A taste of Italy.

I know, I know, I have been absent for far too long and keep meaning to post and somehow things keep getting in the way - cleaning, doing the mound of washing, putting up new bookcases, - you know, the usual things.

Anyway, here is a selection of the promised photos from Italy. I took over a thousand, so you can understand why I have had to be so select here. I am going to try and stay vaguely food related since that is the point of the blog, but I'm sure a few others will creep in! Also, they're all out of chronology because I can't be bothered faffing about with Blogger moving them. Sorry! I have at least added captions so you know what things are.

Bunches and bunches of chillies on a stall in Bologna

Bologna is a dangerous place, so much good food, so much of which ended up in my suitcase, I kid you not!

Borlotti beans

The food not in our suitcases was in our stomachs: another Tiramisu bites the dust.

Another one of my great loves, books. In the library at the University of Bologna museum.

This brilliantly mustached man was the waiter who served us cake and wine in Florence, and took our picture.

A great little Osteria in Montepulciano where we had one of the best meals of the holiday.

Pear, brie and rocket, my started on our night Florence.

Room service breakfast on our sunny balcony in San Gimignano. We made Pain au chocolate by spreading nutella in our croissants. Mmm...

The most expensive breakfast ever. In the main square in Florence. Delicious and a gorgeous setting, but it cost more than our dinner (two courses each and wine and water) the night before!

Start as you mean to go on: a litre of wine on our first night.

Bicerin: a drink invented in Turin, made with coffee, chocolate and cream. So decadent, rich, but not sweet.

Tomatoes at the end of the market bathing in the Turin afternoon sun.

A break from the relentless rain in Stresa brought us to the black cat cafe and yet another game of scrabble won by N.