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When I started my retirement travels in 2009, I wanted a way to share it with family and friends as it was happening. Hence, "My Travel Journal". However I realized I wouldn't always be on a trip and wondered what to do with the blog in between times. My daughter pointed out, wisely, that travels can also include trips to the kitchen to try a new recipe, trips to visit family, trips to my neighborhood Starbucks, or a fun day trip with a friend. You're welcome to join me on any of these journeys! I've set up individual pages for each of my major trips (see tabs above).

Also, I have an Etsy shop where my current needlework resides. The last pieces I posted here were in 2013! So if you'd like to see what I have accomplished recently, go to (and I apologize for having to copy and paste):

www.etsy.com/shop/thedollhouseneedle

I recently added an "Italian Word a Day" thingie which shows up at the bottom of every page. You see the word and can click to hear it pronounced. I've been enjoying it and I think my accent is improving as time goes by.

July 10, 2010

Not Much to Report, But I Miss Blogging...

No, I've not been doing too much lately.  The heat this past week was pretty much horrendous and I mostly stayed in every day until evening.  Spent a lot of time on-line trying to decide whether or not to change the place I had reserved for my 7 night stay in Perugia.  It's a hotel and I had found a little apartment that cost actually a little less than the hotel and had a little kitchen corner so was thinking maybe I should do that.  But I think I've decided that since I'll be wanting to do some bus and train day trips from Perugia to other towns, it might be helpful to be in a hotel where hopefully I could get some help figuring out the best way to do them.

Don't know yet if I posted my schedule for this trip.  I leave for Florence on 9/22, get in in the afternoon of 9/23 (after a stop in Madrid!).  I'll stay in Florence for 2 nights (and those who followed my blog last year will know where I plan to go first!) then I will take the train to La Spezia which is in the province of Liguria.  Then a train to Riomaggiore which is the first of the five villages in the Cinque Terre.  I'll stay in Riomaggiore for 3 nights, hiking mostly during the days (although maybe a cooking class), then I will train to Perugia where I'll be staying for 7 nights.  I know that I will for sure do a day trip to Assisi and probably another 1 or 2 towns.  And, through one of the travel forums I belong to, a woman contacted me who is traveling to Perugia with her sister at the same time as I'll be there and she wanted to know if I'd be interested in going on a truffle hunt!  Apparently, it requires a minimum of 4 people, so I'd be a third person.  So, I figured what the heck - I've been curious about truffles ever since I first read about them - and said yes I'd do it if they end up doing it.  So, if that works out that will be kind of neat to be with a couple of Americans for a little "adventure".  After Perugia, I will go to Bologna and stay there for four nights.  I've signed up for a tour that would take me to the "big three" - a Parma ham producer, a Parmesan cheese producer, and a balsamic vinegar producer.  This is what I wanted to do last year.  And I'm not 100% sure it will happen this year.  Bologna may turn out to just not work well for me.  The couple I signed up with are expecting a baby on October 1, my tour is scheduled for October 7, and according to the new mama, it will take place unless she would have the baby on the 7th.  So, we'll just have to wait and see on that.

So, that's Italy for now.  Last night was pleasant.  One of the residents here invited the owner of the new, soon-to-open deli/grocery (which I posted about a couple or so months ago) to come talk to some of the residents.  She was very personable, had lots of exciting things to tell us, and gave us each a little shopping bag to use when we go shopping in her deli.  One thing she said they're going to do is roast all their own meats.  So if you order a ham, or turkey, or beef sandwich, it will be sliced from the meat they've roasted - it won't be prepackaged lunchmeat!  They have quite an extensive sandwich/salad/soup type menu and will also be serving about anything you want to order for breakfasts.  I can't imagine that it won't do well - I would think it would be what a whole lot of people downtown are looking for - both residents and people who work here but live elsewhere.  She pretty much promised that they will have their "soft" opening a week from Monday so I plan to be there with bells on and will report.

Today a neighbor stopped in for a little visit and when she walked in she said "oh, it's so beautiful!"  And that's not me being conceited, cause it's my great huge windows that make it so beautiful.  You walk in and just feel like you're "up in the air".  But her comment did prompt me to take some pictures (since I don't have any other pictures to post right now).  I think some of these angles may have been in other posts, but here's the whole tour (except the bedroom - there were clothes on the bed and shoes on the floor!)

At the front door, please come in and watch out for my "Fabric Store" on your left.

Now you can see one of my poor, mistreated orchids in valiant bloom...

One side of the living room, looking into the kitchen...

Same side of the living room, but looking back to the front door...

Another shot into the kitchen and showing one of my favorite paintings on the wall...

Showing the other side of the living room and into the dining room...(prints from a trip to Rome on the wall)

And a closer look at the dining room with a miniature scene in the hutch...

Standing in front of the hutches, looking all the way down the hall to the bedroom...

My halfscale house and Brunelleschi poster plus lots of other favorites - a hand-painted plate from Florence, a tiny painting my son gave me, two Noah's Arks - one a painting and the other an antique print...

And in front of the living room windows, with another orchid in bloom - this one my oldest and also valiantly battling against neglect...The skinny prints are from my trip to London in 2007?  2008?  The little open mini scene I made and put some favorite pieces in it.  The little picture of birds you can hardly see was a present from Heather.  And a lot of the photos are those wonderful old family photos.

So, that's it.  Amazing how I can take so many pictures of such a tiny place, right?  But a girl (ha!) has to do something on a Saturday night!  Now I've earned a trip to Starbucks (tee hee).

5 comments:

Unknown said...

Your view inside is as lovely and interesting as the view from the windows. I think you'll have to live there forever! And on a totally different subject: the past few times I've left a comment the "visual verification" pictuare is missing so I say leave comment and then it says I've made a mistake in verify and provides the picture. Weird.

Mary Lynne said...

That IS weird - are you talking about one of those blocks that has letters you can hardly decipher? I'd ask if anyone else has been having that problem, but you, Chris and January are about the only ones that post comments - hint, hint to my "private" commenters! :)

And if that is what you're talking about, I don't ever get it but maybe that's cause I'm the blog owner?

Christopher said...

Your place really is quite beautiful... and it photographs absolutely perfectly with all that natural light... So bright and airy looking! Makes me wish I had lighter floors in my living room, than my dark walnut-finish parquet...
(PS---scrolling down just now before I post this, I do see the squiggly word/graphic I'm supposed to type, to validate I'm a human and not a spam program... Emegorm is my word of the day here...)

January said...

Lovely as always, Mama! I always tell people I got my decorating sense from you (now I just need to polish it up a little).
I like how it's full of your favorite things - a person gets to know you just by walking in the door, and apparently, they think you're beautiful :)

Mary Lynne said...

Gosh, January - you make me blush. I think they think the apt. is beautiful - no one has commented on my beauty! LOL. But thank you, you sweet thing.

And Chris, I love your walnut parquet floors (as you know) and they don't get dirty like this carpet does!

Gosh, you guys - is this just getting you in the mood for some more Italy blogs? It is me!

xo

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