Day Eighteen.

Today was Market day so I got up early and Erin and I headed to the Market around 9am. It was freezing out so we didn't spend as much time at the Market as we'd have liked to but we still were successful. Erin was on a mission for a coat and found one at the first vendor we went to--she had seen it there the last time we went. We also wanted to make sure we saw the whole thing since last time we only saw half of it. This time we made sure we saw the food part. There were all sorts of vendors there. Lots of fruits and vegetables and even fish, cheese, and meat carts! A county fair gone bad! I was hoping there'd be a pastry cart (specifically didn't eat breakfast in the hopes!) but there wasn't. We ended up getting pastries from the bread and pasta cart. I got a chocolate croissant with the edges dipped in chocolate and chocolate pudding in the middle. Yum.

Then we headed back to the house and hung out. People went out for lunch but I wanted to eat light so I stayed in and had cheese and prosciutto and crackers.

Around 4ish I went out to go shopping and mail some postcards. I went into a couple of stores and was pretty disappointed. They're all really small stores that are overstaffed so it's awkward to browse because people are always trying to help you. Also, the stores have basically no stock in them. It is sale season so I don't know if they're empty because of that or because they're boutique shops. I think the shopping in Torino is much better and I'll probably do the bulk of any clothes shopping I do there and at the Market (was too cold to browse this morning).

I also stopped into a gelato shop Dan likes and tried it out. They had a good selection and GREAT price (2 scoops for 1.80!) so I got some. I thought I was getting panna cotta and vanilla but they both had a weird mint flavor to them so I don't know if it was the flavors or the place. The texture was great, though. Very smooth and creamy but not too melted.

Then we went to dinner at VinCafe because it was finally open!!! I had reserved a table with Erin earlier in the morning (with the help of a very nice lady who translated for us--I didn't know how to say "reserve") so we got to sit down pretty quickly even though the place was PACKED. I had minestrone soup as my first course which turned out to be more of a vegetable stew than minestrone but oh well it was still good. Jordan got the carne cruda (raw meat) and it was a ball of raw ground beef but she said it was good. It looked scary, though. For my main dish I got the ravioli and it was heavy but good. I didn't finish it.

Then we headed back to the apartment. Everyone wanted to go out but a couple of the girls are sick with bad colds and wanted to make an effort to get better so they wanted to stay in. We all watched Bolt, the animated movie about a superhero dog and then went to bed.

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day and I have no idea what we're doing. I'd like to go to a few bakery places for lunch and just sort of graze but I don't think anyone will want to go with me. I can't go to lunch with them as normal because Joanna and I are planning our Spring Break at 1 (good time for her) and lunch here is eaten around 12:30 in restaurants so I'd be missing her if I went with everyone. I'll probably go to Vin for small sandwiches and got to a bakery or two by myself.

For dinner I want to go to the sushi place in town and sort of do something different but no one seems interested in that idea either. They want to stick to the vouchers so I don't know where we're eating tomorrow night. Places will be pretty busy, though, so I hope someone gets a reservation tomorrow morning.

Stay tuned for my super exciting day. Well, that's not completely sarcastic--I'll finally know my Spring Break plans! My idea to pose to Joanna is Trapino, Sicily. Before that I'd, ideally, visit Dad and Heather's friend Kirby who lives in Bologna. He said I could stay there and he'd be happy to show me around and maybe do some day trips in nearby places he enjoys. More on that later. Sicily (or where ever Joanna and I decide) should be figured out tomorrow.