Month: September 2013

day 6 – a day in camogli, italy

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Genoa is a good base if you want to explore the Italian Riviera. (In my opinion anyway). So, I included the destination on this year’s trip to Europe to do just that. After a stormy day in Lake Como, (a day trip from Genoa) we loaded up on esspresso and pastries and got on an intercity train for a half hour journey to Camogli from Genoa. A fishing village I haven’t been to for over 15 years. The easy going small town, adorned with charming pastel colored buildings, put me at ease right away and I had a difficult time leaving the place to catch the last train back to Genoa for the night. I can see myself spending at least a week, if not more there, simply existing, eating focaccia, plenty of fresh seafood and rum balls, in between napping and oh yeah simply existing. 🙂

day five – genoa bound

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Two days in Rome is plenty of time for anyone who’s been there many times. So after 48hours we took a train to Genoa. A city I use as a base when I want to enjoy the Italian riviera. The weather prediction for day one was rain and thunderstorms, hardly a good time to lay on the beach. So we took a day trip to lake Como instead and spend the entire day leisurely walking about the small town after taking a one hour bus ride to Bellagio first to have lunch at our usual eatery tucked away in a neighborhood not frequented by tourists. I don’t recommend day trips to Como from Genoa but it is something easily done from Milan. Anyway being a seasoned traveller helped and we accomplished seeing e an unplanned destination thanks to the not so pretty weather in Genoa.

Day four -piazza navona or bust

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Rome, crowded, muggy, sticky hot and yet I was determined to spend two days touring the chaos. I say that lovingly. My main objective was to see every tourist site in one day and spend day two taking in all of piazza Navona and that thought process worked out perfectly. I spend an entire day from sunrise to ten at night in piazza Navona, studying every nook and cranny of the romantic neighborhood. Stay tuned to hear more about it soon. In the meantime photo photo photo:

day 3 – under the tuscan sun revisted

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I’ve wanted to see Cortona for years, even before the book/film Under The Tuscan Sun put the quant destination on the map. But the reason I haven’t done so, is because I Had a list of places I wanted to visit in a particular order. Well, this year, after finishing my novel (waiting for the publishing company to finalize), I felt the need to include Cortona in my annual trip to Italy, just to pay homage to a story which inspired me to write mine. I wasn’t disappointed, but I do have to say I was surprised to discover, how beautifully small the town was and how breathtaking the view. It is certainly worth adding to your list of places to see, if you haven’t already. {I apologize the internet is very slow in the hotels and thus, cannot seem to connect with everyone through my blogs}

day 2 – love affair with venice, italy

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I’ve had a love affair with Venice for more years than I care to mention and if I could I would see this ‘eternal’ city every chance I get. Of course the fact, George Clooney was in town for the Venice Film Festival also helped. By the way I could upload over 200 photos to share, but the slow internet service in my hotel, doesn’t even allow me to use the service like a truly spoiled American, who is so used to having a fast internet service back home. (I say this while cracking up). After all I am on holiday and perhaps I should start acting like I am.

day 1 – florence by nightfall

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We arrived in Florence at a little passed four in the afternoon on Sunday, to the city winding down from the weekend. After checking into our hotel, we decided to walk from our place of stay near the Santa Maria Novella train station to Ponte Vecchio, just so we could tire ourselves enough to fall asleep. We wanted to get adjusted to the time difference as quickly as possible. It was clear, the tourist season was beginning to wind down. The stores were closed, the tourists too few, hardly any students left in sight and the locals mostly ‘adorned’ the streets, while taking their usual Sunday afternoon stroll with their families. Everyone was either eating a gelato or standing in line to order one at a number of gelato shops along the way. As I leaned to look over the ledge at the quant restaurant tucked on a man made grassy patch alongside the Arno river, I heard music echoing from the famous bridge not too far away. After bearing witness to a surprise birthday …

no ordinary recipe: orange fennel cake

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I probably make a pit stop at Starbucks at least once a week, to treat myself to a shot of no frills espresso and a low-fat lemon mini loaf. The combination is amazing. Zesty lemon, not too much sugar, paired with coffee all black. So, you can imagine how excited I was to discover this amazing recipe – using mostly orange zest to create a similar cake I just cannot resist. Toasted Fennel & Orange Morning Cakes (makes 6 mini bundt cakes) 3 cups finely ground almond flour, packed ( I used Honeyville) 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp baking soda 1 1/2 TBS fennel seeds 3 eggs 1/4 cup whole milk yogurt 1/4 cup honey 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 1/3 cup fresh orange juice zest from one orange Preheat oven to 350F and grease your mini bundt pan. *You may use a muffin pan but note that the baking time may vary. Heat a small skillet over medium heat. Toast the fennel seeds until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Crush or chop fine and set aside. Combine the almond flour, salt, …