Tuscany and Grey Oceans

I have a shocking revelation to make.

Coffee is Portugal is superior to coffee in Italy.

I am shocked. I truly expected coffee in Italy to be the best I had ever had. And while it is better than in most other countries I've been in with an important coffee culture (Spain, Argentina, France), I must say that in comparison to Portuguese coffee, which is almost universally of excellent quality (cimbali machines, segafreddo/delta/buondi branded beans, staff who know exactly how to work the machine they are using, freshly ground beans, perfectly sized, shaped cups and saucer and matching spoon) as well as being extremely good value (usually between 55-85 Euro cents) it really just wasn't that good. You can tell I take this quite seriously, no?

But really, I was a little let down by the coffee I had in Italy. I tried coffee in cafes, restaurants and bars in Pisa and Florence and was just not all that impressed. Oh well.

Apart from my little issue with Italian coffee, my trip to Florence went very well. Oh, aside from the fact that the Icelandic ash cloud almost cancelled my flight back to Portugal! Both Pisa and Porto airports were closed on Sunday and I flew back early on Monday morning. We were very lucky to get that flight... the next one out of that airport to Porto wouldn't have been for 4 days and whilst I would have been happy to spend four more days in Italy, my cats wouldn't have been too pleased to have run out of food and the clients I had scheduled to do work for also wouldn't have been particularly impressed if I'd had to cancel the projects I'd accepted. But we got back ok.

So, Italia. We flew to Pisa late on Friday night and stayed in the Hotel Novecento which was centrally located and had large rooms, very contemporary bathrooms and a pretty interior courtyard area. It is marketed as a "period residence". Unfortunately it was raining when we arrived and early the next morning so we didn't get a chance to use the garden. Nonetheless we had a good nights sleep and the owners were very pleasant. The weather brightened up later so we had a wander around Pisa, saw the leading tower and cathedral, visited a few parks, gelaterias, markets and cafes and later had a long lunch in the Osteria La Mescita. Recommended. Especially the aubergine and tomato ravioli, the pasta dish with rabbit and the ricotta with berries for dessert. We took the train to Florence last that afternoon. In Florence we stayed in the Hotel Globus, right in the centre of the beautiful historical area of the city. From our room we even had views of the Medici Chapels! Florence is an absolutely stunning city. We spent most of our time walking around, looking at the amazing architecture, oh, and eating! Highlights included an amazing platter of Italian hams and cheeses at ZEB and the mascarpone and nutella pizza at Boccanegra. On Sunday evening we returned to Pisa and stayed the night at the My One Hotel, an airport hotel which was surprisingly luxurious and the food (beef in red wine reduction for dinner and freshly baked pastries and proper orange juice for breakfast) exceptionally good for an airport hotel and a chain also. For some reason we got a room which normally costs 300 euros a night for only 65... ? Maybe because the hotel was quite empty. All in all, I loved Italy. I'm hoping to go back some time soon.

Grey Oceans is the new album by CocoRosie. I spent all last week and this week listening to their debut album La maison de mon rêve and their newest release and have fallen utterly in love with their sound and their little sonic universe. It's what some, rather lazy, music critics like to term "quirky" music, painting artists as diverse and talented as Joanna Newsom, Casey Dienel and CocoRosie with the same brush. Essentially I find it innovative, refreshing and creative. I really enjoy it. I've discovered so much wonderful music recently. I love reading (good quality) album reviews and music criticism as it often leads me down unexpected paths where I discover wonderful new artists.

I've been quite busy recently with work. As usual. Which I appreciate. We are moving apartment in a bout three weeks and are already planning how to furnish it. I'm very excited. That's the story for now.