Merry Christmas #2 (and beyond) or, "Better late than never - part 1"

For my second Christmas in Bologna (does anyone else think I might be a little bit spoiled?), about 12 Bolognese-Americans grouped together for a Christmas Eve dinner at my place, AKA the house with the biggest kitchen. I decorated the kitchen with lights and other decorations which my study center loaned me, and everyone admired my adorable little Christmas tree. The dinner was incredible - for the main dish, my friend Johnny made coconut chicken which is probably one of the best things I've ever tasted. I made rice, beans and guacamole and Johnny made two different kinds of salsa. Everyone brought side dishes as well, and there was enough wine to get a small town reasonably drunk. We celebrated until 5AM when half the guests went home and the other half fell asleep on my various couches. When we woke up the next morning (afternoon), there were no presents from Santa under my tiny little tree, but we all went out for lunch and met up later for an evening of ice-skating... and I didn't fall once! Of course I missed my family a lot, since this is my first Christmas away from home... I think all my friends felt that way too, though, so we stuck together and had an amazing time.

After the Christmas festivities had completely died down, I found myself with an empty house, a case of the holiday blues, and absolutely no responsibilities whatsoever. So, my friend Susan came over for a cocktail party. Of course, by cocktail party I mean dressing up, listening to jazz music and drinking White Russians and fruity cocktails - just the two of us. It was a perfect (and admittedly, strange) cure for our holiday homesickness.
I spent the next few days with Kelly and her two visiting American friends, Bayard and Jake. We played cards, watched James Bond, and then took a day trip to Modena. Modena is most well-known for its balsamic vinegar, which as I should have guessed, means that there's not very much going on in Modena. It was a really fun trip, though, and I got to see lots and lots of vinegar in bottles of all shapes and sizes!

This is probably the most "happening" piazza in Modena:When we got back to Bologna, we went out to dinner at my favorite local trattoria, and had Bologna's specialty - pasta al ragu, also known as meatymeatymeat sauce. This is just one of the reasons I prefer Bologna to Modena. (Of course, since coming to Italy I've gotten into the habit of judging a city based solely on its food!)

Christmas comes to a close here, with a full belly and good company. It's incredible what good friends and a little hearty meat sauce can do to lift a girl's spirits.