Yep, that's right. There are still green leaves on quite a few of the trees in the Torino area, despite the fact that it's late November, and I saw a couple daisies in full bloom as I got off the bus. It's kind of weird that things are still green and growing here, while back home fall is happening/has happened.
So Thursday I was doing my usual thing: walking a little longer to get a stop farther away from the school than I normally do (exercise is good), when a man I did not know caught my eye. He asked if I wanted to go with him to get a coffee. I said "Non, grazie. Devo tornare a casa" (No, thank you. I must return home). I thought that would be the end of it, but he was most determined. He kept asking, saying it would not take long; we would go get coffee, talk for a while, and then I could leave. I said no again, repeating my previous phrase, but he still didn't want to give up. I finally said "Non posso. Devo tornare a casa e prendere i bambini" (I can't. I must return home and get the children), and started walking off, hoping he would get the hint. Nope, not only did he not get the hint, he started following me. Cue adrenaline rush. I did everything short of breaking out into a run to get away from this guy: I crossed the street, went down a parallel side street. hid behind a column, and ducked into a store. Luckily I lost him during the last two actions, and was able to get home with no further trouble. My adrenaline level took a while to calm down, though. When the mother got home I asked her about this, because it struck me as odd that telling someone I have to go home would not be the end of it. It turns out that saying "Non, grazie" when someone offers you something is similar to meaning "yes" but saying "no". Normally if you are a little more firm they get the hint, but in my case I should have been rude to the guy. Well, next time I will know to say "Non interessa; vai via!" (I'm not interested; go away!). The weird thing is that morning I ended up talking with one of the ticket inspectors on my way to school, but when I told him I had to go he didn't try to keep me or trap me on the tram; instead he let me leave. I know for a fact that my follower was not the same guy.
A little over a week ago I discovered the family's coffee pot. It's not like our American coffee pots where you plug it into the wall, use a filter to keep the grounds from getting in the coffee, press a button and go. This coffee pot only makes an espresso's worth of coffee. In order to make it, you first fill the bottom part of the metal pot with water up to a certain line. Then you put the filter on top of this and add the grounds--no paper. The coffee grounds are almost powder and to get a stronger coffee flavor you need to pack the grounds tightly. Once that is accomplish, you screw on the top kettle. In order to make this, you put it on the stove (the family has a gas powered stove) for about 3 minutes. Once it starts making weird noises, turn off the gas and pour out the coffee. It tastes fantastic, and there's less chance of getting stale coffee three days later. I've taken to making caffé lattés. I'm seriously considering buying one of these little pots to bring back with me. It's an economic alternative to an espresso machine, and the quality of coffee is fantastic.
So I've actually managed to start coming in at under 20 euros a week for the past couple of weeks. It's amazing what happens when you cut out going to restaurants to eat unless absolutely necessary (and to me, absolutely necessary means I'm spending at least 7 hours in Torino, or I really don't want to cook). Out of sheer desperation, I discovered a recipe that tastes fantastic, and that I will most likely keep making even after I get back to the states. It's really simple: take two cups of broccoli, one regular sized tomato, 100 g of pancetta (bacon) diced, and sauté them in a frying pan in the order given. At the same time, start boiling water for the pasta; once the water is boiling, add pasta (I like the spinach and basil fettuccine I found at the store). After adding the bacon, add about 1 cup red wine until the wine has thickened (you don't need flour). Make a small bed of pasta in a bowl, then spoon as much of the toppings (I can make this last two days), and grate some Parmesan over. It has to be my new favorite homemade dish. I eat it most days when I'm at home.
So my mom did something awesome for me: she got me a hotel room for while I'm in London before I head back to the states. This means I don't have to worry about missing my flight--the hotel is right next to the airport. I just get to get another chance to use the London public transportation so I can do some shopping before I head back. =)
To all of you in the United States: Happy Thanksgiving. I hope you get to spend a relatively stress free day with the ones you love. To my other readers: Happy Thursday.
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