The Final Torino Chronicle

I'm sitting here in my Torino apartment, ready to go, and counting the minutes until I go to catch the train to make my way to Sardegna. I've got everything I'll need (hopefully) packed into my large backpacking backpack and my smaller Dakine school backpack. This day came faster than I would have ever expected, and it is a quite bittersweet moment. I've had such an amazing time over the past four months. Seeing places I had only dreamed of seeing. Making new friends and meeting people from all different places and backgrounds. Learning a new language in one semester better than I had ever thought possible. The last four months are so indescribable that it is almost frustrating. I wish I could explain it. I've learned so much, about myself and about the world that I live in.

Last night was my final night in Torino. I couldn't have asked for a better send off. I started the night with a few of my best friends, and we went out for aperitivo. Aperitivo is similar to the Spanish "Tapas" but different. Aperitivo is a relatively new piece of Northern Italian culture. The way it works is you go to an Aperitivo restaurant, walk up to the bar, buy a drink, then help yourself to a buffet of appetizers. It is a very social event and is very different from traditional Italian dinners. So, last night I went out to my favorite Aperitivo place and hung out there for about an hour and a half and stuffed my face with DELICIOUS Italian food. I'm a little disappointed actually, because I was only introduced to this particular Aperitivo place just this last week. I went there for the first time on Wednesday night and knew that I needed to go back for my last meal in Torino (Mom this is where I'll be taking you to dinner when we're back in Torino in 2 months.)  We were four people sitting at an 8 person table, and it was crowded last night, so we ended up sharing a table with a group of three Italian women. We sat at that table for about an hour just talking about the city, where we're from, the wine they were drinking, the White Russians we were drinking, and about Juventus (the local Torino soccer team that recently won the league title). The cool thing about it was that the conversation was entirely in Italian. I could have never imagined that I would have been able to do something like that four months ago. It's amazes me how much one can learn in 4 months.

After Aperitivo I met up with some more friends over in Piazza San Carlo. There were probably around fifteen of us. We sipped on wine, reminisced about the semester, played charades, and just enjoyed each other's company. Some of our Italian friends that own the local Panino place on our street came and joined us as well. Ohhh man they make the BEST panini. My older brother can attest to that. I'm going to miss the food on Via Mazzini so much.

After hanging out in Piazza San Carlo until about 12:30 or so, we headed over to a pub called Texas Rangers. Nearly everyone from my program was there. It was a really fun time. Had to say goodbye to some of my best friends. It was really sad and there were plenty of tears. I hope to see many of them again someday.

Right now I'm looking at hostels and places to stay in Sardegna and Sicilia, the first two stops on my expedition. I've had such a sensational time living here and getting to spend time with the people that I did. But now, my life in Torino is behind me. My bags are packed and I'm ready for the next chapter of my life.