Al Mare - Deception Pass Kayaking

I went sea kayaking with my sister, Patty, last Friday morning. We drove up to Deception Pass State Park for a 90 minute tour with Anacortes Kayak Tours. We did the 9:30 am early bird special--only $25 per person. The tour company provided everything and it was fabulous. The morning was calm and a little foggy--probably better than sunny because we did not get too hot in all our gear.


This was my view straight ahead!


Lots of other scenery too.


This picture does not do our guide, Ben, justice.



We rounded this headland before the fog rolled in.

At the top of the headland we could see three people. They set down a bag and took something out of it. For some reason my first thought was that they were scattering the ashes of the dearly departed. Patty thought the same thing. We hoped they would wait until we were a little farther away. On our way back the fog had rolled in and we could not see the headland. However, we did hear a bagpipe rendition of Amazing Grace. A little eerie.

Ben showed us a sea "cave." We could paddle right inside but it narrowed quickly. Along the rocks were loads of different sea life including bright purple sea stars.

There was lots of kelp all along the rocky shore. Ben told us it was edible so I tried a little. I thought it tasted like salty peapods but Patty thought it just tasted like grass.

In this picture you can just make out some of the purple sea stars. If you click on this picture it will enlarge it and you can see it better.

On our way back we could see this slot in the rocks. By this time the fog was moving in and we paddled along like we were wrapped in cotton wool.

On our way home we stopped at Deception Pass bridge. It must have been slack water because lots of boats were heading in and out. Much of the time the tides are too strong for small craft to safely navigate the narrow pass.

The kayaking was loads of fun and we hope to do it again soon.

A Busy Three Weeks!!!

It is hard to believe it is three weeks tomorrow since we returned to Whidbey Island from Italy. We have been very busy. Some of the highlights incude the following:



My dear friend Leeds and I did the Whidbey Island Garden Tour the Saturday after Dom and I returned. The above picture is a sample of the wonderful private gardens that are opened to the public just once a year. This particular one had a bevy of interesting features including a large electric train installation, interesting sculptures, a barn turned music studio, an old farmhouse turned guest house, ponds, streams, estate-sized lawns, woods and an antique tractor. The weather was fabulous--more like Italy than Washington State.



After a busy Fourth of July weekend spent in Seattle, Dom and I took in a Seattle Mariners day game on July 8th. Unfortunately it rained (hence the above shot of the roof closing) and it was a really horrible game. Thankfully the M's have been doing better since then and go into the All Star break only 4 games out of first place in the AL West.



With company expected last Saturday, Dom and I put on a full court press to finish up a number of projects around the house. In addition to repainting the front deck and planting all the deck pots, we finally finished our winter bathroom remodel. There were quite a number of fiddly things to be done--recaulking under the tile baseboard, painting the door, the woodwork around the door and a good bit of the hallway, touching up paint on the walls, installing the towel bars and tissue holder, all the cabinet hardware and the wood threshhold. On Saturday morning I cleaned the bathroom and finally put down the new rugs and hung the new towels. All we need now is some art for the far wall.

Here is one of the large pots I bought to replace some horrible wooden planters that we took out last summer when we painted the deck. My deck fountain well did not fit into it but we managed to construct an alternative using a couple of large plastic buckets. I repainted the fountain and now it is a fair imitation of an old terracotta pot. Behind it I have planted some things that can hardly be seen from this angle. I have also added to another eight pots. Even so I have actually reduced the number of pots I have to water this summer by about 25%. The vegetable garden is coming along pretty well--lots of raspberries, swiss chard, carrots, peas and eventually squash and beans. The chipmunks seem to get all the strawberries and the onions did not do very well.

On Saturday a number of my Forest Ridge high school classmates came to visit for a mini-reunion. From left to right are Kim, Claudia, Mary, Maura, Julie and me. Kim's mother and husband also came as well as Dom. It was fun to catch up with everyone.


On Sunday my friend Sally and I gave a baby shower for Leeds' daughter. Here you can just see Leeds and the soon-to-be-parents, Jen-ai and Eric. It was mostly the Alpental gang as Jen-ai was an Alpental baby herself and Eric has also been around the mountain "forever." I provided the food so, in amongst everything else I have done the past week, I was busy making cupcakes, iced tea, crostini and tapenades, etc., etc.

Boy, was I ever happy to have today to recuperate! We have two weeks before the next big event but so much has already been done. It will be nice to get my desk cleared off, do some reading, a lot of weeding and then start ramping up for more guests on the 25th.

A Last Evening in Rome

On Monday, June 22 we began our journey back to Whidbey Island. The Italian house was cleaned, closed up and our voluminous luggage loaded in the car. In Pisa we returned the Fiat Punto to Rosario, our car contact, and caught an 11 am train to Rome. We had an interesting journey as we ended up in a compartment with a Latvia PhD from Syracuse, NY and a couple from Melbourne, Australia. What I had contemplated as a quiet sojourn became a non-stop gab fest.

Once in Rome we caught the Leonardo Express to the airport. After checking into the Hilton right at the airport we rested for a while and then caught the train back to Rome.

We went looking for the church of Santa Maria della Vittoria, famous for Bernini's The Ecstacy of St. Theresa. I read about it in an article describing an Angels and Demons tour and it was one of the tour stops. When we arrived a priest was keeping anyone from entering as mass was being said. Fortunately, it was only about ten minutes before he allowed us and a few others inside.



The statue is incredibly beautiful--very life-like and full of emotion.


The rest of the church is also beautiful. It is a true Baroque jewel box. The decoration behind the alter is strongly reminicent of a like depiction of the Holy Spirit in St. Peter's.



After we left the church we walked to the Trevi Fountain. My friend Deb had asked me to toss a coin in the fountain for her. We got there to find the usual summer mob of tourists but I still got close enough to sacrifice a 2 centesimi coin on Deb's behalf. Interestingly, the Trevi Fountain was the first place we visited when we arrived in Rome at the beginning of our trip. The perfect "bookends" for this spring's trip to Italy.

Marcia Podistica a Partigliano

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

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

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


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


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



Here I am taking a break from panini making.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

A Day at the Beach

The recent heat and humidity has really been getting to us. Highs have been around 30 degrees C. every day and the muggy air means even the easiest job causes one to break out in a sweat. One afternoon Dom came downstairs and laid flat out on his back on the tile floor. He said he knew any piece of furniture would soon warm up but he knew that would not happen with the floor. This week we have tried to get up early and do our outdoor chores as quickly as possible. Then after lunch we either run errands in the air conditioned car or hide inside.

Earlier in the week we talked about going to the beach to cool off. Our hectic social schedule meant yesterday was the best day for the excursion. So, after doing a few chores, we packed bathing suits, towels, flip flops, books and various other items into a couple of bags and off we went.

We went to our favorite spot in Marina di Massa. It is an area that is not as posh as some of the beach communities further south such as Forte di Marmi or Versilia. Bar Nettuno is quite casual with a blend of families, teenagers and a few tourists. Their food is pretty good so we had lunch there before paying to use a couple of chairs and a beach umbrella. It cost us Euros 10 which was a discount because we had lunch and were only there for the afternoon.

Not a bad self-portrait!

Dom hunkered down in his chair with his book.

This was the view from our table at lunch. Beach umbrellas and chairs as far as the eye can see!

The beach is lovely, soft sand. The dry sand is incredibly hot so one has to wear sandals to the water's edge. Dom took his off too close to the surf and they ended up being tossed around by the small waves. There is not a lot of tidal swing in the Mediterranean--maybe 1-2 feet maximum. In this photo you can also see the pier that sticks out in the water. On either side of it is free beach so by mid-afternoon it was quite crowded and lots of people were splashing around.

We did not spend a lot of time in the water, just bobbing around periodically for a few minutes before going back to our chairs in the shade. It felt a little brisk when one first went in but after a minute or two it was perfect. It is hard to believe the water is so warm in mid-June. Lake Washington, in Seattle, would be lucky to be as warm after a long, hot summer.

Another picture of the chairs and sunbathers at Bar Nettuno with the Alpi Apuane in the background--where Carrara marble comes from.

The beach umbrellas have hooks for keeping things out of the sand and little tables for drinks or sunscreen.

The building next to Bar Nettuno is a restaurant and disco. I noticed that on the roof it looks like they have hot tubs! You can just see them behind the metal railing.

We stayed at the beach until 4 pm and then headed home. That gave us plenty of time to rest up before going out to dinner last night. We had a wonderful meal with Anna Galli and her parents Luciano and Mara at Il Mulin della Volpe, one of our favorite local restaurants.

Scenes From Our Corner of the Village

Here is a picture of our newly re-varnished door. It is now bright and shiny and very welcoming.

This is what our corner of the courtyard looks like when you approach the front door. All the greenery is thanks to our neighbor Maria Rosa. She has quite the "green thumb" and manages to grow quite a selection of plants in various size pots on the patio.

Here is what we see when we look out our front door. This morning it was overcast and we even had a light sprinkle of rain. It cooled things off a little bit but it is still hot and muggy.

This is one of the pots I have on our window sills. I love the combination of blue lobelia and yellow-orange marigolds.

Lots of our neighbors have pots full of flowers surrounding their front doors. Note the white cat by the drain pipe waiting for the lunch time leftovers to be put outside.

I love the succulents that grow wild in the old stone walls. As we walk past this particular wall the yellow flowers are just peeping over the top. However, when I leaned over to take this picture I found a much larger plant tucked into the crevice.

This gate is a particular favorite of mine. Beyond it is five or six foot drop-off. When we first were coming here, part of the old wooden steps were still there. The cats often use the derelict barn on the left to have their kittens. The tiny fur balls would scamper up and down the remains of the steps. Now the steps are gone and we have not seen any kittens this spring.

Things are getting all tidied up around here in preparation for Sunday's marcia podistica (organized walk) that is put on by and passes through the village. Last weekend they repainted the white arrows and other markings that designate the routes. The walk passes right along this path but the participants will probably never see this view as they will be heading away from the church.

I am also fond of this gate and rosemary bush. The rosemary used to hang over the wall and I often brushed against it or ran my hand through it as I was walking down from the car. There is something special about the smell of fresh herbs.

Walking down from the parking area towards our place this house is the first one you see. Climbing up the side of it is a huge jasmine plant, one of many in the village. Between the blooming jasmine and the blooming mulberry trees the air this time of year is heavily scented. When I lay in bed at night the perfume reminds me of the trip I made here five years ago with my girlfriends. It was the first time I was here so late in the month of June. Happy "anniversary" to all my TALDI buddies!!

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.

La Sagra del Tordello

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


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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

The festival even has its own wine label!

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