Change. If I had to give a one-word definition of life, that might be it. Good, bad, or indifferent, the one thing you can count on is that soon enough there will be something else. Before you can fully process one thing, it’s on to the next. In this case, thankfully, it’s on to something wonderful: a trip to Italy. It’s a weird place to be, half of me in a place of excitement, the other half still grieving the death of my amazing grandmother. But I think it’s probably just what I need, and I know without a doubt it’s what adventure-loving Sally would want. She would want me to go out in the world and bring her back a good story. So off I head to Venice for the wedding of my very dear friend Stephanie.
Italy is such a special place for me. It was in Rome that I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned around to see, for the very first time, the face of the man I would one day marry. It was in Portovenere that we had our first “date” and in Positano and Venice that we honeymooned. And now we are returning to Venice and the surrounding area to celebrate more love. Heaven.
I’m most looking forward to impromptu outings with some of my closest friends (how many obnoxious Americans do you think we can fit into one gondola?), wandering Italian streets with no real agenda and tasting as many gelato flavors as possible. But there are also a number of fun things planned, like a beach outing and a trip to Prosecco and, of course, the main event, a beautiful love-filled wedding.
I feel lighter just thinking about it.
Then it’s on to Portugal, a country I’ve never visited before but have heard amazing things about. Lisbon’s San Francisco-esque looks and cheery vibe make it the perfect place to spend a week unwinding and re-centering. If anyone has any tips about Lisbon or the surrounding area, I’d love to hear them. We’re going with a pretty carefree, see-what-we-see agenda. But I definitely don’t want to miss something really special or delicious, so I’m all ears.
I’m wishing you a fabulous end to summer, whether it’s hanging around town or off on one last adventure. I hope it’s filled with whatever speaks of summer the most for you (for me, it’s ice cream and salt water). I’ll see you guys in a couple of weeks, hopefully a little brighter, a tiny bit fatter, and with another tale to tell.
Have a beautiful trip Rian! My summer vacay is officially over today as I am commenting on this while sitting in a work meeting…wah wah wah ;)
You had some pretty fab summer vacays, Tobi. I still need to catch up on all of your recaps. I love that you’re commenting from a meeting. It makes me feel a tad bit naughty for distracting you :)
Don’t feel too bad…It was a really boring and uninformative meeting :)
lovely! http://www.alysheasurani.com
Wishing you a wonderful time away!!
Thank you, Bonnie!
I nominated you!
I hope you have a beautiful time, Rian!
The city of Porto is supposed to be very beautiful. It’s a World Heritage site and it’s known for its port wine
Cool, thanks for the tip :)
Have a marvelous time, Rian! Can’t wait to hear all about it. :)
Your trip will be AMAZE-balls I’m sure. Teensiest bit jealous but my time will come :) Until then, it’s continuing to make my apartment an oasis from real life. Not sure if you’ve seen the progress, I know you mentioned wanting to see pictures and some of them are up on notsoskinnygenes.com now. Can’t wait to hear about your trip.
Reading that really makes me want to go to Italy. Looking forward to your travel chronicles after you get back :)
Hi Rian,
Have a great time. I love Venice. Love it, love it.
Also, I visited Portugal in 1999 (pre-children) with my soon-to-be husband and we visited Sintra, not far from LIsbon and had a great time together, eating custard tarts and coffee in the mornings, sleeping in the afternoons, and playing cards and eating olives watching the sunset….a lovely historic town.
Have fun.
Thea
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sintra
Have a fabulous trip!!! I cannot wait to see the pics and read the stories of your Italian adventure. Bon Voyage, Rian!
Wonderful places!!!! :)
http://basamortua.wordpress.com/
Awesome ! Have a great time . Sounds like tons of fun ,
Portugal ❤️💚 That’s where I’m from have a blast friend .
how do you start a blog propaly and how do you get people to read it?