Crazy Materialistic Addiction

Today 14th October is the day that the new iPhone 4S is being released all over the world. I've seen a few stories of people that have been camped out for days in order to be one of the first to get their hands on this new Apple phone and even of those in NYC being offered extraordinary amounts of money to give up their hard-earned 1st place position.

I've been waiting since I returned from Italy to also get this new device. In Italy I had the iPhone 3GS and I have to say I was an addict. So much so that every time I send a text with the average Nokia old style phone that I've had since I returned to Sydney I get really annoyed and usually end up accidentally saving a draft version of the text and then swearing under my breath as I desperately try to just send a little old text.

For me the Top 3 reasons why I'm heading to the shops tomorrow to (hopefully) upgrade to the new iPhone are:

* Internet access wherever I am (and therefore the plan I am going to be signing up for has ample data included in the monthly cost!)
* Camera - I've really missed just being able to pull out my phone and take a quick random photo whilst I'm out and about not to mention the Photo applications such as Hipstamatic and Instagram.
* The "All in 1" facet, meaning I can check my emails, Facebook, SMS a friend, take a photo, check the latest news headlines all from one device.

Now, yes, there are Android options and I have been lectured by many people about trying an Android option instead of the Apple iPhone, as for them the Android benefits out-weigh those of the Apple but as I mentioned before I am an iPhone convert and my mind is made up. The early reviews of the new iPhone have all been really positive including the new operating system iOS 5, Siri (voice recognition feature), and great camera all being upgraded and of course the overall speed especially with opening Applications and the browser.

So yes, that makes me a devout iPhone user, and made me think that in this day and age we as consumers all do generally have some addiction to a technological product or gadget that we simply "couldn't live without". On a higher level does this mean we have a greater materialistic need for technology that satisfies our every need and whim, or do we regard technology as being an easier way to make our lives that bit more efficient. I personally think its a bit of both. We use and need technology yet we have our preferences for brands or products that personally we want over needing.

Happy Weekend to you all! It's Friday afternoon knock off time here in Sydney!

Simple Happiness

This weekend has ended up being really great. I drove home after dinner last night and just had a feeling of happiness inside me. I love having days like that. I had breakfast in the morning with one of my brothers at Coogee beach. We chatted about all sorts of things, and enjoyed a nice catch up. This brother of mine has been working long hours recently so it was nice to have some relaxed time together. In the afternoon there was a big storm that went through Sydney, and it was just after I had sat down to do my Yin Yoga class.

About a month ago I had picked up a brochure about this form of yoga at Balmoral beach and it sparked my interest. I had never heard of this form of yoga, and rang the teacher to find out more information. Here is a website with more details http://www.yinyoga.com/. It's slightly different to the normal forms of yoga as you actually work the connective tissue, not muscles and its a quiet, relaxed practice in which poses are held for up to five minutes at a time. The class went for 2.5 hours as well, which I have to admit I was slightly daunted about prior to the class, but the time flew and I felt great when we finished. I thoroughly enjoyed the class and decided to book in also for the next one in November. I think it will be good to combine this stretching with the running and cross training sessions that I'm doing every week. It's all part of my current efforts to get a bit fitter. I'm trying!

So after my yoga class I picked up my Aunt and drove across to Surry Hills. We met with a cousin of mine, her husband and kids who are currently living in China and were over in Sydney for a holiday. We had dinner at a Thai restaurant called Sugarcane which is on Reservoir st in Surry Hills. The food was really delicious, full of flavour and service excellent. It's obviously pretty popular because it was completely full. I'll definitely go again. I hadn't seen my cousin and her family for more than five years so of course the kids were that little bit more mature and characters grown even more. They have been living in China for over two years and will be there for another year or more. I really enjoyed seeing them and hope to see them again around Christmas time when they are back in Australia for a few weeks.

That was my day, and all of that made me happy. As they say, its definitely the simple things in life. Good times and experiences with beautiful people.

And today my lovely weekend continued as I went to the annual Lane Cove fair with family as well. It was fun and my one niece enjoyed a few different rides as well. I even got to speak some Italian when I was buying my lunch as there was some Italian guys running a piadina stand. The later afternoon was more nerve wracking than anything when Australia played South Africa in the quarter final of the Rugby World Cup. It was a very tough and close match and thank goodness the Australian Wallabies won, but only just. Next weekend the two semi-finals will be France v Wales and Australia v New Zealand. Fingers crossed for the Wallabies, but they need to play really well. It's going to be very difficult to beat New Zealand. Maybe fingers and toes crossed will do it?!?!?

Blah! di Blah!

Right now at this very second I feel empty. I'm not sure why, maybe its more just a tired feeling. It's late Friday night, and I have an old episode of ER also on the TV. This evening I met a friend in the city at The Opera Bar which is (as the name suggests!) right next to the beautiful Sydney Opera House, and as you look out whilst sipping a drink there is a glorious view of the Harbour Bridge. This evening after having a clear afternoon with nice sun it started drizzling and then raining so the view wasn't as spectacular as usual. We then had dinner at a nearby restaurant before heading home. This week was fairly busy both at work and also socially. It was a short week as last weekend included a public holiday and I have to say it was so very nice to have three days off from work. I have caught up with a couple of friends that I hadn't seen for a while, and it was good to chat with each of them and hear their news. One is engaged and planning her wedding whilst the other has just returned from a trip to London. Nice adventures and experiences for each. I'm working on a couple of proposals at work and hoping that they come through, fingers crossed.

Yesterday Steve Jobs passed away, and people across the globe talked, tweeted, emoted, cried and simply felt sincere thanks to this man who through the past 30 years has changed and innovated technology, music and movies. He is going to be missed incredibly by his family, colleagues, friends and those that he simply touched by creating products that became indispensable in their every day lives. I personally liked all the different world and technology leaders each paying their own respects and sharing their stories about something that Jobs had done for them. I am not someone who has been using a Mac for years, but I do love my iPod and I'm desperately awaiting the release of the iPhone 4S! So Mr Jobs Thank You for turning me into a somewhat Apple addict...but grateful always to an entrepreneur and innovator for ultimately teaching and showing us all what we can achieve if we push and are indeed Hungry enough.

Tomorrow I am going to a yoga class which lasts for 2 1/2 hours. Poses are held for between 3-5 minutes each. Its a form of yoga that I've not tried before, so I'm curious to do the class and then see how I feel on Sunday...hopefully I will be able to move! I'm also catching up tomorrow night with a cousin of mine and her family, which I'm excited about. I haven't seen them for over five years, and so we will have loads to talk about. They are currently living in China, and I think that I'd actually like to try and visit them in the next year as I've never been to China and am curious to travel there. I'm also wanting to go to Buenos Aires in February as an Argentinian friend of mine from Milan is getting married there. That's another part of the world that I have never been to, in fact I have never been to South America. I remember years ago someone saying to me that people are generally drawn to either South America or Africa but rarely both. I'm not so sure about this theory, perhaps because I truly love to travel and experience new cultures and explore new places, but perhaps there is a percentage of people who will forever yearn for just one of these great continents. This week I've also booked my flights to travel to Melbourne in January for a weekend, and this will include going to see the Australian Open tennis. I have been a few times before to the tennis and it's always a great time of the year in Melbourne (even if sometimes it can be unbearably hot!), with lots happening in the city and a great atmosphere in general.

I think that is about it for now...back soon!

About Me? Awww Shucks!

At the end of last week a friend of mine in Milan who is Russian, asked if she could write about me on her own blog. She wanted to ask me a few questions about my time living in Italy, and what I miss about it now and what in turn that I missed about Australia whilst living in Italy for five years.

Here is the link to Anna's blog and her story about me: http://emigranti-inc.livejournal.com/2996.html

Now, yes its all in Russian, and for those of us who don't understand the language, here is the questions and answers in English:

My name is: Debra
I am: 38 years old
My hometown is: Sydney, Australia
I was in Italy for: Just over five years. I started off in Bologna for 4 months, and then spent the rest of the time living in Milano. I did a 3 month Italian course in Bologna and then when I decided that I wanted to try living and working in Italy, I found a job in Milano and that is when I moved there.
I started working for 77Agency in: June 2007
Italian Jobs: My first job was with a small head-hunting company where I worked for 9 months, and then I started work with 77, as an Account Manager.
Why Italy: I originally traveled to Italy to learn the language and in fact said that I would likely return to Australia after 3-6 months, and in the end I returned after just over five years! I was really enjoying the cultural experiences I was having and before I knew it the time had passed. I will never regret my time in Italy.

1) Top 3 Things about Italy:

• Food: I am missing proper Italian pizza and gelato especially. I am yet to eat an authentic Italian pizza since I got back to Australia.
• Italian scenery: Italy is such a diverse country with regards to the scenery which changes from the Lakes and mountains in the north to the beautiful coastline in the south. Australia does have beautiful places and nature as well, however Italy is a bit different and the beautiful old villages amongst rolling hills or with spectacular views across the ocean are incredible.
• Shopping: I think that the stores, clothes and shoes available in Milano are beautiful, well priced and the stores are always so nice to take a walk through, from the every day stores like Zara and H&M right through to the luxury high-end like Gucci or Prada.
  

2) Three Things I don't like about Italy:

• Berlusconi: He is running the country solely with his own interests at heart, and really just needs to resign, be found guilty of all the crimes he has committed and never be seen again. I know that this is really harsh, but his behaviour would not be accepted in any other country in the world.
  
• Bureaucracy: If you have ever needed to do any thing like organise a Visa or Residency in Italy you know that the systems are very old-fashioned and that arriving at the official office at 6am in the morning is normal. These systems are very frustrating for anyone coming from a country used to things being organised quickly and efficiently.
• Space: In Italy wherever you are there is always a house, village, car, person nearby. Its understandable when there is 60 million people living in the country, but I think that for me this took a while to get used to when you come from a country such as Australia which is so huge and its very easy to go for a drive in the Australian countryside and not see anyone else for hours.

3) Three Things about Australia that I missed in Italy:

• My family: How can you not miss your family? We are close and it was always hard when there was an important event to be across the other side of the world. I am loving spending lots of time again with them now, especially my two nieces who just make me smile constantly.
• International Cuisine: In Australia it is possible to eat food and go to restaurants from just about every country in the world, so I did miss the food choices in Italy, and for example Thai food which I just love! Every time I traveled to London for work I made sure to go to a restaurant offering the food I was really craving.
  
• Beach: I am from Sydney which is a city situated right on the beach and I am also a real summer and water person. There are so many beaches right in Sydney which you can travel to depending on where you live in the city or otherwise a huge harbour as well. Whenever it was stinking hot in Milan during summer I would dream about going to my favourite beaches in Sydney for a swim. I'm therefore really enjoying the fact that we are in spring over here now and I'm looking forward to spending lazy days on the beach again very soon.

Thanks Anna for this experience and asking me to be part of your blog! 

Strangely Odd!

This is going to be a quick post, but its something that has been stuck in my head all morning.

Today I got up and went for a run before work, and whilst jogging along the streets of downtown Neutral Bay here in Sydney, I saw something that made me not only raise my eyebrows, but shake my head and just plain old wonder.

I was running along and in front of me were two middle aged ladies going for a morning walk. Nothing odd with this sight you think, however the thing which made me raise my eyebrows was that these two ladies were twins with the same body shape, and dressed in exactly the same clothes with the same haircut and I think the same glasses as well.

So this image of these two ladies walking along looking exactly the same just rushed back into my head. Yes, I know its a random thing to write about, however it really struck me as odd. Why are these two women still wearing the same clothes? Was it just an odd coincidence or is this something that they do every day? I have friends who are twins around the same age as me, and they definitely don't do this although I am sure when they were kids at one time or another their parents did dress them in the same clothes, but that was then and this is now.

Strange one indeed I think....but that I guess is what makes the world go round...we all have our own personality quirks which raise someone's eyebrows.

Running On...

Since moving back to Sydney, I have been trying to get fitter and healthier overall, and one of the things I have been doing to get stronger has been running. I started running whilst I was living in Milan, and prior to that I had always said that I couldn't run. A colleague of mine in Milan is a big running enthusiast including doing marathons and I think that I was spurred on originally by her and so I decided to try. Starting off I did running, walking, running again, and I still remember the day I did a full lap running non-stop of the park I used to jog around and the pride I felt at having accomplished that small feat. So since then I have continued to run and in Milan that generally entailed me starting in spring and by the end of autumn I was slowing down as the thought of getting up when it was cold, dark and at times snowy wasn't super appealing! I'm definitely not going to break any world records, but I have definitely started to enjoy this sport.

I joined a gym here in Sydney for a month, (special deal!), and so re-started my running training. During the first few weeks of being back and living here again my head was a bit all over the place, and I kept telling myself to get out and do something but I think in the end it took me almost a month to get myself motivated and going to the gym plus running again outside. I actually am someone who prefers exercising outside as opposed to gym's (apart from something like yoga), and since my one month gym membership expired I am jogging usually in the mornings for around 30 minutes a few times a week and for the past couple of weeks I have also started doing a personal training session once a week. During my gym membership I heard about the Blackmores Running Festival taking place on Sunday 18th September, and I started thinking about taking part. There was four different runs ranging from a marathon, half marathon, 9km Bridge run and 4km Family fun run. I have never actually known how far I run because I have always just run by time; that is I run 30 minutes and that is my goal as opposed to running 5kms and seeing how long it takes to do it.

In addition to starting to run more lately I have also been motivated by a few specific friends who were doing the race and supporting me to give it a go. So after much deliberation I registered for the 9km run. I wasn't sure how long it would take me but I ran once for 60 minutes and another time for 50 minutes in order to give me some experience at running non-stop for that length of time. From my time at the gym I knew that I had run 6 kms in 42 minutes so I thought that I should target around 60-65 minutes to try to achieve, and also I just wanted to run the race non-stop as well.

The 9 km Bridge Run was the last one to start yesterday morning, at 9am, and it was due to reach about 28 degrees, so at least it wasn't going to rain, but that temperature in September here in Sydney is quite warm and random. One friend was getting going at 6.20am to do the half marathon and another was doing the marathon which started around 7.30am. I caught the bus to where the race started, and there were many people taking part also on the same bus as me. I had lots of butterflies flying around my tummy already and I glanced around at the people on the bus and noticed that their race bib's were all a bit different to mine. My bib had "Family Fun Run" written on it and they all had "Bridge Run". So I started getting a little bit more nervous and stressed as I realised I had registered for the wrong race! I was seemingly registered to run the 4km instead. I got off the bus at North Sydney and walked quickly down to the starting point at Milsons Point, and to find someone to ask about this little problem of mine. I asked a lady at the Information tent and she said to me that the race was full and that I couldn't run, plus that if I did run I could be made to stop by any official who saw me. A multitude of thoughts ran through my head thinking about the past week where I had been thinking of this race non-stop and also the many people who had wished me well. I walked away from the Information tent and thought to myself, no way, I'm going to do it. I was psyched to run this 9km and I wanted to give it a go.

I carefully maneuvered myself within the big group of people at the start, hoping to be as inconspicuous as possible trying to look like I was right where I should be. Then we were off, and I was immediately caught by the race and started running at my speed and not trying to run too fast. After I think only about 500 metres my mouth was dry and I was super thirsty. That feeling continued for the whole race and we had two drink stops where I quickly gulped down a glass of water. The race itself is extremely picturesque as we ran firstly across the Harbour Bridge and then down the Cahill Expressway with a beautiful view towards the Opera House and Sydney harbour before running up Macquarie street in the City, past the NSW Art Gallery to Mrs Macquaries Chair then double-backed and all the way down Macquarie street again finishing at the Opera House. I ran the whole way which I was thrilled about and I think finished with a time between 62-63 minutes. I don't know my actual time because the text message I received with my "official" time was 2 hours 11 minutes...ooops! For four km's!! Funny! I had to laugh. I received my medal for finishing which I later gave to my niece.

After finishing I caught up with my friends, and heard their stories from the half and full marathon. We watched at the finish line as the many marathon runners arrived and I have to say its the most impressive thing to see people who have just run 42kms straight and they can still laugh let alone stand up. The temperature definitely affected most people but I think most of all you could tell everyone was genuinely proud of themselves and the race they had run. I know I was pretty happy with my effort!

Speeding Up

On Wednesday evening I went to a Speed Networking evening. Now I’ve only been Speed Dating once in my life, and therefore Speed Networking was an entirely new thing for me. A complete rooky I was. But I wanted to try it out and experience speaking non-stop for two hours about me and what I do.

I arrived to a full room of people and our host explaining the evening and what to expect. I scanned the room and saw people from seemingly all walks of life like me wanting to meet some potential new business contacts, and as the host explained perhaps get some contracts signed and credit cards out ready to make that huge purchase.

There was approximately 100 people who attended the evening and we started by having five minutes per session with one other person each given half that time to talk about themselves and their business. Similar to the Speed Dating concept five minutes with some people fly’s by and with others you feel like walking up Mt Everest would be quicker.

First up I spoke to an Accountant then followed with fellow Web marketers, someone ready to help me find true meaning in my life, recruitment specialists, a Russian pyscho-analyst (& yes I did feel like I was being analysed – he was looking very deeply into my eyes!), and another urging me to join the Compassion Project. There were people from many different business sectors, with Entrepreneurs, business development managers and even one who said she wasn’t there to push her business she instead just wanted to simply meet people.

After our five minute sessions, we then did Super Speed Networking, with 15 second personal introductions, and that had us moving quickly from seat to seat. I learnt that it is possible to detail in 15 seconds what I do professionally. As was discussed, such a short amount of time is roughly what we get to introduce ourselves when we meet a stranger in for example an elevator. True I thought, and that is what a first impression is all about.  

At the end of the two hours (which flew by the way) I did have pretty much no voice left and it was still a bit squeaky yesterday, however I felt that the event for me had been a success. Not only did I meet some interesting people and potential business contacts, but I also was taught some new skills about how to express and introduce myself. Now on to sewing those seeds…

Mind Games?

Oopsss...I have neglected my blog of late. There is perhaps a reason for this. I think I like to write posts when I believe I have been doing a lot or traveling or visiting somewhere, or just generally getting out and about. I haven't been on a plane since the end of June, and that feels weird. When I lived in Italy, I would at the very least go to London once a month for a work trip, so it is a strange feeling to have not gone anywhere in the past couple of months, and for some reason that equates in my mind to not doing anything important enough to write about.

But I actually am doing things, and am out visiting friends, family and old Sydney haunts. I'm working hard at establishing 77 here in Sydney, and have had a couple of wins, plus am constantly meeting people to introduce the business and find any potential business opportunities. Then in terms of health and well being I've been gyming and started running again which I am enjoying, plus am dieting, but with the intention to lose weight properly and then to keep it off. Oh how nice that would be! Personally, I'm still re-connecting with old friends and also making new friends and that is really good too. I have little moments of feeling lost, and kind of feeling stuck between two worlds, but I'm trying to just march through those moments and enjoy all the happy times I am having here. It's definitely not a "walk in the park" moving countries, and especially moving back to your home country, and this I had been telling myself for months before returning; being that the transition wasn't going to be easy. But more and more I realise that I am genuinely happy to be here in Sydney, and that is truly a good feeling.

What I am craving more than anything is spring and then summer. Even if the winter in Sydney is extremely mild (and lately we have had gorgeous weather) and short as well, I still just want to feel the warm sun on my back and be able to jump into the ocean. It's coming though...tomorrow is the last day of August, and that means its the last official day of winter...hip hooray!

Double Comfort Zone

Since returning from Milano to Sydney one thing I have been saying to people is that I feel like I've spent five years living in Italy, and that by moving I've left my comfort zone and life there to move back to my hometown. Meaning that I was feeling more comfortable in my life in Milan than in Sydney. Although I am not Italian, nor do I speak Italian fluently (it's pretty good, but I raise a high bar for when it comes to saying I speak a language fluently), and I'd never lived in Italy prior to 2006, I had established a life I was enjoying, great friends, home, job etc and was therefore comfortable with. However I realised a while ago that for a few different reasons I was ready to move back to Australia, and now I'm back.

Whilst I was still in Milan I'd had a few conversations with different people about the fact that without a doubt it was going to take me quite a few months to re-adjust and start my life here in Sydney again, and quite likely more than six months. So I've been pacing myself and not running around expecting friends and family to be as they were five years ago. It's hard actually to explain how good it feels to be spending time again with people I've known for so long, and have a history with. It's so easy to just sit down and start talking. I'm missing all my buddies in Milan though and have been imagining each of them with me as I catch up with my friends over here and thinking it would be great to have them all together. Wouldn't that be the perfect situation! I'll keep hoping that happens one day soon.

So back to my comfort zone, and yes, I'm still getting my Sydney head switched on again, but there are a few things starting to creep back which make me realise that I am in fact really home. A small thing like walking into a supermarket and knowing exactly where to find different certain products or knowing about Sydney radio stations and what types of music they play. So yes those pieces of knowledge are a nice assurance for me and great, because I've realised that I missed that feeling whilst living in Italy. It's the little things that we all know about the country where we grew up. That we don't have to think twice about.

I'm not disconnecting completely with Italy though. I joined the social network Meet Up and they have an Italian conversation class, which I attended once and there I met a couple of sisters who grew up speaking Italian at home with their parents. They also work in the same suburb that I do, so we had lunch together last week. Whilst lunching and speaking in Italian, a guy approached us also speaking Italian saying that he had overheard our conversation. Small world indeed! Last night I also met a couple of people, one Italian and the other Venezuelan who also live / lived in Milan, so out came the Italian and then of course at the restaurant we went to for dinner our waiter was Italian! So I'm definitely not losing the Italian lingo!

So all in all I think things are going quite well. After six weeks I am feeling less like being in the "land of limbo" and although I know I still want to achieve a lot more I not trying to rush things, rather to take everything day by day.

Party Time! With some sobering moments...

Tomorrow is my one niece's 3rd birthday, and last Saturday was her party. It was a great day, and actually the first time that I've been in Sydney to celebrate with her. For me that was a very special thing, and definitely brought home to me that I was here and back in Sydney, and that there wasn't anywhere else on this planet that I would rather be. The party went off without a hitch, and the birthday girl remained excited and enthralled throughout the day. For the kids, I think their two most memorable moments were the Fairy who performed for them and painted their faces, plus the swimming pool cake!

For me the last week has been one of quite positive moments with regards to my job. I've met quite a number of people and they have all been receptive to what I'm offering and selling into the Australian market; Facebook and all that is possible with regards to advertising, building a brand and the tools to make it happen. At the same time I know that I have a long way to go, and most of all I need to win some business. That is the most important thing that I am after right now so I need to meet lots more people and discuss, inspire, be passionate and market the business in the right and best direction.

I've now been back in Sydney for about a month and I have to say that one thing that I am shaking my head about almost every day is how expensive it is for certain things here. I pay $9 for a salad sandwich and a bottle of water, or I was told that a daily train/ferry/bus ticket was $20; "but that gets you all the way to the Blue Mountains" (2 hours from the city centre)...which wasn't so helpful when all I'm doing is traveling between the eastern suburbs, City and North Sydney and I also paid $9 for a Corona at a bar in the City. What the?!?!? Milan is cheaper for these things. Hence my head shaking, but also wondering and wanting to challenge myself to find cheaper alternatives. So I'm taking a wander every lunch time to see if I can find a less expensive yet still healthy alternative to that $9 sandwich...stay tuned.

On Saturday morning I woke up to read and hear about the awful massacre and bombing that took place in Oslo on Friday. I still don't understand how one person could have so much hate, anger and be so calculated to plan the day and the whole act for years. I've never been to Norway, but the first thoughts that come into my mind about this country are: peace, nature, happy people and eternal summer sunshine. However this is also what I think about all of Scandinavia. Perhaps I'm naive in these thoughts, but almost every article and Tweet that I've read have all remarked about Norway being a peaceful nation. So I'm not alone in thinking that. I have been impressed with the reaction of the Norwegian Prime Minister. He hasn't talked about hate nor of revenge, but rather of humanity and love, and that is not only honest and inspiring but also politically astute. I'm sure that all Norwegians are feeling an extreme shock at the moment, and I sincerely hope that they can help each other to heal and hope once again.

It was also sad to hear about the passing of Amy Winehouse. Such a beautiful voice, and such a shame that she couldn't find her own internal peace. She will be remembered and hopefully always for her music rather than some of her life actions.

Finally, Australia has a Tour de France winner! Good on you Cadel Evans! Australia is super proud and this has warmed our sporting hearts and also been deemed as one of the very best victories by an Australian sports person ever. Although there are some debating that fact, I will say that I was watching eagerly late Saturday night, and shed a little tear once he had officially finished the time trial and there was no way he could lose. I was thinking about how long and hard he has trained, and also for the over 3,500 km's that he had cycled for that winning moment. It was also fantastic to see the massive number of Aussie's lining the Champs Elysees cheering and celebrating Evans' win - for me that just shows the Australian spirit and that makes me feel proud to be from this beautiful country.

Here are some yummy cupcakes from my niece's Birthday party!

Final Milano Pics

Here are some pics taken in June of Lake Como and Milano:

1) Looking towards Villa d'Este, Cernobbio, Lake Como

2) View of Lake Como from the end of Como town

3) Castello Sforzesco, Milano

4) Arco della Pace, Milano

5) & 6) Triennale Museum, Milano

Is it a tiny bit sad that...

So it's a Saturday night, and here I am watching old re-runs of "Sex & The City", (the episodes where Carrie is just starting her relationship with Aidan), and simultaneously online dating...I'm messaging actually with a guy that I was in contact with in Italy. He's just been telling me about how he likes having relationships with older women and how he recently had a little fling with a 55 year old. He's 28. I'm not going to judge, I mean in my age bracket, which is late thirties, it seems to be becoming more of the norm that women have a relationship with a younger guy. The last little story I had in Milano was with a guy seven years younger than me, and I personally didn't ever feel that there was an age difference at all. We have a lot in common including a great love of travel, and we have remained friends.

I've re-started on the same site I was using in Italy, and have re-located my profile to living in Sydney. I just made the location change last weekend, so I'm getting back into the swing of things. As much as I do really want to meet a nice guy, I'm still a bit ho-hum with the whole thing, however I think this is also due to the fact that I've only been back in Australia for nearly three weeks and I'm still having moments of being in limbo-land. Also when it comes to meeting men I've always thought that the best way to meet a guy is through friends, and I still believe that but since I started with online dating earlier this year I've realised that the whole concept puts me in a "dating mind space" and generally more aware of myself and to meeting a guy.

OK, moving on, now I'm listening to the new song by the Chili Peppers and hopefully my Saturday night street cred has gone up a notch!

This week I went to my second Inter Nations drinks here in Sydney and there was a huge group of people there. It was great to meet another Aussie who lived in Italy for 10 years and she told me about a Meet Up group which is for Italian conversation. I'm pretty happy about that as I want to keep talking Italian. So I'm going to keep an eye out for their next meeting. On Thursday night I went with two friends to see the musical Hairspray. Now I'm one of those people who isn't generally a big lover of a musical, and I know it sounds crazy, but I get bored, or lose focus usually. However Hairspray was brilliant. It's really fun and feel good with great music and I enjoyed the story too. Then last night I went for dinner at a friends place, and it was really great too. Good conversation, laughs, stories to tell, hugs with the kids and excellent food!

This morning I met up with my Mum, and her two sisters plus friends of theirs for breakfast and a wander around The Rocks markets. It's rare to enjoy the company of my Mum and my Aunt's together, and I love hearing their stories, and spending time with them. Tomorrow night we will be together again for dinner with my cousin who is flying in from London for a couple of weeks. Luckily the weather was nice and considering its the middle of winter here in Sydney actually not too cold. The markets were good, although they are really targeted towards tourists visiting Sydney. There is an additional section to the main markets now too where there are a few clothing designers, and the clothes were nice. This afternoon after leaving everyone else I went off to wander through the main shopping area in Sydney city. I walked through the Strand Arcade which for me is still so beautiful and I love the shops in there. One of my very favourites Dinosaur Designs has a lovely store on the 1st floor. I checked out the new Westfield which has been nicely designed, and now has GAP and Zara stores. Finally! I hope that these brands do really well over here in Australia and then others like Topshop, Mango and H&M can hopefully also open up. It was fairly busy overall as I believe that this weekend is the last for the current sales season. Zara particularly was heaving. It feels very familiar to walk into the new Zara store with clothes that I've seen in their stores in Milan. Strangely comforting.

So whilst in the Westfield this afternoon I decided that I'd really love a back massage. I haven't had a massage for I'd say more than a year and it was really nice, however at certain points it really hurt. The guy was really strong, and I even had to ask him to tone it down a bit. I did float out of the store though, and that felt good! So I continued my wandering around the city before returning home to look in the mirror and see that I had big mascara blobs under my eyes. So attractive I thought to myself...not! I had to laugh as I realised and could finally understand why at a certain point one girl had walked past me and given me a really odd look. Funny!

I've now switched to the film "Julie & Julia"...and its reminded me that I'm hungry and better make myself some dinner.

Plus I have to say who cares if I'm at home on a Saturday night. I'm happy, and why not enjoy a night at home relaxing?

Buona serata tutti!

Early Days

I've been back in Sydney for two weeks tomorrow and actually I can't say that the time has flown or gone slowly. I feel like each day has been filled with something different and every day I'm remembering something new about my hometown. I've found myself for example watching a whole lot more TV than I did in Italy which actually isn't saying much. To be honest (and yes I'm generalising here), Italian TV is very average, and has a Benny Hill feel to it. In most part as well the TV content is dictated by Silvio Berlusconi, hence the "veline" (women prancing and dancing around the stage wearing just a bikini) who get so much air-time. So far I've only found a couple of TV shows that I would like to continue watching over here in Aussie, and I've particularly found that there is an incredible amount of reality TV with everything from the Kardashians, Masterchef, Dancing with the Stars, and the Australian version of The Amazing Race.

There has been moments where I've missed Italy and everyone over there so very much and then something special has happened here and brought me back to Sydney. Last Friday for work I went to a meeting in the city and I hadn't even thought about the address however as the elevator arrived at the 31st floor of this particular office building and I stepped out I had the most magnificent view of Sydney harbour in front of me including the Harbour Bridge, Opera House and then the view continued out towards the heads. In the last week its been super windy and because of this the air is not so smoggy and this definitely added to the overall impression and also it was a beautifully sunny, not a cloud in the sky day. That was a beautiful moment for me. I needed that view and that realisation to hit me that yes, I'm in Sydney. The lunch and wine at The Opera Bar afterwards wasn't too bad either!

Last Saturday I went with a friend to Paddington Markets. For us a visit to these markets is something we both love to do and Saturday was the first opportunity we had to go and so there we were! These markets are I personally think quite unique, and I missed them when I was in Milano. Up and coming designers, jewellers, photography, vintage clothing and crafts fill the primary school in Paddington every Saturday. Then across the road is Oxford Street and more great shops! Saturday night I was down in The Shire as I'd been invited by a friend to watch the rugby league match between Cronulla and Canberra. It was really cold as the wind had really increased, but it was fun sitting in a box and even better that the local team, the Cronulla Sharks won. We went for a lovely Thai meal afterwards at a restaurant in Cronulla called Buddha Beach Thai. The food was all really good, and the restaurant is beautifully fitted out.

It's great spending lots of time with my family, and I'm loving every minute that I spend with my nieces. In fact by the end of last week I was missing them and really wanting to see them. Unfortunately we couldn't organise a visit for this weekend just gone so I'm hoping to see them during the next weekend. It's amazing how much love I feel for these two very gorgeous little girls who I just want to hug every day.

Ciao, and have a fab week!

I Just Have to Complain!

OK, so this is going to be a quick post, but I just have to let out some steam. Today I started back to work in North Sydney, and as I arrived at the office this morning I noticed a Fitness First gym about 30 seconds walk away from the office. Now, I've decided that I really would like to get into some regular fitness again, so I thought during lunch that I'd go to Fitness First to check out the gym, courses and prices.

So in I go, and I met with one of their Sales people who takes me for a tour of the gym, shows me the classes they have during the week from yoga, to spinning, and then the other different rooms on the three different floors. Why are they always keen for you to know where the change rooms are as well on an initial tour of the gym? I never understand that.

Then we sit down to go through the pricing structure. Of course there is a choice of either yearly and month by month and then she comes back saying I get a reduction on the yearly contract because of where I work. OK, thanks, that's great. But wait....if I sign up today for the yearly contract I can also get the first five weeks free! Wow! But I reply that no, at the moment I'm just deciding what I'd like to do so I'll let them know. And I get told that I really have to sign up today for this amazing deal, and why (in quite a strong tone) I won't be signing up today. So I thanked her and left with her telling she'd call me in a couple of days.

Hmmpphhh...I have to say I know that is probably the way they are trained as Sales people by Fitness First but I personally find it a bit over the top, and its put me off them today. So I'm continuing to check my options! Stay tuned!

Welcome Home

"Welcome Home" was written on the balloon that my niece was holding high above her head (and has been sleeping with ever since!) as I walked into the Arrivals Hall at Sydney airport. After many months of dreaming of this moment here I was back in Australia; back to live, not just for a brief three week holiday.

My final week in Milano was exceptionally tiring, stressful and gut-wrenching. Most mornings I woke up early with my head full of all the things I had to achieve in that day. There were a couple more trips to the post office, lots of packing, throwing things into the rubbish, closing of gas / electricity / internet accounts, visits to the office, cleaning and meeting with my landlord. The most important thing was absolutely the time that I spent with all of the friends that I had made during my five years in Milan, both sweet and sad goodbyes. I think I had butterflies flying around my tummy for a week!

On the night before I left I stared at the mountain of bags that I would be taking with me on my flight home and was pretty worried. A friend of mine in Sydney working in travel had been able to arrange an extra 10kgs of baggage allowance with Singapore Airlines however even with that I was still concerned, and rightly so as when said bags were weighed at check-in the next morning, they came in at a weight of 47kgs. I started sweating. I was told they would give me another extra five kilograms meaning I had 35kgs and that I would have to pay for the additional 12. I asked calmly if they could do anything else, could I speak to the supervisor, that I was moving back to Australia after five years living in Italy and I'd be so incredibly grateful of anything they could do. In the end they relented and gave me 40kgs and I paid €293 in extra baggage fees. Done, and relieved I headed off and caught my flight.

I had never travelled with Singapore Airlines before and they were great, and well deserve to be called one of the world's best airlines. Also great was the fact that the flight from Singapore - Sydney had about 20 people in economy class and so I ended up having a row to myself and that made it of course so much easier to sleep.

I've now been home for four days and I'm still feeling what I can only describe as "spacey". It's a combination of jet-lag, not really having a rhythm yet and getting used to the familiar yet not so familiar surroundings of Sydney. I've spent quite a bit of time with my family and I've also caught up with just a few friends. I'm going back to work on Tuesday and I think that is going to be good for me with regards to settling and re-starting my life here. Every day my eyes and self are opening up a little bit more.

Today here in Sydney was a glorious winter's day, sunny and warm, and I was thinking about how happy I was not to be having to live through another European winter rugged up in jacket, scarf, gloves slipping through ice on the streets. Definitely something to be super pleased about!

And here I am writing this post watching the Wimbledon Ladies final. It's getting exciting, so I'm going to bid you a fond adieu; until my next update!

The Top 5 Things I Don’t Want to Do...

So this week is my last in Milano and I find myself at this moment to be reasonably frazzled, and this is not a state of mind I enjoy as I’m normally a very calm person, however I think moving countries is a fairly good reason to be feeling somewhat stressed.

In order for me to explain a bit about how I’m feeling I’ve compiled a list of the Top 5 Things I really don’t feel like doing anymore this week, even if I know I will be doing each of these things every day until I leave next Monday!

The list is:

1. Saying Goodbye to Beloved Friends: It’s really hard. Full Stop.
2. Going to the Post Office: I’ve been three times already in the last week and it was on my second visit that I realised the people who work there actually don’t know how to send large boxes internationally, which got me to wandering what they actually do learn at Post Office School? Perhaps the first thing they are taught is how to frustrate clients?!
3. Cleaning: I actually think that cleaning would be on my Top 5 Things that I don’t like doing ever (along with ironing), so it’s no surprise its here on this list. But bit by bit I am getting there and I have a cleaning lady coming to do a big clean with me on Friday so I think it will be all ok in the end.
4. Packing: A Complete Nightmare...but I think I’m over half way there, so I’m going to get there as well. I think I might be still chucking out more clothes though! It is true that you never realise how much you accumulate until its all in front of you or if you need to carry it all. Then you really do realise that perhaps the clothes wardrobe and shoe collection are in a much better state than you thought.
5. Dealing with Fastweb, A2A, Vodafone: Where do I start? Seriously, in Italy these three companies are some of the biggest service providers available yet I would say they provide probably the worst customer service around.  Vodafone actually has days when they are not too bad, yet they are very inconsistent. Fastweb (for internet, phone etc) simply told me that although I had requested our account to be closed on 27th June, that their computer actually decides on the date the account will be closed, and there is nothing they can do. When I was told this over the phone last week I started laughing! Have you ever heard of anything more ridiculous? I’m therefore awaiting the day when I wake up and there is no internet nor extended TV channels. These providers seem to think we as customers should be grateful to them for existing and therefore have an attitude of superiority and any customer of theirs asking a simple question ends up feeling like they are a child being told off.

Right....enough for today I am off to do some packing!

Unique Bars & A Trattoria: Milano

This week I have been to a couple of great bars and a lovely trattoria just near my office here in Milan. These places are all a little bit special in their own way, and different from the run of the mill type bars and restaurants, so definitely worth a try.

• Bento Bar: Corso Garibaldi 104, Milano. Website: http://www.bentobar.com. The aperitivo price is €12 which includes a drink (with some nice Japanese style cocktails to choose from) and a Bento sushi box. Although €12 is a bit on the steepish side for an aperitivo the sushi is really nice and fresh so in the end the price really doesn't feel too bad. Also its great to sit outside, on Corso Garibaldi and do some people watching. Other places to try in the same location are Radetzky Café and Princi (http://www.princi.it) which is more a pasticceria but you can also sit outside. These are both found in Largo la Foppa, or Piazza Moscova. If you feel like a slightly cheaper drink than the Radetzky prices, then pop straight across Corso Garibaldi to a small bar run by some guys who sell more well priced drinks, and you will find that you are not the only one with that same idea! In the end everyone ends up hanging out on Corso Garibaldi and chatting, so where you bought your drink is irrelevant! A new addition to this area is a German style birreria which is found at the end of a little Galleria, and their beers are €4 each, and they also serve you plates of aperitivo food.
• Fioraio Bianchi Caffè: Via Montebello 7, Milano. Website: http://www.fioraiobianchicaffe.it. This is both a restaurant and bar and located in the Brera neighbourhood of Milan. The closest metro station is either Turati or Moscova. This is such a nice place, as its actually both a florist and restaurant. I went for dinner years ago and I still remember that the food was delicious and the atmosphere is lovely. This week I went there for an aperitivo and shared a nice bottle of wine with friends, and they offer a nice selection of food for their aperitivo too.
• Trattoria Aurora: Via Savona 23, Milano. T: 02 8323144. Standing on Via Savona and looking at the entrance of this trattoria you have no idea what is inside, and its such a lovely surprise when you do go in. This trattoria is in a great location diagonally opposite Cafè Savona and also Murphys Irish pub, both well known in the Zona Tortona / Savona area. I've walked past this trattoria so many times and finally yesterday went to lunch there. So you walk inside and instantly feel like you have been transported to another time, with dark furnishings and booths to sit in, then you keep walking all the way down to the end of the restaurant and before you is a beautiful courtyard covered with vines, grapes and tables of people enjoying their food. The lunch menu is really well priced, and mains are around €8-10 each. The food was brilliant and service really friendly.
• Turne Bar: Via Paolo Frisi 3, Milano. Website: http://www.turnenightbar.com. The closest metro is Porta Venezia. I've been to this bar many times, not only for drinks and aperitivo, but also to watch football matches as they have a great room at the back of the bar where they can put up a big screen for different events. This bar is a casual, friendly local, with well priced drinks and its great to go for a good catch up with friends.

Hope that you enjoy these!

It's Getting Close...

In exactly two weeks from today I'll be hopping on board a Singapore Airlines plane and heading for Sydney. I'm moving back to Australia for good. This journey is one I've been thinking about for months, and now that it's so close I can't quite believe that it is actually happening. The days at the moment are going incredibly quickly, and I'm starting to say my goodbye's to friends both here in Milan and also in London where I was last week. My week in London flew by with both seeing friends and colleagues plus being busy at work, and I think I was kind of almost in a state of shock that I won't be heading back to London in a month, like I have been for the past couple of years. Saying goodbye to Milan and everyone here is going to be even tougher.

I have been living in Italy for five years, and although it's had some challenging moments, like for example this morning when I had to deal with a really rude lady working at my local post office, and living with an incredible amount of bureaucracy (like you could never imagine!), my overall experience has been incredibly rewarding and unforgettable. I couldn't even tell you the number of times I've been asked by Italians why I'm living in Milan and in Italy, and what brought me here in the first place. Well, I have to say I left Australia and told my family and friends that I'd be back in 3-6 months! I wanted to experience living in Italy and to learn a new language. I studied Italian in Bologna for my first three months, and then because I was enjoying myself so much I decided to stay. I found a job in Milan during the month of August (which is almost unheard of), because in August Italy completely closes down. Everyone goes on their summer holiday, including businesses shutting up shop for weeks, and cities like Milan, Bologna and Turin become ghost town's. You have to witness this phenomenon to truly understand how a bustling city like Milan just becomes empty. It's actually not such a bad thing IF you know what is actually open because Milan becomes really calm and mellow and those that do stay in the city find it to be not so bad. If you have a car its great, because suddenly you can have your pick of parking places!

So after working in my first job for about 9 months I changed jobs and started working for an online marketing company called 77Agency. For me this was a significant change. I had been working for a small recruitment company in Milan, and after being there for a few months I realised that this company wasn't one I wanted to work for long-term and also that I actually wasn't enjoying the work. I had already thought about looking for a new job but my decision was made for me when my bosses sacked me and told me to leave that day. That was a shock to the system! I had never lost a job, and also made to feel like I was completely useless. So although I was upset, in the end it was the best thing that could of happened to me. I started working at 77 less than a week later, and have an Aussie friend to thank for it. I had never actually worked in the online marketing / advertising industry before, and I have to say now four years on, its an industry that I really enjoy and find challenging and one where I learn something new every day. In these four years I have witnessed the huge growth of for example Facebook which now has over 680 million users, and one that I use every day for work and also personal reasons. The online industry is definitely booming, and there are so many new channels and companies constantly popping up, it actually at times feels hard to keep up! I'm also going to be starting up 77 in Sydney, and focusing specifically on social media and Facebook. So it's going to be exciting to be back working in Sydney and working in an industry which is really dynamic - setting up and introducing 77 into the market in Australia.

I have been incredibly lucky throughout my time in Italy to have met and made some wonderful friends, and these are the people who made my time here so memorable. When I arrived in Milan I knew two people, and thought to myself, right, I need to get out there and start networking and making friends, because they are not going to come knocking at my front door. I joined a couple of ex-pat networks which I started to regularly attend, and this is how I met so many of my friends and created my social life. I've danced, laughed, travelled, cried, talked for hours and drunk myself silly with these people who are now unforgettable and incredibly special to me. I realise that amazing people are key to any experience, and how good it becomes. Also I think a positive attitude doesn't hurt either!

My decision to return home to Australia wasn't easy. In the end though I realised that I am missing my family, I'd like to save some cash and buy a property (yes, I need to save a lot to buy in Sydney!), I'm ready to get back into the Sydney swing of things, and to top it off wouldn't it be lovely to be a bit more financially secure....plus well, yes, I'm going to admit it here, I'd also like to meet a nice man...which yes, could happen anywhere in the world and I've met some amazing, interesting men here who I want to keep in touch with...but perhaps it could be good to meet a guy in Australia. My friends are already joking that I'm going to meet an Italian in Sydney! So in the end some pretty big reasons to return back to Australia, and I'm just going to take it day by day, and see what happens. As they say, Rome wasn't built in a day...but fingers crossed it doesn't take too long to settle back into Sydney.

It's a whole new chapter of my life, and one I'm ready for.

A Beautiful View!

On Friday there were a couple of big storms that came through Milano. They were needed. We had a week of humid days and so the storms cleared away all the smog and left the city air cleaner than its been for a while. I decided to make the most of it and went to the rooftop of Duomo in the early evening on Saturday. The view was spectacular. The mountains were clearly visible, and so I took some photos. Take a look!

Long Weekend in Stockholm

A week ago I travelled to Stockholm for a three day weekend. I have been wanting to visit Stockholm for a very long time, so I was so pleased to be finally visiting the city. Stockholm is a place I've been told a lot about and everyone I know that had visited prior to me going had told me that it's a really pretty and fun city.

We flew up on the Thursday night, and I have to say that even the flight was really lovely especially as we got closer to landing with a beautiful sunset, and below us a multitude of islands. The first realisation about arriving into Sweden was that it was organised. As one friend pointed out to me a couple of days later, living in Italy definitely lowers your expectations about organisation especially, and this is absolutely true!

As accommodation is generally expensive in Stockholm we booked to stay in a hostel called Skanstulls Hostel (http://www.skanstulls.se/en/) which is found in the Sodermalm area of Stockholm. It's quite a cool area with a lot of shopping, plus great cafés, restaurants and bars. The hostel was actually full over the weekend, however it was very clean, had comfortable beds (!) and the location was probably the best thing about it.

On Friday we basically walked the whole day exploring the centre of the city, through Sodermalm, Gamla Stan and Norrmalm, the main downtown area of the city. It's easy to understand why Sodermalm is considered to be one of the coolest areas of the city, it really is full of lovely little shops (especially nice clothes), has an abundance of cafés and good coffee, plus as we discovered later in the day lots of bars and restaurants. Gamla Stan is the oldest part of the city, quite touristy with lots of souvenir shops plus has traditional older buildings, Churches and is nice to walk through. We had lunch on the waterfront in Gamla Stan looking towards the Skeppsholmen and Kastellholmen islands. It was a really sunny warm spring day and so we enjoyed our lunch sitting outside. Actually all the food we ate in Stockholm was really delicious and service was always great. In the afternoon we headed towards Norrmalm, and did a little bit of shopping. Of course in this area there were a couple of huge H&M's, plus more high street brands and the shops were mostly found on pedestrian walkways, so it was easy to wander around. Later in the afternoon we headed back to Sodermalm, and here you can find more independent clothing stores, including a Filippa K store which is a well-known Scandinavian brand and lots of shoe shops too! After such a big day of shopping, walking and being tourists we ended up in one of the main squares of the area, and as it was such a lovely day enjoyed a couple of beers in one of the packed bars. There is a bar called "Snaps" which is I believe really well known in Stockholm, and we were sitting in another adjacent to it. During the evening it did cool down a bit and the bar brought out heaters and even blankets for people to use, which I later discovered is something nearly every bar and restaurant do if they have an outdoor seating area. That night we ate dinner at a great restaurant called "Garlic & Shots", which is on the street Folkungagatan. All their food is cooked with garlic! I definitely recommend this restaurant, good food, service and prices too. There is also a small bar connected to the restaurant.

For Saturday morning we started in a pretty similar manner to Friday...breakfast at a local cafè, a bit of shopping in Sodermalm, another coffee stop and then across the bridge into Gamla Stan where we caught a ferry to the island Djurgarden. Here you can find a small theme park and also Skansen, the zoo. Now, I have to say that I personally am not usually a massive zoo lover, however this particular zoo in Stockholm is really great, and extremely interesting. Not only is there lots of Scandinavian animals, such as wolves, elks, reindeers and bears but also traditional style Swedish designed homes from all regions and also eras. The whole area is nicely laid out and has the feel of walking through a lovely park with lots of trees, and then views towards the city. I enjoyed seeing the animals as well, with quite a few new born such as the baby elks who were just two weeks old. They were very cute! So after the fun of the zoo we headed to lunch at a cafè called "Blå Porten", also on Djurgarden and it served once again great food. Actually the cakes and desserts looked really good, but we didn't partake, just ate some lunch and sat outside in the sun to eat. After lunch we walked over the bridge from Djurgarden into the Ostermalm district. This area is one of the more expensive in Stockholm, and in a way is more suburban than for example Sodermalm. There was also a a few streets with shops, and after sitting to relax in the sun in one square we caught the metro back to our hostel. In the evening, we decided to "stay local" and in the end had a great night. We found a small very cool bar on a street called Skanegatan, and had a few drinks there before heading to a different bar called "Pet Sounds" where its possible to dance downstairs.

Because we needed to start heading to the airport on the Sunday at around 1pm, we didn't do so much on the Sunday besides a walk through Sodermalm and Gamla Stan again. I have to say that Stockholm definitely is a great city to visit. We were lucky to have sunny warm weather the whole time we were there, the people are really laid-back and nice, the city is easy to navigate around, plus as I mentioned below the food was yum too! I actually think it would also be lovely to do a driving tour through Sweden, as even the small amount of countryside that I saw outside of Stockholm was also very beautiful. Go see for yourself I say!!

It's been too long...

Since I posted on my Blog! I can't believe that its been weeks since I wrote here, but I have to say that these past weeks have been pretty crazy. I've been travelling, was sick for almost a week, and also work has been pretty full on...oh, did I mention too that I'm moving back to Sydney at the end of June, so I'm starting to figure out moving my life back to Australia. I've had moments in the past week where I've felt completely frazzled and stressed, but this week I'm feeling like yes I can do it, yes I can. In fact today I should of been flying across to London for three days, but I've re-scheduled the trip till next week because of the new volcanic eruption in Iceland. I was worried of being stuck in London. It wouldn't of been the first time. I was stuck (because of snow) in London last December for an extra six days to what I had planned, and this included my Birthday and Christmas. I had visions yesterday afternoon of the same thing happening again and so I re-booked to go next week. At Christmas time I was lucky, to have been stuck in London rather than say Islamabad where I wouldn't have known a soul. In London I have friends and places to stay, plus I could work at our London office, but during that extra six days, even with lovely people around me, I was very frustrated at not being able to just head out to the airport and hop on a flight to Milano. It was impossible, and this time around I decided to stay put. I just spent a long weekend in Stockholm and it was really great. I'll write a complete blog post about it in the next couple of days, but here are some Hipstamatic pics of Stockholm that I took:

Nice Day for a Royal Wedding

Today, 29th April I plus another billion or so people tuned in to watch Kate (or Catherine as she seems to be referred to more these days) Middleton marry her Prince Charming, William. To be honest this whole week has been just incredible and perhaps even a bit over the top with regards to the media coverage in the lead up to the wedding, and this morning, I could only wonder at how nervous the bride and groom must be feeling. I watched online via the BBC, and also loved the ongoing comments pre and then during the ceremony hurtling through the world of Twitter. Most people just seemed to be in awe at the happy couple themselves, Kate's amazing dress, who was wearing hats and who wasn't, and ruthlessly critiqued everybody else. It has to be said that there seemed to be just a couple of fashion faux pas, and for me most notably Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice (who although had incredible designer hats created by Philip Treacy), their whole ensembles just didn't seem to work.
I'm hardly one to talk about fashion faux pas as I think I'm constantly making them, but perhaps at such an event it would be more suitable to tone down the risk factor. Kate's dress created by Sarah Burton from Alexander McQueen will go down in history as being beautifully designed and suiting her perfectly.

In the end the ceremony and double kiss on the balcony of Buckingham Palace went off without a hitch and I personally was extremely excited for both Kate and William and I hope that they have a long and happy life together. Hopefully their life will not be matched with the same level of media scrutiny and ongoing stress as Charles and Diana, but we shall see as I think that the media world in general has changed a lot in the last 30 years; hopefully in some ways for the good.

In the last couple of weeks, I have discovered the poetry of Pablo Neruda; better late than never! I'm not sure how I've not heard of him before now, but his poems are really beautiful and so I thought to share some words of his on this special day.

"But I love your feet 
only because they walked 
upon the earth and upon 
the wind and upon the waters, 
until they found me." 
— Pablo Neruda

Have a lovely weekend!

Positano: Paradise

I'm back today after five days in Positano on the Amalfi Coast. I think that this trip was my fifth time to visit Positano, and from that figure you can tell that this beautiful town is one of my favourite parts of Italy!

But before I tell you about my trip to Positano I hadn't written about the last weekend of Salone in Milano. I actually ended up doing quite a bit that weekend. On the Friday night I was with colleagues and we were out and about around via Tortona and Savona, visiting different exhibitions, having a drink or two and also running into friends. On the Saturday afternoon I went for the first time to the Museo del Novecento. Luckily that Saturday afternoon there was not a huge queue outside and we were able to buy our tickets (€5 per person) and go straight in. The Museum is right in Piazza Duomo and next to Palazzo Reale. I have to say its really big, with lots of rooms and paintings and sculptures to see. We were there for a couple of hours, and I was really impressed. The art is all from Italian artists and takes you through the last two hundred or so years in Italy, and the most well known artists of this time. The museum only opened again a couple of months ago and hence the queues of people eager to take a look. Then on Saturday night I had an aperitivo at Roialto to celebrate a couple of friends birthdays and afterwards went with a couple of other friends off to an area about 20-25 minutes out of Milan centre near Sesto for the Kitsune Closing Party for Salone. The party was held in a big ex warehouse and as we discovered when we arrived the one end is in fact a restaurant where every Saturday night they hold a Tango night. So we accidentally walked into the wrong part of the building and had a lovely surprise when seeing couples all dancing tango together and enjoying their own Saturday night. Because we were a little early my friends and I ended up having a drink in this restaurant and watching in awe at the beautiful dancing. It was a really nice surprise, and unexpected addition to our night. The Kitsune party was good with a few different DJ's playing and we stayed there for a few hours before heading home. On the Sunday afternoon I decided to go one last time to Via Tortona because I wanted to go into the Superstudio to see the different exhibitions in there and also take some photos. I was glad that I had made the effort to go to see it and really enjoyed for example the Foscarini stand and their light show. 

So then for Positano! A very close friend of mine is currently living down there so myself and another friend went down to visit her. We flew into Naples and before heading to the coast wanted to try the famous pizzera Da Michele which had been written about by Elizabeth Gilbert in her book Eat Pray Love, and also was included in the film with Julia Roberts biting into a slice of their pizza. The pizzeria is known throughout Italy, even without any famous mentions. It's about a 10 minute walk from the main train station in Naples, Garibaldi. We ate the Doppia Mozzarella pizza which cost €5 for a whole pizza and I have to say it really was delicious. After our yummy pizza we caught the train to Sorrento and then bus to Positano arriving about 9pm. We actually were staying with my friend at her Mum's place and its situated just a little bit out of Positano itself, above Laurito beach. The view from their balcony terrace is out of this world, and even though I've been there before I always marvel at how beautiful it is to look out to sea, across to Positano, and even as far as Capri. The sunsets are great as well! We spent our days relaxing on the balcony, visiting Positano, eating dinner there pretty much every night too. I even had to work for Thursday and Friday, so I did whilst sitting on the balcony looking out to sea!!! Not bad I have to say. I also managed to pick up a little bit of a tan, which is nice after being so pasty white for months.

For one day we also went up to Ravello, which is the hilltop town above Amalfi. It was my second visit to Ravello, as I had been there in 1997 during my first ever trip to Italy. Ravello is not a massive town, and is well known for having magnificent views over the whole coastline plus is easy to walk around and to visit for one day. The most famous place to see the excellent views is Villa Cimbrone which as well as having the best position in the town also has a hotel and beautiful garden. It's possible also to take a walk around the gardens and for us it was really pretty with the spring blossoms a stand-out for me. One day I must go to Japan to see the cherry blossoms! I imagine its stunning. The only drawback of our visit to Ravello was the traffic. We caught the bus from Laurito to Amalfi and then another up to Ravello. We got stuck in some incredible Saturday afternoon traffic on the way back down from Ravello, and the five kilometre distance ended up taking us around one hour to arrive back to Amalfi. So after that we then had to fight to get onto the bus leaving from Amalfi heading to Positano and then onto Sorrento. There were so many people all scrambling to get onboard. As the locals told us the Easter weekend is like the middle of August in terms of overall numbers of tourists visiting and the bus company Sita doesn't actually add any additional services, which is a bit crazy, but quite Italian!


Some nice restaurants to try in Positano are:

Le Tre Sorelle: Its right on the beach, always popular, and you can eat pizza's or primi / secondi meals. The service is friendly and the food always good.
Da Vincenzo: I didn't eat at Da Vincenzo this trip but I have in the past. The food is lovely, also with good service, and the restaurant is popular with locals and tourists.
L'Incanto: Also right on the beach, quite large and we ate a lovely salad there one day for lunch. All types of food available, and again popular with locals and tourists.
La Taverna del Leone: It is actually on the road between Positano and Laurito. They have a few rooms too where people can stay. The restaurant is family run, nicely decorated and again has lovely food. We had a very nice meal and night there. In fact because they are not right in Positano it is possible to arrange a car to pick you up and also take you back to your hotel / pensione after your meal.
Da Adolfo: It was closed during this visit, as its right on Laurito beach and not yet open. I believe its due to open in May. It is really well known for their great lunches, atmosphere and of course location. The best way to get there is by a boat which picks people up at the wharf at Positano. It's also renowned for getting some quite famous clients too. For Aussies its also well known as Amanda Tabberer (daughter of Maggie) was married for a long time to one of the sons of the founders of the restaurant and she worked there for many years before setting up her own business in Positano too.

Here are some photos:

Salone continues: Thu night on Via Tortona

Last night I wandered around to Via Tortona for a bit of a look at Fuori Salone in the area. I just took a brief look and I'm planning to go again in the coming days as there is really a lot to see. I went with a few colleagues and we actually started by stopping by the semi pop-up store that has been set up by Parco Sushi for salone. For €10 its possible to have an aperitivo consisting of five pieces of sushi (really nice and fresh) and a cocktail. After leaving there we wandered along one of the side streets off Via Tortona, took a look at a fashion outlet store, then back onto Tortona and the now busy crowd of people all checking out various stores and exhibitions. Unfortunately the Superstudio at Tortona 27 was closing by the time we reached there, and we instead continued on to the next studio area, where there were still a few exhibitors open. One that was pretty cool was a Dutch design brand who had an open bar and DJ playing great music. It seemed that all the Dutchies were the majority of people on the dance floor!

A couple of pics taken in the last two days at Fuori Salone, Zona Tortona are below:

Salone del Mobile: Tue night at Triennale

Last night I went to the Triennale museum which is situated on the edge of Parco Sempione here in Milano where Campari was holding a Salone del Mobile party, as well as many designers who are also holding their Salone exhibitions throughout the museum. The Campari party was held in the garden bar of the museum. There was loads of people all checking out the different designs as well as enjoying a drink or two and a great brass band was playing and moving around the museum. Actually the band were really fun and had everyone dancing along as well. I particularly liked the exhibit by Maurizio Galente who mixed both beautiful fabrics, furniture design and even a bit of fashion as well.

Here are some photos from last night:

Hola!

This week in Milano is one of the best of the year, as Salone del Mobile (Furniture Fair) takes place. It is a week where Milan becomes truly international with visitors coming from all over the world. The parties are great and people gathering especially at Fuori Salone, which is around Zona Tortona, where thousands of people visit every night and day during the weekend, to see the additional exhibitors to the actual Fair which takes place at Rho. Though the best thing for me is the overall atmosphere in Milan. The city morphs into a really vibrant and fun place to be.

I'll be checking out Fuori Salone on Via Tortona in the next few days and surrounding streets which is always packed with people, checking out the exhibits and parties, so will take some photos to share. This year its great as well as my office is now located on Via Solari, so literally around the corner from all of this action.

The last week has seen some incredible weather in Milan, very un-spring like with temps hitting 28-30 degrees over the weekend. On Sunday I had a great day and went up to Lake Maggiore for the day with friends. We caught the train up to Arona, and then took a boat to Stresa where we had lunch. I even managed to get a little bit sunburnt! After lunch we spent some time relaxing in the sun and then caught the boat back to Arona again. There were a lot of people taking the opportunity to enjoy the great weather as well on the Lake. It was a lovely day, and I took a couple of photos, which you can see below. I've fiddled a little bit with the first one using the Photoshop application from my iPhone...