Tuscan Treasures

Cinquecento

Cento

No, this piece is not about treasures we found in Etruscan tombs, nor the bounty of Tuscan wines we brought to Sicily (cuz we left all the wine in Tuscany). Instead, here are treasures of moments that will become memories because they have been time-trapped in a digital rendering of contemporary reality. Are these memories superior to those that naturally linger in my mind? Perhaps superior in that I can communicate the images to others more readily, but not superior in terms of personal memory, which attaches smells, sounds and feelings to the images that naturally linger in my mind.

Cinque, and then some…

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Much work a tired Jilly make

Cinquecento

Cento

Photorama! In lieu of cinque highlights today, I am going to upload five photos from the archives and share my life through images. It is difficult to work myself into the holiday spirit being so far away from snow and family, but I am doing my best. I put up twinkle lights in the house this weekend and attended “North Pole Musical” at the school on base. About a hundred kids dressed as reindeer, snowmen, elves, ballerinas (think Nutcracker) and Russians (???) came together with Santa and Mrs. Claus to put on a delightful musical. Next up, shopping for stocking stuffers!

(Uno) 1. This handicapped parking spot was adjacent to a church buried in the old town of Pitigliano. It was remarkable mostly because it was in a place where I would have been surprised to see any car because the roads were so narrow.

(Due) 2. Tuscan flora and fauna displayed on a switchback pull-out near Pitigliano.

(Tre) 3. Bellini statue in downtown Catania.

(Quattro) 4. Ah, sweet summertime! I took this shot from a hilltop in Cefalu, after the gelato festival. The day was hot and the water was dancing on the wavetops.

(Cinque) 5. Ah, another step in the holiday direction, along with Frankenstein and Batman. Christmastime is Here!

Tuscany Rebooted.

Theme Day: Five Tuscan Photos with more than cento words.

I haven’t shared many of my Tuscan adventures with you yet, AND I am post-Thanksgiving gluttony relaxing, so I’m going to focus on photos for this post. Enjoy five of my favorites from our October sojourn in Tuscany.

Uno: I found this on the side of a church in the depths of Pitigliano’s old quarter.

Due: These two doors are about 5-feet tall, and stand a good six inches up off the stone roadway (single lane spacing, though no signs indicated “senso unico” (one way)). With doorways like these, the sense of history was omnipresent in Pitigliano.

Tre: Tre plant sconces all in a row. Touches like these were common in the narrow alleyways of Pitigliano.

Quattro: This wild boar was oh-so-real, and oh-so-stinky. I was checking him out while Hal ordered us some salami…it was good, and it felt one giant leap closer to the meat-making process, neat. (That sign says No Touching!)

Cinque: In Pitigliano, we finish with a short series of a narrow alleyway through the stone to the sunshine. The beautiful contrast of light against shadow was breathtaking.

Happy Thanksgiving Weekend – hope to see you in Italy next year!

Fagottini

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Uno (1). Got my very first blogging award! Thank you, Logy Express!!! My duties with the award will be fulfilled by the week’s end.

Due (2). Completed even more data for my JOB! I’m so excited for the analyzing to begin…(yes, my job title is “Analyst”). I am about to test my admiration of the 9-5 lifestyle that plagues Logy Express.

Tre (3). Sipping Tuscan wines with Hal, Anisette and Dave.

Quattro (4). Religulous. Anisette was excited to talk to us about it and luckily the Sigonella library had it on the shelf. Great movie, definitely thought provoking and hilariously produced.

Cinque (5). “Km 0″ – this is a Slow Food idea of sourcing as many ingredients locally as possible. Several Tuscan restaurants highlighted “Km 0″ items on their menus. It is a mix of the Eat Local movements in the U.S. and the idea of terroir (often credited to the French). In all, it is an agreement to focus on the value of food as community, art, and vocation. The phrase “Km 0″ has an Italian history, so it is a fitting title for this practice.

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Fagottini! What’s a fagottini? Trust me, you’ll know it when you see it! That doesn’t help you, does it? I was introduced to the fagottini in my former life as a server at Lombardino’s, and forgot all about it until last weekend. We were dining on a fabulous lunch in Sovana, at Ristorante dei Merli, and Dave ordered a fagottini for dessert. Fagottini is a “bundle” of something, and it looks like a purse or the satchel on the end of a hobo’s stick. They can be made savory or sweet. Here’s an Italian recipe, translated as “Bundle of Apples.”