Update

Ah, little blog, I've neglected you for so long...apologies to all of the people who live for my constant updates and hang on every word...

Ok, so - how to recap it all?

Florence was AMAZING. I was originally worried that a whole week would be too much to spend in Florence, and it definitely wasn't even close to enough. I got to spend the whole time with Gin, and after an initial day of hell (worst Easter EVER - it rained, no buses were running, Gin and I had to walk 40 minutes to her house, and the first hotel I booked was god-awful), the whole trip was sunny, warm, and wonderful. I saw all the sights of Florence - the Ponte Vecchio, Palazzo Vecchio, the Duomo, Fiesole, etc. We went bicyling a day in the countryside and nearly died going up the hills, but the views were amazing. The Tuscan countryside looks exactly like you would expect it to - all tall thin trees and villas and rolling hillsides. And the ride back down was really fun. :)

We took a daytrip to Cinqueterre, which is this collection of 5 little seaside towns connected by hiking paths through the hills. The water is clear and blue and the towns are amazing - it's a collection of little buildings all piled up on each other, with little alleys and narrow staircases winding through them. I saw the leaning tower of Pisa from the train, which was also pretty exciting. I also got to spend a lot of time with Gin's crazy friends - especially Katie, aka Longines - so that was fun.

But perhaps the best thing about Italy was the amazing food (bet you didn't see that one coming) - and it wasn't too expensive, either. Gin and I went out nearly every night, except for the one when her Italian mamma made us a delicious meal of risotto, eggplant parmigiana, and tiramisu....fabulous. I also tried the local soup and bistecca alla Fiorentina, which is this amazingly thick steak that's crispy on the outside and incredibly rare inside. We went to a wine bar and sampled some great Chiantis while feasting on olives...mmmmmm. I went to Rivoire, this famous cafe, and got their hot chocolate - basically a chunk of bittersweet chocolate melted into a teacup. I also brought a bit home with me...I got a bottle of olive oil, eggplant sauce, and a huge hunk of aged parmesan. It was amazing. Oh yeah, and I got gelato every other day (more like every day towards the end). I'm a fatty.

Then back to London to be greeted by icky rainy weather and grey skies. Gotta love it.

The next weekend, Eric came to visit, and we had our theater extravaganza. We saw 4 shows (Eric saw 5) in 5 days. Craziness. Friday was Billy Elliot, Saturday was Festen (Saturday night was the Interpol concert at Brixton Academy to keep me sane - they were AMAZING, by the way), Monday was Mary Poppins, and Tuesday was Tristan and Yseult at the National Theater - the best of the bunch, in my opinion. It was weird seeing so much theater in such a short time - it reminded me of college - but it was actually pretty good, as was hanging out with Eric. It was a little sad - it kinda reminded me of the things I miss at home. But it was good to spend time with Eric again, even if he IS a whiny bitch. :)

Other London highlights:

- The three-hour Easter vigil at Westminster Cathedral in London, followed by a ridiculous midnight feast of Chinese food.

- Joe's birthday, including Wagamama, champgane on a balcony in Covent Garden, and lots and lots of helium balloons. :P

- Flowering trees! Everywhere! Even though the weather hasn't quite gotten in sync yet, at least it LOOKS like spring here.

- My shopping spree (my first since I've been here! really!) at H&M last weekend, in which I got faaaaabulous clothes.

- The slowly improving weather. The nice weather back in March was such a tease, but maybe it'll work its way up to the 60s again someday soon...at least today is sunny!

Ok, going to go back to my work. Just finished a HUGE project that kept me here until 8:30pm and 7pm for the past two nights, respectively, so really just needing a break right now. Yaay for Fridays!

= :)