suits and shorts. When our sun dials showed five o'clock on the dot (because practice makes perfect) coffee and swim time it was. Hans and Henriette accompianed us to the lake where we actually swam a few strokes before running out.
Dinner time. After slaving over a hot stove to make the perfect American meal, burgers, frozen french fries and corn, we dined with the unusual appearance of many many napkins. The meal was absolutely silent, meaning they either loved it or hated it, hard to tell with such large appetites. Either way, we concluded the meal with the american take on fondue, where fruit "meet" chocolate.
Hans has assured us that there is so much more to do here and that we must return for a longer visit in the future as "we are family".
-C and J
When we returned from the market we ate a quick breakfast and went stright to work to cut more wood. This time we actually got to cut the wood and not just stack it! We chopped wood with Hans` handmade machine while simutaneously trying to get a nice tan. After trying to perfect our self sun-dialing we turned ourselves until our shadows were directly in front of us and declared it lunch time.
We headed home from a lunch made by Michigo, another WWOOFer who Hans named "hexe", or witch. Then it was time to head to Ferdi's (the Swiss Brad Pitt) house for more ice cream topped with more cream. Not only is Ferdi the most famous actor in Switzerland, he also was treasurer of Brienz for 8 years AND an amazing wood carver. Although we never wanted to leave the most beautiful view that we have ever seen dessert time was over.
We headed home and put on our swim suits only to find out it was not swim time just yet, but more wood cutting! We cut wood with our strong muscles for two more hours and stayed just long enough to learn why wood cutting should NOT be done in swim suits and shorts. When our sun dials showed five o'clock on the dot (because practice makes perfect) coffee and swim time it was. Hans and Henriette accompianed us to the lake where we actually swam a few strokes before running out.
Dinner time. After slaving over a hot stove to make the perfect American meal, burgers, frozen french fries and corn, we dined with the unusual appearance of many many napkins. The meal was absolutely silent, meaning they either loved it or hated it, hard to tell with such large appetites. Either way, we concluded the meal with the american take on fondue, where fruit "meet" chocolate.
Hans has assured us that there is so much more to do here and that we must return for a longer visit in the future as "we are family".
-C and J
Friday, May 21, 2010
Day 4: I Don`t Think You Understand That I Am 83
This is what Hans said to us after we asked him if he likes jumping off the diving board. Good answer.
Just call us the Lone Rangers. Today we walked for 2 and half hours uphill (both ways) with ELEVEN cows. We were warned to be careful of the cows "doing what we do in the bathroom."
Picture us leading a herd of cows uphill on a road, with cars, with full on tourist gear (cameras, camcorders and all). Now picture the cows running in the wrong direction, and us laughing and taking pictures while everyone else is chasing after the cows. It was a fun day.
After getting pooped and peed on, we were treated to delicious ice cream made from cows in the region. We were assured that the cows didn't make the ice cream themselves, rather, their milk was used to make it.
When we came back down the mountain, we asked Hans if he would join us for a swim in Brienzersee. Hans was very excited to swim in the 15 degree water (celsius, that is). We didn't know what we were in for. A few minutes later, we found Hans ready to go in his swimming shorts and bright blue robe, chest exposed and all. We walked down to the lake (practically in his front yard) and waited a while to soak up the sun before getting into the cold water. Finally, we stuck our feet in the water and were very close to not going in any further, but Hans jumped right in and began swimming around, so we ran into the lake up to our shoulders, and ran right back out.
It was a fun day, full of once in a lifetime experiences. Now we are waiting to see if anyone plans on making dinner tonight...if not, more bread and granola bars.
-J and C
Just call us the Lone Rangers. Today we walked for 2 and half hours uphill (both ways) with ELEVEN cows. We were warned to be careful of the cows "doing what we do in the bathroom."
Picture us leading a herd of cows uphill on a road, with cars, with full on tourist gear (cameras, camcorders and all). Now picture the cows running in the wrong direction, and us laughing and taking pictures while everyone else is chasing after the cows. It was a fun day.
After getting pooped and peed on, we were treated to delicious ice cream made from cows in the region. We were assured that the cows didn't make the ice cream themselves, rather, their milk was used to make it.
When we came back down the mountain, we asked Hans if he would join us for a swim in Brienzersee. Hans was very excited to swim in the 15 degree water (celsius, that is). We didn't know what we were in for. A few minutes later, we found Hans ready to go in his swimming shorts and bright blue robe, chest exposed and all. We walked down to the lake (practically in his front yard) and waited a while to soak up the sun before getting into the cold water. Finally, we stuck our feet in the water and were very close to not going in any further, but Hans jumped right in and began swimming around, so we ran into the lake up to our shoulders, and ran right back out.
It was a fun day, full of once in a lifetime experiences. Now we are waiting to see if anyone plans on making dinner tonight...if not, more bread and granola bars.
-J and C
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Day 3: Life is Too Short to Drink Water
According to the former president of Switzerland life should be spent drinking creamy smoothies and blended watermelon, not water. Coffee is also a regular four-time-a-day kind of drink, but I'm not talking about any mild American coffee. This stuff is serious (or so I hear from Jaime). During the morning, midmorning, afternoon, and nightly coffee breaks I sip on delicious tea blended from wild plants found in the mountains (heaven forbid I hold a glass of water in my hand during coffee time). Our host and fellow WWOOFers are shocked by how little we eat as Americans (although they are unaware of how many slices of bread I sneak throughout the day). At every meal they remark about how they expected us to come hungry, requesting seconds and thirds. The food has been quite good thus far, and we are especially fans of the hand-made dressings and creams. We cannot wait to make a huge feast for everbody here on out last night. They are in for a big surprise, one consisting of a lot of ground beef and french fries.
-C
-C
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Day 2: A Rocky Start
After sitting on the runway for two hours, struggling to sleep on the plane, running through Zurich Airport and getting on the wrog train, we finally made it to Brienz. During our long travel we came up with a picture of what Hans would look like. I thought he was around fifty, Christine thought he was around sixty and we decided he would be wearing jeans and a flannel shirt and that every night he would sit on his rocking chair smoking a pipe and petting his dog. Well, maybe we were a bit off...or more than a bit. As we stepped off the train we saw a big old man, whom we have learned is 83, wearing shorts with suspenders. He looks like Colonel Sanders. He was accompanied by a younger woman, Hemnriette. Hans speaks German and French and Henriette speaks French. They both speak little English. Very little. The language barrier is difficult, but interesting. To add to the mix, there is another woman in the house named Michiko. She speaks Japanese and English.Michiko and Henriette do not get along well because they cannot understand eachother. Well, that's our temporary family. Though there is a little bit of drama between H and M, they are all really nice people.
After we settled in and ate lunch we went with Henriette on a long windey drive up to Axalp. We walked around and picked many flowers and plants that we will use for a salad and butter tomorrow. It is really beautiful here!
Finally going to bed after missing a whole nights sleep!
-J
After we settled in and ate lunch we went with Henriette on a long windey drive up to Axalp. We walked around and picked many flowers and plants that we will use for a salad and butter tomorrow. It is really beautiful here!
Finally going to bed after missing a whole nights sleep!
-J
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Day 1: The Departure
So, we are sitting at the terminal in chairs even more uncomfortable than airplane seats...maybe they want it to seem like the airplanes are really comfy once we finally get to sit in them. We got to the airport a little...well a lot early...
Anyways...we are waiting to board (at 4:25) for Zurich!!!! Gonna need some food or entertainment in the meantime...or maybe both.
Can't wait to meet HANS!
-J
Anyways...we are waiting to board (at 4:25) for Zurich!!!! Gonna need some food or entertainment in the meantime...or maybe both.
Can't wait to meet HANS!
-J
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