Well – after our glamorous days of Carnevale, we are back to reality.

Back to Work

For me, this means setting up my new remote office – although I have to admit, I really do like my view overlooking the Grand Canal. I can keep track of the tide, the workers going back and forth, and the gondoliers. Everything here moves by boat, so I watch the garbage boat, the ambulance boat, the milkman boat – today, even a hearse boat went by with a coffin with beautiful flowers on top. (Sometimes I have to move to the sofa so I can concentrate better!)

To the Market

Frank’s job for the day was to explore and find a market for some additional essentials we needed, like fresh produce and wine. We are right next to the farmer’s market and fish market. These are where the local restaurant chefs come very early each morning to select their ingredients, which are delivered (of course) by boat. Frank has learned his way around the stalls by now – he especially loves the fish market. We have gotten lost each time we try to find a real grocery store, so we may be eating a lot of fish and vegetables!

Laundry Day

And finally, it was laundry day. You never know how this will go. We finally gave up on our washer in Florence, which was located under a tarp on the balcony. One day, after 3 hours, the washer turned off on its own and unlocked. I opened the door and water gushed out over the side of the balcony and down five floors onto the street (hopefully not on someone’s head!). I quickly closed the door, looked around guiltily, and then peeked in again – only to have a new gush of water pour out and over the side. It was then that I realized our good fortune that the washer was on the balcony and not inside.  We changed to hand-washing after that. So, here we have a fresh start with a new washer. [I am happy to report that all went well.]

Up Next . . . we have some essentials to take care of – mainly for me, finding a place to get my hair cut and colored (you may have noticed I am looking a wee bit lighter these days). I am not sure how to describe this in Italian, so am going to wander around until I find a place that looks good, point to my hair, pantomime a trim, and show a picture of someone with the color I want.  This will surely be an adventure.  So stay tuned . . . .