back from lunch.

disclaimer: on a french keyboard (in italia) which is even more annoying than a german keyboard, so spelling errors will ensue. sorry.

ciao!

here are some thoughts i've had while wandering around rome today:

• italian men dress very well. italian women need to take another look in the mirror.

• i can't quite shake the fact that rome reminds me of southern california. probably because southern california tries to look like rome, but nonetheless...palm trees, pastel and sepia toned stucco buildings, excessive amounts of fur and bad taste.

• i am going to get so fat in italy. pizza bianca is a revelation. ice cream ain't got nothing on gelato. mozzarella di bufala grows on trees here. truffles are my new best friend.
  

• i must ride on a scooter. almost getting hit by one just doesn't cut it. where's gregory peck when you need him?
  

• aperitivo! the perfect antidote to negroni.

• i will never be able to say grazie properly.
  

• tourists are funny. watching them pose for photos may be some of the most insightful people watching ever.
  

• lonely planet is stupid.
  

i think i had more thoughts than this, but i can't remember them now.

anyways, this is my second week in italy. italy is stupendous. i didn't think it could possibly be as great as everyone says, but by god, it is. tuscany has to be one of the most beautiful places i have ever seen. perfect rolling countryside. i've already asked my dad if he'd like to be an investor in my future olive business. all i need is €300,000 for a villa and some land and to learn about olive farming and i'm set. seriously. very much considering giving it all up (all being a very relative term, as i am a soon to be pennyless unemployed fashion designer) and having my very own diane lane/under the tuscan sun experience. if someone can come up with a less chick-lit-y reference for this, please let me know.

here is my laundry list of things and places seen, visited or eaten so far:

• pisa: saw the tower, posed for a goofy photo. shorter than i thought it would be. but it really leans!
• florence: ate gelato, climbed the duomo, saw the david, walked and walked.
• cinque terra and la spezia: ate my first bufala mozzarella, hiked the 5 villages, saw a great sunset, first glimpse of the mediterranean.
• siena and san gimignano: great people, lovely medieval city, cooked for italians, negroni
• perugia: stayed on a fake farm in an epty hostel, got lost in the middle of nowhere and hiked a country dirt road till i found my way, ate truffles
• roma: colosseum/palatine/roman forum, pantheon, best pizza of my life, tivoli, piazza after piazza, trevi fontaine...more to come!

arrivaderci,
sammi