Back in the Italian Groove

Today Dom and I got back in our Italian groove.  That means I cleaned the house and Dom started cutting the grass. 

We thought someone was coming to view the house this afternoon but that was cancelled.  Luckily I continued with the house cleaning as someone else came by.  It really was not that dirty but I had done nothing since arriving because of our guests.  I also ran two loads of wash but still have not caught up with all that.  If the weather holds (for drying the clothes outside) I might be caught up sometime next week.

Dom spent the day getting all the machinery (weed whacker/strimmer, mower and chainsaw) functioning.  He was able to start with the weed whacker and made great progress.  It was a cold winter so the grass is only about 6-8 inches tall.  That is rather short in comparison to some years.  Although it must also be noted that we are here earlier than usual.  The shorter grass makes cutting it a lot easier.

Yesterday as we were eating lunch outside our favorite local kitty, Squeak, showed up.  Her lack of appearance had led me to believe she did not survive the winter.  We have seen all three of her kittens from last fall.  They now appear almost full grown and are definitely fending for themselves.  Squeak is pregnant again so perhaps there will be more kittens before we leave.  The above photo is from last fall.  It always takes time for her to warm up to us but she spent all morning hanging around the back door.  Unfortunately I have neglected to buy cat food so I am behind on my bribes. 

The weather today was spectacular--sunny and warm.  It felt more like late May than early April.  After all the chores were done I put on a pair of shorts and sat on the patio with my book for over an hour.  This is why we LOVE Italy!

A Miscellany

The "pretty" kitty came to visit our patio yesterday. We often see her near our front door but rarely at the back of the house. She was very curious but did not want to get too close to us. For a long time she sat in the middle of the field and watched us. This photo makes it look like she was "up close and personal." However, she was probably still 10-15 ft. away. Zoom close-up is a wonderful feature on the camera.



Fall is here even in Italy. Our temperatures might still be around 70 during the day but it is nice and cool at night. The leaves on the grapevines are the most colorful around. This vine sits on the slope above our patio all by itself. At one time there was probably a long row extending out away from the house. Now this is one of two still living on the edge of the terrace. The grapevines are incredibly tenacious. There are probably 15-20 spots where there has not been a standing vine for many years. However, every fall we come back and find clumps of new growth extending out from these spots. These clumps are quite large this year with vines extending 6-8 ft.




Our vines produced a lot of grapes this year. We won't be making wine because it is more work than it is worth. Actually, we have a lot of wine made from 2006 and 2007--none of it worth talking about. The grapes do make good eating in spite of lots of seeds. The tomatoes, red and yellow, come from our friend Erina's garden. They have harvested what they wanted to can so she said take what we like. I especially like the little yellow pear tomatoes that you can just see a the bottom of the bowl. I had them for lunch yesterday with fresh mozzarella cheese, our own olive oil, salt, pepper and shredded basil.





I am still trying to get the patio planters tidied up. There are lots of weeds in with the shrub roses at the top of the wall. Almost everything I planted in the spring died because of the extended hot, dry weather. There are a still a few scraggly geraniums and, in the big pot in the foreground, my strawberry plants are still producing berries. I wish I knew what the variety is as I would love to have the same thing on Whidbey Island.





I tried to cut the grass near the house with the cutter bar mower. It did not work very well so Dom is going to finish it up with the weed whacker. We spent a couple of hours yesterday cutting grass. I ran the cutter bar around on the flats while Dom worked on the banks and around the trees and vines. We still have about three quarters of the job done but Dom needs another couple days (2-3 hours each time) to get the "edging" done. Unfortunately, it has been rather wet. On nice days there is drenching dew and on bad days it rains. Rain is predicted for over the weekend so we probably will not finish up until after we get back from Capri on October 16th.

In Italia!

Ciao a tutti! We arrived in Partigliano at about 7 pm yesterday evening. It was a long but uneventful flight. Going through Paris was good except for the layover. We spent over six hours at Charles De Gaulle Airport and it was the worst time of day for us. We arrived there about 8:15 am and left at 3:40 pm European Daylight Time but if you subtract 9 hours from those times you will see that it was 11:15 pm to 6:40 am Pacific Daylight Time. So, as far as our body clocks were concerned the only thing to do was sleep. I keep wondering why airports do not have more chaise lounge type chairs. Lacking those we found a couple of cushy armchairs but they were small enough that it was hard to curl up in one. I could not stay awake but nonetheless kept waking up because I was so uncomfortable.

Once we arrived at the house it was better. Unpacking and getting things turned on at the house kept us moving. About 8 pm we went to Ristorante La Terrazza for dinner. By the time we finished there we were both dozing in our chairs. So, it was back home and to bed for both of us.

This morning we went to the "trucker" bar for cappucino and pastry. It is really great to walk into local places, be recognized and not even have to order because they know what we want. After that it was off to the supermercato to load up on groceries. When we got back to Partigliano it required both of us to haul everything back to the house. All four of my Whidbey Island shopping bags were full plus on the side was a six pack of fizzy water and a package of toilet paper.

You can see my four Payless grocery bags plus the water. There is also a basil plant sticking out of the bag on the counter. You can buy them for about Euro2 at the supermarket!

After I got everything put away Dom and I walked through the fields to check on the olive crop. There seem to be enough fruit to make it worthwhile harvesting. There will not be as much as last year but we should have a respectable haul.

Then it was more puttering around--vacuuming up the dead bugs after spraying some yesterday--and then lunch. Of course after that we started falling asleep again. A thunder and lightening storm blew through about that time. It got close enough to rattle the windows pretty well and interfere with the satellite reception. So it seemed like a good time for a nap. At least that is what Dom is doing. I am trying to make it to 4 pm before crashing but it looks like I will come up a bit short.

I tried to take a picture of the heavy rain out the kitchen door. The bright speckles are the flash reflecting off some of the closer raindrops. It's a little hard to tell but the water is streaming down the steps and then running off the patio to the left.

I have actually been falling asleep as I write this. When I jerk my head back up I see that my fingers go on longer than my brain does. Hopefully I have caught everything that needs catchingnnnnnnnn. Well, there I go again so I guess it is off to nap for me.

Dom's Self-propelled Basket

A few days ago Dom finished construction of his self-propelled basket--his version of a motorized wheelbarrow. The primary reason for making it was to haul wood up to the barn from the lower part of our property. Several years ago we had a number of trees taken down (they were old cottonwoods and one had already fallen on our neighbor's land).

The motor portion of it is part of the cutter bar--a scissor-type grass cutter. The cutting portion comes off the front so, in his shop on Whidbey Island, Dom created an attachment and frame for the basket. He ordered appropriate size wheels. That portion of the creation was packed up in a small wheel suitcase to be transported over here.

Once here he began looking for a basket of some sort to attach to it. At first he had in mind a grocery store shopping cart. We contemplated a late night raid on a local supermercato but looked for other options first. Eventually he found a wire basket at Mercatino del Usato in Lucca. It is a small version of the type of basket that is used to hold a bunch of merchandise in a store. The only drawback was that the whole thing easily came apart in pieces.

Dom purchased some stiffer rods and wired the whole thing together. Then, one evening we went over to Mary and Orlando's so Dom could use their welder. He and Orlando spent a couple hours out in the shop at the end of which the basket was a solid whole. (Thanks Orlando and Mary!!!)

Once the basket was back home Dom bolted it to the frame. He cut it down a little and smoothed the sharp edges with a grinder. Then he attached the whole thing to the motor of the cutter bar. He took it for several test drives. Our Italian neighbors found it very interesting.

On Monday Dom took it down to the wood pile along with his chainsaw, cutting rack and other tools. He proceeded to cut up a couple of loads of logs suitable for burning in the fireplace. Then he brought them up to the barn. He said it worked pretty well except for a tendency to be a little top heavy.

Here is a short video clip showing the basket in action.

Back at Work

Yes, I have been slacking off on the blog posts. However, life in Italy is not all sunshine and wine. Lately, it's mostly been "whine." Our latest project is refinishing the front door. Yesterday, we took it off the hinges and put it on sawhorses on the back patio. I thought it would take about an hour to sand. Silly me. I forgot how ornate it is. The power sanders were mostly useless. It took Dom and I working together about six hours to get it ready for the first coat of varnish. However, it was too late to put a finish coat on yesterday since the door had to be back up and closed overnight. This morning we took it off the hinges again.

Thus, the doorway looks like this:


As you can see, no door. We did put up our not so useful bug screen to try to keep the cats outside. Even so I caught one halfway up the steps giving me that plaintive "I could be an indoor cat" look.


The living room looks like this right now. There was a possibility of rain this morning so after doing the final sanding outside we decided it would be best to put the varnish on inside. Unfortunately the door takes up most of the available floor space. I am wedged in the corner by the stairs trying not to let the back of the chair rub against the brick and stone behind me.

In another couple of hours we will put the door back up and see if it sticks to the frame overnight. We still need to finish sanding the door frame. It will likely be Friday before we get the final coat on the door and Saturday before we finish up the frame. The rest of the work is not too tough but we still need to hang out and guard the house from the curious cats.

Grass, Grapes and Olives

Our guests left yesterday and, much as we enjoyed having them, it is lovely to be back to just the two of us and la dolce vita. Well, not so dolce because yesterday afternoon we had thunderstorms and some heavy rain. This is the first rain we have had since we arrived in Partigliano. So, this morning we rose at 6:15 and started burning the grass just after 7 am. It was a lovely morning. Within a couple of hours all the grass plus the vine clippings were on the pile.


Here is Dom dumping some of the last of the grass on the fire.


The heat, and yesterday's rain, have been great for the plants. I bought two strawberry plants soon after we arrived because I like the pale pink flowers. Now the plants are covered with ripening berries. Yummy!


While Dom was stoking the fire I finished pruning the vines. Here is a picture of one of the tidy rows. Because we arrived so late the plants were heavily overgrown. Although I cut them way back they still have 4 to 6 grape clusters each. Two to three times as much foliage went on the fire as was left on the vines. This is not the optimal way to care for the vines (they should have been pruned in Jan/Feb) but it is what we can manage only being here part-time.


The grape clusters are just starting to flower. Here are the buds before they open.


This is grape cluster that has started flowering. The flowers are tiny and the clusters look fuzzy after the buds open.

Interestingly, the olives also start out as clusters of tiny buds and then open to tiny flowers. They are somewhat larger than the grapes but, from a distance, the trees also look "fuzzy." There are also loads of flowers on the olive trees and the bees are buzzing around them happily pollinating. If we still own the house in the fall, and the weather cooperates, we could have a good harvest in November.

Facciamo le spese (Running Errands)

The new Permesso di Soggiorno with its fancy sleeve.


Dom admiring an old but immaculate Moto Guzzi parked in front of a shop in Borgo Giannotti.

Yesterday was a day of running errands. In the morning we had a 9 am appointment at the Lucca Questura to pick up our new Permessi di Soggiorno (long stay permits). We arrived a little after the hour and got in line about 5 people back. Amazingly the line moved quite quickly. Within twenty minutes we had our shiny new cards in hand and were on our way to the next stop. Since we renewed our PdiS two years ago they have implemented a new system. Now they give you a credit card type document covered with interesting looking holograms and embedded information. They will certainly be easier to carry than a thick full size document. The latter made quite a wad when folded up and stuck inside our passports.

After that we went to Borgo Giannotti so Dom could get a haircut. I walked over to the post office to mail a card and then wandered around the area until I came across Dom. Our next stop was Media World for new CDs. Then we went to Flash Computer to sign up for ADSL (DSL service). Yes, we plan to finally spring for high speed internet. It has been available here in the village for at least a year but we kept thinking the house would sell so… Unfortunately, the person we needed to speak with was not there so we needed to go back in the afternoon.

Of course, now that we have signed up for it the house will probably sell right away. Things are picking up on the house sale front. We have had one showing since we came back and we hear that the market is heating up.

The weather was high overcast but it was warm enough for lunch on the patio. Dom found a problem with the bathroom sink plumbing so he worked on that while I caught up on email. Later we went out again. Back to Flash Computer, a stop at a real estate office in Ponte a Moriano and then on to the ferramenta in Diecimo for a plumbing part. They did not carry it so we went on to Ghivizzano to a plumbing supply store.

Back at the house Dom made the repair while I called my mother for a nice chat. We had a quiet evening in.

Mowing the Meadow

A completed terrace with the unmown grass around the vines and on the right the next terrace to be done.


One stripe done on the next terrace.


Pit stop--Dom refueling my vehicle.

A close-up of some of the many wildflowers among the grass.

Tuesday was another busy day. We used the cutter bar mower to cut ALL the terraces in one day! I steered it around for about half the job and then Dom completed it. Now he has about two days with the strimmer (string trimmer/weedwacker/friulino) to cut the banks and around the trees and vines. Then we need to rake it all and burn it. If the weather holds, we might have the job done in another week. Yeah!

Before we started the terraces looked like lush meadows—lots of different grasses mixed with a dozen different types of wild flowers and clover. It was about two feet tall in most places. As I walked behind the mower it smelled like I was mowing an herb garden. The grassy scent was overpowered by perfume of mint and oregano. One of our neighbors started burning grass he had cut earlier. The herby smoke always reminds me of the scent of marijuana!

The birds really love the mown terraces. Suddenly they can reach the ground and, especially in the morning, they flit around poking and pulling at the worms and creatures hidden in the dirt.

Tuesday evening Mary, Orlando, Bob and Joy came for dinner and we all celebrated Cinco de Mayo. It was a communal effort and we enjoyed Corona beer, margaritas, chips, salsa and quacamole followed by chicken and spinach enchiladas, black beans and salad with tomato, green onion, black olives and sweet corn. For dessert we had flan (crème caramel custard) and strawberries. The margaritas, made according to the package directions, were REALLY strong. My one glassful must have had about three shots of tequila in it. It took me the rest of the evening to recover!

More Chores, More Sunshine

Squeak the cat lounging in the newly cut grass


Sunshine on the patio!


The irises and roses are the only plants that survived the winter.

Our long nap yesterday made for a poor night’s sleep. We were both awake shortly after 3 am. Dom finally got up about 5 am but I took a little chemical assist and managed a few more hours.

Yesterday and today we discovered that our favorite gatti (cats) not only survived the winter but expected to be fed. They were right at the kitchen door this morning begging but there was no cat food until later.

By 9 am we had eaten breakfast and Dom was off to the strimmer repair shop in Valdottavo for a part. He was back in about half an hour. I took the car and went to Esselunga for more groceries. The store had seemed incredibly crowded on Thursday but this morning it was as full as I have ever seen it. A good half the time I spent there was simply trying to maneuver in the aisles.

Back at the house Dom had finished cutting the grass around the house. I pulled the weeds and dead vegetation out of the patio planters before sweeping the entire patio area. By the time I finished it was time for a shower and lunch.

We ate on the patio in the hot sunshine. A good breeze kept it manageably cool otherwise it would have been too much heat. However, it feels wonderful to sit outside in shorts and a sleeveless t-shirt after the long, cold winter on Whidbey Island. If it weren’t for the threat of massive sunburn and the need for a short nap I would still be out there listening to the chorus of strimmers and birds, inhaling the smell of fresh cut grass and soaking up the rays.

Dinner at home and an early night.

First Day Back - Not La Dolce Vita

Walking at Montemagno, LU

Even though we slept well our first night at the house, we were still awake by 4 am. About 6 am we decided to get up and go to the marcia podistica at Montemagno. It was another beautiful day and by the time we reached the start of the walk the chill air was turning balmy. It was fun to see our friends Erina, Antonio, Desi, Eni and all the rest of the Unione Sportivo di Partigliano group. They were excited to see us and the learn that we plan to stay long enough to help put on the Partigliano marcia on June 21. Many hands make light work!

We stopped at Bar Bini in Diecimo for coffee and pastry and then went home to start work. Dom got the strimmer running and eventually cut about half the grass in the vicinity of the house. Unfortunately a part broke on the strimmer so he had to stop for the day.

Meanwhile, I dusted and vacuumed up all the dead insects in the house. It was not too onerous a task but certainly not la dolce vita. Fortunately, Dom’s strimmer breakdown occurred at a good hour for lunch. We ate in the sunshine on the patio, stayed outside for another hour or so before showering and napping for a few hours. We woke at 7:30 in time to go to our favorite local restaurant, La Fonte, for dinner.

La Fonte was really hopping last night. They had extra help on hand and a full house. The food was wonderful as always but the people-watching was equally as good. There were lots of family groups and a number of really adorable babies. We enjoyed our best meal since we arrived in Italy as well as the vibrant activity at the restaurant. It was about 11 pm when we arrived home. Jet lag once more overwhelmed us and it was off to bed.

Snow in Partigliano Complicates Departure

Snow in Partigliano - views from our house

Dom with luggage at Gatwick Airport

In the end we had an uneventful trip from Pisa to Seattle. However, Monday the 24th began anything but calmly.

At night we keep the shutters in our bedroom closed but the bedroom door remains open as do the shutters on the window right outside it. When I woke, the first thing I noticed was that the power had been out. It was still half dark but I grabbed my watch and was just able to make out the time—6:50 am. Then I realized there was a strange glow to the light coming in the hall window. I got up and looked outside. SNOW!

Only about an inch had fallen—just enough to nearly cover everything. It looked beautiful and if we had not had a plane to catch later in the morning I would have thought it was a grand adventure. Instead I had to fight down panic even as I was waking up Dom.

The next few hours were interesting. The power seemed “wobbly” so I quickly took a shower. Just as I finished it flickered on and off several times before going off for good for about an hour. Dom put on grubby clothes and went outside to finish up what needed to be done there. We had cold water and the gas burners worked so we had breakfast in the semi-darkness and continued doing things that did not require power.

My biggest worries were Dom getting a shower (how awful to have to fly home without one) and what the roads would be like. Dom was much calmer about it and suggested I call some of our friends who live closer to Lucca. Mary and Orlando were surprised to learn that we had snow as they had nothing. Since they can see down to the road to Lucca they were able to reassure us that it was pretty localized. By this time it was also raining outside and the snow on our patio was becoming thick and sloppy. It seemed that we would be able to reach the airport with few problems.

Finally the lights came back on. Dom was able to get his shower. I was able to iron the clothes I planned to wear. While Dom hand carried the larger bags up to our car in the village parking area I finished doing the dishes and tidying up the house. The utilities were turned off and we were ready to go. Actually, we were ready to go with time to spare so we sat down and watched the news for a while. Shortly after 10 am we grabbed the last of the bags, flipped off the electricity and locked up.

The drive to the airport proved uneventful. By the time we left, enough other cars had been down the hill so the center of the road was merely bare and wet. All the snow disappeared after a couple of miles. By the time we halfway to Lucca there was no sign of it at all. However, when we stopped at the toll plaza outside of Pisa (20 miles away) the attendant asked where it had snowed because somehow the inch of snow managed to stay on the roof of the car all the way there.

We were so early at the airport that we hauled our bags inside and checked in before meeting Rosario (our rental agent) outside to return the car. That took all of thirty seconds so we then had time for cappuccino and pastry before boarding our flight.

The trip to London was smooth as was our transfer from Gatwick Airport to Heathrow Airport. Trolleys at each stop made moving our bags fairly simple. The only glitch came when we boarded the flight to Seattle. The plane was ready to go but apparently we were parked so close to the taxiway that we could not maneuver away from the gate in order to join the take-off queue. It was nearly an hour before the queue diminished enough for us to leave.

We landed in Seattle almost an hour late but we were soon through immigration and customs. My parents met us at baggage claim and we spent the night at their house. The next morning my mother drove us to Mukilteo where we walked on the ferry. Actually, it was more like waddling onto the ferry. With no trolley to help us, hauling our bags on and off the boat proved a challenge. The ferry personnel were practically laughing at us. We must have looked like refugees returning home.

Once the boat docked at Clinton we waddled off and tossed all our bags onto the bus. Whidbey Island has a great bus system. It is free and will drop you anywhere you ask. Thus, we were able to get off right at the end of our long driveway. It was not raining so I waited by the road with the bags while Dom walked down to the house, found his keys and brought the truck back up for me and the luggage.

It was great to finally be home. We spent the rest of Tuesday turning things on, plugging things in, going for groceries and the cat, and unpacking all the bags. We managed to stay awake until after 9 pm before collapsing in bed.

Today is more of the same. We are getting back into the rhythm of island life even as we try to get ready for the Thanksgiving holiday tomorrow. We plan to be at my parents’ ski cabin at Snoqualmie Pass for the day checking out the new garage and eating too much turkey and too much pie.

Pisa Airport, Garbage and Mattress Festival Redux

It was a short night for us. We were up at 3:30 am to take Bob and Joy to the airport at Pisa. They do not have a house in the U.S. but will visit a variety of relations over the next few months. Thus, they were traveling like turtles. Well, if not all their worldly possessions on their backs they had a goodly portion in their three large suitcases and four smaller carry-on bags. We managed to shoehorn four adults and all the bags into our small Fiat Punto. One large suitcase sat on the backseat between Bob and Joy. I told them the airplane seats would seem capacious in comparison. After seeing them safely checked in (no jettisoning of possessions at the last moment), we wished them buon viaggio and left.

Dom and I were back at the house by about 6 am. I promptly returned to bed but he had coffee and stayed up for several hours before joining me for a nap.

This afternoon we took a few things to the “dump.” Actually, it should probably more accurately be called a transfer station as the discarded items are eventually hauled elsewhere. The concept seems to be fairly new here. The operation located a few villages away opened last spring and replaces the prior arrangement of periodically bringing a giant dumpster to the village. It was always fun to see the dumpster appear suddenly, fill up and then overflow within a few hours. The local people would bring all their old possessions—broken furniture, old wine casks, cracked mirrors, dingy patio chairs—and pile them in. Within 24 to 48 hours it was hauled away. We took advantage of it once to remove some old items from our barn.

The new system, while much more convenient, is much less picturesque. The station is only open three days a week but that works so much better for us. One never knew when the old dumpster would arrive and it only arrived once every two to three months. Since we are only here part-time it was often difficult to get rid of old or broken items. It was so easy today that we can only applaud the improvement in service.

Our friends Rachel and Kim, who came with us to the “mattress festival” have posted their version of the evening on their blog—http://lifeinalessandria.blogspot.com/. Check it out for a great recap and great photos.

A Potpourri of Photos

The past few days we have had just enough to keep us occupied but not enough to prevent us from relaxing. The weather has been good so we have even been able to eat lunch outside a couple of times and spend some time reading on the patio.

Monday morning we ran some errands in Valdottavo and Diecimo. On our way home we saw this older man harvesting his olives in a small grove that sits between two roads. Actually, as you can see, he was taking a break and using his wheelbarrow as a table for his merenda (snack). I thought it was such an evocative image I asked Dom to circle back so I could snap this photo.

When we reached Partigliano we saw a couple of cats playing in the grass. There were two adults and this adorable kitten. This picture does a pretty good job of showing how fluffy the little guy is and you can just see that his black fur is tipped with gray. With the sunshine hitting him from the side he seemed to glow as he watched the adult cats scratch at a nearby olive tree.

Yesterday we had friends Carol and Luigi for lunch. It was a fun few hours and we enjoyed spending time with them before our departure.

Today we did a few chores. One of those I worked on was oiling the TALDI bench. TALDI stands for The Alpental Ladies Do Italy and is the shorthand reference to our “girls” trip to Italy in June 2004. Afterwards, my friends gave Dom and I a gift to buy a bench for our patio here. When Dom’s brother Frank and his wife Ang were here the following spring Frank built this bench using chestnut planks he found in our barn. It has a great deal of character because the planks were rough cut out of a curved section of tree trunk. Frank squared off a number of pieces to make the bench but left two sections whole—one on the seat and one on the backrest.

I told Dom that the bench is the only item in the house that ABSOLUTELY must go with us when we sell the house. Everything else is negotiable. It was looking pretty bad because I have neglected it for over a year. Monday I washed it good and today, after it dried well in the sun, I applied a coat of oil for garden furniture. It looks much better now and should be all ready for use next spring.

That’s it for now. We are expecting a neighbor to stop by for a drink and then tomorrow morning we are taking Joy and Bob to the airport in Pisa at 4:30 am. Aaarrrgghh!

Shopping, cleaning, walking, eating...

View of Lucca and Pisan Hills.


I am once more falling behind on posting…

On Friday I picked up Joy at 9:30 am and we went to Lucca for a girls’ day out. Mary joined us later in the morning and the three of us had a great lunch together. It was loads of fun to go off without the guys. Not that we don’t love them but every once in a while a woman just needs to spend time with her girlfriends. Since I had the car poor Dom was stuck at the house all day.

Joy and I both had specific ideas of items we needed to purchase before heading back to the U.S. Presents of all sorts were high on the list. We started out at one end of Lucca, worked our way to the other and then retraced our steps. A lengthy period of time was spent in a wonderful kitchen store. Leather goods, jewelry and ceramics also rated close inspection. Even shops that held nothing we needed required a certain amount of attention since without the men we could actually spend time looking at things that would bore them silly. Thus, we carefully went through the Swarovki crystal shop and discussed all the lovely little objets d’art. Joy was pretty restrained but I made quite a contribution to the local economy. So much so that my arms were aching by the time we got back to the car.

It was interesting being in Lucca so late in the fall. There were very few tourists, even fewer tour groups and many stores have shortened hours. There were also a number of places that were closed for vacation. In Italy it is common for stores and restaurants to simply shut down for a few weeks. Usually we find out about this by arriving at the establishment and finding a notice on the door. Sometimes the proprietors post a warning message a few weeks beforehand. No one seems terribly put out and November seems to be a popular time for this. No doubt it is because things have slowed down after summer and early fall but the holiday rush is still a few weeks away.

On Saturday Dom spent several hours hauling wood up from the “lower forty.” Several years ago we had some trees felled and since then we have been using some of it for firewood. The acacia is not terrific for this purpose but the price is right. The wood was left in rather long lengths and piled higgledy piggledy. A few weeks ago he cut some of it into useable lengths but left it below. It was necessary to cart it up to the barn wheelbarrowful by wheelbarrowful. Then some of it needed to be split. Maybe the price isn’t so great.

Meanwhile, I cleaned the house and did laundry. The sun finally came out and there was a brisk breeze. It was perfect for drying clothes outside so I managed to finish two loads. I spruced up the interior and even got the ground floor mopped. The latter was something I had put off for quite a while so I felt really good about getting it done.

In the evening we went out for pizza. The food was good but the server spilled a pint of beer next to us so I sat through the meal with my lower pant legs soaked. A really tasty dose of gelato on the way home improved my mood considerably.

Sunday dawned clear and crisp—perfect autumn weather. Another marcia podistica had us driving almost 45 minutes up the Serchio valley to a small town near San Romano in Garfagnana. This is well into the foothills of the Appenini mountains and the rising sun gradually illuminated the rust and gold hillsides, craggy peaks, stone and terracotta villages and the bright green pastures. A sliver of new snow capped the very highest mountain tops which seemed in keeping with a sign we passed indicating the temperature was only 4° Centigrade or about 40° Farenheit!

Three of our Italian neighbors went with us since the husband of one, their usual driver, went hunting. Dom and I decided to do the 6 kilometer route while our friends did the 2 kilometer walk. Our route went down hill from the partenza (start) at the local campo sportivo (sports field) before heading uphill into the woods. The path we followed was freshly mown but underneath the grass, leaves and mud it was possible to make out the stony surface of an old donkey road. We crossed a fairly large stream using a temporary bridge made of several 2x8 planks. To our left we could see the water cascading down the mountainside in a series of waterfalls. The torrent continued down into the valley to our right over a series of man-made falls.

Our route continued down into the valley to the point where we thought we might actually reach the Serchio River. Eventually, we made a loop through the narrow pathways of an ancient fortified village and began our ascent back to the arrivo (finish). By the time we returned to our starting point we were hot and sweaty (I finally took off the coat I wore over a fleece and several other layers) and we felt we had had a great workout. After a quick snack and hot tea we collected our premi (prizes—specialty pasta, bottled water and mini tissue packets) and headed home.

We were expecting guests for lunch so I hurriedly showered and made few preparations for lunch before heading off to Sunday Mass. That gave Dom the opportunity to make a fire and get himself cleaned up without me stressing about entertaining.

Our neighbors, Dr. Giovanni Landucci and his wife Paola, joined us at 1 pm and I served spaghetti with a tomato/zucchini sauce followed by turkey and mixed salad with poached pears and a little whipped cream on top for dessert. Our guests brought us an excellent Italian champagne-style wine and a huge box of chocolates, both of which were enjoyed before they left.

Giovanni and Paola have been extremely nice to us and have entertained us several times at their house. We wanted to do something to reciprocate their hospitality but I have been reluctant to invite any of our Italian neighbors for a meal. The language difficulties are daunting enough (although Giovanni speaks excellent English) but I also worry about serving the wrong food and getting the local etiquette totally wrong. Luckily, everything seemed to go well yesterday so I am looking forward to further entertaining in Partigliano.

Another event that took place yesterday was some sort of tractor procession. While out getting wood from the barn, Dom noticed a parade of machines heading up the hill above us. Being the tractor aficionado he is, Dom got really excited. I think he really wished he had his Kubota here in Italy so he could join the spectacle. He asked Giovanni about it and learned that the tractors gathered in Valdottavo (the village below ours) and then worked their way up the hill. Our neighbor explained that it took them half an hour to arrive at the top. Whatever else he told us was lost in translation (or lack thereof). Later, when Dom and I were talking about it I surmised there might be a blessing of the tractors followed by lunch at Guzzanello. It is a pretty common formula here and, sure enough, we saw notices today in Valdottavo for a Festa di Ringraziamento (Thanksgiving Festival) that involved bringing produce to be blessed followed by lunch.

Today was spent rather lazily. I actually finished a novel! We ate lunch on the patio (shivering slightly) and tried to stay there and read afterwards. However, when the weak sun went behind the clouds it was far too cool to remain outside. So we moved indoors, turned on the heat, built a fire and whiled away the rest of the afternoon.

An Active Social Life

San Cristoforo at Barga


Medieval lane in Barga


Alabaster window in San Cristoforo


Tribute to the next President in Barga window

One of the smaller yachts at Viareggio

Peek inside a Viareggio workshop

Dewy spiderweb seen on Sunday marcia

"Watch" dog watching Sunday marcia

My apologies for taking a bit of an extended vacation from posting to the blog. That said, here is a recap of the last six days.

Last Thursday afternoon we went to the train station in Lucca to pick up friends Kim and Rachel. Somewhat to our surprise they turned up on time. If you have been following their blog (about their year living in the Italian city of Alessandria) you know that they have had some interesting adventures using the Italian train system. We put their luggage in our car and moved the vehicle to better parking before commencing our tour of Lucca.

We took them on our usual route through the town—a bit of a walk along the walls, the church of San Frediano, the old Roman anfiteatro, a walk along via Fillungo, the church of San Michele, Piazza Grande and the cathedral of San Martino. The weather was cool and there was a spritz of rain from time to time. Nonetheless, we had a good time wandering the winding streets of Lucca and getting to know one another. We had not previously met face to face although we had been exchanging emails since last spring. A mutual friend had suggested Kim and Rachel pick our brains when they decided to spend a year in Italy.

Our tour was supposed to finish with a visit to the archeological museum under one of the deconsecrated churches in town. We had heard good things about the exhibit and were disappointed to find that it was closed on Thursdays and Fridays from November 1 to the end of March. With that option nixed, we strolled back to the car and went back to the house.

A stop at the enoteca (wine store) to refill our 3 liter jug with red wine, as usual, proved quite popular. Our guests always get a kick out of going into the back room and seeing the jug get filled from a giant stainless steel tank by a nozzle that greatly resembles a gas pump feed. They usually get an even bigger kick out of the price--€1.30 per liter or €3.90 to fill our jug which it the equivalent of 4 bottles!

The four of us had dinner at Il Mulin della Volpe, one of our favorite local restaurants. Having nibbled on salami, cheese, olives and peanuts, along with some of the jug of wine, Kim, Rachel and I only had bowls of tortelli along with mixed salad. Tortelli is the local specialty—pasta meat filling topped with a tomato and meat sauce. It is very filling and very yummy.

The next day, Friday, we took Kim and Rachel to see the medieval Devil’s Bridge at Borgo a Mozzano and the medieval town of Barga. We lunched at a pizzeria in Fornaci di Barga before deciding not to continue on up the valley. Instead, we went to Marlia to the frantoio where we showed Kim and Rachel how the olives became oil. Our friends Mary and Orlando were there will another load of olives which were just about finished. We went to a nearby bar for a drink before heading back to Partigliano. We ate dinner at home that evening before going up to the mattress “festival” at the old school in the village.

The previous Sunday, at the marcia podistica, our friend Erina had urged us to come to una festa del materasso (a mattress party) at 9 p.m. the following Friday. Near as I could tell from what she told me was that it was a benefit for Unione Sportivo di Partigliano, the local walking group, and they needed a minimum number of people to receive the honorarium from the salesman. The whole idea confused me so much that I specifically asked Erina if we were talking about mattresses for beds. Yes, mattresses for beds she confirmed. We were not obligated to buy anything she assured us and there would be food and drink afterwards.

So, after dinner the four of us trooped up the hill to the old school (not used since well before we bought our house) where we found ourselves in a room with between forty and fifty local people. Up at the front was a single bed sitting on top of a couple of tables. What ensued was a spirited presentation by the salesman of all the virtues of the foam mattress, the slatted platform (that is used in Europe instead of a box spring), the pillow, the wool mattress cover, wool pillow cover and the wool and satin coverlet. A matrimoniale (double) version with all the bells and whistles could be yours for only €4,000.00!

The whole thing reminded me a great deal of a Tupperware party. However, the biggest surprise of the evening was that the U.S.P. received a donation of €500 from the salesman. Apparently this is how the company sells its products. They have no stores and do no advertising. The bed certainly seemed like good product but at that price I can handle an lesser mattress.

Kim and Rachel, as well as Dom and I, thought the whole thing quite hilarious. We did not stay long after the presentation was over (it took at least an hour and a half) and as the four of us picked our way down the hill we compared impressions of an unforgettable evening. Our guests definitely thought it was the highlight of their visit.

The next morning, Saturday, we dropped Kim and Rachel off at the train station where they planned to continue on to Umbria for several more days of touring. If you want to read more about their Italian adventures check out their blog at http://lifeinalessandria.blogspot.com/.

The weather had improved a great deal so Dom and I drove over to Viareggio along the coast. We parked in the port area and checked out a few of the mega-yachts berthed there. After a stop at a store for Dom to buy some wrenches and a stop at a bar for another coffee, we wandered through the streets where the boatbuilders have their factories and shops. Even though it was Saturday many of them were working and it was fun to peek in the doorways and see what was happening. I was struck by the number of bicycles and mopeds propped just inside the doorways. I remarked to Dom that it was nice of the businesses to provide “employee parking.”

Back in the car, we meandered around the Viareggio area for a while and stopped for pizza on the way home. That evening we, along with Mary and Orlando, went to Bob and Joy’s house for Cajun food. They fed us a delicious dinner of corn chowder, shrimp po’ boys, cole slaw and praline cake with ice cream. It was another wonderful evening with good friends.

Sunday morning Dom and I got up early and went to the marcia podistica at Casabianca. Unfortunately, Bridget the G.P.S. did not know where the town was located so we wandered around for a while before we found it. The fog that rolled in did not help matters but a stop at a bar helped. It was a bitterly cold morning so Dom and I walked briskly but it was near the end of 5 kilometers before I really felt warm.

Back at home I went to mass at the village church and was joined by Bob and Joy. The church near their house no longer holds mass and they had been going into Lucca on Sundays. It was Remembrance Day, for the end of World War I, so after mass a wreath was laid on the village war memorial. I invited Bob and Joy to join us for breakfast and when the sun came out we ended up eating our scrambled eggs and scones on the patio.

After they left I took my book outside for a while longer but even before the sun sank behind the hill the temperature plummeted. Even on the nicest days the nights have been quite cool. Most mornings we turn on the heat for a while. If we are home during the day we often have a fire. However, the wood we are using is not great so it is often a struggle to get it going and keep it going.

Yesterday was another beautiful, warm day. Dom and I both got some outdoor chores done but we also managed some relaxation including reading on the patio in the sunshine. With our departure from Italy two weeks from yesterday and lots of activities scheduled for our return to Whidbey Island we are trying to make the most of the rest of our stay. Since all our “to dos” have been completed we are taking the opportunity to do what we want. Tomorrow we are going to Florence for the day to celebrate my birthday by just to wandering around and having lunch. On Friday I plan to join Mary and Joy for a girls’ day in Lucca.

More tomorrow or Thursday…

The Day After

Dom stayed up until 3 am last night watching the election returns but even then there was not much to report. At 3 am here it is still only 9 pm on the U.S. west coast. By the time I checked in four hours later it was all over—Obama was president-elect, McCain had conceded and it was all a big election rehash/new administration speculation fest. So I went back to bed for another hour.

After heavy rain this morning the weather improved. The afternoon turned partly sunny and by evening it was clear. Dom hauled some more firewood to the barn as we have been going through it rapidly. He figures we now have enough to last through the weekend.

I cleaned the house in preparation for guests and ran a load of wash. During inclement weather laundry is hung upstairs on the third floor. Everything takes longer inside and everything has been dried inside for the last two weeks. Jeans can take a couple of days to fully dry so I often turn them inside out. The trickiest things are sheets because they are so large. I usually turn on the heat and hang them over the largest radiators.

There will be no blog posts until Sunday as it will be difficult to do any with guests staying. A full report of our activities will be forthcoming.

New Oil

Just a quick post to let you know the final olive tally: 134 kilos per Frantoio Matraia’s official scale. We spent this morning stripping the last four trees and because there were so few on each of them it only took us a couple of hours. The personnel at the frantoio had said to be there a half hour before our 5 pm appointment and it is a good thing we were. It took us most of that half hour to get into the parking lot and up to the loading dock. We finally tipped our bags of olives into the mill’s cestino (bin) at 10 minutes to 5. From then on it was watch and wait. Just like the Italians, we kept an eagle eye on our olives as they were processed from fruit to oil. At some point “our” olives became “my” olives. The gentleman who arrived just after us asked when his batch would be processed and the man who checked us in and weighed the loads said, “Dopo la signora (After the lady).” After almost two hours we left with nearly 23 liters of fresh, bright green olive oil—about 14% of the original weight. That is quite good considering an average return is 10-12%. In the picture you can see our oil streaming from the pipe into our plastic jugs. We took it back to the house and then went for a celebratory dinner at Ristorante La Fonte. A more detailed explanation of the olive to oil process (and more photos) will be in tomorrow’s post.

Hot, dry olives!

Brilliantly sunny today which made for warm work picking olives. Our daily total was 39 ½ kilos for an overall total of 135 ½ kilos. As we work through our uliveto (olive grove) the tally increases more slowly because the trees we are stripping now have less fruit. If we are lucky we might get another 20 kilos for the rest of the trees which we will pick tomorrow morning. Today’s picture shows us about halfway through one tree. You can see the net spread beneath the tree and Dom on the ladder picking the olives in the top branches. While he is up there he does some pruning, cutting out limbs reaching skyward so that the tree does not grow too tall. The goal is to have airy, open branches in a bowl shape. If the pruned branches have olives on them I strip those directly into one of our collection bins. Afterwards the branches are thrown in a pile to one side of the net. The upturned bin is where I was sitting to work. At some point in the next few weeks we will finish the pruning, collect the branches and throw them on the burn pile. Next spring they will help the grass burn a little more vigorously. We are looking forward to going to the frantoio (olive mill) tomorrow afternoon and finding out how much oil our harvest produces.

Soggy Olives

We spent another long day picking olives. It started out wet but the rain quickly tapered off. Even so it was awfully damp working in the middle of the soggy trees. For the first couple of hours each pull on a branch produced a mini shower. Yuck! Because the temperatures are still warm (mid 60’s) we never really got wet but it was still uncomfortable.

As you can see from the photo of the grapevines, it is looking very autumnal here. The leaves of the vines produce the most vivid colors while the rest of the trees simply turn pale gold or rusty brown. I am including another photo of the view across the valley from our patio. I took it yesterday while we were eating lunch outside. In spite of the overcast skies we ate al fresco again today.

Our total harvest is up to 96 kilos (211 lbs.). Each day we weigh our full bins on our IKEA bathroom scale. Not terribly accurate but close enough. When we go to the mill they will give us an official tally. Our appointment is Thursday afternoon so more picking tomorrow.

Fire, fire burning bright...

Today we burned the grass. The above photos will give you an idea of the progression of the day.

After yesterday’s rain it was certainly damp enough to risk lighting a fire in the fields. Unfortunately, the rain also meant the grass was partially soaked. Rather than a quick 3-4 hour burn, it took about 7 hours. The day started out wet and several squalls blew threw with more hard rain. When the first downpour started I ran back to the house for an umbrella. We could hear the rain approaching each time (like a rushing stream getting closer and closer) and we huddled under the umbrella each time until it passed.

We started out the day with three piles as large as the first pile we lit plus about a dozen smaller piles scattered around the terraces. After getting the burn pile well alight we kept piling on more grass. Luckily, the grass at the bottom of each pile was still dry so there was enough fuel to keep the fire burning hot throughout the process. It is interesting how the burn pile never gets any larger than it starts out. The fire eats the middle out of the pile, we dump more grass on it and the fire gobbles it up. Eventually all the grass was on the burn pile and the terraces were nice and tidy.

By early afternoon the sky cleared and we basked in the sun watching the last of the pile smolder and collapse in on itself. We sat on the green plastic lawn chairs we hauled out beside the burn pile and watched and watched. Every ten minutes or so one of us would get up and poke at the fire, pulling more grass onto the hot spots and digging unburned grass from the bottom of the pile and putting it on the top. Each time the breeze blew the coals flared, a little more grass blazed and the column of smoke swirled and shifted. Finally, about 6 pm Dom threw some water on the remains of the pile. Right now he is outside checking it again. He will make at least one more trip outside before we got to bed.

Throughout the afternoon we also heard grunting and squealing from near the stream in the woods at the bottom of our property. Occasionally whatever it was sounded rather angry or excited. We think it was probably some of the cinghiali (wild boar) that have been prolific this year. It certainly sounded like pigs. They might have been eating the walnuts that fall from the trees down there. Whatever they were doing we were glad they stayed down in the woods.

Now we are all ready to start the olive harvest on Monday.