And not a moment too soon! My tank is empty.

It’s so much easier and much more civilized. No taking off of shoes or t as king out your electronics. Wow! I like!

My favorite language school has resumed classes this week and I’m very happy to be back.

You may have seen my earlier post about the palazzo in which my school is housed, in the Renaissance Palazzo Galli Tassi. On June 27 I first posted about it.

I learned 2 new verbs today,

and they are new additions to the Italian language as well. One is postare, which means “to post” and the other is zoomare, which I’m guessing you can deduce the meaning of! How funny they are.

Below, the marble statue group in the gorgeous old courtyard always catches my eye and my camera.

Back down in the courtyard, the 14th century capitals on the grand columns also caught my eye. The pins over them are pigeon deterrents.

Enjoying a moment of American car and fast food culture. It definitely has its place!

Over the well in the center of the 15th century Renaissance courtyard of the Palazzo Galli Tassi you will often see a beautiful seasonal flower arrangement. When my language classes resumed in this building this past week, this was the loveliness that awaited.

On the block of stone that serves as the table top, you can see fossils embedded in the stone. It is quite something.

You come across something that astonishes you completely. It’s so rare, which makes it all the more meaningful.

That’s exactly what happened when I finished watching the exquisite tv series Somebody Somewhere. I came to it late and completely by accident, but I am a better person for having found it. It moved me in its stunning truths.

Run, don’t walk, to watch this miracle.

There’s a beautiful walkway that runs around the south end of Florence that I love to walk. I hadn’t been there is a while and somehow I saw something I don’t recall ever noticing before. It was this small, simple structure. An example of vernacular architecture.

It’s odd, because the majority of the buildings that line this roadway are nothing short of historic Florentine mansions and yet here was this simple little…shed?

As you can see, I’m walking along the beautiful Viale Niccolo Machiavelli, as the plaque on the facade of the shack reveals.

But what caught my attention, and charmed me, was that someone had taken the trouble to faux paint a design on the simple door.

I love the simplicity of the small building and have no idea why it is there or what it was used for. I am beguiled by the fact that the owner (or someone in charge) went to the trouble of faux painting the cute little doorway.

Gorgeous weather, long long walks. And I saw this sign and share the feeling.

Is there anything more lively than an orchid?