Courmayeur (coo-er-may-air) – Small town nestled in the Alps, at the base of Mount Blanc

            ….this place is stunning, simply stunning, it took us 2 hours by car but it is so amazing here, I will miss these Alps so terribly…

            …today im in Courmayeur, it’s a tiny little town, literally nestled in the Alps and sits right at the base of Mount Blanc…..Ely’s dad, Ricardo, who I completely adore to no end because, let’s be real, this man is simply adorable J he owns a flat here…..it’s the first floor of a house his father built here in 1960 and is now split into 3 flats, (the others are owned by his siblings)….          

           …we left the house in Torino this afternoon about 4:30pm when Giacomo got out of school and started our drive…shockingly enough G was out in about 4 minutes….seriously that child cannot stay awake in cars to save his life…Ely and I had a wonderful 2 hour drive the rest of the way….it literally was one of the MOST beautiful drives ever….and really cool too because we got to pass by some little towns I’ve already visited, like Ivrea  (the orange throwing festival) and Aosta…it was just amazing….also because it was gorgeous outside so you could see everything and as we climbed higher and higher into the Alps….i literally saw at least 50 castles or ruins of some….i think I told Ely a million times how much I loved Italy and could never get tired of the alps…..and how much I will miss them both in a week…..

            …Ely and I talked a ton too, which is amazing really when I sit back and think of how much I can speak and understand, and really just with what ease I can communicate….it’s truly amazing when I think back to that first afternoon….meeting Ely, seeing the house for the first time and having no idea what was being said around me, going to get Giacomo from school for the first time….thinking to myself, “what have I gotten myself into?”….it’s amazing now, I adore Italian and knowing another language….we had a great drive….i will miss Ely so so much, we have really become great friends, chatting in each other’s languages, laughing hysterically at each other and what mistakes we make….

           ….after two hours and a million tunnels later, we were finally in Courmayeur….and by is it the most picturesque town in the world….we wound our way up the hill of the town to Ricardo’s house and got settled in…..literally you look from the front lawn, and Mont Blanc is right in front of your face, it was amazing and breath taking….Ricardo immediately took me outside to start telling me what all the mountains were….which were Italian, which were Swiss or French….he is so adorable….when we came back inside, he immediately pulled out a book and started showing me clear pictures of them all (it was pretty cloudy most of the time)….

            ….when we got settled in, Ricardo’s wife was making a delicious dinner of chicken, potatoes, salad and this great risotto with veggies frittata…sooo delish!....with of course some great wine J definitely going to miss that in a week…..after dinner, Ricardo was off, he had to go sing in a church choir for a funeral (I think) so he was gone and G started watching a movie which left Ely, Loradonna and I to chat which was fun….and so much easier than the last time, I had dinner with them……starting to notice now how much Im not having to translate in my mind, I just know it….that was pretty amazing…

            …after a bit, Ely was tired so we all decided to head to bed….this flat is super cute too may I just add….the perfect little cabinJ….a living room, kitchen, dining room, their bedroom and 2 bathrooms….also (my favorite part) in the living room and also in the dining room there are two bunk beds built into the wall (almost like the Pinehurst house) for guests, so Ely & Giacomo are in the kitchen and im in the living room J….tomorrow is going to be a big day of mountains I do believe….hopefully it will be nice enough to see blanc J