History of Agriculture

Just got back from what may be the best class I've ever taken... History of Agriculture, taught by this awesome German guy, Dr. Fischer.  He seems like a really great teacher, and the course material is incredibly interesting.  I already read the first article in our required readings entitled "The Worst Mistake in the History of the Human Race", referring the adoption of agriculture as that mistake.  For many people, the idea that agriculture was a mistake may seem just stupid, and impossible.  But this is something that I've been thinking about for a while, and this article has only further convinced me that agriculture may actually have been a mistake.  Most people who know me probably know that I believe in a paleolithic type of diet for optimal health, and this is certainly in line with that belief.  You may be able to find the article online if anyone's interested, the article is by Jared Diamond, I highly recommend it.  Here's a quote from it I found noteworthy...

"Archaeologists studying the rise of farming have reconstructed a crucial stage at which we made the worst mistake in human history. Forced to choose between limiting population and trying to increase food production, we chose the latter and ended up with starvation, warfare, and tyranny."

So that topic will be the start of this class, and we will move through the history of agriculture up to the present.  I love history and I love food so this will be awesome.  Buono serata!

Apertivo

Just got home from apertivo with some friends... apertivo is something a lot of the more casual restaurants around here do at dinner time, when you order a drink, you get free food from the little buffet they put out.  It's mostly appetizers, but it's still a great deal.  But after dinner, we walked around the city for a while and found this guy playing classical acoustic guitar on the bridge.  He was absolutely amazing, all four of us were just in awe.  I got a couple of videos of him playing, I'll probably post them on facebook soon.  That's it for now, ciao!

Gelato!

The gelato here is sooo delicious.  I don't even like ice cream much, but this stuff I could eat every day.  We met American girls at the market the other day who are studying in Spain for the semester, and they were just in Florence for the weekend.  They showed us the best Gelateria in the city, which also happens to have great prices.  It is heavenly.

Ahh Firenze

Great day today all around... took a train to the beach at Viareggio on the west coast of Italy with the roommates and the other agriculture program girls.  Then came home and cooked a large dinner for the 10 of us, drank red wine, and debated about food.  It's pretty amazing to be able to have a real meaningful debate about food and agriculture with 9 other people.  I dont think I could find 10 people in nutritional sciences at UConn who are that educated on the topic.  What makes it even better is the different backgrounds each of us come from.  For example, one girl grew up on a dairy farm, so she has some interesting views on farming.  Everyone here is definitely passionate about food and nutrition, it's awesome to be friends with so many like-minded people.

In other news, Florence is still amazing.  Classes begin tomorrow.  We've only been here 5 days now, and no signs of hating this place any time soon.  I know the typical psychological pattern.  First you love it, then you hate it, then you accept it for what it is.  It's only been 5 days but I can't possibly imagine myself hating it here.  Everything is great, the food is unbelievable, the people are great, the city is fun and unique.  Everyone here has a healthier view on life.  No one seems overly stressed, people aren't in a rush to get anywhere, they take the time to sit down and eat their food.  In fact, I caught myself walking and eating a panino today when I realized I was being overtly American.  People just don't do that here.  Of course I miss everyone at home, but I don't want to come home any time soon. 

I Love Florence

I meant to get this blog going the day I arrived in Florence, but I guess I was having too much fun exploring the city!  I've been here for three full days now, I am beginning to get settled in here.  I absolutely love it here... the city is beautiful, the people are all really friendly even though I don't speak their language.  It's apparent to me now after living here for just a few days that people in the United States are generally unhappier than people here.  Here in Florence, you can walk into just about any cafe, bar, or restaurant, and the person who greets you will have a smile on.  People just have a better energy. 

My roommates and I met an American girl working at one of the cafes today.  She had moved here when she was 12 with her parents so she basically grew up here.  It was really nice to meet someone who lives here who speaks perfect English.  All of us were so eager to ask her questions about the city, basically all the questions we had wanted to ask someone all along, like the best places to eat and shop.  I think I sort of understand what the Spanish-speaking people in the US feel like when they finally meet someone from their home country.  All of a sudden you just become much more comfortable in a place that is otherwise so foreign. 

Wellllll I guess that is it for now, time for bed... going to the beach tomorrow at Viareggio!