Tis the season to be jolly..

Dear all,

I hope your Thanksgiving week was as enjoyable as mine. Family time, good food, hopefully no traveling and time to rest before our next adventure.

Where are you heading to now? Palm Beach, New York, Aspen or maybe Florence!

It is remarkable the number of families that decide to spend the holidays in Florence lately. Sometime with the reasonable excuse to drop the kids for their Florentine semester, I will be joining you very soon in my Bella Firenze.

I do love my Vitamin D boost while in Florida however holidays are meant to be spent with the family and mine is in Italy right now. As you can imagine it is not hard to convince my crew to hop on a plane and cross the Atlantic.

Now, tag me in your stories, write to me, stay in touch with social networks and if you need a special personal shopper session online, you can ask to:

personalshopper@jennifertattanelli.com

PALM BEACH

What a ride this last November in Palm Beach, yes traffic picked up suddenly and yet avoiding the rush hours (from 8 to 10am and 5 to 6pm) it is lovely to stroll in this magical place that is getting ready for the festivities.

Spoiler Alert!! We do have metered parking on Worth Avenue now, download the Parkmobile app and get ready for it, yes it is an hardship compared to the free 2 hours we had however, based on experience, we used to spend so much time driving around for a free spot that now, it feels like a breeze coming to the Avenue, parking, strolling, shopping and eating and then drive away!!

No more hurricane season and a blue sky with an inch of....cold!! Actually is 55 degrees this week and as always for the Tree Lighting Parade on Worth Avenue  we can all show off our cozy leather jackets and cashmere sweaters!!

Finally a new Hotel has arrived in town, the Palm House (it smells new too!!) has just opened on Royal Palm Way few steps aways from Worth Avenue. Lovely decors and rooms and a tasty restaurant to complete your trip to Palm Beach! 

FIRENZE...

The most magical time of year is upon us! Florence in the festive season is truly a joy to behold as streets like via Tornabuoni get glittering, and Christmas trees bring a touch of merriness as we go about our business. The official ‘switching on’ of the lights is usually on December 8, with the big event being the tree in piazza del Duomo. You’ll find plenty to tickle your festive fancy around the city, especially with the Green Line light festival’s annual display on Ponte Vecchio and other well-known monuments (www.greenlinefirenze.it).

If you feel like seeing Florence from a whole new point of view, take a ride on the Ferris Wheel in the Cascine Park! It will be here until March 31, so there’s plenty of time. From its 55-meter peak, you can catch a bird’s eye view of the whole city laid out below you as it sparkles for the season.

On colder nights, there’s nothing more warming than settling into a cinema! This month sees the return of the popular River to River Florence Indian Film Festival at Cinema La Compagnia from December 5-10, with the N.I.C.E x Irish Film Festa at the same venue on December 11 as part of the 50 Days of Cinema program (www.50giornidicinema.it).

In terms of the latest news from Florence, a new tourist information center has opened its doors right across the road from the Santa Maria Novella station. The Firenze Welcome Center has plenty of touchscreens providing multilingual information, making it a great first port of call when you arrive to the Renaissance city.

Have you heard of the Ceppo Fiorentino? I’ve always been curious about this Florentine tradition! The story goes that the stump of a tree was removed from the earth with the roots removed, then it was blessed, decorated, and covered in wine, fat, or butter before being lit by the head of the family on the night of the 24th just before families would attend midnight mass. Then, gifts and surprises would be placed around the ceppo much to the excitement of little ones! Sound familiar?!

Once all the holidays celebrations are over, you can ring in the New Year in style with five squares across the city filling with music! From gospel choirs to jazz and marching bands, the city comes together to see out 2024 and welcome 2025, with piazza della Signoria the site for a large-scale festa.

As you can imagine, there’s no shortage of delicious treats to enjoy at this time of year. While Panettone and Pandoro are never missing from a shopping list, you may have yet to try Cavallucci, a large cookie made with candied fruit, walnuts, and plenty of spices like anise, cinnamon, coriander and nutmeg. You can be sure the scent will have your home smelling like Christmas! 

Wishing you all very happy holidays!

With love,

Jennifer