Coffee With A View - Rome Italy

Four and a half hours on the Marche-Roma bus, starting at 5am, meant a coffee with a view was needed before work... Hopped on the metro from the bus stop and upon emerging from the station this was the view.  Grabbed a €1 shot of caffeine and parked myself near the tour-touting Gladiators and enjoyed the vista.  Ancient Rome; Instagramed!

Lago di Pilato Hike

Sibillini National Park yesterday, we started off from the sleepy group of houses which call themselves Foce and slogged our way up to Lago di Pilato at 1,940m.

It took me three hours to reach the lake (lago) but if she'd gone alone, Mischa could've managed it in two. She spent a lot of time patiently waiting for me to catch my breath and keep trudging upwards.

Pilato lake is the only place in the world where you can find a particular type of microscopic prawn and as such, dogs are forbidden from entering the water or even entering the surrounding area.  So if anyone from Sibillini mountain rangers is reading this, Mischa definitely didn't go for a dip...

Summer Holidays in Italia

Mischa's First Birthday

On her first birthday, it's worth remembering those ears she had to grow into...

Sunflower Seed Mystery - Le Marche, Italy

Growing up in one of those mammoth 1960 high-rise block of flats in a country with a climate perfect for potato production meant that as a child, examples of the exotic world beyond the east of Scotland were few and far between.  In fact, the most colourful thing in my early childhood was a yellow and grey cockatiel called smokey which could effortlessly cause endless frustration with his ringing telephone imitation.

Smokey, bless his telephonic tendancies, is sadly long gone.  I'd like to say he received a dignified burial as all pets should but alas, living in a 21-storey concrete box means opportunities for funeral procedures are limited.  As such, smokey went off to the local incinerator inside a coco pops box via the communal rubbish chute.

Mischa - Sibillini National Park

Domestic life can take in a little travel.  An hour south from home is Sibillini National Park, complete with Alpine meadows at 1,500 metres, perfect for energetic puppies...

Mischa on YouTube

Not much of a travel post but sometimes domestic life is worth savouring... 

This is my one year old German Shepherd, Mischa.  She's actually Italian, understands English & German, has teutonic grandparents and has been smuggled through and into Switzerland on numerous occasions without a doggy passport which makes her quite travel savvy for her age.  But despite this depth of international sophistication, her pleasures are simple...

Fort Kochi - India

Taj Mahal - India

Kwality Ice Cream - New Delhi

Disconnected No More

Is this your car?

Three different internet providers, hours of automated telephone systems and a total of 15 weeks later, a home internet connection is once again established.

Since moving to central Italy from the North, winter came and went over a period of about 5/6 weeks and although the word weeks is preferable to months, the severity of the short winter is well worth keeping in mind.  A freak Siberian blizzard swept through the leg of Italy, leaving enough snow to build an Eskimo version of Rome, and at exactly the same time we moved into a large unfurnished house which was designed to be as cool as possible for the long, hot summers.

A large IKEA bookcase was sacrificed in the fireplace and the only place we wore less than three layers was in the bath. Even the dogs had a tough time...

Sam doing his best to keep warm

* For a few more photographs have a look at, Anno Italiano *

Anno Italiano - 15th Jan

Italy over 365 days with 365 photos... www.annoitaliano365.blogspot.com

Anno Italiano

Italy over 365 days with 365 photos... www.annoitaliano365.blogspot.com

Duomo di Milano

Winter in Milan