Briggs Revolution

Monday, 24 December Christmas Eve. The night before Christmas. This will be my first Christmas without my family and friends. I am excited to see what Italians do for their Christmas and what it is like in their family. The Christmas celebrations started around 5:30pm. Santa Claus arrives around 6:30pm for the kids and they then open all their presents. The adults go for drinks (in Italian it is called the apperitivo) while the children eat their food at home. Then dinner is served and the socialising begins. Traditionally the food on the 24th is fish dishes. For this Christmas Eve dinner the little girl (Giulia) decided she was going to wear her little Christmas girl outfit which was very cute. We arrived at the grandparents and we had to send the children to hide in ... read more

Thursday, 20 December So apparently the world is supposed to end tomorrow according to Mayan time, but I have decided as there are weather forecasts for after tomorrow. Therefore I have concluded that the Mayans are wrong! In my family in South Africa we have a tradition that every year at Christmas time we bake what we call Soet Koekies which are cookies that have spices in them that go fantastically with tea or coffee or even milk. So I baked them a few days ago for my host family and they went down with a bang!! So today I baked a double batch! I think i must have made about 100 cookies! So we are giving them to their grandparents and friends and other famuly members as i christmas present from me!! My plans ... read more

Thursday, 13 December. To my millions of dedicated, I sincerley apologise for not updating you on my scandalous activities but I am now here to inform you of all the appointments and charity work I did. . . Do not panic!! You are reading the right blog! Just thought i should start it out a little bit differently. I am starting to feel a bit like Bridget Jones, Writing a diary about all the things i do and see and what my life here is about. This past week has been incredibly busy yet exhilerating. I went out on saturday with some new friends from Cremona, where they introduced me to the specialities of this one bar. One drink involved a clear shot when you drink it you have to put your finger in the shot ... read more

Thursday 6 December Italian food, though it is really delicious, is packed with carbs. They eat Nutella and wraps or biscuits or croissants for breakfast, maybe pasta for lunch or a savoury wrap or a sandwich and then pasta or pizza or quiche or some other form of food for dinner. So you are eating pasta for at leats 1 meal a day. Unfortunately my South African bady is used to having pasta only about once or twice a week for one meal so we eat way less carbs. As a result of eating as the italians do i have put on al little weight so I decided I am going to start running! God help me! My friends in SA will probably read this and laugh as I do not even do running in SA ... read more

I have officially been in Cremona, Italy for 1 month. Although hard to adapt to this way of life and with the homesickness, I believe i am finally getting used to it!! I have decided to write a more regular blog, thanks to inspiration from an email from my mother. It will be like a diary. Starting from today!! Right now!! This very second!! Tuesday 4th December. The lifestyle in small town Cremona, Italy is very different to that of Johannesburg, South Africa. There are only apartments in this town. Every wednesday and saturday they have a market in the main square where you can get things at slighty cheaper prices. They have stalls offering fresh fruit and vegetables daily, the shopes are closed on on a monday morning till 12:30. Shops are open from 9am ... read more

Finally... The long awaited blog about my trip to Cremona, Italy. My flight from Johannesburg to Italy on Lufthansa Airline will be an experience I will never forget!! It was a 22 hour flight which was really long and I still haven't quite recovered from the long journey. This flight was my first international flight ever, so it was a completely new experience for me. I made a complete idiot of myself when I asked the guy sitting next to me (ironically he was Italian) whether or not we had to pay for the dinner and breakfast, where the menu was that we could choose from and if we had to pay for any other in flight services that might be on offer. He thought this was very amusing and told me that you do not ... read more

Italian is the language of romance. Like Spanish, French, and Portuguese, the language is a derivative of Latin. Latin was once the primary language in Europe in which the Romans ruled. When Romans came, saw and conquered, all new aquired countries started to mix Latin into their own languages. Which them created the languages we know today. In Italy, the italian language varies in different parts of Italy. from vaious accents, to different pronounciation, to different grammer. Depsite the various differences in the language you will find that all Italians can understand the different versions of the language. Now I thought about giving you the usual Italian words and phrases that you find in tourist books and on the interenet, but these are too easily accessible. So I decided to give you the phrases and words ... read more

Food. Most people in the modern world think of food as a must-have 3 meals a day. The Bran for breakfast, then the regular sandwhich for lunch then maybe a tender steak and veggies. Sounds exciting, neh? Some people think of food as the convenient take out, or already-prepared-cook-in-5-minutes meals. I admit to having a slight weakness occassionally to McDonalds or KFC, but only once in a while. When I think of food i think of Italy and when I think of Italy the very first thing that comes to my mind (besides the men) is Pasta! Orecchiette Pasta, Pasta Gnocchi, Pasta Risoni, Pasta Cresto di Gallo, Pasta Garnanelli, Pasta Spaghetti, Pasta Vermicelli. Risoni Pasta with mushhrooms and pancetta, Penne with roasted pumpkin, baked ricotta and prosciutto, Pasta di stalla, Penne Pasta with rustic lentil sauce, ... read more

"E 'la città degli specchi, la città di miraggi, al tempo stesso solido e liquido, allo stesso tempo aria e pietra." "It is the city of mirrors, the city of mirages, at once solid and liquid, at once air and stone." (Erica Jong). Italy is a place of trend setting, from Milan fashion, to the famous architecture of Roma. From Venice a city on water, to Sicily a city surrounded by water. Italy is steeped in history, culuture and passion. Italian history goes back way before Jesus was around. It originated from 4 Italian tribes; Latins, Etruscan, Oscans and Umbrians. These tribes all contributed to the language which is today known as Italian. The Latins later became the dominant tribe. Italy later became known as the Impero Italiano (Italian Empire), one of the greatest empires to ... read more