Archive for 'Uncategorized'
The Fourth of November Posted by Serena on Nov 4, 2014
Quattro Novembre segna fine della Prima Guerra Mondiale in Italia (The Fourth of November marks the anniversary of the end of the First World War in Italy). When I was a child today used to be a national holiday and patriotic celebration of the greatness of our armed forces. All the barracks were open to…
Il Vento Posted by Geoff on Oct 23, 2014
I’m searching for inspiration. I comb through the online journals. I toy with various old blog projects that never came to fruition … nothing … my mind’s a blank. I take a break, close my eyes, what do I hear? The wind. The rattling of dried leaves scurrying down the street. The air is fresh…
Halloween Jam Posted by Serena on Oct 8, 2014
Halloween is getting closer, and with it the pumpkins season arrives. What to do with so many pumpkins? Some time ago I wrote a traditional northern Italian recipe for tortelli di zucca (pumpkin tortelli). Today I’m going to give you a recipe from Sicily in the very south of Italy: la marmellata di zucca (pumpkin…
What Did They Just Say? Posted by Geoff on Sep 25, 2014
It always seems a bit ironic to me that students of Italian put so much effort into learning their grammar, with all its convoluted rules and exceptions, only to be confronted with what appears to be a totally different language when they finally set foot in Italy. In fact, there is a vast difference between…
La Peperonata Posted by Serena on Sep 4, 2014
It’s the end of summer, and the sweet capsicums are all ripening on the plants in the orto (vegetable garden): beautiful red and yellow fleshy peppers with their interesting contorted shapes. What can you do with so many peppers? you can grill or roast them, you can stuff them with breadcrumbs following this recipe, you…
How to Amuse Oneself in an Italian Hospital! Posted by Geoff on Sep 3, 2014
All photos (CC) by Geoff Chamberlain I don’t think anyone particularly enjoys waiting around in hospitals. Despite the good healthcare that I’ve come to expect here in Italy I’ve always found the hospitals to be particularly barren and institutional. Those long, naked, antiseptic smelling corridors are particularly unnerving, and the only thing to distract the…
The Edible Dormouse Posted by Serena on Aug 27, 2014
Cats are fascinating creatures, they teach us so much about nature! In fact nearly every day we study biology with them. They do the dissecting, leaving the dismembered carcasses outside the kitchen door, and we play the identification game: “Sooo, what did they kill for us last night? That looks like a rat’s head to…