The jet lag was starting to catch up to me. My friends had to go to the nearby town San Giovanni Rotondo for an appointment, and they figured we can all hangout there for the time being. Problem was it was at 9am, and we had to get up around 7:30am to start getting ready. Mamma Mia! I don't know how I managed to get up, especially since I had my 10 bottle wine tasting dinner the night before. We got back pretty late and now we're up and at em. The drive wasn't so bad, but I'm assuming it was because the countryside was so pretty to me. We were running seriously late, and as a result, had to wait for the next available time. In the meantime, our little group headed to the Padre Pio church, and decided to checkout the older one first. There were a lot of tourists in this area, all to see the Saint Padre Pio. The cathedral was also a museum as well. We spent some time there learning about his up bringing and admiring the hundreds of mail that were thrown in his vault. We made our way to the newly built church, and what a site that was! Beautiful gold paint were on the ceilings as if it were 14k gold. Vibrant mosaics from the floor to the ceilings. We joined in the slowly moving line to view his mummified body. They mummified him back on the 1970s by the request of John Paul II once they made him a saint. Afterwards, we were hungry since we got up so early and figured it was time for lunch. We made our way to San Marco in Lamis to their local bakery where we bought some pizza to munch on, and some pasteries for tomorrow's breakfast. We were pretty high up on the mountain and noticed the dramatic temperature drop. I threw on a jean jacket and we played around taking pictures of the view. On our way back home I couldn't help myself and dozed off in the car. I was crashing pretty bad. We relaxed the rest of the day and kept the activity light since we knew we had a big night ahead of us. It was the last weekend before the summer concerts series were officially done. They were held in the town's winery. I straightened my hair and slipped into a long black maxi dress and ankle ties wedges. I opted not to bring heels to my trip because I heard about the cobblestone pavements here in Italy. And if that's not complicated to walk on, it's either gravel or broken sidewalks. I really don't know how Italians do it! I didn't want to take a chance and ruin my heels so wedges was the way to go.
We made our way to the big party. It was a great turn out, as it usually is since this summer concert series brings people from other nearby towns. Italians love live music, and tonight's performance was a band that played rock/pop music. Me and my friend walked around and worked the room. People were fascinated by the fact that I was from Chicago. Not a lot of tourists make there way down here. I could see by the look on their faces a sense of pride that I made it to their city. Italians are very proud of their country, and regions. And rightfully so! Every town/city I had the opportunity to visit had their own distinct characteristic and beauty. I enjoyed the company of new friends that evening. Afterwards, a couple of people were heading to a nearby nightclub. I got excited and my friends figured we should check it out for a bit. I truly appreciate them doing this for me, mostly because we all had a long day that day. Off we went to the Vida Loca nightclub! There was a pretty good crowd at that time. You figure it was after the winery party and that was over around 1:30am. It's safe to assume the nightlife gets going pretty late here in Italy. House music was pounding the speakers and me and my friend danced happily with each other. I missed her very much and was happy to see her having a good time.
No comments:
Post a Comment