Ah Florence.
I arrived with magical illusions for this city; the long lost name for my daughter, pipped at the post with Matisse for my first, and then Elspeth second time around. My third daughter will definitely be called Florence, I vowed… until I had a 2 and 3 year old and renewed that vow in the form of a totally different one to never have more children.
Venice.
Conflicting reviews on this place but since my Italian boss ordered me to go, I had no choice. I am indebted for this arm-twist. The charm of this place stole my heart; ancient buildings, artisans, inner goth, gourmet food and canals for roads - yes, you may not know that unique fact about this place.
I bought a Leica M10 - to use my favourite lens.
My mother insisted on taking the children for a weekend so Karl and I could spend a weekend doing things that don't happen with kids; sleeping in, drinking in bars and generally not having to keep and ear and eye out 24/7 for life threatening antics that either beckon, and are created by the children. So we went to Bali. A place where it's tempting to look around at all the things, but if you take your eyes off the footpath, you will probably trip over and die.