Cocoatopia: Heaven in the eye of the beholder

There are people who speak of divine intervention, and claim they have been lucky enough to experience the golden afterlife that awaits us, if but for a brief moment.

Now, I’m not one to tell elaborate tales, or exaggerate honest circumstances. So believe me when I say that I experienced Heaven today.

The big question- what was it like? Well. I can’t say for sure, but it felt…..dark, and smooth, and…tasted like chocolate.

Here is the setting: Its noon, and Sophia and I are sitting on a little cobblestone terrace, sipping a glass of chilled and slightly fruity white wine. The weather in Florence has picked up substantially and we are bathed by 60 degrees of pure sunshine, which we can finally feel on our skin as it is the first day we have left the apartment without a wool coat. We are in Piazza de Santa Croce and there is a festival going on around us.

What kind of festival? Take a wild guess, go ahead.



The wine is just a precursor to what we came here for, and upon setting the mood for the day, we get to business.

As I sink my teeth into a dark chocolate covered waffle skewer, coated in fresh coconut shavings, I die. And go to heaven.

I transcend through the clouds as I try chocolate orange liqueur, nutella and hazelnut truffles, dried pineapple dipped in dark chocolate, milk chocolate mousse fudge, cocoa coated limoncello candies, and other indefinably divine creations.





When I wake up from my daze the sun is setting and it is time to leave this little festival before I become completely lost to this drug-like substance. Or maybe I already am. In any case, Sophia figuratively takes the bottle from the alcoholic and navigates me back to our apartment.









For those who still sense exaggeration, consider this: maybe I am just more in tune with God and the tools he gives us to bring us closer to him ;)