Friday Food and Favorites-La Dolce Vita in Italia

Thursday, May 17, 2012

Happy Friday! Last week at this time I was in Belgium getting ready for my early morning flight to Venice. How glamorous it all sounds now! And it was. The feeling I had while riding the water taxi from the airport right outside Venice to the hotel we were staying in was absolutely thrilling. I had always dreamt of going to Italy, and as we pulled into the narrow waterways of Venice and up to our hotel dock, the grin on my face was almost as wide as the canal we were floating in. We literally climbed out of our boat into our hotel!

So this week I am thrilled to share with you some of my European favorites.

Let's start with the food:

Everyone knows that Italy is famous for pizza and pasta, but what I adored the most were Italy's less famous, but still seriously national foods: Gelato (Italian Ice Cream) and Cappuccinos. Yes there were pizza shops at every corner, but we have that in America too. What Italy has that we don't, are gelato shops at every turn.  Not only is Italian gelato richer and more flavorful than its American cousin, the colorful mounds that adorn the entrances to the shops are also gorgeous to look at!
Photo via Pinterest

Now as someone who keeps kosher, this definitely posed a problem for me! There is a wonderful kosher meat restaurant in Venice (Gam Gam) as well as a nice place to get a slice of authentic kosher pizza, but kosher gelato? I had to ask around quite a bit for that one. And luckily I was able to find My Kafe' in Milan where they make their own kosher (chalav yisroel) gelato...heaven!



As for the Cappuccinos, I got an education in how we Americans mess around with the Italian language and think we're so smart. Here's the deal: The first day in Italy I asked for a latte and I got a cup of hot milk...plain. Then I realized that the Italian word for milk is latte, and so that's what I got. Then I asked for a cafe' latte and got stared at like I was from outer space. Then after several seconds of feeling stupid the annoyed barista said, 'Ahh you wanta latte macciato, that ees same as cappuccino but weeth more milka!' So what we call a latte here in America is a latte machiatto in Italy. But in the end I just ordered cappuccinos straight up, because the Italian cappuccinos are just, well..perfect. So considering I had a very limited amount of kosher food available I became a little obsessed with my thrice daily Italian cappuccinos.
And just to go back to pasta for a minute...I need to mention the gorgeous candy colored pasta in every shape imaginable that we spotted in some of the shops in Venice. Check out this Jewish start pasta!

Well now that we clarified the food bit, here are some of my other favorites for this week.  

1. The Venetian Waterways:
This is a collage of some of the photos I took on my trip.

2. The Murano Glass:






3. The European Wedding Traditions:

Pretty pastel sorbet appetizers:
Fascinator Hats:
The British made them famous...
Photos via Pinterest

Oh...there are so many other favorites I could write about, but considering that my eyes are heavy from jet lag and this post seems long enough, I'll just have to save some more of my Italian story for another post. 


Wishing you a wonderful weekend and a beautiful Shabbos...
xo
Sharon


(Unless noted, all photos here were taken by me. If you pin or 'borrow' them please be kind and link back to my blog...thanks!)

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25 comments

  1. I am still drooling over those sherbet apps....I love some sherbet! TGIF :)


    XX,
    Miranda

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  2. Sharon, Love all these gorgeous photos. Looks like you had a wonderful trip. Venice is one of my most favorite places. It's just so colorful. I especially loved just getting lost and wandering around. Did you? You are so right about the gelato. My kids and I were just saying the other day how the Italian gelato is so much lighter and just amazing. Cappuccino's too!! Looking forward to hearing more and seeing more of your lovely photos. Thanks for sharing!

    xo

    Kim

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  3. You look beautiful. I love fascinators, have quite a few of them :))) Have a super weekend xx

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  4. I've traveled to Italy so many times to count and never get tired of that beautiful country. My wish is to move there someday but I don't think it will ever happen. I had to smile at your coffee snafou since the first time I was over there the same thing happened to me.

    XX
    Debra~

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  5. Incredible photos, good enough to eat! Thanks for the food tips! I wish those fascinator hats would become popular here (and not just with the rock-a-billy set). A wonderful Shabbos to you as well!

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  6. What a fabulous trip! So many things to see and do and that gelato looks delicious.

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  7. Wow I'm so jealous, it looks like you are having an amazing time! Your story about the latte was so funny! That gelato looks amazinggg! Have fun!

    xo Rachel

    www.glamhampton.com

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  8. Welcome back! The food and the sights of Venice look absolutely amazing!

    Have a wonderful weekend Sharon!

    Rowena @ rolala loves
    Enter my Shabby Apple giveaway!

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  9. Happy Friday, Sharon!!! Love seeing those photos from your trip, especially the gelato and your gorgeous self!!!

    Great collage, too!!!
    xoxo Elizabeth

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  10. Looks like you had a great time! Love the pics~that mirror, those chandeliers!
    Happy Friday!
    ~Karen
    http://fashionboardconfessional.blogspot.com

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  11. Your photos are sublime...
    I also got addicted to espresso in Italy!
    You look fabulous as always
    Have a relaxing weekend!
    Sonia xo

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  12. Fabulous photos! Coffee and ice cream!! Yummy!

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  13. wow, all beautiful pictures!
    thank you so much for following dear, ofcourse i follow you back ;)

    thankyou,i hope you have a nice weekend to (:

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  14. Wonderful pictures Sharon! I could eat gelato every evening and your cappuccino looks delicious :)

    What gorgeous scenery, architecture, and design! The colors are magnificent. I hope you enjoy scrap booking because you have lots of memories to savor here!

    Have a wonderful weekend!

    leslie

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  15. wow these phots are divine, that mirror and your leather vest is so gorgeous!

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  16. Cute ice cream shop! I wish I could take a trip to Venice!! I will be leaving for NYC in 2 weeks so I am really excited about that!! I noticed your nail polish...would you mind sharing what brand and color? I really like the color a lot!
    Daisy~

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  17. Gelato...yum! Looks and sounds like you had a fabulous time Sharon. You look gorgeous.......and it is good to see you having fun, relaxing and enjoying yourself. Have a great weekend.

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  18. You are as gorgeous as the city. I want to go soooo bad. Your photos are amazing. I LOVE gelato. xo

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  19. Oh my Sharon, how tempting the gelato looks and having a coffee in Europe is what I would pick any day over any hot drink served in Calgary ... well we have a few places with Illy cafe ...so not too bad (: AND you look so fresh and beautiful on the photos! I just can't get over how great your hair looks all the time! Seriously...do you have any advice or is that genetics? It is lovely to see how you are enjoyoing the trip! xoxox Z

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  20. Looks like you had a FAB time. Your gelato looks divine too xx

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  21. Between the gelato and the murano glass, I'm going to have to wipe drool off my keyboard now! Gorgeous! Have a great weekend!! xoxo

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  22. OMG LOVE this post:) you are so beautiful and Italy is beyond lovely:)thank you for sweet words and come back soon.

    LOVE Maria at inredningsvis

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  23. murano glass is so gorgeous. i looked up kosher to see what it really means, wow many restrictions but i totally respect you, good thing you found a kosher gelato place, i have only gone to argentina but their gelato is far more delicious than the places I go to. seems so relaxing. hope you had the most amazing time

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  24. Hi Sharon,
    From my Italian Fashion to post your Dolce Vita in Italy..What a great treat!
    Your pics and descriptions were fabulous, I'm sharing this with hubby so that when we go we know just how to order our Coffee! LOL

    What an amazing experience you had. I truly can not wait to make my trip there.

    Have a great week beautiful.

    Maria

    http://onestyleatatime.blogspot.com/

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