Free Day plus a Performance

Today, we all headed off to the train station to get our tickets for the 3 days we would be on our own. This was definitely an experience. Some of the kiosks didn't work while others didn't have the destinations we needed. To say the least, the morning wasn't a peaceful one. Standing in lines while it's scorching hot outside and going into the task blindly was disastrous. Eventually we just bought what tickets we thought were right and could find.

After that 3 hour struggle, lunchtime was nearing and everyone just needed a break. Paige, Gabbie, and I settled on heading back to the Piazza Del Mercato again. It was just too much fun and now that I knew my way around a little bit better, it was a different experience than my first encounter. I ended up buying a couple of balsamics that we had tasted yesterday along with some dried fruit (mango, pineapple, and strawberries) while Paige and Gabbie grabbed food from the food court downstairs. We decided to sit down in the heart of the madness and just people watch. It was crazy loud and overwhelming! There were even security guys walking around simply keeping another eye out amidst the sea of people. After lunch, we headed back to the house to cool off and chill out. We didn't have anything planned until the Medici play at 5:00 so we just hung around the house and updated our blog material, organized all our purchases, and then hit the town again.

For dinner, Emily, Abby, and I went to this Asian restaurant called DimSum, close to All'Antico Vinaio. I hadn't stumbled upon many places with much diversity in their food choices so I think we were all pretty excited to sink our teeth into something that wasn't pasta, prosciutto, or pecorino cheese. I ended up ordering ravioli classici which was steamed dumplings stuffed with pork and spices. With our dinner, they served jasmine tea which was a perk considering most of the places we ate at just offered still water, sparkling water, wine, and a small selection of carbonated drinks. They presentation was very pretty and the although I only got 3 dumplings in my order, it was the perfect amount. They tasted like any regular dumplings you'd have in the United States. I think we just enjoyed the mix up of cuisine and scenery.