28. No return ticket. A whole world.

One cityat a time.

I’m Bella. I’m taking the long way around — for the view, the pasta, and the stories I’ll bring home.

Come on the journey A little about me

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THIS CHAPTER · OCTOBER 1–7Bologna, Italy

01 / ITALIA

Bella looking back over Florence at sunset

Florence, just before
the next train.

A POSTCARD FROM FLORENCE

Slow mornings✳Local tables✳One more espresso✳Always the window seat✳A little room in my suitcase

THE WORLD, ONE CHAPTER AT A TIME

48 cities.
One year.

A year on the move. Roughly a week in each city, long enough to find a morning routine and a table I want to return to. Italy is the beginning. The rest of the world is still ahead.

48 cities on the itinerary20 countries to discover365 days of possibility

A NOTE BEFORE THE NEXT TRAIN

What if I go?
What if I stay?

“I’m excited. I’m also scared of arriving somewhere new and having no one to call for dinner. Both things can be true.”

01 / THE REASON

To stay long enough to feel something.

I want more than a photo and the next train. A familiar face at the café. A street I can find without my phone. A small piece of everyday life, before I pack it all up again.

02 / THE NERVES

A table for one. A whole new city.

The first evening is the part I’m nervous about. Getting lost, getting the words wrong, missing the people who know me. I want to leave room in this diary for those days too.

03 / THE HOPE

Come for the places. Stay for what happens.

I’m hoping for meals that become memories, people who make me stay another day, and plans worth changing. You’ll get the beautiful bits, the awkward bits, and whatever the next city brings.

The itinerary is below. How it feels to live it? That’s the story we haven’t written yet.

Follow the next chapter

The lines connect chapters, not exact travel routes.