Life in Italy

Wow, I can hardly believe we've been in Italy for a week.

The jetlag was a little harder than I anticipated, and then I got a cold over the weekend (still coughing like crazy). Time has flown by, as it is wont to do.

First, I wanted to share some photos of our little flat. We're right in the center of Bollate, a northern suburb of Milan. It's a good sized town (population around 50,000) and our neighborhood is always bustling.

We live right across from a shoe store, which so far I've managed to walk past and not into! We haven't been so resistant to the temptations of the Gelaterias (three are within a 10 minute walk!).

Our cozy flat has two rooms, and since the second room is being used as a study (and a closet), we use the main room for everything--bedroom, dining room, living room and kitchen.

All the walls are painted a bright yellow. It's fairly cheery in person, but the color reflects off everything in the photos making it all seem very yellow!

We fold up the bed back into a couch during the day for some more space.

Our bathroom is fairly modern and nice , although tiny. We have a bidet and I had no idea how to use it for the first few days.

You already saw our outside patio here, but I'm sitting out here now and it's so lovely. I have a view of the street, there is jasmine growing up the fence around me, and there is a small overhang so I'm protected from the pigeon droppings (which are everywhere!)

Yesterday was the first day it was nice all day. Apparently northern Italy has had an uncharacteristic amount of summer rain. When we were here two years ago it was very hot and humid, so for now I'm enjoying the mild 75 degrees.

Posts to come: scenes around Bollate, home-cooked Italian food, and a day at Lake Como!