NancyandJohn in Oz

I was not going to blog today but such a weird thing happened today that I cannot help but share...IF for no other reason than to make others aware of what happened to us. It was about 9:30 a.m. on a Sunday morning and we were walking along Via de Cola de Rienzo headed to Ponte Margherita and the Piazza del Popolo, kind of retracing our steps from our first day. It was warm but there was a nice breeze and there was very little traffic of any kind. We figured that the earlier the better....and OKAY we SMACK of TOURIST! Seriously, we are camera laden, map carrying, English speaking standouts. But in Rome there is a lot of this and frankly, we don't care. We feel pretty confident here now and are able to tell ... read more

Last night we ended up skipping mass, there were so many people and it was so hot so we waited for mass to finish then we, like all of the other locals, stormed the food line which was just a random line that everyone butted in on. I think I nearly took out one of the nuns in my quest for a kebab. The food and wine were both free and endless but getting the food was rather an adventure so we had very little of it and then the band began to play and the dancing started. I lucked out and Nona the 93 year old grandmother was my partner! That old gal can cut a rug for sure! She was going great guns even by the time we went to bed. Under the stars ... read more

I think I left of just as we were about to have our first cooking lesson. This was so fun and such a great learning experience. We started with an antipasto or appetizer of eggplant wrapped in cheese and covered in a marinara sauce--all made with locally grown produce. This was outstanding! Then the 93 year old Nona came to the kitchen and she saw the fuss and she wanted IN! She started to make her own pasta, she rolled it into long slim sticks and then cut small pieces off of this, she then took a butter knife and swiped the pieces to make a shell which she then flipped over her thumb and popped onto a cookie sheet. After watching her very carefully for awhile I asked if I could help make some so ... read more

I have but a few fleeting moments to write something that will capture the heat, beauty, history, complexity, charm and fabulous-ness that is Italy's Tuscany...just come for yourself and if you have been do yourself a small favour buy a bottle of GOOD Chianti region wine...perhaps something that starts with B...(yes, a fortune but so worth it!) and indulge your memory of your own time in this little bit of greatness. These last few days have been really lovely. HOT, but lovely! sigh...shopping in Florence, wine school in Tuscany...how can a girl complain?SHE CAN'T!!! First of all Florence is quaint, the shopping is GREAT, the art is GREATER and the wine and food are nothing to complain about. But our time at Tuscan Wine school was fantastic--we shrared that with 5 British men about 30 years ... read more

Today I am tired we stayed up WAY too late last night drinking wine and enjoying Venice at night. What a great city. John is still upstairs in bed but here I am in the dining room having coffee and trying to wake up. God knows why? Yesterday was fantastic we just wandered and then around 11 we decided to buy this 36 hour pass for the water busses. So, we went out to Lido, all along the Grand Canal and finally out to Murano. We got off to take photos and gawk a few times but made it a point not consult the map or guide book too much and just enjoy this great place. It was a good decision. Murano Island was interesting we stopped there and watched glass blowers at work. Once place ... read more