Walnut fig cookie

Last weekend, husband M and I did some Black Friday shopping, yes, it's come to Canada in the past few years. I did manage to get some boots at 50% off and some more art materials at 55% off. Fortunately we had managed to miss the morning rush hour lineups. We stopped in at a cafe where M ordered a grilled whole wheat chicken/cheese wrap and this delicious walnut fig cookie. It tasted more like a tart wrapped in a shortbread cookie, yum! My chocolate hazelnut gelato was equally delicious. We were tired after all the shopping that day.

Daughter's trip to Italy - Part 4

Continuing daughter L's trip to Italy, please see my parts 1 to 3 posts earlier.

It so happened that my sister and her husband from California would be arriving in Florence on vacation the day before L was leaving so it was fortuitous that they were able to meet for dinner that night.  My sister had gotten a fantastic restaurant recommendation from a friend and it did not disappoint.  The party of 5 were introduced to this tagliatelli dish that was flambed in a cheese wheel and topped with shaved truffles.  I've never had truffles myself but it is an expensive mushroom.  They had great conversation and it was so great to meetup with family in an exotic location.  Afterward they walked to a delicious gelato bar near their airbnb accommodations.

Stay tuned for part 5, the final post in this series!

Daughter's Trip to Italy - Part 2

This continues Daughter L's trip to Italy from yesterday's post.

L and her girlfriend had reserved an Airbnb 2 bedroom townhouse in central Florence for the week.  They were very happy with it being steps from the Duomo and all the major galleries.  There was also a  fantastic gelato ice cream bar nearby.

The girls downloaded Rick Steve's free audio tours of the galleries and sites they visited and said it added a wealth of information to their experience.  Here is Michelangelo's David at the Accademia Gallery.

David

Here is Botticelli's famous 'Birth of Venus' at the Uffizi Gallery:

Birth of Venus

Stay tuned for Part 3 tomorrow!