Here are a few more Italian Lifestyle shots... I especially like the one of the couple...  so  sweet...  such look of adoration .. taken from a rooftop cafe overlooking Piazza del Republica in Firenze...  they have no idea anyone in the world is there!!.. then again neither did the fishing lady ;)

Pheww...  three days away from the internet and I am feeling behind...  so  here are some pics from my three days in Sardegna...  the pictures speak for themselves... beautiful beautiful beautiful...  

In a nutshell... a little bit of time at the fancy-schmancy resort, some fun times at the beach, picnic on volcanic rock along the water, hikes along tiny non-existent trails, discovering little coves, driving along Oleander lined country roads... and I'm sure you'll wonder about the pic with the cows. . THERE WERE COWS ON THE BEACH... then we were Back On the Boat!!

Hey there.. .what a day/night... drove to a beautiful lake town to pick up "the band". Our reason for going to Sardegna was to hear Amana Melome ( a great friend of mine from LA) play with her band... and take a few days at the beach too.. .of course..

We get to the dock ... load on to the boat (16 hours I might add) . .and besides the food (which left much to be desired) it was quite nice .. beautiful photo ops...  but THEN.. .we get stopped on our way off the boat by the Guardia di Finanza...  no need to fear.. I think they just wanted to chat with three girls!!

Now sitting at the resort before Amana goes on...  should be a fun night...  will hopefully get to the internet tomorrow  but its been a bit difficult here!!

Ciao to you all

Love,
A

Yesterday I left Firenze (boo hoo... definitely not enough time-but hopefully will be able to return again soon)...  but no tears fell for too long before I arrived at Monte Poni, my friend Dierdre's amazing villa outside Panzano & Greve in Chianti... I spent a couple hours yesterday just sitting at my computer (working just a little) staring out the door at the rolling hillsides and beautiful villas.

I awoke at La Gaia (Nadia's parents rental villa) to birds singing and the golden sunshine.  We then hopped on the back of her scooter (man I love that thing) and went around the city, walking to old streets, getting coffee...  and fixing my camera...  my lens dropped and needed a little "medical" attention.. (photographers beware a few of the pics may cause your stomach to turn... it HURT to watch them pound away  at my lens with a chisel... glass flying everywhere..it al ended up okay though.. pheww).  we then met D for a lovely lunch ... on our way out of town I made her stop at my FAVORITE place in Florence ... its just up from Piazzale Michaelangelo (away from the tourists)... there is a bench I used to sit on, write in my journal and think about life...  it is the most amazing... peaceful view of the city... 

Okay... so I am sooo frustrated... last night I had written THE BEST entry all about how Firenze is in my heart... what I learned about life living here 11 years ago... and on and on and on... maybe a little too much ... and then my computer died... and I lost my adapter... ahhhh, well maybe it's a blessing... I did write a bit... and get a little mooshy...  no one probably would have wanted to read all of it anyways...   (it was defintely longer than most entries if you can believe it)

so I'll  just leave it at.. Florence will always be in my heart and this trip just solidifies it more...  I feel at home here walking the streets it makes me stop and take a deep breath and feel alive!

SO a quick recap of yesterday ...  zipping around Roma in Giuseppe's fast little convertable... a beautiful train ride through the country... and then.. FIRENZE  where my dear friend Nadia (11 years ago she took me to get my nose pierced) picked me up and took me to her "straight out of the movies" veranda for a homemade lunch of pasta and wine... a quick tour of the city via scooter...  and then an evening dinner (at 11:30 p.m.) overlooking the city with a group of Italians... discussing life, love, and well... does anything else matter...



Note.. .my impersonation of Eric Estrada  ala CHIPS with my hot scooter helmet ...  and the last pic is a view from my terrace where I stayed...  man am I lucky... not bad for couch surfing.. eh?!?!