Happy Friday, everyone! I can’t believe another week has gone by so quickly. Somehow I’m managing to get less work done, but also get less sleep in the process? I’m not sure what I’m doing with my time besides reading, going in the pool, and hanging out with the girls. Oh well.

So last weekend Kurtis came to visit me in little Ameglia. It had been a month since we’d last seen each other, so I was pretty excited to see him and show him around more of Italy! Last summer, we explored Venice, Florence, and Rome together. It was right around the same time too–the end of July/right after my birthday.

On Friday, I helped Claudia prepare dinner for Kurtis’ arrival! We were in the kitchen for a couple of hours. I’ve never met anyone so dedicated to cooking delicious food, who didn’t do it for a living. I chopped garlic, parsley, and tomatoes, while probably chatting her ear off. And oh my god was dinner delicious.

We had pasta with mussels in garlic, tomato, and parsley sauce, followed by more steamed mussels in a garlicky wine sauce. Right when I thought I couldn’t eat anymore, she brought out the leftovers of my birthday cake. And wow. Just wow. It was all fantastic.

Sorry, I’ve been terrible about taking pictures of what I’ve been eating here. I’m too busy shoving it in my mouth to snap a photo. But trust me, it was good!

This pretty much sums up our relationship.

Of course, I had to show Kurtis the beautiful Cinque Terre, so with a late start, we headed to Monterosso Beach for the afternoon. All of the sun beds were full, so we had to lay in the sand like peasants. Just kidding, it was still nice.

We spent the day frolicking in the sea and the sun with some beers, coconut, and focaccia. I took him to Manarola to see the beautiful views and my favorite spot. We had another quick dip and some gelato before heading to Vernazza to finish off the perfect day.

We celebrated my birthday dinner at a delicious little restaurant by the sea. There was even a band playing right next to our table! We had a huge pile of clams and MORE mussels accompanied with an excellent white wine. For dinner, I had the cuttlefish pasta, and he had gnocchi with prawns. Both were fantastic, and I wish I were eating them right now for breakfast.

We grabbed a couple of mojitos and settled down to watch the sunset before heading home.

Oh, Vernazza. You are truly magnificent, especially at night.

Please do yourself a favor and watch a sunset here. Find someone who you love or just want to enjoy this spectacular sight with. It’s pretty romantic, so I’d suggest your significant other. Or maybe this guy who is always paddling around the port.

Sunday was a relaxing day full of more food and sun. Kurtis and I went in the pool with the girls, had another lunch of Italian goodness, and went into a food coma right after.

We also went to the sea near me, Bocca di Magra, and then headed to Marina di Carrara for Rossellini’s mouth watering gelato. We explored Sazana, including a vegetarian festival in a castle, where I dropped my birthday bracelet from the girls in a toilet and enjoyed the blues from the local musicians.

It was the perfect Sunday to wrap up a perfect weekend.