A piquant Meal and a Lively Afternoon

I had the date marked on my calendar ever since Ms. Neal notified me. The Brown cohort's meet and greet took place at Salute E Vita Ristorante. I was the first one to arrive so I had the chance to marvel at the magnificent view that the restaurant provided.

It was a lovely day. 

Salute E Vita Ristorante

Once we all got there, we took many pictures. We posed in front of the restaurant's sign and greeted one another. We entered the lovely restaurant and  made our way to our table. All the girls were thrilled as to the restaurant's aesthetic. 

The entrance was quite elegant as well

I glanced at the menu and searched for a never before eaten plate. I was in the mood for pasta so I settled for Fettuccine with prawns.  I love soda as well so I decided to order a watermelon Italian soda which was wonderful. 

Heaven in a cup

Delicious plate

Before ordering our main meal, Ms. Neal ordered appetizers which consisted of fried calamari. It was my first time eating fried calamari  and I was not disappointed. I was stuffed already! I kept eating and talking to Gaby. She told me about her family vacation and about a project she worked on which consisted of her choreographer skills. I told her about  how I unfortunately got very sick and had to stay in and rest. 

Fried Calamari

While we ate, Ms. Neal elaborated on the trip. She told us that we will be traveling on train at some point and that we will have to travel swiftly because we are a big group. We are also going to have to discuss with strangers and get the ILC name out there. 

We also got the chance to meet Mary Torres. She was a Rosie and told us to visit her at the national park. It was very relevant since the course we will be taking is based on Women & Leadership. 

When it was time for dessert, I ordered cheesecake with Oreo crust. It was fantastic. 

Cheesecake with Oreo crust

As we prepared to exit, Ms. Neal recognized the owner of the restaurant- Menbere Aklilu. Ms. Neal elaborated on our trip to Brown. Ms. Aklilu was immensely proud of us and even shed some tears. She told us a bit about her story and it motivated me to keep working hard. She  invited us to come again and finally she said good-bye warmly with a kiss and a hug.