Here is my handle, here is my spout

Greetings, I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and are about to ring in the New Year with gusto.

But let’s get to the main point of this post… the teal teapot. I love it! Like really love it. Chuck gave it to me for Christmas and it’s been in heavy use since. This is my first teapot; always had a kettle, but it’s not the same as a cute little teapot. Look at it! It’s so cute and it brews a mean cup of tea too.

“Strange how a teapot can represent at the same time the comforts of solitude and the pleasures of company.” Zen quote

Yeah, I took a cheesy artistic photo of it. So what?

My new favourite store might just be David’s Tea. (Sorry Sephora) I’m thoroughly enjoying their “Forever Nuts” blend right now. It has a subtle flavour of nuts, apple and cinnamon and turns a nice shade of pink.

So this is how I end 2010, talking about tea. Oh well, I might be getting older, but I raise my tea cup to one helluva year. And that’s an understatement! In the last year, I fixed up the house, upgraded the car, went on the trip of a lifetime, saw art that made me weep, learned to not hate the kitchen, and fell in love. That’s definitely a year to remember.

Happy New Year everyone! My 2011 resolution is to paint again. I'm starting to miss it.

Beautiful Christmas bouquet from Chuck.

Oh by golly, have a holly jolly

Yay, Christmas is here! I love this time of year.

My Christmas actually started last week out in the country at my mom’s. We had a wonderful brunch and gave and received some sweet gifts. I got a lot of kitchen stuff this year! Pots, pans, knives, muffin tins, baking sheets and a spring-form pan (I had to ask what it was!).

Then it was off to my aunt’s for our family dinner. I’m certainly blessed to have such a great family; everyone is always happy and there is never an argument. And we’re Irish, French and German! (With some Nigerian mixed in.) Maybe it’s the booze. The one thing I missed this year was my Uncle Hans’ song “Strokin” playing through our formal dinner. Oh well, I guess you can’t get everything you want.

Today it’s Christmas Eve and I will be doing something I have never done before… I’m going to Midnight Mass. As most people know, I’m not a “churchy” person. Far from it. But I’m pretty excited to go since I will be celebrating the holdiay with Chuck. As hard as changing holiday traditions can sometimes be, this one seems like a piece of cake. If it’s anything like listening to monks chant in Florence, I might become a weeping basket case.

Another holiday change… we are attempting to make a turkey dinner tomorrow. And I’m not responsible for the turkey (Chuck is, ha). These next few days are going to be filled with new traditions, and I’m looking forward to it!

I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

Update: Christmas mass was nice, but seriously... too much incense people! I couldn't breathe. Also, our turkey dinner was a hit. We used this glaze and it was delicious. The gravy turned out super yummy too.

It's a good thing

Hello everyone, it's been awhile. I went into blogging overload in Europe and took quite the long break when I got back. Plus, after visiting all that exciting stuff, settling back into normal life just didn't seem interesting enough to talk about.

So tonight, as I was sitting at home doing absolutely nothing, I thought, "hey, how about a short little post to talk about... ah crap, I still have no idea."

Oh wait, I know, I'll talk about my foray into domestication. Cooking and baking to be exact. Yep, you heard right, I'm actually using the kitchen for what it was designed for, instead of just umm... designing it. This is something that I have shunned, ran from, and maybe actually hissed and spit at in the past. Well, no more!

In the past month I have used my stove more than I had in the previous nine years. This is hardly an exaggeration. I have made some fine pasta (with a little help from amazing herbs, oil and fresh pasta straight from Italy), great little asparagus and prosciutto appetizers (after going gaga over them at a friends party), and baked the most delicious granola bars (from a coworker who was generous to share her recipe). It's so nice when people share their recipes with you.

My friend Jen has even joined me and Chuck for a homemade meal. In the past, if visitors came for dinner I headed straight to the nearest take out menu.

Many have pointed to Chuck for kickstarting this latest adventure, and he certainly is a huge factor, but I also think my trip gave me a bit of a nudge too. Going to countries that created such simple, yet tasty stuff, was a bit inspiring.

I cannot believe I am saying this, but I'm actually enjoying it. Hopefully it lasts.

On another note, this week I downloaded the new "Martha Stewart Living" iPad app. It's absolutely stunning. It actually costs less than buying the print magazine and it has so many more features (podcasts, videos, panoramic photos). If you have an iPad, I highly recommend downloading it.

London photos

I have finally started using Flickr. My first photo set is for London.

That's how you end on a high note

Today was a great day in Rome. It was my last day of sightseeing. I'm here until Friday, but tomorrow I'm going to shop, pack and relax.

After breakfast this morn, I walked back to the ancient ruins. I couldn't resist, it's the coolest place. I started at Circus Maximus. It's really just a gigantic hole. But an awesome hole. That's where the chariot races were held and the stands could hold up to 250,000. That's crazy.


Afterwards I went back to the Roman Forum and paid to go in again. The tour I was on earlier this week didn't take us up Palatine hill and I wanted to see the views of Rome from up there. It didn't disappoint. This place is just a gigantic "wow!" After seeing all this I want to watch every movie or TV show on Rome when I get home. Maybe even "Ben Hur." I said maybe












As I was walking back to the hotel I met this really nice guy named Xi Tong who was selling photographs of Italy with an urban touch. I bought two. I'm happy. I have purchased a piece of art in every place I've been to. Have no idea where I'm going to hang all this stuff yet!

When I got back to the hotel I was boiling. It was stinking hot out today with no clouds. I cannot get over seeing Italians wearing sweaters and tall leather boots in this weather. I jumped in the pool when I got back. A nice quick cool down. I'm really enjoying this hotel. (They also make a great Bruschetta with fresh mint. Yummy)

Tonight I went to the Teatro dell'Opera to see their production of "Roberto Devereaux." I've always wanted to go to the opera, what a treat to actually go in Italy! I didn't know anything about this piece, but here's what I figured out:
Queen Elizabeth I loves Roberto Devereaux.
Roberto loves Sarah, the Queen's lady in waiting.
Sarah loves Roberto and is having an affair with him.
No one loves Sarah's husband.
Roberto is put to death.
Elizabeth is distraught about his death, even though I think she ordered it.

The Queen was performed by Carmela Remigio and she was phenomenal. Her voice was sublime. At the end of the performance, when the music was getting more and more dramatic, she had her final solo performance. It was just tragic to listen to. I was transfixed. Then she hit a note of such passion that my heart lifted and tears instantly started streaming down my face. Now that's incredible. Women were sobbing everywhere and the men were screaming "BRAVA!" Yes, brava indeed. That's an experience I will never forget. I'm emotional just typing about it.

One last thing. I'm very proud that I haven't been clipped or hit by a car here. They drive like maniacs and there is no such thing as "the pedestrian has the right of way." I wonder how many people are hit a year? I should google that.

Orchid at my table at the hotel:


Loges at the opera:

Yay, no more sheep herding!

I just got back after my way too long 15 hour tour of Pompeii and Naples. It was my last bus tour and I have to say, I'm not in the least sad they are done. Nope, not even a smidgen.

But before I get to today... I did write a nice long blog post about my trip to the Vatican and Pantheon last night, but my blogger app trashed the post. So here is my short version of yesterday.

I visited the Pantheon in the morning and was amazed. I visited the Vatican in the afternoon and was even more amazed. (I guess I can say that about everywhere I visit in Rome.) Oh, and I bought some beautiful italian boots in between.

In the Pantheon, I loved how the only light is from the huge hole in the ceiling. And it lights the whole place. Cool. What an amazing building.





At the Vatican, I got a private tour of the museum and saw some true masterpieces of Greek and Roman statues and Renaissance paintings. I loved finally seeing the Sistine chapel. I have been dreaming of seeing this piece of art since I was a child flipping through the National Geographic issue on its restoration. A dream come true. It's everything I wanted it to be, and more. I have seen so many beautiful ceilings in the last month, but this one takes the cake. Pure awesomeness.

Another great treat was St. Peter's Basilica. It's ginormous! The art within is so cool. I loved the wall murals made out of glass mosaics. So intricate and exact. Stunning. Michelangelo's Pieta wasn't too shabby either.


Cut back to today... This was certainly the longest bus tour. From 6:30 this morning to 10:00 at night! UGH! The tour was doing three tours from the same bus at the same time so there was a lot of waiting. It took us over 2 hours to get to Naples and then we got our shitty tour guide who was an ass and sexist as hell. (I firmly believe all Italian tour guides are in the "family.") They did a tour of Naples in the bus. Not sure why as they didn't show us anything but garbage and squalor. Then it was onto a coral factory where they tried to sell us cameos (I guess for the grandmas). Then they took us for a lunch that lasted over an hour and wasn't good. I just wanted to see Pompeii!

We finally did get to Pompeii at 3:00 p.m.! WTF. Then they gave us 2 hours to go through this massive, beautiful place that is like a maze. I couldn't stay with our ass tour guide, so I wandered off with a couple from Wales. We tried to see as much as we could in the short time we had. Didn't see much, we needed at least three to four more hours. What a shame.

Pompeii is amazing. (Yes, I realize I say that a lot. I need a thesaurus.) The bodies laying in the position they died in is sad and fascinating. To see a whole village completely destroyed by Mt. Vesuvius and yet completely preserved was quite a treat.








With our time restraint I never did get to see the dirty paintings, statues or brothel! UGH, I hated this tour company.

The nice thing was I had lunch with a lovely couple from Wales, Mark and Carol. I also had a great conversation with a young woman from D.C. traveling with her grandma from Long Island. They were a hoot.

I'm too tired to write more, but I will be back in Canada soon and only too willing to discuss my travels in person. So please ask when I'm back!

Two more days to go.

Listened to these guys for awhile at Piazza Navona:


Nuns window shopping:


This ad is everywhere:


The Swiss Guard:

Walking around in the Eternal City

My first full day in Rome was filled with sightseeing. This place has a piazza or fountain on every other street it seems. It's a beautiful city.

I wandered about the area for a few hours. I started with a walk down Via Vittorio Veneto, the street made famous by the Fellini movies. This is the street that was called "la dolce vita." It's definitely a beautifully winding street full of cafe's and goodies.

From there I found the Trevi fountain and threw two coins over my shoulder. One ensures your return to rome, the other is a personal wish. It's a massive fountain! I then walked to the Piazza Popolo and the Spanish Steps. It was a nice, sunny morning to enjoy my walk.





In the early afternoon I ventured to Villa Borghese, a gigantic park close by. It was packed with people and yet it didn't seem touristy or too busy. There were people walking, cycling, riding golf carts and renting Segways. I walked by a man playing great music on his saxophone. It was a really fun atmosphere.








In the evening I took a "Rome Illuminated" tour to see Rome and it's monuments at night. Unfortunately, this tour was a load of crap. They put you on a closed bus with dirty windows and they sped by every place at break neck speed. Not sure what the point of that was. Oh well.

Here are the only clear photos from this tour:

La dolce vita

Buona sera from Roma! I arrived at around noon today and have already seen things I will remember for a lifetime.


First off, my train from Florence was great. I was a little nervous about the luggage situation as you only have so much space to store your stuff and my luggage is too heavy to lift into a compartment above my head! No worries, I was in the train early enough to get a good luggage spot. Anxiety averted.

I sat with a woman from Australia traveling with her husband and two young children. She told me her kids are learning italian so they thought they would bring them to Italy. Awesome mom! She said her kids are their translators while they are there. Perfect, she's already got them working too.

She was telling me on the train that you need to have reservations to see the Colosseum or you will wait all day in line. Ugh, I'm done with lines. So when I checked into the hotel the concierge recommended a tour I could take this afternoon that would get me in without the wait. Great!

Except... this means another dreaded bus tour with old people that complain incessantly. Everyone was complaining about the walking. They had no idea they would have to walk so much. Umm, hello, you are at the freaking Colosseum! When will you be here again. Suck it up grandpa and relax, or go grab a taxi and find an early-bird buffet. You don't even walk faster than a snails pace on these things anyways.

Ok, besides that minor annoyance. The Colosseum was larger and more impressive than I expected. And I expected a lot! The Romans sure knew how to build things that would last. It's a blessing to be in a place with so much history. To touch and walk around within it is an added bonus.








Look at this place! It's ginormous and kick-ass. Our tour guide was excellent. She really knew this place and you can tell she loved talking about it.

We then walked over to the ancient ruins. It was about a five minute walk. (Oh the horror!) How do you describe this place? It's just one of the coolest places ever. All this amazing stuff was just dug out of the ground. It's crazy that today's Rome is sitting on yesterday's Rome. After seeing what they have dug up so far, you understand why their subway is so limited.





So now I'm in the hotel room, sitting back and enjoying my evening inside. Oh yeah, my room is so nice here. I have a great view of the street with a little stone balcony to step out on and a walk-in closet! With the added bonus of free wifi and a pool. Yep, this is definitely a good hotel to end my trip.


Ciao

Sometimes no plans are the best plans

On my last day in Florence I left very early in the morning to get in line at the Accademia to see the David. The museum lineups in Florence are ridiculous. After waiting 40 minutes I finally got in.

When I turned the first corner in the museum I looked up and there he was at the very end. All five meters of him. David is magnificent! I'm so glad I made it in. The immense size of the statue is shocking. You cannot take your eyes off him. He really knows how to dominate a room.

I sat there for quite awhile just taking in each part of him. The fine veins in his hands and arms are so perfect and look real. The longer you look at him, the more you see. His face from straight on looks serene, then you move a few feet around him and you see his face is almost menacing. Very cool. His position makes it look like he's just about to move. And I never knew he was carrying the slingshot that took out Goliath on his back. (The following photo is from a replica of the David)


I also took some time to see other peoples expression when they first entered the room. It was pretty much the same. Eyes widen, a quick gasp, and then utter silence. How many things do that to so many people? Especially in a city dominated with amazing statues everywhere you step.

Afterwards, I thought I would take a chance at the Uffizi gallery one last time as it was still early and not yet open. I got in the gigantic line and waited with a couple from London on their honeymoon. She was patient to wait and he was ready to split. After an hour of waiting and chatting we got to a part of the line that said it was still a three hour wait to get in. Forget that! I don't want to waste my whole day in line.


So I left and ventured up some steep streets and steps to get to the Michelangelo Piazzale. After all my huffing and puffing it was worth it. The views of Florence from up there are spectacular. It was a bit hazy out, but the climb was worth it.





While up there I saw a man painting some watercolors. I fell in love with one of his pieces of the Tuscan countryside with poppies and daisies in it. He made me a deal and I was a happy camper. Also, another man was playing a quiet electric guitar of some great classic songs. I left after he finished "What a wonderful world."

I then ventured up to the church San Miniato al Monte. It is a monastery that is open to the public. Just as I entered the monks started their prayer time. I sat on some steps and watched and listened to them as they chanted and prayed. It was beautiful and so peaceful. It brought tears to my eyes. I wasn't the only one though. I noticed a young man wiping his eyes too.


Hmm, I think I will take that day over a day waiting in line. Now on to Rome, The Eternal City.

Statues from the Loggia dei Lanzi:








The Mona Lisa's from my hotel (nice tits):

Vineyards, stone villages, gelato, olive and cypress trees. Oh yeah!

I love the tuscan countryside more and more each day. I cannot put into words how beautiful this place is, so I won't. I'm going to attach photos instead.


Today was the day I went to Siena and San Gimignano. Siena is a town that held as much power as Florence way back in the day. Until Florence came in and took it over. Or something like that. I was so busy looking around that my attention to the tour guide went in and out. Nothing new for me.

The piazza in Siena is cool, it's shaped like a shell and it looks like most of the town circles around it. If I had known how beautiful it was, I might have stayed there instead of Florence.

We had a tour of the church there. Or what's left of it. At one time, it was larger than St. Peter's Basilica. Now, only one wing is still intact. It has Michelangelo and Donatello statues in it. The floor will make your jaw drop. It's all inlaid marble with the most amazing scenes. Thank god they don't let you walk on it.





After our tour, we had awhile to lunch and look around. I had a nice lunch on the piazza and then wandered around. With gelato of course! I mean look at this stuff! How can you resist?


After Siena, we drove to San Gimignano, a small medieval town that is still mostly intact. It was just awesome. Oh, and I had some gelato there too! I had to, they have won awards. It was good, but it wasn't as good as the one I had at Vivoli in Florence.


There were many stuffed boars in San Gimignano. They all had funky things going on. This one was wearing a hat. I saw another that was eating a piece of corn on the cob. Silly town.





On the tour I met a nice woman from Argentina. She's traveling with her parents to help them out. She started in London and has done almost the same trip as myself. We talked about how we are 20 days in and are a little homesick. It's true, I miss home, but I am also enjoying myself immensely here. We laughed at what a hard problem that is to have. ;)


I cannot believe I only have a few days left. It's been a long trip that seems to be flying by. I'm really excited to get to Rome. I want to finally see this "outside museum."