Lately, I’ve found myself reminiscing on the trip around Europe that my siblings and I embarked on two summers ago, especially our Italy leg. We spent our time in the North of the country, traveling from Bellagio on Lake Como, to Florence, and finishing our Italian tour with Cinque Terre. Although each place had its own distinct terrain and personality, I was taken aback by the scenic beauty in Italy, and we were barely even scratching the surface.

Bellagio was full of peaks (figuratively and literally), and it is where I came to terms with the fact that I’m a pasta > pizza girl when given the choice (scroll down and you’ll understand).

Normally I’m apprehensive about swimming in large bodies of water, but since I was up against a family of swans instead of your usual alligator or shark, I had the time of my life doggy paddling around those waters.

My favorite part of the place was Via Roma, a main street lined with many aperitivo spots and beautiful trees that were in full bloom. When we walked the street at sunset, James made the uncanny connection that it felt like we were in LaLaLand, and I couldn’t agree more.

This is one of the best things I’ve ever put in my mouth.

We stayed for hours at a restaurant located on a terrace that overlooked the lake the night before we left, drinking Chardonnay and listening to an Italian man try his hand at Billy Joel and Neil Diamond’s greatest hits. A server dropped their full tray of drinks in front of our table, leading to a night of rounds on the house. Emma and I were convinced that a couple sitting in front of us were going to get engaged but we called the night quits before our suspicions could be confirmed or denied. I still wonder….

Florence in hindsight was one of my favorite places we visited. I loved the feeling it gave me so much that I added the name to the running list of baby names I have tucked away in my Notes app, and even got the Tocca ‘Florence’ hand cream to commemorate my reverence for the city.

The art, the gelato, the culture, the prosciutto sandwiches, THE David!!!

Also THE HOUSE WINE FOR $6 A CARAFE!

I STILL CAN’T BELIEVE I GOT BANGS 🤣. What a time to be alive.

Cinque Terre was a blur. We got locked out of our Airbnb within the first hour of checking in and almost had a mental breakdown in an un-airconditioned stairwell that had lights working on a timer system. After ten minutes of trying to get the door open, we finally got the locks to re-align and rejoiced in relief.

As thousands of tourists accomplish each summer season, we took the ferry around Cinque Terre, swimming in coves and eating gelato until we were ready to move on to the next location.

This is where we fell in love with Aperol Spritzes (not pictured), and what a place to come to mind when sipping on one.

A full year (and then some) has come and gone, and although I am now thousands of miles away, I’m always brought back to these wonderful memories with each bite of bruschetta I take or Italian jazz song that comes on. CIAOOOOOOOO!

💘 Hanna