STRAWBERRY TIME

Really lovely present from Japan. Thank you Koko :D
I love Afternoon Tea! ありがとう

Strawberry Tiramisu` made by me. Very light and summery.

MORE PETS?!

The weather has been very warm. I really enjoy it.
Unfortunately Torakiki has been suffering all day long in the flat, with her big, fluffy coat. So, last night, we decided to take her down to the garden with her new lead to get a bit of fresh air.
Naturally she hated the lead and the garden. She perched herself on a bench looking around suspisciuosly.
Something was wrong...
A fox was approaching!

She was extremely friendly and fearless. She kept on coming closer and closer and followed me around.

I asked a neighbour, who was reading in the garden, and he told me that the fox lived in the shrubbery at the back of our building, but he had never seen her so relaxed. She must have liked me!

Torakiki was a bit weary of the new friend at first, but then she just concentrated in rolling all over the place and making herself very dirty...

A SHORT BREAK IN THE ALPS

I am finally renting a holiday home in the Alps! I took a short break to go back to Italy and check the new flat. The weather was absolutely fantastic!

This is the town of Chiesa in Valmalenco, where I am renting the flat. I've been coming here on holiday since I was born. It is a lovely place and the ideal starting point for many good hikes!

Nice houses... Everything is clean and well looked after.

The town gets really busy with holiday-makers in August and during the skiing season. I like to go when it is quiet, if I can. May, June and September are the ideal months to enjoy the mountains without many people and cars around.

The water from these fonts is icy cold!

This is a short-cut to my house. It is a bit steep, especially if you are carrying shopping bags. Good exercise!

This is the small river that flows right outside the flat. Some people might find it a bit noisy. I personally love it. The sound of the water is so relaxing!

This is the house! The ground floor is where I'm staying.

This is the entrance.

Bedroom 1

Bedroom 2

It is a bit old-style and there are images of Jesus and Guardian Angels everywhere!

Kitchen

AGA! I can't wait to use it in the winter!!!

View of the garden from the kitchen.

WHAT IS THIS?!

It plays football!

This is NEBBIA!!! The landlord's bunny rabbit. He lives in the wood-storage room and I have to go through it to access the garden.

Nebbia is so fluffy and friendly. He follows you around and loves to have company in the garden.

I LOVE NEBBIA! I'll have to ask why they called him Nebbia... Nebbia means "fog" in Italian, but he is all black...

I went up to the dams for a warm-up hike.

There was still quite a bit of snow. Natural refrigerator for my bottle of water :)

Lunch break!

The snow is taller than me!!!

The high alpine refuges are still closed. I think they will open for the summer season at the beginning of June.

View of the Pizzo Scalino with its charateristic pyramid shape. So beautiful!

Waterfall. The snow is still melting, so all the little streams look very strong and carry a lot of water.

Happy cow.

Aperitivo before dinner...

... and finally polenta con brasato at Toto`. Delicious!!! Toto` is my favourite restaurant in Chiesa.
Aaah! This is life! I'll be back hopefully soon in the summer. I can't wait!

INDULGENCE...

I love cupcakes with violet tea from Laduree.

LAURA IN LONDON

My sister Laura came to London for a long weekend with her boyfriend. This is Volpe, Eirik, me, Laura and Christian having lunch at Spitafields :)

SAKURA SHOWER!

Shin-san is magic!

SARDE ALLA BECCAFICO

I prepared a traditional Sicilian dish with some fresh sardines I bought at the Alexandra Palace Farmers Market.
Although I'm not from Sicily, I think they came out quite well :)