I’m sure I’ve told you once or twice (or a hundred times) that I just spent 2 weeks in Italy. I thought it would be fun to share some photos from the trip.

We started off in Verbania, on Lake Maggiore, for a family reunion. It was a fun and festive start to the holiday.

It was then off to the Italian Riviera for a few days. We rented a boat one day and another hiked along the Cinque Terre. That’s me with my boys taking in the majestic views that is the reward for this strenuous walk up and down the rugged coastline.

The rest of the trip was spent in Florence and then finally Rome before home.

What a great time we had.

A couple of observations:

At Montréal–Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport the security people cracked jokes! Imagine that.

Zurich Airport has one of the most efficient operations going. You need to catch a connection miles away with customs/security/train rides involved. No problem. They keep things going like I have never experienced.

Italy’s stong suit is not in customer service.

The pizza in Italy is amazing. I was repeatedly disappointed with the pasta and bread, though.

The Vatican Museum is part 8th wonder of the world and herding cattle. It was like a stifling stampede to the Sistine Chapel.

Michaelangelo’s David remains one of the most stunning statues I have ever seen. The Pietà, too.

Rome is one of the cleanest cities I have visited. The abundance of drinking fountains were very welcome as we walked miles each day in the sweltering heat.

Enough for now. Here are a few photos.

The indoor market in Florence.

Glorious cheeses.

Interesting pasta.

Interesting seafood.

My son was not impressed.

A butcher with a sense of humor.

The salamis were amazing. They were so good that I had some for breakfast every single day.

Produce.

Tall gelato!

Prepping for the gelato.

And there were some cold beverages to cool off from the heat.

I’ve already told you about my new favorite cocktail, the marvelous Negroni.

A proper Bellini.

Another first for me…Vin Santo. As a sipper and a dipper for biscotti, it is pure heaven.

The pizza was outstanding, as you might imagine. It was consistently delicious everywhere we went.

Pizza with tuna. Much better than it sounds.

Pizza with prosciutto.

Pizza with ham and brie. Oh yeah.

This plate was gratis at one place where we went out for drinks.

For the most part, the bread we were served was forgettable, but it sure looked wonderful at most of the bakeries.

Dessert was always divine.

A hazelnut gelato sundae.

The fruit was gloriously ripe everywhere we had some. Here it starred in a mixed fruit sundae with vanilla gelato and whipped cream.

My husband and I had a lovely lunch on Isola dei Pescatore in the Lake Maggiori area.

We had to have a Caprese while in Italy!

The restaurant’s specialty was this assorted plate of hot and cold seafood. Exquisite.

You’ve probably had enough, so on to the music.

I’ve been listening to a mix of Italian music on the internet today. This song caught my attention.

Kind of dark and moody. Bonus is I understand the lyrics! You know why? Because Bobo Lives! is an English band. What an idiot I can be. But, somehow Italy brought me to Matt’s music, so all good.

Check out Bobo Lives! on Soundcloud where you can get the music as free downloads or for your suggested contributions.

Cheers!