In Firenze, still befuddled by the keyboard, but it does allow you to use the right "e" in café!
We spent a week at a farmhouse in Umbria, where we learned the Centigrade system by its continuous plummet. The stone farmhouse we lived in for the week posted temperatures in the 12° or 13° range. Think low 50s. Being a man who had more than his share of engineering schooling, I figured out how to turn on the heater (as well as mastering the stovetop espresso maker) only to learn heat was extra! $2,300 for the week and heat was extra!
It rained for seven days straight in Umbria, so the visions of sitting in the Italian countryside sun and eating breakfast and dinner
al fresco was not to be. I did manage a couple of cigars in the evening, listening to the lowing of the cattle.
The Tuscans and Umbrians have a thing going, as in the other guys stuff is basically ALL WRONG. The wine, the bread, the olive oil, the pizza, the ceramics, everything...if it comes from the other camp, worthless.
Highlights of the past week:
- Cortona...even with the influence of Frances Mayes and Under the Tuscan Sun, the town is charming and has one of the most unusual museums we have ever seen
- The cooking class at Badia a Coltibuono, the Abbey of Good Harvest...we are armed an dangerous with four incredible recipes (our chef was quite the wit, when asked what a typical Italian breakfast consisted of he replied, "Coffee and a cigarette.")
- Assisi where we visited the amazing Basilica of Saint Francis, the Church of Saint Clare (who founded the Poor Clares order after falling under the sway of Francesco), and other assorted churches
In Florence, where we currently are hanging out in an eye-popping hotel suite on the Piazza del Signoria, We saw the monastic cell of Fra Girolamo Savaranola, the ascetic who overturned the rule of the Medicis, culminating in the "Bonfire of the Vanities". The bonfire was lighted not 100 yards from our hotel room.
Now, the promised lessons:
- Despite two lane freeways (tollroads) traffic flows because of lane discipline. If you are not passing someone you are in the right lane. Reached speeds on nearly 145 kph, (pushing 95 mph) on some of our drives.
- Never travel in Italy without a GPS. We didn't have one and I managed to get lost every day.
- The work hours here are amazing. Things open at, say 10:00 a.m. and close about three hours later for the two or two-and-a-halk hour siesta. When the shops reopen, they stay open until, oh, 8:00 p.m. And it all works.
- Jumping in for a quick espresso or long coffee (a cappuchino, for example) is an honored tradition. You belly up to the bar, and if it's an espresso you slug it down in one or two swallows, pay, and you are on your way.
Despite the statistics that show Italy with one of the lowest birthrates in Europe, all we have seen are strollers, pushed by doting parents or grandparents.
Lynn was nearly bowled over yesterday by one of the municipal policeman who raced around the corner to nab a string of Senegalese street merchants selling knock-off purses. The man who sounded the alarm to his fellows lost his entire inventory, about 20 purses, and the others got away with various amounts. An interesting symbiosis...as long as the wares aren't on display everyone politely ignores each other.
Might manage one more post before the return.
Arriverderci a tutti!
