How is it already November?

Last night I received the news that my favorite gelato shop, Kopa Kabana, had closed for the season. I refused to believe this because a.) it does not get very cold here, b.) tourists never go away so gelato never goes away, c.) it can’t close. where else am I supposed to get my fig & ricotta gelato? or my “lovers” gelato, or my black chocolate cherry gelato? This gelato shop has the best and most interesting & well-chosen flavors in Siena, the cheapest prices and the biggest portions. They make my life a better place. I go there at least a couple times a week.

Determined to discover the answer, this morning I put on my boots and a sweater and made the trek across town to Kopa Kabana only to find a sign on the door explaining that the shop has been closed permanently. I walked back home and stopped at my second favorite coffee shop and bought myself a latte to cheer myself up. This coffee shop is located in the piazza and you can climb up some stairs and sit on a balcony over-looking the piazza if you’d like. It was a very nice day out today & it was a nice place to be. I almost even forgot about the gelato fiasco. That first photo was taken on that balcony today.





Here are two photos I took out my window today. The first is of the flowers on the balcony next door and in the second you can see some of the Christmas decorations that the town put up. You can actually see the piazza in that photo. Its right at the end of the street.


Yesterday I took a day trip to Florence with my friend Helen. We spent most of our time in the Uffizi and most of our time there in the Botticelli room. I spent most of my time in that room staring in awe at Primavera and The Birth of Venus. It was so overwhelming and beautiful and they were so much larger than I had expected. We climbed Brunelleschi’s dome, which I could write forever about by itself - that dome is incredible, and saw the Ponte Vecchio also of course. Florence was wonderful!



It also just so happened that they were having a festival to celebrate the newly pressed olive oil. Which meant that we got to taste a million versions of that bright green olive oil that tastes kind of tangy and almost spicy and so delicious. An older American couple next to me at one point were not fans, “Why is this so green? … Why isn’t this yellow? … This tastes funny.” Tourists like that are the worst.

Now I need to write a 12 page paper analyzing Dante’s view of women. Actually, this blog was written as a way of putting that off. But yes, contrary to popular belief I really am in class here, not on vacation. Although sometimes I forget that.


After writing this blog I received news from my roommate who has lived here for a few years. She claims that Kopa Kabana will reopen in February and that they will give out free gelato on that day. I must have misread the sign, thank goodness. In February I will throw the biggest gelato party this town has ever seen!