The Grand Tour

Firenze - Part Two 

Firenze - A City of Shadows There's something about the way that light and shadows play on the walls of Florence that is uniquely beautiful. It's as though the soft, earthy tones of the buildings make you feel like you're strolling the Tuscan countryside or a small town even when you're surrounded by people (although people is a strong word – they’re tourists). It has a dramatic yet somehow calming effect. It's the simple beauty of Florence that astounds (as is the case, I would argue, with Italy as a whole). The warmth of the evening sun and the shadows it casts can make something as simple as clothes hanging in an alleyway a strikingly beautiful sight.  

I didn't expect to feel much love for Florence. As one of the most internationally recognized tourist destinations (especially considering the nearby tower of Pisa), I had fully intended on writing it off as too touristy, inauthentic, and superficial to be loved. Wrong. Yes tourists crowd the streets like they do in Times Square and yes you can hear "hello, my friend" outside innumerable restaurants; but I get it. People swarm here for a reason. Italians (like the Neapolitan girl who hosted me and her boyfriend from Torino) flock here because it's a gorgeous city that's still livable. 

(side note: do you think people know how ridiculous they sound when they say "hello, my friend" to tourists walking by? Do you think they know that's like the quickest and surest way to communicate to someone you're trying to scam them? I feel like they should just go the whole nine yards and say something like "my friend, that wallet looks so heavy, let me make it lighter for you" or hold a sign that says "please throw money away here")

I'm going out of order cause this is my blog and I do what I want.  Sidi Bou Said. The small town North of Tunis looks like it could be out of a postcard. Apparently it was named after a religious figure who used to live there, Abou Said ibn Khalef ibn Yahia Ettamini el Beji, or "Bou Bou" as he was probably never called by his friends. The town was and remains a haven for tourists, artists, and the wealthy. At some point early in this century someone had the bright idea to mandate all buildings be white with blue accenting which makes it look like a Greek isle. Even though I was only there for a few hours, it deserved it's own entry cause...well...look at it. After exploring some of the side streets and almost melting into the pavement I slipped into a cafe to cool off (photo 3 is the entrance, photo 7 is the interior). There I had what I have been enjoying throughout my week in Tunisia- mint tea. 

It's hard to relate how amazing this tea is. The tea is cooked with sugar and fresh mint is added to give a flavor that you can't really compare to any tea in the States. Or anywhere else for that matter. I could drink this stuff all day. Oh, and the views weren't terrible either.

Playing catch-up now. Happy Norway day! May 17th is Norwegian Constitution Day. On this day men and women dress up in traditional Norwegian Bunads (baller ass costumes) drink champagne for breakfast, then pretty much continue drinking until they can't speak (more on that later). This May 17th also happen to be the country's centennial. The day celebrates Norway's declaration of independence from Denmark in 1814. Left slightly glossed over is that apparently 3 months later Norway was declared unindependent when they were forced into a union with Sweden, which coincidentally made a pretty sweet flag (see photo 2).

Anywho, this was literally the first photo I took in Oslo. I walked out of the train station straight into this. As you can see, the Norwegians celebrate in style. Beyond just the bunads- which seriously, I could not get enough of- by barbecuing and drinking all day. And night. Some people I met later that night literally could not even tell me their names they were so drunk. It didn't make much of a difference though because the sober ones all had names that I couldn't repeat back to them let alone spell here. One name I had no trouble remembering however was Thor. Yes, I met a man named Thor. After sleeping for one hour out of the past 36, I passed the hell out and slept like a new born babe. Great first day.