Today was one of the most beautiful days I’ve seen in Italy in a long time…clear, sunny and crisp, it was one of those days that made everything sparkle and seem greener, fresher, cleaner. Being from California, it was also one of those days that said: Holidays! Sorry, no snow for us in the Bay Area, so I don’t associate snow with winter. Speaking of snow, check out this picture of last year’s winter in Pavia. Today’s high was 40F, so it’s quite cold now.
We spent most of the day in Milan, and I cursed myself that I hadn’t brought my camera – I had some great views riding my bike through Pavia, and in Milan, the Duomo was lit by the late-afternoon sunshine that made it glow. I can’t wait for the facade to be uncovered again – it’s marvelous. I haven’t seen it since 1999, since it was already covered when I moved here in 2003. I spent time looking at English books, and bought my next two reads, listed to the right under my Recent Reads.
We also chanced upon a small chocolate fair in Pavia today – I imagine a much smaller-scale version of the Eurochocolate Festival in Perugia. Tomorrow we’re going back for pictures, and of course, treats. Stay tuned.
This week is Thanksgiving, and I think I’ll not be celebrating it this year, at least not by cooking a turkey dinner, for the first time in many, many years. I’ll have to find another way to celebrate this year, perhaps by watching the movie Chocolat and drinking loads of the cinnamon hot chocolate I’m buying tomorrow! Here’s last year’s turkey – it wasn’t done at this point, and the state of the pan is another funny story, but I didn’t have a finished picture with all the chaos of cooking for 20 people!
I thought this would be a great time to introduce you to another one of my favorite blogs, Popgadget, Personal Tech for Women. Almost everything they post is pretty interesting – gadgets, toys, tech, for us! I suggest putting it on your Bloglines blogroll so you can get notified when they update.
The latest cool toy that they have displayed, that I know my expat and even some of my traveling friends back home will enjoy….The Spice on the Go Kit! I’m sure you could fill it with your own spices once you finish theirs but I think it’s a wonderful idea…
I could have used this as a backpacker going through Europe…trying to save money, you buy your meal at the supermarket – you have the mozzarella, the tomatoes you cut with your Swiss Army knife, and the fresh bread, but you’re missing something…like salt, pepper, and oregano.
Problem solved.
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