Kathlene Napolitano

Day 5

For my group we basically had a free day. We did the cooking lesson on day 2 after our trip to Nervi. We didn’t get the free time there so for Day 5 we decided to go there. We got to spend the day enjoying the sunlight and had lunch near the water. It was a lovely day and was super enjoyable. We didn’t do much else other than that.

Day 6

This was my least favorite part of the week. Mainly because the food was not what I would’ve expected it to be. However the wine tasting was super cool. I enjoyed being able to taste the wine I have sold in the restaurant I’ve been working in for a while. I was also glad to be able to see where it comes from. I am talking about the Barolo wine we tasted. This being said that was actually my least favorite out of the five wines we did taste. My favorite was the dessert wine. Moscato d’Asti. I knew what to expect with the taste of this one being that it’s my favorite wine. I loved being able to see the distillery and the vineyards and the VIEW was incredible. I was bummed out a bit since it wasn’t the nicest day we have had. It was gloomy and rainy all day, not to mention chilly too!

Day 3 (officially)

Today we got to go to Portofino, San Fruttosso, and Camogli. We started the day early and took the train to Santa Margherita. We had about 45 minutes to take pictures and enjoy the scenery before the boat came to pick us up. We then took the boat to Portofino where we toured the little town and got free time to look around, shop and eat for about 2 hours. Once we broke off I got a panini from a local sandwich shop that was delicious. It had ham, tomato, mixed lettuce, and mayo on it but it was one of the best sandwiches I have had. I then hiked a bit uphill to a lookout spot perfect for more pictures. It definitely gave a view good enough for a post card. The next stop we made was at San Frutosso. This was where we got to go to the pebble beach nd enjoy the nice refreshing clear as day water. Although the water was freezing it was still an experience I won’t forget. we only had about an hour or so here and so it was the only thing we did before getting own the boat again and going to Camogli where Professor Rice left us. As soon as he lefty we went to grab something to eat then spend the rest of our time on the beach there. It was a gorgeous day and very relaxing and beautiful.

Day 4

On this day we got up super early to go to Lavazza Headquarters, had lunch and drank plenty of coffee, and went to the museum of Lavazza. We also went to the city center and had 3 hours of free time. This was the most interesting day we have had so far and probably one of my favorites. I found that the experience we had with the behind the scenes of the factory was super cool. As a kid I watch “How it’s made” on tv and this was me getting that in real life. I love the fact of how we were able to taste the coffee caviar and the espresso and cappuccino if we wanted. Of course I tried all three. Once we had lunch we finished up at the factory and moved over to the museum which was also very cool. I had never been to a museum of coffee before. We had a tasting of another coffee caviar but this time it was paired with a sweet foam. Which elevated the taste to taste more like a cappuccino. Once we finished up there we had one more place to go and that was the city center where we got to do our own thing. we then met back at the train station and went back home. This day was full but fun.

Day 1 (For me)

Saturday May 6th, was not only stressful because I had no clue to where I was it was also stressful because it was the last day of the Hospitality at Sea program. Luckily I was able to get to the apartment a day early so that eased by stress a bit. However getting to the meeting spot from the translation was a little crazy. We did it though and I am so glad to be here!

Day 2 (Day 1 of the program)

Sunday May 7th, was our first official day in Genoa. I was able to meet my roommates and explore the town before we met at Piazza de Ferrari. This is where we meet most days before we start our day. It’s been our “centre.” We met up with the rest of the group around 5:30pm and started our tour of the general area of Genoa. We walked around just to get a hint of where we were and how to get to the main piazza’s. This allowed to me grasp an idea of how to get to and from my apartment. We then went to have dinner at a local Trattoria. That was very delicious.

Day 3

Monday May 8th, was a very fulfilling but tiring day. We walked a lot! We ate good food! And Finally walked some more. Not to mention we also got to be involved in a cooking class! That was lots of fun! At the end of it we were so exhausted that a few of us got on the wrong bus home but still made it back before the others that did not take that bus. It was an experience that I hope to avoid in the future. We made homemade gnocchi, pest, focaccia bread, and another dish that I don’t exactly remember the name of but it had spinach, ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, and egg mixed together that was put in multiple layers of dough. It came out flakey and light. similar to a quiche. Oh and finally we made from scratch; Tiramisu!