The Festivities

My first day in Florence was not at all what I expected. During our lunch my family announced, much to my host siblings' dismay, that we were to attend a wedding that evening. The thought that first came to mind, although I'm not proud to admit, was I look like I just traveled across multiple time zones, WHAT AM I GOING TO WEAR?!?!?!

I looked through my suitcase and found some barely suitable, and very wrinkled clothes and shyly asked for an iron. In the end I still looked haggard, but somewhat presentable. 

We arrived at a small but beautiful catholic chapel, and I hesitantly got out of the car and followed my host family to the door of the church that was surrounded by guests. Upon entering the church my family one by one shook some guys hand... I followed suit, and there was that awkward moment in which I'm sure we were both thinking "who are you?" moments later I was informed that it was the grooms hand I shook. I felt a bit daft. 

The pews in the church are wooden and uncomfortable... which was good in the long run because they aided me in my desperate attempts to stay awake. It may sound terribly piggish that I was fighting sleep while being witness to the happiest day of some one's life. It may help my case if I add that I would have fought sleep even if it were my favorite movie, or in the Colosseum watching some gladiators fight to the death. With certain amounts of sleep deprivation I find it easy to fall asleep anywhere. Unlike any wedding I have attended we were supposed to stand and sit at different times, I hardly need to say that I just followed the crowd on this one. I was tired, and my eyes sometimes went blurry, but I made it. The ring bearer was the grandson of the bride (they were an older couple) and he was probably 2 years old, and did the job quite well. After the ceremony he was hardly ever out of the adoring arms of the lovely bride, his grandma. 

After the ceremony, we drove up the hillside (Florence is surrounded by hills) to the reception. I was very surprised to see where it was to take place: an old and grand villa with a perfect view of the city. I was stunned. Florence is truly a sight to behold by day, but there is a certain magic to see it all in lights by night. 

We went inside and were greeted by the very talented singer, the entertainment for the night. The next room was filled with hors d'oeuvres which were to say it lightly abundant and ritzy. There was pâté, truffle filled pastry, cheeses, and champagne. I was completely sure that this was the meal... there was surely enough to appease every one's appetite with the amount of food. I was so wrong.

Soon dinner was announced. Dinner?!?

We were seated at tables furnished with white table clothes, and way too many glasses and pieces of silverware. I felt suddenly grateful for the horrendous "Manners Monster" video my younger brother and I were forced to watch as punishment when we were younger, as it reminded me to start on the outside. 

The dinner took a long time. This is due to the fact that there were many, many courses. On the table was already water, fizzy water, red and white wines. The first course was champagne risotto. (after each course our plates were removed and replaced with clean ones, that's a lot of dishes to do!) The risotto was followed by thin pasta sheets with some kickin' sauce. Next came sauteed veggies, potato and a very nice and perfectly done cut of meat. After that was served came the wedding cake and more champagne. We were moved from the adult section to another room with some Italian teens and two American girls there to study at the university. Finally the last course was small pastry and an open bar. I was completely stunned and barely made my way through the cake. 

I enjoyed talking with the people my age, and found the Italian teenagers very hospitable and fun to be around. I felt kinda dumb not being able to understand the conversation, but was comforted by the fact that the other Americans were in the same boat. 

I forgot to mention that the villa was filled with fading and worn tapestries, and very old paintings. This was not some lame attempt at looking vintage, it was legit! I'm still stunned by the old culture and the rich history. The states may be bigger, but it makes me realized how much America seems like an infant compared to the rest of the world. 

It was a great introduction of Italian culture for me, and I appreciated it fully. There was so much to see, to hear, and to eat! As soon as we arrived at home, I jumped into my pajamas, and was asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.