Lately

 Dave and I haven't gone on many adventures lately. It's pretty unusual but since we received our household goods we can't seem to leave our couch on the weekends! We haven't been absolutely lazy by any means but we have enjoyed time with each other at home without spending tons of money. We have visited a few local areas and attractions and we are currently planning a trip to an unknown location before he leaves, a nice weekend getaway.
 One thing that Dave loves to eat is italian bread and olive oil. He's been in Italy since this past July and has yet to try the local olive oil, shamefully in our cabinet we had a bottle of Bertolli  but now we have been introduced to Bonamini olive oil and our lives have been changed, for the better of course. We went to Bonamini with a fabulous group and took a tour of the factory. The olive oil process is fascinating and the knowledge we gained about the varieties of olive oil will be put to good use! We were told that there is no such thing as Extra Extra Virgin Olive Oil, it is a marketing ploy to make consumers believe that they are buying a better product when actually they are not, there is no difference in Exra Extra and regular Extra so don't be fooled! After the tour we were brought to a basement type dining room where we participated in a "professional" olive oil tasting. How does an olive oil tasting work you may ask? Well just the same as a wine tasting, you DRINK Olive Oil!! Yes, we were given little plastic cups of Bonamini olive oil and were told to hold it in our hands to warm it up, then to put a few drops on our tongue and breath in through our teeth. This method bursts the olive oil around your mouth and lets you get a good taste of it, the taste was very green almost like what I would imagine eating an olive leaf would taste like. Once the oil is swallowed there's a burning sensation for a few seconds, I never would've thought olive oil would burn but trust me it does! We ate some with bread and eventually bought as much as we felt we could consume in a reasonable amount of  time. Bonamini also makes olive oil shampoo and I have been using it on my hair generously since the water here in Italy is very hard.
 Here are some pictures from Bonamini:

 As I have mentioned Dave and I haven't been doing much but on days that we don't feel like getting ready for a long excursion or even on yucky days we like to drive around the nearby cities and explore. We have have found a few places along our rides that are pretty interesting. Recently I was told about a poppy field in a town near us, the field was filled with red poppies and I felt it was a perfect opportunity for a photo. So Dave and I drove out there and took a few pictures of the poppies, I'm sure we looked ridiculous because I don't think the locals are as amazed as we are by these little red wild flowers. Here are a couple of pictures we took: 

  Finally, this past weekend Dave and I decided we NEEDED to get out of our house and enjoy the wonderful weather! We decided to go to Jesolo (the "J" is pronounced as a "Y") Beach and spend the afternoon working on our tans for the wedding. Well we did just that and gained a little (or for me a lot) of a burn. It was a pleasant day on a sandy beach! We were so excited to finally find a sandy beach, because they are rare in Europe, that we decided it was our new favorite place. Only an hour away, it makes for  a perfect weekend day trip! The water was even warm enough to get in for a relieving dip from the heat! 

He's so attractive :)

 That's about it for our adventures lately, it's not much but our time together has been relaxing, filled with great memories and laughs. It's always an interesting day in the Smitt household or rather when Dave is around. It's hard not to have a smile on my face or laugh when he's around because he's just so wonderful! :)