The Year of Snacks.....

December 31, 2008

And so it is New Years Eve and Kim and I have just returned from the gym after a gentle workout of stretching and weights. We're both easing back into it after trading a nagging cold/cough back and forth. While walking home I thought about this year and all that has occurred (see previous blogs for further elaboration!)and realized that 2008, among other things has been:

A Year of Snacking: Both Kim and I have allowed ourselves to buy and retain collectively snacks that we would not allow in the US. While we might indulge in one of the above periodically (plus gelato, not pictured, but an integral part of our diet), here in Italy they are part of our weekly shopping list (wine included). Will this change upon our return? You bet- but for now, yum!

A Year of Sleeping In: This one is a bit embarrassing given my many years of always being up (weekdays) between 4:45-7AM. It suffices to say, we have surpassed those hours by a long shot.

A Year that I Can Leave a Job, Be Unemployed and the World Doesn't Come to an End: Kim already had that one down....many, many jobs ago!

A Year to Live in Italy But Not Learn Italian: What can I say?? I forget to study. Both Kim and I understand a lot and can also read a fair amount but when it comes to speaking our minds, that's a difference story. Today, at the gym, Christiano, one of the trainers, approached me and began talking. Basically what he said is that he is very impressed with my understanding Italian and that he wouldn't understand any English if tables were turned. He went on to say that the most he does is speak a bit slower but that's it. He's noticed that we understand his directions in the water aerobics classes and the fact that I was totally following our current conversation left him giving me a thumbs up... Walking home as I thought about this, I concluded that it's really not a bad thing to not always be thinking of a response before the speaker finishes (like I often do with English) but it's nice to just listen and take in the words and leave them at that. And I can still be quite content understanding relatively little. Kim, on the other hand, DOES study but her anxiety when called upon to speak belies what she has in her head.

A Year to Have Neighbors Who Actually Like US: it has only been in the last two years that our closest (new) neighbors in Seattle even speak to us so we are loving the warmth of our neighbors here.

A Year To Learn About Prosecco: YUM!

A Year To Learn That I Don't Mind Anchovies....enough said.

A Year To Learn That Train Travel Makes For Great Life Metaphors: Little things like, always double check the schedule and destination. Don't make assumptions. Things don't always go as planned. With good problem solving skills, things ultimately work out just fine. Don't forget to use the bathroom before you leave. Have enough water with you (and a snack for emergencies)! Be patient. Sit back, relax and enjoy the view.

A Year To Believe That Someone I Vote For Can Win The Presidency! Yippee!!

A Year to Learn that Kim and I Can Live and Be Together Basically 24/7 and really do just fine--actually more than fine! This has been, as they say (maybe) in Italiano,
una cosa fantastica- a very good thing.

There are many other things that I could list but this is fine for now. Well, maybe just one more:
SOME DREAMS REALLY DO COME TRUE!

Spending the Day with Rita....

Yesterday Rita invited us over for the early afternoon main meal. She had many leftovers from Christmas and we were more than happy to help her "manage" them. She began our meal with a few antipasti: baked eggplant in olive oil, an olive tapenade and another kind of tapenade on crackers, and the wonderful peperoni con bagna caoda. Next we had cappelletti in broda (a lovely capon broth); we'd helped her make hundreds of little cappelletti the night before the night before Christmas as they are a holiday ritual for her and she had many people in her exended family to feed on Christmas eve. (Kim managed to form the filling into little balls and Rachel and Rita made the cute little stuffed caps). Next Rita served a capon salad with fruit and nuts followed by a capon that she had stuffed with a mixture of pork and bread crumbs, accompanied by delicious roasted potatoes. When the bird was carved, the breast included a beautiful layer of the pork which just melted in our mouths. Naturally each course was accompanied by wine and bread so how could we possibly fit dessert into this picture? Easily- especially when it's a yummy chocolate cake served with a flute of champagne. (Is it any wonder that in Italy one would need a rest between the hours of 1:30 and 3:30?)

The three of us decided against resting. We chose to take a walk instead. We walked to a bridge that we had only seen from the train in the distance. It has huge spotlights on the side which, according to Rita, either makes it look like the Brooklyn Bridge at night or the bridge itself is compared to the Brooklyn Bridge- something was being said about the BB that we couldn't understand. We couldn't see any resemblance so once again we're sure we misunderstood. It was too light outside for the lights to be on so we really don't know. We will explore one of these evenings soon and see what we will discover. What we could see- and they were beautiful- were the mountains in the distance backlit by the sun. Stunning.

It was very cold out and despite being bundled up we were chilled upon arriving home. Rita told us that we now needed to have "vin brulee." We said you mean like creme brulee but with wine?? She laughed ( we are very amusing to her we're sure) and within a few minutes, watching her at the stove, we realized vin brulee is hot spiced wine. And indeed it did the trick- we were now warm inside and out.

Happy Holidays!!

Greetings from Alessandria!!

Off to Church...

This past Sunday morning, while playing our daily dose of cards, Kim suddenly announced that she thought we should go to church. She'd gotten the idea from a conversation we'd had with Rita the night before. We'd just come home from our evening passeggiata (walk/stroll) and saw Rita in the courtyard. We chatted for awhile, asking her how the Christmas ritual is celebrated here--when do they open presents (mostly Christmas Eve), do they have big meals (yes with the family and some extended family), is there a midnight mass on Christmas Eve? (We don't know because neither of us could figure out that answer. We're sure there must be but we think she doesn't go).

One thing that happens with regularity is that after Kim and I have had a discussion or conversation with someone we compare notes afterward. "I think Rita said.....well, what I got out of the conversation was....did they say?......." Often we burst out laughing because some of our interpretations are a little contrary. Each of us is a good listener and we will each pepper the conversation with "si, si" as we assume that the other is understanding more. Saturday night it turns out that Kim did understand more. Where I had heard that Rita's granddaughter, Chiara, would be singing in a concert for either midnight mass or on Christmas day, Kim heard "tomorrow at 10:45AM". Thus her announcement at 10AM that she thought we should go to mass on the off chance that she was right. She continued, "I have to keep reminding myself that we are in Italy after all and we should be taking advantage of these opportunities". With that, we got dressed and headed out to San Stefano Cathedral, a five minute walk away.

St. Stefano was constructed between 1742 - 1773. Inside is a famous portrait called "The Madonna del Parto". Painted in the 15th Century, there are different versions of the painting but their collective point is to offer women a place to ask for pregnancy intercession. Rita told us that she had done this when her daughter first married. (Kim thinks she said that her daughter came... see what we're up against?)

Chiara's little choir group sang a 20 minute program prior to mass. They did renditions of Jingle Bells, I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas, and a few others that we didn't recognize. They were deliciously off tune, the way only children can be. In the huge cathedral their voices celebrated and brought tears to my eyes. Their innocence was comforting.

Chiara is in the lead as they bring an offering of stuffed animals to the nativity scene.

Later, for mass the children joined a group of adults in the choir--all the voices mixing and rising. Chiara is in the front row with the pink scarf.

Later after mass we met the other proud grandparents and learned that our reputation had preceded us. They let us know that their son (Alessandro--Chiara's dad) and daughter (Rosanna our realtor/manager for our apartment) had shown them our blog site. When I went to pay our rent last week, Rosanna told me that she'd seen our blog and was enjoying seeing all the pictures. She gave us a great compliment in that she said we had included "things" in Alessandria that she herself had not seen.

I have to add that I haven't been to mass since my mother's funeral. I found that I did enjoy the comfort of the rituals despite it all being in Italian. As the priest read his long sermon I allowed my mind to wander and take in the beauty of the cathedral. I thought about my life and what brought me here to this moment in time and all the others who have sat in the same pew seat over the centuries. I continued my ongoing debate regarding God's existence and the impact of religions upon the world, past and present. I was pulled out of my contemplation when we arrived at the "peace be with you" greeting. Rita took my hand and said those soothing words and the greeting continued between us, rippling towards others throughout the church for several minutes. Why, I thought can't it be this simple? Why can't we as a world community really embrace and allow ourselves to be guided by the desire that those we encounter receive from our actions a sense of peace?

Kim's Well Enough to Stroll Again....

In Piazza de la Republica the manger awaits the big day....

Two views of Santa's sleigh--day and nighttime....

Santa's sheep.... or goat....

For the moped rider who has everything... only in Italy!!

Borsolino hats are very famous and come in every style....

The Christmas tree in Piazza de la Republica....

Lights are everywhere... but these against the building were amazing....

Games, Games, & More Games!

I am writing this on my 9th day of illness...which pisses me off so much I can't tell you! I want to be enjoying my Holiday Season in Italy, not lying in bed looking at the 4 walls of my bedroom (yes I AM in Italy but still!). Having lots of time to dwell on many stupid things, I realized that we have neglected to inform you of our progress in both Cribbage and in Hollywood Gin. (We have also added a third game to our game repertoire- Bananas- that our good friend Deb so kindly gave us when Rachel was last in Seattle. We have not kept a tally of our Bananas scores but so far I believe Rachel has only won once- yes, only one time- out of many!)

The current score for Cribbage which we play each and every morning, in sickness and in health is:
Rachel-99, Kim- 62
This is pathetic on my part and I resort to all kinds of hexes, threats, and most recently, a note. (Rachel said she was a "visual" person and couldn't "hear" my threats and fervent desire for her TO LOSE...) So this was my answer to that but she refused to look. Then I had the idea of placing it on my forehead tucked under my glasses so at some point she would have to see it.

 

She finally saw it after I forced my head into her line of vision but damn her, she still won. (I would not allow her to photograph that but you get the idea)


So forget Cribbage, Hollywood is MY game (oh and of course "Bananas" now, too). But sometimes she gets a little too close for comfort, hence the flip side of my note:

 

In Hollywood the score is KIM- 232; Rachel- only a piddly 158 which if you do the math just proves that Rachel is really the BIG GAME LOSER! Ha Ha Ha.

Ugliness....

Today while walking home from a shopping expedition I came across the above truck. It's a graffiti clean up truck and I was happy to see it. One of my frustrations with Europe is that graffiti is way too prevalent and really messes up old historical sites. (Duh!) While the building above isn't hugely historical we've seen some places where the graffiti does destroy historical buildings and sites, and is quite destructive, ugly, and just plain sad. Take the recent assault upon the Muslim section of a French cemetery by Neo-Nazis




or in the Jewish cemetery in Lyon, France.

These are but two examples of a very prevalent problem. I don't know exactly where I'm taking this other than stating the obvious: It's rude, cruel, hostile, immature, obnoxious and destructive. I guess that's the point of vandalism and that makes me sad. So, to see that there's such a thing as a get-rid-of graffiti truck did make me happy. Fortunately Alessandria's graffiti, while present, is less than what we've encountered in Milan, Vienna, Turin, etc. Also, much of the graffiti here is only slightly political (anger over financial issues) or often something like "Chiara ti amo" or an attempted drawing gone awry (nothing like the complex works in Vienna). Nonetheless, I hope they will use the graffiti destruction truck much more.

Oh, the Differences........

Kim has been sick for the last week; down with a bad cold. Our neighbors, Rita and Barbara stopped by to say hello. This is how they go out....

This is how I go out....Can you pick out the differences?

I must add that having neighbors who stop by and neighbors that I like stop by is such a delight and life treat. In our many years on MLK, it took lots of time and hard work to get neighbors to talk with us; some still don't. Perhaps here, it's the fact that we live in a "compound" and see (and hear) much of the coming and going. Maybe it's like this in an apartment building or condominium. In any case, we like it!

Swapping Recipes....

The holiday lights have distracted me from writing about recent recipes--Amatriciana and Spaghetti Carbonara. Both are very similar in that they contain chopped pancetta affumicata (a very good quality of bacon), garlic, and a red chili to add some spice. The Amatriciana includes some tomato sauce and the Carbonara adds an egg and has more cheese.

The garlic and pepper infuse the oil and complement the bacon.

Rita adds the cheese-- fresh sharp romano (pecorino)

AMATRICIANA

For the Carbonara, we mixed fresh Romano and Parmesan cheese in with one egg. The heat from the boiled spaghetti, the bacon, and olive oil cooks the egg as it's all mixed together.

Rita always measures out the amount of spaghetti. In this case, for two.

SPAGHETTI CARBONARA

Since Rita has been my teacher, I hadn't made anything for her to try. With the colder weather, a hot pot of "Caldillo"-- a green chili and bean stew was called for. I had to get creative because in Italy, there are no hot Anaheim chilies in sight. Thankfully-and for those of you who know me well, you'll know how happy I am- frijoles (pinto beans) are ample. With a few spices, strips of colorful bell peppers, I was able to make up for the lack of green chili. Rita said she likes spicy and that is what she got!

CALDILLO WITH FRIJOLES, PORK AND CHICKEN

A Few Holiday Decorations....

Our neighbor Rita gave us a little bag of ornaments and I made a mobile as part of our holiday decorations. Sister Wendy is wearing her holiday angel wings. The windows are Rita's and face outward toward the street. Frosty decorates our courtyard and welcomes all of us whenever we enter. Finally, I found some red and white safety tape on the street and used it to wrap our gate--giving it a festive candy cane look! (Martha Stewart would be very proud of me, don't you think??)