Summer reads

We left Manarola (Cinque Terre) today to return to Rome. I was sad to leave the small seaside town, but consoled myself by thinking of the tower! We scored this crazy apartment to stay in on airbnb.com that's 5 small stories and in the middle of Travestere. After a sweaty train ride, we are finally here. The tower is immaculate and nicely decorated. A funny thing though is that everything is on a separate floor! For instance, I'm on the top floor in bed and EK is just below me in a sitting room watching Spain and France in the Eurocup. A bathroom is below him, followed by the living room, then kitchen. Good thing we didn't buy groceries yet because a midnight snack would entail descending a fair amount of stairs! Don't get me wrong, this place--with its red bathtub--is rad. I'm just a bit extra clumsy today after travel, heat, and wine. I miss the sounds of the sea whispering us to sleep. Perhaps I can pretend the whirs of the AC are the sea waves?

One cool thing is I'm right under the bedroom skylight! I love skylights. Sleeping under one reminds me of the brief period I lived on a boat with my dad, while in high school. I guess it wasn't technically called a skylight, but it was the small door in the hull (?). that opened directly into the deck and looked up into the stars. I slept just under it and was rocked to sleep by the waves.

I've been really loving my first read this summer. Parts of the book have been stressful, but I love the way it's written and the story told. There's a lot of jumping around in time and I've hated seeing characters I care about make poor decisions, but it's good storytelling if I'm caring about the (loads of) characters, right? After this, i have the Tina Fey book to finish. I started it last summer, but never did get through it all. I also have Eugenides's, The Marriage Plot (I'm too easily distracted during the school year so now is the time to squeeze in so much reading for pleasure!). I'm especially looking forward to that one, as I've loved his other books. What are you reading this summer??

Last, below are my new pjs purchased at a new fav store, Oysho, in Venice. I probably would have left with more pretty, simple pieces, but they were closing so I just quickly bought the pj set in this unique print. The pj shorts and tank have bicycles and hot air balloons!