Category Archives: italy

OK so Leah has announced her four FABU choices for our European tour! Florence, Paris, Prague & Barcelona. Leah also described some of the things she’s looking forward to seeing and experiencing in these wonderful places. i know i don’t have to tell you what i’d like to do while in Paris – i wrote all about my dream trip there in my ‘Go with Oh’ entry.

BUT…aren’t you just the least bit curious what lola would do while tagging along with Leah in Florence, Prague & Barcelona? NO, i don’t have every detail worked out but i have started investigating and looking for some fun & different things i can do while there. you  see, while i will be going to most of the typical tourist sites and must-dos with Leah, i’ve actually already been to all four cities and so i want to find some really fantastic stuff to do that i haven’t seen or done before. might even be must-don’ts!

here’s what i have cooked up so far and, YES, i’m still using some of my favorite movies as inspiration for ideas.

Prague

did you know that parts of Mission Impossible 4 were filmed in Prague? how about some action-packed fun in a spy-like form for lola & leah? you know, climbing the side of the Prague Castle with little more than our harnesses, ropes & carabiners – mine will be ALL pink! naw…this is my glam European tour, not my get injured doing stupid stunts tour! so let’s just do the Prague Segway Movie Tour instead. less dangerous…i think anyway!

the company that offers the tour provides ‘behind-the-scenes’ information and trivia about Prague and the films made there like James Bond, Amadeus & Mission Impossible. every segway also has a built-in DVD screen showing clips of each movie. hope that won’t distract me too much from keeping my eyes on the sidewalk! the company trains you on how to operate the segway so there’s no prior experience needed. PHEW! besides seeing stunning movie locations, it’ll be an easy & fun way to see many of the city’s famous sights like the Charles Bridge, Prague Castle, Wenceslas Square & Old Town Square.

Prague is theatrical in other ways as well. besides the traditional theatre and music that surrounds the city, puppetry & marionette shows are easily found in Prague. i don’t necessarily want to go to a marionette show (i think it might be a little freaky) BUT i do want to search out a place to get a customized lola marionette made! you know how i like little mini-lola clones. it just so happens that Czechs are also known for their marionette-making skills. AND what a fantastic souvenir that will make! i also think it’d be super fun to do a photo session of myself being a life-size marionette. i need to seek out a perfect location and photographer willing to put up with me with “no strings attached” HA!

AND, like leah referenced, we will be drinking loads of Czech beer. i’ll probably need a few cold ones after the segway tour and before my marionette photo shoot! did you know that the Czech Republic has the highest per-capita beer consumption in the world?! i think the best way to discover all the varieties offered is to book a beer tasting tour perhaps even in the form of a pub crawl.

Florence

you know that scene in Under The Tuscan Sun where the seductive yet nutty blonde actress reenacts the fountain scene from La Dolce Vita? yeah, i wanna do that in some random fountain in a quiet square in Florence. YES, i’ve already thought about how it’ll be getting colder in Florence and i’m sure i will not look nearly as glamorous doing it BUT i’m not letting silly temperatures and vanity stop me! it will be SO AWESOME.

i know i can be a bit wild at times but it’s usually egged on by a wee bit of alcohol so i may need to drink some vino before pulling off my splashy fountain scene. trying as many “cult wines” as i can find might be the ticket! doesn’t that sound like sexy trouble! although, it seems i will need a vecchio amante danaroso (aka sugar daddy) because these cult wines are considered high quality and therefore are quite pricey. good thing i just learned i have a connection in the wine industry who works with Italian vineyards! maybe he’ll be my vecchio amante danaroso! AND, hopefully, seeking out these harder-to-find vintages might cut down on our time spent drinking all day. Toscana wine is home to some of the world’s most notable wine regions such as Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino & Vino Nobile di Montepulciano so there will be lots and lots of choices!

as you can see, between “cult wines” and fountain stunts, i wanna break some rules in Florence! leah already knows this…and i’m sorry, i just can’t help it. i wanna get my hands on the MOST HANDSOME MAN ever created. DAVID! well maybe just my boa for a quick pic. not sure how i’ll be able to pull this off but if i do, god it’ll be great. one for the lola history books!

Barcelona

i’d like to have an experience in Barcelona with a handsome Spanish artist akin to Javier Bardem in Vicki Cristina Barcelona but without the crazy ex-wife Penelope Cruz character. AND don’t get any ideas that leah & i will both be falling for the same dude! we are good friends but we don’t like to share that much! really i just want to hear this dashing Spaniard speak to me in Spanish while touring his art studio! ahhh romantic! hey we ARE visiting three of the ‘romance language’ countries after all. perhaps, i’ll throw in having him sketch a nude of lola. now that’s something i have never had done! HECK, i may have to find one of those cheap Barcelona hotels just for privacy sake. this kind of thing is definitely not a public matter!

i will not be eating much leading up to this nude sketching session in order to look my svelte-best so i’ll be starving afterward. this would be a perfect time to go explore the Mercat Santa Caterina in el born. apparently, the mosaical structure looks more like an olympic stadium than a market but once inside you will find amazing sights and smells of an astonishing assortment of fruit, cured meats, cheeses and fresh fish from the Mediterranean among many other feasts for the senses. sounds food-gasmic! leah and i can pick up some items to make a few meals while in Barcelona and perhaps even have a dinner party with the ‘Go with Oh’ staff located there.

goodness knows, we will need plenty of sustenance because i want us to take Flamenco dancing lessons while there too. BOY that doesn’t look easy! but it’ll be totally worth it, though, because we get to wear those cool frilly dresses (usually in leah’s favorite color – RED) and dance in a seductive way! i can’t wait to wave that fan all around and swing up my ruffles! totally a lola-approved experience, i must say!

so, there it is. i think these ideas sound SO fantastic but i’ll definitely need a few more in each place. if you have any fun and different must-do’s OR, better yet, must-don’ts (because they are a little naughty) please feel free to share with me!

XO – lola