Just got back from my 10-day Mediterranean adventure and MAN do I have a lot to tell ya.
Let's start at the beginning. Rome. Beautiful. Delicious.
Need I say more? (Veggies, sauce, cheese. MMmmmm)
Well, I will... but only because I know you're all ULTRA curious.
We (Carolyn, Miranda, Leslie, Sam and I) arrived in Rome
at around 10pm. (Do you know where your children are?)
After a complicated trip to our hostel, we managed to get ourselves settled
and scouted Rome for some dinner. Sam and I stumbled upon a wonderful
little restaurant with an overly friendly staff that seemed more interested in
taking down our phone numbers than our orders... but we were flattered.
Our waiter, Gabriel, explained how the restaurant had been in his family for
FIVE generations. He entertained us as he and the other waiter argued for
our attention, each claiming that the other one was married with 4 kids. Hilarious.
Gabriel treated us to some limoncello at the end of our meal, made by his very
own Grandmother. WOW. That grandma does not play around. Some strong stuff.
After a glorious meal, we headed back to our...
not-so-glorious hostel. But hey, it was cheap!
The five of us woke up starvingggggg (okay... that's a lie)
But we had to try more Italian food. So we did.
First on the list: Pastry
Check. (almonds, creme, love)
Once we finished chowing down, we cruised the city for some
architectural splendor.
But couldn't find it.
AT FIRST.
Oh hey Colosseum, wattttup?!
Walked a few blocks and bumped into this guy:
Augustus, Roman tyrant. With sexy abs.
Walked a few more blocks... and realized...
IRELAND IS FOLLOWING ME.
But it's cool. Rome, you can try out our pub scene...
Pffff YOU WISH. No really. Make a wish.
That's right Trevi Fountain, baby.
Now, I won't tell you what I wished for... but I will tell you
that if I had wished for the perfect pizza, this would have been
IT:
Pesto, mushroom, fresh mozzarella. Are you crying?
Because I am.
And oh wait... finished? All this? Yeah. Yeah it is.
So what do you do after eating a full pizza?
Eat gelato.... obviously.
Yummmm!! (stracciatella and tiramisu, SO good)
Okay... so PAUSE on the eating. Praying time!
Me and my girls at the temple of the gods: The Pantheon!
Okay, UNPAUSE: Foooooooooooooooooooooooood!!!!!!
I was so excited to witness the sugary goodness.
Too bad you ain't got smell-e-vision.
Don't have room for a caesar salad after all the sweets?
Well make some room for Caesar... THE REAL THING.
This is where Caesar was stabbed to death.
Yeah, piss off Brutus. UNCOOL.
The full view:
This place is now called: the Torre Argentina Cat Sanctuary.
Historically Caesar's murder site, but today a cat shrine for all of
Rome's feline population. I don't ask questions. I just take pictures.
Wandered some more and came across a play in the center
of a square... I think I caught the wrong moment.
But I'm sure it makes sense in Italian...
Okay PAUSE. I ate, I prayed... I LOVE fashion.
So, after a confusing show, we left to find some funky, vintage
Roman threads... and found a bunch!
No purchases for me, but a lot of browsing. Cost effective!
Okay, UNPAUSE. Back to eating :)
Salad of green olives, FRESH FRESH FRESH mozzarella,
and additional salady goodies. D-licious.
Wait... you thought that was IT?! ha.
Taste party on mah plate.
Eggplant parmesan, mushroom risotto, potato and brie.
Are you salivating? Because you should be.
Come on, make Pavlov's day.
That didn't do it for you? HOLY CANNOLI!
No really, this was a holy cannoli.
Leslie and I always have room for a little taste. or 2. or 3...
We walked a bit and stumbled upon some
QUESTIONABLE wine. hmmmm... why?
Curious.
FAST-FORWARD 10 hours. Past sleeping in an airport.
Yea, past that part. Oh boy, all-nighters in the airport
are NOT my fav. But it's necessary for the 7am flights!!
Good morning Athens! Gyro breakfast.
Just kidding guys, it was lunch time by the time we arrived.
WHO do you think I am?!
After settling into Athens we hopped on a train ride for a city
tour. We soon realized why the tickets were only 4 euro...
MAN that thing was rickety! But oh so fun!
See... aren't Carolyn and I having fun?!
When we got to the Acropolis we hopped out and explored.
So pretty!
Pretty theatre!
Pretty pathway!
Pretty awesome.
Pretty Greek.
Pretty, pretty Greek.
Greek-est.
Greek-est-est?
NOPE! Gotcha. Baklava is Turkish. Not Greek. Ohhhhhh
I was so upset when I found this out, that I decided to leave
Athens. Right then and there. So... I went to MYKONOS!
So beautiful, it did not look real. But it was. I promise.
And when we got there, we realized the island was celebrating:
Carnival, the European version of Halloween. Kind of.
Partyyyyyyyyyy!
Oh hi festival.
Oh hi super cute baby in a bunny suit.
Me and my roomie in the streets of Mykonos, blissss!
Just before we all trekked out for dinner...
I know, should be a postcard, eh?
We found a little restaurant called "Maria's" and Maria
herself served us a delectable dinner of Greek goodies.
Oh yea, and she had 2 euro wine. Uhooo.
I always believe my glass is half full... unless it's empty.
This is Leslie in Mykonos. That's all.
After missing the ferry out of Mykonos
2 days in a row thanks to some bad weather,
we managed to ESCAPE back to Athens. Finally.
Then we flew off to Milan,
because Italy had not had enough of us.
And we hadn't had enough of it either. Nom nom nom.
Chicken Milanese... a milan speciality? No idea.
Strawberry cheesecake. So ricotta-y. Yum.
Creme croissant from here:
Cutest bakery/ready-made food cafe EVER.
Outdoor market: cheap clothes. Cheap food. Yes.
Act your age, not your shoe size...
Unless you see a cute little bike.
Architecture of Milan... gorgeous, dahhhhling:
(The Duomo)
Note the balloons... Milan was celebrating Carnival too!
The streets were filled with craziness, lots of confetti,
costumes, screaming, dancing... and so much more!
... Like people spraying shaving cream.
Sorry Miranda! Carnival victim. Whhooops.
Evidence of the confetti: hello dirty street.
Miranda and I squeezed our way through the insanity
that was the Milan Carnival festival and made our way to
an equally crazy street of stores. Found these crazy bunnies
in a funny little boutique... with an indoor disco ball and DJ.
WHaaaaaa? Yea. That's right.
After a fun-filled and crazy afternoon,
the 5 of us were ready for our final Italian meal.
We went out to the Navigli region, a beautiful
waterside area with a bountiful supply of
restaurants. For some reason, the river water was
drained, so our view was not exactly what we expected.
BUT... the goodbye dinner was superb.
Especially after a healthy dose of grated cheese:
Gnocchi with smoked mozzarella, tomato sauce and mushroom.
Drool. Best dish of my life. Perhaps. Or the pizza. TOUGH call.
So long Spring Break adventure, and until next time...
Bone Apetito!!!
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