Thanksgiving in Assisi: Umbria Goodness Reigns

Our family celebrates Thanksgiving here in Assisi, too, but the Sunday following the holiday. Pino needs the weekend to fulfill his role, a major one: the creation of il tacchino di Pino. For years, we’ve ordered the turkey a few days prior from Assisi’s best butcher, Francesco, who well knows “che serve a Pino per…

With a Bonfire and Chestnuts, Assisi Awaits La Madonna

That huge crackling and spitting focaraccio (literally, “big ugly fire” i.e., “bonfire”) near Assisi’s massive medieval fortress, La Rocca Maggiore, is said to light the way for the arrival of La Madonna (for December 8th, feast of the Immaculate Conception). I’m not sure about that but the traditional December 7th bonfire certainly does gather together…

Cappuccino Nostalgia in Perugia: a Fiftieth Anniversary

Today, as an elderly Umberto served me his famous cioccolato caldo con la panna (hot chocolate with whipped cream)….. ….what memories of nippy November mornings in Perugia in 1969. I had studied Italian in Perugia for three months that fall and my roommate Margaret and I had found a “deal” on a double room in…

Naples, City of the Infinite

I’ve written many times on one of my favorite Italian cities, Naples. A city to celebrate. A city always celebrating. A city of infinite pleasures. A city rich in human interactions. A city of life, of joy: transmitted in the lively, foot-stomping musica napoletana of the ebullient street musicians in the photo above. I once…

Pino’s Artistry: From Stonework to Culinary Creativity

Pino’s creativity has moved into the kitchen, now that retirement from stone restoration is (partially) underway (though not quite fully in action). His artistic bent lives on in his stonework masterpieces. Like the meticulous restoration work on the medieval tower in Spello…. ….and the medieval guard towers and walls of the lakeside hilltown, Castiglione del…