Venice!

As is our want when we are here in Umbria...we like to take a side trip to Venice. 
We will continue to do this as long as we can get away with it....because we love Venice. If you are a fan of Live Pronto, you know this. There are a whole bunch of posts about Venice over the past decade.

So...we caught a VERY early train Monday morning. It was still kind of dark out!

Not sure Johnny is quite with the program yet...

 

As always, Venice is a dream...

How many beautiful photos can one take in Venice?
Loads and loads...

Our neighborhood.

I have to admit...I'm pretty proud of this shot...

Even at night, what's not to love???

Our neighborhood in the evening...

We've been enjoying ourselves, for sure. This trip here is especially nice because Johnny isn't painting. Normally he's carrying tons of stuff, and feeling the pressure of working. But this trip is a gift to us. 

We are seeing lots of art, but he doesn't have the extra pressure of producing work. He will do some studio work later in Umbria...

So, that being said...we're relaxing and taking it easy.

We always enjoy the cicchetti here...like tapas in Spain. Small bites of joy!

Peas, veggie "meatballs", and fried eggplant. Yes, please!

More veg polpette (meatballs) and some bruschetta with cheese, 
marinated red cabbage and walnuts. A great combo.

I love the details as we walk around town...

I've come to terms with graffiti...it can be beautiful.

Random detail on a building.

Spotted at the Rialto Market

More street art. I love the texture.

Morning light in the neighborhood.

We have been renting the same apartment in Venice twice a year for several years now. Since before covid, for sure.... unfortunately, our dear hostess Alessandra, has decided to live here herself. Dang it. We love this out of the way spot, and it's a home away from home for us...Ah, well. We'll have a new adventure to look forward to.

I will miss this interesting view over these rusted roofs, though...

More to come from Venice...we're still here. Today we'll rent bikes on the Lido, a favorite thing to do on a sunny day! (well, there is a bit of rain expected later...we'll let you know!)

Two Weeks Here...

 

I'm actually writing this while in Venice. Our apartment here has really fast internet, so I'm taking advantage and loading up some photos, etc.

That being said, this post kind of covers the past week and a half or so.
We're loving our time in Umbria. We spend our days walking, hanging out with pals, figuring out what to cook, and all that.
As always here, everyday is a challenge. Between language issues, the weather and day to day living....we know we're not in Kansas anymore....and we LOVE it. This life keeps us young. We have to use our old brains in so many different ways. It's a good thing.

We've been to the markets, picking up tasty looking things that we think we might use...

The rosemary is from the garden, and the bay leaves are from a morning walk.

I get a lot of you readers asking me about food, so....

Recently, I was so happy to find black kale at the market. I like to cook it up in a pan with onions and garlic, then toss in some beans. In this case, kidney beans. The color combo is nice, and it's really tasty! 

Beans and Greens. A perfect dinner!

Our friend, Aldo told us we must try red rice. It was available at the local fruit and veg stand, so I bought a box. I wasn't sure what I would do with it, but I ended up making a pot, letting it cool and mixing it up with some goodies to make excellent veggie burgers!

They were so good! I can't wait to make more.

Rice burgers with avocado and tomatoes.
That was a great dinner....

A typical lunch for us consists of this and that...We've been eating lots of avocados and tomatoes. They pair well with parmesan and these super good tomato bread sticks we buy locally.

And wine. Always wine...

Lunch time!

Of course, we've been doing our Morning Walks...as long as the weather behaves.

Mist lifting in the valley...

We had a day trip to Florence to visit with my cousin and his partner, as well as buying art supplies.
It was a wonderful day filled with memories, laughter, love and good food. 

Johnny buying canvas for the Umbrian studio.

Here are some shots of the morning in Florence last week...

We'll go back to Florence again, as there are some good exhibitions coming soon.

The day we were there last week was mostly about family, and we both had a great time.

On another recent day, we took a boat out to one of the islands on Lago Trasimeno, our local lake...

Johnny always loves the boat ride!

We spent the day walking around, enjoying nature...

We were lucky to have perfect weather that day.

We are sticking very close to our tradition of Sunday Pizza at our favorite local pizza place, of course!

Where's my pizza?

It's funny because the only time we eat pizza in California is when I make it myself...

Here, it's a thing we do with gusto...every Sunday. Yum!

Right before we headed to Venice, we helped with the grape harvest at a pal's house. It was anice way to connect with friends, old and new!

Johnny can't believe how big the clusters are!

Lastly, here is one of many sunrises I will enjoy from our terrace at The Nut. I don't mind waking up for my workout routine if I get to enjoy this...

Thank You, Powers That Be.
We can't believe we are here...again.

Stay tuned for more...from Venice!

It's Been Awhile.....Since I've Written

Ciao from Umbria! 

Well, Johnny and I arrived in Rome September 5, bright eyed and bushy tailed, ready to get started on another Italian adventure.

Truth be told....we're not that adventurous. If you have followed this blog, you probably get it. We are very routine and tradition orientated when it comes to our travels here...

1) Land In Rome

2) Check Into The Same Little Hotel

3) Walk Around The Local Area

4) Eat Pizza

5) Drink Wine

Too true....

So that's what we did....

The first day in Rome was lovely, and I just never get enough of the color combos...

We stayed up as late as we could, eating pizza and enjoying the local piazza. We tried to stave off jet lag, but the older we get, the harder that is.

Pizza does help, though...and Pizzeria Remo is one of our favorites. Plus, it was nice enough to sit outside.

Yum!

We even had breakfast pizza the next morning! These are little fellows that are eaten with coffee...A great alternative to sweet things in the morning, which we don't enjoy.

Pizzette Rosso

We took another nice walk around the area before hopping the train north. It felt good to move after the very long direct flight from San Fransisco. It was a pretty morning...

St.Peter's in the distance.

Our neighborhood piazza in Rome...

The traditional first hotel Mirror Shot!
That is one tiny elevator....

We were really concerned about the weather, as it has been well over 100 degrees a good part of the summer, but we arrived just as it started to cool down here in Umbria. We can handle 75 degrees....but 104-105 is not our thing. 

So, yay.

First morning sunrise here at The Nut.

Another sunrise shot....

When we first arrive, we check out what we need to shop for. There is always wine, coffee, sugar, etc. that we've left in the cupboards, but we always need to get produce.

First bit of goodies.

An early days lunch at home....very tasty.

We start our routine of Morning Walks asap after arriving. For me, it's super important to get back into the groove of working out and walking. It's especially good for jet lag, and my mental health in general!

A recent Morning Walk...

I love being in the countryside, and the walks always reveal beauty....

Another favorite thing....Dominoes with wine!

We've already been out to one of the three islands on the nearby lake, and I enjoy the boat ride!

 

As always, I'm on the lookout for something to photograph...either something pretty, dramatic, textural, interesting light...I like at it all. These shots below are just some captured moments.

I gotta say, the clouds here are often spectacular!

"Super Moon" rising above the village last week...

We had a couple of chilly nights, so we got to light a fire! Yay!

in the bathroom...

A recent sunset. Yeah, it's all for real.
Nice view from the terrace.

Anyway, it's a start. I hope to blog more, so stay tuned!