Fragola, a word you could say to me and I would immediately smile. There are so many things that I begin to think about when I hear the word uttered in it's short and sweet Italian accent.
Fraah•Gol•a
It is almost silly at this point, but the love is real. I fell in love with it to no surprise. I came across it first when I was in France shopping for some late night snacks for our apartment. Naturally my sweet tooth kicked in and I headed right for the ice cream. But if were talking about a dolce that is better than ice cream it is sorbet. Flavor of choice: strawberry——fragola.
But it doesn’t stop there.
The sorbet, like I said earlier, was to no surprise. I would often eat it on my break at work. I was no stranger to the flavor, and your favorite flavors don’t suddenly change once you land in another country (or continent for that matter). You got to stay true to yourself, and fragola is the truth.
Fragola flavored sorbet soon turned into the fragola flavored gelati at the numerous scattered locations of gelaterias. And for those of you who aren’t sure what gelati is it can be best explained as a creamier, softer, richer version of ice cream. I only had gelati about four times, and like I said in Rome: Day Ten Pt. 1, I had the fragola popsicle whilst on the beach of the Tyrrhenian sea.
That’s not too many times right?
Well if my love for fragola wasn’t guaranteed there, it was at the end of day ten in Rome. It must have been destiny that our crew ended up at Bosco Delle Fragole— translation: Strawberries in the Woods. Bosco Delle Fragole was an outdoor club just behind the CONI Olympic facilities in Rome.
I’m not usually much of a clubber, but this wasn’t my first time, and for our last night in Rome we had to go out with a bang.
...And we did
The Strawberries in the Woods was a great club and my classmates and I had a great time dancing the night away. It was perhaps one of the greatest parties I have ever attended, and with great company at that.
Every relationship I have made on this trip is one that I believe will last a lifetime. And even if I’m unable to stay close with these people, at least we can reminisce on our conquering of Rome and the great times we had abroad. Fragola is the magic word and will be a great talking point with all of my new friends.
From this moment on, anytime I see a strawberry or hear the word fragola my head will flood with great memories of my times in Europe. Who would have thought that a simple word like strawberry could hold such power to it. That is something special, and something that cannot be explained any better.