Auto e Moto d'Epoca a Roma Fiera

Last Saturday Dom and I drove to Rome for another classic car and motorcycle show.  It was a beautiful day for a drive down the coast and we enjoyed the trip.  The show was at the Roma Fiera not far from the airport at Fiumicino.  The complex is HUGE and it took us a while to figure out where the show was within the many buildings, how to get into the parking area and then how to get into the show itself.  Eventually we did and found a number of interesting vehicles.  Of course, the vehicles I find noteworthy are not always the same as those Dom likes.  So, here is are my highlights from the show.

I loved the display of four classic Fiat Cinquecento models.  They were "dressed" as the four seasons.  Here we have "summer" with all that one needs for a day at the beach.

Here is "fall" with debris from the vendemmia (grape harvest).

Here is "winter" complete with fake snow, a sled and skis.

And finally we have "spring."

I also always enjoy the different permutations of Vespas and other scooters.  Here is one with a sidecar.

Here is a Vespa with a trailer.  It has an interesting "hitch" that allows the trailer to rotate around the seat portion of the scooter.

Here is a bright pink Vespa, exactly the color I would like if I had one!

In one section of the show was a great mass of different types of scooters and motorcyles.

Here is another view of the scooter mob.

Here is an American import I did not find terribly appealing.  This giant Jack Daniel's bar complete with country music on a big screen TV and...

...a giant buffalo for "bull riding."  I actually saw someone on the buffalo!

Outside the Fiera complex there were several GIANT olive trees.  These had the biggest trunks of any olive trees I have ever seen.  Obviously very old, they were probably transplanted here from another location.  We see this frequently and the olives are so hardy they seem to come through the transplanting with no trouble. 

In another post I will give you Dom's favorites from the show.

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.

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…

Olio Extra Vergine!

After we had our olives pressed we submitted a sample of the oil for an acid test. Today we picked up the results at the frantoio and were thrilled to find that the acid content was 0.10% Since anything under 0.80% is considered extra vergine (extra virgin) we can now legally mark ours as such. Not that we sell any of it. We have three 5 liter food grade plastic jugs full to the brim of our oil that we plan to take back to the U.S. Once there we will put it in glass wine bottles and give some as gifts.

We picked up the results of the test on our way to lunch at the home of our friends Carol and Luigi. Carol recently bought her first computer and arranged for the installation of a DSL line in their house. Unfortunately, neither her neighbor, a computer saleman, nor I could get the connection to work. Near as I could tell the problem relates to the username and passwords but it will take a technician from the phone company to tell for sure. It was frustrating working on the computer but Carol gave us a wonderful lunch and Luigi plied us with wine.

The weather has turned wet again. Here is a picture of our patio taken late this afternoon. It has brightened a bit but everything was well washed after heavy rain in the middle of the day. We enjoy sitting by the fire inside but would far prefer eating lunch outside and being able to read in the late afternoon sunshine.

From Olives to Oil

We are back from Padova e Zurigo (Padua and Zurich, nell’inglese) and can report that we had a wonderful time. A full report on our excursion north is forthcoming. However, today we will backtrack and first tell all about our adventures last week at the frantoio (olive mill).

As was reported earlier, we finished our harvest last Thursday and took our olives to the frantoio for a 5 pm appointment. When we arrived we had a little difficulty getting into the parking/unloading area of the mill (top left photo). There were cars, truck and people everywhere. It was almost 20 minutes before we actually unloaded our olives into a cestino (bin). Each cestino can hold up to 500 kilos of olives (top right) Finally the frantoio fork lift set them on the scales (row two). We had estimated a weight of about 150 kilos but the frantoio’s official figure was 134 kilos. I guess that is the accuracy you can expect when you weigh your olives on a bathroom scale from IKEA.

We waited 10-15 minutes for our olives to be dumped into the hopper where the processing starts (row three left). While doing so the gentleman who came in behind us asked when his olives would be processed. The man who checked us in said, “Dopo la Signora (after the lady).” So, at that point “our” olives became “my” olives!

Once the olives are in the hopper they begin their journey through the machinery. First, the olives go up a conveyer belt where the leaves are blown off and the fruit washed (row three right). From there the olives go through a chute (row four left) where they are ground up (yes, pits and all) and the resulting mash is dumped into a mixing machine (row four right), sort of like giant beaters (row five left). The mash spends about an hour in the mixer were the movement makes large oil globules out of small oil globules.

The next step is for the mash to be spun in a centrifuge so that the solids (pits, etc.) are spun off leaving only the liquid. The resulting mixture is centrifuged again so that the water and oil are separated. The bright green olive oil then streams out a tube and into one’s containers (row five right). There is a tap that can be turned off and on so that one can use more than one container. We used four 5 liter plastic jugs and part of a 5 liter glass jug for a total of about 22-23 liters of oil. That was about 14%, by weight, of our original 134 kilos—a very respectable result.

As you know, if you read last Thursday’s post, after collecting our oil we went out for a celebratory dinner at La Fonte, one of our favorite restaurants.

Before we left for Zurich we managed to completely fill the three 5 liter plastic jugs we plan to bring back to the U.S. It was not until today that we finally put the rest of the oil, about 7 liters, into other containers. We now have a supply here for ourselves plus some to give to friends. Overall, we are really pleased with this year’s olive harvest and the resulting oil.

Rain started falling heavily last night and continued today. Fortunately, we had no plans to work outside (yeah!). I cleaned house and Dom puttered around alternately helping and keeping out of the way. In the afternoon we ran errands. It finally feels like Autumn might truly be here but we still hope to get some Italian Indian summer before we leave in four weeks.

Too much fun!

Contrary to yesterday’s promise, the story of olives to oil will have to wait until next week. Dom and I spent today in Lucca doing errands and having lunch. It was after 4:30 pm when we reached Marlia. Knowing our friends Mary and Orlando had an appointment for that time, we swung by the frantoio (mill) to see what their final tally was. Mary had called earlier in the day to see what percentage we got and told me she estimated their take at around 900 kilos (and that from only 34 trees!). They ended up bringing in 1004 kilos! Joy and Bob also showed up because Bob has been helping Mary and Orlando harvest and they had never been to the mill. We ended up standing around for the next two hours (with a break at a local bar for a drink) while their olives were processed and they collected their oil. Afterwards we all went for dinner in Ponte a Moriano. Loads of fun but as a result Dom and I did not get home until 10 pm. Early tomorrow morning we are leaving for a few days in Padova and Zurich, Switzerland. There is a classic car exposition and market in Padova and my father, on his way to South Africa, will be visiting my brother and his wife who live in Zurich. So, a little car time then a little family time. Next new post should be on Wednesday.

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.

Busy, busy, busy!

The limited posts over the last few days probably clued you in that we have been molto occupato (busy).

Saturday was spent working in the fields. Dom continued cutting grass with the frulino (strimmer/weed whacker) while I raked it into small haystacks. Luckily the grass is very dry so it piles up easily. The warm weather has meant we generally work for three to four hours in the mornings before breaking for lunch and then running errands, working inside or just kicking back. We went out for pizza in the evening. My pizza Messico with pepperoni, red pepper flakes, olives, artichokes and mushrooms was REALLY tasty!

On Sunday we rose early and drove to the town of Capannori where the weekly marcia podistica (non-competitive walkers’ march) was held. It was a lovely morning—clear and crisp. At 7 am the sun was just coming up over the hills. We enjoyed our 6 kilometer excursion, especially the opportunity to explore on foot another picturesque town in the Province of Lucca. The walk ranged through autumn fields where we could hear hunters and their dogs stalking the wily bird, past quiet factory buildings, suburban-seeming clutches of houses, the modernish town center and finally wound back to the older part of the city where the start/finish was located.

Later in the afternoon, after watching a recording of the Japanese Formula 1 race, we spent several hours at the local bar catching up with local friends.

Monday, Dom again worked in the fields while I cleaned the house and prepped for a dinner party. Dom’s adventure of the day involved trying to stabilize one of the end posts for the grape trellis. Unfortunately, our neighbors’ irrigation pipe ran just where he was digging. As water spurted out he said his first thought was to run back to the house and tell me we were heading back to Whidbey Island early. Rather than that he found the neighbors’ Ivaldo and Osvaldo and the three of them repaired the pipe, reburied it and reset the trellis post. The first I heard of it was when he showed up at the house and laughingly told me there had been un piccolo incidente (a little accident).

Our dinner party was very successful. American friends Mary and Orlando and Joy and Bob joined us for “Mexican night.” Several spice packets, tortillas and Cougar Gold cheese transported from the U.S. provided the basis for a meal of chips and guacamole and salsa, enchiladas, fajita chicken and peppers, mixed salad and crème caramel with fruit. Given the dearth of ethnic cuisine in Italy our friends living here full-time really appreciated the opportunity for a taste of something different. Bob even wore his Cabo San Lucas fire department t-shirt! And, next time we decided we are going to tackle margheritas.

We also stopped at the frantoio (mill) on Monday and moved our appointment up a week. Our olives are ready to pick now. The early ripening varieties are hanging heavy and black on the trees while the rest are just beginning to turn from bright green to a mottled purplish color. So, our harvest begins next Monday and we take the olives to be pressed on October 23. Our goal this year is to do better than our best harvest of about 100 kgs.

Yesterday, we really felt lazy and took the opportunity to kick back and veg. Well, not completely. I managed to catch up on emails, add to the blog (finally!) and get the rest of the party cleanup finished. After dinner our friend Anna stopped by for coffee, cookies and a nice chat.

Today found us once more out in the fields. Most of the grass is now cut and raked. Dom kept at the last of it while I finished trimming the suckers and weeds from the base of the olives. I also cut back the grapevines. Where they had found their way into the olive trees I had to carefully cut them free so as not to disturb the fruit. After that I moved the smaller haystacks into bigger ones closer to where we burn. Now it is a matter of waiting for a rainy day to burn. Since that is forecast for tomorrow or Friday it looks like we are in good shape.

This afternoon Dom needed a haircut so we drove into Lucca. While he got his new do I walked into the main part of town, hung out at a bookstore and read the adverts in the real estate offices. On the way home we stopped at Mary and Orlando’s house to return something they left at ours. Our nice visit with them included prosecco, beer, nibbles and an introduction to their friend Massimo.

Since it is nearly 8 pm I had better get this posted and do something about dinner before Dom is asleep on the couch.

For Sale - House in Italy

Last week my sister suggested that I post a few pictures of our house for those who have never been here and to refresh the memories of those who have. Rather than doing exactly that here is some information about our progress trying to sell our house including a link to a web listing with eight pictures.

About a year ago we decided to try to sell our house in Partigliano and relocate to a spot closer to Lucca. Much as we love our village, house and land, since we moved to acreage on Whidbey Island we have learned that two part-time houses with lots of work is an exhausting proposition. After trying to care for both places for two years we decided we needed one place that was lower maintenance. Thus, we decided to simplify our Italian life.

Last spring we began to market the house in earnest. Since there is no multiple listing system in Italy, we contacted a number of real estate agents and eventually listed the property with five of them. While there has been some interest and the house has been shown several times no one has shown serious interest. Recently we decided to try splitting the house and barn into two listings. Today we spoke with the agent from whom we bought the house and set a price of €220,000 for the house and most of the land and €50,000 for the barn and small part of the land. Actually, the land split is totally negotiable depending on what a buyer wants.

As of today, our web listing with Italy magazine has not yet been updated but soon will be. Click here to view pictures of the interior and land.

The market here in Italy is much the same as that in the U.S. There are lots of properties available and not many buyers. Luckily, we are not desperate to sell immediately.

In the meantime, we are content to enjoy our house while we still have it. We are particularly pleased that we have an excellent olive crop this year and are enjoying the wine we made the past two years.

Finally Warm and Sunny

Finally, today dawned clear and promised sunshine and warmth. We seem to be over jet lag and are now sleeping normal hours. This means that we actually wake up at 7 am which is just about when it gets light here. This morning we were downstairs having breakfast about 8 and outside working by 9 am.

It looks like the olive harvest is going to be early this year. Already our early ripening varieties are turning purplish-black. Yesterday we went to the frantoio (mill) where we have our olives processed into oil and made an appointment to bring our harvest in on October 30. This means we will need to start picking about October 27. However, we also want to set out nets as soon as possible to catch the olives that fall between now and then, especially if it gets windy.

In order to do this we need to finish cleaning up the terraces, in particular around the base of the trees. The mown grass needs to be raked and hauled to the burn pile and Dom needs to finish cutting the grass up close the tree trunks and on the terrace banks. Heavy dew this morning meant we had to wait to do any of this. Instead, I moved the grass I had raked earlier in the week. Sometimes I use the wheelbarrow to do this but with piles closer to the burn area I just scoop it up with the hay fork and walk it over to what is fast becoming a giant haystack. Luckily the ground is still pretty dry so even though it rained the last few days the underside of all the piles was still dry. This means the giant haystack will burn more easily once we get around to setting it alight. That needs to wait until we get the rest of the grass gathered and then for a damp morning.

Dom changed the string head of the strimmer for the blade and cut the 5 foot tall daisy-like flowers that grow between our patio and our neighbor’s orto (vegetable garden). They grow up in that area every fall and are really pretty to look at. I try to cut some for inside the house before Dom gets around to felling them. Unfortunately they do not last long once cut. After lunch he changed the head again and went back to cutting grass.

We were also able to eat lunch on the patio for the first time since we got back. As we were dining a little early—12 pm—the sun was not yet on the table. Nonetheless, it was really warm and comfortable outside and we enjoyed the warm breeze and the view across the valley. A couple of eagles were coasting on the updrafts which is common that time of day.

Later in the afternoon I went into Lucca to run errands and help our friends Francesco and Cam arrange a dinner for the hiking group they are leading. By the time I got there it was downright hot and I had a fabulous time wandering the streets with my sweater hanging over my purse. We really do not get into Lucca too often these days so it was a treat to have the afternoon to reacquaint myself with the town and stop in at some of my favorite shops. This included a pause at Il Pinguino (The Penguin) which is my favorite gelateria in Lucca. I enjoyed a cup of bacio (kiss—chocolate with pieces of nut and chocolate), almond and Malaga (flavored with Malaga wine).

Tomorrow I am going back to lead the hiking group on a little tour of the city. I really enjoy doing that sort of thing and am looking forward to it.