I had been Italy a dozen times before, but there were still so many regions I hadn't yet explored, such as the Trentino / Trentino-Alto Adige region, a mountainous area in northern Italy where you will find the famous Dolomites mountain range, which are part of the Alps. 

The capital city of Trentino is Trento. Oh and did you know that the northern part of Lake Garda is also part of the Trentino region? That was new to me! 

I've always known the Italian Dolomites to be popular for winter sports and holidays, and somehow never considered seriously enough as a destination outside of the winter season. 

Which was silly. But last month (October), Ricardo and I made a quick trip to visit Trentino. It was autumn, and the leaves had just begun to change colours. It turned out to be wonderful, although I wish more MORE leaves were orange.

This post is about my favourite experience in Trentino, thanks to a very special person who is otherwise recognised as 'the herb hunter of Val Rendena'.  It involved foraging for wild food in the mountains, next to one of Italy's many pristine lakes, and cooking our own lunch, which we enjoyed outdoors.

Note: Val Rendena is known as the 'Green Valley' (as it is surrounded by lush green forests and woodlands) and includes the area of Madonna di Campiglio, where we stayed.

FIRST, A SHORT HIKE TO LAGO DI NAMBINO

We met Noris (short for Elinora) with our host and guide, Sara, at the car-park at the bottom of the trail that leads to Lago Di Nambino (Nambino Lake), close to Madonna di Campiglio. It was morning and the air was fresh... this is really just a nicer way to say 'cold'. 

Noris didn't speak too much English but that somehow made communication a lot more fun. She was quirky, animated, and seemed like a determined woman who had led an interesting life. 

She came out of her car with her a rucksack packed with bottles of wine and bunch of other items for the picnic we were going to set up at the end of our hike.

When I saw her full, heavy backpack, I was glad that she didn't know I was the kind of person who complained about carrying a backpack that was half the weight of hers. Especially after she pointed out my wearing (children's) sneakers instead of proper hiking boots. 

I told her that if Nepalese porters could traverse the Himalayas in flip=flops (which I've witnessed first-hand), then with these sneakers I could do anything!

The hike up didn't take long - it was an easy one of about 30-40 minutes through beautiful forest scenery. We passed a waterfall, too. Once we arrived, we were at an elevation of about 1600m. It got colder and I started to question my decision to visit Trentino during autumn. I had a ski jacket on!

VISIT TRENTINO : A REAL TASTE OF NATURE

Noris' life's passion and work is wild foraging - identifying anything that is edible or can be made into food. This includes all sorts of herbs and plants, mushrooms, and even flowers!

Wild food is defined as anything edible that has had no management or intervention to increase its production. 

She has a brand called Primitivizia, and she sells a small selection of pastes and other concoctions made using interesting wild food items such as wild garlic leaves, mountain spinach, and burdock; all found within Val Rendena. This is a real 'taste of nature', bottled up for your convenience!

Noris is so good at what she does that her work has been nominated to be included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List.

During the hike, I would often find her bent over, examining the flora on the ground or smelling things she had picked up in her hands. There were a lot of lichens, which she insisted were edible and tasty. With a bit of imagination and some garlic, I could believe that.

Once at the top, we could see the beautiful lake, Lago di Nambino, some 100-200m ahead of where we stopped, which was a little cottage that Noris virtually owns (she has been trusted with the keys). I think she keeps a lot of her foodstuff in that house.

A SPECIAL PICNIC IN THE DOLOMITES

We set up our picnic lunch on a rustic-looking table just outside the cottage. 

Everything you see on the table was brought up the mountain by Noris in her backpack! Save for the tableware of course, which was brought from the kitchen.

We had good cheese, special Trentino speck ham, and regional red wine.

Noris introduced to us a fantastic little snack: buttered bread with anchovies with a dash of pine syrup. It was divine. Of course, the syrup was made by Noris herself.

In fact, this syrup seems to be one of her most popular products and you can find it (+ more info) here: Pine Cone Bud Syrup

Our main dish was a simple pasta dish that we cooked together over the wood-fired stove (I even got to put the wood in myself!) in the kitchen: a kind of cacio e pepe made with an amazing wild garlic paste created by Noris.

Instead of pecorino cheese, we crumbled some leftover bread and grilled it on the pan. Noris joked that this was 'mountain cheese'!

Ricardo and I loved this dish; we both thought it was delicious, even though Noris kept apologising for its simplicity. In my opinion its simplicity made it all the more appealing. 

OH! The picnic table is often furnished with some basic utensils for anyone passing by to use (travellers, hikers, etc). Noris tells us that whenever people have enjoyed her table, they have left a little something behind, such as a flower, as a token of appreciation. 

So amongst the mess we made after lunch, I left a small orange for her to find later. I don't know why but that day I decided to put an orange in my jacket pocket. Perhaps I foresaw this opportunity.

LAGO DI NAMBINO

After our 'taste of nature' that turned out to be more like a 'feast of nature', a walk  around the area sounded like welcome idea. A visit to Trentino wouldn't be complete without a wander around one of its beautiful lakes, anyway.

Sara accompanied us around the perimeter of the lake, and I was impressed by her patience as Ricardo and I stopped a million times along the way to shoot video or take photos.

Lago di Nambino is one of those places where you will find yourself taking multiple photos of the same thing, with most of the shots looking almost exactly alike. 

That little house you see is Rifugio Lago Nambino, which is in fact a hotel and restaurant. I imagined it would be a stunning place to spend the night and wished we were staying there.

I spared you by uploading only three of my Lago di Nambino shots. Rest assured there were many more. I hated having to choose because every photo seemed perfect! But you see what I mean that they all look alike!

Sara said that if we had come maybe a week or so later, those trees in the distance would have looked a lot more golden as autumn progressed.

Sorry, had to include a couple of photos that had me in them. 

I felt like Lago di Nambino alone made our visit to Trentino worth it. Especially since we got to experience it with Noris!

Speaking of whom, she turned up to join us on our walk later and we helped to bring back a bunch of branches and twigs for the cottage (to use as firewood). This was when it became obvious I was not used to such work, because the branch I was assigned to carry was dragging along on the ground behind me very ungracefully.

A NEW FRIEND IN TRENTINO

I am so grateful to Noris for sharing such an authentic, unique experience with us. She says she doesn't often invite people up to the house, so I felt extra special!

Noris joked that, men are good for "driving cars, opening wine bottles, and having sex". So if you find one that can do all three, you're set! Haha

On the our hike back down, we talked a little about Italian music and I shared with her one of my favourite, very-old Italian song called 'Il Pinguino Innamorato' , which translates literally to 'The Penguin in Love'.

I couldn't stop humming the tune in my head. We held hands for most of the way down, walking alongside each other like we were kindergarteners at the playground! 

It reminded me of the simplicity friendships when I was a young child - when all you needed to do to express a liking for someone was to hold their hand. I think we should all hold hands more.

Thank you Noris for being such a wonderful character; and now I have another reason to visit Trentino again!

Left: Noris' resident swan! She had stumbled upon this quirky wood formation while wandering the woods and decided that it would be her pet swan.

Right: A doodle I left on her wall in the cottage - it was a wall on which many guests/new friends had left a little souvenir for Noris. 

 

 

This post was created in collaboration with Visit Trentino

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So I got to do a half-day driving tour with Walks of Italy covering some of the less visited sights in and around Rome. This included the Appian Way – one of the earliest Roman roads of the ancient republic that was used as a main transport route for military supplies. It was constructed by the Roman army in 312BC!

Our meeting point was set as next to a monument at the grand Piazza Venezia. It was only me, Hugo (my friend), and an American couple that day so it was a pretty quiet group although I wished there were more people to talk to!

The highlight of the trip for me was the Appian Way and the aqueducts, which if I remember correctly were the first stops on the itinerary. They were the farthest away from the city.

We got out of the van and put our feet on what to me were the biggest cobblestones I had ever seen!

Our guide explained its history in much detail, most of which haven’t quite stuck with me perhaps because I was distracted by the beauty of the place whilst he was doing so.

I touched one of the stones with my hand. It was cold and.. quite smooth. It made a nice sound against the bottom of my shoes. I liked it.

We didn’t stay there for long before driving another five minutes or so to see The Aqueducts, an ancient water system which is said to be a testament to Roman engineering. Apparently some of these structures are still currently in use although not to full capacity.

The surrounding areas have been made into golf courses and for general recreational use by the public. There were some tennis courts nearby, and lots of people cycling/running nearby. However, we were told that during the night it becomes quite a dodgy place..

Our guide then showered us with lots of interesting bits of information about how the aqueducts were built etc. I don’t remember the facts exactly but I remember being very impressed by the story. Those Romans were clever!

I loved the huge pine trees.

Only in Rome can you have a green open space where you’ll have trees on one side and.. centuries-old artefacts on the other! I wished we given more time here to have a picnic or wander around because it was really a beautiful space.

Back in the city, we made a quick stop to a look through the keyhole of the Knights of Malta compound, not far from the Spanish Steps. Apparently, it’s a thing to do in Rome.

Naturally I was really curious to find out what it was that people queued up to have a glimpse of..

But what a TEASE it was! Because though the keyhole we saw a most pristine garden with perfectly pruned tall bushes on each side, with a view of the dome of St Peter’s Basillica at the end. Unfortunately the latter didn’t photograph well in the bright sunshine that day.

I tried to see if someone would open the door if I banged the door knockers, but it didn’t work. I was reminded that there is no entry to this garden for anyone who’s not.. a Knight of Malta, I suppose! haha

The final attraction of note on our driving tour was Janiculum Hill, where a cannon is fired every day at noon in the direction of Tiber. I think it just marks the time, but I had never seen a real cannon being fired before so it was pretty exciting, especially when it went all smoky!

Of course there is also the magnificent view of Rome..

Overall I enjoyed this tour, although really the main attraction in Rome to me will always be the artichokes 🙂

Things I liked about this tour
I got to see some real ‘off the beaten path’ stuff
The Aqueducts Park (my favourite on the itinerary)
The very friendly guide

Things I did not like about this tour
A lot of sitting in the van
Not much activity besides following and listening

You can book this driving tour yourself via Walks of Italy for €64 per person!

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People always ask me, ‘WHY? HOW?’ What did you DO?’ with immense curiosity. Here’s how.

When I arrived at the rather rural Castelnaudary train station, Blanche, the woman who owned the farm, came to pick me up with her car. From the moment we met, I knew she took a certain disliking to me. I could tell by the way she looked at me and by her body language. You know when you just KNOW?

She clearly wasn’t interested in me or in getting to know me. I endured a super awkward car ride that lasted 20 minutes. Nevertheless, I filled my mind with only positive thoughts and convinced myself that she simply wasn’t the talkative type.

When the car pulled up in the driveway, she got out and.. left me there. Again, no matter.

“I have arms and legs.. it’s fine I’ll carry all my bags up myself!”

I was then distracted and struck by how eccentric and pretty the whole place was (click here for more). I met Bernard, her French/Moroccan husband. He had been a chef for over 30 years and was quite the quirky man. He was friendly and funny and warm, unlike Blanche the iron woman.

I felt slightly disappointed that there were no other volunteers like myself at the farm. BUT, after unloading my things in the bedroom upstairs I sauntered down to get familiar with the house and surroundings; and Bernard introduced me to a German guy called Axel.

Axel was sort of a long-term volunteer who helped out at the farm in exchange for food, water, and electricity. He was a nomad. He lived in a caravan happily planted on a plot of land next to the farmhouse with…… his donkey, with whom he had travelled over 10,000km through Europe on foot!!

He also had quite a bushy beard and so I couldn’t help thinking of him as ‘Jesus’ in my mind…

Anyway, Axel was so friendly and accommodating, you would think that HE was the host. He showed me around the whole area and pointed out important things I should know. I met the two resident cats, the dog, and the old horse who lived close by.

After my ‘orientation’ was over, I got changed into some bathers (it was a sizzling 35 degrees celcius) and went along with Axel to take his donkey for a walk up and over a nearby hill. It was fun! I’d never walked a donkey before..

Eventually we reached a medium-sized lake. It wasn’t the most picturesque lake, but good enough for a quick swim while the donkey grazed on.. dried up shrubbery nearby. In that heat, getting into the water was like heaven!

On the way back, Axel told me more about his donkey (whose name I’ve clearly forgotten..so I’ll just call him Donkey) and the places they had been together. We had a nice chat about some serious things (like his decision to live nomadically) and some nonsense things (donkey poop). According to him, all he needs is himself and Donkey. He later showed me the little enclosed area he had built for Donkey near his caravan, and how Donkey would sometimes be cheeky and try to break through the fence… which was not even a real fence unless you consider two horizontal strings a fence, haha.

DAY 2

The next morning, as instructed by Blanche, I woke up and got ready very early. Had a rather awkward breakfast in the kitchen where she expected me to know where everything was. Luckily, I was saved by a cheerful Bernard who joined in soon.

I spent my first day working on one of the vegetable patches with everyone.. and boy was it hard work.  Hard, sweaty work. And who knew there were such a thing as gardening gear? Special rubbery shoes, gloves, hats, etc.

By the end of the afternoon, I was freaking knackered. I felt totally beaten down by the blazing sunshine. Like the sun had taken the form of a giant HOT shoe and stamped on me. ME, the sun-lover..

Anyway, sensing that I must’ve been a bit lonely without other young people around, Axel suggested that we walk to town to grab a drink, with Bernard. By ‘town’, it literally means one street, with an all-in-one cafe/bar/restaurant, one shop, and some essential amenities. It was the kind of place where everyone knew each other.. and their families. The cafe owner was really friendly and quite the entertaining clown 😉

We ate and drank and talked and stared into the night sky. As Blanche was rather cold and Bernard spoke little English, I spoke mostly with Axel. He liked to read a lot. He enjoyed the sound of thunder. He liked cold showers. He told me a bit more about his caravan and his nomadic life. He didn’t know where he was going next – I loved this fact about him. I was slightly envious. The four of us also shared a joint (this is an honest blog!), and so I have to say: it was a very nice night.

DAY 3 – KICKED-OUT DAY

On this morning, the men had gone away with the car to do some shopping. It was about 10am and I was working on the same vegetable patch, when Blanche comes up to me and abruptly tells me that she wanted me to leave.

In shock, I asked her why. She said some rather odd things, like ‘I don’t think you’re enjoying it’, and ‘You’re not doing it right’. I figured that they were all excuses for the simple fact that she didn’t like me, so I agreed that I would go by the afternoon (her terms). But who knows, maybe she was right – maybe I WAS really terrible at farm work! When the men returned, I could hear them having an argument with Blanche, questioning her actions. It was a little dramatic, and traumatic.

I admit I did cry a little in my room. I felt dejected, confused, and I didn’t know the answer to the most important question: WHERE TO GO/WHAT TO DO NOW?? 

My return flight was two weeks away and I had never really travelled solo before.

I logged into the one house computer with an internet connection and started researching. I emailed my close friends and looked at nearby farms I might be able to move to, but without much luck.

I later found comfort in Axel’s caravan. He’d invited me there so we could discuss the situation privately. He said he was sorry that this happened and that he was also as puzzled as I was.

Sensing that I was deflated, he started pulling out various maps and spread them all out on the table. I noticed that he kept a LOT of maps with him (well of course). We considered a number of options: I could travel farther inland up to Toulouse and then Bordeaux. Or I could go the coast, to Narbonne, down through Perpignan into Spain. He shared with me places he had been before where you could stay for free – such as a yoga/meditation retreat somewhere.. or a monastery. He knew heaps of things and lots of names of places I hadn’t even heard of! He was so kind, calm, and encouraging.

As I listened to him talk about my options, I realised something. I realised that.. THIS WAS AN OPPORTUNITY.

Suddenly, it became exciting. It was still a bit sh*t, but exciting. I saw the bright side.

I was free. I didn’t have to spend every day doing farm work. 
I could go off an EXPLORE!

^It was just you and I from here on, Goliath!

That afternoon, I packed my bags and said goodbye. Bernard gave me a long hug and whispered, ‘i’m really so sorry’. I told him I wouldn’t forget all those nifty cooking tips he’d given me. I thanked Axel being such a wonderful presence in my short-lived farm experience and wished him lots of luck on his next journey, wherever it might lead to.

At Castelnaudary train station, I politely hugged Blanche goodbye and thanked her for having me.

THE NEXT TWO WEEKS

I spent the first night in nearby Carcassonne.

^I went on a canal cruise and stopped to take pictures at a vineyard.

^I stopped in Marseilles for a while.

^I ended up in beautiful Nice, where I was fortunate enough to stay at the most fantastic hostel, Villa St Exupéry Gardens (thank you Ulf for having me).

^I learnt how to bake macarons (now a forgotten skill).

^I went canyoning in the Verdon Gorge (amazing).

^I went swimming by the Promenade des Anglais

^I made a day trip to Eze Village, one of the prettiest little towns in Europe.

^I went scuba diving at St Jean Cap Ferrat.

^I made friends and partied with three Australian girls.

^I sunbathed and swam in Cap D’Ail, a cute little beach just west of Monaco.

^I visited Monaco for the second time in my life.

^I finally got to see the leaning tower of Pisa.

^I fell in love with Florence (can you believe this is part of the riverbank there?).

^I met Tania and Ana, two South Americans whom I asked to please share a 1kg Bistecca Fiorentina (Florentine steak) with me.

^I went to Siena and watched the town prepare for Il Palio

^I climbed up a hill in San Gimignano, which was also home to ‘the best gelato in the world‘

Thank You Axel

The post The Summer I Found Myself appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

The Grand Canal.. not like you wouldn’t already know!

We were lucky in that Alberto, a dear friend of mine in London, is in fact.. Venetian. So I timed the trip to coincide with his visit home.. hehe.

We arrived early on a Friday morning. The bus from Venice Marco Polo Airport costs €6 one way and stops at Piazzale Roma, a kind of ‘square’ where lots of buses stop. Alby’s house was about a ten-minute walk from there.

I remember standing there with Amy on that sunshiney day thinking, ‘Oooooh woooowwww this place is so beautiful it’s like MAGIC!’.

I consider myself quite well-travelled within Europe and I’ve seen many a pretty-looking city, but it’s that special feeling you get whenever you meet a place you’ve never been before that fills me with a sort of joyous energy and happiness that keeps me wanting MORE.

I ‘fall in love’ with nearly every place I travel to, and Venice was definitely no exception.

The first thing we did after dumping our bags was lunch.

Spaghetti Alla Buzzara (scampi and shrimp) at La Dona Onesta. Only tastes freaking amazing!

The food pic was copied from my Instagram..  Unfortunately, a few days after returning from Venice, my iPhone was stolen and so the bazillion (very interesting) photos I’d taken using it were GONE. But at least I made it a point to use my Olympus camera sometimes 🙂

Me with Amy at the Grand Canal

We did SO MUCH walking that day. Alby was naturally and erm.. extremely excited to show us around his hometown – the church he used to go to when he was little, his school, the library, his friend’s shop, his friend’s bar, his friend’s cafe, and so on. He had so many friends there that throughout the day he was ‘Ciao’-ing all these random people along the streets.

We arrived at the masquerade shop near Alby’s house.

The one with the gigantic beak noise is part of the Il Medico Della Peste costume, i.e. The Plague Doctor, as it’s modelled after the masks worn by doctors during the Black Death plague centuries ago when people believed that disease was spread through ‘bad air’ or through smell! This is known as the Miasma Theory.

Doctors wore these masks to prevent the ‘bad air’ from reaching and infecting them, so a variety of items – such as herbs, flowers, spices, and vinegar – would be stuffed into the beak of the mask.

I WAS VERY FASCINATED BY THIS MASK.

Outside the store stood a model of The Plague Doctor, complete with brimmed hat and erm.. ‘stick’, which clearly you must NOT touch. OR ELSE!!!

I love that sunflower brollie! 🙂

Alby was SUCH a fantastic guide. He shared with us so many interesting bits of information about the city and its history, including the gondolier trade. It was fun to hear it from someone who had grown up and lived there.

I brought my little Icelandic lamb with me.

In a city like Venice, I guess the sunset HAD to be beautiful. OR ELSE!!! Haha.

When it got dark, we decided it was time to load up on the Aperol spritz (looove).. not that we hadn’t already during the daytime.. >.<

Italian bar snacks.

Sadly, most of the pics of the infamous Piazza San Marco were in my stolen iPhone and I only have this one from Amy to show you! But oh well, there wasn’t much to do there after sundown anyway.

We headed back to the house in the evening to have some homemade Italian polenta and delicious pasta with pesto, courtesy of Alby.  Again.. most pics were on my phone -_-

We were so stuffed! The rest of the night was spent drinking countless glasses of Spritz. Hehe.

Here are a couple of pics I salvaged from Instagram:

Taken when we first arrived –  by the canal next to Piazzale Roma

A rather chilled-out gondolier (had to be, ’twas about 5 degrees anyway)

View from the plane – flying above the alps! 🙂

If you’ve been to Venice before, what was your favourite part about it? Did you go in the summer or winter?

x

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Blah points: having to buy new tickets, and our Rome trip was cut short.

We spent one night at the Alessandro Downtown Hostel, and they were kind enough to refund us for the unused night due to us missing the ferry.

It was my first time in Rome, so our day was spent walking. A lot. Seeing all the ‘must-sees’ etc. Quite a snore considering we had just come from a volcanic island.

 First stop – The Colosseum/Coliseum 

When I saw this, I wondered WHAT KIND of person would’ve been walking around and would’ve just HAPPENED to have such a sticker with them.. and then I realised, that kind of person is probably me. Or Joyce.

I couldn’t be bothered to go INTO the Coliseum (I’m not too interested), so just took photos of it from the outside. That was enough for me. I’m generally not a fan of sightseeing but rather I enjoy things I can DO (activities).

How cute! Sort of like a leg-powered gold buggy that you can rent to get around the city.

Needless to say, the whole place was SWARMING with tourists. There were particularly a lot of American tourists.

It was a hot day (over 30 degrees), so I gave in and got a freaking gelati cone for 5 euros from one of the typical tourist-trap trucks outside the attraction! At least it tasted good.

OK.. my impression of the Coliseum when I finally saw it in real life was that it looked rather SMALL. I felt a bit cheated. I really thought it was much much bigger (just an honest opinion hehe).

The group on the right is posing for a photo. The man on the left.. I have no idea.

My dress is by H&M and I’m wearing shiny yellow Saltwater Sandals.

We walked halfway around the ‘park’ near the Coliseum and then towards the river to cross an ‘island bridge’, AKA Tiber Island/Isola Tiberina. It was on this little island that I found what I thought was the best gelato shop in Rome!

I practised my basic Italian and ordered myself two further gelati cones. My favourite flavours are hazelnut (nocciola) and peach (pesca).

We passed a shrine made in memory of a little boy called Claudio who had fallen off the bridge into the river and perished 🙁

RIP Claudio.

Saw a woman carrying around a kitten in her handbag 😉

After a few more rest stops (seriously we were sweating like mad), we made it to the Vatican City/St Peter’s Basilica (Basilica di San Pietro), where we had PLAY TIME.

The grounds outside the basilica were so huge and full of open SPACE! The sun made the ground look so shiny and all of a sudden I found myself full of energy again.

I ran around chasing pigeons. We blew bubbles. Rolled Wilson (Joyce’s pet golfball. Just don’t ask) around. Took silly pictures. I’d never had to much fun at a religious place before!

We spent so much time playing outside that by the time we realised that ‘HEY, we can actually go INTO the Basilica!’, it was 15 minutes to closing time.

So I ran into the queue and had a quick 5-minute wander around. It’s just a big church, after all. I guess I really went inside just for the sake of going! Here is the evidence:

These guards have such funny costumes. There were lots of people jeering and teasing them, trying to make them laugh but unfortunately nothing seemed to have worked. I don’t understand how these men can just stay so STILL all day wearing THAT. If it were me I’d be jumping around and doing all sorts of dumb things in such a costume.. ;p

Hmm, looks like I haven’t much to say about Rome, but here’s an exerpt from my Holiday Journal to describe the rest of my evening:

We took the metro back to Via Emmanuele where we rested for a couple of hours before heading out again. We tried to go to Radio Cafe for an indie night (Fish n Chips) but luck had it that it was closed for a private function. AND the metro was closed so I couldnt make it to the Trevi Fountain 🙁

Had a couple of drinks at a bar nearby where the waiter was so patient while I asked him for directions to a couple of different clubs. In the end, the one closest to us that we knew of was Circolo degli Artisti. It took a while to get there (with the help of a nice stranger buying food from a roadside van-stall) but the venue turned out to be super amazing – lots of outdoor space and grass! It looked kind of like a wonderland. Perfect for a warm summer night.

There was a blues concert going on and we caught a bit of that. We met two guys – Simone and Paolo. Paolo was lovely but unfortunately Simone turned out to be a douche and I found him rather creepy. BUT. I had a super fun night overall and danced with heaps of people. AND still managed to get us back to the hostel in a cab phew. By the time we stumbled into bed it was past 5am…..

We didn’t have our cameras with us so here are just two pics from my phone:

Left: with Simone (hrmm….) / Right: with Paolo

It wasn’t until our whole trip was over and I was back in London that Joyce and I realised that we completely forgot to take a picture of the both of US together that night! Oh well..

The post Mini Eurotrip: Rome appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

We had the dreaded task of walking uphill to the church/town square to return our rented hiking boots, however. What was most dreadful about it was me having to stuff my poor feet back INTO those heavy things that morning (my sandals were left at the shop in exchange for the boots). Could almost hear my feet screaming ‘NOooooo!!!’. Well, I survived.. so never mind enough complaining.

Took a few photos along the way:

Look! It’s Francesca driving the Casa Del Sole taxi.. 😀

“Aperto” means “open” in Italian.

Joyce and I kept going on about how all the flowers on the island were just so PERFECT and VIBRANT. Many a time we had to touch and feel them just to be absolutely sure that they were real. Yup, all real flora there!

Couldn’t help but wander into one of the many souvenir/craft shops near the church square. The souvenirs on the island were tasteful and largely handmade by artists, unlike in big cities like Rome or Paris or Barcelona etc etc, where the souvenirs are tacky, plasticky, and overpriced.

I got myself a volcano magnet and a wall hook with a sailboat on it.

When I was in Rovinj, Croatia (oops, I haven’t written anything about this.. yet) two weeks prior to this trip, there were a few shops that sold handmade wooden boats too! I had gotten one there so I stopped myself from adding to the collection.. wasn’t too hard, as the prices here were much higher than in Croatia.

Lunch was at a place called Luciano’s – a tip from a local woman we asked.

We sat on a big balcony with a great view of the sea (of course). Joyce decided to do a photoshoot with our mice, her other toys, my ring, and.. half-eaten bread??!

The plan after lunch was to take the loooooonggg walk back to the beach that we were on the day before.

This proved to be quite challenging..because of how HOT it was that day. I think we distracted ourselves by taking lots of pictures.

This, by the way, is not Joyce simply taking a close-up photograph of a cactus. It’s her taking a picture of her PET GOLFBALL, WILSON, carefully placed in a little nook in the cactus plant.

Apparently, I was touching leaves and flowers a lot…. see, I had to check that they were real! Or maybe not.. cos these were quite obviously not plastic….

Joyce captured me in one of my ‘zones’.. (crazy zone, that is). I was somehow so fascinated by this man painting a little red star on his boat. He was delicately peeling off the tape he used as a stencil.. one by one..slowly. I watched for so long that by the time he finished, I clapped for him. I might have even said ‘yay!’.

This gave me the opportunity to get to know my new friend, so we started talking and guess what! He had one of those little buggies and so gave us a lift to the beach that we were MELTING towards. His name was Stefano and he had previously lived in Melbourne, too. I was like, “OH I miss that gelato shop on Lygon Street!”, to which he replied, “Yes Lygon Street… IL DOLCE FREDDO!“. Hehe.

We buried Maurice (Joyce’s mouse) and Goliath (my mouse) in the sand for fun.

Joyce tried to find Wilson a girlfriend.. also known as the most symmetrically round black pebble you could find on the beach = IMPOSSIBLE! So poor Wilson remained a bachelor throughout the trip.. oh well!

Strolling back to find food, we met a man called Frank who runs a small tour company from one of the colourful booths seen near the pier. As you can see, it was called ‘Frank International’. They were doing boat tours  for €15 that evening, at sunset, where you’d go round the other side of the island and watch the volcano hopefully erupt.

Having two hours to kill, we planted ourselves at what we thought was the most lively bar/cafe on the strip – Fronte Del Porto.

They played a really diverse range of music.. so sometimes I’d be happily bopping to something.. and then the next moment I’d be silently wishing my ears didn’t work (like when they played that super, super annoying Gotye song that I’d always hated from the beginning).

As the sun went down the sky turned a magnificent lilac shade and the water was so still it was GLIMMERING. Like a big flat mirror in the shade of lilac. At one point it was difficult to tell where the line between the sea and the sky was. Seemed like both were melting into each other.. like a painting!

Thought this photo was funny because of the family so obviously staring at me getting my photo taken next to a tiny yellow taxi with its nonchalant driver in it.

Boat Trip

I was super excited about the boat trip because it meant getting closer to that MIRROR-WATER. Just look!

By ‘look’ I mean look many times.. (lots of pics to follow). It’s just one of those things you repeatedly take pictures of because you keep trying to capture the beauty on camera even though you know you.. can’t. Anyhow I think these are some great shots.. ha ha

It was like nothing I’d ever seen before. Just so beautifully calm.

We got permission from Frank to go for a quick swim.. the other passengers thought we were mad. But it was so much fun!

We’d already seen the volcanic eruptions during the hike the day before so didn’t pay much attention to the volcano this time. Well I didn’t anyway.

Once back on shore I treated myself to more pasta.. and peach juice! One my favourite things about Europe is the fruit juices. I’m not confined to apple/orange and can instead have pear, peach, or strawberry (my top 3 in random order).

The post Mini Eurotrip: Seeing More of Stromboli appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

It was this volcano climb that really made me want to go to Stromboli when Ana was talking about it.. but unfortunately Joyce didn’t seem too enthusiastic about it at first :p

But I was sure she would enjoy the REWARD at the END so I simply said to her, “You can thank me LATER” as she buried her head into her arms and actually TOOK A NAP while waiting for the guide at the square!

Since we were ill-equipped (somehow we had the ridiculous idea that we’d just waltz up this volcano in our colourful clothes and a tote bag (joyce)/sandals (me)), we each spent about €10 extra to hire proper hiking shoes, one backpack (we already had one between us), headlamps, and we were given helmets too. Each person was advised to bring a jacket, food and 1.5 litres of water…. yup, those bags were HEAVY.

At 6.30pm, we were off!

Five minutes in….. and I was sweating like MAD. There were so many steep steps to climb, in 35 degree heat, and for a brief moment I did think ‘why.. why did I do this to myself..’.

I was sweating so much that I had to use my H&M scarf as a sweat towel..

At least, the views along the way were all breathtaking. Though it was hard to concentrate on your footing while trying to take in the scenery AND take pictures at the same time.

Rest stops were once every 30 minutes and never long enough. It takes an estimated 2.5 hours to get to the top (but I think it took slightly longer.. really).

The sea and the sky was so beautiful to look at a we ascended higher and higher up the volcano. Also, when we were about halfway up the sun was no longer directly upon us = the difficulty of the climb was suddenly reduced by half! It was such a relief.

The line between the sky and the sea was a creamy orange blur.. and as the sun sank even deeper into the horizon, the colours became more and more spectacular to watch. It was just SO AMAZING!

Me eating an APPLE at the halfway point.

It was a challenge not to look like absolute shit on that volcano! I mean.. come on. Sweaty matted hair + red face.. haha.

The main reason why I thought this climb was rather tough was because of the terrain.. I’ve never hiked up a volcano before. It was so sandy! Imagine walking on a sandy beach, but going uphill. With every step I took my chunky hiking boot just SANK halfway back downwards.

We became quite good at taking 2-second-pictures (so as to not get left behind by the group/hold people up!)

Hmm.. just realised the photos are quite repetitive. But it was hard not to want to document the sky every time we got to higher ground :p

I still remember how relieved we both felt when planting our bums on the black sand to rest our super-sore legs!

Another group of people going up nearby.

While watching them, I remarked to Joyce that they looked like ants.. or rather, slaves (I was picturing donkeys carrying wood up a mountain, like in Disney’s Small One)..

As we got closer to the top, we were able to see puffs of smoke emerging from the other side of the volcano, where the active craters were.

The pinkest hiker.

Here’s a short video I took while struggling up the volcano. Have to just say it was quite an achievement to get this video as it was so steep and we were all in single-file, no stopping. Had to reach behind my back, unzip it, pull out my camera, turn it on and switch to video mode, and record the bloody thing all whilst taking care not to trip over and keep up the pace!

And a few moments later…………….

WHAT AN ACHIEVEMENT

I felt so goddamn good about myself (at this point I didn’t know about how shitty the descent was going to be yet..) and was just so HAPPY to be up there. Standing on top of a mountain. A VOLCANO.

I WAS STANDING ON A VOLCANO!

It was quite dark by the time we were up there, so excuse the poor quality of photos.

Jacket by H&M
Neon shorts by Topshop

Haha, never thought I’d be writing about what I wore on a volcano ;p

After having a quick bite (I think we had those mini chocolate croissants), everyone lined up on the edge of the mountain overlooking the two active craters.. and waited. We were all just staring so intently as though WILLING it to erupt.

There was even a girl next to us who kept talking to herself, going, “ok just one more eruption.. please.. yes.. just one more..come on” when we were waiting for one last KABOOM before starting the descent.

We were lucky and managed to see at least four eruptions (I lost count.. too excited).

Was so AWED. FREAKING AMAZING.
The sound each time was so powerful. A huge ROAR from the core of the earth.

We spent almost an hour standing, waiting, watching the incredible natural fireworks in front of us. That’s it! They’re Earth’s fireworks!

Even now looking back at these photos, the whole experience seems surreal.

Standing there, I looked up into the sky and said my thanks to the stars to express gratitude for how lucky I was to have that opportunity. For my sight, for my mobility, for good health, and of course for the means to take myself to such a beautiful place.

(thanks Joyce for the above pic!)

Now I’ll write a short note about the descent, which took about an hour and a half.

We were all given masks to put on our face because we would use a different trail going down where it was very sandy and incredibly dusty as people’s footsteps unsettled the ground. Actually, ‘incredibly dusty’ doesn’t even begin to describe it.. it was more like being in ‘The Fog’ but with dust. The sand was soft and so walking down was hard on the knees after a while.

We all walked in a single file in pitch darkness using our headlamps. The WORST thing was getting a bazillion small rocks and stones trapped inside our shoes and not being able to get them out until the next rest stop! We also got erm.. detached from the rest of the group towards the end as Joyce needed to empty her shoe (otherwise I think she might have died).. it was rather scary trying to find our way back to the square ourselves (because it was just SO DARK and a bit creepy) but we made it – sweaty, dirty, and completely knackered. Our feet were battered and bruised.

Treated ourselves to a big oily pizza and more Spritz for me, at a restaurant in town.

If only we didn’t have another 1+km to walk to get to our room after. But after climbing a volcano, that was super easy-peasy..

The post Mini Eurotrip: Climbing Mt Stromboli / AN ACTIVE VOLCANO appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

Getting of the plane at Napoli Airport and feeling the bright HOT sun on my face was like stepping into HEAVEN! Trust me, coming from a long-time-summerless place like London, you’d feel the same too. My love-affair with Italy was immediately rekindled.. and it was so obvious on my grinning face as I waltzed through passport control. Yeah, you just walk past an officer who’s busy chatting with his colleague but pretends to look at the details of your passport, which you hold up in your hand.

Transfers between the airport and Napoli Centrale (main train station) cost €3 one way on the Alibus. I had 1.5 hours to kill before Joyce’s train got in, so I had one of my favourite things in Italy – gelato nocciola (hazelnut ice cream). It was soooo gooood!

Taxi from Napoli Centrale to Porto di Mergellina – €25.

When we arrived, the island was bathed golden from the sun that was setting behind it.

I loved it so much and thought to myself, “wow, I’m here.. i’m actually HERE! I MADE IT!”

Last year when I got kicked out of that farmhouse in France and ended up travelling alone in Europe for two weeks, I met an Argentinian girl in Florence. I was determined to try the local specialty, ‘Bistecca all a Fiorentina’ (Florentine steak).. which is served in 1kg portions, and so I recruited Ana and another Brazilian girl to share with me. Ana told me she had just come from a beautiful place, where she only intended to stay for 3 days but that became 10 because she simply couldn’t leave. She said she would only give me the details of this place if I promised to go. Me being impulsive and adventurous, I says ‘yes, of COURSE!’.

And so.. that’s how we ended up on the little island of Stromboli (it only has a resident population of 400 or so and frequented mostly by Italian tourists).

Hydrofoil operated by SNAV.

Thinking we should save some money and walk to our accommodation rather than hire a taxi, we lugged our bags along a lonnnggggg path. And boy was it LONG. I think it took us over 30 minutes in total, and we arrived panting and sweating from the heat (it was at least 30 degrees).

But on the plus side, it was rather interesting to walk through the very narrow lanes and look at cute little buildings, flowers, and colourful things.

That little islet on the left side is Strombolicchio (please excuse the typo in the pic! I was sleepy!), a volcanic sea stack. Don’t know what a sea stack is? An popular example of sea stacks is the 12 Apostles along the Great Ocean Road in Victoria, Australia (though the last time I was there, in 2006, only nine were left standing).

‘Strombolicchio’ in Italian actually means ‘Little Stromboli’, but in fact, it is a remnant of the original volcano that Stromboli island was built upon. Apparently its eruptions stopped some 200,000 years ago and volcanic activity moved 3km south-west. With the rising sea level over time, the current composition of Stromboli was born.

We stayed three nights in a private double room at Casa Del Sole, also a recommendation by Ana.
Francesca, who runs the place, is really friendly.. although she does tend to disappear into her big house next door sometimes and can be difficult to track down!

There is a roof terrace upstairs. After leaving our luggage in our room, we clambered up and noticed that the sun was setting.. so we RAN DOWNSTAIRS, grabbed our cameras and rushed back up. Even though by then the sun had JUST gone under the sea line, it was still so pretty.

Dinner was had close to the port. Stromboli does not have any street lights installed, and so after sundown, people walk around with flashlights, otherwise it would be almost pitch dark.

I had a popular Italian aperitif, Aperol Spritz, followed by calamari linguine. Joyce had shrimp pasta – the shrimp caught around the island were a type I’d never seen before. They’re tiny – about the size of a 20p coin – and cooked with the shell on. The shell is so soft/thin that you’re meant to eat it altogether. I found it quite tasty!

After dinner, we endured the 25-minute-or-so dark walk back to our room with the aid of an iPhone flashlight. I’m certain this walk took a lot longer.. because the night sky was absolutely MAGNIFICENT. We couldn’t walk for two minutes straight without craning our necks to look at the stars and we wondered how it might be possible to see ALL the stars at once. I wished I had eyes on the sides and the back of my head. 

When Ana told me about Stromboli, she said she often stared at the sky. And now I know why! The sky was so incredibly dark/clear that you could see just how bright the stars REALLY are. They were so bright that there were illuminated patches in areas where the stars were more concentrated. It was truly the most beautiful night sky I had ever seen in my life. 

At the Casa, we spent a good half-and-hour lying in the deck chairs up on the roof terrace just to stare at the sky some more. It was so surreal that I almost felt as if I was floating in space, surrounded by glittering stars. Oh yeah..we saw three shooting stars in a row, can you believe it?

I really loved the place where we stayed. It was like a big happy house with different types of rooms spread over two levels/two buildings connected by the outdoor common area/dining area, kitchen, and communal bathrooms (each unit had its own sink, toilet, and shower).

The next morning – me after having caught up on some SLEEP – we had a simple breakfast in the kitchen and went out to explorrrre.

I think we were only two minutes out of the Casa and we were already stuck taking photos of everything around us. Everything just looked too pretty. The sky was bright blue without a sign of any cloud.. there were flowers and strange plants all over, and it was so very quiet and peaceful.

There are no cars in Stromboli (they simply wouldn’t fit into the narrow lanes). Instead, they have these tiny three-wheeled things that look like big toys, or golf buggies.

Oversized top/dress from a Malaysian online store called Beautiful Disaster.

Many of the buildings in Stromboli have colourful painted tiles on the outside to display their names. Naturally, the volcano is a popular and recurring theme!

On the way to the beach, we came across a hotel called Villaggio Stromboli with a terrace cafe/restaurant overlooking the sea. Still hooked from the night before, I had another Aperol Spritz – amazing in hot weather! Joyce and I played with her little pink kaleidoscope and…

…ended up with this funny photo of my eyeball. Amongst others.

Undoubtedly the most colourful person on the island that day.. luckily most people had their sunglasses on when they saw this human watercolour palette.

If you look closely just above the horizon, you can see some faint pink lines. Isn’t it pretty!
We spent the afternoon at the beach. Obviously, the terrain is rocky and composed of black sand as it’s a volcanic island.. making it rather tricky to find a comfortable spot!

I am completely in love with my new SaltWater sandals. I ordered them in the States and was so lucky to have them brought to me in London just in time for my trip. They’re the most comfortable pair of sandals I’ve owned so far. I’m hoping to get them in hot pink and lime green next…!

Sometimes we would hear something rumbling/roaring quite loudly.. no biggie, just that VOLCANO  erupting behind us, you know..

My bikini is by H&M.

One of my fav beach activities is throwing rocks into the sea! Thanks Joyce for this great photo!

If you’re wondering why we always had our footwear on.. it’s because stepping on the sand was like stepping on HOT LAVA.

NEXT: Climbing Mt Stromboli… 

The post Mini Eurotrip: First Day in Stromboli appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

Still it was heaps of fun, we went to the waterpark, Canevaworld, which turned out to be really awesome especially in the blazing sun. Unfortunately I left my camera in the locker while we played so I barely have any photos of this place which looked so good with the blue waters and sandy pavements.

ANYWAY

I went on this crazy slide alone. As in literally alone because no one would come with me and the other girl who was waiting her turn with me chickened out!!

AWESOME ride is all I can say.. really scary at the start though especially when I was told to arch my back and ‘make sure to keep your back pressed to the slide as much as you can’ at the top

I love water parks <3
I had so much fun I want to go back!!!

err, taken on the way there

Verona

After ice cream and drinks we drove south to Verona
It was such a beautiful little town

me is ghost

Don’t my legs look so unrealisitically long in this photo??
I actually have short legs!!

A couple of shots using the ‘pinhole’ feature in my camera:

Had dinner along this strip 🙂

Here is a horse

And here it is again, turned into pizza

Apparently horse meat is a specialty in Verona.
So we ordered this pizza, called Furia which is shredded horse meat and rocket pizza.
LOVED It it was soooo yum!

This was guinea fowl something – I can’t remember what this wide flat pasta was called!
Anyhow it was absolutely deeeeeeeeelicious

Had it with fresh strawberry juice (YUM) which I had heaps off throughout the holiday – it’s supposedly an old Italian dessert.

Having dinner there was one of the best nights ever
Sitting outside at night in the warm summer air and having great food.. while eyeing up the horses thinking how good they would taste on pizza.. only kidding..umm not really

//

The post Milan Day 3 – Canevaworld & Verona appeared first on SMALLCRAZY.

So the next day we drove to Lake Como, which is located about an hour north-west of Milan. The lake is huge and shaped like an upside-down Y. Our first stop was Como town – south of the lake, on the west leg.

The night before we walked to a big supermarket and bought stuff for the trip:
– lots of juice (tomato, peach, pear)
– salami
– cheese
– bread
– crisps
– fruits
– muffins

and some other things I can’t remember

Como

Dress Dorothy Perkins
Sandals New Look

On Rose:
Dress H&M
Bag Topshop (I THNK!)
Sandals Miss Selfridge

There was a Saturday market going on so we had a look
Realised that people around Milan love the colour purple??!

even the customer’s wearing purple pants!

After getting a drink at a tiny ‘cafe’ inside the market we started to drive north along the lake to get to a town called Cadenabbia (or something like that) where we could take a car ferry across to Bellagio (it’s situated in the middle of the lake, sorta).

On the way to Cadenabbia

We stopped a few times to take photos – HEAPS of photos!
Here are some!

I can’t even remember how long it took to get to Cadenabbia

Swimming pool!! AAAAAAh

(Is she staring at my tummy???)

The car ferry was fun!
The breeze was so refreshing on a blazing hot day
LOVE hot days

on the ferry

I packed this velcro ball toy thing that I got from Sainsbury’s and so we had a fun time playing with it we got so exhausted!

Then we went down really close to the lake and dipped our feet in the water
BEST feeling ever

Do I see pink panties? HA HA

Damn me and my dumb face here

Something really exciting happens after this

Got drenched!!!
The water was ice-cold!
And it was heaps of fun!!

Went down by the rocks to play with water again

Had really yummy ice cream here! 🙂

Took loads more photos but had to pick only these few to post or it’ll be a bit much..

Lecco

As the sun was setting it was time to drive down to the eastern leg of the lake, to a town called Lecco which really exceeded expectations as it wasn’t nearly as popular as all the other towns.

It was so lovely!
It reminded me a bit of Williamstown in Melbourne
Lots of restaurants and cafes lined the road by the lake

Love this photo!


My dinner!

Had a great meal followed by lots of gelato
Sat by the lake with swans eating it
PERFECT DAY

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