Failed.

Remember the Sproost "Whats your personal style"quiz from last week's post? (By the way I love the fact that my design style is termed "French Eclectic.") Anyway, C took the quiz and his results were ZERO percent ANY style. According to the design experts, his "personal style is a mix of zero specific styles." I found this hilarious. It makes me wonder if his failing of this quiz is strictly because he's a guy or if it's due to the fact that there were no "manly" rooms to choose from with pool tables and dart boards....hmm.

You Gotta Be Kiddin' Me...

Ryanair, Europe's largest budget airline, may start charging passengers to use the toilet. It's kind of ridiculous but their philosophy works I suppose.. Read more here.

Is it Friday yet?

Italian carabinieri (police) "hard at work"

We dont' have much planned for this weekend except tomorrow night I hope to check out a friend's photography exhibit after a work event I must attend. The work event involves aperitivo at a "cutting of the ribbon"-type ceremony at the new Italian studies school where we send students to. Then, we'll possibly have some guys over on Saturday night for dinner and a baseball game. If we do end up having them over, I can guarantee that I will partake in the eating part but not in the baseball part. After filling my belly with some delicious grub, I will make my way over to our computer and go to my happy place while the guys whoop, hoot, and cheer over base steals and home runs. On Saturday during the day, I plan to also play catch-up at the gym, as I haven't been in over a week. Ugh.
Then, I hope to at least narrow down a week that my parents come this summer so I can start organizing and planning their trip. They don't want to visit us in Florence (because they've been here twice already), so we'll probably end up meeting them somewhere. So far, they've mentioned Lake Como, Switzerland, Salzburg, and Prague. They just have to decide on two of the places. I've told them that I'd like to know sooner than later so we can jump on the good deals in case we end up flying somewhere.
Speaking of good deals, today I saw flights down to Sardegna for 40 euro round trip per person. C really wants to go so we might hop down there in July!
I realized after reading about the winners of the Academy Awards that I haven't seen any good movies in a long time and let alone any of the movies that won awards. I saw Vicky Cristina Barcelona but haven't seen any of the others. Slumdog Millionaire and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button are coming back to Florence in a few weeks so I'll have to make sure I check them out then. Buon weekend to you all!

Kids choir in Piazza della Signoria

I forgot to include this video of the adorable kids choir who sang at this weekend's Carnevale festivities. Click on the video to hear these cute little bambini sing their hearts out.

More Carneval....Spanish Style

This is why the Carnevale celebration in Spain is SO much better than the Italian one: Drum lines. Drum circles. The Spanish love music! And they love to dance while playing it!
Street fiestas much?!

I stole all these photos from my Spanish friend's Facebook page and it made me remember how cool Spaniards are and how much fun they are! Granted, I am a little biased AND I suppose I'm not a fair judge since I haven't been to Venice's Carnevale, which is supposed to be the biggest and the best celebration in Italy. But blah blah...

I do, however, have sweet vivid memories of Carneval in Sitges & Barcelona in 2003. I had just met C and it was the first big fiesta we celebrated together. Another thing that these photos remind me of is that fact that Spaniards really know how to incorporate MUSIC and DANCING into all of their celebrations. It's such an important part of the culture and I truly miss that! The other thing they are great about is not taking themselves too seriously. I bet that most of the mean dressed in transi (above) are not even gay! I love that. Viva España! :)

Carnival Craze!!!

Ahhh.. Carnevale. Each February, people from all corners of the world come together and celebrate the week leading up to Lent with street parades, costumes, and masquerade parties. This Sunday was no different as the streets of Florence were filled with ...... colorful pieces of confetti...

.. families......

.. and more families.. (only these are in costumes)...

..a miniature cow and Snow White where even there.....

... I even saw a princess ....

... or two.....

..and those who are still young at heart!!

Drink Wine, Eat Bacon

I promise I'll chill out soon on the home decor entries soon. Whew. But thanks to Design Sponge, I found these sweet and very affordable foodie wall art inserts from Nicodemusgreen on Etsy.

This vintagy one says "Bacon is like a Little Hug from God." Cute.

Sunday Bliss

I adore the weekends. For me, it means I'm off coffee duty and I get a genuine, yummy breakfast on at least one out of the two mornings (well, usually). Yesterday morning, C made some delicious banana pancakes. I took this picture quickly and I have to say that they hardly express the delicousness I encountered when I took my first bite. In fact, the photo looks like I had flat corn tortillas for breakfast! But you at least get the point. They were divine. And just think, we were about to toss those bananas because they were looking a little narly..
After breakfast and World Wide Webbing, I took a stroll to my neighborhood piazza, where I was surprised to see the monthly antique mercato. It takes up the whole piazza and has everything from old clocks to art prints to furniture from the year 800.

I had to take a pic of these unique antique wooden chairs. Aren't they bellissimi?

Sigh. Now it's Monday and I'm at work. And I'm already gearing up for another Sunday like this one!

French Eclectic

After taking the "What is your design style?" quiz on http://www.sproost.com/, my decorating style is apparently 41 % French Eclectic, 32% Wine Country Style, and 27% Traditional Asian. Who knew?

According to the website, French eclectic means: "French Eclectic somehow manages to be both formal and casual, classy and unassuming at the same time. You like your spaces to feel inviting from the moment you (or your guest) opens the front door and this feeling should continue even after you've entered your most formal room. Even though there are French antiques here and gold details there, the rustic country elements provide a balance and warmth that seems to say, "come in, relax and stay a while." Your love of antiques leads you to flea markets, garage sales and hours of eBay hunting."

I like what French eclectic sounds like, if only I can pull it off.

Girly Stuff

Another bridesmaid and I helped organize a surprise bridal shower on Saturday at the historical Palazzo Borghese. The bride-to-be had no idea what we were up to and although I think she was a little suspicious, she seemed genuinely surprised! :) This was our room, the Salone di Buon Consiglio

Girls being silly. The bride-to-be, JL, is in the middle.

JL opening her presents. Overall, it was a great success!

Wild for Walls

I found these fun wallpaper prints on Nama Rococo. They're fun and fresh and add a little funk and flavor to your walls (or inspire those who don't have walls but like to obsessively shop for home furnishings regardless).

Friday Night Fun

Dinner at Le Barrique last night proved to be one of our best meals in a while. And, for the amount of food we got, it was really quite reasonable at only 40 euro a head (including a bottle of wine). I had fresh homemade ravioli filled with beets, served in a creamy truffle sauce. It was absolutely.amazing. Then, I had sea bream fish with sauteed spinach. Chris had an appetizer trio with eggplant parmesan, stuffed artichoke, and marinated onions and then had mixed sashimi as his secondo. Buono. We WILL be going back to Le Barrique. The ambiance was super cozy. We felt like we were at a friend's house eating because the place was tiny and warm. Okay before this starts to sound like some sort of snooty food review, let's move on to the pictures: Me + ravioli = happiness
C's assorted sashimi dish and my fish in the background

We topped off the evening with the Cuban music I mentioned in my former posts. We got to the Jazz Club in time to reserve a table near the stage. The band was awesome- it felt like the four guys were all old friends who have been playing for years. Overall our Friday night was quite.a.success. Tonight, Saturday, will be way less productive as I plan to stay in and do some World Wide Webbage. :)

Six years ago today....

..C and I had our first date. This photo was taken around that time in Granada. We look so different and have grown and changed so much since then. I was almost 24 and C was 26 at the time of this photo. Happy memories. :)

The Perfect Party Detail

Okay, girls. It's time to clear out those junk drawers and get CRAFTY. Check out these adorable accessories for wine glasses. It looks like you can just make one stop at your local Hobby Lobby or Michael's because all you need are some earring hooks, ribbon, glue, and any charm or old earring piece that matches your color scheme or party theme.
Knock the socks off your guests at your next dinner party because these wine clips are too cute for words. They are the absolute perfect hostess detail.

My Piccola Havana in Firenze

I am so pumped. Tomorrow night after we eat at the restaurant I mentioned last week that has great food but awful translations (Le Barrique), C and I are going to check out the Cuban band, Perfidia Quartet at the Jazz Club. They play classic Cuban music and sound a lot like the Buena Vista Social Club. I can't think of a better way to kick off the weeekend!

Sleezin' it to Mallorca

I just saw tickets from Milan to Mallorca on Easyjet (otherwise known as Sleezy Jet) for 50 euro A PERSON total...ROUNDTRIP! Too bad C doesn't want to take advantage of this amazing summer deal. It'd be a perfect weekend getaway in June! This is my absolute most favorite thing about living here. There are countless cheap weekend trips on Ryanair and Easyjet that you just CAN't pass up. Where else can you fly to an island in a whole other country for fifty euros roundtrip? I tried to convince him that the water is a sparkling blue, just like this pic. He doesn't want to go!
WHAT is wrong with him!???? Please try to convince my Love that he is loco for not wanting to go to la isla mas bonita en España. Grazie.

Currently Reading

I just started Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight, an African Childhood by Alexandra Fuller, which describes her alternative childhood in war-torn Rhodesia, Malawi, and then Zambia. So far I'm enjoying it but am only about thirty pages in.

Bicicletting

On my bike ride on Sunday I decided to bring my camera along. I figured I might be nice to capture a few shots of Firenze. After all, we actually had sun and I was in an exploring kind of mood.

These gypsies on the river were eating. Ew.

This is a picture of a mutilated bike in my bike rack that had seen better days. It might be hard to see in the photo but someone completely took apart the frame in order to steal the front wheel. That's why I always use two locks on my bike! People are viscious when it comes to stealing bike parts!

Love vs. Hate #4

Here's another edition of my weekly (or semi-weekly) Love vs. Hate. For those of you who are new, I try to post a regular Love vs. Hate entry which describe the bello and not-so-bello things about living in Florence. So here goes. I love our Teatro Verdi. It's the theatre house of Florence and they always have some great shows! I was dying to see this show in particular "Cuba the Musical," but I think C and I have settled on the Tango show that's next month instead.

I hate the poo that's all over the streets. You can't really tell from this photo, but it's poo that's been dragged along the sidewalk either from a poor man's shoe sole or a hairy culo. If you think THIS is gross, you should be glad I didn't take a picture of a pile of fresh fecal matter, which is the REAL thing that I hate & I find more often than this dragged stuff. But there's just something really wrong with taking pictures of exrement so I won't go there. C and his friends have a theory that suggests that because there is such a large amount of poo on the city streets, it must be because every morning in Florence a poo canon is fired off! Thoughts?

Spaghetti Number Five

Ahhh, PASTA. The sheer sound of the word makes my mouth water. Ask C what I eat every day for lunch and it's always PASTA. I crave pasta and if I don't eat it for a few days I actually feel like a drug addict whose fiending for a fix. Whether it be pasta with zucchini and garlic, tomatoes, or even tuna pasta with corn and peas, I am one hundred percent in love with pasta (especially C's homemade pasta).

When I was strolling the aisles at the supermarket the other day, I came upon the pasta section. If you've ever been to an Italian grocery store, you've probably witnessed this Holy Grail of Pasta Selections. It's almost like any cereal aisle in the U.S. It's so overwhelming you just have to close your eyes and choose. Only here there are literally hundreds of types of pastas and they have to cram all of the top-sellers on the walls of these tiny supermarkets. In Italy you'll find smooth penne, "rigid" penne, ravioli-like shaped pasta of all types of color and sizes, four different kinds of fusilli, plus pasta you never even knew existed.

If you look closely at the photo above, you can see that I settled upon "spaghetti number five." What? There are even measurements of pasta? Sweet! I have no idea what "number five" signifies but I'm assuming it has to do with the size? I haven't eaten it yet but as soon as I decide if I approve of the size of "spaghetti number five" I will let you know.

More Imaginary Home Inspiration

Check out this neighborhood jewelry store's innovative way to store/sell earrings. It's basically a board with holes all over it. One day, when I have a huge closet it will be fun to arrange my jewelry like this, inside the closet. Ah. Dreaming is fun.

Baby Kate

I finally have a picture of Baby Kate. Isn't she a cutie!? I can't wait

to meet both she and Baby Graham!

Cheese and Gerber Daisies

Most girls might prefer roses and chocolate for Valentine's, but I'm not like "most" girls. For me this year it was gerber daisies and cheese!C suprised me on Love Day with gouda cheese and a semi-spicy orange cheese that Ican't remember the name of but is very similar to cheedar. What a treat! Since Italians don't produce orange cheese, getting it involves planning. Any time we make Mexican food or feel the urge for orange cheese, we make a special stop at the Dutch cheese shop L'Olandese Volante (which means the Flying Dutchman! LOL) on Via San Gallo. This is the only place we've found in Florence where you can actually buy orange cheese.

These are the gerber daisies he got me. :)

Valentine Grub

For Valentine's, I decided to make C a big dinner. I figured it was time for me to finally prepare a meal since he has made so many of our meals lately. I felt he deserved a night off!

These are all the ingredients needed (plus chicken & zucchini- they decided they didn't want to show up for the shoot and stayed in the fridge) for the meal. I made chicken parmesan, sauteed zucchini with garlic, and last but not least a key lime pie.

This was the end result of the key lime pie. I even made the crust from scratch, with Italy's version of graham crackers (biscottini), butter, and sugar. The pie was delicious, if I don't say so myself! In fact, I can't wait for seconds....er, I mean, um, thirds.

This was the chicken parmesan. (The photo makes it looks like it's burnt but it's not, I promise).

C after the meal. Ahhhh.. food coma.

This is a random photo under our "Valentine" pictures that I found that's from Valentine's Day 2004 in Dallas. Che bello! It's far from snowing in Florence. The sun is out and we are HAPPY. I hope you all had a good Valentine's! Muah.

Can we say awkward?

Did anyone see this really awkward Joaquin Phoenix interview on Letterman? I understand if Letterman was offended if Joaquin really was completely out of his mind on drugs in the interview (?) but at the same time, show the guy a little respect. In the end, Letterman's ruthless and pretty rude to him.

Just Some Stuff

~*~I have no idea why the below post is in all CAPS. I didn't write it in all caps and have tried editing it but it refuses to go away. Erghh.

~*~I am so glad it's Friday. I have no real set plans for the weekend except for drinks/aperitivo tonight at Kitch. Tomorrow and Sunday there's a chocolate festival in Fiesole, which is where C and I tied the knot. We might go check out the festival, but only if it's sunny. Speaking of which, this week there's no signs of S.A.D. It has been sunny most of the week, which has been easy on the ol' mood-erator.

~*~I'm in the process of securing my Costa Rica ticket for this August. What's funny is that I'm the only one of four people who hasn't bought a ticket already, and it's my 30th birthday celebration. Ha! Go figure. The other three people who I'm going with (C & MicKai) already have theirs. But those jerks got theirs on miles. :) Luckies.

~*~The photo above is of C (duh). I snapped this photo of him the other day as he was making our dinner. I'm so lucky to have a hubby who enjoys cooking for us. Thank you, C.

~*~Yesterday I found this awesome apartment rental on the Amalfi Coast. Anyone want to join us there in June? Divided by 4-6 people, it's extremely affordable to rent for a week! CA, SA, and AM might come. Wooh-hooh!

Showin' Some Pasta Love

Farfalle pasta with portabello mushrooms

Apparently I have no creativity or originality as of late because I seem to only steal topics from other people's blogs and post them on mine. Lol. I stole this picture from Virginia's Italicious cooking blog. Check out her site and read the easy recipe.

I'm including this post not only to remind myself that I should prepare this dish soon but to also share with you this divine lil' dish. "Farfalle" in Italian means "butterflies" because of the obvious shape but in English we like to say bow-tie pasta. All you need is a little butter (or you can choose olive oil), garlic, portobello mushrooms, and pasta and you're all set. Buon appetito!