Day-in-the-Life: Christine Mitchell, Mediterranean Specialist
Creating dream vacations is what we do — and by ‘we,’ of course we’re referring to our incredible travel specialists. This week we spoke to two talented Bella Vita Travels team members to find out more about their love of all things Mediterranean, what it takes to construct the perfect client trip, and what makes them ultra-qualified to do so.
First up, Christine…
Christine’s Story:
“I was a very quiet, bookish kid and spent most of my time immersed in some sort of story of a far off place or another, but realized early on that didn’t even need to imagine most of it. I’m Italian-American from the New York area (my grandparents were born in Calabria in the same tiny village), and it was almost inevitable that my desire to see so many different lands and places that I had read about translated to travelling.
Hearing true stories about life in another country was certainly more interesting than fiction, and I came to Italy the first time over 16 years ago, and then just kept coming back. I came to see family, to meet distant cousins, to eat frico in Friuli, to stop in Tropea because I really wanted to see if the onions were as sweet as they say, to discover my favorite pastry (cherry sfogliatelle in Naples).
Growing up in an area in the US where we are lucky to have every culture and ethnic group you can imagine meant that my friends and tastes reflected this as well, and I was fortunate to have the opportunity to immerse myself in these cultures from an early age. I studied international relations as an undergrad, and then studied abroad here in Florence while finishing up my master’s in Food Studies at NYU, where I realized that living in Italy was exactly what I was meant to do.
I joined Bella Vita a little over two years ago, and it’s awesome! It’s a fun job, and more than that, I love the people I work with.”
What does an average day look like to you?
“My days aren’t very average! Every day is different because my husband and his family run two very well known restaurants on the Italian riviera, so some days in the “high season” I spend helping out there. I live in the biggest of the five villages that make up the National Park of the Cinque Terre, which means that in the summer season, my tiny village fills up with visitors and I try and help out my husband and in-laws as much as I can.
Sometimes this means translating menus, accounting, waiting tables, and any other various activities I can do to lighten the load on them during the busy season. Due to the time difference between Italy and the US, most interaction with clients such as morning emails aren’t answered until the afternoon
, so I’ll do some research and reading in the morning, and then client work in the afternoon.
If it’s busy in the restaurants, I’ll run down the hill to the village and help out for the dinner rush. If it’s a little slower, I like to do my computer work on the beach at the beach bar by my house, which has wifi and really good coffee. When my husband and I both have time off, we try and take the kayak out and explore the little grottoes that line the coast, or love trying out new restaurants along the riviera.”
What kind of research do you do for client trips?
“I’ll look at articles online and in various journals for new hotel and restaurant openings, upcoming festivals and events, then follow that up with looking on Instagram and other social media sites for things that look like they are to be “investigated” further.
Some of the research I’ve needed to do (like my tandem bike debacle with Kate on Venice’s island of Lido) has been more comical than fruitful, but it’s all been useful.
I have a few people that I follow on social media that have really great taste (along with Megan) and I know that most of the time where they are going or what they are doing is definitely worth checking out.
Other than that, I’m really curious and nosy. I’ve walked into people’s courtyards before only to find small art exhibits, I’ve started chatting with people on line at a coffee shop only to find out they are opening a cool new bar next door (and then asked to go see it).
When I’m outside of my small village, even in a city I know very well, like Florence, I walk miles and miles during the day, asking to see the rooftop bar in a new hotel, taking down numbers of a mask making shop in Venice, talking about surfing with the director of the Ferragamo store in Rome (which then meant that I had to go watch surfing videos with him on the office computer for a half hour, though at the end I did get a discount on a pair of shoes) — and it’s really brought me some fun discoveries!”
If you think Christine could be the one to help make your next vacation happen, why not get in touch here. OR If you want to know a little more about what we can offer, check out ‘what we do’ here. Where will your wanderlust take you?
