Oh, Pompei

Where do I even begin?

And yes, in Italia, it's Pompei. Not sure when the English-speaking ilk added the extra "i".

More to the point, Pompei had the effect of rending my heart from my chest and spoon-feeding it back to me in tiny, delicious morsels. Yeah, I'm really impressed, if you can't infer.

I got into the city at about 10am, found a decent hotel with Internet a fast as I could, then dropped my bag and headed to the Scavi (ruins).

Well, first I had a quick lunch of a calzone stuffed with cheese and tomato, then fried. Oh yeah, fried. It was just as tasty as it sounds, and molto economico, as well.

Here, of course, is me, looking uber chic and very smug, in the ruins of Pompei. I spent probably seven hours there, and I have about 200 pictures, so I'll just give you the highlights... though there's really no such thing, in Pompei. All of it is mind-blowingly amazing.

Of the plaster casts, I think this one is the most touching. People, trapped in a moment, the shadow of their fate cast in plaster for the milennia to review, is beyond the scope of words. The attempt, in vain, to shield one's face from the onslaught of doom... I can only imagine. But in this anonymous person's demise, the eons can feel that one moment, that emotion, to be broadcast to those who are willing to hear it. Disturbing, heart wrenching, belissimo.

For my Father, the Faun. A replica, (the original is in the museo in Napoli) but beautiful, indicative of the once free and vibrant spirit of a city now locked in an endless minute.

I love how now, I can spot an olive oil mill from a mile away.

Oops! How did this get here?!?! But really, if you didn't realize that Pompei also has erotic frescoes, you're missing out. And lurid though the subject matter may be to some, they are nonetheless, captivating.

"Cave Canem" or, beware the dog, tiny tiles laid into a floor in the entrance to one of the villas. It has everything, humor, whimsy, beauty... I wish I could have caught better light for the photograph, but alas, this must suffice.

"Venus emerging from a shell" literally brought tears to my eyes. You turn a corner, into a unintentionally verdant and stately villa, crushed by the mighty power of Vesuvius, but somehow remarkably intact, and she greets you, with her innocent, vibrant eyes, her adoring cupids gazing at her intently, after centuries still enraptured by her beauty.

I could wax philosophical about Pompei for years and still never do justice to what must have been, yet somehow remains, the most beautiful city human hands have ever created. If ever you get the chance, drop everything and go, it is a truly life-changing experience.

On the lighter (and more acidic) side of things, Pompei also has the biggest lemons I have ever seen in my life. And the purveyors are happy to oblige an excited limone fan who wants a few pictures. I mean, wow. That lemon's the size of a cantaloupe! I just can't wrap my mind around it...

Though my heart was still reeling from the Scavi (and remains so now) I decided to pop into the Pompei duomo... please don't miss this! It's free to get in, and the interior is nearly entirely gilded. After wandering through the ruins, this took my breath away, and I just so happened to wander in during service when the congregation was singing "Ave Maria"... bellissimo!

After a shower and some homework, I got a recommendation for a good mid-range restaurant, and it did not disappoint. Above is veal scallopinne pomodoro, with buttery potatoes and chard. Perfection, I languished in every bite. Paired with the local wine, made of grapes grown on the very slopes of Vesuvius that once brought destruction to Pompei, Baccus makes good by amassing earthly pleasures in the city's sidewalk cafes.

During dinner, I conversed in a mix of English, Italian, and German with my waiter and the couple at the table next to me, who were visiting from Amsterdam, One thing I have noticed, is that if you mention Orvieto to anyone who has ever been there, their eyes light up (even in Pompei!) and they rave about the town, then put their hands over their hearts and sigh; "Oh, the Duomo!". Yeah guys, it's that good.

I'm still reeling from this amazing day, but I do have to catch an early trena domenica... Sicilia! (Sicily) I'm going to be in Catania, by the slopes of another volcano, Etna, for the next two days, then head to Siracusa to check out their Roman and Greek ruins before heading back to my Etruscan town. Please don't feel too sorry for me, I'm a professional :)

Buena notte, ragazzi!

Another slow day

Oh yeah. Did some homework, ate some food. First thing when I woke up, I strolled (quickly, as is my normal pace) down the strada to get some espresso, and had a pezza of some lovely almond torta with lemon filling for breakfast;

Very early in the morning tomorrow, I will leave the comfort of Orviteto, and head via train to Pompeii, then Sicily, where I will visit Catania and Siracusa. Should be interesting.

I will be sure to write, but for now, sleep.

Buena notte!

A casual day in Firenze

Dear parents, friends, and well-wishers;

I am writing to regretfully inform you that I don't want to come back to the U.S. of A. It's not that I'm un-patriotic or high-falutin', I just think that I may vomit if I ever have to gaze upon another strip mall. You understand.

And while I love going to the park, I really don't think it can get better than picnicking with the girls at the edge of the Orvieto plateau on a lazy Sunday. I also can't imagine a picnic now without three bottles of wine (ahem, sparkling for the first course, white for secondi, and red for... the heck of it) and our puritanical American "no booze in parks" rules seem barbaric right now.

Everywhere I turn in the States I see a Wal-Mart or a McDonald's and I die a little inside. Everywhere I turn in Italy I see an elaborate Duomo dripping with gold fineries and brilliant frescos.

And American ceilings are positively boring.

The food, oh where do I begin? Sitting down for a three hour lunch is pretty spiffy, why are we in such a hurry? How are you supposed to finish your wine in half an hour? Also, instead of a bag of chips and a pop for snacks, I can walk down the street and grab some cinghale procuitto and pecorino cheese. (and wine)

Of course, I love mom and apple pie, but wouldn't she be just as happy if I called her "Mamma"? And honestly, I would trade every piece of apple pie I've ever had for more of this melon gelato.

Did I mention the ample scooter parking?

As an art lover, I find it barbaric that our cities are not adorned with brilliant marble and bronze sculptures. How are you supposed to pause in awe and quiet introspection if you're not surrounded by the works of the masters?

Billboards and skyscrapers are nice and all, but I think the sculptures win this round.

In closing:

U.S. "Time is money"

Italia "Let's stop for coffee"

U.S. "You can never be too rich or too thin"

Italia "Mangia! Mangia!"

U.S. "Life's hard and then you die"

Italia "La dolce vita"

I'm sure you'll understand.

Ciao!

P.S. I just figured out that I can use HTML code to format this blog, so I promise the trend of paragraph breaks will continue. I hate blocky paragraphs! But the Blogger website formatting was removing my spacing, no matter how hard I tried. So, hopefully, the problem is fixed. Someday I'll go back and fix the old posts, but today is not that day!

Happy, happy pigs.

Today was super-busy and action packed, and I have to be up early tomorrow, so I'll try to let the pics do most of the talking.

This guy was impressive. A local special around Umbria is whole roasted pig stuffed with fennel, garlic, pig feet, and liver, slow roasted for 6 hours until it's juicy tender and surrounded by crispy delightful skin.

Above, he's sewing the stuffed pig to a metal rod which will be used to roast it at 150C. Just know that this guy had just deboned this whole pig in under five minutes. I'm interning there this weekend, so Florence will have to wait...

Then we visited a several-hundred year old olive oil prodecer, who took us through their processing area, museum, and gave us a tasting of their products.

Then off to an Orvieto D.O.C. winery. The guy above is a doctor... who happens to utilize his degree for wine production. I'll be interning with him later on too. (very excited about that)

Then lunch at a farm restauraunt. A bit rainy, but the countryside here is gourgeous.

They brought what seemed an endless array of bruchetta, above is salumi and procuitto on fried flatbread, and radiccio and cheese. More followed...

Then roasted chicken, sausage, and ribs. And salad, thank goodness!

Classic tiramisu! And of course, tons of table wines and espresso.

Then we went to "The Park of Monsters", which is really a crazy assembly of sculptures in the woods, in the middle of nowhere, built by a Prince in the 1500's as a token of affection for his beloved. Above, I'm standing in the "Gate to Hell".

Another crazy structure from the park.

Then we went to Chef Polegri's house for dinner. He gave his restaurant staff the day off, closed the restaurant (on a Friday!) to have them cook for us! His farm is awesome, olive groves, grapes, fruit trees... yum.

And the veiw from his backyard.

And his several-hundred year old farmhouse. Lucky guy, right?

And that's all for today. I have to get some sleep now!

Dolce dorme! Buena notte!

Etruscan tombs... contemplation.

Idyll walks in windings knots
Break sojourn's stillness
With sharp knocks

Sera beacons for one more pass
Once more a glimpse
through the wafting grass

Knowing naught save the math that guides
And the soft caress
Of my own wandering eyes

Downward through the milennia, fall
To shudder among, perhaps,
The righteous walls

Where none reside
Save the microcosmic wiles
Of universal, wary tides

Alone, break the eons flow
Written from trembling hands
Of those who know;

That tiny though my life becomes
For just a moment's shadow
All was one.

Cinque Terre!!

This past weekend I hopped a train to the Cinque Terre, five tiny, steep villages on the Italian riviera that are barely accessable by car, you would have to park on the outskirts and hike in.



There's a trail that runs between them, about 13k. But, you traverse mountains. A bunch. All the way up, all the way down. Almost completely on the coast... yeah. It's amongst the most beautiful hikes in the world.

Janene and I arrived in the first village, Riomaggiore, on Saturday afternoon, and just happened to fall into a food festival, score! We grabbed a quick, cheap, adorable hotel room, dropped our bags, and headed back down for some grub.

We sampled cheese, wine, procuitto, and these magical sandwiches. The guy above is griddling little flatbreads, filled with a mix of mashed potatoes, cheese, and sundried tomatoes. They were better than they even sound. I am going to work on replicating this as soon as I get home.

Then we grabbed a couple of cold, frosty Peronis, and grabbed a cozy rock by the shore. The water is crystal clear, but a bit cold for my taste. Hanging by the water watching the boats dock is heaven.

Sunday morning, after an amazing, super fresh seafood feast (which we shared with the stray kitty that hung out on the terrace) we started the hike. The first leg is super easy, it's called "the Tunnel of Love." Above is part of its charm, travelers leave their locks on every available space along the walk, in a quaint symbolic tradition.

The other part of the charm (aside from the casual natural beauty) is the elaborate graffitti that adorns the tunnel. The entire length is marked, some of the art rivals museum quality. I personally liked the extensive seascape that covers this stretch.

Everyone passing through leaves thier mark, and so did I. Though, less impressive than some of the other works.

Manarola is the next village you come to, where we found fishermen with their fresh catch. These are giant cuttlefish, pulled from the boat minutes before, dripping with ink and scented like cool Ligurian breeze...

Manarola behind us, off to Corniglia.

This is the coastline your steps trace the entire way. The trail ends another bay or two past the distant one in this picture.

But if you want to get to Corniglia, you must ascend. Many, many steps. These are actually the easiest steps... and yeah, they go all the way down to the train tracks in the picture.

A brief stop for espresso and the bagno, then the difficult part begins. Well, the almost difficult part. Off to Vernazza!!

This area is known for its great foraging. These people were harvesting bags full of wild arugula. There's also asparagus, mushrooms, herbs, citrus, and ancient olive trees.

Vernazza, from above. It was about 12:30, so time for lunch.

In hindsight, a bad idea. Not that the fresh, wood-fired tomato flatbread or beer weren't perfectly tasty, but the most difficult leg was ahead of us. If you ever hike it, don't take the break. Grab some salumi and keep trekkin', because it's a real pain to start up that last, treacherous mountain after stopping, especially in the heat of the day.

Vernazza in the background. Ow. But, completely worth the searing pain in your calves.

Because of these. Honestly, these are some of the easiest stairs/ascent on this leg. It gets pretty hairy up there! And man, if you want a leg workout, climbing mountains high enough to make your ears pop through terraced vineyards is the way to go. Bring a bottle of water and comfy shoes...

There's Monterosso, the little white specks on the distant shore. Notice the mountain I'm on, and the fact that we have to get to the bottom of this one, then back up and over the one in the foreground, and the one after...

But it is dripping in plants, little lizards, and super picturesque scenes the whole, entire, arduous route.

It's a bit hard to tell from this picture, but aside from the tuft of grass there, the greenery is the tops of the trees... and my heel is pressed against the stone wall... it actually gets narrower than this in a few places. And steeper!

Still steep. Janene had to turn around to let that guy pass, because the drop... Is. Damn. Steep.

Almost there! The roughest spots behind us, the end and some gelato are in sight!

We made it! The entire journey, burning legs, sweatier than I've ever been before, and still completely enamoured by the veiw. I highly, highly reccomend this journey to any nature lovers who like a good thrill.

And the gelato at the end tastes all that much sweeter... I won't describe our, ahem, odor, but it was the most amazing hike I've ever done. We went back to our room in Riomaggiore, showered, passed out, and caught the train back this morning. First open weekend... a complete success. If anyone ever wants to come do this hike, I will volunteer to be your trail guide...

La dolce vita!