Hiking at Ebey's Landing

Francesco and Cam (on the right and third from right) organize hiking tours in Italy. They have a group meeting in Lucca in early October and I am going to show them the sights on their first day in town. Some of the tour participants, Cam and Francesco and I met at Ebey's Landing on Whidbey Island for a short hike (3 1/2 miles) and picnic. The weather was not promising but it never actually rained on us and it was quite warm and sunny by the time we finished at 2 pm. The view from the top of the bluff was spectacular looking south down Puget Sound. However, it was really windy so we continued on down the trail and ate our lunches down on the beach in a sheltered spot behind some logs. I had never hiked this trail although I had heard about it from a number of people. It is a great spot as you get the long vistas from the top of the bluff as well as the fun of walking the beach. There were hawks soaring overhead, herons in the lagoon, interesting vegetation and lots of shorebirds. It is definitely worth a return visit.

Trip to Lake Taho

Dom and I took off on August 6th for nearly a week in California. One of my cousins got married at Tahoe City and it was a great opportunity to visit with the California branch of the Sullivan family. We drove down and my mother went with us (my dad flew flew in after a business trip to Toronto). Somewhere in Oregon as we tooled along I-5 we passed this rig that was comprised of a semi hauling a large 5th wheel trailer with the Smart car tucked in behind the cab of the truck. I had Dom drop back so I could take this picture!

It takes about 15 hours from Seattle to Tahoe City so we broke the trip in Yreka, CA. Although I had driven through Yreka many times I had never stopped. We stayed in a lovely B&B on a street lines with lovely Victorian homes. The Third Street Bed & Breakfast (http://www.yrekabedandbreakfast.com/) was absolutely lovely and we had a great meal at The Silver Spoon restaurant a few blocks away. The only flaw in our visit was the smoke from the fires in the Shasta Trinity National Forest . Like a heavy fog, it blanketed the town blocked the view of the surrounding mountains. It reminded us of old camp fires and chimneys that do not draw well. After a scrumptious breakfast on Friday (8/8) we continued on and arrived in Tahoe City mid afternoon. Later that evening there was a welcoming party at which we met Colleen's fiance, Sean.

In Tahoe City we stayed at another wonderful B&B, The Cottage Inn(http://www.thecottageinn.com/). It is a charming collection of rustic buildings with theme rooms and beach access on Lake Tahoe. Dom and I spent several hours reading by the lake before we went to the wedding Saturday (8/9)afternoon.

The ceremony took place in the Catholic church at nearby Squaw Valley. There were three very young flower girls. The girls walked up the aisle with their mothers but then got a little antsy standing on the alter. At one point Colleen's niece, Elizabeth decided to join her aunt and almost uncle. Shortly thereafter she joined her grandparents which is where all the flower girls ended up eventually.

The reception was lots of fun and provided the opportunity for a picture of the Sullivan cousins of my father's generation.

On Sunday (8/10) Dom and I went rafting on the Truckee river. It is a lazy cruise this time of year with nothing much in the way of rapids. We enjoyed watching the other rafters and floating lazily downstream. After spinning in circles to start with we managed to keep the raft mostly pointed downstream. Dom said we kept to family tradition by running into one bridge and one rock. I bought a waterproof camera but do not yet have the pictures back from the old fashioned developer.

On Monday (8/11) Dom and I began our drive back north. We headed due west to Clear Lake, CA, an area north of Napa Valley that I had never heard of. In Yreka we had drunk a Zinfandel from a winery called Brassfield. We asked about it and learned that it was near Clear Lake. Through pure luck we happened across a sign for the winery and so we drove up in the hills and found it. After tasting a little wine, buying a bottle of Zinfandel and talking to their oenologist we continued on our way, spending the night in Eureka, CA.

On Tuesday, we continued on up the northern California and southern Oregon coast. This area is relatively sparsely settled and there are lots of stretches of heavy forest and pristine beaches. Sometimes there is only cliff falling into the water while other times there are miles of sand. We stopped at one of many gorgeous spots and walked out to the edge of the dunes. The weather was beautiful our entire trip but the thick piles of driftwood seen here are proof that this area also experiences some wicked winds and surf.

We continued along the coast to Coos Bay where we cut inland to I-5 at Roseberg. From there it was a straight shot back home. We ran into some rush hour traffic in Portland and finally reached Mukilteo a little after 9 pm, caught the 10 pm ferry and were home before 11.

As you can see, I am still trying to get the hang of this formatting thing. After trying to get it right for about half an hour I am posting it "as is."

Why "Abbastanza Buono"?

The title for this blog comes from an incident when Dom and I first had our house in Partigliano. We ordered firewood and a few days later the seller dumped a load in the middle of the shared courtyard outside our derelict barn. We decided we had better get it out of the way sooner rather than later and proceeded to do so. I heaved the wood just inside the barn door and Dom stacked it neatly against the old cow byre. Most of the wood was okay but the stack contained a lot of strange, gnarly pieces--the kind of stuff that if you ordered firewood in the U.S. and got a load full of it you might call the vendor and ask for a partial refund. However, it was still early days for us in Italy and for all we knew what we had was a normal load of local wood. As we hefted and stacked we joked about the situation. Finally, Dom said, "Abbastanza buono per i stranieri." It took me a minute to figure out that what he said translated as "good enough for foreigners." Ever since then we often joke about something being "abbastanza buono..."

When it came time to find a title for this blog I tried a number of variations on the theme of Italian sojourns, life in Italy, Tuscan odysseys, etc. but they were all taken. Who knew so many people were writing blogs about Italy! ;-) After much staring at the computer I asked Dom what he thought about "Abbastanza Buono" for a title. It seemed good enough so there you have it.

A Blog is born...

This is my first posting to this newly created blog that will mostly chronicle the life my husband, Domenic, and I lead at our second home in Italy. I will also be posting some things about our life in the U.S. Because we spend spring and fall in Italy we can currently be found at our home on Whidbey Island, in Washington State. As I become more proficient with the blog tools more interesting text, pictures and links will be added...