Paris!

We just got back from spending the weekend in Paris. We got in to Paris late Friday night and stayed in an area that reminded us a lot of New Orleans, there was just so much going on! We both agreed that getting a crepe was on the “must do” list. So, we both ordered decadent and unnecessary dessert crepes with ice cream, nutella, and chocolate..personally flambee'd at the table. SO delicious and something you must do when in France.

We were up early the next day and spent the entire morning in the Louvre. After 4 hours in the museum we left, still unable to see everything. We bought lunch and sat in the gardens of the Louvre relaxing..the weather was gorgeous, but the pigeons were unbearable. Afterwards we walked down the famous Champs Elysees towards the Arc de Triomphe and climbed to the top of the Arc through a narrow, spiral staircase. At the top you could see over the entire city of Paris, which was beautiful.

We booked a “spectacle” show for Saturday night and it turned out to be pretty funny. It was a variety show with dancing, music, flame throwing, and comedy. Of course, it was France, so at times it was definitely an adult show….no elaboration is needed there. It was a great night out on the town.

On our last day we went to the Musee d’Orsay and took a cruise down the Seine river as the sun was setting. It was definitely romantic and we had perfect timing with the sunset. By coincidence, when we were cruising by the Eiffel Tower on our boat ,the “light” show started on the tower. We felt lucky to see this from the water, as most people would never have that point of view!

We finished the night spending a couple of hours at the Eiffel tower. After waiting in line, we ended up taking an elevator to the top which was definitely worth it. The views of the city were incredible, especially at night! Champagne was being sold at the top for 15 euros per glass (about $22). Luckily ;) we had brought cheese, grapes and our own bottle of wine, and were able to picnic from the top of the tower! It doesn't get any better than that. It was the perfect end to a perfect weekend vacation in Paris!

Porta Portese

We had a relaxing, low-key weekend in Rome. We walked to the Castle Sant.Angelo which borders Vatican City. It was an enormous medieval castle that we wandered through for about an hour. We have started to enjoy getting lost in places that we tour, and we usually find some pretty cool things. This time we got lost while wandering in the castle and ended up in the square where people used to get beheaded/executed. The platform was still there that people were put on for their execution…it was pretty disturbing to see, but worth it.

This was our first time venturing up to Vatican City, but since we were in the area we bought a panini and ate lunch while sitting in St. Peters Square in front of the basilica. The weather was perfect and it was nice to sit down after walking all morning! Again, the people watching here was key.

We had heard that while in Rome, you can't miss Porta Portese, which is supposedly the most impressive flea market in Italy. So we forced ourselves to get up early on Sunday morning, and couldn't believe how crazy this place was. It was about 1.5 miles long, with everything from baby tuxedos and fake Nikes to plungers.The bartering system is in full affect here and the peddlers are ridiculous, if not a bit obnoxious. David even ended up getting a wallet made of "real leather". I can’t even imagine how crowded it gets during Christmas time. One more thing checked off the list. Next weekend it’s off to Paris!

Hiking the Cinque Terre!

This past weekend we took a trip to the Cinque Terre on the northern coast of Italy. The Cinque Terre is a group of five small cliff side cities connected by steep hiking trails overlooking the sea.(Inaccessible by cars).We took a train to La Spezia, about 4 hours north of Rome and about 5 minutes from the start of the trails. The next morning we headed to Riomaggiore where we started hiking! Definitely was the most beautiful place I have ever been or hiked through. The hiking paths were well kept in most areas, but at times you were literally hiking on trails about one foot wide along a cliff with amazing views...it was unbelievable!

Each town in the Cinque Terre has one section of houses that are literally clumped on edges of the cliffs, and are all painted pastel colors. The Cinque Terre towns are known for their white wine and fresh seafood. Along the trails were miles and miles of grapes that the locals use to make their own wine, and David had every type of seafood imaginable...he was loving it! In Corniglia, the third town on the path we had to climb up 382 steps just to get to the town, picking grapes along the way to snack on…It was so secluded ..and crazy that people actually live there.

We searched for a place to stay for the night and ended up finding a hostel in the last town of Monterosso that was surprisingly nice! After hiking all day, we went out in Monterosso and spent the next day on the gorgeous cliff side beach before catching our train back to Rome. We are so lucky to be able to have experiences like this one!

David started work last Monday and takes the bus about 45 minutes outside the city to his job. (He has really nice hours from 10-6..with an hour lunch in the middle). We have been taking morning runs together to see the city before he goes to work. Gyms are uncommon here and cost about 20-40 dollars per day! Running around the Tiber River has become one of ourfavorite morning runs.

We have been trying to do as much as possible outside every weekend while the weather is nice. Last weekend we climbed to the top of Giancolo hill, about a 1-2 mile hike up to a hilltop overlooking all of Rome.

This weekend we headed to the Beach to get our beach fix before summer ends. On our way, we checked out the ancient ruins of Ostia Antica, a town recently excavated from 65 B.C.

After the ruins, we headed on to the beach. While appearances along the boardwalk are similar to Ocean City, European beach-goers are very different. The people-watching was unbelievable. Even at a family beach, with kids everywhere, clothes seemed to be optional- and being a male wearing a speedo was standard. Women of ALL sizes wore string bikinis or none.I was able to snap a "mild" photo of a guy in a speedo, but didnt feel right taking more. On that note, thebeachwas great and I’d say, one more successful weekend abroad.

Buying Groceries in Italy

In Italy, everyone goes grocery shopping every 2 days or so to keep things fresh and because there is just no space to store things. There are a few well-known open air markets nearby, where we buy all of our produce. The BEST tomatoes you will ever have and you seem to never spend more than $5. All the locals shop here and we stick out horribly, but whatever.

Going to the grocery store for the first time was definitely an experience for us. Grocery stores are only in Italian(obviously), and you pay to use the grocery carts. In order to get a cart to release from the line, you put a euro into the slot. You get your money back when you put the cart back in line with the others when you are done shopping. We looked like complete idiots pulling at the line of locked grocery carts trying to get one loose without paying, until a little babushka came over to save us from our embarrassment and explained the process to us. When we finally thought we had the grocery store figured out, the cashier finished ringing me up, and asked “busta?” (bag?) and then charged me for bags to put my groceries in....

It’s all about the adventure right?

After getting groceries, I made my first Italian meal on our 2 burner electric stove and I was very proud of it! After constant running around, it was one of our best nights together, eating dinner in our apartment, drinking cheap (but amazing) wine with the windows open listening to everything that was going on outside.

Later that night, we went out to Campo de Fiori (the Federal Hill of Rome) about a 10 minute walk from our apartment. People everywhere, one big party in the piazza. Generous pours of every drink. Definitely something to experience and frequent J

Getting Settled In

The transition to the Italian way of life has been a challenging one…that we are still working on! It is definitely a much SLOWER pace day to day. Like clockwork, every day at 1pm stores close for an afternoon lunch/wine break until about 4pm. Then re-open until about 7. I think this improves everyone’s mental health here, and I feel like Italians generally have it right when it comes to minimizing stress in their lives.

Drinking espresso (café!) a few times a day is an Italian way of life that we have become addicted to. If you order American style coffee in bars here, you can count on some doubtful looks shooting your way. Obviously, wine is also a very popular and inexpensive drink here that we love. Its about $4 for a great bottle.And to all the beer drinkers coming to visit, we have found a place to get good Italian micro-brews(who would have thought).

We have been trying to use as much Italian as we know when we are out, and the locals have been very willing to help! We have already picked up a decent amount of vocabulary but still have a long way to go. We witnessed an argument in a bar between a bartender and a woman who were speaking so intently and fierce that we wanted to know what they were saying more than anything. This was the lame motivation I needed to learn more Italian.

Ciao!