So, for our final weekend getaway before the end of our trip, Jamie and I decided to go to Pairs. We’ll be off tomorrow afternoon, and I’ll be sure to update everyone on our Parisian Chic weekend when we’re back in Italy. Until then, à bientôt!
Jamie and I started off our day running a little late to class, but we still somehow managed to make it there on time. The weather today is surprisingly much cooler and breezier than it has been the last couple of days – I didn’t really mind the break from the intense heat! After class, Jamie and I went to go pay for our cooking class that we are taking tomorrow with some of the other girls on our trip. We’re really looking forward to cooking some traditional Italian dishes and re-creating them (hopefully!) when we come home for our families. It’s a four-hour class instructed by an Italian chef who will teach us how to make a full course Italian meal. Antipasti, primi, secondi and dessert are all included, and we get to eat our meal at the end.
After Jamie and I paid for the class, we walked around for a little bit and further scouted out what souvenirs we want to bring home for everyone. With two weeks left in Siena, we’re starting to feel a little bit of pressure to get going on the gifts. After poking around into some shops, we went to get lunch at a pizzeria that had stuffed pizzas (they’re different from calzones). Jamie and I both got a slice filled with prosciutto and zucchini. We then took our slices to the Campo to enjoy. We lounged and studied in the Campo for the better part of the afternoon, and then went back to the apartment to change so we could go to the fortress to run/power walk (second day in a row, I know… impressive!).
Upon coming back from the Campo, I realized I got some sun as well as some pretty awkward tan lines that I’m hoping will fade… Jamie and I made our way up to the fortress around 5:30, did our quick workout and then made a quick stop at Savini for some after-
dinner sweets. This time we decided to try fruit tarts (blueberry and raspberry) as well as some more typical pastries. We decided on Great Hot Sandwiches for dinner tonight – they were just so good that we needed another one! This time I got prosciutto, formaggio and arugula, and it was delicious! The bread was toasted and crunchy, the prosciutto lended its usual salty taste, the arugula added its familiar kick, while the cheese was melted and gooey – overall just simply the perfect dinner.
Jamie and I brought our sandwiches back to the apartment to eat them and then we moved on to dessert. First, I tried my chocolate napoleon-type pastry. Each layer was light and flakey – the bottom layer was filled with chocolate, the middle with a sweet cream, and the top was drizzled with chocolate and a scattering of mini 
chocolate chips. Jamie and I looked at each other and contemplated whether we should have our second pastry now or save it for later… It didn’t take long before we grabbed the other bag with our fruit tarts in them. The dough part of the pastry tasted like a butter cookie that crumbled with every bite. The jam in the middle was sweet and tart at the same time – you couldn’t really distinguish the raspberry flavor, but it was still delicious and the perfect way to get in to studying mode… sort of.
Surprisingly, today was a rather boring day in comparison to the rest of my first week in Siena. But there is nothing to complain about – The city is beautiful, the weather is gorgeous, and I finally have the time to catch up on some sleep! I am going to apologize in advance for the lack of pictures in this post, but still wanted to keep everyone up-to-date on my happenings. The day started off with my regular class schedule, and once again I sat at my desk struggling to keep my eyes open. After class, Jamie and I enjoyed the nice stroll back to our apartment, and took many detours going into Tabacchi stores to further scout out some souvenirs for our loved ones. Once we returned to our apartment we set to work planning our day trip to Florence tomorrow as well as our trip next weekend to Venice. After we felt satisfied with our work, we hit the streets to buy our bus tickets and then went to settle in the Campo to enjoy the lovely afternoon weather.
We sat outside atop the Campo for two hours and enjoyed the suns rays and the light subtle breeze… I also enjoyed some gelato. This time I went for cantucci, which is just another name for biscotti. It had a nutty flavor with a light, sweet undertone. Once Jamie finished her own blog post, we went in search for cannoli’s, but were disappointed when we discovered that our light and creamy pastries (maybe not so light, they were drizzled in chocolate) that we saw in this particular pasticceria the day before were gone. We came across another shop that had mini cannoli’s which we sullenly bought… there was no chocolate involved in these.
We returned to our apartment and relaxed for a bit before we put a pot of pasta on for dinner. We ate and finalized our plans for Florence tomorrow, which includes a long list of things to do and places to eat! Jamie and I enjoyed our cannoli’s for desert which excited and surprised our taste buds. The shell was buttery and flakey with a slight crunch that added some texture to the creamy and soft spoken sweet flavor of the cream filling (much different from the ones I’ve had in the States… the cream is usually much sweeter). Each bite melted in our mouths and we were fully satisfied with out last-minute cannoli decision.
