T̶w̶o̶ One p̶e̶r̶p̶e̶t̶u̶a̶l̶ ̶e̶x̶p̶a̶t̶s̶ immigrant settling into home country number five.
Anyone have a guess at what today is? That’s right: Fronleichnam*! It just sounds fun, doesn’t it? You know you’ve plumbed the depths of obscurity when even the Italians haven’t heard of your Catholic excuse for a day off of work. Not that I’m complaining, mind you. I think all countries could benefit from the … Read more
Scott was responsible for finding us places to sleep in Tuscany, and he did a fabulous job. For two nights we stayed at Hotel Il Rondo’, a gorgeous bed and breakfast in Montepulciano. Rarely have I stayed in a room so beautifully done. The ceilings had large square wooden beams as is typical in Tuscany, … Read more
The Eurovision Song Contest is coming up this Saturday, with the preliminary rounds on Tuesday and Thursday evening. If you love cheesy euro-pop, you won’t want to miss it. Will the Eastern European countries continue to vote as a bloc and piss off the West, who has been voting in much smaller blocs since the … Read more
My husband and I have never been plant people. Given the frequency with which we travel (and move), plants just never seemed to be worth the effort. My attempts to grow things and keep them alive have been limited to basil plants and the odd oregano. That is, until now. A couple weekends ago we … Read more
So I’ve decided to give up my professional blogs Europe String and Veggie Chic at the end of May. I’ve enjoyed writing for them, but I feel it’s time for me to move on. Thought I’d mention it here in case any readers are interested in taking over… b5media is looking for replacement bloggers for … Read more
After Rome, we rented a car and headed north to Niki de Saint Phalle’s Tarot Garden (a definite highlight) and then continued on to Tuscany. While I’d been to Siena and Florence before, this was actually my first time out into the small hill towns of Tuscany. Now that I’ve had a taste, I can’t … Read more
We had no specific goals for our 1.5 days in Rome, except to eat well and relax. My last several trips to Rome were on business, so it was nice to reestablish this city as a place of leisure. There wasn’t any advanced planning involved beyond the hotel. It was nice. Especially the food. All … Read more
I better get blogging about the details of our Italy trip before I start to forget them… Let me preface this post by saying that I know Italy well. I’ve spent approximately two and a half years in the country. Since moving away in 2005, I’ve gone back many times. But still, my perspective is … Read more
A couple days ago we discovered three burnt-out cars in our neighborhood. Other passersby were taking pictures, too (usually in these situations, I’m the only one with a camera out). Perhaps they were set on fire as part of the May 1st demonstrations? I wasn’t here that day, and I can’t seem to find any … Read more
After suffering through the ridiculously smoky bars and restaurants of Zurich for two years, we were delighted to learn that Bavaria was planning to go smoke-free a few days before our arrival in January. Hooray for going out without coming home smelling like an ashtray! Our initial excitement is wearing thin, though, given the number … Read more