after a night of saying goodbye to casacce, we were off to the rome airport to give final cheek kisses and hugs to all the wonderful artists we had met. some other girls and i find the microphone and dedicate a silly round of “the wheels on the bus” to antonio, though he didn’t speak any english, he had an enourmous grin and paolo scolded him to keep his eyes on the road! we talked, giggled, traded the best advice for markets in rome and shared cookies for breakfast. we gazed out as the beauty of the countryside whirled by us in the bus windows one last time. and before we knew it everyone started a frantic race to find their baggage and find their flight, leaving mom and i alone, the dynamic duo ready to conquer rome.

our driver is late, we are hungry and more than ready to explore and chat all the way there about our amazing trip while we pass the coliseum. just like my last time in rome, the giant palm trees surprise me, nestled against the structure of the city, massive and tall. we check into our hotel , finding our room just so beautiful! carpet! air conditioning! ah! just as we are deciding what to do and breaking out some panforte from siena, the phone rings. “hello, jenny?” odd, who on earth? that vioce sounds sooo familliar… “it’s cindy! i’m in the lobby, can we come up and see you (your room!?)” cindy is our watercolor expert, she was staying in italy for a little longer and had a hotel with her mom nearby. they come up and a second reaction to the beautiful room just as good as the first. we’re ready to go find something to eat and set out together, the dynamic duo doubles.

we make our way to the spanish steps, the heat is incredible, more intense than the weeks before and our pace is slow and steady. and since we are women, we find ourselves stopping in every shop that catches our attention before we find somewhere to eat at the bottom of the piazza d. spagna. there are so many things to look at. we order the most delicious pizza by the pound, zucchini flower and mushroom, one slice is just enough in the heat. we sit and witness the best people watching in the world.

we walked and walked, finding the piazza del popolo, and we managed to fit in some art inside cool dim lit chiesa di santa maria where we stood in front of an two amazing caravaggios without a line or crowd. we found a fountain to dip our feet in and the freezing water was therapy on our legs. but there was no stopping us. one thing you have to know about me is that i inherited my love of shopping from my mom. no one can surpass her window shopping abilities, and when we’re together…watch out. we could go for days. there was so much to look at, our afternoon was easily filled. but soon we were so weary from doing so much sightseeing we needed something to quench our thirst…enter mcdonalds, where the menu is cheap and a little different, there was a place to sit and rest for a while. mom’s nuggets weren’t quite right so i split my grande royale (or something like that) burger and we delighted with the ice in our soft drink cups. refueled for more, we begin towards our hotel and find ourselves at a cameo shop, where a sweet woman is sitting behind her desk smiling at us.

little did we know that she could lure us in, for what felt like hours, describing the virtues of the handmade cameos, showing us their quality under the light of her lamp, taking out each and every one we pressed our noses against the window at. “this one very special, signed by the professor, you see? very special. this one, no heart!! no heart. no good.” she made sure to point out the few ones in her own shop that were made in a german factory and told us to not even consider those ones. we soon learned that she was a woman who was closely tied with her customers, especially when she opened a drawer from the side table next to the velvet cushioned seat we were on to reveal stacks of letters from all over the world sent to her. photographs of her and family were placed carefully around her desk, and after a while we realized that the gorgeous woman modeling rings on the back wall were in fact her, showing the very ring she was wearing made by her husband. we left with hopes of returning the next day, we may just have been all shopped out…if that’s really possible!

we made it back to our hotel weary and satisfied with our day of walking walking walking rome. while mom found a hilarious italian film to watch, i soaked in the most luxurious wheat grem oil scented bubble bath. in our cozy heavenly beds and jammeies we laughed ourselves to sleep, happy that our roman holiday had begun.

ps~ as i get time, i will be adding pictures from our stay in rome here, have a peek!

after our adventures in siena, we had the day off to relax at casacce and soak up the sun. but some of us decided that we wanted to go to the beach, so we planned to enjoy the day at castiglione della pescaia. after our six hour drive yesterday, a brief thirty minutes was such a relief since i had been getting woozy each time we rode on the bus. hooray! i could sit up front so i didn’t get carsickish.

i tried communicating with our non-english speaking driver, reading american riddles from my italian guidebook…but i think my sense of humor was lost on everyone. (maybe susie selling seashells by the seashore isn’t the same in l’italiano?) to illustrate the language barrier, here’s a shot exchange with me trying to make small talk:

jenny: Come ti chiami? (what’s your name?)
simone: io? (me? says very slowly & points to himself)
jenny: si!
simone: si mone (sounded like si, “monay”)
jenny: monay? (thinking, hmm, isn’t that a girl’s name?)
simone: si. mooooan ay.
jenny: mohhh nay? (saying even more slowly and carefully)
SIMONE: Seeeeee, MoHHHhhh naaaay
jenny: OHHHHH SIMONE! OK! (pronounced in a flat american accent)

the view on the way there was stunning, with fields and crops that seemed to go on forever to blend into the perfect cloudless blue sky. when we arrived we made our way to find the little gelato shop that paolo’s friend owned since he could give us a sweet deal on renting umbrellas. the place was closed, but with our luck, i spotted a woman inside and called out to her from behind the locked gate.

paolo’s friend mauro delivered his deal and soon we were out staking out a keen spot on the hot sand, taking out our art supplies and frozen water bottles from our bags. the day seemed to go by more quickly than the rest, but all in bliss. walking along the beach offered the best people watching and friendly exchanges. mothers holding their babies and giant sandcastles were a universal subject that we couldn’t help commenting or smiling about. leathery tanned grandparents herded their grandchildren along in tiny little bathing suits. the colors were everywhere, bright and bold, like the summer sun itself. after a running-start-plunge into the sea, i couldn’t resist my desire to paint and settled back on the beach under the umbrellas to paint.

there’s just something about painting that dissolves time into the distance. with only a few interruptions from some african men trying to sell necklaces and an occasional dip in the water, the beach proved more productive than any other day. we were all sundrenched and hungry and found ourselves only few steps away ordering plates of bruschetta and caprese salads from a waitor who, much to our delight and giggles, we later saw on a giant billboard at the entrance to the private beach we were at. we had to make a stop to mauro’s “white bear” gelato shop before leaving, it was the least we could do and we needed our daily dose. i ordered the bitter (dark) chocolate and pistachio, and even though i couldn’t finish it all, every bite was delicious.

this was to be our last night at casacce, we came “home” and had just enough time to freshen up for an incredible banquet, birthday celebrations, and to listen to cindy and theresa give their final critiques on our paintings. every night had been delicious, but this truly was the best meal we had enjoyed. scott and lindy had worked all day in the kitchen with chef enrico and i drilled them for their newfound secrets while relishing every bite of a ricotta pie with sweet pepper sauce and bread soup, homemade tortellini, tiny tender meatballs with fresh greens…

and then the soccer game began and the patio grew intense, the television had already been brought outside and enrico had more guests than our group that night, all sitting around waiting for an explosion of emotion as italy made the first score. the night dwindled as people mingled and bubbled on the lawn and at the tables, we went back to our room with mixed feelings of saying goodbye early the next morning, being exhausted and excited for some extra days in rome. just the two of us.

p.s. some of my photos from the palio trail races have been published on NOW PUBLIC! thanks guys!

amanda has done it again. i need to run to the trenches!

whoa. i’ve been blogging for two years now.

p.s. max discovered peripheral vision the other day. hilarious.