Italian Sand Through The American Eyeglass: 11/01/06

Dear Friends and Famiglia,

I have decided that Rick Steves is no longer my favorite tour guide. I have found many errors in his travel book thus far that are a huge inconvenience. For example, I went to three places today and they were all closed. I went during the specified open hours. Here I am, finally feeling better and trying to be productive and nothing seems to be open. What is going on? I also am finding his books to be unorganized, with a need to find 3-4 different places in the book to find info on one sight. He also said that it was impossible to visit the church of Orsanmichele without going to an evening concert. Well, today, the one thing I was able to do was go to Orsanmichele. It is a beautiful little church.

It used to be an open loggia, or a covered piazza if you will. The open area was a marketplace for grain, while the floors above it were used to store the grain. The loggia was eventually closed to build the church of Orsanmichele. The outside of Orsanmichele is also very exciting, including sculptures by Donatello and Ghirlandaio. I have included a picture of Donatello's St. George, which is found on the outside of Orsanmichele.

So, I lied when I said the best time to take photos in Florence was in the morning. Sunset is clearly my new favorite. Last night's sunset was so beautiful, and I have included many pictures of the sunset clouds over the Arno river and Ponte Vecchio. Ponte Vecchio, or Old Bridge, is an extremely important landmark in Florence. Long ago, the Ancient Romans, in conquest for new settlements, came up over a large hill and saw before them a sprawling valley carpeted in flowers. The sight was so beautiful; they knew they had found a new place to settle. They descended the hill and crossed the Arno River into the beautiful valley. They named the settlement Fiorenza: flowers. They then built a bridge at the very spot they crossed over and a bridge has been in that spot ever since. It was destroyed twice, the last time in the 1200s. However, the bridge has always been and always will be rebuilt.

Flowers still play a large role in Florence, now called Firenze in Italy. The city seal is that of a Lily, called the Giglia (pronounce jee lee uh). I love this word, as Lilies are my favorite flower. I have always wanted to name a daughter Giglia, but fear people will always pronounce it wrong, with hard Gs. C'mon, try it. Yeah sounds lame, huh?

Allora. As I said, I am feeling much better. I have decided to treat myself to a nice dinner tonight since I can finally taste things again. Unfortunately my Halloween was really not so exciting, as Alex's mom is in town and very insistent on seeing him during all of his spare time. You know how Italian mamas can be. So, I settled in for a quiet evening with my book, which is terribly interesting. I mean it. I am reading The City of Fallen Angels, by John Berendt. It is a true accounting of the life in Venice and the fire that destroyed the old and beautiful Fenice Opera House (pronounced fe neetch ay) (Clearly I don't know how to do the phonetic pronunciation stuff) in 1996. It is really interesting and fun to see Venice on such a personal and candid level. The writer completely immersed himself in Venice and the people, hob knobbing with many big families in the town. I have decided my new goal is to write this book for Florence. If any of you get a chance to read it, you will love it.
I have now discovered that being unobservant, such as myself, can be very inconvenient. I have a little toaster oven in my apartment, but upon using it the first time, I decided it was broken. No, I am just semi-unintelligent. So, for all this time I have thrown away leftovers and avoided cooking certain things because I though I had no oven. Well, I do and it works great when you set the temperature you want to the BIG RED ARROW, instead of at the opposite place where there is no point of reference whatsoever.

However, on a more positive note, I have finally defeated my arch nemesis, La Tigre. I had recently decided the problem was not mosquitoes, but one particular GIANT bitch of a mosquito that lives under my bed. I mean, lived. This morning I caught her lounging on the wall. I grabbed my towel that I had strategically placed on the nightstand for just this moment. With one snap of the towel, all that was left was a giant blood spot: MY BLOOD! I now realize that the various crimson smudges on my walls must be the ancestors of my dear Tigre! No more bites for Michelle!

Everything else is going pretty well, however I am finding my bathroom to be a bit challenging. There is little space, so I have resorted to using the bidet as a storage receptacle. I am also positive that my shower is growing smaller and smaller each day. I am reminded of the time my uncle Larry decided to remodel the bathroom in his house on High St. in Nevada City. He said that the shower was so small (he is 6'7") that whenever he dropped the soap or anything else, he had to open the shower door to pick it up. Uncle Larry, I know how you feel. I could avoid opening the door if I was able to, before entering the shower, place my one leg behind my head, hop into the shower on one foot, stay that way, and then slowly and safely bend my working leg to lower myself to pick up anything I had dropped. Unfortunately, I am not that flexible.

What I am really dying for is a bath. A nice warm, soft bubble bath. I have wanted it from the moment I got here, and was teased even more when I found that Florence has a Lush store. For those who don't know, Lush is an amazing bath product company based in London. Jenny and Jason Maier got me hooked when they bought me a pack of bath bars for Christmas one year. Love em. I am glad I will be coming home to cold weather so I can enjoy as many baths as I want!

Now down to important business. Last night I ate the most incredible candy bar of my life. Forget Kinder Bueno Bars. I may even say this candy could make me swear off my beloved Kit Kat. Please, anyone, go to the store and tell me if they have the new Mars Delight Bar. If not, I will need to buy a case and I will ration them out to friends and family depending on what they can offer me. Believe me, they are the greatest invention ever. Ever since I was little, I have had a fondness for the texture of crispy waffery stuff. I was at my grandma Lucy's house and Father Royer had come to give my grandmother Communion, as she was too sick to go to church that day. On this day, I did Communion with her and liked the cross stamped wafers so much, I asked Father Royer if I could take a bunch home with me. He laughed, understanding I was a little girl, and I did not understand the significance of the wafers. Obviously, he did not let me take any home with me. Therefore, the closest I have been able to get is candy with wafers in it; Kinder Bueno, Kit Kat, Fererro Rocher, etc.

And there you go. Just another day in Florence. I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of my friend Rachel who just happens to be passing through for 3 days on an Italian tour with her mom. So stoked. I hope you are all well and would love to hear from you.

Ciao e Tanti Bacci!