Occupato (Occ - U - pa - toe) - Busy

           …today was just plain busy….but such a great busy…lets see, it started bright and early off to see mom and dad at their residence at 9am….we headed off to the train station to get our tickets to Alba, and went to grab a cappuccino while we waited for our train…it was a great start to the morning….

            …at 10:30ish we were on an hour and a half train to Alba…a small city, south of Torino but still in the Piemonte region….it is known for its wine, being surrounded by towns of Barberesca, and Barolo…and for its Willy Wonka-esk, Nutella factory (but more about that later)….when we arrived and stepped off the train, we knew it was going to be an absolutely amazing day….wanna know why?....because as soon as you step off the train in Alba, you smell Nutella…..dear god it was amazing….literally mom and I were happy just sitting there being tourists and smelling the air, it was THAT good J….but the first stop was to find lunch….     

            ….my host mom’s sister’s boyfriend had suggested a couple restaurants in the city, so we were off with addresses and dishes to eat, in hand and excited…..we found it, after a brief trip to the tourist office we stumbled upon, and waited for it to open for lunch….once inside, we were able to choose from many different local wines and classic typical dishes….i ordered what Marco had suggested and oh goodness it was good J….mom got the other dish he suggested and she was sooo happy as well J….

            …after lunch it was more exploring…..down the historic (and current it seemed) city, center road…..some cool shops to look in, and of course, some amazing gelato shops to try J….great fun….after stumbling on the Cathedral, and another tourism office (which proved extremely helpful by booking us a taxi to our wine tasting…

 J…its only made in Piemonte, and not sold outside Italy….the red were really good too, Dolcetto and (luckily for daddy) Barolo….they were awesome….those wines and with the view of their vineyards, it was truly exactly what you imagine and totally perfect J…..after tasting we bought a couple bottles and were off….

           …and the wine tasting was amazing!!!.....so we got in this extremely nice town car (which apparently is a taxi haha) and it took us up to the top of a hill, pretty near to town….to the winery of Ceretto….i had found this wine tour and tasting on Google….and it proved to be good! When we arrived we met with an English speaker, who took us out to a place that was the view of the estate there in Alba (it also has vineyards in all the different places for different wines, i.e. Barolo, Barbera, Barberesca) which was absolutely stunning….showed us around the different wines that Ceretto creates….and then we got to taste 1 white and 2 reds…..goodness they were delish!....the white I think has become moms new favorite

            ….afterwards, we took the taxi back to the train station and had some time until the next train so we were off towards the Nutella Factory….and let me tell you what, that place is Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory….no one is allowed into the factory unless they are school groups under the age of 12…that’s how afraid they are of their secrets getting out….so when we were walking around looking for it all, we found just thick, huge walls around it….also there is a whole store, but its ONLY allowed for the employees….its absolutely nuts!!....it was super cool though to see it and smell it J…

            …then it was back to the train to head back to Torino….and after some naps on the 1 and ½ hour ride back, we were back on Via Roma….doing just a little shopping……..I know what you are thinking, but we only hit Zara and H&M J (mom and I’s favorite places..)…..it was great, dad was the best and just let us shop and shop….and then it was finally back to their place to drop off all of our beautiful things before heading out to dinenr….

 J…dinner was pretty good too!...we enjoyed our new find J….

           …and well dinner was a sort of fiasco…..i guess we ALL forgot that today was Valentine’s Day (btw Happy Valentine’s day everyone) and we probably needed to make a reservation somewhere because everyone else had haha….so needless to say, we walked around forever and finally found this little place with a sign that just said, “Menu in Inglese” which ended up just being, translated by the adorable lady that waited on us….aka she told dad that part of one of the dishes had a “cake of mice” and we had a good laugh at that….she tried so hard and did sooo well…..we loved it and laughed a lot

 J….it was one of the best experiences, I cant wait to go back tomorrow!

           ….afterwards, dad thought we should go out for some wine….so we stopped at the wine bar that is literally right next door (on the corner) to their residence….and it was the best idea yet…..you see, we were the only people in their and made great friends with the owner, a younger guy named Daniele (Danny) and another young guy named Gabriele…..they talked us through picking out wines, and found some great ones….then they asked if we would like a little plate of food and we, of course, said yes…..well we didn’t really listen to what was going to be on it, and….well….it ended up being a plate with lettuce on it with a fried egg and ….dun dun da DA! Raw veal…..so we choked it down (and honestly if you could get past the idea of it, and the texture, it was really good) to make the people we just wanted to be our friends to like us….and they did…the owner even invited to make dad (not mom and I, just dad) spaghetti tomorrow night! Isn’t that just the coolest!?!....he is totally excited needless to say…..it was so much fun….a couple glasses of vino later we were finally COMPLETELY EXHAUSTED haha, so we headed back to their house….not, of course, before Danny arm wrestled dad

            ….so that was a totally packed day, and tomorrow will be much the same…..tomorrow we are off to the largest open air market in Europe, Porta Palazzo (where I was pick pocketed, so don’t worry ill be extra good this time!), then Bicern, and maybe the Mole…..we shall see….but first it will be off to the Vodafone store bright and early….came home tonight to the flat alarm on (so I had to disarm haha) and no host family so I assume they left for the mountain….anyways tried to call Eliana or Simone, and well it didn’t work at all….so off to fix that tomorrow before meeting Mom and Dad too…..

            …I am absolutely loving having them here!! Totally exhausted but so excited for tomorrow!!!.....but its bed time for this little girl!!....love to all…