It has come to my attention that:
a) All of my recent posts have been extremely wordy
b) I’m still tremendously travel-sick
c) I have a few travel photos leftover from Europe to showcase, including some of Pisa
d) Said photos of Pisa are rather dull
e) I have a wealth of snapshots of foodstuffs and assorted other images on my computer with which to break up these potentially-dull travel photos.
Ergo the following post, in which I’ll try to limit my overwhelming tendency towards adjective-laden and high-falutin’ verbosity in favour of succint captions. (See? I could’ve simply said “I’ll try not to write much” there. But I didn’t, thereby needlessly proving my own point. Oh, and Hannah? Shut up.)
The Leaning Tower of Pisa
It really does lean.
Could've had more chilli, if we're being nit-picky.
Nom nom nom.
(If only I could still afford such horrifically-expensive ice cream these days. Dear PhD Scholarship, you are pitiful. Love, Hannah.)
The interior roof of the Duomo of Pisa.
Pretty, pretty golden ceiling. (See how vibrant and witty and elucidatory I’m being today?)
Norman & Dann truffles from Hobart, Tasmania
The most exciting and pretty box of artisan truffles I’ve ever received in my life, from my relatives in Tasmania.
On a street in Pisa.
A waterfall of fresh coconut and grapes in Pisa. Rather marvellous, don’t you think? (Also, is anyone going to make an “I want a Pisa that” joke? Anyone? No? Well, thank heavens for that.)
Oh the wonderment. The wonderment.
*snicker*
Once upon a time, I was four years old, and apparently had a dislike of the sun and a tendency to drag my dolls around by their hair. Ouch.
All I want for Christmas is small, smiley Hannah, in a bright blue sack.
Hope you’re feeling not-too-horribly travelsick. At least you get to keep in touch and *~*~*~explore the world*~*~*~ and relive your own travel experiences online and through your blog. Thank Christ for the internet, eh?
[failing that, give me 768346834 months to get my savings restored and let's blow this joint for greener, travelly-er pastures!!! I'm itching for it]
You and I would be the absolute worst influences on each other if we travelled. I can picture it now… we’d return home after 6 months away and everyone would be like “How Was The World?” and we’d answer “We’re not sure… but there was a really awesome grocery store half an hour from the airport”.
P.S. You do realised I’m going to show up on your doorstep on the 25th wrapped in a blue blanket, right?
hahahhh! That is so cute!
And those truffles are amazing looking.
They were definitely puuuurty!
Ho ho ho, YOU’RE wordy? YOU? Then what am I? I’m like an event horizon of prose – once a word or sentence comes near enough to me it will never escape my blog post.
Your relatives in Hobart sent you chocolate from the Gold Coast? *eyebrow raise* At least half those chocolates are from Mayfield Chocolates which originally started on the Gold Coast and now have a fair few vendors all over the place (Brisbane in particular, seemingly). I know most of their chocolates off-by-heart, my favourite being that oblong one with the orange marbling – JAFFA LATTE! There are a few in that box from some other source – don’t know the business name but I know where to buy them, and they have awesome ones like agave cactus or pomegranate truffle. Oh lord, so good, so gooood.
I’ve seen that spice cream around the place a fair bit but I’ve never tried it. Is it worth the investment? Or should I just save up my scholarship dollars for, say, an ice cream machine?
And that Japanese meal… ohh mannn. It looks incredible. I need to go to Japan so badly.
I AM HORRIFIED. Are you serious? I’m *sure* I’ve been told that Norman & Dann are proper chocolatiers in their own right? Maybe they just went to the same training school and bought the same moulds?! *Shakes head in shock*
To be honest, I wasn’t overly enamoured with the ice-cream but I’m not a fair judge, as I generally find ice cream (and chocolate ice cream) really boring. I think there are more inventive flavours out there, though?
And lastly, your wordiness is justified. You smart write.
http://www.mayfieldchocolates.com.au/index.php?PCID=8634&CDO=0
For some reason they don’t have all of their chocolates online (including some of the ones in your box, like the green triangular mint one and the big oblong dark chocolate one which I believe is cherry, and the jaffa latte, and you’ve got a raspberry truffle there too) but I think it’s just a bit convenient that two different chocolate makers would just happen to use the same mould and then the same combination of milk chocolate and orange-coloured chocolate with a dark chocolate stripe, as is the case with the jaffa latte, or would use the exact same shade of green for their mint one which also just happens to be triangular. Maybe Norman & Dann make some of their own and supplement the rest with Mayfield? Who knows! But you shall have to come to Brisbane and visit Mayfield (I think their primary production site is just outside the CBD) or one of the stockists like Chocolate To Die For… their range must be twice as big as what they’ve got on the website and a lot of it uses rather interesting native Australian ingredients and Australian liqueurs. Niiiice.
To be perfectly, completely honest, I don’t really care that much, as truffles aren’t my thing at all
But I can think of at least one more pressing and spectacular reason to visit Brisbane… 
(And I *do* really like the sound of native Australian ingredients in chocolate!)
Is that scaffolding in the middle of the leaning tower? How do they do that? And who has to work up there?
That photo of four year old Hannah is too cute. You still have the same grin!
I think you’re right. So very many buildings in Europe had scaffolding, though, that I think I stopped noticing! I was more surprised to learn that the inside of the tower is hollow, with just a staircase running up the sides (according to my guide).
I have the same, face, too.
Haha that pic of you is SO adorable! OK I want a kid like that please!
And that is a ginormous meal-and Japan isn’t really the place for ginormous meals!
I think I must’ve accidentally ordered the “family-sized meal”
It was needed after the flight, though!
(And I think it’d be better to get a kid you could hand back at the end of the day
)
hmmm I am beginning to think parents give children dolls because the alternative is dragging their mum around with their hair
I thought the pic of the food was shoes and grapes in the one display and I was ready to be impressed at the eclectic nature of the shop
As for your scholarship – surely you need to apply for another scholarship for a fact finding chocolate trip – to support your PhD! Hope the post gave your travel bug the food it needed. I was once told that the amount of time you are away on holiday is the amount of time that you take to recover from the holiday – maybe that is your problem.
Gosh, I hope you’re not talking from experience!
Maybe that is the rationale for the homesickness… but then again, I was away for four months and it’s been six since I got back?!
oooh I love these pics!
We were amazed at just how tiny Pisa was – we expected to need to spend at least a whole day there but I think we covered it in a few hours!
I know! I’m *so* glad I didn’t end up booking a hotel there for four nights, as I’d originally thought I might. Dodged a bullet there, I think!
Haha, such a cute pic! Ben’s niece hates the sun too. Whenever she is in the sun she covers her eyes and says “sun no” or “sun go away”! she is two. she’s pretty cool.
I love travel posts, keep them coming
Heidi xo
Oh no, I’m pretty much out of travel posts! But if you’re interested, the entire first four months of this blog (Dec-beginning of April) are nothing but travel posts from America and Europe!
(And I’m the opposite of that now… I want as much sun in my life as possible! Hate the cold!)
oh goodie! will be backtracking then, and reading those posts! xo
Which reminds me… I need to keep updating all the links in them. Gah! (P.S. Keep in mind that I was still finding my blog-feet in the early days, too
)
Hehehe, this post is so awesome! Where to begin?! Love it
Oh gosh, thank you!! I felt a bit like I was being lazy posting something like this
Love the last pic!
Oh and those Tasmanian truffles? At least HALF of them are from Chocolatier, right here in West Heidelberg, Melbourne
OH NOES! Now I have one person telling me they come from Queensland, and you telling me they’re from Melbourne! My world is falling down around me! (Not really, as I’m not too fussed about truffles in general… but it’s the PRINCIPLE of the thing!)
Haha, I can’t stop looking at that photo of you! Well, except to go back and look at that meal from Japan again, but then back to you very quickly, honest. PLEASE tell me someone still has that jumper and you can do a then&now photo comparison. \\
Maybe we could join forces somehow and buy super expensive ice cream in bulk to be able to afford it? Somehow? You could probably just sell baby photos of yourself to nice old ladies though, I’m sure they’d be willing to pay good money for such cuteness (if you photoshop out the doll cruelty)
Oh. My. God. That is such an awesome idea. I’m going to email Mum now and see if she still has it. I honestly think she might… If only I could recreate the meal from Japan, too. Sigh.
Somehow the notion of selling photos of myself to old ladies sounds incredibly creepy. Like some sort of strange enforced paedophilia or something. (I did discover a photo of a 4-y-o me on the beach, unintentionally striking a boys’ mag pose…)
And it seems like at least *one* of us doesn’t need to buy ice cream…
I do indeed still have that jumper…in fact I was wearing it the other day. But, do we have the doll? That is the question.
Pow-wow. You and me. This weekend. Be there or be square.
Oh wow, this is the beginning of something beautiful! I’m excited!
Don’t forget the green trackies.
That’s up to her … Salvos perhaps?
Wait a second. I’m detecting a conspiracy to turn me into a bogan…
I found Pisa to be pretty underwhelming, too.
But those truffles are NOT! Yum city! Me want!
Which reminds me, I meant to tell you to tell your housemate to tell her father he should check out Christopher Elbow while he’s in KC. I know I’m no choco-connoisseur , but every C.E. chocolate I’ve tried has been exquisite.
And oh my gosh I just want to hug and squeeze and snuggle baby-you, AWW!
I remember seeing Christopher Elbow’s chocolate bars (my preferred form of cacao
) at a wonderful chocolate shop in Washington, D.C., and I was so annoyed because the only flavours they had were the ginger and popping candy ones, which I don’t like. I want the Dark Spice and the white with nibs! I’ll have to ask my housemate when her dad is leaving… I fear he’s already skedaddled! 
Dear Hannah,
At least I’m tax free.
Love,
Your PhD scholarship
(I was asked to pass that message along, so I felt obliged!)
Dear PhD,
Thanks for reminding me that I still haven’t done my taxes. You’re even more evil than I first thought.
Love,
Hannah
P.S. Give Theresa my love, okay? ‘Cause unlike the PhD, I’m not at all ambivalent about how great *she* is.
I’ve been to Pisa on a very hot summer day and burnt my toes… all red and …..ughhh
I once got my toes sunburnt too. Everyone laughed at me, but it really was very uncomfortable…
You were a cutie patootie when you were a little youngun huh
Mmmm, Tower of Pisa even looks a bit ordinary in that light huh.
It’s such a shame what happened when I grew up, hmm?
To be honest, I couldn’t really see what the big fuss was all about. Yep, it’s a tower. Yep. It leans. 
Why was the ice cream “Asian” inspired if it was chilli and chocolate?? And did you eat all those truffles in one go? :p
‘Cause the ice-cream is hot ‘n’ spicy, just like Asians! Right? Right?
Will you think less of me if I admit I didn’t? I’m not quite as into truffles as I am into bar-chocolate and peanut butter