Dinner in Settignano

The woman who runs the villa (and has for 27 years I believe) invited a group of us out to her home in Settignano for dinner one night. Settignano is set up in the hills around Florence. Helen's home is a one-bedroom unit in a building that was once a convent (and judging by the elaborate original plaster work, she had the Mother Superior's room). As she said, convents always had the best place on the hill. Her windows looked out to a view of the valley that was absolutely stunning. Olive groves, villas, red tile roofs, lush green. She made us fantastic food--seafood risotto, fish, strawberries and the best vanilla gelato I've ever had.

More Roman Holiday

Rome is great for wandering. We stumbled upon La Bocca di Verita, or The Mouth of Truth. It is located in the entrance of a church. When you place your hand in the mouth, the legend is (made famous by the movie Roman Holiday) that if you are a liar, your hand will be bitten off. I managed to keep both hands:) Later in the day, I visited the markets and came across a low budget film being shot in a side street. Graffiti is everywhere you turn in Italy, and sometimes it is art, but mostly it is an eyesore. However the "Rome is Home" graffiti I saw was downright charming.

The second night we were in Rome, we went to the opera Lucia di Lamermoor at the Baths of Caracalla, the ruins of what once was a gigantic public bath house. I have never seen anything like it. Breathtaking seems too weak an adjective. Beautiful to see the sun set and a full moon come up there.

Roman Ruins

While in Rome, our group took a tour of the Roman ruins and the Colosseum. Amazing.

Assisi

Umbria Jazz Festival

Wow, I'm getting really behind on my blog. A couple weekends back now, a few kids and I went to the Umbria Jazz festival in Perugia. The day did not start out too hot. We planned this trip on a whim basically. I had five minutes to shower and another eight to run to catch the hourly train into Santa Maria Novella station in Florence. I think I still had shampoo in my hair as I ran a seven minute mile to catch that train. We were quite a sight on that train...red-faced, panting, sweating like mad. Got into Perugia in the afternoon and suddenly realized that the last train back was at 8pm and the music really wasn't going to get going until 7 or so. Hmm, we didn't plan this out very well. So for about two hours we were convinced we were not going home that night. Rather, we would buy hooded sweatshirts and sleep in a park in Perugia. And then we saw the heroin addicts who looked as if they had the same plan. We found a hotel luckily. Perugia is beautiful...it is way up high overlooking the Umbrian countryside. It was amazing hearing live music and having such a great view of Italy. Eventually, we made our way to the main stage to hear the big act of the night which was a Motown/soul singer named Keesha Jackson. The stage was in the main piazza and after awhile, the crowd became huge. And I was picked to go up on stage for one of the songs. It seems wherever we go, one of us on this program gets on stage somehow. The night was very fun, and the next morning, we made a split decision to keep the party going and hop a train to Assisi to see the Giotto frescoes. Assisi is also perched up on a hill. Very beautiful, tranquil, and religious (despite the St. Francis shot glasses available at one shop).

Roman Holiday

Returned last weekend from a trip to Rome. I can't think of a better place. Actually, I can (one without scorching Italian sun, noisy scooters, and horrendous drivers), but that place wouldn't have that character of Rome. I had read somewhere that in the classic film Roman Holiday, there are three main characters: Joe Bradley (Gregory Peck), Princess Anne (Audrey Hepburn), and the city of Rome itself. Nothing is truer...Rome has a character that cannot be ignored. When you go on a trip there, the city refuses to be a mere backdrop to your vacation.
I spent the first day there just wandering and seeing the Spanish Steps, the Pantheon, a health care protest, inside of many little Roman shops, and the Trevi fountain. It is a great place to get lost.