Soccer, Soccer and Pizza

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Normally Sundays in Florence are low key and on the boring side. Most of the stores are closed except for places that are very touristy. This is sometimes nice because it gives you a chance to unwind before the week begins again, but it can get irritating when stores such as the grocery store are closed making it impossible to do much of anything. This Sunday however, was not a typical Florentine Sunday.

All of the girls in my apartment woke up at around 11 am because we were so exhausted from our weekend traveling in Paris. We slowly found our way to the kitchen table which is typical for a Sunday morning. We all talked and started to plan out our day. Me and one of my roommates Lauren decided we needed a little piece of home so we headed to the American Brunch. American Brunch is awesome, its at a place called Aries Diner. The guy who owns the restaurant is American and styles his menu to include American favorites such as egg sandwiches, omelets and pancakes. The best part of American brunch is sitting down to a huge glass of American coffee. After brunch we walked around a little bit and got reacquainted with Florence after being in Paris for the weekend.

Then we headed back to our apartment because there was a traditional soccer game in Florence. It is a historical game which is between the four quarters of the old city. The game that we saw was between the green team and the red team. Before the match there was a parade which included many people dressed in historical costumes. It was nice to see so many people out and about on a Sunday, it made the day not as lonely and slow moving. After the parade we made our way to Santa Croce where there were bleachers and a field set up for the game.

The game itself was as far from a soccer game as one can be. It was actually similar to a rugby game in the sense that the ball was for the most part carried and passed between team members rather than kicked. The only difference was that there were literally no rules for conduct during the game. The players in the game where allowed to do anything to the opposing team in efforts to score a goal. This included tackling, tripping, lifting and body dropping members of the opposite team. This aspect of the game made it extremely entertaining to watch. We all cheered for the green team because Palazzo Ruccelli (our school) is located in the green quarters of the historic city.

After the game was over we headed to Yellow Bar which is known for its pizza in Florence. We sat down and enjoyed great food and really good house wine. It was fun to unwind and talk about our incredible, but very busy weekend. We also started talking about going home. The main feeling of the group is that going home isn’t going to be devastating because it will be awesome to see everyone; however after about a week of being home we are all going to wish we were back here. It just makes me think of how lucky I am to wake up on any given day to an apartment filled with 7 other girls who I get along with and figure out our day. There is hardly anything pressing that needs to get accomplished which grants us freedom be carefree and just wander aimlessly. Not only is it amazing that we have no real commitments, but in addition the beautiful city of Florence is the arena in which we are able to get lost in and then find our way home.

With less than two weeks left in Florence I am feeling as if all of the pieces are coming together. I can confidently walk around the city without getting lost, and the narrow roads that once seemed so confusing are now so simple to navigate around. To me, Florence now feels like home. When I travel on the weekends I can not wait to get back to my apartment and be in the company of my roommates.

Last night we had a house visit with one of the secretaries at our school. The visit was scheduled so she could come and show us how to lock up our apartment for when we move out. What was supposed to be a quick 15 minute meeting turned into an hour discussion about Florence, our time here and most importantly food. She suggested places for us to try before we went and even included what to order at her favorite restaurants. We decided that seeing as our time here is rapidly winding down; we needed to get started on her list of recommendations ASAP.

Today the first thing I did when I walked into school was ask her to make a reservation at a pizza restaurant that she suggested. Our plan was to go to the restaurant for pizza and then head to a pub to watch the Italia v. France game. They were playing the final game in the first round of the Euro Cup and the game would decide who advanced in the tournament. This morning I went to the market and bought an Italia jersey to wear for the game. We were all excited to watch the game because in Italy futbol is their life. Naturally the excitement that the have for the sport radiates to everyone around them. On nights of games everyone is tuned into the game, even fancy restaurants display televisions for diners to watch the game while enjoying their meal.

We left our apartment at 7:15, obviously running late due to the fact that 8 girls share one shower (I can not wait to shower in the United States, the water here turns off or turns freezing cold with no warning. There have been times where I literally waited in the shower for minutes wondering when the water would come back on). We power walked to the restaurant because we didn’t want to be late. I navigated the way, luckily this time I had the correct map so we did not have a repeat of the orientation saga. The name of the pizzeria is il Pizzaioulo, our teacher informed us that it is famous and known for its pizza in Florence. We were all excited. Although the pizza that I have had here thus far is good, nothing was phenomenal. We sat down and quickly decided what we wanted to eat; I ordered a Marinara Pizza. The restaurant was really quaint, as most of the restaurants here are. In the back you could see them making your pizza, and they had a mirror positioned so you could actually see them putting the toppings on your pizza.

When our pizza came it looked incredible. My mouth was literally watering as I waited for the waitress to bring all of the pizzas out. As soon as I took my first bite I knew that this was what I had been waiting for. The sauce was so fresh and delicious. The pizza was very thin, but the crust was doughy and thick. It was heaven, all of us sat there eating our pizza and no one talked until they were down. The only time words were muttered was when someone needed more water or cheese for their pizza.

When we finished eating we set out to find a bar to watch the game at. As we were walking down the street a group of students asked us which way the Piazza was. They saw our jerseys so they assumed that we were going to watch the game. I knew that when there were big soccer games movie screens were set up in Piazzas for everyone to gather and watch the game together. I had asked one of my teachers about this and she told me that there probably wouldn’t be screens for this game because Italy lost their first game. I guess she was wrong, because in the Piazza right near where we had dinner there were crowds of people gathered and a huge screen to watch the game. We decided to stay and watch the game instead of finding a bar.

It was awesome watching the game there. Most of the people gathered were around my age, but not many of them were American. The excitement of the game was electric. When the players stepped on the field for the first time everyone stood up and cheered. There were some people waving Italian flags and others with their flags draped around their shoulders. The pride that everyone has for their country and their soccer team is amazing. It was a great game too. Italy needed to win in order to move on and luckily they did. Every time someone would score a goal everyone would stand up and cheer, it was as if we were an extension of the crowd at the actual game. It was really an awesome experience being there to watch the game; it made me feel as if I was a part of the community in which I live in.

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Photos

Santa Croce
This is the field that the game was played on.

Beginning of the Game
Before the game started all of the teams took the field in a celebration

Getting Ready before the Game
Before the game all of the players stretched and got ready

Yellow Bar
Getting Pizza at Yellow Bar

il Pizzaioulo
While sitting down we were able to see our pizzas getting made behind us.