Vagabond Artist

All I feel like doing is sleeping. Last Friday we went to place Italie to get the super 6 speed Mercedes Vito van that I rented to transport my 44 larg format paintings to Florence.

It was raining and my feet got soaked, I have to get some rubber soled shoes for Paris, all these leather soled Italian shoes just don' cut it here. We arrive early to the Europecar so were first to be served. Rented the truck and headed to Ivry, a 2 minute drive.

By 10am we were on the road with just enough room in the van to breath, it was the limit minimum space. We were sweating like animals after carrying down the 44 canvases that I had previously packaged in twos, three days of packing.

Then on the road A6 down to Beaune for lunch. We stopped an hour at some table de hôte just outside the historic center. We were the only ones there, the place looked nice, the furniture was beautiful the wine was good but all the food was heated up in the microwave.

Then off to Nice. The traffic from Lyon to Nice was heavy so we arrived late at Nice just for dinner and to go to bed.

Saturday morning we woke up and went to the olive mill at Opio to get some of those incredible cosmetics that they make, creams, soaps etc then headed off to Florence through Genoa. I hate the autoroute Genova Pisa, too many tunnels icky!

Just pas Genova we exited at Recco and parked found a nice pizzeria by the water and ate the special foccacia pizzata with sparkling water then hit the road again.

Finally in Florence we went straight to my garage and deposited the paintings sweating like pigs in the 35 degree weather, argh! I heard my dog bark on the terrace but my ex wasn't answering the phone so I did not call her, she would have freaked because I couldn't get into the apt to get her. We then walked all the way to Via San Gallo where my new apartment is sweating even more to go take a shower and rest before going to dinner.

The apt hasn't been lived in for months so the hot water heater had been turned off and we couldn't get it to turn off after various phone calls to the ex owner, so after an hour or so of trying a cold shower was what we had.

Then dinner at Borgo Antico in piazza Santo Spirito an antipasti of mussles, vongole, shrimp and scampi, then spagetti all chittara and a spagetti al pomodoro and basilico washed down with a collio. Heaven! it was even cooling off.

We had a nice sleep then woke up early Sunday and managed to get the hot water on took a shower and thent headed down to Vescovado di Murlo to have lunch with a friend. It was hot. She had booked us at a restaurant in Buonconvento so we went down there in the flatlands to this nice place to sit outside in the midday sun under the canopy that seemed to make the sun hotter. It was boiling and there was no breeze, I thought I was going to faint so kept putting water on the crown of my head, there was no breeze, it was hot as hell but I managed to get through lunch and then had to ly down. My friend saw me going white and got us in the air conditioned car and back to her cool stone villa where I napped on the couch like a bad guest as everyone else chatted. Then I awoke and my boyfriend napped. We're just not used to this heat after the freezing summer we've had in Paris.

Finally we get the energy to move on and go to Castellina in Chianti for an aperatif where I see several friends and then head down to Florence. At 7pm it was 27 degrees in Castellina so Florence was killer hot.

We got home parking the truck on via San Gallo, amazing to find parking there then take a shower and go to piazza Mercato Centrale to eat something. ZaZa was packed with and Pomodoro Rosso was too so we opted for the place next to ZaZa and ate something but i can't even remember at this point. It was good though. Then back to the apt to sleep.

Monday awake and out at 8am, cafe and brioche at the nice bar under the flat and on the road. By 9pm we were in Paris!!! i'm exhausted just thinking about it. I think I'll have a nap.