Today’s Flashback Friday will continue with my travels, since you all said you enjoy them. I enjoy writing them as well. It is fun to relive such an amazing trip. It is also interesting to read through my travel journal and see some of my thought processes. I have something to discuss that bothered me when reading through my entries. First, let’s look at all of the pictures and the fun stuff. Today’s flashback is to our week in Rome. Love.

We spent a good deal of time in Rome because there is just too much to see! I mean, you can’t go to one of the biggest empires EVER and not take time to explore it. From the many churches to the colossal historic ruins and monuments, we had plenty to keep us occupied.

Our first day we hit up most of the major tourist attractions. We started off at the Trevi Fountain and tossed the obligatory coin into it. It is said that if you toss a coin over your shoulder into the fountain you will return to Rome before you die. I certainly hope that is true. I want to go back to Europe so badly!

After stopping there, we headed straight to the Pantheon. I had no idea it used to be a pagan worship arena.

History has never been my strong point. Although seeing things in person definitely makes them more interesting. A reason I would love to go to Israel. The only history that truly fascinates me is in the Bible and it would be so cool to see that region up close and personal. But Italy sure does have cool history too. Evident in the ruins and the Colosseum…

It feels like you’re on a movie set because it is so hard to wrap your mind around the fact that these are the real deal.

The remainder of our time in Rome, we simply enjoyed the city and explored, as well as took some day trips I will share next week. We loved visiting the many beautiful churches. I’m not even talking about St. Peter’s Basilica yet. That’s part of next week too. There are so many gorgeous places of worship. The detail and art masterpieces within the walls seem more like museums than churches, but there are people praying and worshipping all around as well. I loved it.

I admit to doing some silly sightseeing as well. I was reading Dan Brown’s Angel & Demons book during my travels and had to check out some of the locales from the book. Like this statue that, in the book, pointed to the next point on the “path to Illumination”. It’s a good book. I highly recommend it.

There is one highlight of Rome that sticks out to me. That was the one fancy dinner we took on the entire trip. We had a strict budget for most of the trip, but when we saw this nice Italian restaurant that made their pasta fresh daily right outside the Pantheon, we took up the splurge. I remember we shared some fresh lasagna & ravioli, a delectable salad, and a bottle of the house white wine. All with the Pantheon front and center.

I’m just sad I didn’t know the importance of food pictures then. I have none to share of what was hands down one of the best meals of my life. No, I’m not exaggerating. Italians know how to do pasta right. Seems like a “duh” thing to say, but there really are no other words to explain it. Fly to Italy now and experience it! If only, right?

This part of our trip was fabulous. Every day was an adventure. What saddened me while reading my journal was the fact that I didn’t seem to live it fully with that mindset. While I obviously enjoyed myself, I still made comments in my journal about wishing the time to pass quicker or other negative things. There were things about missing Peter and my family with a countdown of how many days until I could see them. Instead, I should have simply recognized I would see them soon enough but may not ever come back to Italy and then reveled in being there. I griped about how hot the hostel was in Rome thanks to no A/C, windows that didn’t open, and sharing a room with 20+ people. Um, hello??? You’re in Rome and experiencing new things that many don’t get the chance to! Get over yourself!

And what really pissed me off? During the passage that described the fancy Italian dinner I complained about feeling fat after the meal and how “luckily we walk a lot to burn off all those carbs”. How sad! I probably enjoyed the meal more remembering it than I did during it because I obviously had some anxiety. It saddens me that my negative relationship with food affected such a special moment in that way. I’m thankful I can now enjoy food with minimal issue, but who knows if I will have the same chance to taste such a delightful meal in a once-in-a-lifetime setting? I missed the full experience of it by worrying unnecessarily. My point is, don’t allow anxiety, worry, and stress to keep you from the current moment. Live life in the present. Really savor the life you are experiencing. Right now. Don’t give yourself a chance for regrets and don’t get caught up in negativity. Blessings surround us every moment. Open your eyes to them and live.

• What is a moment you missed experiencing fully because of worry or negativity?
• Have you read any of Dan Brown’s books? Would you have played the total nerd and gone looking for some of the places described in the book too?
• What is one of the best meals of your life?

Come back later for my post on last night’s Flavors of Forsyth fun!

Happy Friday! Did this week pass by in a blur for the rest of you? It sure has gone by fast for me. Today will be quick too, because as you are reading this I am likely at the gym, at the doctor for a confirmation of pregnancy visit, or at lunch with Lindsey of Cardio Pizza. I’ll be back later with an update on all of those. Right now though, it is time for a flashback and something I saw that bothered me earlier in the week. We’ll get the irksome out of the way first.

In recent celebrity “news” articles, like this one, there has been discussion of Gwyneth Paltrow working out with her beloved Tracy Anderson in order to get in shape for her role in the Iron Man 2 movie. There are claims that Tracy Anderson’s special method helped Gwyneth put on 10 lbs of muscle…with “aerobic dance moves” and a leg workout similar to the following:

I’m sorry to be such a cynic…but a bunch of leg lifts, kicks, and funky body twists accompanied with “aerobic dance moves” will NOT make you gain 10 lbs of muscle. Especially while also leaning down. You would have to eat a great surplus of calories and do more concentrated weight lifting to gain muscle like that. I’m not saying that Tracy’s workouts won’t leave you with a good “burn”, because contorting your body in weird ways or kicking your leg out a 100 times will likely hurt, but it is not in my mind a quality workout that will extraordinarily change your body composition. Completely fake in my mind.

What isn’t fake is the gelato, gondolas, churches, and art in Italy. For this Flashback Friday I will share some of my visit to Venice & Florence during my Europe vacation.

Venice and Florence came at the perfect time of our trip. There wasn’t as much to do in these cities, so we really got to just enjoy the scenery, the culture, and the towns. In Venice, we sat in awe of the little water town and eyed the gondolas in the Grand Canal since they cost an arm and a leg we weren’t willing to lose with 1/2 of our trip remaining.

We shopped farmer’s markets for food and tourist markets for Ciao Bella shirts in the piazzas.

We traveled by water taxi when we otherwise would get lost in the confusing road setups that end in canals.

We viewed beautiful churches such as St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice and the Duomo in Florence.

We climbed the Camponile Bell Tower in Florence to take in the views of the town and even a little hint of Tuscany-esque views off in the distance.

We visited museums where we got to see all sorts of amazing Italian sculptures. I feel like I should have some tiny black rectangles strategically placed below.

But the best part? Getting real Italian gelato! It makes Italy that much sweeter to visit.

• What do you think of Tracy Anderson’s workout for Gwyneth Paltrow? Do you think she is credible?
• If you could go to Italy what would you be most excited to experience? If you have been, what was your favorite part?
• Do you enjoy the flashbacks? Would you like me to switch it up and do trips some weeks and other things in between? Or do you like the trip flashbacks in the order I experienced them? Or none of it and flashbacks bore you?