Setimane Due! Two Weeks!

Books in local shops, two concerts, three interviews, and over 150,000 steps wandering the cobblestone streets. Oh, and falling off my electric scooter in front of an entire crowd because it decides to slow down and speed up automatically without any notice- but I’ve been trying to erase that from my memory so moving on...

WORK:

I’ve been interviewing multiple healers and naturopaths in the health and wellness community for an upcoming article to provide resources to Florentines to maintain their mental wellbeing through a variety of different healing modalities, which is especially important for our upcoming seasonal change. One business, in particular, was extremely captivating, and I wrote a post dedicated to Florence Dream Lab to highlight the amazing work they are doing.

My book is now available at Tatatà Liberia located in the Oltrano. This charming independent bookstore is beautifully decorated and the owners, Fiamma and Silvia have transformed their small space into a wonderful local shop that also offers events and introduced the Silent Book Club, which is a movement to get people off of social media and read on Sundays. I think we could all use less time on social media and more self-care!

EXPERIENCES:

As an internations.org member, I went to the 14th-anniversary party which was held at Il Bar Di Forte, and had a wonderful evening networking with expats and locals living in Florence.

One of my favorite Italian artists, Mecna had his last concert of the summer in Bologna. With the venue only a 40-minute train ride from Florence, I bought my ticket and embarked on a one-day journey to see his show located at the Arena Puccini- I had an epic experience on a warm summer evening at a beautiful outdoor venue listening to one of my favorite musicians.

FOOD:

Midday aperitifs, the drink you have before dinner to induce your appetite is a staple for Italian living. Refreshing and the most popular, an Aperol Spritz simply made up of Aperol liqueur, prosecco, and soda water.

Florence is known for their “Bistecca alla Fiorentina”, a specific Italian breed of cattle- Chianina is a massive working (draught) cow. It is chopped right on the block, presented to your table prior to cooking for approval, and then basically just seared. It comes rare, and it would be an insult to ask for it to be prepared any other way.

Two amazing pasta dishes I’ve had thus far have been handmade ravioli stuffed with ricotta and spinach in a Chianina ragù & pasta with a garlic & anchovy cream sauce topped with spicy bread crumbs. Typically, I’m vegetarian merely because I don’t like the taste/texture of meat but what’s that phrase...…”When in Rome!”

Of course, a day would not be complete without some gelato! With temperatures still pretty hot this delicious treat is best morning, afternoon, or night!

SHOPPING:

According to Wikipedia, “By the 1900s the popularity of window displays had heightened and the window display became more elaborate, continuing to attract not only those that wanted to make purchases but also passers-by that appreciated beauty. To achieve the right aesthetics, store owners and managers would hire decorators or window dressers to attractively arrange merchandise in the shop windows; indeed, the professional window display design soon became an object used to lure shoppers into the stores.”

Yet, Florence shops and boutiques truly allow for “window shopping”. I love how the prices are displayed and can easily be viewed- this probably deters foot traffic into the store for those that aren’t potential buyers, but also it makes it easy to see if the place is in your price range and what the cost is for the particular items located behind the glass window.