More Snow!

For the last two days we've awoken to snow. As I write this, just around noon, the snow continues to fall. Kim is off shopping (as in the grocery store!) and I continue to try to get well. My goal today is to make chicken soup and not be grumpy!

We're pretty low key here; lots of reading and web surfing.

Oh, and games scores are the following:

Cribbage: Rachel 110 Kim 69

Hollywood: Rachel 152 Kim 217

And finally, you may recall that we have posted the blog site for Dom and Louise whom we visited in Lucca. You'll want to check out her recent and future postings as she is giving us some Tuscan recipes. You can access it by scrolling down to the bottom of our blog and clicking the link OR, just go to: Abbastanza Buono - Living in Italy: Happy New Year! Buon Appetito!

It's The Epiphany AND a National Holiday...

Another holiday; everything's closed. Rachel is in such a pissy mood that you'd never know it was supposed to be a day of celebration... well at least for Catholics in Italy. But given that she has been sick with a horrible head cold, relapsed, gotten better, gotten worse and now is ready to either kill me or herself, this apparently is NO time to celebrate or even be a little bit happy. Given this is on the heels of my extended irritability for the same reasons, let's just say too much time together is reaping its inevitable problems (snarl, snarl). But tomorrow should be a better day and it will come none too soon.

Meet La Befana!

It's holiday time again! Tonight is the Eve of the Epiphany, a very special night for Italian children....



"La Befana is one of Italy's oldest and most celebrated legends. Each year on January 6 the children of Italy awaken in hopes that La Befana has made a visit to their house. This is a significant day to Italians because it marks the end of the Christmas season and the day that the three Wise Men arrived at the manger of the Christ child. Over the years the Epiphany has been a more celebrated holiday for the children of Italy than even Christmas.

As legend has it the three Wise Men were in search of the Christ child when they decided to stop at a small house to ask for directions. Upon knocking, an old woman holding a broom opened the door slightly to see who was there. Standing at her doorstep were three colorfully dressed men who were in need of directions to find the Christ child. The old woman was unaware of who these three men were looking for and could not point them in the right direction. Prior to the three men leaving they kindly asked the old woman to join them on their journey. She declined because she had much housework to do. After they left she felt as though she had made a mistake and decided to go and catch up with the kind men. After many hours of searching she could not find them. Thinking of the opportunity she had missed the old woman stopped every child to give them a small treat in hopes that one was the Christ child. Each year on the eve of the Epiphany she sets out looking for the baby Jesus. She stops at each child's house to leave those who were good treats in their stockings and those who were bad a lump of coal.

Make sure to keep those stockings hung by the chimney in hopes that La Befana will soon be there.
Buona Festa!"

The above citation is by: Anthony Parenta at his blog site:
http://www.italiansrus.com/articles/befana.htm

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

At 11:45 PM on a cold winter's night with a dusting of snow, we headed to Piazza de la Republica for the anticipated New Year's firework show. As we got closer to the square there were huge explosions of sound and crowds of people weaving toward the show. People carried bottles of champagne and prosecco and everyone had a smile on their face as we navigated the crowd and jumped a bit nervously at every sonic BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!

At the Piazza they had it blocked off and we all gathered in a large circle to watch. It also allowed those with their own fireworks to set them off in a "safety zone".

As the clock began to strike midnight the crowd began counting down, "dieci, nove, otto..."!

And then!

We all ooooh'd and ahhhh'd...

The crowd cheered the work of the firework technicians and we happily dissipated, heading home to sleep in on our first day of the new year. It was a night in Alessandria never to be forgotten.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OF US AND MAY THE YEAR BRING MORE PEACE ON EARTH...

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!!