Yes!!! The sun finally broke through the clouds today! What did we do? Sam and I went for our now routine after breakfast walk followed by a warm cappuccino.
Today we explored the coast of Chiavari. We walked to the end of the passagiata then along the beach till we couldn't walk anymore. We then walked along the rocks past the fascist era tower, built on Mussolini orders, till we hit the end of the beach. Or so we thought. Sam wanted to explore and take a look at the old train tunnel no longer in use. Ok, onwards we climbed over and across the rocks till we reached the other side, which is completely wild and undeveloped - and a good place for the vagrants to camp - so they do. I would not be walking here alone. We discovered a new beach that for the moment seems isolated, but I am sure in the summer it is overrun. Sam and I found a nice place to sit and soaked up the morning sun. To see more photos from our walk, Click here and go to my homepage.
After a while we were craving our morning fix of coffee and headed back to the passagiata to meet up with some of our friends. We joined Ian and Silvia Lewis with their daughter Chiara tagging along and also Jan Fischer. We had arranged to meet at one of our favorite bars on the passagiata because they finally added an extension enclosed in glass. The bar is right in the middle of the passagiata next to the new fountain. It has the best view to Portofino and the new tables and chairs sure were inviting. We eagerly walked in and asked to sit in the new seats. Not a chance, we were told. Those seats were only open after 12 p.m.. Hey, that's lunchtime and it was only 10 a.m.! We asked why. It seemed so silly. We would take our coffees to the tables, we didn't need service. No dice. In Liguria, sometimes somethings never make any sense to us "stranieri". Here was the owner's reasoning. If he let us sit there, he would have to let others sit there. Ok. What is the big deal you ask? See, some people would have a coffee, sit down, and stay all day soaking up the sun. He would not make any money because there would be no turnover of the tables. The owner could never ask his customers to leave because, that is simply not done here. Furthermore, because people might not leave, he would not have free tables to serve lunch on, which is what he most likely is banking on to make money to pay for the new addition.... For the Chiavarese it is logical. For us? The foreigners who wanted to sit and have a cappuccino in the sun? Crazy!
A dopo!
Krista
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Happy Birthday Chris!
Chris Incao is one of my oldest dearest friends from my days growing up on Long Island. We met 22 years ago while we both held part time jobs at... gasp... Burger King. I can't believe I just admitted that! Back then, I worked the drive thru, he made the Whoppers in the back with his twin brother Paul. We had tons of fun scooping cock roaches out of the milkshake machine (bet you won't order one of those again) and squirting catchup at each other when no one was looking! I will stop the story there out of respect for by husband.
These days Mr. Incao is a very happy single father with 2 wonderful kids. He is lives outside Philadelphia and works hard keeping the IT systems functioning for some big important company. My how far you have come from flipping hamburgers!
Yes, today is your day. Make it a great one! Go and celebrate my friend.
Auguri!
Krista
These days Mr. Incao is a very happy single father with 2 wonderful kids. He is lives outside Philadelphia and works hard keeping the IT systems functioning for some big important company. My how far you have come from flipping hamburgers!
Yes, today is your day. Make it a great one! Go and celebrate my friend.
Auguri!
Krista
Monday, January 30, 2006
Laundry Hell
As predicted yesterday by the weatherman, the sun did not show it's face today, but, lucky for us the rain has let up and the wind has started to blow. What does that mean? Time to do the laundry.....
What is the big deal you say? You must be an American!
Laundry to an Italian is a whole other basket of dirty knickers (undies). You Americans have no idea how good you have it with your extra capacity, 14 shower size towels in a single load washing machines with super fast cycles. You unload your wet laundry and put it in your super extra capacity hot dryers. Three loads of laundry all done and ready to fold while you watch TV or make dinner for the family. Here in Bella Italia there is a whole other story to be told.
In Italy we have super small front loading very long cycle washing machines. Mind you they are very efficient and save on water and even heat the water to 90 degrees Celsius. Think very clean whitey tighties without bleach. But what we save in water we lose in time. My lavatrice (lets speak in Italian), as I said before, sits on my terrace. Don't worry it is protected and has yet to freeze in the winter. Only problem, it holds about a 1/4 of my old washer in the States, which means I do 4 times as much laundry. Which means 4 times more of my time dedicated to this drudgery.
After the laundry is clean, it is still wet. Do I have a dryer? Nah. I have to hang it up to dry!!!! Very romantic, I know, but when in rains, very inefficient. Yes, I can buy a dryer here and that is one of the most frequently asked questions by American visitors. But the dryers are not like the ones you use in the states - unless you live in a very small apartment in NYC and don't want to use the laundromat. Here in Italy, the dryers only run on electricity, no gas, and do not vent outside. Why is this important? Look at your dryer, you have a tube that somehow finds it's way outside. Meaning the vapors from you drying clothes vent to the great outdoors. Here, the dryers heat to dry, but condense the vapor internally. At the end of the cycle you empty a tray of water. The process is completely different and much longer and adds to the cost of running one of these machines.
All that is fine. I could live with it, but, I do not have enough current in my home to run the darn thing anyway. If I had one and used it. It would have to unplug the refrigerator each time I turned it on. I simply do not have the watts coming through my circuit breaker to operate it. As it stands now, I am stretched to the limit with my dishwasher! If I run that and my fridge cycles at the same time, I trip the circuit breaker anyway and we are in the dark! It happens every time we have a dinner party.
In addition, where would I put a dryer? Certainly not outside with my washer. So what is a homemaker to do? I do what every other casalinghe (homemaker) does, I simply hang my clothes on the line attached to my terrace. Lucky for me, I have the space to hang about 4 loads at a time, a luxury. Way back when I was looking at renting this apartment the laundry lines were a major selling point, a wonderful thing, see, I was the only apartment with such a huge one. I remember snickering when told of how lovely this contraption was, see it even has lines under the terrace above covering the wet laundry and protecting it from the weather!!! How pre war it all seemed, I was a women of the future and I was determined to get me a dryer. I was going to break the mold. I was so naive back then. Today, almost 6 years later.... I am still hanging my knickers on the laundry line in defeat still dreaming of a dryer. But..... When in Rome do as the Romans.
What can I say to all you Yankees reading my blog? Tonight before you go to bed, go give your washer and dryer a big hug for it works hard for you and deserves some love and attention!
A dopo!
Krista
What is the big deal you say? You must be an American!
Laundry to an Italian is a whole other basket of dirty knickers (undies). You Americans have no idea how good you have it with your extra capacity, 14 shower size towels in a single load washing machines with super fast cycles. You unload your wet laundry and put it in your super extra capacity hot dryers. Three loads of laundry all done and ready to fold while you watch TV or make dinner for the family. Here in Bella Italia there is a whole other story to be told.
In Italy we have super small front loading very long cycle washing machines. Mind you they are very efficient and save on water and even heat the water to 90 degrees Celsius. Think very clean whitey tighties without bleach. But what we save in water we lose in time. My lavatrice (lets speak in Italian), as I said before, sits on my terrace. Don't worry it is protected and has yet to freeze in the winter. Only problem, it holds about a 1/4 of my old washer in the States, which means I do 4 times as much laundry. Which means 4 times more of my time dedicated to this drudgery.
After the laundry is clean, it is still wet. Do I have a dryer? Nah. I have to hang it up to dry!!!! Very romantic, I know, but when in rains, very inefficient. Yes, I can buy a dryer here and that is one of the most frequently asked questions by American visitors. But the dryers are not like the ones you use in the states - unless you live in a very small apartment in NYC and don't want to use the laundromat. Here in Italy, the dryers only run on electricity, no gas, and do not vent outside. Why is this important? Look at your dryer, you have a tube that somehow finds it's way outside. Meaning the vapors from you drying clothes vent to the great outdoors. Here, the dryers heat to dry, but condense the vapor internally. At the end of the cycle you empty a tray of water. The process is completely different and much longer and adds to the cost of running one of these machines.
All that is fine. I could live with it, but, I do not have enough current in my home to run the darn thing anyway. If I had one and used it. It would have to unplug the refrigerator each time I turned it on. I simply do not have the watts coming through my circuit breaker to operate it. As it stands now, I am stretched to the limit with my dishwasher! If I run that and my fridge cycles at the same time, I trip the circuit breaker anyway and we are in the dark! It happens every time we have a dinner party.
In addition, where would I put a dryer? Certainly not outside with my washer. So what is a homemaker to do? I do what every other casalinghe (homemaker) does, I simply hang my clothes on the line attached to my terrace. Lucky for me, I have the space to hang about 4 loads at a time, a luxury. Way back when I was looking at renting this apartment the laundry lines were a major selling point, a wonderful thing, see, I was the only apartment with such a huge one. I remember snickering when told of how lovely this contraption was, see it even has lines under the terrace above covering the wet laundry and protecting it from the weather!!! How pre war it all seemed, I was a women of the future and I was determined to get me a dryer. I was going to break the mold. I was so naive back then. Today, almost 6 years later.... I am still hanging my knickers on the laundry line in defeat still dreaming of a dryer. But..... When in Rome do as the Romans.
What can I say to all you Yankees reading my blog? Tonight before you go to bed, go give your washer and dryer a big hug for it works hard for you and deserves some love and attention!
A dopo!
Krista
You can't make this stuff up....
Italians have the most entertaining leader in Europe, if not the world. Imagine Tony Blair making such a declaration to the British? I need to get out of the house and have my cappuccino. I cannot wait to see the morning papers......
Ci vediamo a dopo!
Krista
Vows No Sex Until Voting
Jan 29 4:06 PM US/Eastern
ROME
Premier Silvio Berlusconi has promised Italians he would lower taxes and raise pensions. His latest campaign pledge is rather personal: no sex until April 9 elections, an Italian newspaper reported Sunday.
Il Giornale, a conservative Milan daily owned by Paolo Berlusconi, the premier's brother, reported that the no-sex vow was made during a campaign rally in Cagliari, Sardinia, on Saturday with a popular TV preacher on the island and his followers.
The clergyman, Rev. Massimiliano Pusceddu, praised the premier for what he described as a defense of family values and promised that his followers would support the conservative leader because "if the left wins it will be the moral end for this country."
"Let me give you my blessing," the priest was quoted as saying.
Berlusconi replied, smiling, according to Il Giornale: "Dear Father Massimiliano. I thank you a lot. I will try to meet your expectations, and I promise from now on, 2 1/2 months of absolute sexual abstinence, until April 9."
Berlusconi's challenger in the vote is Romano Prodi, a center-left leader and former premier.
Ci vediamo a dopo!
Krista
Sunday, January 29, 2006
Generazione 1000 EURO
I was surfing through the news today and I came across this little piece in the Guardian, for my American readers, an English newspaper (which leans a bit to the left).
Left, right, or center - what the authors of Generazione 1000 EURO are writing about is true. Young Italians are notoriously under paid in comparison to say, the UK, or the United States. As a personal reference, while I was IN university, I made, part time, selling cosmetics in a department store located on Long Island, $1,000 a month. That job didn't even require a degree and it was back in 1988! Decent good paying entry level jobs are next to impossible to find in Italy. Trying to get a leg up into the work force for students just out of university can be a crushing experience. I could get into some of the reasons I believe this happens, but this a friendly blog and I would like to keep it that way. I don't want to get into the labor laws that stifle the labor market ( you just can't fire someone, even if they don't do their job) or the fact "students", meaning people under a certain age, can be hired at lower than average salaries to be given the opportunity to gain "work experience" and then be let go to when they "out grow" the job and there is a hoard of "students" waiting to take their place.
But hey, I am sure this online novel is very good. For my Italian readers click here and download the novel and read it for yourself. And wow, if they are getting noticed outside of Italy, these guys are on the way to success! Maybe one day it will be translated because I would love to read it, I bet you would too!
A tardi!
Krista
Young Italians find a hero
Thousands download an internet novel highlighting the plight of the ?1,000-a-month workers
Barbara McMahon in Rome
Sunday January 29, 2006
A novel published free on the internet has become a surprise hit in Italy, downloaded by thousands of young people who identify with the main character struggling to survive on a monthly salary of 1,000 euros.
It tells the story of Claudio, a 27-year-old university graduate who works as an account manager at a multinational firm in Milan that makes gadgets for mobile phones, and tries to have a happy life despite being constantly broke and unsure about the future.
Striking a chord with a whole generation of Italians who are in a similar situation, the book is called Generazione 1000 Euro and has been written by two young journalists, Antonio Incorvaia and Alessandro Rimassa. Both in their thirties, they claim Claudio represents millions of young people, not just in Italy but all over Europe, who feel that they are 'unseen and undervalued'.
The pair claim this disaffected section of society is not those straight out of school or university who have yet to climb the career ladder, but under-35s who have completed further education and have been employed for years. Nor are they all stuck in dead-end jobs.
'Many of them have prestigious and trendy positions, in the media, event management and marketing," says Rimassa. 'They have responsibility and pressures, but hardly any money.'
The men based the book on their own experiences and those of their friends and say that despite the economic difficulties facing their generation, the under-35s are not willing to give up the good things in life. Although financially restricted, they still enjoy parties, travelling and going out with their friends. They have found ways to make the best of what they have by living low-cost lives.
A survey of 1,600 people carried out by the left-leaning economic and social studies institute IRES, along with Italy's biggest trade union Cgil, reported this week that 89.2 per cent of the 17-24 age group earned under 1,000 euros a month along with 64.9 per cent of those in the 25-32 age group. It also revealed that 70 per cent of female workers questioned earned below a thousand euros a month.The survey also showed that 87 per cent of Italians under the age of 24 work on short-term contracts, as well as 53.5 per cent of Italians in the 25-32-year age group.
Left, right, or center - what the authors of Generazione 1000 EURO are writing about is true. Young Italians are notoriously under paid in comparison to say, the UK, or the United States. As a personal reference, while I was IN university, I made, part time, selling cosmetics in a department store located on Long Island, $1,000 a month. That job didn't even require a degree and it was back in 1988! Decent good paying entry level jobs are next to impossible to find in Italy. Trying to get a leg up into the work force for students just out of university can be a crushing experience. I could get into some of the reasons I believe this happens, but this a friendly blog and I would like to keep it that way. I don't want to get into the labor laws that stifle the labor market ( you just can't fire someone, even if they don't do their job) or the fact "students", meaning people under a certain age, can be hired at lower than average salaries to be given the opportunity to gain "work experience" and then be let go to when they "out grow" the job and there is a hoard of "students" waiting to take their place.
But hey, I am sure this online novel is very good. For my Italian readers click here and download the novel and read it for yourself. And wow, if they are getting noticed outside of Italy, these guys are on the way to success! Maybe one day it will be translated because I would love to read it, I bet you would too!
A tardi!
Krista
Chaos at the Crockfords!
What does one do to pass the time during a very cold wet weekend? Invite your children's friends to the house for a sleepover!!! Sarah and Anna had a grand time this weekend with their good friends, Virginia and Valentina. The girls spent Saturday afternoon going from one room to the next leaving disaster behind them while I tried to keep the noise and mess to a minimum. Three screaming eleven year olds and one crazy 10 year old! Chaos reigned. Not even a film could keep them quiet and still for long. Fine with us. Their choice of movie? GREASE! It is bad enough watching John Travolta and Olivia Newton John speaking in their native tongue, torture dubbed into Italian. At least the songs were in the original format, I just hope the Italian kids couldn't understand the lyrics! Go greased lighting....
The little hellions finally fell asleep shortly after midnight only to wake up this morning at 7 am! Thank god for the Cartoon Network, yes we have that here as well as Disney, Sam and I slept in. We finally rolled out of our warm bed at 9:30 because the natives were growing restless with hunger! The kids requested a pancake breakfast complete with maple syrup. I modified the menu a bit for the Italian contingent. Instead I made crepes and offered the choice of Nutella to go with them. Nutella is a chocolate/hazelnut spread - the Italian equivalent of Skippy. Nutella is a food most Italian kids grown up eating and secretly yearn for into adulthood, just like we Americans and our beloved Skippy Peanut Butter. Both are comfort foods with suspect nutritional merit but uniquely part of our history and culture.
Valentina's mom collected her daughter at 12 and Virginia just left. Ahh... peace and quiet reigns! The girls have picked up their rooms and now are decompressing. Anna is working at her new 3,000 piece puzzle and Sarah is playing her violin. Sam is writing a report for a risk management survey he did yesterday aboard a 110 foot sailboat. Lucky him, he escaped the zoo and went to Genoa to sit on a yacht and got paid for it. Ahhh, he has the life these days. Me, I am blogging and thinking about what I should make for lunch. I thinking of something easy, like say, Pasta pomodoro!
To update you on the weather... If you remember on one of my previous posts I mentioned that it can start to rain and not stop for a week. Well, it started to rain Thursday, it turned to snow, then back to rain. It has yet to stop and the forecast is for more of the same tomorrow! Argh! You should see my pile of laundry. Rain here means I cannot get it done. My washing machine is on my terrace which is outside and I have no dryer. I hang my laundry off the terrace to dry! Now, that is another complete blog entry! Laundry in Italy! Think I will save that idea for another day. I have to go get lunch ready, Sam is looking at me with those hungry eyes...
Ciao for now!
Krista
The little hellions finally fell asleep shortly after midnight only to wake up this morning at 7 am! Thank god for the Cartoon Network, yes we have that here as well as Disney, Sam and I slept in. We finally rolled out of our warm bed at 9:30 because the natives were growing restless with hunger! The kids requested a pancake breakfast complete with maple syrup. I modified the menu a bit for the Italian contingent. Instead I made crepes and offered the choice of Nutella to go with them. Nutella is a chocolate/hazelnut spread - the Italian equivalent of Skippy. Nutella is a food most Italian kids grown up eating and secretly yearn for into adulthood, just like we Americans and our beloved Skippy Peanut Butter. Both are comfort foods with suspect nutritional merit but uniquely part of our history and culture.
Valentina's mom collected her daughter at 12 and Virginia just left. Ahh... peace and quiet reigns! The girls have picked up their rooms and now are decompressing. Anna is working at her new 3,000 piece puzzle and Sarah is playing her violin. Sam is writing a report for a risk management survey he did yesterday aboard a 110 foot sailboat. Lucky him, he escaped the zoo and went to Genoa to sit on a yacht and got paid for it. Ahhh, he has the life these days. Me, I am blogging and thinking about what I should make for lunch. I thinking of something easy, like say, Pasta pomodoro!
To update you on the weather... If you remember on one of my previous posts I mentioned that it can start to rain and not stop for a week. Well, it started to rain Thursday, it turned to snow, then back to rain. It has yet to stop and the forecast is for more of the same tomorrow! Argh! You should see my pile of laundry. Rain here means I cannot get it done. My washing machine is on my terrace which is outside and I have no dryer. I hang my laundry off the terrace to dry! Now, that is another complete blog entry! Laundry in Italy! Think I will save that idea for another day. I have to go get lunch ready, Sam is looking at me with those hungry eyes...
Ciao for now!
Krista
Thursday, January 26, 2006
A very snowy day in Liguria!
Indeed!
Keeping with the "Cold Snap in Italy" theme, this morning the frigid air came to Liguria. We woke up to a cold driving rain that left snow on the upper elevations behind Chiavari. Not unusual.
But.....
Who knew this morning when I left Chiavari for Genoa that I would find weather even more brutal. I was going to a coffee morning hosted by one of the fine ladies of the American Women's club. I phoned ahead and inquired about the weather conditions. I was given the all clear. So, I gave Sam a peck on the cheek and off I went in the mini. I got on the autostrada and thought, ok, this is doable. There was snow on the hills but the roads were clear, on I drove. The closer to Genoa, the heavier the rain was falling. As many of you know, the autostrada in Liguria is a very narrow highway that snakes along the mountains and is only a serious of tunnels connected by bridges. There is no room for error. As I exited one very long tunnel in Nervi the skies suddenly were white!!! It was a blizzard. The heavy rain had turned to heavy snow. As I exited from the highway, which incidentally is perched above Genoa, and descended into Nervi, the wind was blowing and the snow was falling even harder while the thermometer in my car (which registers the outside temp) started to drop. In less that 5 kilometers the temp went from +5C to 0C! By the time was in Genoa, it was -1C! I never made it for coffee, I turned around and hightailed it home. This was no weather to be out in and it was only getting progressively worse. As I crawled in the traffic to get back on the Autostrada the snow was quickly accumulating. I was driving on very icy and slippery slush. I was somewhat safe in my car, but people were out driving around in their scooters! In this weather! Insanity!
I finally made it safely to the autostada. As I left Genoa the snow turned back to rain by the time I got to Recco, about 10 kilometers from Genoa. I got home made myself a cup of tea and thought of how happy and lucky I am to live in Chiavari. Liguria is coastal land bordered by mountains and the weather is driven by the mirco-climates created by the unique Alpine lay of the land. Chiavari seems to be at some advantageous position and for some meteorological phenomenon stays relatively mild. At least most of the time. The snow did finally arrive, and when it did, it looked much more beautiful sitting from the comfort of my office chair looking out the window with my warm cup of tea in my hand. Click here and see the beautiful snow in Chiavari.
The kids will be happy tomorrow, due to the weather, the schools are CLOSED! The whole region (equivalent to a state in the US) has announced that due to the icy road conditions it is too dangerous to ask the students to go to school. Hmmm tomorrow is Friday. I smell a 3 day weekend for the teachers!
Now those of you who live in wintery climates may think this hysteria over such a small amount of snow silly, and you might be right. But.... think of this.... Imagine if somewhere in Florida, or sunny San Diego where it hardly ever snows - suddenly - had snow. They would be paralyzed too. What city invests in snow clearing equipment when it never snows? Not one. Including Genoa. Which according to the latest eyewitness report (Sam on a train heading for Milan), is far much worse off than Chiavari.
The upside to a blizzard on Northern Italy. It is finally snowing in Torino, the host city of the upcoming Winter Olympic Games. The organizers have been praying for snow for it hasn't fallen all month, now their prayers have been answered! Fresh snow right in time for the big games
A tardi!
Krista
Keeping with the "Cold Snap in Italy" theme, this morning the frigid air came to Liguria. We woke up to a cold driving rain that left snow on the upper elevations behind Chiavari. Not unusual.
But.....
Who knew this morning when I left Chiavari for Genoa that I would find weather even more brutal. I was going to a coffee morning hosted by one of the fine ladies of the American Women's club. I phoned ahead and inquired about the weather conditions. I was given the all clear. So, I gave Sam a peck on the cheek and off I went in the mini. I got on the autostrada and thought, ok, this is doable. There was snow on the hills but the roads were clear, on I drove. The closer to Genoa, the heavier the rain was falling. As many of you know, the autostrada in Liguria is a very narrow highway that snakes along the mountains and is only a serious of tunnels connected by bridges. There is no room for error. As I exited one very long tunnel in Nervi the skies suddenly were white!!! It was a blizzard. The heavy rain had turned to heavy snow. As I exited from the highway, which incidentally is perched above Genoa, and descended into Nervi, the wind was blowing and the snow was falling even harder while the thermometer in my car (which registers the outside temp) started to drop. In less that 5 kilometers the temp went from +5C to 0C! By the time was in Genoa, it was -1C! I never made it for coffee, I turned around and hightailed it home. This was no weather to be out in and it was only getting progressively worse. As I crawled in the traffic to get back on the Autostrada the snow was quickly accumulating. I was driving on very icy and slippery slush. I was somewhat safe in my car, but people were out driving around in their scooters! In this weather! Insanity!
I finally made it safely to the autostada. As I left Genoa the snow turned back to rain by the time I got to Recco, about 10 kilometers from Genoa. I got home made myself a cup of tea and thought of how happy and lucky I am to live in Chiavari. Liguria is coastal land bordered by mountains and the weather is driven by the mirco-climates created by the unique Alpine lay of the land. Chiavari seems to be at some advantageous position and for some meteorological phenomenon stays relatively mild. At least most of the time. The snow did finally arrive, and when it did, it looked much more beautiful sitting from the comfort of my office chair looking out the window with my warm cup of tea in my hand. Click here and see the beautiful snow in Chiavari.
The kids will be happy tomorrow, due to the weather, the schools are CLOSED! The whole region (equivalent to a state in the US) has announced that due to the icy road conditions it is too dangerous to ask the students to go to school. Hmmm tomorrow is Friday. I smell a 3 day weekend for the teachers!
Now those of you who live in wintery climates may think this hysteria over such a small amount of snow silly, and you might be right. But.... think of this.... Imagine if somewhere in Florida, or sunny San Diego where it hardly ever snows - suddenly - had snow. They would be paralyzed too. What city invests in snow clearing equipment when it never snows? Not one. Including Genoa. Which according to the latest eyewitness report (Sam on a train heading for Milan), is far much worse off than Chiavari.
The upside to a blizzard on Northern Italy. It is finally snowing in Torino, the host city of the upcoming Winter Olympic Games. The organizers have been praying for snow for it hasn't fallen all month, now their prayers have been answered! Fresh snow right in time for the big games
A tardi!
Krista
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
It Is Cold In Italy...
we are in the midst of an energy shortage, and Mother Russia is cutting off Italy from her gas supply. Reminds me of 1979 and the Americans and Saudis don't ya think?
If you live long enough history really does repeat itself. Does anyone remember the speech by our President during the energy crisis in 1979? I was only 13, but I remember the fireside address President Carter gave in his now infamous sweater. He laid out his energy program and asked us to don a sweater and turn down our thermostats to conserve fuel during the winter.
Fast forward to Italy 2006 and the Italian Government's reaction to the threat of not having enough gas to get Italy safely through the cold wave. The Italian government's response to the present crisis seems very similar to Jimmy's, but this issue is too complicated and political, I dare not tackle it on my simple blog. Read the article and the link to the speech, you will see the parallels are there. Click here and read on.
Here are a couple of uniquely Italian responses to the crisis...
Even in the midst of an energy crisis, Italians find a way to relate the looming doom to eating more and keeping down your waist size, and to children. The two, out of the three, national obsessions. What could be said about soccer and the energy crisis anyway?
Me, I am snug as a bug in a rug here in my toasty apartment. The sun is shining and it is +7 degrees in Chiavari. I would be happy when the heat is turned down in my building. As many of you know, my home is ALWAYS too hot and I ALWAYS have a window open! Such a waste in times like these.
Keep warm!
Krista
If you live long enough history really does repeat itself. Does anyone remember the speech by our President during the energy crisis in 1979? I was only 13, but I remember the fireside address President Carter gave in his now infamous sweater. He laid out his energy program and asked us to don a sweater and turn down our thermostats to conserve fuel during the winter.
Fast forward to Italy 2006 and the Italian Government's reaction to the threat of not having enough gas to get Italy safely through the cold wave. The Italian government's response to the present crisis seems very similar to Jimmy's, but this issue is too complicated and political, I dare not tackle it on my simple blog. Read the article and the link to the speech, you will see the parallels are there. Click here and read on.
Here are a couple of uniquely Italian responses to the crisis...
Meanwhile the national farmers association told consumers it was OK to eat 10-20% more calories during the cold snap, which is expected to last another ten days. The national paediatricians association told parents to keep kids indoors as much as possible and wrap them up "in onion-like layers" if they ventured outdoors.
According to some dieticians, Italians would actually benefit from lowering the temperatures in their homes because they could burn off excess fat to keep their bodies at a steady 37C degrees.
Even in the midst of an energy crisis, Italians find a way to relate the looming doom to eating more and keeping down your waist size, and to children. The two, out of the three, national obsessions. What could be said about soccer and the energy crisis anyway?
Me, I am snug as a bug in a rug here in my toasty apartment. The sun is shining and it is +7 degrees in Chiavari. I would be happy when the heat is turned down in my building. As many of you know, my home is ALWAYS too hot and I ALWAYS have a window open! Such a waste in times like these.
Keep warm!
Krista
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
Oh no!
The Italian food police are back. First they were after pasta. Apparently how we Americans made pasta was not up to snuff. We did not use the correct flour, it has to be semolina. Punto Basta. Fine. Then it was pizza. I always thought pizza was an Italian / American invention, guess not. Not too long ago the food police were after us for that too, see here. Can you imagine trying to control every pizza parlor in the USA! Impossible.
Now the Italian food police are after us once again. This time for the misuse of Parmesan Cheese.
Ok. What we sometimes sprinkle on our pasta in the US is not anyway near what one could call "real" Parmigiano Reggiano. I agree. But the cheese is not marketed as such anyway. I think most sensible Americans know the difference between processed cheese and real cheese. If there is a desire for the superior cut of cheese there are a multitude of gourmet shops to provide it for them. These days even local supermarkets all over the USA sell imported cheese from all over the world. I have myself bought Parmigiano Reggiano, stamped to show it's authenticity, in Costco!
What I am getting at is this. Can one country, because it has such a glorious gastronomic history control what everyone else chooses to call what they eat? I suspect the "real" on the packaging refers to real cheese, not real parmigiano. Same as organic means natural food, not always naturally raised food. See my point. Different countries measure by different standards.
I see a slippery slope here.
Here is a thought. What if the Italian cheese producers chose to promote their product more in the States, or, gasp, lowered the cost on their exported cheese to compete with American products, they just might gain some market share they seek. Hmmm, but, that is an American idea. Friendly Competition. The Italian way is to scream to the authorities for more legislation to control the market. Oops, did I just say that? Naughty me!
Krista
Now the Italian food police are after us once again. This time for the misuse of Parmesan Cheese.
Pasta is seasoned with fake parmesan at least nine times out of ten in the States, Coldiretti (farmer's association) says commenting the alert launched by the Institute for Foreign trade (ICE) that denounced the forgery of the Italian foods abroad. The diffusion of Italian sounding curbs our exports of Parmigiano reggiano and Grana padano cheese in the US.
Ok. What we sometimes sprinkle on our pasta in the US is not anyway near what one could call "real" Parmigiano Reggiano. I agree. But the cheese is not marketed as such anyway. I think most sensible Americans know the difference between processed cheese and real cheese. If there is a desire for the superior cut of cheese there are a multitude of gourmet shops to provide it for them. These days even local supermarkets all over the USA sell imported cheese from all over the world. I have myself bought Parmigiano Reggiano, stamped to show it's authenticity, in Costco!
What I am getting at is this. Can one country, because it has such a glorious gastronomic history control what everyone else chooses to call what they eat? I suspect the "real" on the packaging refers to real cheese, not real parmigiano. Same as organic means natural food, not always naturally raised food. See my point. Different countries measure by different standards.
I see a slippery slope here.
Here is a thought. What if the Italian cheese producers chose to promote their product more in the States, or, gasp, lowered the cost on their exported cheese to compete with American products, they just might gain some market share they seek. Hmmm, but, that is an American idea. Friendly Competition. The Italian way is to scream to the authorities for more legislation to control the market. Oops, did I just say that? Naughty me!
Krista
skype me baby!
I skype. Sam skypes. Even my 80 year old Daddy skypes. Do you skype?
I love skype. How did I live without skype? You ask what is skype?
It is a telephony service that allows you to talk for free through your computer's internet connection. You also can instant message and share files with other on line skype users and all for free. If you have Windows, you even have the option for free video calling!!! (Sorry, but we mac users don't have that yet.) Best feature of all, it is compatible with Mac and Windows! If you are on line you can instant message or call your friends regardless of which computer they choose to use!
In addition to the telephony service you can set up an account and use your computer for all your telecommunications needs, but that is not for free, but the cost is very competitively priced. How do you get on board the skype train, you ask? Just click on the icon above, download the relevant software for your computer and follow the simple instructions to set up your new account. Once there, look for me and send me your contact. You will be skyping in no time at all.
Top tip, even if your computer has a built in microphone you might want to invest in a headset. Less feedback and better sound quality.
Be forewarned, skpye can be a distraction and an addiction!
a presto!
krista
Monday, January 23, 2006
A Fellow Expat's Point of View
Let me introduce you to Barksdale Brown. He is another crazy American who traded his comfortable life in the good ol' USA to search for a something new in Italy. He is currently living in Bologna with his wife and children and writes about his Italian adventure in a weekly column for his hometown paper back in Albuquerque, NM. I faithfully read his columns and most of the time I am rolling in laughter.
Here is an example of one of his stories:
Yup, I must admit that no matter how long Sam and I have been living in Italy, almost 6 years now, or how well we think we speak Italian, cough cough, we still at times make the same mistakes mentioned by Mr. Brown. Of course, you learn to roll with it and keep on trying just like he says. But, imagine Sarah and Anna's plight when Daddy refers to La Befana as buffone (witch for clown), or when their Mommy says boys instead of girls, because I always confuse the masculine and feminine endings.... I could go on and on. It is generally accepted that in the eyes of an adolescent, parents almost always are an embarrassment, imagine our children's burden with us tripping through Italian with their Italian friends....
Here is the link to his column. I know you will soon be a fan too! Click here and get ready to laugh it up with Barksdale Brown.
Divertiti! (Enjoy)
Krista
Here is an example of one of his stories:
In some ways speaking a foreign language is like playing golf. To play golf well you need to know how to swing a golf club, and almost more importantly, you must believe you know how to swing the club.
Speaking Italian is kind of the same. Of course, you have to learn words, verb tenses and grammatical rules, but all the theory in the world is absolutely useless unless you believe you can speak. As a corollary to this rule, it is just as important that your audience also believes you are speaking Italian.
Shortly after our arrival in Italy I had the following conversation with a waiter:
Me: Could we eat flowers?
Waiter: What?
Me (to myself): What is this guy's problem? It was a simple question.
Me (out loud): Could we please eat flowers?
Waiter (smiling and now in English): Sir, do you mean you want to eat outside?
Me: Yes, exactly, (feeling like an idiot for just having confused fuori with fiori.
From that point on the waiter refused to believe that I was speaking Italian, and he was probably right. Of course I preferred to believe that the waiter just wanted to practice his English.
During another meal outing I greatly amused my kids, who were already speaking Italian better than me, by ordering fish juice for them instead of peach juice (pesce instead of pesca). That certainly earned me an interesting look from the waiter.
My wife Kim has also contributed to the local amusement. Once, while hiking with some Italian girlfriends the discussion turned to favorite children's books. Kim, confusing the word for a certain part of the male anatomy with the word for stockings, told her friends that Madi loved "Pippi Longstocking" (cazzo instead of calza). There was a moment of confused silence, followed by howls of laughter. As you might imagine this little slip quickly became the comic highlight of the hike.
Another of my favorites was when Kim was trying to exchange our daughter Madison's ballet shoes for a bigger size. She described the shoes as being witchy instead of tight (strega vs. stretta).
Yup, I must admit that no matter how long Sam and I have been living in Italy, almost 6 years now, or how well we think we speak Italian, cough cough, we still at times make the same mistakes mentioned by Mr. Brown. Of course, you learn to roll with it and keep on trying just like he says. But, imagine Sarah and Anna's plight when Daddy refers to La Befana as buffone (witch for clown), or when their Mommy says boys instead of girls, because I always confuse the masculine and feminine endings.... I could go on and on. It is generally accepted that in the eyes of an adolescent, parents almost always are an embarrassment, imagine our children's burden with us tripping through Italian with their Italian friends....
Here is the link to his column. I know you will soon be a fan too! Click here and get ready to laugh it up with Barksdale Brown.
Divertiti! (Enjoy)
Krista
No cold snap here!
While Northern and Eastern Europe are enduring some of the coldest weather in recent history, we here in Italy have been having relatively warm sunny weather! Saturday it did rain, but Sunday morning we woke to brilliant sunshine. Sam got out of bed early, put breakfast on the table, and made a few phone calls. He rounded the troops up for another hiking excursion to the Cinque Terre. This time Sam decided to walk from Vernazza to Monterosso, which is the bit of the hike we didn't get to last Sunday. Ian Lewis and his son Matteo decided to go with Sam as well as Joanne and Silvio Costa with their kids, Davide and Sara. Sam packed up sandwiches and a snack and after breakfast headed to the train station to meet up with the gang. Unfortunately for me, this is also flu season. I have been stuck home with a temperature, sore throat, stuffy head since Friday night! I was unable to join in on the fun! At least this is not the bird flu and there will always be a another chance to walk the Cinque Terre.
When the troops returned to Chiavari I invited them over for coffee and homemade chocolate cake. Everyone was so fired up from the walk they talked about hiking again next week. And if this weather holds out, why not? What is the saying? Make hay while the sun shines. Who knows how long the mild weather will hold out. It can start raining here and not stop for weeks!
Click on over to my homepage and you can take a look at the photos.
No one wanted to tell me yesterday that my girls ended their walk with a dip in the sea, but they did. The photos speak for themselves. While the kids played in the sea, the grown ups bathed in the sun. The tans on their faces were proof enough! Poor Anna is now home sick with the flu too. Argh! Who let her in the sea?
What did I do yesterday? I enjoyed the peace and quiet of my home and read a book. I also baked a delicious mocha cake. I nursed my cold and drank lots of tea while wishing I could be out walking with my family. It is not so bad to home sick when the weather is lousy, but when the the sun is shining it is torture to be indoors.
The book I am reading is very good. The title is "Don't Wake Me At Doyles", by Maura Murphy. It is another autobiography telling the story of the hard life of the poor Irish, but this time told from a women's point of view. A feminine "Angela's Ashes" if you will. I highly recommend it if you like this genre of literature. It can be a bit depressing reading about the hard knock life of the dirt poor, but at the same time amazing how people pull themselves out of it. You realize how much in life we take for granted, for instance, just having food on the table and roof over your head.
Ciao!
Krista
When the troops returned to Chiavari I invited them over for coffee and homemade chocolate cake. Everyone was so fired up from the walk they talked about hiking again next week. And if this weather holds out, why not? What is the saying? Make hay while the sun shines. Who knows how long the mild weather will hold out. It can start raining here and not stop for weeks!
Click on over to my homepage and you can take a look at the photos.
No one wanted to tell me yesterday that my girls ended their walk with a dip in the sea, but they did. The photos speak for themselves. While the kids played in the sea, the grown ups bathed in the sun. The tans on their faces were proof enough! Poor Anna is now home sick with the flu too. Argh! Who let her in the sea?
What did I do yesterday? I enjoyed the peace and quiet of my home and read a book. I also baked a delicious mocha cake. I nursed my cold and drank lots of tea while wishing I could be out walking with my family. It is not so bad to home sick when the weather is lousy, but when the the sun is shining it is torture to be indoors.
The book I am reading is very good. The title is "Don't Wake Me At Doyles", by Maura Murphy. It is another autobiography telling the story of the hard life of the poor Irish, but this time told from a women's point of view. A feminine "Angela's Ashes" if you will. I highly recommend it if you like this genre of literature. It can be a bit depressing reading about the hard knock life of the dirt poor, but at the same time amazing how people pull themselves out of it. You realize how much in life we take for granted, for instance, just having food on the table and roof over your head.
Ciao!
Krista
Friday, January 20, 2006
What European Cold Snap?
Cold wave brings disruption to new EU states in East Europe
While my brother in law Edward Crockford and his family have been shivering in the cold that has gripped eastern europe and Russia, we here in Italy have been enjoying mostly warm sunny weather. What did I do yesterday? I sat on the beach enjoying the sunshine on my face and improving my tan! Here in Chiavari it was a perfectly comfortable PLUS 18 degrees Celsius, or 64 degrees Fahrenheit! Yesterday in Rome, it was 26 degrees Celsius or 80 degrees Fahrenheit! Forecast for the weekend..... More of the same!
Wish you were here!
Krista
In neighbouring Latvia, many schools were empty as parents kept their children at home as temperatures dropped to minus 30 degrees C Thursday morning in northern and eastern regions of the Baltic country.
According to Latvian law, children under 12 can skip school if temperatures fall to lower than minus 20 degrees C (minus four F).
In the western town of Liepaja, the local authorities said drivers could not start their buses and cars, particularly those running on diesel.
The Latvian environment, geology and meteorology agency said temperatures in some regions could fall to minus 32 degrees C (minus 25.6 F) in coming days, before rising on Monday.
While my brother in law Edward Crockford and his family have been shivering in the cold that has gripped eastern europe and Russia, we here in Italy have been enjoying mostly warm sunny weather. What did I do yesterday? I sat on the beach enjoying the sunshine on my face and improving my tan! Here in Chiavari it was a perfectly comfortable PLUS 18 degrees Celsius, or 64 degrees Fahrenheit! Yesterday in Rome, it was 26 degrees Celsius or 80 degrees Fahrenheit! Forecast for the weekend..... More of the same!
Wish you were here!
Krista
Wednesday, January 18, 2006
Breccanecca!
Yes folks that is spelled correctly. Now say it out loud and say it proud. If you sound like an Italian trying to speaka da english you are right. Literally, Breccanecca is saying "break your neck" widda da accent. Local lore has it that this mountain village was named by the Allied forces that were here during the end of WWII. They gave this village that name because of the difficulty in ascending and descending this mountain. Look here for more on the area. I have this image in my head of some young Army draftee from Brooklyn NY who had the unfortunate assignment to patrol this mountain looking for the odd Nazi still lingering in a cave and complaining to everyone about his fear of breaking his neck. Seems plausible, no? Anyway, as I saying, back to the significance of this silly name, there was a reason that mountain will break your neck if you try to climb it. It is paved with ardesia, in other words, slate!!!! Think blackboards. Why? It is the La via dell'Ardesia. The way of Slate. That was the reason people for centuries climbed that mountain, to mine the slate out of the caves. The city below, the one next to Chiavari is named, Lavangna and Lavangna is the Italian word for Blackboard, i.e.: slate. Now, imagine the descent with moist air and wet weather like we had today! It is no wonder that we didn't break our necks.
The walk was well worth it. If you take this walk today you can see the old mines and the slag mounds covering the top of the mountain. The view from atop Mt. Sangiacomo was breathtaking. We could see from Sestri Levante to Portofino!
As I was doing a little research on the net about this area I stumbled across this fact. Do you know who carried the mined slate? WOMEN. And yes, they were barefoot!!!!!! See, we are the stronger sex! Here is the proof!
In very bad English:
It is born with the name of Blackboard, since not only came extracted in Fontanabuona but also in the area of the Sangiacomo mount near Cogorno, and from l? through the "carriers" untiring women who transported barefoot in order not to lose the equilibrium the slabs on the head, they arrived to being boarded for the distribution, and sure a ecomuseo to stages is one of the more important stages of the "Way of the slate" that offers the possibility to visit some of the places more interesting legacies to the history and the production of the from Liguria black stone.
Part from the locality of Chiapparino (approximately 16 km. from the casello of Blackboard) where has been prepared in an ancient laboratory of the 1900 suit of chimney, an Office information, a gallery of photo of the adjacent zone to a room where one of the tables from billiards is exposed on which Tom Cruise and Paul Newman in the film have played "the color of the moneies", one knows it conferences and a curatissimo showroom dedicated to the oggettistica and the furnishings.
To Isolona the second stage extension the hollow basements dug in the heart of the mountain and visitabili also to the inside and "barac?n" the shed where it came worked the slate after the extraction.
Finally to Cicagna we can see in a small museum the first mechanical segatrici that go back to 1948 and that they allowed the man to abandon the piccone for the extraction.
An other permanent extension close to the Museum of Cicagna is "Fontanabuona, archaeology and history" that the history of the valley from the antiquity to the Middle Ages travels over again faithfully.
Quite the traces of I use of the black stone go back to the necropoli preistorica of Chiavari of the Viii-ways century $R-avanti.C$cristo and they show to us as already in the tombe to cassette "ciappe" maestria and precision were worked with.
Mount Tuggio di Tribogna fifth stage of the distance, offers a panoramic one between its several forests of the hollow ones dug in the land nearly to seem lairs of animals.
Last less meaningful stage but is not the visit to the BASILICA Of the FIESCHI that us extension in all the its splendor the use of the slate in all its structures is external that inner while near Saint Salvatore here the distance of the carriers about which we have spoken previously from the Saint Mount Giacomo towards Blackboard.
Keep Trecking!
Krista
The walk was well worth it. If you take this walk today you can see the old mines and the slag mounds covering the top of the mountain. The view from atop Mt. Sangiacomo was breathtaking. We could see from Sestri Levante to Portofino!
As I was doing a little research on the net about this area I stumbled across this fact. Do you know who carried the mined slate? WOMEN. And yes, they were barefoot!!!!!! See, we are the stronger sex! Here is the proof!
In very bad English:
It is born with the name of Blackboard, since not only came extracted in Fontanabuona but also in the area of the Sangiacomo mount near Cogorno, and from l? through the "carriers" untiring women who transported barefoot in order not to lose the equilibrium the slabs on the head, they arrived to being boarded for the distribution, and sure a ecomuseo to stages is one of the more important stages of the "Way of the slate" that offers the possibility to visit some of the places more interesting legacies to the history and the production of the from Liguria black stone.
Part from the locality of Chiapparino (approximately 16 km. from the casello of Blackboard) where has been prepared in an ancient laboratory of the 1900 suit of chimney, an Office information, a gallery of photo of the adjacent zone to a room where one of the tables from billiards is exposed on which Tom Cruise and Paul Newman in the film have played "the color of the moneies", one knows it conferences and a curatissimo showroom dedicated to the oggettistica and the furnishings.
To Isolona the second stage extension the hollow basements dug in the heart of the mountain and visitabili also to the inside and "barac?n" the shed where it came worked the slate after the extraction.
Finally to Cicagna we can see in a small museum the first mechanical segatrici that go back to 1948 and that they allowed the man to abandon the piccone for the extraction.
An other permanent extension close to the Museum of Cicagna is "Fontanabuona, archaeology and history" that the history of the valley from the antiquity to the Middle Ages travels over again faithfully.
Quite the traces of I use of the black stone go back to the necropoli preistorica of Chiavari of the Viii-ways century $R-avanti.C$cristo and they show to us as already in the tombe to cassette "ciappe" maestria and precision were worked with.
Mount Tuggio di Tribogna fifth stage of the distance, offers a panoramic one between its several forests of the hollow ones dug in the land nearly to seem lairs of animals.
Last less meaningful stage but is not the visit to the BASILICA Of the FIESCHI that us extension in all the its splendor the use of the slate in all its structures is external that inner while near Saint Salvatore here the distance of the carriers about which we have spoken previously from the Saint Mount Giacomo towards Blackboard.
Keep Trecking!
Krista
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
The Birthday Girl!
Happy Birthday Barbara!
As I said in my previous post, yesterday was Barbara's birthday. I won't give away her age here.
I tried to post this yesterday, but flickr was down. I didn't forget you Barbara.
One last thing, look at those teeth! If I remember correctly, her dad, who I see more than I do Barbara, told me her orthodondist was one to the stars.... he also did Bing Crosby's childrens braces.
Countdown to my big 40..... drumroll please..... 28 days! Yikes!
Krista
As I said in my previous post, yesterday was Barbara's birthday. I won't give away her age here.
I tried to post this yesterday, but flickr was down. I didn't forget you Barbara.
One last thing, look at those teeth! If I remember correctly, her dad, who I see more than I do Barbara, told me her orthodondist was one to the stars.... he also did Bing Crosby's childrens braces.
Countdown to my big 40..... drumroll please..... 28 days! Yikes!
Krista
Le Cinque Terre
Sunday morning we were off for another hiking adventure in Liguria. We were joined by our friends The Delis, The Costas, and the Misleys. In total we were 18, if you count little Lorenzo, which we should for he came ready to roll in his stroller! The nations represented in our group? America, England, Canada, and Italy. We took the train to Riomaggiore and hit the ground running only to pause for coffee and foccacia. Barbara brought along a thermos full of steaming hot coffee and buonissimo foccacia shared it with us all! Brava Barbara! With full bellies and eager limbs we set off in the cold to scale hills of the Cinque Terre. Next stop, Manarola, easy, then, Manarola to Corniglia, not so easy, remember, little Lorenzo and his stroller.... Corniglia is the one "terre" that sits at the top of the hill. Poor Maurizio carried Lorenzo on his shoulders all the way while Sam, Enrico, and Silvio took turns carrying the stroller. Once to Corninglia, we took a brief pause and headed on to Vernazza where we planned to stop and eat our picnic lunch. Down we went from the hilltop town of Cornigla with the stroller in hand and all of us only to walk back up again to Vernazza. By this time our Sunday hike was becoming a Sunday workout!!!! Between the stroller, hungry tired kids, and weary adults we were eagerly searching for a good place to stop for lunch. As we reached Vernazza we came upon one good place in the sun, but it was already overrun with backpackers sunning themselves like seals on the beach, so, off we went in search of another place in the sun. We finally found our sunny spot on the rocks above Vernazza and plopped ourselves down for a picnic. Click here and see for yourself. Sorry I don't have any cute comments to accompany the photos, because the Apple site would not cooperate with me today or yesterday! I think Mr. Jobs needs a right smack bottom for that one!
After we filled our bellies with our delicious lunch, we continued our descent into Vernazza and boarded a train to Chiavari. Once safely back home in Chiavari, which was being overrun by a huge annual mercato, which Joanne blogged so nicely about, Barbara invited us all back to her house for a slice of carrot cake in honor of her birthday.
All in all - a lovely day was had by all. At least I hope!
Krista
After we filled our bellies with our delicious lunch, we continued our descent into Vernazza and boarded a train to Chiavari. Once safely back home in Chiavari, which was being overrun by a huge annual mercato, which Joanne blogged so nicely about, Barbara invited us all back to her house for a slice of carrot cake in honor of her birthday.
All in all - a lovely day was had by all. At least I hope!
Krista
Friday, January 13, 2006
Let the countdown begin....
Yep folks that is me a very long time ago.... How long ago you ask? About 40 years! Wasn't I a cute little baby? What is the point of me boring you with my baby photo? Starting today, Friday the 13th of January 2006, there are only 30 days between me and my big 40th on February 13th! Ouch!
No plans as of yet. Sam has indicated he has a surprise planned for me.... Scary huh? Me, I have no idea what I want to do for my big day. Seems like it should be like any other day in your life, lived to the fullest!
Start counting down the days with me.
A presto!
Krista
No plans as of yet. Sam has indicated he has a surprise planned for me.... Scary huh? Me, I have no idea what I want to do for my big day. Seems like it should be like any other day in your life, lived to the fullest!
Start counting down the days with me.
A presto!
Krista
Anna Banana turns 10!
I am really catching up on my blogging today! Sam is off in Sarzanna working...cough cough, and I have a moment alone!
I tried to post this photo before we left for Davos, but the traffic at flickr.com was too slow. Who could wait? The Alps were calling us and off we went.
Belately, here is Anna on the morning of December 29th, her 10th birthday! Isn't she lovely? I said to Anna that morning, "No more single digits for you anymore, from now on, you will always have 2 numbers." She looked at me like I had two heads and said.... "Mommy, not true, one day I will have 3." Anna, I hope so. I really do.
Happy Birthday Sweetheart!
I tried to post this photo before we left for Davos, but the traffic at flickr.com was too slow. Who could wait? The Alps were calling us and off we went.
Belately, here is Anna on the morning of December 29th, her 10th birthday! Isn't she lovely? I said to Anna that morning, "No more single digits for you anymore, from now on, you will always have 2 numbers." She looked at me like I had two heads and said.... "Mommy, not true, one day I will have 3." Anna, I hope so. I really do.
Happy Birthday Sweetheart!
Too Many Years Ago!
Click on the photo to enlarge it and see if you can find Steven and I! Hint, Steven used to have tons of hair, and, I am not a real blonde!
And by the way, weren't the 70's awful?!?!
Krista
Blast From The Past
This week Sam and I were off to Florence to catch up with my old childhood friend Steven Urso! He is one of my oldest and dearest friends going all the way back to kindergarten at John Street Elementary School in Franklin Square! Today he is a professor at the local community college in Nassau County on Long Island were we grew up and both attended our first years of college. These days Steven teaches courses in Hotel and Restaurant management, coincidentally his dean is also one of our former classmates, Maria Conzatti! Her family also has ties to Chiavari and have a home here.... small world isn't it?
Being that Sam had some meetings in and around Firenza this week we set off early Tuesday and spent a very romantic evening in a lovely hotel on a very fashionable street! We had a delicious meal that evening and the next morning set off for the Uffizi Gallery. We were one of the first to arrive and imagine my surprise when there was no line! Many times I have tried to see the gallery over the years, but it was always booked solid! Seems to be January is the best time of year to visit Firenza! After overdosing on art and culture Sam and I spent the rest of the day taking in all that Firenza has to offer then finally met up with Steven in the evening.
Here is the link to all of our fun! Click here!
Every year Prof. Urso, aka Steven, takes a group of his students from Nassau Community College on a grand tour of Italy. They start in Rome, go on to Orvieto where they attend cooking classes and visit the vineyards of Tuscany. We met up with Steven Wednesday night in Firenza. We had a blast talking about the past and present over a Fiorentino and glass of Chianti in a very full trattoria! Life is sure strange sometimes. Who would have thought all those years ago while we were growing up in Franklin Square that one day in the future, Steven and I would be together in a trattoria in Firenza sipping a fine Chianti! Life is great and always full of surprises!
Arriverderci!
Being that Sam had some meetings in and around Firenza this week we set off early Tuesday and spent a very romantic evening in a lovely hotel on a very fashionable street! We had a delicious meal that evening and the next morning set off for the Uffizi Gallery. We were one of the first to arrive and imagine my surprise when there was no line! Many times I have tried to see the gallery over the years, but it was always booked solid! Seems to be January is the best time of year to visit Firenza! After overdosing on art and culture Sam and I spent the rest of the day taking in all that Firenza has to offer then finally met up with Steven in the evening.
Here is the link to all of our fun! Click here!
Every year Prof. Urso, aka Steven, takes a group of his students from Nassau Community College on a grand tour of Italy. They start in Rome, go on to Orvieto where they attend cooking classes and visit the vineyards of Tuscany. We met up with Steven Wednesday night in Firenza. We had a blast talking about the past and present over a Fiorentino and glass of Chianti in a very full trattoria! Life is sure strange sometimes. Who would have thought all those years ago while we were growing up in Franklin Square that one day in the future, Steven and I would be together in a trattoria in Firenza sipping a fine Chianti! Life is great and always full of surprises!
Arriverderci!
Buon Anno Nuovo!
Ok, I am back and blogging once again. Sorry for the pause! Life has been busy busy busy!
As I said in my previous post we were off to Davos for another fabulous ski holiday. We joined our friends Peter and Pippa plus their extended family for a New Year fondue extravaganza and many very cold days of skiing on powdery snow. As usual, we ate and drank a bit too much the whole week but, hey, what are the holidays for anyway? Click here and you can take a peek at our photos from the week.
New Year's Day was spent skiing with the kids, exercise is best way to get over a hangover.... That evening all of the adults drove out of the city of Davos parked the cars, then hiked 45 minutes up a mountain to a very cozy rustic chalet, in other words, no electricity, where we had the best cheese fondue ever with a few too many shots of kirsch. As the evening drew to a close, we took a scary toboggan ride down the mountain in the pitch dark, the only light we had was stars or the miner's lights on our heads, which only kept falling when you hit a bump and blinding me anyway! I will admit I screamed to whole way down the trail! I was never one for uncontrolled speed!
Sarah excelled in her skiing this year! She is actually in a higher level class than Anna, meaning she skis much faster than her sister, much to Anna's delight. You can just imagine the bickering that went on at the end of day every day.... Anna is very competitive and has a million reasons why Sarah is faster than her. Oh vey!
Ciao!
Krista
As I said in my previous post we were off to Davos for another fabulous ski holiday. We joined our friends Peter and Pippa plus their extended family for a New Year fondue extravaganza and many very cold days of skiing on powdery snow. As usual, we ate and drank a bit too much the whole week but, hey, what are the holidays for anyway? Click here and you can take a peek at our photos from the week.
New Year's Day was spent skiing with the kids, exercise is best way to get over a hangover.... That evening all of the adults drove out of the city of Davos parked the cars, then hiked 45 minutes up a mountain to a very cozy rustic chalet, in other words, no electricity, where we had the best cheese fondue ever with a few too many shots of kirsch. As the evening drew to a close, we took a scary toboggan ride down the mountain in the pitch dark, the only light we had was stars or the miner's lights on our heads, which only kept falling when you hit a bump and blinding me anyway! I will admit I screamed to whole way down the trail! I was never one for uncontrolled speed!
Sarah excelled in her skiing this year! She is actually in a higher level class than Anna, meaning she skis much faster than her sister, much to Anna's delight. You can just imagine the bickering that went on at the end of day every day.... Anna is very competitive and has a million reasons why Sarah is faster than her. Oh vey!
Ciao!
Krista
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