Ciao ROMA!!!!!

i'm back...
it took me a 7 hour tain ride, a 12 hour plane ride...
but i'm back...
i miss good ol' cheap hawker food...
italy oh italy...
love the country, hate the language and people...

when in rome do what the romans do...
who the hell came out with that cheesy and cliche line....
what do romans do exactly...
i'm still trying to figure it out...
everyone's so busy, getting somewhere...
where?
how the hell do i know...
you can always tell a true roman when you see one...
they can walk pass the vatican city or the anciet ruins without even batting an eyelid...
while we tourist are left looking like idiots oooohing and ahhhhing at everything that looked like it was from the 11 century...
the women in rome are not the most beautiful, but their sense of style makes up for whatever they lacked in beauty...
hmmm...ok... we had lotsa gelato...
freezing our tits off in the sub zero tempt...
we were running to and fro from museums, to basilicas, to the vatican city, and to the ruins...
we did not have a holiday, we were on business...
we completed everything there was to see in rome in 4 days...
including getting to see the pope during sunday mass...
we stayed in this really quaint appartment over looking the vatican city...
it was so beautiful...
oh rather... it was so holy...

florence...
florence....sigh...
one of the most beautiful places i've ever seen...
and the place where my family fought the most and the worst...
at one point we were screaming at each other in the middle of a busy street, that everyone just stopped to stare...
my family is what you call, amazing race material...
we stayed at the worst possible place i could ever imagine....
we stayed directly above gucci... and across the street was prada...
not just any gucci...
THE gucci shop...
THE MAIN gucci flagship store...
in was the equalvalent of SoHo in New york...
except every shop screams out BUY ME...
my parents made it really clear to us that shopping was not part of this whole trip at all...
or at least not any where else except for milan...
you have no idea how painful it was for me...
at one point in the middle of the night...and i'm not talking 10pm (everything goes dead after 7.30pm)... more like 2 in the morning...
i bolted out of bed, in my boxers, agnes b sweater, and my brother's oversized boots...
i rain down and stood in front of the shop for 20 full minutes in minus zero degress...
that was how horrible it was... but it was so worth it...
freezed my balls of to feast my eyes on gucci, spring/summer 06...
in a city with no form of subway system or an high rise buildings...
the 15 century shop houses over look you in a way that makes you want to take snapshots of every single one that you passed by...

went to pisa to watch the tower lean...
and went to the italian riveria...
you know those houses right next to the beach...
where everything looks so picture perfect...
we rented a car, and my dad neary drove us off the clift...
i mean off... 300 metres high... below nothing but icy sea water crashing into jaggered rocks...
was fun...
puked alot...

i though that my italian was good enough and put it to the final test...
shopping in milan... alone...
two words... never again...
it was way to intimidating...
and people who know me...know that i don't get intimidated by shops...
but you see...these weren't just shops...
it was the holy grail of shops...
wen't to the ORIGINAL first shop of prada...
shopped at dolce and gabbana...
had coffee in gucci...
and went into a 4 storey armani shopping outlet...
from Emporio Armani, to Armani Exchange, to Armani home furninshing...
shopping was terrifying as much as the fun i had....
alone in milan...
2 miu miu wallets...
1 pair of energie jeans...
1 Gas Shirt...
1 Ben Sherman Shirt...
1 Roberto Cavali shirt...
1 Moschino Jacket...
1 Dior Homme Parfumme...
damage will leave a heavy scar on both my parents and my wallet...
went to see the last supper by leonardo davinci...
it was like a top secret layout...
there were numerous security checks and stops before only given 15 minutes to see leonardo's masterpiece...
we paid 150 euros to watch it...
on our last day in milan, heading back to our hotel on the subway...
guess who we bumped into...
me and my sis bumped into yoanna, from america next top model!!!
i and my sis were people watching as usual...
and we saw a pair of really gorgeous legs and boots...
and our eyes drifted up to her clothes and finally to her face...
and wammmmmmmmmm!!! yoanna...
she walked passed us...
i and my sis stared at each other...
and ran to say hi to her...
me: hi, exusa are you yoanna?
yoanna: (looks at us blankly) and flips up her dior aviators...
sis: (whispers) ok i don't think she speaks english...
me: yoanna from america's next top model...
yoanna: screams hysterically.... oh my lord, you guys actually know who i ammmmm...
continues to scream hysterically...
me and my sis: (scream hysterically like some moronic crazy psyco fans) omg you look even more gorgeous in person... and we loved you in the show...omg omg omg omg omg...
yoanna: oh my worth, where are you guys from? i didn't know the show got out of the us! haha, its amazing isn't it...
me and sis: yea the show is!
yoanna: no silly, i meant meeting each other on the subway...
me and sis: continue to embarass ourselves by screamign even more...
yoanna: ok! this is really great fun meeting you guys i've got to rush now...
gives us each a huge hug...
and as fast as she came... she left...
sis: omg... camera..... shit camera....
me: (still in a dazed)

venice....
the place we blew the most money at...
its so hard to discribe venice....
everytime i think of venice...
i sigh....
its so blooody god damn picture perfect....
floating city, with the cheesy gondola, and the interconecting bridges...
most of the time we spent in venice was geting lost in venice's intricate streets...
it was like a maze we didn't mind getting stuck in forever...
venice is so beautiful, it even has its own gucci, lv and d and g, not forgetting prada as well...
while sitting in our expensive 45 minutes $160 gondola ride...
my mom asked, do all gondola rowers sing?
and the gondola person replied...
"madame, there are singers and there are lovers...
not i don't sing"
how freaking italian is that, the smugness and the ending the sentense with a statement...

thats all i can remember....
for now....
need to unpack...
and eat....