The Cradle of Italian Liberty vs. Detroit of Italy

First off, even though it's 2 days later - Happy Halloween everyone! I had class on Friday evening, which was so great and I was so happy to have class on Friday evening. Not. Anyways, I decided to venture out into the world after class and bought some baked goods at the Le Ragazze, which is a phenomenal bakery. Instead of passing, I was tempted to come inside by the witches giving out goods. Of course with no Halloween discount, nonetheless, impossible to resist. I bought a chocolate biscotti which is typical for the month of the dead. It's a bit like chocolate gingerbread with nuts in the shape of a coffin. Besides the shape reminding you everyday of what might come without notice, it's quite lovely. I myself opted to look like a Mexican sugar skull, which I was sure it was going to be original. Then I saw that I wasn't the only sugar-head. Oh well. I'm not a big fan of Halloween anyways, because like NYE, it's a crazy night filled with abominable people. It's the one time of the year when girls can dress up looking like hookers and get away with it. 

Martedi Mercato

Sometimes you are in need of a change. Even if it means that you arrive a bit late to a class that is not happening. Like today. For once I wanted to be on time for class, so I got up early and made sure everything was prepared. Probably even more prepared than the teacher. Upon arriving to school, I found out that the doors to the class were locked. So I waited to see if maybe someone will arrive. I waited in vain. After 30 minutes, I asked myself: "What is there to do when there is no class?" Well, it is Tuesday morning (11:30 am is still morning in Italy), the sun is shedding its' last rays upon the turning leaves, why not visit the market?

Every Tuesday morning in Via Eustachi, there is a market where you can buy almost anything. From stockings to fish (not a very nice parallel is it?), everything is for sale. There is no order. There is no such thing as a section for fish, section for vegetables and fruits and no section for clothing. The only difference between all of these stands are the prices and the marketing. By price difference, I believe my readers can understand clearly. By marketing I mean by how well the vendor is able to present to you his finest piece of fresh sea fish (in Milan), the warmest fleece jacket or even the best grocery bag you can buy for 1 euro. 

While strolling along the street, it was hard not to stop and take a moment to not only observe but to listen to the rumble of the market, the sound accumulating with the whizzing engine of a Vespa or Piaggio truck filled with plants passing by the street. Although Via Eustachi is a long street, the market itself does not fill the whole, therefore it makes it a pleasant quick inhalation of what Hollywood has projected towards us as Italy. Might I even say that the Arabs and Bangladeshi have been able to quickly assimilate between these Italian merchants. While selling their artichokes from boxes having imprinted on them: Be in Italy, buy Italian products (in Italian of course). 

I opted only for some salad from a local Italian farm (how local I don't know, but hey, the feeling is there), where 3 heads cost 2 euros. Then Israeli dates and Romanian walnuts from a Bangladeshi vendor. Talk about Globalization. 

Camerino

Once in a while, you need a break from Milan. It can be smoggy, to noisy, too full of people and in general, it's nice to change location once in a while. Especially since you are in a country as beautiful and diverse as Italy. An area I like to return to when in Italy is the region of Macerata. Rimini and Ancona are probably the most significant cities you will visit when you are here, although it is better to visit it during the summer. Especially when a cold front comes in as has happened 2 days ago. On Tuesday, Italy was full of sun and its' warmth, but with the coming winter and last years warm winter, I think Mother Earth has decided to surprise us with her forces. With force.
On Tuesday, I was still walking around in shorts during the day, shopping with my trolley and at night I was walking around in a button down and a shawl, absolutely content. Now I wish I had something a bit warmer than a pair of tennis shoes. Specifically before going to Camerino. Thinking as I am going into the south of Italy, I will enjoy warmer weather than in Milan, I thought wrong. Snow on the way into the south of Italy is not a good sign. Nonetheless, upon arriving to Ancona, I was welcomed by a wind with such force, that it played with me, swaying me from side to side. I had to laugh, because I thought it quite funny to be swept aside, by the forces of the wind. I think other people watching had fun as well.
Either way, I got to enjoy a cappuccino and brioche con crema chantilly at Bar Centrale, in front of the duomo in Camerino. As freezing as I was, it was fun to watch all the locals greet each other before going to work with a quick coffee. I have to say it was also a pleasure paying for my breakfast, since it cost 1,50 instead of the 2, 50 eur I normally pay in Milan. On one hand it doesn't sound like much (paying 2,50 for a croissant and cappuccino) but for Italy, it's a lot.
I walked around to see a bit of the city and hope you enjoy looking at the historical city of Camerino!

me and my super cool trolley. total shopping diva

Universiday

Since I am here in Milan to study (seriously), there are usually events provided by universities so that students can get to know each other and the city they are living in. One of these events was yesterdays Universiday. The event was to be informative, letting us know what the city of Milan is doing and what services they want to provide for the students - foreign and from other cities of Italy. Of course what this particular event needed, was a gimmick to get the students to come. Not only did the mayor of Milan, Giuliano Pisapia, the famous journalist Beppe Severigni come, but also the special guest of the evening - singer Mika. I think that for the most part, all of the girls present went because it was an opportunity to see the famous singer.

Milano Milano

I don't know about you, but the weather here is a bit gloomy. Milano, as is San Francisco, is famous for its' fog. Unlike San Francisco, the fog comes in autumn and is accompanied by rain throughout the winter. They say that the sun should come this week, but I'm a sceptic and am so far enjoying it. Personally I love fog, and it goes along well with the sound of ravens (the size of chickens mind you) and the yellow leaves, crunching under your feet. So, with September being an amazing month, full of hot sunshine, there was nothing better to do than to explore the city.

Nevim jak jste na tom vy v Cechach, ale pocasi v Milane je trochu pochmurny. Milano, jako ze je San Francisco, je slavny pro jejich podzimni mlhu. Na rozdil od San Francisco, mlha prichazi na podzimu (v SF je to v lete) a je doprovazeny destem pres celou zimu. Rikali, ze by melo vykouknout slunicko tento tyden, ale ja jsem skeptic a i presto, ze je mlha, tak si ji uzivam. Osobne miluju mlhu a myslim si, ze patri k zvuku havranum a spadane listy ze stromu krupajici se pod nohama. Takze, s tim, ze zari bylo nadherny mesic plna slunicka, nebylo nic lepsiho nez se prochazet pres mesto.

Firenze & Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore

I hope you enjoyed my last post, filled with pictures of wonderful Firenze! These posts is rather more about me being 'artistic' and playing with an application I downloaded onto my phone. It's called Hipstamatic and I'm sure for those acquainted with the millions of applications out there, know about it. I however am not. Someone always has to tell me about an application that 'I must download!' Usually I just nod politely and say 'thank you' for suggesting yet another piece of media I have no use for. But for once, this app has been of use to me.

Doufam, ze se vam vsem libil muj posledni post, ktery pnaplnen fotkami z krasne Firenze! Tyhle 'posts' jsou spis o me snaze byt 'umelecka', kdyz jsem si hrala s aplikaci, kterou jsem stahla na telefonu. Jmenuje se to Hipstamatic a urcite ti, kteri jsou seznameni s miliony aplikaci, ktere existuji o tehle vedi. Ja samozrejme jsem nevedela.Nekdo mi vzdycky musi rict o nejake nove aplikace, kterou si proste 'musis stahnout!' Vetsinou kyvam se zdvorilosti moji hlavu a podekuji za dalsi doporuceny kus media, ktery je naprosto zbytecny pro me. Ale pro jednou, tato aplikace mi k necemu byla.

Oh Bella Ciao!

Ciao Peaches! Finally after a year, I have decided it was time to come back from the living dead and just be one of the living. It has been a wonderful year, filled with healthy juices, travels, love and a big move. At least for a few months... Another reason to come back and tune in is because I want to show you what I am seeing while I am in ... Milan! Yes! Finally I am here in Italy, where I have always wanted to study and live. Since our faculty at the University of Economics in Prague requires us to study abroad for a few months, I knew what choice would be mine. I did apply for Florence, but that didn't work out. Yet Milan did. Although it's not exactly a city of historical sites (except for the Duomo of course), it is one of the capital cities of fashion. Of course I can't really come up to every single fabulously dressed person, I will try to do my best so that you Peaches can enjoy the show as well.

As an introductory post, I will share my birthday experience I had in the wonderful city of Florence. As always, Florence was just so wonderful. I didn't go to the museums, but instead just walked around as if in a dreamy haze. There is a fantastic blog about Florence though if you want to know more. For sure you should be checking it out if you go to Firenze or even if you are just interested. GirlinFlorence is the name of the blog and Georgette definitely makes you want to hop on a plane, slip on some espadrilles and cruise around on a Vespa! As for my part, I skipped the Vespa and used my feet. I hope you enjoy the photos! Leave a comment on what you like, what you don't and what more you would like to see on Downtown Peach!

Ciao Broskvicky! Konecne po jednom roce jsem se rozhodla vstat z mrtvych a byt jeden ze zijicich. Bylo to uzasny rok, plno odstavnovani, cestovani, laska a velky stehovani. Alespon na par mesicu... Dalsi duvod proc se vratit na blog, je protoze jsem chtela ukazat vse co prozivam, kdyz jsem v ... Milane! Ano! Konecne jsem tady v Italii, kde jsem vzdycky chtela studovat a zit, i kdyz jen na chvili. Jelikoz nase fakulta na VSE v Praze pozaduje, abychom studovali v zahranici na par mesicu, vedela jsem co je moje volba. Prihlasila jsem se do Florencie, coz nevyslo. Milano ano. I kdyz to neni zrovna mesto historickych pamatek jako Florencie, je to jeden z hlavnich mest mody. Samozrejme nemuzu prijit ke kazdemu skvele oblecenu cloveku a vyfotit, budu se pokouset o to, aby jste vy Broskvicky si taky uzivali(y?) prehlidku. 

Jako uvitaci post, chci se podilet s mym narozeninovym zazitkem, ktery jsem stravila ve Florencii. Jako vzdy, Florencie byla tak nadherna. Nechodila jsem vsak do muzea, ale spise jsem stravila cas prochazenim se po meste jako kdybych byla ve snu. Je uzasny blog o Florencie pokud chcete vedet vice. Urcite si ji prectete pokud jedete do Florencie nebo jestli jenom ze zvedavosti. GirlinFlorence je jmeno blogu a Georgette urcite dodava pocit, ze chcete vzit prvni letadlo, nasadit si nejake espadrilly a projizdet se na Vespe! Ja jsem preskocila Vespu a pouzila jsem nohy. Doufam, ze si uzijete fotky! Nechte koment co se libi a co ne, a co byste treba radi videli na Downtown Peach!

Which train from Milano Centrale to Firenze?! - Ktery je to vlak z Mialno Centrale do Florencie?!

S.P.Q.R.

When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Well, I don't think that all Romans would walk around for a day hitting tourists spots. But! we can pretend we are copying the style of a Roman in the way we dress. Of course in a more modern way...

Gran Gala della Moda di Villa Collio

Včerejší Gran Gala della Moda di Villa Collio byla možnost pro módní společnosti ukázat své produkty. Tito společnosti jsou umístění v oblasti Marche a vyrábějí oblečení pro několik světových značek (La Perla, Tom Ford, KiSkin, etc). Villa Colli je umístěn mezi bujné kopce oblasti Marche, s nádherným výhledem a zahrady pro princeznu.

Yesterday's Gran Gala della Moda di Villa Collio was an oppurtunity for fashion companies located in the region Marche to show their products. These companies not only create clothes for their own name brand but also for World known brands (La Perla, Tom Ford, KiSkin, etc.). Villa Coli is situated between the lush hills of the Marche area, with a a garden for a princess.

Sunset Boulevard

Je jasný, že pokaždý co příjdeš do klubu, hledáš fotografa, aby vyfotil tebe a tvé přátelé. Potom si nadáváš, že si zapomněl/a foťák, protože fotograf po tobě chce 10 euro za fotku, kterou on ti vybere. Mě se nechtělo platit, takže nemám žádný fotky, ale alepoň se koukněte na stránky, jak vypadá nejlepší diskotéka v Itálií - Babaloo

Of course when you go to a club, you are always chasing the photographer so he/she can take a picture of you & your friends, while you smack your head for forgetting the camera. Well I did ask for a photo, I did want to show you Peaches, but I really didn't feel like paying 10 euros for a photo. If you ever go to the Marche area in Italy, make sure you bring your own camera for the best summer disco - Babaloo 

Beach Safari

Na playa jsem sice nešla, ale jako správná turistka jsem si musela udělat fotku placené pláže. Itálie je krásná země, jídlo, lidi a počasí super, ale platit za pláž se mi nelíbí. Alespoň focení výhled je zadarmo!

Although I didn't go to the playa, I did what a true tourist does & that is to take pictures of  beaches you have to pay entrance for. Italy is a beautiful country, the food, people & weather is wonderful but to pay for a spot at the beach is something I do not like. At least the view is for free!

Oh Belli! Benvenuti in Italia!

Víš, že jsi v Itálií pokud první věc co vidíš, je reklama pro Armani!

You know you are in Italy when the first thing you see is an ad for Armani!