Saturday, June 27, 2009

The Red Light Restaurant

I walked home on Thursday. That means its time for another installment of my unfinished series on walking home. I only have 3 left so I promise to finish them before I leave Italy.
Let me tell you about a favorite restaurant of ours. Its near our apartment and I also pass it when I'm walking home. Its a nice little pizzeria, but the reason I like it so much is because of the red lights! The official name of the restaurant is Pizzeria Gaudi, but we just call it The Red Light Restaurant.

Let me explain the red lights. Each table has a number and a light over the table. Above the regular light for the table, is a small, red light bulb with a switch hanging down within reach. The way the restaurant works is when you're ready to order, or you need the waiter for any reason, you turn the red light on. Its so simple, its ingenious! I love it!! The first time I visited this place, I was amazed at how amazing this idea was and how efficiently the restaurant worked. The waiter doesn't have to stop by your table 200 times per night asking how everything is. And, you don't have to wait for the waiter to see you so you can order or ask for another drink or get the check. They have far fewer waiters than any other restaurant of the same size would have because all the waiters have to do is stand to the side and respond to red lights. It really is an excellent idea and I'm surprised more establishments haven't picked up on it. It makes so much sense.

We've taken all our visitors to Gaudi and we often go with friends or just by ourselves. They have a brick pizza oven in the middle of the restaurant and you can watch the chefs preparing the pizzas. They also have a small selection of good pastas and grilled meats. Its one of my favorite restaurants in all of Italy and the red light idea is simply brilliant! I promise to take you all to the Red Light Restaurant if you're ever in Rome (when I'm here).

a.k.a. The Red Light Restaurant
nothing special from the outside, but the inside is brilliant!
our table, #26
the red light is ON
the pizza oven with pizzas being made
ahh, we love The Red Light Restaurant

Thursday, June 25, 2009

New Banner

I just wanted to draw your attention to my banner....that's right, its new! My wonderful husband updated my banner for me and its just what I always wanted (thanks, Bill!). I decided it should be updated once more while I'm still in Italy. So, here's a banner, Italia-style: A little shot of gelato (which is my favorite and I will miss it oh-so-much when I'm gone) to represent all the amazing TASTES. And, an anniversary shot from Bellagio, the most beautiful place in Italy (followed closely by Capri) to represent our awesome TRAVEL. A new banner to remember all the good times spent here in the boot-shaped country.

Enjoy the new banner!

Monday, June 22, 2009

Capri

At the end of May, Bill and I took a trip to Capri. Actually, it was a longer trip to Pompeii, Sorrento, and Capri but my favorite part was definitely Capri. It was right after our pack-out so I didn't feel like working very hard at making plans. In fact, I didn't really feel like planning at all - which is surprising since I usually love to plan. But, I was tired and I wanted someone else to plan for me. So, we booked a tour. We acted like regular tourists and signed up to be herded around and taken everywhere on a tour bus. Not usually my favorite way to see things, but it was just what I was in the mood for. We signed up for a 2-day trip with an overnight stay in Sorrento.

First, we visited Pompeii, which I had already seen, but Bill had not. It was a hot day and the ruins looked pretty much the same, but Bill enjoyed it. Next, we were off to Sorrento. Sorrento is on the north part of the Amalfi Peninsula. I don't think it technically counts as being part of the Amalfi Coast, but it is pretty close and it is very nice. We spent the night in Sorrento at a very nice hotel and the next day we took a ferry to Capri.

Capri was beautiful. We had lovely weather and everything was just perfect. We took a smaller boat out to the Blue Grotto and from there we transferred into row boats to enter the grotto. It is a very small opening in the cliff but inside it opens up into a cavern that is blue because of the light reflected in the water. It was fun. Next, we had lunch and drove to the top part of the island. From there, Bill and I took a chair lift to the tippy-top of the island...it was literally a chair lift - one seat at a time. It was so fun and you could see out over the entire island. The lift was my very favorite part. After that, we met up with our group again and did some shopping. Then it was back to Naples on the ferry and back to Rome on the bus.

Even though it was a quick trip, it was a lot of fun! I can't believe I've been in Italy for 3 years and I haven't been to Capri before this. I'm glad we finally saw it and I wish we could go back. Here is a link to the photo album that Bill posted with his pictures of our trip. I'll also include a couple of my own. Enjoy!!

http://public.fotki.com/HurtWa/sorrento-and-capri/


the Blue Grotto looked kinda green to me
both of us! (see Bill in the chair behind me?)
Bill enjoying the view
at the top
our guide was Marco

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Another One

I feel I must post another Anniversary picture because our day was just that good! We had pizza for lunch (because I insisted on having pizza in Bellagio), but we also went out for a more "fancy" dinner, lest you all think we are uncivilized, pizza-eating cretins. That's right, we even made reservations and got dressed up (sort of!). We reserved a table right on the water's edge at the oldest hotel/restaurant in Bellagio, and it was beautiful! I thought the dinner would be really expensive, but it was about the same as our lunch (since lunch included appetizer and dessert). We didn't include any extras for dinner because we were still full, but it was delicious and the location was unbeatable. Its going to be really hard to top this anniversary, and it was only our first!

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Happy Anniversary!

Happy Flag Day to everyone. Today is a special holiday when we celebrate the Stars and Stripes. Oh yeah, and its also our anniversary, so Happy Anniversary to us!

We have been married for one year. That's amazing. It seems like just yesterday that we were in Oregon at beautiful Bridal Veil Lakes having a wonderful wedding ceremony and spectacular reception. It was such a great day and we both have very happy memories of all the special people that were there to share it with us. Thanks again to everyone who made our wedding so incredible.

Now, one year later, we are still happily married and enjoying life. We have accomplished a lot in the last year. Bill is no longer in the Marine Corps and is now a full time student. He joined me in Italy and is living the good life! I received my new assignment in Panama and we're in the midst of getting ready to transfer. We have also traveled a lot this year: we spent our honeymoon on an Alaskan cruise; we've been to Milan for a Formula One race; we traveled to Elba, Pisa, and Lucca with visiting family; we went to Paris and EuroDisney; Bill traveled to Florence with his mom; we rented a car and drove around Sicily; we spent 9 days touring Egypt; we took a quick trip to Pompeii, Sorrento, and Capri; Bill flew to Texas for a wedding; and we are currently enjoying Lake Como. I guess its fitting that my blog is called "Taste & Travel" because we do a lot of traveling. (We also do a lot of eating, so the whole title is appropriate.) A lot has happened this year and we are happy to be experiencing it all together!

One year ago today we were eating delicious pizza from Bellagio's Pizza at our wedding. Now, on our First Anniversary, we are enjoying pizza in beautiful Bellagio, Italy. The food and the scenery are different, but we are still very happy and in love!

Anniversary in Bellagio
Pizza in Bellagio (not as good as Bellagio's Pizza)
Enjoying the pizza!
We even had cake that was similar to our delicious wedding tortes - but not nearly as good
Happy in Bellagio!
We are definitely enjoying our anniversary in Bellagio!

Monday, June 8, 2009

Happy Birthday Bill

Bill's birthday was on Friday. We had a lot of weekend plans so we decided to celebrate on Sunday. We spent Friday night at a Trivia Night event and I made birthday cookies for Bill. He was nice and shared them with everyone on our team. On Saturday we helped out at an embassy fundraiser, the Auction. It was fun, but it was a long night. So, on Sunday we were more than ready to relax and celebrate Bill's birthday.

I decided to take Bill out on his birthday for a special adventure. I told Bill we were just going for a walk, but we met up with some friends and headed for our secret location. We went to the ZOO!! As you may remember from my earlier post about the zoo signs, you know that we've been curious about this "legendary" zoo for some time. And, I figured if the quantity of signs pointing to the zoo was any indication of its quality, then it would be terrific! Besides, who doesn't love the zoo?!?

We insisted that Bill get a birthday balloon to identify him as the birthday boy all day long. The girls picked out a pretty pink unicorn balloon for him. Unfortunately, he wasn't allowed to take the balloon inside the zoo so we had to tie it to the entrance fence. The good news is that she was still there when we got out...so the pretty pink unicorn is happy in our living room.

We had a fun time at the zoo. It was bigger than I thought it would be but it still wasn't too impressive. The monkeys were very entertaining and funny. Other popular animals were the lemurs, the seals, the pygmy hippopotamus, and the entire reptile house.

After the zoo, we went back to our apartment for cake, ice cream, and presents. It was very fun to have everyone there to help celebrate Bill's birthday. He was surprised by the zoo outing and had fun with the cake and ice cream. Thanks to all our friends for coming and enjoying the afternoon with us.

Bill with his birthday balloon that the girls picked out
we're ready to see the whole zoo!
hanging out with the bison
looking at the funny monkeys
we are cute lemurs!
very cute!
walking home
now that we've been to the zoo, we all know where it is!
Bill's birthday cake with all the candles
waiting for cake
opening presents
happy birthday, Bill

I know that I didn't include any pictures of the animals, but a day at the zoo is about more than just exotic animals. Its about spending a sunny afternoon with good friends and having a great time. Yes, we did see the animals, but they were not the important part and you'll have to look at Bill's pictures to see them...he took lots!

Happy Birthday Bill!

**
As a side note, this is my 100th blog post, and I think that's cause for celebration. Its a big deal...I've written something 100 times and people are still reading. So, I'm looking forward to 100 more.