Italian tip #4

when on study trips, i think it is important to try everything, even just a bite, but do not, whatsoever, if you want to maintain your sanity and waistline, eat everything on the plate. all of the food is important to the people and the culture of the area and every place that we go to is proud of their heritage and to serve you their traditional dishes. that means, when we are on a study trip and learning about the local area, we are going to have the same local cheeses, meats, seasonal vegetables and typical dishes at most every place, most every meal of every day. in this way, you will get a good sense of the area as well as slight variations of the culinary preparations. i like to try everything just to taste it, but self control is critical.