Wine, Food and Shopping!

I have come to love this little town, Lucca. The people here are so friendly. Well some of them-one couple owes a gelato shop and they were going to charge us an extra Euro to sit outside there shop and eat. We said oh no we will just walk. They were not too happy with that. Otherwise, everyone is just so happy and laid back here. There are a lot of older Italian couples here. It is fun to just people watch. Yesterday that is what we did with a majority of our day. We slept in which was so nice. I don't know if it is the town of Lucca, all the traveling our all the wine but I was SO tired yeterday. I could not wake up to save my life! We got up and went and ate some breakfast. Of course, by the time I got out of bed it was closer to lunch. It was a Sunday so most of the older people were all dressed up and now they were enjoying lunch at all the different little places and they were all drinking! Wine, cocktails, hard liquors. We really want to do our best to experience Italy at its best so we followed their lead. Actually Grandma followed their lead and then mom and I thought-well, why not?! Grandma ordered a coffee with liquor and mom and I both got an Alexander. I can't remember what was in it but it was delicous. It was a cocktail with brandy and some other coffe flavored liquor and cream-SO GOOD. Then I had the best ravioli of my life! Homeade ravioli stuffed with the richest, creamiest ricotta cheese I have ever had a spinach and coated in olive oil. Oh my word! Heavenly. 

Side note-Italians don't eat the same kind of breakfast Americans do and there are no breakfast places like in America-just cafes. Some of them advertise "AMERICAN BREAKFAST" and they try to imitate our eggs and bacon or our omelets. It is not always a good idea to eat at these places-just ask my Grandma. In Florence (When we met Fabio) she ordered eggs and bacon and her bacon was practically raw on her plate. She refused to touch it. I think it is funny that they don't eat that here. I don't know how they are all so skinny. All they eat are carbs!  

It was a Sunday so our plan to do a wine tour was down the drain because apparenctly you can't tour the vineyards on the holy day but you can drink from it! We just spent the day walking around and going in and out of the little shops (the ones that were open at least). It was nice to not have an agenda and to just spend time with the locals. We (well Grandma and I) took a little nap around 3 and then we all went back out and enjoyed the town some more. We visited our favorite cafe across the street from our apartment and had some coffee and hot tea. I have had a sore throat the past few days so the hot drinks and the cold gelato feel wonderful to me. (I think I have given whatever I have to my mom as of last time by the way.) Mom and Grandma bought some olive oil because Lucca is known for their olive oil and I bought some leather boots because-well this area in known for leather and I am known for shopping! Not sure how I am going to get them home yet....

We enjoyed dinner at this place outside on the street. We split two different pastas. Both a flat noodle-one with crab sauce and the other with red tomato and basil sauce and of course a bottle of wine. We walked back and dug in to our connolis that we had purchased from the cafe across the street. They were so good. I watched the owner making them earlier that day. It makes them taste even better knowing they were hand made I think. It is such a delicate process and I think it is so cool that he makes them all one by one for his customers. Today we are going to drive through Pisa to see the Leaning Tower and then off to Cinque De Terre! 

Favorite things about Florence and Lucca:

1) AMAZING churches and detailedarchitecture

2) The shopping has been really good

3) Friendly people

4) Seeing the David statue in Florence

5) The cute family owned caffe in Lucca