Let the show begin!

I'm sure lots of posts have been dedicated to FIFA World Cup in South Africa so far.  As soon as  I think of South Africa, I think of Nelson Mandela, the film "Evictus" and... Sarah. Sarah, a big hug to you from me! Unfortunately Poland didn't qualify so I will be rooting for Italians. No one really believes here that the miracle could happen twice (yeah, if you remember, Italy won the last World Cup 4 years ago). What are your picks? Today first 2 matches: 

1) RSA-Mexico

2) France-Uruguay

Are you going to watch? I supposedly will. Not that I don't have a choice (because I don't, considering that I live with ex assistant referee) but also because somehow I am excited about this international event. And to make my bf angry, I will be counting on France (4 years ago the final match was between and France and Italy and the latter won the Championship by the skin of their teeth thanks to penalties : )

What are your plans for the weekend? Mt bf and I are going to Catania tomorrow afternoon and then on Sunday I'm "working": we are having the Sailing Tour of the Mediterranean Sea with the students. I would be exhilarated if it wasn't for my seasickness... Today I'm going to the pharmacy to get a bunch of remedies. Hope it will help.

Have a wonderful weekend, full of positive emotions and vibrations! : )) And don't scream too loud! Or get some lozanges... just in case ; )

PS. Would you believe me if I said that one of my friend bought this car...

 ...and I actually had a ride in it a few days ago? : ) Yes, this is the moment when I should hear a big collective sigh of envy : ))

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Sport and books. Decisions to make.

It was a beautiful loong weekend (5 days!). I got some rest, went to the beauty salon for a relaxing massage and a body scrub, went to the gym to find out about the classes they have on the offer (after 3 months of doing nothing, I start to feel the urge to move, dance, jump and work out again). On Saturday there was a sunny warm day here so we decided to go on an outing to Palazzolo (pictures to follow soon) to see the marvellous Greek Theatre (for those who are interested, take a look here), we had lunch in one of the local trattorias and then we went out with friends in the evning to admire Ortigia by night.

Yesterday one of my private lessons in the afternoon was cancelled and so I decided to go to another gym with Flo (who enrolled there 2 months ago). We did 1 hour of ABS and I must say that I personally prefer some dynamic courses like Step, Dance Aerobics, Hi-Lo, Funky, etc... ABS is just too static to my liking. It is supposed to tone your muscles. Apart from 15mins of indoor cycling, we did some weight lifting (good for shaping your arms and shoulders) and abdominal exercises. Plus, until January I did the acqua fitness which I loved but which this term starts quite late, at 8.00 p.m...So now I have this decision to make: which one should I choose?Do you go to the gym, girls? Which courses would you reccomend?

It's been two weeks now since I started considering buying some books from Amazon. My list is quite long, so I'd like to choose 5 books only. Have you read any of these? Can you give me a piece of advice, please?

1. Twilight (Twilight saga) by Stephenie Meyer (I saw the film and really liked it)
2. New Moon (Twilight saga) by Stehenie Meyer (let's see if the continuation is as good as the first part).
3. The Appeal by John Grisham (together with my bf we collect Grisham's books and this is the last one missing in out collection).
4. A Room with a View by E.M.Forester (I need to read sth classis at times)
5. Howards End by E.M.Forester (see above)
6. An Invisible Sign of My Own by Aimee Bender (because the new film with Jessica Alba is based on it)
7. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (because the new film with Keira Knightley is based on it).
8. The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro (oh, he is such a popular writer now!)
9. Fireworks by Elizabeth H. Winthrop (I read her debut novel entitled December and I was really fond of it).
10. French Milk by Lucy Knisley (it was recommended by Jo from "The Cup of Jo" blog)
11. Marley and Me by John Grogan (I still haven't seen the film but I'm almost 100% sure I'll love both).

So please help me on both topics... Thanks soooo much! Ciao ciao! Jo.

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Etna!

I'm a big fan of skiing. I have started to practise this sport when I was like 4 or 5 years old. Then kept on going on my winter holidays every year, first with my parents, then with my friends and bfs. It may seem amazing but none of my previous bfs knew how to ski and they never really wanted to learn.. Horrible, since my love for skiing was too big to quit it and we usually spend the winter holidays separately... Then I came here and it really seemed that I closed this chapter of my life definitely. Everyone was saying: "Yeah, you can ski on Etna but since you surely are a good skier, you are just going to regret going there... no good conditions, nothing to compare with the Italian Alps". And so I believed... I believed all those people who never ever tried skiing in their lives and who never went to Etna in winter. But this year, I said to my bf (who has never skiied in his life before): "Oh, come on! Let's see what Etna looks like in winter". And we went. The weather was great, there was lots of snow, not many people and the ski lift was really modern. We rented the skis and my bf fell in love : ) It was 2 weeks ago. Yesterday we came back. Just look at these pics...

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