Farewell Friends

I have been so lucky to have met such wonderful people in my short time here...but the unfortunate thing about meeting people over here (especially at a language school) is that they're all leaving! I have had to say goodbye to two very special friends in the last week and a half. The weekend after my dad left, my friend Claudia had a going away party before she returned home to Switzerland for Christmas, and then she moves to Australia in January. The party was so nice- a very diverse group! We had wine and appetizers, and played a game called Lupus that some of the Italians introduced to us. We had instructions for each part in English and Italian! It was a very nice night, but I was sad to say goodbye to Claudia the next day. She is such an amazing person, and had such an impact on me in the short time I knew her.

Girls at Claudia's: Hester (Holland), Kristy (Australia), Cecilia (Hungary), me, Claudia (Switzerland), Maria (Chile).

Claudia, Cecilia, Kristy, Maria, Marco, and Tim.

Playing Lupus.

I spent a lot of time last week with my friend Kristy- she left Sunday to travel for the holidays before moving to London. We did some Christmas shopping, coat shopping (we are both going to Austria and Prague over Christmas and New Years and decided we needed warmer clothes), and lots of walking around. We went to Trastevere one day, which is across the river in Rome. I had never been, so Kristy insisted we go together before she left. Trastevere is this very quaint area that feels so far away from the hustle and bustle of Rome. Two of our guy friends from school invited us out for dinner that night, and the restaurant was actually in Trastevere, so we ended up spending most of the day there! It was nice to see it at night- the small streets were lined with Christmas lights and it was very quiet (although I hear it's much different on a Friday or Saturday night).

This weekend, the family went out of town, so I went to dinner with some friends on Friday night, spent most of Saturday with Kristy walking around, shopping, and getting fresh vegetables at the market. Krsity and I cooked dinner here on Saturday night and then went out to celebrate her last night. We had such a fun night, and spent most of Sunday lying in her bed watching movies before we had to say goodbye that evening. Luckily, she will be back in Rome for a week after Christmas before she moves to London, so it wasn't forever! I miss her already though! We got along so well, and it was so nice to have her here. This week is the kids' last week of school before their Christmas break. They have fun holiday activities at school every day this week, and Shana is Jewish so they have been lighting the menorah each night for Hanukkah. Everyone is definitely in the holiday spirit!

Dad's Visit

I got back from Brussels last Sunday night and my dad arrived Monday morning. I was so happy to have him coming in town! I have been so distracted over here that I hadn't realized how much I missed my family and how long it had been since I'd seen them (definitely the longest I've ever gone without seeing my parents). Right before I left Brussels, we were on the subway and Meredith said, "Caroline, I cannot believe your dad is going to be here tomorrow!" I guess I had been so busy that that was really the first time I had processed that he was actually going to be here, but as soon as she said that I completely burst into tears (of joy of course!). It was the strangest thing that rarely happens to me (unless I'm watching a romantic comedy), but I just couldn't wait to see my dad! So, he arrived Monday morning and we spent the day walking around the center (Campo dei Fiori, Piazza Navona, Pantheon, and then the Trevi Fountain), had a nice lunch outside in the square of Campo dei Fiori, and then had a great dinner that night at Roscioli (where Meredith and I ate on my birthday). Little did we know that was going to be one of our very few great dinners! On Tuesday, we went to the Coliseum and the Roman Forum, then walked around Piazza del Popolo and Piazza di Spagna. At dinner that night is when he started to get sick, and unfortunately felt unwell until the end of the week. After just having the same bug, I cannot believe we still did all that we did with him having this virus! Wednesday, we went to Vatican City, San Pietro, and saw the Sistine Chapel (although that was about all he could handle of the Vatican Museum in his state). Thursday was Thanksgiving- we walked around during the day and he rested in the afternoon before our Thanksgiving dinner that Shana and Tommaso invited us to share with them, another family with 3 kids, and another couple. Although Dad couldn't enjoy nearly as much of the food as he would've wished, I will vouch that everything was amazing! Shana went all out- we had turkey, dressing, potatoes, rice, sweet potato souffle, green beans, pumpkin soup, and 3 desserts. We enjoyed everyone's company and of course the food, and it is a Thanksgiving I will surely never forget. On Friday, Dad rested most of the day to try to gain a little strength for traveling. We had decided to spend the weekend in Florence and leave Friday afternoon. We got to Florence around 7:15, and Meredith met us at our hotel. Dad wasn't feeling up for dinner that night, so Meredith and I ate at this great restaurant near her house called 4 Leoni, while Dad walked around for a bit and went to bed early. On Saturday, he was finally feeling better! We walked all around Florence, went to Open Bar (my favorite) for a light lunch, went to the Uffizi, and rested that afternoon before we went back to 4 Leoni for a meal that he could actually enjoy! We had a really great dinner and walked around with Meredith for a while afterwards. Unfortunately, Sunday morning in Florence (as we were watching the Florence Marathon go by our hotel) is when I got sick! So, I spent all of his last day here in bed (in Florence and once we got back to Rome), and have basically been in bed the last 4 days. So, although the week was definitely not ideal, we made the most of it and I was so happy to have him here! It was also nice to be a tourist in Rome (Dad hadn't been here in 35 years!). Here are some pictures from our week in Rome and weekend in Florence.

Brussels Design

I always say how being over here has inspired me in so many ways, especially expanding my taste of modern design (as it is so widespread over here). In the few home stores I saw in Brussels, I continued to see a fair amount of modern design (which has definitely become an acquired taste for me), but I also came across the most fabulous store- it was so cozy and warm, I could hardly hold myself back from curling up on one of the couches with a throw over me, and reading my book! Similar to a lot of home stores I saw in Paris, the store was filled with antiques, upholstery, and at the time tons of Christmas decorations. The seagrass rugs, antiqued mirrors, and tufted ottomans as coffee tables brought me back to the familiar interior design that I grew up with in Charleston, and specifically in my own home. As much as I can now appreciate modern design, this is where my roots are, and in the end where I (and of course everyone is entitled to his/her own opinion) feel most at home. With all of the candles and Christmas cheer, I did not want to leave!

I unfortunately only got the two shots above of the store I described, but here are a few shots of some other store windows in the Galleries Saint-Hubert.

Brussels

I arrived in Brussels on Friday around noon, before everyone else. Knowing I would have some time by myself, I had done a good amount of research on the city before our trip. Shana had given me a recent issue of Italian Elle Decor with an article featuring Brussels, so I was able to find a lot of cool places through that as well (after all, if it's mentioned in Elle Decor, it is worth seeing, in my mind!). I spent Friday afternoon walking around and getting a feel for the city. Brussels is relatively small (especially in comparison to Rome), so it was nice to be able to walk everywhere and navigate the city with some ease. Our hotel was in a great area (actually our favorite area, after exploring most all of them), with lots of quaint cobblestone streets, old churches, cute restaurants and shops. When Meredith, Burney, and Molly arrived Friday night we went out to dinner at a great restaurant we found in our neighborhood. We went out that night to a pub in our neighborhood and had such a great time catching up- it is so nice to be with familiar friends! Saturday morning the first thing on our agenda was, of course, BELGIAN WAFFLES! So we headed towards the Grand Palace and all got loaded waffles with chocolate, whipped cream, strawberries, and bananas- they were SO delicious! Definitely worth it, even though I had to force myself through the end of it (re-thinking the necessity of all of those toppings).

Waffles!

The Grand Palace

We spent all of Saturday walking around, exploring Brussels. Meredith and I dragged Burney and Molly to Musee Magritte, one of the famous fine art museums in Brussels. It was a pretty museum, actually very similar interiors, but on a much smaller scale, to the Musee d'Orsay in Paris.

The Galleries Saint-Hubert (interior shopping gallery).

The Peeing Boy Fountain (Kate this is for you). This is a "must see" in Brussels, so at least I can say I saw it? There are many different stories and legends behind the meaning of the sculpture...although, I still have no idea why it is so important to them!

Mont Des Arts (the prettiest garden that lead up to a lot of the museums).

Victor Horta's house (famous Belgian architect and designer).

As the sun set on Saturday, we headed home and stopped by the coolest outdoor seafood bar in our neighborhood. It is an open bar (meaning it sits right on the corner and you can see straight through to the kitchen) with tall cocktail tables out on the sidewalk for everyone to stand around, share a bottle of wine and enjoy some fresh seafood! So we finally had 'mussels in Brussels' and fell in love with this little place.

Saturday night (after our wine and seafood appetizer!) we had dinner reservations at a restaurant called Smoods in Hotel Bloom, that I found in the Elle Decor article. The interior of the restaurant has 7 different "moods" that you can dine in, all with varying decor and ambiance. We sat in "Bling Bling," which we all agreed was the right choice once we got there. We had a long, fun dinner, and were of course the last ones in the restaurant- all still on Italian meal time...

I loved seeing Brussels- it was a really cool city, and we were all pleasantly surprised by how much we enjoyed it, since we all went in with no expectations at all! I was so sad to leave everyone on Sunday afternoon (they all stayed Sunday night and left super early Monday morning), but we had such a great trip and are working on planning another one together again once 2010 rolls around!

Our hotel room...and some more pictures of the city.

Exki: the Belgian fast-food chain which looks like our Whole Foods- all fresh salads, fruit, soups, bread, with the ingredients listed, etc. I was in love with it!

It took us so long to decide...