My Future Home ;)

Sicily: Catania 

After three days we had to say goodbye to Napoli! 

It was an overnight trip so this is how we slept. Luckily there weren't too many people.

Lucia!!

The architecture in Catania really impressed me.

There is no lack of statues, churches or water fountains in Italy.

The elephant is the official mascot of the town. There are elephants all over the city. This is because hundreds of years ago a skeleton of a elephant was found in Catania.

The building behind the elephant statue is City Hall. 

We took a mini train tour around the city. We ran into our Chinese friends we from Capri! :)

The Patron Saint is everywhere!

Bella

Statue of Vincenzo Bellini

Baroque Architecture  

Gorgeous park.

Through the whole tour Laura thought the old man in front was the mayor of Catania. She was so happy. Lucy  and I kept laughing so hard and I ended up breaking the bad news.

I am hoping that one day this will be my university. It's basically like the Letters and Science college in UC Davis. But of course, I would be studying Italian Literature!! <3

We went to City Hall and surprise, surprise, Laura got her own personal tour guide.

A celebration for the Patron Saint

This carriage is older than my grandma's grandma!

This painting caught my eye. This is St. Agatha, the patron saint of Catania.

Italian Pride. La tricolore.

 Inside City Hall

 Mini Lion

Yet another beautiful church. They are just as beautiful on the inside if not more beautiful. :)

 Me and my partner in crime. 

 The Underground Roman Amphitheater 

So happy. Can you blame me? 

After the tour we took some time to relax at the park and tried some of the famous Granita from the South.

 The weather was not perfect but the atmosphere sure was. Of course me and Lucy were observing the men from Catania :)

We ended up buying some personalized bracelets made on the spot. I know it's not a clear picture but mine says, Maria <3 Elena, in different colors. 

We only had one day in Catania but it was very memorable. We saw the city, made some friends, did some shopping, and ate cheap but delicious food. :) I will definitely be back to Catania. Best believe! 

Goodies :)

Everything was much cheaper in the South. They also had stores that we simply do not have in Florence. Sooo... the gals and I decided to hit up a few of the shops. These are my non-souvenir items from my trip. 

(Two of the pics would not cooperate so sorry that they are sideways!)

I got this shirt in Naples in a small boutique. The color is perfect with my skin town. This is the back of the shirt btw. It's not see-thru in the front!

 

These three pink items I got at a store called Tally Weijl in Catania. It's a big chain store in Europe and parts of Asia. I totally fell in love with their style. :)   

I got these lovely bookmarks and this fab pen at a book store in Catania. The pen was pricey made with Swarovski Crystal but I love pens so much I didn't mind. The two quotes say:
" Books are divided into two categories: books for now and books for always" - Ruskin
"A room without books is like a body without a soul" - Cicerone

These shoes were my favorite and most expensive purchase on my trip. They are leather Italian shoes from Catania. Aren't they gorgeous? I just had to spoil myself this one time. But let me tell you, Italian shoes are expensive!!

I bought these dresses at the market in Palermo. They are beautiful dresses made in India. They are so colorful and go so well with my skin tone. I absolutely adore these dresses.

My last purchase was at an Italian store called Zuiki. we don't have Zuiki in Florence. They actually had some nice stuff at decent prices. I wish I could go back for a few more items.

So there you have it. Those were my goodies from my trip. Hope you like them. You will be seeing me wear these when I get back home. :) Ciao for now!

5 Things I Loved About SI

5 Things I loved about my trip to the South of Italy:

No worries soon there will be a post with all my lovely pictures from my trip. But for now I thought I'd share some of my favorite parts.

1. The food of the South: was amazing!! South Italian cuisine> North Italian cusine. 'Nough said.

2. Climbing Mt. Vesuvius: I went to the top of a volcano y'all!! NEVER imagined I would do that.

3. The Bluest water I have ever seen: was in Capri. It was like dyed blue but nope all natural. I even got to go to the Blue Grotto which I recommend if you are ever in the island of Capri. (fyi: i didnt even edit the picture!)

4. The sand of Cefalu: On my last day in Sicily I was all by myself. What did I do? I went to the beach of course! It was a sandy sandy beach. Perfect for taking a nap under the sun.

5. The men of Catania: I havent been shy about saying the Fiorentine boys arent doing it for me. Well, it was very different in Catania. :) Unfortunately I did not take any pics of the men.