Fabulous Fabriano Part X - The Finale!

Please note:  There is an issue with the old button that links to "It's a String Thing"(located in the right hand column).  The website that I originally uploaded the image to has overridden my own photograph with their ad.  If you uploaded the original button to your blog, please delete it.  The updated image and new code should work.  Thank you and I apologize for any inconvenience.

Our trip to Fabriano, Italy, continues...

(Here are the links to past posts just in case you are new to this journey:  Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX)

I appreciate round numbers and because of that I will end our time in Fabriano, Italy, with just one more post.  The tenth (X) in the series, this number also coincides with the number of the CZT Seminar that I attended.  It was meant to be...

The Fabriano Paper Company, according to its website, has eight boutiques located throughout Italy and another six scattered across Europe.

On our pilgrimage to Fabriano, my husband and I were able to visit three of them and the museum's shop as well.

The following photographs serve two purposes:  first, to prove that the experience was real and not the dream it feels like now, and second, to give you a glimpse of the shops and hopefully spark an interest in your own visit someday.

The city of Florence was our initial destination.  On our first full day we took a lovely walking tour of the city which included stops to view the museum that housed Michelangelo's David (Dah-vid as our tour guide called him) and the Uffizi Gallery - both full of breathtaking sites.

Tired, yet still determined to find the Fabriano Boutique, we walked even further to find it - and we did!

Nestled along a bustling street of mostly foot traffic, it was a beautifully appointed store.
This was the first gift I purchased.  The wrapping was as impressive as the tablet it enclosed.

Rome was our final stop.  The night before the end of our trip, my husband did an incredible job of navigating our rental car through the streets of the city to find the Fabriano Boutique.

Along the sidewalk leading up to the front door, a neighboring cafe's tables were set for dinner.  It was a lovely site.

I was just a bit excited to be there!

The red walls of the Rome boutique made quite an impression.  I finished up the last of my shopping there - no small task as I would have purchased the entire store if I were able.

I bought the colorful guest book pictured above on the top shelf.  It was a limited edition made in celebration of the company's 750 anniversary in 2014.

My friend and fellow CZT Dorian Eng brought one home from her trip to Rome just a few weeks earlier, so I knew to look for it.   I am indebted to her for that - and for the idea of leaving behind tangled gifts, as I mentioned in Part III.

I honestly did not have enough suitcase room to bring back all of the niceties that I hoped to buy, so it took some time to whittle down my choices.

When at last I piled my goods onto the counter and the smiling clerk rung up the sale, I pulled from my purse a little Bijou tile.  (On our way to the store, I tangled a quick thank you in anticipation of the exchange.)

To my surprise, when the clerk looked at it, she let out a little squeal of excitement.
"Ahh, Zentangle!" she exclaimed in her melodic Italian accent.

She left the counter, hurried across the store, and from a shelf lined with wonderfully colorful things...

 ...she produced a zendala box that I immediately recognized as Dorian's.

We both laughed and hugged and relished the connection.  She remembered Dorian and her recent visit and treasured the memory of their time along with Dorian's gift.

We posed for this photograph as she held my tile and I held Dorian's box ~

What a presence we felt, what a connection we made - across the miles, the friendships, through Zentangle®, through Fabriano.

I could never have imagined the wonders of that entire experience, I just remain grateful for them all.

The next morning, as Lou and I were walking briskly through the airport in Rome to catch our flight back home, one more treat greeted us:  a Fabriano Boutique in the terminal!

Being the patient man that he is, Lou humored me and took this photograph ~

Crunched for time, we resumed our rush to the gate.  It wasn't until much later that I realized that a quick history of Fabriano paper is located on the panel to the left.

To think that this pilgrimage began with a dream sparked at CZT Seminar 10, when I first learned that our tiles were made of Fabriano paper.  Along with all things Zentangle®, I developed an appreciation of it that has only grown fonder for our time and experiences in Italy.
I remain one very grateful tangler and wish you happy travels and dreams come true of your own!