Ciao Amici! Bye Friends!

I can't believe that we are here. By this time tomorrow I will be on a plane headed to Milan.

I know that I am blessed to go on this adventure but I would not have this chance if it wasn't for the support of my family and friends. I thank everyone for your well wishes and kind words. I hope that this blog will inspire you to go out and live your dreams. Life is too short to not take chances.

Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you've imagined.

Ciao tutti!

A rare act of kindness.

Last night something terrible happened. I dropped my Iphone and cracked the glass in tiny little shards. Being that today is Sunday, I was worried that I might not be able to get it fixed before I leave tomorrow. I stopped by AT&T to get it replaced but unfortunately they wanted to charge me $300. I didn't think that was worth it especially since I will not be making phone calls with this phone while I am in Italy. Oh what to do!

Lucky me because as I was visiting old friends in Astoria for a quick brunch I walked pass Best Mobile Wireless.

When I asked them if they could fix my Iphone glass they said yes but they couldn't fix it today because they were out of replacement glass. Just when I thought I was screwed the wonderful man behind the counter offered me his glass from his phone. A rare act of kindness indeed! He fixed my phone and I was on my way in less than twenty minutes. I never did get your name but whoever you are, thank you!

Thank you Best Mobile Wireless (30-61 Steinway Street in Astoria.)

3 days to go!

What an interesting week this has been! On Wednesday we officially moved from our apartment in the city. Packing up all of our furniture and clothing for storage was quite possibly the hardest part so far. We rely so much on material things to keep us comfortable in our daily life. I was not prepared to "let go" of silly items that I would have no use for in Italy. What a lesson that has been.

Not living in the city and crashing at my Mamma D. (HD's mom) house for the next few days has begun to take its toll too. It's not Mamma D. that is the issue, in fact she is a wonderful hostess. It is the long commute from Rego Park, Queens that is the adjustment!

I guess I am a tad bit spoiled because I have always lived in the city. I am not used to traveling back and forth fifty minutes after a long day of lugging shopping bags and running errands all over the city. Add the rain/snow/sleet and the fact that I am only able to get wifi access at Starbucks. (I currently would like to give a shout out to the Starbucks on Columbus and 76th for this blog post.)

Unfortunately I am unable to add more hours in the day to get a chance to see everybody. I hope I do not offend anybody but I have errands that need to get done before I go.

So three more days! Closer than ever to my goal. I am feeling such excitement and happiness to be beginning a new chapter of my life. I am ecstatic and feel very blessed to be on this adventure with HD, my family, my friends, and you.

La Festa del Barolo.

Last night I had the honor to be invited as a guest sommelier for Antonio Galloni's La Festa del Barolo at Del Posto. I was delighted to see some killer juice being poured.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, than here you go.

Quotes to calm the nerves.

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

- Mark Twain
Twelve days to go and I need to remind myself to just breathe. Are we crazy for doing this? As I start to add up all that we have spent so far, I become very anxious of what will we return to. I am becoming quite overwhelmed by this, especially in the last few days. Let the anxiety begin! Bring on the Xanax!
I guess my point is that we will always reach a point in life that we second guess our decisions that we make. I refuse to allow the fear to get to me. I remind myself to just breath.
We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure.There is no end to the adventures we can have
if only we seek them with our eyes open.
-Jawaharial Nehru

The only clutch I know is a handbag.

If you ever rented a car in Italy, you would know that an automatic can get very expensive to rent. You pay almost double for the convenience of being alert while the crazy Italians try to run you off the road.

In my preparation for Italy, I thought it would be a great idea to sign HD and I for a private lesson in driving a manual car. So on Saturday afternoon we head off to Brooklyn driving school in the very neighborhood that I was born in. After our 45 min train ride we arrived in Bensonhurst. I decided to let HD go first so that I could

sit in the back seat and pay attention to our instructor.

HD is definitely the one who always understands direction and is very efficient as a person so I had faith that he we grasp it quickly. We each had 45 minutes to learn about how to use a clutch and practice driving. I had high hopes that he would be a natural like Mario Andretti and I could spend the rest of our trip in the passenger seat.

I started getting nervous when his time was up and he was visually spent from our lesson.

Now it's my turn. I can do this! This will be easy! Even a monkey can do this! I will be a natural too. Well friends, let me tell you.....

I wasted the first fifteen minutes trying to figure out why I couldn't get the clutch down all the way. Was my leg so out of shape that I could keep it down? Am I too short? Do I have to hold the clutch down with all my weight? How can I be a safe driver if I have to jump on the clutch every time I need to shift? Finally when I thought I had figured it out because I was shifting gears and keeping it idle at red lights. My instructor who was the true definition of patience had to endure more of my battle with the clutch. Maybe My leg was out of shape or I really am a automatic girl who likes using one foot to drive while the other is resting on the dashboard.

I don't really know and I will not know until I make another appointment to try again. Hey if everyone else can do it, including monkeys, than so will I. But, If I can't after the second try, the only clutch that belongs in my life will be a handbag.

Our Florence apartment

We just secured this apartment from May 25th to June 25th. I can't wait to sit in the garden drinking coffee and studying my Italian.

Let the countdown begin.....

It is official! On April 4th Henry and I leave for Italy with two one-way tickets. We are in the process of leaving our lives in New York and traveling all over Italy in our quest to become Italian. This blog is for my family and friends to follow us in our journey.

Why would anybody be crazy enough to quit their jobs, put everything in storage, and leave their family and friends for the next year?

To become Italian!