Five Day Weekend!!

November 5th, 2023

What a week!! Halloween was a cozy dream. I’ve never really liked Halloween, but this year I was feeling a bit nostalgic. Growing up, my family would always have a soup potluck with family friends, go trick-or-treating, and watch It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. When I was younger, I wished we could go to the big neighborhoods with the good candy and hang out with my friends, but now I can appreciate the chill Halloweens my parents opted for. I came home from school Tuesday night and made soup and a pancake with pumpkin pie spices and chocolate chunks (my kitchen is literally a cabinet with two burners, so a pancake was the closest I could get to baking a sweet treat). I watched Charlie Brown, read a little bit of a book, and was asleep before 10. It was truly the perfect night.

We had a holiday the next day, and since my Thursday class is online, I pretty much had a 5-day weekend. I spent Wednesday resting, then Thursday and Friday I cleaned, studied a little bit, and started an Etsy shop. Sounds productive, but to be honest I did it all to procrastinate studying for my upcoming exams.

Saturday morning, my friend Ruby and I caught a morning train to Milan where we met up with my friend Rebecca, who had been travelling across Northern Italy. We spent the day shopping at vintage stores and eating non-Italian food. Yes, the food here is amazing—but I am tired of pizza and pasta. I almost cried when I took a bite of a dumpling in China Town.

That night we bundled up and braved a storm to go cheer on AC Milan. It was my first Football game, and it was so much fun. 70,000 people cheering and chanting the whole time. Unfortunately, AC Milan lost (I believe it was because Christian Pulisic was injured… Go USA), but it was an unforgettable night.

We stayed at a cute little Airbnb and got up early-ish to head to the Duomo. It was incredible. Rebecca and I got tickets to go in, and we got to listen to mass. The singing was heavenly. It actually sounded other-worldly—the harmonies echoing throughout the church were bone chilling in the best way. Every time I walk into a church here, I am left speechless. There are no words to describe how in awe I am of the beauty and the history within each building.

After a quick trip to the Starbucks Reserve Roastery (I’m a Seattle girl, what can I say) and a brisk walk through a park, I got on the train and headed home. Piacenza was poppin’ today! There’s a vintage market on the first Sunday of each month, so I met up with my friends Pauline and Ivana and we walked around. Pauline and I tried our first chestnuts (roasted on an open fire). They kind of taste like potatoes? But they got me in a Christmasy mood, so I’ve been listening to my favorite Holiday tunes while studying all evening. One of my favorite parts of living in Europe is nobody says "You can't celebrate Christmas until after Thanksgiving!"

On that note, Merry Christmas! Have a great week!