Today I arrived in Rimini, a coastal town on the eastern coast of Italy, for BlogVille Rimini, a travel writers’ project hosted by the region of Emilia-Romagna. My first impression of the city brought back memories of my hometown of Hawaii mixed with the charm of the better half of Virginia Beach. It’s a peaceful place, especially given that I had just left both Rome and Naples. I met my fellow BlogVille writers, all of them lovely, and we enjoyed the afternoon sitting along the beachfront with conversation and drinks. At night, we hit up a great restaurant for piadine and wandered the city bathed in streetlight. The evening was concluded with a tasting of the largest gelato (yes, more gelato) serving I’ve ever had for just two euros. For a city with heavy Fellini presence, I can say this is definitely living la dolce vita.

But it’s just the beginning…