Serendipita/ Seredipity

     Wow, time truly flies when you are living out your life in the routine of things. Christmas was just here and New Year's eve is a day away! We have been invited to two New Year's dinners here in town followed by a grand community celebration in Piazza Priori, the city center of Volterra. We have local friends asking us to stay and friends from Costa Rica wondering when we will ever return. We are still totally loving our experience here in Tuscany and were reminded yesterday to hold the present moment in high regard. It is most important!
    Out of whim, we decided to head out to a seaside city named Piombino, just to get out of town. It had been suggested to us many times by a friend who lives nearby the city. When we arrived, we were amazed by so much. It has stone fortress walls and a castle that sit high above a beautiful sea view, majestic! It is a station for ferry boats to islands near and far: Elba and Sardinia. Cool to know as we may embark on a trip to these locations sometime in the near future.

a mosaic in accents of gold above the local Chiesa (church) doors

Piombino' s city walls overlooking the Mediterranean Sea (my photo)

Castle wall crest symbolizing the Piombino Octopus (Polpo) sea serpent

Castello walls

     We arrived into town very hungry, nothing new. We then proceeded to do what most Americans do...expect restaurants to be open after the midday meal time 3:30pm. We knew better, it was the end of Pomeriggio (afternoon). Pranzo (lunch) had been served at all restaurants and kitchens were closing until 7:30pm, the time of cena (dinner). We decided to do the Mary, Joseph and Jesus routine and go from place to place begging for someone to take us in for a meal. The cold weather helped boost the effect of this desperately hungry family. After being rejected by two restaurants, we walked a little while and came across a quaint Osteria named Mangiafoco. It had a presence of comfort when we walked in. The chef was sitting there, dressed in his white, customary clothing joined by friends and family finishing up a meal. We felt like we were intruding but asked anyway. Bill asked, "Sua restaurante Aperto?" as he was asking, I stood behind him in full site of the Chef and his company miming the universal begging motions: hands in prayer position, face falsely sad and needy, mouthing please in English. They all laughed and smiled at us. The Chef, whom seemed very kind looked at us with love. He paused and gave us a discerning gazed for a while (We felt like we were pawns going to the highest bidder somehow)...then, he smiled and asked "Cuanti personi Ci sono?" We looked at each other and said in unison, "quattro!" with excitement. He motioned to his waiter, give them a seat, fresh bread, water and white wine. We were elated and relieved! Hunger would soon be satiated.

The waiter, a young man of 23 years whom we later came to know as Walid (known by his friends as Beppe) spoke English wonderfully and helped to interpret so many things we wanted to express. Walid is from Morroco and is well loved and trusted by the owner/chef. He turned to us and asked us, "what will you have: meat or fish?" we all called out..."fish" in delight of the fresh meal we were about to have without a menu in sight!  The Owner and Chef, a tall, robust man with curly hair and a beard came to our table and told us in his best English; " You are a lucky family!" we smiled and agreed with him having gratitude in our hearts. He then whisked himself off to the kitchen after he said goodbye to his friends.

Before we knew it, Walid was returning to the table with a bounty of food. He explained this was a short cut of the menu but we felt like it was more than we could have ever imagined. The first plate was that of Octopus, seared and presented over extra-virgin olive oil. It was seasoned in such a way to taste the sweetness of the sea and the spice of the terrain. Walid explained it was the specialty of the house. The region's famed fruit of the sea. Delicious!

Next came breaded and fried local fish with homemade potato chips with lemon then, bruschetta topped with roasted tomato, octopus, spices and flavors...delectable!

Piombino fish 'n chips

Bruschetta

Then, Walid brought out seasoned,breaded mussels on the halfshell, a sweet and simple but tasty addition to the table.

Once we were devouring everything and enjoying the many tastes of the sea, the Owner/Chef appeared from the kitchen and introduced himself. Daniele! He went on to explain that his family is much like ours by mentioning his wife is African, from Congo. And the very cute children we saw in and out of the restaurant were his children. We became instant friends! He asked where we were from insisting I was Costa Rican, although not an insult, it was not so accurate. He plated one last item to join the table. He called it "Stock fish" served warm with a tomato base almost like a stew cooked together with potatoes, large black olives and seasonings. We were well fed!

Daniele came out to the dining area to join us while snacking on a piece of proscuitto. He explained so much in Italian that we could understand and with what we could not, Walid helped us. He told us his restaurant was young. That he was a chef for 25 years at many other local restaurants and he finally opened Mangiafoco only a year ago. He explained that the "restaurant" was an Osteria: a place where there neighborhood comes and eats in the dining area, the kitchen is behind and the family's home is behind that. The place was a former neighborhood wine shop (cascavino) where locals came to hang out and drink wine, play cards, and socialize. He keeps the memory alive by inviting the remaining locals who always enjoyed visiting the cascavino to continue to come and be comfortable, much like the way ancient church sites come to be in present day: they change the faith over the centuries but the location for meeting never changes, a wonderful compromise of love.

A sweet anecdote: Daniele explained that the namesake of his restaurant was based on the character from Pinocchio: Mangiafoco (fire-eater). Mangiafoco was the evil puppeteer who controlled Pinocchio who had run away from home. Daniele was saying he resembles the character. To emphasize his point more, he described himself as Barbarosso. The legenary, Italian, red-bearded pirate. Come to think of it, he was quite accurate, except for the evil part!

Mangiafoco!

     By dinner's end, Daniele had begun talking about his family recipes and the friends whom were regular visitors. He showed us pictures of his family and friends some living, some whom passed on. He asked Walid to run to the kitchen because he wanted to share some local soft parmesan cheese and a sweet, Sangiovese wine his friend makes just for him. His friend uses Sangiovese grapes but harvests them later in November and brings them to wine without aging. Definitely like a dessert wine but of dark red coloring. The flavor resembling ice wine we've tasted in Canada. As we enjoyed the pairing, Daniele sat down and referenced his favorite music playing in the background on the stereo system. Then, out of nowhere, he breathes deeply and breaks into Operatic song. His voice was without training but naturally beautiful, robust. Daniele blushed a little bit but he wanted to serenade us, make us his friend. We sat in amazement, captivated. We told him he should be an Opera singer but he said " no , no I like Pavarotti,but no, I am a chef, not a singer." We understood his Italian clearly by this time.

    After dinner, he ran to the kitchen this time bringing back in a stainless steel container, a live eel. His friend he named Capitano! He showed us that he could be a sweet soul who did not make every sea animal into dinner. His plan, to release Capitano into the river when the temperature got warmer, until then, he would continue to feed him worms and give him shelter. Very sweet. We left Daniele and Walid with hugs and handshakes and exchanged contact information to meet up again. Daniele gave Siena an old photo: a black and white of Piombino's coastline and he wrote her a message to keep as a souvenir. A definite item to cherish and include in her scrapbook for this year.

Il Capitano the Eel!

The Piombino Coastline and Elba Island in the distance

        

     message reading: for Siena, a friend of Mangiafoco with much good and friendship

Daniele & Bill!

Liam & Walid!

Just goes to show you that with hope, love and awareness of the present moment comes sweet serendipity beyond your wildest dreams! We just made lifelong friends and are very grateful!

Happy New Year, 2014, my friends!

   

Flight of Fancy in Roma

     It has been a while since my last post. Perhaps it is that we have fallen into a routine of life living in and around a Tuscan village known as Volterra. It has been a month of celebrations with my birthday having passed. A month of multiple dinners with new friends and one with an old HS friend and her husband. The month of olive harvesting and pressing to extra virgin olive oil. November is a special month. It is the month that most Ex-pats celebrate Thanksgiving. I had not taken the time this month to just look around and take in what is before me naturally. But, in the excitement of visiting our son in Rome for Thanksgiving, we decided to visit one of my favorite sites: Castel Sant'Angelo. It is special to me because 16 years ago I visited it for the first time, before the economic boom, when it was rustic and glorious in it's crude appearance. It was the place that I made my first international phone call. Weird, right? Well, not for me. 16 years ago, I had an infant son named Liam Mackey Soffer. In our plan to visit Italy, we had to make the tough decision to leave him with my parents in the US at 10 months old. I would use phone cards to call Liam just so he could hear my voice. Castel Sant'Angelo is where I would come to make the calls home.

So, here we are 16 years later revisiting this wonderful castle: former Tomb of Hadrian, burial site of many subsequent rulers, prison to later captives of war, and safe haven to the Popes following the sack of Rome in 1527. Still today there is a wall which connects the Vatican to the Castle. It was the escape route set up for Popes to run to escape capture or even death.

We experienced the excitement of bringing Liam to the Castle. We saw how much the exterior had changed in just that short while: gift shops, an indoor ticket booth,audio tour stands, relics on display, glass enclosures, refurbished Papal quarters and a public bathroom. One very beautiful thing happened when Liam led us to a room that he ventured ahead of us to see. It was a Baroque-style room called the hall of Paolina. Pope Paul III's sister's quarters. It was gloriously adorned with frescoes of pastel colored cherubs and ornate adornments. It bore the symbol SPQR  which symbolizes Senatus PopulusQue Romana meaning the government of the ancient Roman republic. I had never seen the room before as it was closed to the public years ago. I turned to a guide in the room named Petrpaolo (Peterpaul) to ask him how long this room was on display explaining, I had been there before but never seen this room. He replied "16 years." I was shocked, it must have opened shortly after we visited.We continued to converse in our equal versions of second languages: my broken Italian, his broken English. It was incredible. He explained that when he was a little boy, he used to visit there often and it was free to enter the castle. Now, it has a cost of 7 Euros per adult, kids under 18 years are free. Petrpaolo was proud because he has been employed there and was excited to explain where Hadrian's tomb once stood. The explanation was better than any audio tour I could ever buy. 

Following the elaborate explanations with big smiles and passion by Petrpaolo, Liam approached us once again, urging us to come out of the papal library and look outside. He said "Mom, dad, you have to come see these birds!" "Come out onto the veranda it's incredible!" So, we did! We ventured outside to behold something incredible! It must have been thousands of birds. They were seriously loud and determined in their work. They were performing what looked to me like air ballet. They would move in unison but with varied formations and flutter across the sky. It was better than fireworks! They formed what looked like an exclamation point, a running lion, triangles, tornado cones, and all in a wonderful stream of duty! I turned to see Petrpaolo by my side. He explained that this is a something the migrant birds do every year about this time in November. "They are preparing to migrate to Africa". Astounding!

To see video of this marvelous display view it here: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sir-YM8400o

It was a wonderful way to see in nature the ins and outs of routine and ritual much like Thanksgiving but upon the canvas of the Roman sunset-filled sky! A memory I will not soon forget!

Esperienze Volterrane/ Volterran Experiences

   Wow, November 1st! It has been a beautiful, fun ride! Volterra has to be one of the sweetest, strongest and most lovable medieval cities to live in and we are enjoying it greatly! I wanted to give some insight to local life and tourist attractions before too much time passes!
    Once we arrived in Volterra, It was a delight to walk the streets of this ancient Medieval walled- town. The buildings and the stone pavered-roads curve in unison. Beyond every curve is something new to behold. I still find hidden gardens, courtyards and homes everyday. Our two youngest children are being educated in two very different ways. Our daughter, Siena, is attending the school San Lino Elementare. It is a public school completely in Italian. I love traveling to the school because it is located inside the city walls and you have to travel through a huge stone opening that has giant wood doors about 3-stories high that could close snugly if the town so chose to. It has restricted car access to only those who live within the walls and availability to drive in during limited hours. But, trust me you want to walk into the door way and to the school. SO much to see. Siena absolutely loves the school! She goes to school 5 days a week with only one long day from 8am to 4:30 pm on Mondays. All other days school dismisses at 1 pm for what is called Pomeriggio: the time in the afternoon where families return home for lunch and local businesses close shop for the period of 2 hours. A lovely custom. The second day of school, Siena begged us to stay for the whole school year. We are very tempted! She has the assistance of an English-speaking teacher but as time passes, she is given less and less support. Siena communicates with her new friends very well! She has joined Modern & Hip-hop dance classes and actively participates in the local youth basketball league. All so much fun to experience!

Beautiful gateway into Volterra: Porta San Francesco

Siena's School: San Lino Elementare Front doors

   

Our 16 year-old son, Liam, however is gaining his education on-line using a school called Christa McAuliffe Academy School of Arts and Sciences. An excellent option for Precalc, Science and even Italian! While Liam is not completing school projects and exams, he can be found around town. He is known by many as the large-haired guy who CAN DANCE! He is learning Italian and communicating with the friends who speak Spanish and English. Otherwise, Liam has taken up a new sport: WaterPolo! He practices for 2 hours, three times a week and is getting quite muscular, fit and thinner (if you can imagine that). He comes home dead tired and hungry. Soon they will be competing with other towns. Another venture of Liam's is to attend a Manga animation school. We are fortunate to have one nearly 20 minutes from home and others in both Lucca and Bologna. He will attend one of them very soon. Very Exciting!

    Other experiences around town include the many festivals: White Nights (Notte Bianca), Volterra 1398AD, Red Nights (Notte Rosso), various food festivals and Volterragusto Tartufo bianco, the truffle festival. All great delights of turning back time and reliving medieval life, live entertainment, wonderful foods to sample and buy, museum and palace openings to visit complementary of the commune di Volterra.

Siena and I in Palazzo Priori during White nights!

The Museo dei Etruschi which displays many urns of the dead found in the ancient tombs of the necropolis!

Palazzo Priori !

Cheese Race!

Black truffles YUM!

delicious fresh homemade sausage!

    Saturday conveniences include various vendors who come to town and sell everything from textiles, electronics and clothing to artesanal meats and cheeses and farm fresh fruits and vegetables. We often go there to get what we need and to meet up with local friends.

We have come to know some pretty fabulous friends and neighbors here. Francesco Groncchi and Annie Adair. Both are Tuscan wedding planners. He is a professional Sommelier, She is a licensed Volterran tour guide often found on youtube and referenced by Rick Steves for tour groups. They helped us know where to go and what was happening around Volterra when we first arrived! We are forever grateful to them!

We have met and become great friends with a local family who lives right in the heart of the necropolis: Marmini. Francesca and Paolo and their three sons. We have enjoyed lunches, dinners, and birthday parties with them. Recently we joined them picking olives on their farm they tend. I will dedicate a special posting to that wonderful, rich experience!

Pizza//bread oven at Paolo & Francesca's farm used for the pizza making party of
many visitors from Poland!

Beloved Fruit: Caci. the rich texture of persimmon but the flavor of ripe Papaya

Insalata Caprese

Of course we have met and had dinners with other families who have children which are friends with Siena. We are having a wonderful time visiting beautiful family homes and enjoying every minute.

In my subsequent posts, I will note our experiences in Pisa, Lucca, Roma, San Marino, and other distinct happenings and industries of Volterra.

We especially want to thank our oldest son, Grant, for inspiring this whole journey as an intern with Virtus Roma. Thanks for welcoming us to tag along at a near distance within the same country of lovely Italy!

All of us together on the Spanish Steps!!!

Weekend Excursion to Venezia: The Experence of the Regatta!

 Today, as I look out at the community of Volterra, the cooler air blowing in and the layers of thick fog meandering across the rolling hills and mountainous areas, with the well-predicted rainfall showing itself, I am remembering our hot weather fun we experienced on September 1st. My husband, Bill and I wanted to celebrate our 23rd wedding anniversary a little early by going with our family to Venice, known as Venezia in

 Italian.  So, we investigated and discovered that every year, Venezia celebrates the Regatta: Venezia Regata Storica, on the first Sunday in September. This year, it happened to fall on  September 1st, seven days before our anniversary. We made plans to travel up to the lovely city of Padova to stay for two nights. Padova, also spelled Padua, a grand city in the Veneto is no slouch in comparison to Venezia. Located between Verona and Vincenza on the map, you can not go wrong!

It is filled with gorgeous Roman ruins, Grand Basilicas, architecture, beautiful park systems and is the location of the world's first botanical garden, a Unesco World Heritage site. It is a 30-minute train ride to Venezia. Once we arrived, we were tantalized by the huge variety of foods from around the 
world. Then we surmised that one of the world's ancient trading centers was the Veneto, inviting the 


many merchants from around the world to sell and trade their wares and spices.  We decided to 
change our usual Italian meal  to Thai for just one night in the spirit of  internationalism! We headed to our hotel and had dreams of the Venezian Regatta the next day! We took the train from Padova into Venezia noticing the many canals as we grew closer. What excitement! Once we came to "the end of the line" we headed straight for the canal. It was as breathtaking as I remembered it. It had been 16 years since our last visit.

We checked with various Vaporato (water taxi) operators and private boats discovering we would have to wait and spend a good bit of money. So, we decided instead to save our money for a great meal and that we would walk the many streets and canal bridges to find the Rialto Bridge! What a "feast for the eyes".

We crossed the grand canal and went walking! We saw many tourists and heard many musicians along the paths. We took photos of various shops and views. It was unfolding into a wonderful day!

 

As we were drawing near the Rialto bridge, we decided to have our well-deserved lunch after all that walking. It had been my habit last time I was here to visit many restaurants in search of the best zuppa de pesce but a lot has changed including the prices of food since I was here last time on my 28th birthday. So, Liam picked up and carried my torch. He ordered this savored soup to try it! Boy, we wish Grant was with us to enjoy it together once again! The Zuppa de Pesce lived up to my descriptions and Liam loved it immensely!

After Lunch, we continued on our walk. We could feel the excitement building. The kids were just as excited!

 Then, we found her, the white, beautiful-looking Rialto bridge in the Grand Canal! It was gorgeous and filled with tourists and locals waiting in anticipation for the Regatta to begin in the afternoon!

Instead of waiting, we decided to walk the bridge and look for cool masks, a little fantasy of mine! And did we ever find some!

It is hard to believe that this was a hot, hot weather day! Merely a month ago! We waited for the regatta to begin but our kids and we were melting in the heat! Would we last? Then, we got this bright idea..."let's get that long awaited gondola ride!" Yes, it is a typical tourist act but the idea of riding in the shaded canals was so enticing. So we approached the sweet gondolier and asked him for a ride. He motioned absolutely and held out his hand to help us into his beautiful, black gondola!

After riding a bit, we got to talking ! His name was Alberto. He showed us the Casanova family palace, the home of Marco Polo and sailed us beneath some of the prettiest bridges. Later, we came to understand that the cost to purchase a Gondola such as his was $50k. Quite a commitment and a livelihood to perpetuate! Alberto told us that each gondola bears the name of the the gondolier's wife. Our gondola was named Antonella! 

As we returned back into the Grand Canal, Alberto instructed the kids to remove their masks as there was a police mandate to keep people unmasked during the event. It was quite funny beforehand seeing people look at Liam wearing his Vendetta mask with surprise, I suppose they saw the movie!

Once we docked back in front of the Canal, Alberto said some magic words. " remain seated the regatta is about to start you can watch it from my Gondola!" I thought, "Yes, Front row seats!" Sure enough, an acoustic band rode by on a boat with an accompanying  singer. It was decorated beautifully. Then, a small scale model of the Rialto Bridge road by on a gondola, it was time and 

what a treat! Regal music began to play! everyone along the canal became quiet and had their cameras ready! What a sight! The Regatta procession began.  The Venezia Regata Procession dates back to 1498 and it commemorates Caterina Cornaro Queen/wife to the King of Cyprus renouncing her throne in favor of Venezia. It is held the first Sunday of every September and it is said that the event has never experienced a rainfall.

 

Each sailor would hold up their oars vertically in unison in salute as they approached the Rialto Bridge. So exciting!

Then the races began, teams of all children, all women in white, men wearing uniforms paddled in unison through the Grand Canal to show their spirit and dedication to the event! Fabulous!

We decided to head for some refreshment and not finish watching the race but our spirit and excitement remained. We walked the streets and headed toward St. Mark's square in need of a vaporato ride to the train back to Padova and prepare for the next day's return to Venice. We returned to see St. Mark's Basilica, and Doges Palace. The kids gained a strong appreciation for the gold mosaic, frescoed ceilings, the crusades relics in the side chapel and all the passionate artwork that ordains such gorgeous, ancient churches and secular buildings! Mission accomplished! We could ride the vaporato at sunset and have a strong feeling of love for such a beautiful city, VENEZIA!

Next time in the Veneto: visits to the islands of Murano and Burano-  Isles of art glass and lace making.