A nose is a nose is a nose

Loveliness extreme.
Our dog Otto lives his life through his nose. As a hunting dog his nose is plastered to the ground 24/7 and his sense of smell is really really amazing. Yet annoying. This is how our morning walks usually go:




In fact this is how most of our walks go. If you can't discern what that craziness is, he's hunting for lizards. That's why his nose is in every nook and cranny sniffing as if his life depended on it. But what an elegant schnoz he's got! Now if I could only teach him how to go truffle hunting....

Ma Perche?

Why do Italians use the article when mentioning certain rock bands?
As in "Gli Iron Maiden".

Huh?

I'm sorry but it's just Iron Maiden. period.
Maybe I can understand when they say "i rolling stones" or "i beatles", even though it obviously sounds better using the English "the" ("the" rolling stones). Hey, I would never do the opposite and say "the 99 posse" because it sounds better "i 99 posse". They're an Italian group, they have the Italian article.
But "Gli acdc"? And with the Italian accent it becomes "glyeeee aahcheeeedeeeecheeeee".
No no no no no.
It's just wrong.

The Heat is on

It is so dang hot in Rome. The thermometer says 24 celsius which is about 75 farenheit but this cannot be right. Normally I would be strutting around town with my sunglasses on in a perfect 75degree weather but it feels so much hotter than that. Try around 95F where you sweat while you are sitting doing nothing.
Thanks global warming.
And today I am so craving a Mexican martini. Oh the joy. The best thirst quencher around for those scorching days (ignore the fact that alcohol dehydrates) oh Austin, I miss you.
For those of you in the dark a Mexican martini is similar to a margarita but made like a martini. Ahem....shaken, not stirred.



And the best in Austin has got to be from Cedar Door. With Trudy's Tex-Mex coming in a close second. To make your own nectar of the gods here is the creme de la creme.

Cedar Door's Original Mexican Martini
In a 16-oz. shaker glass full of ice combine:
1 1/2 oz. Sauza Gold Tequila*
1 1/2 oz. Hiram Walker Triple Sec

Finish with freshly squeezed lime juice, a splash of orange juice and sweet and sour. Shake well and serve in a champagne glass with a salted rim, garnished with three olives on a sword pick and lime wedge.

*I would recommend a better tequila than sauza (try Herradura Añejo, El Tesoro de Don Felipe, Espolon Añejo, or even Cabo Wabo Añejo Mileni)because the better the tequila the smoother the martini.
Cheers!

Toscana is beeeeauuuutiful!

We spent a few days at the sea in Talamone, Tuscany. All I can say is Talamone is beautiful! It is so green and lush contrasted with a clear blue blue sea. Fresh seafood, the required castel/tower that all the coastal towns have, and super friendly people. I realy like the Tuscan accent, it's very elegant and soft compared to the Roman one (which of course has it's own unique charm). It's a very very small town which takes about 5 minutes to walk from one end to the other. There's not much to do besides sail, swim, and windsurf, and of course eat really fresh really good Italian food. But that's cool with me.