While I was on my own personal quest for the best Gelato in Italy, my son was on a quest for the best pizza. The funny thing they do over there is to plop the pie on a plate whole. No cutting. They bring you a knife and fork and all the cutting is in your court. The boy became quite an expert on doing it well. Me, not so much.
Hold on for some yummy-ness.
Posted in Wordless Wednesday | Tags: wordless Wednesday
Gelato is Italian for ice cream. Their ice cream is much thicker and creamier than ours. It’s just wonderful. I had several varieties while in Italy. My favorite has to be the dark chocolate with the thin little chocolate shavings in it. They weren’t really shavings, they weren’t chocolate chips, rather, they were more like chocolate sticks- I can’t really describe them- kind of like a thick sprinkle is the best I can do. Anyway, they were dark chocolate and the whole thing was just yummy.
I also had one called a gelato truffle. It was chocolate cake with an ecru cream inside and then gelato underneath- both chocolate and vanilla. One other good dessert was chocolate cake with warm chocolate sauce in the inside of the cake, served with blueberries and vanilla gelato.
I can’t believe I went to Italy and never got a cannoli. I’m a big cannoli fan but I did the gelato tour this time around.
I picked up this book by Heather Graham at the RWA national conference in NYC last month. I’m a big fan of Heather, another Florida resident.This book did not disappoint. The setting is one I particularly love- the plantation area of Louisiana near New Orleans. Jackson Square in the city is also a part of the story. I love to read about places that I know and love, but that was just part of the charm of the story.
The story centers around a family that owns a plantation called Donegal Plantation. During the Civil War, there was a skirmish on the property and the man of the house was killed. Every year, the family hosts a reenactment of the “battle” which was really just a bar brawl.
The man playing the role of the man of the house that was killed goes missing after the reenactment and the heroine is convinced something has happened to him.
Enter the hero- the former lover of the heroine- he’s part of an elite team at the FBI that investigates paranormal events.
Heather Graham’s light touch on the paranormal always makes me happy. Her stories feature ghosts and they are woven into the story in such a way that the reader doesn’t feel like she’s being beat over the head with something that would never be possible. 
This is another great read from Ms. Graham and I recommend it.
Posted in Books | Tags: Heart of Evil, Heather Graham, Jackson Square, Louisiana, New Orleans, plantation, Reviews
I’m at the anniversary party of The Long and the Short of it blog today. For the next week, there are over 80 guest bloggers on this site and today is the day for my posts. I should have a few spread out through the day. Great prizes are being awarded so, come make comments. http://lasrguest.blogspot.com/
I’m also here: http://happilyeverafterthoughts.blogspot.com/ giving away a copy of Redemption for the Devil to one commenter.
Posted in Random thoughts
Don’t forget to pop over to my publisher’s blog and comment for a chance to win!! Today, we have an excerpt from Redemption for the Devil. http://desertbreezepublishing.blogspot.com/ I’ll be guest blogging tomorrow in 2 places and will post links here. Also, today, I’m on Southern Sizzle, my regular Saturday post- talking about Wicked Wickham. http://southernsizzleromance.wordpress.com/
graffiti in Venice
Posted in Random thoughts | Tags: Desert Breeze Publishing, Redemption for the Devil, Southern Sizzlers, Venice
The Villa Borghese was built by the Cardinal Borghese to show off his art collection. It is a spectacular building. The interiors will take your breath away. The ceilings are all painted and look almost three-dimensional. The sad thing is that they take away your camera when you go in and even the books on sale there don’t have full color photos of these ceilings. I wish like heck that I could share these with you. I’ll carry them in my mind’s eye forever but am sad that I can’t share them.
One of my favorite things there is a sculpture called The Rape of Persephone by Bernini. It is exquisite. The marble is carved to look like Pluto is holding Persephone and you can even see the indentations of his fingers on the skin of her thigh. She has a look of anguish on her face and a little tear escapes from her eye. Pluto’s muscles are well-defined and the dog, Cerberus, is magnificent. His fur looks real. I was amazed at the craftmanship of this piece and the man was only 23 when he did it- there are other Bernini statues there as well. One he did when he was eleven. It was awe inspiring- two babies milking a goat. And he was only eleven!
If you ever get to Rome, this is a not to be missed gallery. Truly. 
Posted in Friday Facts | Tags: Borghese, Friday Facts, Galleria, Persephone, Pluto, Rome. Bernini, Villa
On the gondola ride in Venice, this scene caught my eye. It was such a dichotomy – we all over here on this side of the Atlantic think of Venice as exotic and spectacular. There are balconies everywhere, flowers growing and lots of wonderful colors on the buildings and great architecture. To the people who live there, it’s just home and the mundane day to day chores have to go on. I had to snap this picture (actually, the kiddo snapped it as he had a better shot, but I made him do it- LOL!) as it spoke volumes to me. I hope you enjoy it.
Posted in Random thoughts | Tags: architecture, buildings, Italy, laundry, Venice
Posted in Wordless Wednesday | Tags: wordless Wednesday
One of the interesting things about Italy is that they don’t serve tap water there in the restaurants. They only serve bottled water – the question is always asked, “Still or Bubbles?” or “Still or Gas?” If you get to Europe, never, never, never go for the bubbles or gas. That is pure seltzer water. Not refreshing at all!! I learned that on a trip to Germany when I was 19. We were picked up at the airport by our host, Herr Ludwig and he went into a gas station and asked if we wanted water. When he asked if I wanted, “sparkling,” in my head, that meant “cold” – Uh, no. It was bubbles/gas. Can you say, “gag me?” Well, I had to drink it and smile since Herr Ludwig was so proud of getting me the water. I was raised to be polite no matter what I was served. So, I grinned and drank the stuff. Yipes.
This time, I was prepared and always said “still” almost before they asked. The weird thing is the water was the same price as the beer or bier as they spell it. Coca cola was outrageously expensive- the kid drinks that a lot. He also found some apple juice he loved made with green apples. It was excellent. He inhaled that stuff. I drank bier a few times when my feet got achy from walking. I call it self-medicating, and after all, it was as cheap as water, right?
Pop in to my publisher’s blog and see what I’m saying today over there. http://desertbreezepublishing.blogspot.com/
Its also my day at this blog: http://fourfoxesonehound.wordpress.com/
Posted in Random thoughts | Tags: acqua minerale, apple juice, beer, bier, coca cola, Italy
Jillian Chantal 