This summer has been anything but pleasant. I know you might be thinking “hey but you’re in Italy, what right do you have to complain.” Point taken but this August 2017, I actually really can – the NYTimes have settled on the name “Lucifer” to explain the phenomenon across Southern Europe. Temperatures have topped 103-105 for a week straight last week in Florence and we only have one portable air-conditioner that I might actually consider asking to be my sister-wife.…
It’s Sunday afternoon and I have nothing to do. This is one of the first weekends where am I actually able to say that. Gone is the whirlwind that was my visitors from Texas, and my obligations for work trips that brought me to Nice, France—the Dolomites, among numerous day trips into the lush countryside where our closest company was mostly the loud chirps of crickets. For now, it’s just Nico, a bored beagle and myself, all clamoring to keep…
Where to Eat in Florence This August 2017
28.07.2017
Ah the arrival of August. For me, it conjures up the image of streets empty of Italians (for th most part) in Florence and a slower vibe. The holidays surrounding Ferragosto, the 15th, being the time when most locals are away on beach holidays or in the mountains as the summer exodus reaches it peak in a land where it definitely used to be too hot to work during this time period. This summer, we’ve been hit by a pretty…
33 Things I’ve Learned Upon Turning 33
13.07.2017
10 years ago, I was in Los Angeles finishing my last year of university and preparing to move back to Italy. I had two jobs, at a fancy tanning salon (hilarious), and at my university’s study abroad office talking to overly-excited students about what a year abroad was like in between shifts of crap work. I dyed my hair platinum blond because someone told me I shouldn’t. I shared a small apartment with the most adorable and patient soul in…
Momio Firenze: Brunch But Not Only
05.07.2017
I have to be honest, it’s been forever and a day since I’ve craved anything resembling eggs benedict. In Florence, it almost feels like brunch was a fad that came and went. After 10 years here, I have become more Italian than I would care to admit. I drink coffee and sometimes have a pastry for breakfast. It’s not really a thing we do in our household though for lunch, avocados often sneak into our meals. When the craving for…
July has arrived and it leaves in its wake the heatwave we’ve all been complaining about for almost the entirety of June. Yesterday, I was actually cold in my house as the summer storms have begun and the city gets a welcome break from the sun’s relentless beating. Florence is full-to-bursting as it is every July, I tend to get up early and wander the Duomo side of the city only then or after dark, a bit vampire-isa, I know,…
Florence is one of those places where you get to meet every kind of person imaginable. I’ve been lucky in the past 10 years to meet some of my best friends; brilliant people, studying, working, or just passing through. It’s a place where amazing minds find their place, so aptly nestled within this city’s incredible history. Often I find that people are already filtered in my favor, with endless amounts of curiosity, eagerness, all with a love to live among…
“Look over there” Nadia pointed out. Her finger stretching towards the window of our van at a hilly landscape dotted with colorful houses, many of which seemed stacked on top of one another. “this is the neighborhood of Ecatepec.“ This, the densely populated suburb of Mexico City, marked as a place both poverty and crime ridden but a place also of richness and culture. It made International news when Pope Francis came to visit in 2016, there he famously decried Mexico’s corrupt elite…
Locals I Love: Lisa Clifford
24.06.2017
This week’s locals I love is someone I truly respect and who I’ve only actually met this year. A bit surprising since Florence is such a small town and you would have thought our paths would have crossed much sooner. However just another reason to adore where I live, it constantly has the ability to surprise you. Lisa is an acclaimed author who’s books The Promise and Death in The Mountains have kept me enthralled, as she delves into the…
Lately, I feel as if life has been passing by with the speed of a Frecciarossa train between work, friends, and play. Obviously I love it, this is the life that I chose but I also love to complain about it, because essentially that’s what humans do. Deadlines have increased as my workload has heavily increased. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but I am still learning how to manage it all and have a life. Like most freelancers, I am…
You know, I often see”al fresco” advertising places outside but is this what Italians actually say to describe eating outside? In case I’m wrong (and this often happens) it is to my understanding that it actually literally means “being in the cool air”. The correct terminology instead for eating outside or declaring you want to is using the phrase “all’aperto,” but no one will judge you (I hope) if you say Al Fresco, just some food for thought (pun intended). With…
Locals I Love: Tommaso Galli
05.06.2017
When I think about couples that I admire in Italy, one that always comes foremost in my mind is Tommaso and Giulia. Both are Tuscan born and raised and run one of the best (my opinion) food blogs in both Italian and English. If that wasn’t impressive if in its own right, quite frankly they almost make it look easy and yet I know how hard it is. From taking superb photos, to running workshops, to making time for themselves,…
I admit my tardiness in getting this personal list of interesting June events around Florence, but I have a good excuse. One of my friends celebrated her bachelorette party this past weekend and my priority was on her happiness and work a close second which results naturally, in the blog getting a bit less love. However despite the fact that June has bull-dozed its way into existence, I am cool with that. The weather is almost uncomfortably warm, to the…
Friendship and One Week in Croatia
01.06.2017
“We are friends for life. When we’re together the years fall away. Isn’t that what matters? To have someone who can remember with you? To have someone who remembers how far you’ve come?” ― Judy Blume The day I met Kat we both had no idea how important we would become in one another’s life. ps. If you’re reading this post just for tips on Croatia feel free to scroll down It was 2005, cue a ridiculous group of exciting…
24 Hours In Taxco, A Pueblo Mágico in Mexico
16.05.2017
Has anyone told you about the buses in Mexico? They’re amazing. Far from the scary “Greyhound” bus tales of my youth in America, buses here are nothing of that sort and often feature business-class type luxuries. The bus stations are clean, functional and well-organized. We checked our bags as if at an airport and were given water and a snack for our easy journey. For our two-week Mexico trip we booked several rides, and from Mexico City for the shortest…
When it comes to “where you can you visit while using Florence as a base” nothing comes more to mind than the city of Bologna, capital of Emilia-Romagna. A quick and pleasant 35 minute journey by fast train from Santa Maria Novella will have you up there quicker than you can say “mortadella” and maybe an hour from that time, you’ll be able to eat some in one of the city’s gastronomic hotspots because this place well known for its…
This isn’t a post meant to criticize Cinque Terre. Liguria’s pride and joy, five towns once cut off from the rest of Italy and reachable only by boat. They are truly a site to see, and if that’s your favorite destination in Italy, who am I to tell you otherwise. For me, it’s a little different. I remember fearing for my life year’s ago as crowds aggressively shoved one another in a crazed frenzy to board the tiny trains, totally incapable…
“This is my favorite” Paolo smiles as he runs his hands over the top of a rectangular box “inside, it represents the gold rush in America, from a female point of view. Many don’t know this but women made a lot of money during this period. Not digging up gold of course, but instead, selling useful things to those who were searching for gold,” he laughs as he slowly opens the box. We peered eagerly inside, the front end of…
May you beautiful beast you. I’m so ready for a little bit of warmth, to put away my thick tights and boots in exchange for sandals and light jackets, though my scarves are regularly on hand because this month is always full of surprises, weather or otherwise. This April has been one of trips (Levanto, Capri, and Naples, Orvieto) and luscious long weekends. It’s one of those months that makes you truly grateful to be a country with so many…
For a girl who has done her fair amount of food tours, I knew I was going to love Rocio’s the second Nico and I rolled up to the pretty corner in Condesa in Mexico City. It all started when she told us about her previous night’s adventures. It involved a bit of drinking, an interesting conversation, a jealous boyfriend and plenty of “honesty hour” conversation which basically had us laughing the entire tour. Her easy familiarity won me over immediately. We hadn’t…
50 Shades of “Foreign” in Florence, Italy
20.04.2017
“Ma tu non sei Italiana, di dove sei?” Italianess “You are not Italian, where are you from?” An innocent question, made typically out of pure curiosity by the person I’m speaking to. Usually, it’s followed by.. “Ma, parli Italiano benissimo, brava” But you speak Italian well, good job” I always wince a little when I hear that for two different reasons. One, I have lived in Italy full stop since 2007, and after 10 years my Italian SHOULD be good…
I remember visiting my friend Emiko in Porto Ercole in 2015 when she was there for a six month period along Tuscany’s silver coastline. Beloved by those in the know, it is certainly not a place as famous as Liguria’s Cinque Terre or further down south, the popular Amalfi Coast. But that’s why I love it. Here, the coastal towns of Porto Ercole, and Porto Santo Stefano in the promontory of Monte Argentario fill up with locals or visiting Italians…
Mexico City is a huge city that feels like millions of micro cities all jammed into one place and to be honest, before visiting, I didn’t know what to expect. Sure some of what I’ve read online is true, it’s chaotic, there’s tons of traffic and pollution is a very real truth. However what surprised me most of all is how awesome of a city this is. Why haven’t I heard more about it? Mexico is a lot of things…
A Reading List For Spring/Summer 2017
05.04.2017
If 2015 was a busy year, 2016 took the cake on that front. So much so, I probably made myself sick by the year’s end by working too much and ignoring my body’s basic need to just rest therefore it comes to no surprise that up until recently I had a nagging cold that still isn’t completely gone today. However, this past vacation in Mexico taught me to slow down, breathe and most of all dive into something I truly love…
Despite allergies taking a toll on my health since we’ve been back from Mexico, I have been more excited than ever about what’s to come in Florence. April is set to be a busy month for those in love with the arts, film festival enthusiasts and those seeking about a pleasant Spring atmosphere (one can only hope) with only the occasional rain shower, which of course won’t damper our spirits. Since I’ve been back, I have been overwhelmed with all of…
“You know, we wanted to open a place where we would like to eat, where we would send our friends.” #NoInsalataSoloBistecca (no salad, only steak) if anything, this hashtag should make you fall in love with this place before you’ve stepped foot though the door. Over a glass of well — more like a bottle of wine with the new team of Osteria della Enoteca on Via Romana [the same location as the ex Santo Graal] and the same team…
Locals I Love: Maria Pasquale
21.03.2017
As soon as I met Maria I know we would be friends. She has a hearty laugh and instantly makes anyone who is around her feel comfortable. A hard worker with a strong sense of self, I have nothing but respect for people like Maria who know how to put in the hours and naturally success comes their way. I’ve long looked at her blog Heart Rome for tips for trips down to the Eternal City and especially her neighborhood…
“So what’s your heritage again?” Caucasian, hispanic..? Um I guess both.. “No you have to put something down.” Um Ok “Other” Sigh …… “You’re Mexican right, I mean your mom?” No.. I think she’s from Barcelona.. “Really.. where?” I don’t know I think some small town outside of Barcelona… …. “Sarah…. Katie…. Allison….Dereck…. and um… George…georgetta, georgina? (the class giggles), sorry what is your name again? It’s Georgette, you know “Georgette with a ‘t’ ‘t’ ‘e’ at the end” Ah…
The first time I’ve ever stepped foot in Teatro della Pergola is when I was a 21 year old study abroad student, sent here by my school to watch La Mandragora (the Mandrake) a satirical play by Italian Renaissance philosopher by Niccolò Machiavelli. At the time, I was studying political science, a rather random degree to pursue in a country in the throws of Berlusconism, or rather perhaps this was a brilliant coincidence. Why, well when it came to Machiavelli, he was also the author of The Prince a…
From Florence With Love, A Personal Story
14.02.2017
I’ll never forget my first week in Florence I was only twenty-one, fresh from Los Angeles on a bustling flight with what would be my fellow students for the full academic year. Upon touch down was our first experience with September humidity and public transportation. We were put into lodging for a week in a small hotel near Piazza della Liberta, deemed a sufficient time to not only find an apartment but people you actually want to live with. I…
A Wonderful 24 Hours In Rennes, France
09.02.2017
There is something about the country of France that I can’t seem to shake; while Italy is home, the good and the bad, over time we find ourselves crossing the border to France I have this overall calm, it’s quite hard to explain. On one occasion of a friend’s weeding last year, Nico and I rented a Fiat 500 from the Paris Beauveau airport (not my favorite) and set off for a week of eating and drinking our way through Normandy and Brittany.…
February Events in Florence, Italy
01.02.2017
Here we are you sneaky little month of February, arriving as you do with rain showers and a beautiful fog– and for me, a ton of deadlines. I don’t know how I’ve managed to overwhelm myself with work and commitments but as I promised my husband this week, one day I’ll learn. Let’s be honest here, January has been quite the month, both for the world and locally here in Florence. I have a headache from everything that is going on…
There is a great risk to the world of art as we know it. In Italy, funding for cultural preservation has always been a little murky. Just last year the EU pulled over 57 million euros for historical preservation funding form Italy over local mismanagement in Sicily, Calabria and Campania. It’s not just Italy though, the USA seems apt to join the path of undermining the arts which leads to a very uncertain future, though I dearly hope that I am…
First of all, mi dispiace (I’m sorry) for the depressing headline, as you know this is a blog, a blog with my personal opinions mingled with life experience after 10 years in Italy. Which is a heck of a lot less than a lot of other people I know here. One thing I really should say before continuing this post is that I am super pro anyone moving to another country, even if for a short time. Anything that gets…
All hail the boutique hotel. You’ve heard it a million times when searching for accommodations while traveling and, it sounds pretty cool right? In my opinion, it’s a term that has been slightly abused in the travel industry. Of course the definition lies in a subjective, personal analysis, though it is to my personal belief that they are meant to be intimate accommodations that don’t feel part of a chain, typically unique in design, preferably family-owned or at the very…