Friday morning, we woke up, stopped at a local bakery, and had a couple of pastries for breakfast. We re-grouped with my parents at the hotel, and we had some more breakfast. The food never seems to stop here!
We relaxed a bit, and about 11, Megan and I decided to just explore the city of Sondrio. It was quite an experience because, Sondrio is not a tourist destination. It was guessed that we (those of us in town for the wedding) were the only Americans in the whole area. We got a few strange looks from the locals, but it was a relaxing time. We wound around old homes, crossed the river, and passed by small out-of-the-way cafes. The Italian locals went about their daily business. As it approached 12:30, the streets started to thin, and the whole town kind of died. Italians, like the Spanish, celebrate the siesta. Shops close, people stop working, and children leave school to go home for lunch for about 1-2 hours in the afternoon. At about 2:00, we headed back to the apartment to get cleaned up for the wedding. At 3:45, we gathered and headed over to the town library for the ceremony.
Alright, some explanation and description of an Italian wedding is necessary for you to understand what happened. First, Ron and Alessandra wanted to have a relaxed atmosphere for their nuptials, and they definitely achieved that. Plans were being improvised almost up to the point that the bride stepped into the room.
A traditional Italian wedding, as ironic as it may seem, is almost devoid of pomp, flair, and ceremony. The whole process lasted maybe 5 minutes. The officiant was Sondrio’s mayor and took place in a beautiful room in the town library. In an Italian wedding, the guests stand while the bride, groom, and witnesses sit at a table. The room was maybe 20 feet by 30 feet. The guests crowded around the perimeter of the room, Ron and the witnesses (2 men, 2 women) waited at the table, some romantic music was played on an iPod, and the bride walked in. They all took their seats. The two female witnesses said some things. One said it in Italian, while the other translated later. Then, the mayor read his piece in Italian, and Ron somewhat struggled to say “si” at the appropriate times. It provided some lighthearted humor and levity to the process. Alessandra said “si” a few times, and preto they were done. We filed out, threw rice at them as they descended the stairs, and caravanned to the reception restaurant.
Of the trip so far, this would have to be the highlight. It is a shame because of all the great things will still have scheduled for the remainder of the trip, I am not sure anything can top that night.
The reception was held at a restaurant on a hill overlooking Sondrio that was surrounded by vineyards. It views were simply amazing. Whereas the wedding ceremony seemed to be instantaneous, the meal went on and on and on…
When we first arrived, we sat outside, enjoyed the view, sipped some cocktails, and engaged in conversation with other guests. This was probably close to an hour. Then, we took some pictures and watched Ron and Alessandra cut their wedding cake, It was a bit out of order, but you will understand when you read the rest of it. They needed to take advantage of the sunlight…
We then were ushered into the dining room where Megan and I grabbed some seats that faced the window. The whole meal was seven-courses. We started with a sampler of different Italian delicacies and local specialties. We had deep-fried stuffed zucchini flowers, meat-wrapped goat cheese, fatty bacon topped crusty bread, vegetable roll, buckwheat-battered deep-fried cheese cakes, and figs stuffed with salami. After working on those for at least 30-45 minutes. They brought out the second course which was cheese-pear-pasta dish and blueberry dumplings with hazelnuts. (These dishes were probably our least favorite, but they were still interesting.) Then came intermission number one. Everyone got up from the table, went outside, and enjoyed some conversation. The intermission lasted at least 45 minutes.
We then reconvened inside where we had the tastiest portion of the meal. It was thinly sliced beef grilled over a fire on a large spruce stick. When I say large, I mean at least 18” long and 3/4” in diameter. You picked it up and ate it like corn on the cob. They also served a small side plate of cooked vegetables and potatoes. Then, intermission number two. Everyone got up and repeated the process. More conversation and relaxation. During the meal, Alessandro, his wife, Alessandra’s sister, Megan, and I were swapping stories and information about the different cultures. We were floored about their extended lunch hours and late bedtimes, and they could not believe that we got up at 4:30 in the morning to go to the gym and had less than 2 hours for lunch. They told us that they usually begin dinner around 9 pm, and their jaws dropped when I told them it was unusual for us to not be done with dinner by 7. It was an excellent time, and we learned quite a bit about each other.
After the second intermission, we sat again to try a variety of local cheeses. Some were palatable, and some were a little strong for both of our tastes. All the while, everyone is drinking red wine that was specially bottled and commemorated for this occasion. It was a limited run of this particular variety, and it is not scheduled to be repeated. The bottles all have special labels, and each guest left with one. We even drank it, even though we are not wine enthusiasts.
After the cheese, we had the tastiest torte (their wedding cake) called “Thousand Layer Cake.” We were given champagne, and people occasionally busted out calls of “Vive la Spouzzia” (Cheers to the bride and groom!). After torte, they brought out a particularly strong Italian alcoholic beverage. Megan and I tried one made from distilled blueberries. It only resembled blueberries in color…the taste and smell were more akin to paint thinner. I have smelled stuff less pungent than that, and they have warning labels. We sipped a little, nearly gagged a lot, but enjoyed the company. At about a quarter past midnight, we finally said goodbye and were shuttled back to the hotel. In sum, the reception—that included no dancing, no toast—just eating, drinking, and talking—lasted nearly seven hours.
We feel very fortunate to have experienced this because this is not your typical tourist experience. We got to see authenticity and experience it. Everyone had a great time, and we wish we could do it again in the future.
Back to the present…as it is getting on midnight here, I am going to post this and sign off for the evening. We are going to be starting early in morning. We will spend the day in Florence and head to Rome in the afternoon. Soon, I will detail our trip into Florence and our evening wandering.
We will reserve some portion of the judgment, but our initial feeling is that Florence is a huge disappointment and pretty disgusting. A full expose of why we think this will be forthcoming. However, we want to hold back the negative flood waters until we give it a full chance when we get to see more tomorrow.
Until then,
Ciao.
No comments:
Post a Comment