No one ever asks, “Why are you going to Italy this summer?”  It’s more than obvious:  so much to see, so many adventures to have, so much food to eat.  The stars really seem to have aligned for us this summer;  our friends Rob and Audrey have friends in Livorno, who have generously put a vacation apartment at our disposal;  Rob and Audrey were as sick of the cold and snow in the Northeast as we were, and we decided it would be fun to travel together.  As it turned out, our summer in Ireland has been one of the coldest and wettest in more than twenty years, while Italy, we hear, is basking in brilliant sunshine.  Good decision.  In about 36 hours, Tom and I will fly from Dublin, Ireland, to Pisa.  It’ll be great.