Long Lost Blog

Well, this has been a while!

Fast forward two years since I last posted (oops) and I now live in Australia with Mr F, who is on his way to becoming a resident. We've been back to Italy, been to Bali, been unemployed and re-employed, rented a house and done about a million things in between!

And it would appear I've rediscovered my desire to blog. Admittedly I was trying to start a new blog last night and then realised I still had one....

So I guess I have a lot of catching up to do! Stay tuned for posts, photos and more!

xx

Paris Jaunt

Two weeks ago I flew up to Paris to meet some family friends for a few days. We stayed near Place D'Italie and just generally enjoyed catching up, good food and great wine. We did squeeze in a bit of sightseeing - the Louvre, Versailles and of course some well-spent time browsing the shops.

We had many fantastic meals, but our meal on the night I arrived was something else altogether.

Behold:

Mouth-watering beef, complete with marrow, bones, creamy mashed potatoes and a delicious bordeaux.

Spent the day at Versailles. Some luxury decorating business going on there. Marie Antoinette certainly had a thing for floral.

One of my most favourite things to do in Paris is stroll through the Marais district - on Sundays much of it is closed off to traffic, and people are out enjoying brunch or a browse through the vintage stores. Speaking of which, I found an amazing silk scarf for 3 euros which I will have to post up.

Happy Easter to Everyone!

xx

A Love Letter

Dear Blog,

I've been horrible and neglected you, and I'm sorry.

You see, I've been a busy girl this last month and have lots of exciting things happening. Let me give you an update:

1. We officially have a visa and a ticket for Mr F to come home with me. (Probably the most exciting news!)
2. I spent 5 days in Paris catching up with friends from home.
3. I've been busy at work with Easter preparations - I have photos on their way.
4. My grandparents have finalised everything for their May trip to Italy.

 ...Well, now that I've written it all out it actually looks like pathetic little of an excuse...But I promise to shower you with more love and attention little blog o' mine.

xx Ciopetta
 

Carnevale a Venezia and Valentine's Day

Given that we live only an hour or so away from Venice, there was no way I was going to pass up going to see Carnevale, which ended on Tuesday. Friday morning, Giada (Mr F's brother's fiancée) and I went and had breakfast at Mr F's uncl'es pastry shop, then got on our merry way to Venice. When we arrived in Piazza San Marco, there was aqua alta (high water), so we had to wind our way around the streets of Venice to avoid it.

We wandered around Venice for the day, spotting masks and costumes that we liked. We stopped and had our faces painted, saw newlyweds having their photos taken with people in costume, and stopped for a plate of pasta for lunch. (Carbonara for me, Bolognese for Giada)

Here are some of my favourites:

I could go on for days here really...I made sure I took enough photos to last me until the next time I'm back in Venice for Carnevale!

Sunday, I had to work, and Mr F and I aren't really that fussed on Valentine's Day anyway. Or so I thought. Mr F surprised me with white roses and dinner at home. We ate frozen pizzas in our pyjamas and spent the evening together. Honestly the most enjoyable Valentine's ever!

This week I'm hoping to have some more time to post as I'm not working so much now that Carnevale is over.

Ciopetta xx

Meatballs in Florence

In early January, we spent two nights in Florence on our way down to Rome, and managed to squeeze in a visit to the Uffizi Galleries while we were there. We also walked through the centre of Florence, crossed over the Ponte Vecchio and visited the markets. The highlight of the trip, however, was most defnitely the Osteria we stumbled across entirely be accident for dinner on our final night.

Pepò, despite the surly waitress, was a small, initmate restaurant\osteria serving mostly local fare. I ordered the veal meatballs, and the others ordered ribollita (a thick vegetable soup), slow cooked veal stew, spaghetti with tomato, pecorino and basil and ravioli with ragù. We ended up ordering a second plate of teh meatballs, they were that good. And sides of fried artichokes and salad. And red wine. And also a sneaky little warm chocolate pudding to sit neatly on top of all that. To top it all off, the meal came to around 100 Euros for 4 of us, including water and soft drinks. Most main dishes were around 10-15 euros. Oh, and they also have menus in English.

A highly recommened feed for anyone heading to Florence! I plan to head back in May and take my grandparents there, so will be sure to take some more snaps then.

Osteria Pepò
Via Rosina, 4/6r. - Firenze
Telephone: 055 283 259
http://www.pepo.it/

(image from http://www.ilterzogirone.it/)

Ciopetta xx

All Things Snow Related

Australia Day for me meant listening to the Triple J Hottest 100 while it snowed outside. There's still snow on the ground, but now the sun's out and it's beautiful.

The first time it snowed while I was here, Mr F and I played outside in the snow like 6 year olds for hours. Then we came inside and had hot chocolate and watched the snow continue to fall. And fall. And fall. And fall to the point where my flights to Nice were cancelled, and it was looking like I wasn't going to spend Christmas with my family.

Our first day playing in the snow behind Mr F's house:

Our Snowman/woman, complete with berries for hair and leaves for buttons.

Ciopetta xx

Gnocchi Thursday

Today was Gnocchi Day in this house.

Mr F's grandmother, mother and I spent the morning making potato gnocchi.

It's a crime, but Mr F doesn't eat gnocchi. Not even homemade-with-love type gnocchi. So I made sure I ate enough for the both of us. We served the gnocchi with fres tomato sauce (homemade, obviously!)