May Day - May 1, 2010

May 1 is a holiday throughout Europe.  This year it fell on a Saturday.  Nonetheless, the annual May Day walk at Montemagno was held early in the morning.  It was a beautiful day so it was no hardship for Dom and I to get up and drive over there.  Since there was another walk the next morning we decided to do the shortest walk--3 kilometers.  This was just enough to get our heart rates up and we saw some beautiful countryside and houses.  The picture at left is a view from the walk of the Alpi Appuane.

We have done this particular walk several times before.  This wall never ceases to fascinate me.  The builder is a sculptor and he has incorporated all sorts of interesting objects into it.

Later in the day, after lunch, we went up the Serchio valley to the annual festa at Fornaci di Barga.  The town is filled with all sorts of exhibitors--sort of like a cross between a home show, an auto show and a weekly Italian market.  It was really a warm afternoon and there were LOTS of people there.

There are always lots of displays of farm equipment. Here a young girl is trying out a sort of mower. Unlike in the U.S. where the exhibitors would probably discourage children from climbing on the machinery, no one seems to think much of it here.

Here is another youngster trying out the merchandise.

Dom never climbs on the tractors but he certainly studies everything intently.

There were two spots with pony rides (or horse rides) for children.

A parked Ferrari always draws admirers including Dom and I, of course.

A local organization uses the town soccer field for paid parking.  When we returned to our car we got a kick out of where this Fiat 500 had found a spot. Gol!

The next morning, May 2, was the start of our recent seemingly endless spell of rain.  Dom stayed in bed but Mary Caselli and I went to the marcia at Camigliano.  It was not raining when we got up but started about the time we left our respective houses.  We had umbrellas and used them for about 2/3rds of the walk.  It actually, mostly, stopped for a while but then started up again. In spite of that, we really enjoyed our brisk 5 km. hike.

The rain has been pretty steady until today.  We had a shower this morning but it has been mostly dry but although overcast.  It has actually cleared up now but it is quite chilly outside.  After the beautiful weather we had our first four weeks here this has been a bit hard to take.  Luckily, we had a really busy week with the house closing on Tuesday, lots of errands at banks and other spots and a full day of househunting on Thursday.  Today is the first day we have had to just chill.  So, you are finally getting a blog post, or two.

Marcia Podistica a Partigliano

Last Sunday was the annual marcia podistica (organized walk) in Partigliano. It was held at the pizzeria at Guzzanello which is up the hill from the village. Unfortunately, after a string of stunningly beautiful days, we had rain and thunderstorms on Friday and Saturday. The previsione (forecast) was for improving conditions on Sunday but we woke to more rain. In spite of that, at 6:15 am we headed up the hill in our car eager to finally participate in the production of one of these events.

It actually requires a lot of pre-event planning as well. The weekend before we had seen the four routes (2, 5, 10 and 18 kilometers) being marked with freshly painted white arrows. Dom went up on Saturday afternoon to help set up while I cleaned the house in preparation for our Monday departure. At some point the premi (prize packets each participant receives) were also put together. On Friday several of the ladies had made almost 30 loaves of bread in a wood fired oven.

On Sunday, I was immediately put to work in the "kitchen." Actually, it was a storage room underneath the restaurant where a bevy of ladies made dozens and dozens of panini (sandwiches) and wrapped them in paper towels. We were assisted by several men who sliced the meats and cut the bread.


New regulations required that we all wear aprons, gloves and hair coverings. Really attractive as you can see from the above picture.


Outside the "kitchen" the participants returned from their walk or run to find tables full of panini, different types of torte (cakes and pies), lemon and orange wedges, sugar cubes, water, wine and sweet tea. At the walks we used to be able to just go up to the tables and take what we want but now someone has to serve you. The servers also had to wear aprons, gloves and head coverings.



Here I am taking a break from panini making.

Meanwhile, Dom had an orange vest and a flag and was busy parking cars. There is a soccer field next to the restaurant and they used that for the parking area. He found that his flag, flamboyant hand gestures and a few stern glares made up for any lack of language skills.

After I helped make mountains of sandwiches we went up to the restaurant bar and had a coffee. You can see Dom in his orange vest.

When we first got to Guzzanello at 6:30 it looked like it might brighten up and quit raining. No way! It really poured for a while after the marcia began at 7:15 or so. Many of the participants and some of the workers came back soaked to the skin.

Many of the participants huddled under the awning over the patio just outside the restaurant's main entry.

Even those handing out the premi huddled under their tent. Attendance at the event was down by about one third.

For the first time we were actually present at the end of the event. Here are the prizes that were distributed at the very end. The participating clubs were ranked according to the number of members participating. The club with the most participants got to pick a prize first and so it went down through the list of clubs until everyone had taken a prize.

There was also a raffle. Here they are drawing the winning raffle numbers.

Of course after everything was over and all the participants had left, the sun came out. It was actually quite windy while the tents were being taken down. None of that could happen until the trail sweeps had come in and reported there were no stragglers on the course. That was about 10:30 or 11. Then everything was broken down and put away and the ladies went to work preparing lunch.

Usually the post marcia lunch is held outside but the cool temperatures, brisk wind and possible rain led to the meal being held indoors. About 70 people sat down to eat at 1 pm. We had spaghetti with meat sauce, roast turkey, green salad, tomatoes, french fries, leftover cold cuts from the panini, lots of water and wine and all the leftover torte. It was delicious!

Unfortunately, the room we ate in was incredibly noisy. It would have been difficult understanding what was being said in English let alone understanding all the Italian around us. By 3 pm Dom and I were just about done in. We felt badly that we were the first to leave but we were really tired and needed to finish our preparations to leave the next morning.

All our Partigliano amici were sad to see us go. We REALLY look forward to returning in September and resuming our life in Italy.

La Sagra del Tordello

The best thing about a really hot day is the warm evening that follows. Last night we went with a group of friends to the Tordello sagra (festival) in the town of Segromigno. This is my favorite of all the sagre we have attended and this was the third visit for Dom and I. In addition to great food there is also a live band and dancing. It is very much a family event with lots of kids of all ages in attendance and many family groups that include three or four generations.


Upon arrival we stood in line to submit our food and drink orders. The system is fully computerized and after paying you receive a slip with the itemized order. We arrived on the early side (about 7 pm) and it was not yet crowded.

After paying, we found seats at the long tables set on the lawn behind the village church. This is a large, annual festival that runs over three weekends. The sagra complex is quite extensive and includes kitchens, dance floor and bandstand, a soccer field and another lawn. Both of the latter are filled with tables.

Here is a shot of some of the servers waiting to get started. It is includes adults and children. There are no restrictions on the young people serving alcohol so one often sees 10 year olds carefully balancing a tray of wine bottles, water bottles and cans of beer.

The servers collect the order slips and then go get everything at this kitchen complex. This phot was taken later in the evening but people kept arriving and eating even as we were leaving at about 10 pm.

This young man was one of our servers. He was a bit surprised when I snapped the picture. Behind him you can see the bell tower of the church.

Here is a bowl of the famous tordelli. It is pasta filled with a meat and herb mixture and then topped with a tomato meat sauce. Tordelli is a specialty of the Lucca area and is served almost everwhere. This tordelli is especially good.

There were eleven of us in our group so we took up quite a bit of space. Here you can see the line-up of food and drink.

I ordered tordelli, rosticianna (grilled ribs) and bruschetta. You can also see fagioli (beans) and patate fritte (french fries) on the table.

The festival even has its own wine label!

After eating many people stayed at their tables chatting and enjoying the music. We really enjoyed ourselves even though all that fun made getting up for the marcia podistica this morning a little difficult.

Sagra at Fivizzano

Tuesday was a national holiday here in Italy: Festa della Repubblica. It celebrates the creation of the Italian republic not long after World War II. Sort of like American July 4th, it is a good excuse to hold food festivals. On the Wandering Italy blog I read about the Sapori di Fivizzano where they were cooking focacette-little flatbreads cooked over wood coals and then filled with meat or cheese.

We had never visited Fivizzano which is located north of us in the Lunigiana. It seemed like a good reason for a day trip so we took off on Tuesday and drove there via Massa and Carrara on the autostrada. The town is charming and the above fountain was located in one of the main piazzas.


I particularly liked the giant fish around the edge of the fountain.

There were lots of people in the streets strolling among the many stalls selling mostly crafts. Several places in town served food. We started out in the fountain piazza trying a couple of types of frittata--one with zucchini and one with onion. They were delicious and made a great antipasto.



We then moved to the piazza where they were making the focacette. It took us a while to figure out the process. However, we had lots of time to do so as we were order number 41 and when we paid they were on order number 24.

There was this stand in the middle of the piazza with a roaring fire under one side. After watching for a while we figured out that it rotates so only one side was over the coals at any time. The things on top that look sort of like little rounds of bread are actually terra cotta molds.

Once the molds are hot they stack them with the balls of bread dough in tall racks. This gives the bread the proper shape and starts the cooking process.

After taking the focacette out of the molds several men set the bread directly onto the layer of coals nearby. They quickly turn them and toss them until they are done. At one point there were four people finishing off the focacette. After the bread is out of the molds they are returned to the round rack over the hot fire.

The finished focacette are moved to another area where they are cut open and the orders are filled. You could have them with pancetta, lardo, coppa, stracchino cheese, nutella or honey. We ordered one with stracchino and one with pancetta. They were really delicious but we could have eaten another two. Plus, by observing others we discovered you could ask for a combination of ingredients.

We made our way home by driving over the mountains. It was a hot, sunny day and we finished up the excursion with a stop for gelato at Blue Matisse bar in Borgo a Mozzano. Yum, yum!

Cinghiali!

Sample cinghiale!


Sagra poster


The sagra locale


The waiters

Last Thursday night, on our way back from dinner, we (Dom, Geri, Karen and I) surprised a group of cinghiali (wild boar) on the road from Valdottavo to Partigliano. Unfortunately we did not have a camera at the ready but the two adults looked somewhat like the above bruiser. There were also three little striped and spotted piglets. They were up on a sort of a ledge right near the road and in the light from the car's high beams looked like they were posing just for us. Dom stopped the car dead in the road and we all shrieked, squealed and pointed. The two sows looked at us briefly before trotting off into the woods with the piglets scrambling along behind.

Cinghiali are both a cultural phenomenon here and a pest. In the fall there are groups of hunters that go after them every weekend. We have sat on the patio in October and November listening to the cacaphony of hunters yelling, dogs barking and shotguns firing as the squadre (teams) bag 15-20 in a day. That sounds like numbers that could wipe out the population but the total cinghiali actually keep increasing every year.

Much like deer on Whidbey Island, the cinghiali are a menace to gardens and cars. They like to dig up roots so potatoes are favorite. The locals use fences around their orti (vegetable gardens)to keep them at bay. Some people hang little clumps of something they claim the cinghiali avoid to keep them away from their veggies. We have heard them on our property, especially at night, where they did quite a bit of damage last summer digging up a certain type of broad leaf weed in our fields. This spring we do not hear much of them as they seem to have eradicated that particular plant.

Although the ones we saw last week were our first glimpse of them, they are often hit by cars. As large as they are they often cause more damage to the vehicles than they receive. At any rate they do much the same as the deer--wander off into the woods after being hit so who knows what really happens to them.

On Sunday evening we went to the Sagra (Festival) dei Cinghiali in the town of Balbano. I was hoping it would be a sagra with music and dancing but it looked to be just food. Nonetheless, it was really tasty. We enjoyed papparadelle al cinghiale (wide ribbon pasta with tomato and boar sauce) and cinghiale in humido (stewed cinghiale). Dom also had some sausages--not cinghiale--that was really good. Geri and Karen enjoyed the look at a local sagra and the chance to try cinghiale. We finished up the evening with stops for gelato in Ponte a Moriano and drinks at the bar in our village.

Auto Swap Meet in Florence and Lunch in Fiesole

Swap meet poster


Ferrari 355

All sorts of scooters

In one of the classic car magazines that Dom buys over here he saw a notice for a Scambio auto - moto e ricambi d’epoca (classic car/motorcycle/parts swap meet) in Florence this weekend. The event was held under part of the grandstand at the main soccer stadium. We left the house early, stopped for cappucini and pastry at the bar here in Partigliano and made it there by about 9:30. It was another beautiful day and we really enjoyed the drive along the autostrada through the countryside, especially the area around Pistoia and Prato where there are miles of plant nurseries. One in particular, Rose Barni (Barni Roses), was spectacular—acres of flowering plants in a rainbow of colors.

The swap meet was a much smaller version of the ginormous show we saw last fall in Padova. Nonetheless there were some interesting vehicles. Dom was particularly taken with a Ferrari 355. There was also a variety of motorcycles, scooters, and cars in various stages of repair and disrepair. Lots of parts, tools, magazines, clothes and other motor head paraphernalia were also offered for sale. We saw serious buyers who had small carts to haul off their finds as well as other looky-lous like us. Although I think Dom would have really liked to take the Ferrari home.

A mob of tourists at Fiesole

Roman amphitheater

Arches from Roman bathes framing Fiesole church tower

It was such a small show that we had seen it all by 10:30 am. We decided to drive up to the town of Fiesole in the hills to the north of Florence. It had been about seventeen years since we had been there and the last time the weather was not good. We zoomed up the hill to the small town and found parking near the archeological park and museum. So that seemed like the thing to do. We spent about an hour there looking at the museum exhibits—Etruscan, Roman and Longobard artifacts—and then walked around the park that includes the remains of a Roman amphitheater, baths and temples. It was warm and sunny with a slight breeze. As we strolled we could smell the scent of early flowering jasmine. It was darn near idyllic except for the tourists (we have met the enemy and he is us!). There was about sixty Americans (mostly teens, either high school or college) touring the sight with a guide. Most of them were more interested in taking pictures of each other in front of every piece of stone in the park. They were quite amusing to watch. Dom got a kick out of the fact that one of them said, “Buongiorno” to us as we walked through the group. Did they think we were Italian!?!?

After we finished at the park we walked up the hill in Fiesole looking in the shop windows and searching for a place for lunch. In the end we went back to the main piazza and sat outdoors at Bar Blu. It has a fabulous view of the city of Florence. Spread below us we could see the Duomo and the tower of the Palazzo Vecchio. We had a light lunch before heading back to the car and making our way back home.

After our busy morning we returned to the house and just vegged. Late in the afternoon I sat on the patio reading in the sunshine. It is about 7 pm before the sun drops below the hills so it stays quite pleasant outside well into the evening. Nonetheless, the inside of the house is still quite cold. I can hardly wait until the walls warm up and the house is as pleasant inside as outside.