tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79407048457436442432024-03-14T10:10:57.980-04:00aventures de je ne sais pas quoi...there are some places you leave. and places that never leave you.Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.comBlogger75125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-66058961703345298532009-10-23T17:40:00.001-04:002009-10-23T17:42:47.479-04:00movin' on up...After much thought, I have decided to switch to a different blog site... The new link is http://mroselamb.wordpress.com/. Fortunately all of the posts and comments from this blog have been transferred to the new one :)
Please visit me there and sign up for email updates on the right side of the screen. Make sure that you check your email and click on the link to activate your subscription!Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com126tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-75812635794975211612009-10-10T13:42:00.000-04:002009-10-10T13:42:23.564-04:00italy photo albumshere are all my photos from italy!
when in rome
assisi not a-sissy
venice... there's no place like it
how did they get florence from firenze? - mama jude
coined SL by judas because sestri levante was too hard to say
Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-69275082993168218522009-10-09T23:55:00.001-04:002009-10-10T01:56:07.056-04:00a call to action, americaI have been thinking all afternoon about how, or even if I should express my feelings over today's political events.
Barack Obama was awarded the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize.
He became one of only four U.S. presidents to be awarded this honor, only the third sitting president, and the only to win in his first term. While I am just as shocked by the news as everyone else in the world — other than theMel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-47748977099383157382009-10-09T21:58:00.000-04:002009-10-09T21:58:42.724-04:00home sweet home<!--StartFragment-->
19/9/09
i woke up and almost immediately needed a xanax because i was so nervous about flying standby. i hated feeling responsible for everyone else without any internet to even check the boarding totals! not to mention, that when i booked the flight there seemed to be a problem with the credit card. regardless we made our way to fco on the leonardo express train.
Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-30408864614166851742009-10-09T19:09:00.000-04:002009-10-09T19:09:16.521-04:00rome again rome again jiggity jig<!--StartFragment-->
18/9/09
we made it back to rome today, but not without a train mishap – jo left her backpack with copies of her passport and credit cards, gifts for the girls, books and her blackberry! we tried to get it back but it seems like a lost cause…
there was a little miscommunication between mario and his wife so no one was at the apartment b&b to meet us. once we got Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-55929288707303737782009-10-09T18:38:00.000-04:002009-10-09T18:38:39.442-04:00a fairy-tale ending
17/9/09
we tried to cancel this portion of our trip when we found out we were leaving out of rome instead of milan. we’d be there for less than 24 hours, and it was pretty far our of the way, but we were all happy that we couldn’t cancel once we got there. the sea was beautiful and the town relaxing after a very busy florence. we weren’t able to do the cinque terre hike because of time Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-73656850661307822362009-10-09T18:01:00.000-04:002009-10-09T18:01:52.364-04:00happy birthday to me (and joann!)<!--StartFragment-->
16/9/09
the first thing i checked was my email for hotel responses about friday night. i had “good” news that one place had space but the problem was a shared bathroom with possibly unknown people. mom decided to call mario, our current landlord, to ask if he had rome accommodations and he did! she visited him at high b&b in PDR, which pushed back our daytrip to siennaMel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-13246735615690445822009-10-09T17:25:00.000-04:002009-10-09T17:25:19.873-04:00lucky me<!--StartFragment-->
15/9/09
i tried to make reservations for academia, but everything was booked for the week. we checked out the line, but seeing as it went from the museum entrance half-way to the duomo, we decided we’d settle for the copies all over town, including the one by uffizi where the old david used to stand anyway.
we shopped san lorenzo market for most of the day, are the best Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-47011668064135713702009-10-08T14:09:00.002-04:002009-10-08T14:31:56.726-04:00rain, rain, go away...14/9/09
we made it to florence without any problems and we met a really nice girl from iran on the train. she works for the un and is taking a few weeks to travel all over europe by herself.
florence is dirty and loud… and i’m sure all this rain we’re having doesn’t help.
this afternoon we bought wine at a cute shop by our apartment. the lady working was very nice and helpful. she recommended Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-25703150707225128422009-10-08T02:56:00.012-04:002009-10-08T03:33:04.126-04:00venice is for lovers <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-12763409447531859832009-10-06T15:00:00.005-04:002009-10-06T16:13:11.304-04:00jon paulo to the rescue
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font-size:Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-82826485897204366032009-10-04T23:45:00.002-04:002009-10-05T12:50:22.420-04:00the dirtiest day <!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal.dotm 0 0 1 853 4865 Continental Airlines 40 9 5974 12.0 <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]> 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]> <![endif]--> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-83406448468865711582009-10-03T18:51:00.000-04:002009-10-03T18:52:37.573-04:00roma: the eternal city9/9/09we arrived around 7:30am wednesday morning, “bright-eyed and bushy tailed…” or not. i was the only one who got any sleep on the flight over (thanks to the xanax and red wine.)after passport regulation and customs, mom had to smoke, of course. luckily we ran into a private shuttle driver who offered to take us to our apartment for 2-3€ more than what the train would cost. this was very Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-32414633604440095262009-10-03T18:22:00.002-04:002009-10-03T18:26:32.916-04:00pre-departure baggage <!--[if gte mso 9]> Normal.dotm 0 0 1 191 1093 Continental Airlines 9 2 1342 12.0 <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]> 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]> <![endif]--> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:Cambria; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-70558489374892742512009-06-29T13:55:00.002-04:002009-06-29T14:22:44.778-04:00if you fall off your moral horse, call it a cultural experience... italy is for romanticsthose words were written by my favorite travel expert, rick steves. i have just received his italy 2009 guidebook and am starting to plan our trip - our being my grandma, mom, aunt, godmother, and myself. second to france, italy is the country i've most dreamed of visiting. our family is from campobasso, a town southeast of rome. not only do i look the part but i also have a love for the Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-15606652087051458762009-06-20T17:26:00.005-04:002009-06-20T18:13:50.569-04:00be all you can bewow! it's been a long time since i've written... i've been so engulfed in reading new books and actually working for a change! during may i had layovers in ontario, san antonio, seattle, and various florida destinations just to name a few. this month i have had airport alert almost every day that i've been on call.at the end of the may/beginning of june i went home to dallas for kevin's Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-1443690630359126472009-05-01T16:38:00.009-04:002009-05-02T12:49:39.425-04:00♪so i called up the captain, please bring me my wine♬the annual passport weekend in dry creek valley, sonoma county, was held this past weekend. my california family and their friends attend each year, but this was only my second time to experience the weekend of food, music, and most importantly, wine!i made it to sac on thursday morning in time to have lunch with ron and bev. later while bev ran errands i took a little siesta to rest up for Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-58387178995542316592009-05-01T14:18:00.001-04:002009-05-01T14:18:58.232-04:00an egg-stra special easteri spent easter sunday in cleveland, which many people might not find very exciting, but thanks to my friend allison, it turned out great! scheduling called me saturday afternoon to let me know i would be deadheading to cleveland to sit borrowed reserve – which means i basically fly as a passenger to cleveland, go to my hotel, and wait for them to call me with an assignment, much like i do in Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-56012374165913495732009-04-15T12:09:00.003-04:002009-04-15T13:16:46.872-04:00how to be a follower...some people have been asking me how they can get email updates when i post a new blog... well after some trial and error i have added the email subscription widget on the left-hand side of my blog. so go ahead and type in the e-mail address you use most frequently to be sure you don't miss one of my scintillating stories :)also, you may or may not notice, i have added my google calendar at the Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-36651569375871163612009-04-13T18:27:00.012-04:002009-04-13T21:47:17.433-04:00shake, rattle, and roll... it's the luck of the dicelast weekend i visited vegas for the first time. dad had a work convention and i freeloaded off his hotel room at the mandalay bay. the trip was too short and i missed seeing a lot from my list of things to do and see, but it was a great introduction to sin city!the view of the beach from our roomi got in friday afternoon and took a taxi to the hotel. it's gorgeous... like it's own city! you Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-57187613990330240642009-03-26T14:21:00.015-04:002009-03-26T16:31:37.788-04:00you mean like on vacay? let's all go!my vacation days were assigned for february and along with my regularly scheduled days off, i was able to get almost two weeks off at the end of the month. i spent the first part in panama city beach, florida with the grandparents, whom i hadn't seen since before i left for france last year! i was reminded how terrifying it can be to be a passenger in the car with grandpa - the world is out to Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-37121339223961207712009-03-26T13:43:00.003-04:002009-03-26T14:19:58.176-04:00we're only humanback in february i was sent to cleveland to sit reserve there because their base was short. that night as i was lying in bed trying to sleep, my friend ashley came from her room across the hall banging on my door. she told me that a continental plane crashed. from the look on her face i could tell that this was no denver incident where the plane just skidded off the runway and everyone got out Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-44078621455516570882009-02-07T12:49:00.005-05:002009-02-07T14:53:02.425-05:00i think the beatles had it right...i want to hold your hand.hold me tight.come together.got to get you into my life.all you need is love.according to resalin i woke up on the philosophical side of the bed today. we were talking about twitter, which for those of you who don't know, is a social networking tool where people post and read updates on each other's lives. for example, my roommate had a long conversation with a man in Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7940704845743644243.post-24929023316666888472009-01-30T16:18:00.008-05:002009-01-30T18:00:26.652-05:00vampires, and dragons, and witches... oh my!i've been reading a LOT ever since i graduated and have rediscovered the freedom of reading for pleasure! if you are at all into fantasy books - and i'm not talking the aliens invade earth kind - then here are some suggestions of the series i've been reading!1. the twilight series by stephenie meyer: i'm sure you've all heard the hype, but i started reading these books this time last year. they Mel @ What The Frenchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18016688987439432978noreply@blogger.com3