One of the things that I love the most about Italy is the slower pace of Italian life. Italians have perfected the art of stopping to smell the roses, with their version of this usually involving a glass of wine and visiting with family or friends.
Last weekend my Italian friend Carlotta suggested that we go for a walk and enjoy the sunset over Florence. After picking up a couple of bottles of prosecco we headed up to Piazzale Michelangelo. Laura, the shortest of the group, offered to carry my backpack with the prosecco in it. With my backpack overpowering her in size I could not help but think of the mountain climber game on the Price Is Right. Any minute I expected Laura to start yodeling as she made her way up the 200 stairs.
As we were enjoying just being together it struck me that there we were sitting on the steps of Piazzale Michelangelo, 7 very different women from 5 different countries, but we were all bonded together by our strength and our love to live life to the fullest. We toasted with great gratitude each of our journeys that brought us to those very steps that day. Sometimes life's pain is the birthplace of joy. 2 bottles of prosecco - 8 euros. The walk up - 200 stairs. The view and time spent chatting with great women - absolutely priceless.
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