Day 9 – To the Chocolate Factory We Went!

Tuesday, July 10th

Chocolate Factory Day! I wish I was more excited, but I’m not a chocolate person! Unfortunately, not being a chocolate person is not tolerated around her with all the chocoholics! Music and chocolate go hand in hand, so I must be an exception – a musician who “doesn’t do” chocolate. We had to wake up really early this morning to make the 8:00 bus – which came late! With standing room only, the bus ride seemed super long. Many of the younger kids got dizzy on the way, including Maxim and Jason (who really gets carsick!).

The tour was preceded with a quick documentary video on how the chocolate is made. Close up images of melted chocolate and the like were filmed, activating the salivary glands of many a viewer. A tour guide then took us to the museum portion of the tour. There, we learned the basic history of chocolate and the Perugina brand.

In the 1980’s Perugina was bought out by Nestle, so the factory, on top of producing the famous Baci Chocolates, also produces other Nestle products. We were given chocolate samples and got to see the conveyor belts in action – millions of little Baci chocolates piled into crates. Oh, if only I was a chocolate person! The factory made loads of money today… I can’t count on my 10 fingers and toes how much everyone bought at the gift shop! Was I the only one not in a chocolate frenzy???

Dinner was had a nice restaurant called El Cantante. The restaurant was located just adjacent to the main Piazza. At first I was upset that we had to walk those stairs of death to get some food (I was starving!), but I guess the pizza was worth it. The location was also very beautiful as it was just perfectly lit AND our waiter spoke English!

Day 9 Fun Tidbits:
  • Don’t use handicap bathroom stalls – the seats are much too big!
  • Did you know that the factory received a world record in creating the BIGGEST BACI? It took only 4 hours for the public to gobble it up!
(Marina Nebro)

Also read…
Day 8 – Some Sights Outside of Perugia
Day 10 – Another Concert Night!
Great Neck Music Conservatory Visits Italy!