Weekend in Torino (Cirque de Soleil)

A relaxing weekend spent in Torino: I basked in the guilty pleasure of doing nothing! Friday dawned bright and sunny so Kate and I walked to school along the park that boarders the Po River (like the green belt!) A little exploring and curiosity led us to meander off route and turned it into an enjoyable hour stroll in the sun. We finished off the journey with tasty gelato and a much needed trip to the grocery store. Sixty Euros later my shelves in the fridge and cupboard were finally stalked again… It was a good weekend of homemade meals. I even made steak! (For those of you who know me well enough will notice that I was having a STRONG desire for American food to drive me to such extremes!). It was alright; I’m still not in love, but it did the trick. Tonight I was back to pasta.

Friday night Kate and I went out dancing and tried some new trendy bars we’d heard about. Saturday was full of cleaning: my bedroom, my laundry, my sheets, the bathroom, the kitchen, bedroom floor… Let’s just say all my traveling had left my area a little “neglected”. This afternoon (Sunday), I met Katie and we ventured to a new part of town in search of Cirque de Soleil! One of our classmates had told us that it was in town and tickets could be had for only 35 Euros (a steal of a deal compared to the $90 I paid two years ago in California). Today was the LAST showing so thankfully after a little blind bus navigating, we arrived with plenty of time to buy tickets at the door. It was a great show full of feats of flexibility, strength, and odd talent. The costumes, set, and music are always unique and add a heightened level of entertainment to the show. The great thing about Cirque de Soleil shows is that they communicate the “story” with their bodies, so I wasn’t even frustrated by not knowing Italian.

Side Note: Beautiful, warm and sunny on Friday. Bright and blue sky-ed on Saturday. Woke up today to a BLIZZARD! It snowed ALL day. Nonstop. Not even kidding.

Side Note #2: Coming home from Cirque de Soleil tonight I waited 30 mins for bus #34 – it is supposed to come every 11 mins. I finally gave up and walked to a different bus route. When I came home to vent to Kate about the unreliable bus system she informed me that bus #34 doesn’t run on Sundays. Oops. Maybe after my 4 months of living in Torino I will finally figure out public transportation. Did I mention it was miserably cold and snowing that whole half an hour?!

Side Note #3: I finally watched Gladiator for the first time. I think it will add a whole new level of reality to my imagination when I actually go into the Coliseum next weekend. Spring Break Adventure 2010 begins Friday with the arrival of Jena and Aerosol… I hope you’re excited! Rome, Athens, Santorini (pray for sunshine!).

Side Note #4: I just wanted to point out the very real fact that I am half way through my stay in Italy. Didn’t I just get here?!