We had a great weekend in Torre Orsina, but we have to pack today so we can head out the door for the airport tomorrow morning at 8:45am. Luckily for me, Cinzia will do all of the packing. I’m sure it doesn’t seem to her now that we purchased much during our stay in Italy, but I’m sure she’ll realize that we did once she tries to fit everything into our suitcases. So, while she’s busy folding clothes and cramming items into our bags, I hope to spend the afternoon uploading the last of our photos and videos onto our blog. I ran out to the grocery store and market this morning to pick up something for lunch – copa, tomatoes, mozzarella di bufala, and a baguette. We picked up some chocolates yesterday, so we’re set on sweets for the day. For dinner this evening we’ll either run out for a slice of pizza or buy some fresh pasta. We’ll finish off the last of our chestnuts too.
Ok, so our trip up to Torre Orsina on Saturday was nice. We had blue skies and mid-60's. The train was a direct shot that took about 80 minutes. Daniela met us at the train station in Terni and whisked us off to lunch where we had delicious pasta – tagliatelle with red sauce for me and tortellini with truffle sauce for Cinzia. Then we went to her apartment in Terni for the grand tour. She has a very nice place, very modern, with lots of light and a great terrace view up on the 7th floor. Afterwards we drove to the center of town and walked around. The Christmas market was in full swing and the shops were busy. As it began to get dark we headed to a gelateria for a cone. Very good gelato too.
Cinzia and I had been looking for Scotti brand truffle risotto all throughout Italy and came up empty. We remembered that the Coop across from Maria Giulia’s place in Terni had some back in 2005, so Daniela made a stop on the way to Torre Orsina where we were happy to grab 12 packets. Cinzia also found a broom head and cleaning towel like the kind Elda uses so that she can clean her floors like a real Italian back in Florida. Such a good Filipina. The check-out line was long and the store was packed. All this time Elda is calling her asking where we are as Eugenio is waiting in Torre Orsina and wants to show me how to work the thermostat. He’s very “nervos0” when it comes to the thermostat. As it was he left before we arrived, but, being an engineer, it wasn’t too difficult to figure it out.
It’s always wonderful to see Luigina and Virgilio – and they were happy to see us again. They “redesigned” their kitchen since we left in September. The old wood-burning oven is gone, so there’s more space in the upper kitchen. Elda was busy making chicken and the six of us had a nice dinner with Daniela doing all of the translating. We laughed so much, especially when Luigina would say something for Daniela to translate to us. Daniela wouldn’t go fast enough for Luigina, so Luigina would just look at me or Cinzia and continue with her story as if we could understand her just as well. On occasion Luigina would say something to me and Daniela would start to translate, but I already understood Luigina and would repeat it to Daniela correctly. I guess I know more Italian than I thought. Cinzia’s Italian is also very good as she and Elda could talk to each other without much effort. The two of them really formed a tight bond.
It’s always wonderful to see Luigina and Virgilio – and they were happy to see us again. They “redesigned” their kitchen since we left in September. The old wood-burning oven is gone, so there’s more space in the upper kitchen. Elda was busy making chicken and the six of us had a nice dinner with Daniela doing all of the translating. We laughed so much, especially when Luigina would say something for Daniela to translate to us. Daniela wouldn’t go fast enough for Luigina, so Luigina would just look at me or Cinzia and continue with her story as if we could understand her just as well. On occasion Luigina would say something to me and Daniela would start to translate, but I already understood Luigina and would repeat it to Daniela correctly. I guess I know more Italian than I thought. Cinzia’s Italian is also very good as she and Elda could talk to each other without much effort. The two of them really formed a tight bond.
After dinner I had to put in an appearance at the bar. I had been communicating with Maurizio, the bar owner, via Facebook. We’ve played poker on-line a bit and he wants to learn more. When we walked in the table of ladies playing Burraco all stood up and cheered with delight as they came to me for a group hug. The whole town really missed us. A lot of the Italians in Torre Orsina are on Facebook, but one of the older ladies who isn’t ran into Virgilio earlier in the day and told him to enjoy dinner with his guests. He didn’t know, or didn’t remember, that we were coming, but apparently most of Torre Orsina did. Fabiana, Maurizio’s wife, treated us to hot chocolates at the bar and shortly thereafter I found myself in a game of Burraco as if I had never left. I stayed and played cards with the gang until the bar closed while Cinzia went back to Luigina’s to talk with Daniela, Elda, and Luigina.
On Sunday we slept until 9:30am and went to Luigina’s for breakfast. Elda had made a tart, more like a big cookie, with chocolate and crushed amaretto cookies, for dessert the night before, so we had it for breakfast. She had remembered that Cinzia liked amaretto cookies, so she made the tart for her. For lunch Elda had rolled out 5 eggs worth of tagliatelle pasta which we had with tomato sauce and some meat for lunch. Delicious! We also checked out the garden. Several items that were planted in October are ready for picking – several varieties of broccoli and lettuce. Virgilio also planted 2-3 small fig cuttings in the garden too.
On Sunday we slept until 9:30am and went to Luigina’s for breakfast. Elda had made a tart, more like a big cookie, with chocolate and crushed amaretto cookies, for dessert the night before, so we had it for breakfast. She had remembered that Cinzia liked amaretto cookies, so she made the tart for her. For lunch Elda had rolled out 5 eggs worth of tagliatelle pasta which we had with tomato sauce and some meat for lunch. Delicious! We also checked out the garden. Several items that were planted in October are ready for picking – several varieties of broccoli and lettuce. Virgilio also planted 2-3 small fig cuttings in the garden too.
Afterwards I headed back to the bar for more cards and Cinzia talked with Elda and Luigina. She came to get me for dinner around 8pm. Elda prepared green lentils along with meat seasoned with olives from their tree. Everything was very good. I gave her a 9 out of 10. Back at the bar Maurizio had hoped to get enough guys together to play poker, but that didn’t materialize, so we were back to playing Burraco. Before we started dealing out the cards he presented me with a “Hard Rock - Torre Orsina” T-shirt. He signed it as did everyone else in the bar. Very nice. Thanks Maurizio.
After more tart for breakfast with Luigina and Elda we had to leave for the last time. It was easier on Cinzia this time, so there were fewer tears on the bus to the station in Terni. On the way back we had to change trains in Orte, but that wasn’t any problem for us as we’re now well seasoned train, metro, and bus travelers in Italy. We got back to Rome around 3:20pm. We grabbed a couple pizza “squares” for lunch on our way to see the Christmas market in Piazza Navona. Cinzia bought a couple more scarves and a Befana to hang on our Christmas tree. Befana is a witch that brings gifts to the children on the feast of the Epiphany, January 6th, the day the Wise Men brought gifts to the Christ Child. Elda said she and her kids only received gifts from Befana on the Epiphany. Getting gifts from Santa on the 25th is something recent, so her 10 year old grandson, Paolo, benefits from this new tradition.
Back in our apartment we made one last dinner of spaghetti carbonara, using our remaining fresh eggs, pasta, pepper and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. I think now that we know how to make it well we’ll add it to our rotation of sauces we make at home. The fresh brown eggs will be missed, which has Cinzia thinking again about raising “backyard chickens”. She looked at coops on their website during our trip. I’ll have to find a supplier of fresh eggs instead – should be cheaper that way.
Ok, we just finished lunch and Cinzia is in packing mode, so I’ll wrap up this blog and start looking through the last of our 5,900+ photos and videos to make a final upload. Check back later for more.
Back in our apartment we made one last dinner of spaghetti carbonara, using our remaining fresh eggs, pasta, pepper and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. I think now that we know how to make it well we’ll add it to our rotation of sauces we make at home. The fresh brown eggs will be missed, which has Cinzia thinking again about raising “backyard chickens”. She looked at coops on their website during our trip. I’ll have to find a supplier of fresh eggs instead – should be cheaper that way.
Ok, we just finished lunch and Cinzia is in packing mode, so I’ll wrap up this blog and start looking through the last of our 5,900+ photos and videos to make a final upload. Check back later for more.