My European Adventure

Peccioli is a place of artistic expression. Throughout the village, you can view different types of art. An organization called MACCA was created for contemporary art to blend in with historic Peccioli. Peccioli is an open art museum. You can walk throughout the village at any time of day and see beautiful pieces of art for free.  Painting of Peccioli. Our apartment is in the bottom right panel across from the church.  This alley had different colorful pieces that were lit up at night. Murals can be found throughout the village. Depending on where you stood, you could see different reflections of the town's square What do you think? 

After traveling for almost three months, I discovered that I am a small town girl after all. I needed a break from the hustle and bustle of traveling from city to city so I decided I wanted to go off the beaten path away from a city. For once, I am happy that something that I wasn’t searching for popped up on my phone. When I asked Italians in Genova about this place nobody knew where it was. I knew this was going to be my Bandon! Peccioli here I come!  Just like Bandon, getting to Peccioli is challenging yet worth the effort. From Genova, I took a train to Pontederra and then had to catch a bus (according to the internet) to this small village. Well, the internet info was wrong! Luckily, there was a taxi nearby.  As we drove further and further away from Pontedera and into the Tuscan hills, I knew I was going "home". My new home was spacious and located at the top of Peccioli. This meant it is six floors up from the main town. Yes, there is an elevator to reach the neighborh...

Our first Italian city to visit was Genova (Genoa). Once again, we stayed in the city center so we could walk everywhere. The city reminded me of San Francisco, but cleaner and older. The buildings are right next to each other and you have hilly streets. The brightly colored buildings add beauty to this old city. The architecture on the buildings is beautiful and reflects the city’s history. Of course, there are streets that are narrow and are only for pedestrians. Fortunately, the city has done a wonderful job of placing maps throughout the city for tourists.  These three bell towers would ring at the same time. The clanging was astounding.  Yes, Christmas decor was still up in January! This was just one of many motorcycle parking lots throughout Genova. Fresh pasta, gnocchi, and pesto.  This is a traditional Genova dish. It tasted like meatloaf.

No matter what city I have visited, there has been graffiti. Nîmes is no different. I think many people hear the word graffiti and view it negatively. As I came across various graffitied walls on old buildings, I saw talent expressed on a different medium. Anyone who has ever used a can of spray paint, will appreciate the artistic expression of these individuals.  3

Our good fortune continued when we got to visit Cécile’s cousin’s boulangerie. We met Matthieu in 2015 when he started his apprenticeship as a baker. We were happy to learn that he recently opened his own boulangerie. Unfortunately the day we went to visit his bakery, he was not there. His grandfather, a retired baker, was helping him with the shop. He allowed us to see where the delicious bread and pastries are created.  Waking up at 2 AM to prepare bread is what it takes to meet the needs of the French people. As Cécile says, “We need our fresh bread, mommy.” That is why boulangeries are open on Christmas Day and every day of the year. I know the people in the community are very pleased that they now have a boulangerie and patisserie that provides them with scrumptious breads and pastries!