Back in the saddle again...

Well, my trip was fantastic, thanks to everyone who asked, wondered, gave advice, sent positive vibes and missed me! As I was on my train(s) home to Céligny last Sunday evening it occurred to me that my trip to Italy was my first vacation in something like three years. And boy was it well deserved and well executed! As described in my previous post I saw Rome in a whirlwind. It is a place I will never forget. As I discovered with most of the places I went over my week away I was walking through a living museum. Everything is old, has a story, a history, a past. And I do believe those things are different. A story can be retold, but always changes. History is a learning tool and a past is something that keeps you grounded to where you've been, as you move forward. This was very true of both Perugia & Florence I felt as well. In my very short time in Perugia I discovered that it was rich in history but also alive with modern life. On Thursday afternoon when I arrived I discovered there was a festival happening that weekend, and the festivities were just beginning. Since I speak absolutely NO Italian (apart from vino, grazie and prego) I had to just go from what I saw... and what I saw was an event for children primarily - a celebration for them. Street artists, a man doing "magic" with bubbles, kids painting on long strips of paper, it was great! A university town I had expected to meet more people my age, but perhaps it was my location and short stay that didn't relate that feeling. I did however have a fantastic dinner on my own complete with a glass of vin santo (yummy stuff!).

Friday, I went to the Umbrian museum and saw some art older than anything I had ever really seen. A crucifix from the 13th century... panels from 12th century churches, seriously old, but beautiful stuff. It was a treat to wander on my own through this museum and see things that had more of a past than the entire life of the USA. After the museum, I had to head to the train station for the 4th part of my journey: Florence aka Firenze. And I'll start by saying this: WOW.

But that's getting slightly ahead of myself. Because of some chance or fate I was fortunate enough to have the chance to stay with some family friends who have lived in Firenze for 15 years. Starting as aquantences and turning into friends of my parents, I do believe I can now officially call them friends of mine now. Andrew & Nadia are a gift. After 5 nights in a hostel, 1 night in a B&B where the second B consisted of stale coffee and even staler (not sure if that's a word...) bread I was flooded with the feeling of acceptance and friendship. I hadn't seen either of them in at least 3 years, probably more and it was a wonderful reuniting. They met me at the station and we took a taxi to their place where we started my final lag of the trip with a coffee and chat. After, Andrew & I went for a walk. It was like having my own tour guide, full of information and happy to answer my pathetic questions. We went back to the house after sitting and having a beer along the river in an outdoor café and Nadia prepared some fish and spinach that was AMAZING. I never thought I'd ask for seconds of spinach in my life, but there you go... :D

We sat around talking until after midnight. It was bliss. Saturday morning I woke up after a full nights sleep without alarms buzzing or children screaming or neighbors talking. Again, bliss. I sat around reading and listening to music and then when Andrew & Nadia woke up we had coffee and toast and then headed off to walk around the city. We went up to the hill and overlooked the city (spectacular) and for once I had someone to take my photo without asking a stranger who may or may not understand my plea.

After a morning full of walking and talking and photo taking and watching a Chinese wedding party we headed back to the house for a great lunch of Risotto with porcini mushrooms (picked by Nadia's family near Pisa) and a prosecco and steamed artichokes. YUM Afterlunch they took a traditional sieste and I went out on my own exploring the city. I walked a lot. Past the Duomo, the David, Santa Maria Novella, and kept going. I loved just taking it all in. I must have taken about a 100 photos in a matter of 2-3 hours. It was awesome. I enjoyed just watching the world go by. That evening I went back to their flat and then Andrew and I went out for pizza at a truly Italian restaurant (no one spoke english, except me of course- it was great!) After dinner we went back, had a glass of grappa and again sat & talked until past 12. Sunday was my last day in Italy and I awoke to a storm. And I mean storm. Thunder, rain, wind. It was great! Mostly because I could stay inside and not feel bad about it. We all just stayed in our PJs for a while and then had a late breakfast and sat and talked all day. I had to leave for the station about 2 so it was a great last day.

I'm in the process of posting the photos to FB and will link them here, but until then, below is a link to my YouTube video created from photos I took & set to music by my awesome brother, Kyle Michael Porter. It's a quick one because it was set to the length of the song, but gives a taste of what I did/saw.

Mattie's Italy Trip!

Love to all!