Hello Family and Friends!
When I awoke today, I got up and threw open the shutters (well not quite) of our room to find myself burst into song..."The Hills Are Alive..." (well it wasn't exactly like that)...but I did find myself captivated by yet another world of immense beauty. We are so high up here, and look out into rolling, green and very lush hills.
I never knew much about the city of Orvieto in the province of Umbria, until I saw it featured in a Bon Appetit magazine a few years' ago. We drove into Orvieto once before, but left after driving around and around and around looking for parking.
Orvieto is an ancient city built in volcanic rock. Its stunning to view from a distance, and that's where you can really get a grasp of its splendor. It's hard to believe that cities can be built on rock and especially at such heights. Orvieto is referred to as "The green heart of Italy". The Duomo di Orvieto is something else to behold, and the cornerstone was first laid in 1270 AD, and it opened in 1310. There is extensive Papacy history here, and we plan to tour the inside of the Duomo tomorrow.
Orvieto is also a region famous for its Orvieto Classico wine and has been making wine since the Middle Ages. (I've been buying it at Superstore for quite a few years). In fact, on Wednesday, starting at 10:00 am, Ron and I are signed up for a cooking class, (everyone cooks their own lunch), and then comes the wine tour. Visit@decugnano.it for details if you are ever coming to Orvieto. Cooking really isn't Ron's thing, but in his good-natured way, he signed up anyway.
So - all that aside, we made our way downstairs for our first breakfast at Villa Mercede. Father Dino, smiling pleasantly, greeted us with the standard morning greeting of the Italian people,"Buongiorno" and ushered us into a large, chilly room with many small, square tables. He showed us the table with the food choices. We tried smiling at a few people, and then wondered if eye contact and speaking might not be allowed. No one seemed happy. We sat down with our bread and jam, and politely listened to utensils clinking against china. Ron whispered at me a few times, things like, "maybe cornflakes would be a good idea next time," and "where should we go for our espresso after this?" to which I replied, "Ssshhhhh". We sat quietly listening to cellopane being ripped off of small, packaged pastries. I looked up at a large, colorful fresco on the ceiling. Very chubby infant angels floated around tooting on bugles, and brandishing swords and chains. A lone person with stern looking spectacles shuffled, in collected food from the breakfast table, went to the corner, sat down and faced the wall.
We finished up at the table, and started on our journey in our little Fiat, to Pitigliano, (a town rich in history, and which is still referred to as "The Little Jerusalem". At one time in history, it was mostly made up of Jewish people who fled Rome during Reformation Persecutions. During the Second World War, it became known as The Ghetto for Jews. Jewish people were hidden there in the surrounding countryside, and some lives were saved.
We toured the caves and the Synagogue here - the 'Sinagoga E Patrimonio Enraico'. Ron was asked to wear a yamaka (cap) during the visit.
There were still tourist paraphernalia shops sprinkled around Pitigliano but it wasn't too bad. We loved wandering these tiny, ancient streets, where you could still see an occasional lady still sitting on a wooden chair outside her door and looking at you mysteriously as you trudged by with water bottle in hand.
On the way to lunch, we stopped in at the Duomo Cattedrale on Piazza S. Gregorio VII. Stunning. Who on earth built these glorious structures we asked ourselves?
We stopped for lunch at Cucina Tipica. Ron ordered the local salami and proscuitto. I would like to have caught the proper name of this dish, but Ron, (who normally has the patience of Job), suddenly said, "Karen! Do you really think people care about what you eat everyday? I decided not to take it personally, and wrote down the proper names anyway. So I'll tell you we tasted olive oil made in right in Pitigliano, and even wine of Pitigliano. Delicioso (Delicious! Ron had Tagliatelle alla boscaiola (noodles with sausage and mushroom sauce), and I had Tagliatelle with porcini (fungji porcini) mushrooms and truffles (tartufi! I studied the tagliatelle noodles carefully these days, since I started learning to make pasta at home. I'm picking up some good ideas...
The way the Italian menu works is like this: Antipasti - (hors d'oevre), Primi Piatti (first course), Secondi Piatti ( main course), Cortorni (contours - usually a vegetable or side to compliment the meat) and then dessert.
We left Pitigliani and drove to the south shore of Lago di Bolsena at Capodimonte where we walked along the shore and enjoyed the sunny afternoon before driving to Civita di Bagnoregio. Civita is an Italian hillside town that was once connected to Bagnoregio by a land bridge that eroded away and is now connected by a foot bridge. It is so magnificent, I can't even describe it. It looks like a castle in the sky and all we could do was stand and drink it all in.
We started our drive back to Orvieto listening to music we love "Antonello Vendetti (Prendilo Tu Questo Frutto Amaro)".
After a little rest, we walked to Zeppelin Ristorante, and said "Hello," to Chef Lorenzo, for some friends of ours. This ristorante looked like a fun, place to take a cooking lesson. Chef Lorenzo is a fun, lively person who likes to interact with people. He is also the author of "The Etruscan Chef".
How fortunate we are to be able to be in this beautiful country with its ancient, rich history and spectacular cuisine. I think of something someone once said to us in the town of Camogli, Italy on the Cinque Terre. He asked where Ron and I were from. Then he said, "Enjoy Italy, and breathe it in with every pore of your body..." (Which really isn't that hard to do).
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