A Florentine Journey

Fall fun "a firenze"

Marco and I had a great one day and one night trip to Rome where we had a successful and enjoyable business meeting. The weather cooperated and we were able to enjoy a couple of delicious meals and a little shopping. What a great city! When we returned home, the Doyles, who have been living in Nice came to visit for a few days and we packed in dinners and fun with good friends. They visited both schools and even went with me to take Isa to her Halloween party. We went to one of our favorite haunts called the Taverna Macchiavelli with Mona and Mark. The next night we had Andrea and Vahay over with the kids.
It was great to see Lia and her pal Kenzie reconnect after not seeing each other for over a year and a half. Kenzy fit right in with Lia's other good friends- among them, Aimee, Brenna and Kendall. More details later. Baci, C. DON'T FORGET TO CLICK TO ENLARGE.

Marco gets "Gucched"

Don't you just love it when you are invited to a private "family and friends" sale at Gucci and every pair of pants and every shirt is in your size? How would we know? IT NEVER HAPPENS---except to Marco! I think it's a sign that Italy wants him back. He scored with 5 pairs of pants and 6 shirts. I lucked out too and got a leather coat. That's our friend Ed who took us.
Mona's friend Jackie was here visiting, so Mona, Lauren, Andrea and I took her to Cave Di Maiano in Fiesole for lunch. Yum. People like coming over to sit in our "big" chairs. Our feet don't touch the ground. Talk about making me feel short!

Winter has arrived!

Without so much as a warning, our beautiful Fall became gloomy, rainy, cold Winter. We were so cold today that we layered up and turned on the oven. We've been told it is illegal to turn on the heat before November, so Isa decided to make us lasagne for dinner; thus employing the afore mentioned oven. She made the sauce and everything herself. It was delicious! BRAVA! Elaine joined us and we shared a lovely bottle of wine brought to us by Jan and Cynthia from their trip to Montepulciano. It was "Avignonesi" Nobile di Montepulciano. Grazie mille "cari" Jan and Cinzia!

ISF Inauguration

Today was the big celebration for the opening of the new middle and upper school campus at the Villa Torri di Gattaia. It was an impressive affair complete with a catered meal, singing by the choir and many attendees. It was great to see many old and new friends in this lovely setting.

The co-founder and original headmaster, Horace Gibson, was present and Laura Mongiat, the current Head of School, was in rare form after the achievement of opening the new campus. Elaine Mazzei was honored for her leading role in transforming the Villa Le Tavernule into a junior school and for her essential contributions to the opening of the middle/upper school. On the menu were finger sandwiches, risotto ai funghi, and a gigantic "millefogli" cake for dessert, along with wine supplied by the Frescobaldi's, a former school family.

Fuori Porta

Marco and I had yet another wonderful experience yesterday. We were invited to lunch by our "amici" Stephen and Lauren Pearce at one of their neighborhood haunts called, you got it "Fuori Porta", which means outside the door. Aptly named as it is just outside an ancient door that was once part of the city's defense. It was a new area for me to explore near Porta San Niccolo'.

The pics are of the delightful wine bar where one can taste different nice wines by the glass while enjoying a light lunch. A bit decadent, but so much fun. Lauren and I laughed a lot as we tried to figure out our roles in the upcoming Halloween celebration, as we have been "chosen" to help pull it together for the lower school. Too bad for us the ancient Florentines didn't leave remnants of a "Target" or "Michael's" where we could readily find what we think we need. It could turn out to scarier than bargained for!

Friends and life goes on

Jan and Cynthia came to visit us and it was great. Cynthia did a lot of my "mom" stuff with me and got a real taste of what living here is about. Just shopping was like a party! Marco, Jan and Cynthia spent a lot of time on their bikes riding through the Tuscan hills and visiting numerous towns and "bars" for their " power brioche" and cappuccini. They were putting in between 50 and sixty miles a day. I was exhausted just watching them.

On the way back from one of their rides to Montespertoli where Isa had a sleep over, we stopped in a town called Giogoli. We visited a church and cemetary dating back to

the year 1000, where many of Marco's ancestors on both sides of his family are buried. It was especially touching for the girls to see his father's, grandfather's, and grandmother's pictures on their tombs. One really gets a sense of just how young America is when visiting these ancient sites; especially when they are still in use!
Cynthia and I went house hunting with Mona and saw some pretty impressive digs.

The pics are of the one we all loved; A villa on a beautiful spot. There are more pics if anyone is interested. It's not far from my house. Then we went out for a girl's lunch. DON'T FORGET TO CLICK ON THE IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Field Trip to a vineyard for the" vendemmia" or grape harvest.

The fifth and the first grade classes were invited to tour La Rendola Vinyard by the owners, Andrea (remember her from other pics) and Vahe. The children helped harvest some grapes and watch how the wine was made. It was a fun and educational adventure for them.
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The moms had a great time spending the day outdoors in the beautiful countryside tasting wines and eating delicious food. This was no American style field trip! Don't forget to click the images to enlarge.

Dinner in Castellina

We had the pleasure of an invitation to the Pearce home in Castellina in Chianti. The setting, the food and the company were heavenly. We cautioned them about showing us their guest room as it was so tempting us not to leave.
Kevin and Pam Wolf, Carol-Anne and her husband Wolfgang were also there.
A great time was had by all. We are so blessed to have met such lovely people so early on in our adventure. Check out the beautiful pottery in the photos...it is Stephen's handywork. I hope I am spelling names correctly! If not, please correct me. DON'T FORGET to click on the picture to enlarge any image. Baci, Cindy