Archive for 2007
destination calabria:photo tour of a medieval village in southern italy (part I)
It’s been a while since I’ve posted some photos, and I think it’s time. I’m still camera-less, but I do have some shots stored away, so let’s go back to a lovely day in May when Luna and I took a walking tour around a section of the village.
It all started out in the little piazza near my house where the main church is located; truth be told, I hadn’t even brought my camera but then I saw these:
So I went back home and grabbed the macchina fotografica. I don’t know how these roses ended up there, but it’s certainly not uncommon to find flowers outside the church in the morning.
By the way, we have 13 churches here in all (reminder: 300 people), but only one operates full time. I promise to write more about the history of the village at some point and how it’s been largely abandoned (inspired by Farfallina!) but until I can get more photos to accompany it, we’ll just have to stick with what I’ve got.
Here’s the bell tower of La Chiesa Matrice/La Chiesa di San Salvatore, built in 1218.
After we wound down one of the winding streets, I saw this cactus giving a helping hand to a piece of fallen fruit:
The fruit is a fico d’india (Indian fig) aka prickly pear. I’m not quite sure why the one in the grip of the cactus is ripe when none of the others are–and actually I’m not sure why that one is ripe at all.
Remember this was May, and their season is now (sorry I can’t get a good photo for you Gil, but do check out Sara’s post!), so that coddled one sure was special.
Moving on. . . .
Want to go in?
Sorry, but there’s really nothing else behind there except this:
No one (human) lives in this part of the village, and so much of it is falling down, boarded up, and otherwise abandoned-looking.
Here is my very favorite abandoned house. 
If you peek in through the crack in the front door, you can see la famiglia gathered inside the small room on the first chilly night of the year:
La Mamma stirring the sugo one last time before getting the water ready for pasta, resting the wooden spoon on the side of the terra cotta pot, and wiping her hands on her well-worn but clean apron.
La figlia embroidering sheets in preparation of her upcoming matrimonio, pulling the thread up through the fabric and back down, over and over, her feet resting on the old braciere.
Il figliolo and Papà playing briscola in another corner, their many layers of clothes making each throw of a card less dramatic than it normally would be.
[I may or may not have spent many hours sitting near this house over the past four years.]
But back to 2007, and back to greenery, which is just around the corner.
Can you find Luna?
And finally, a quick glance back at where we’ve been before we move on.
Won’t you come back and continue our passeggiata?
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[tags]calabria, southern italy, badolato, medieval villages, dogs[/tags]
what’s cooking wednesday: figs, figs, figs
A long time ago, when I asked all of you to ask me questions to fill out JennieBoo‘s eight things meme,* Amanda of the always delicious Figs Olives Wine kept it short and sweet:
The most delicious thing you’ve eaten in Calabria. Something that just blew you away when you tasted it.
As it turns out, my answer is also short and sweet, literally.
The fresh fig.
These are some green ones, not quite ripe yet, on our fig tree taken about a month and a half ago (in one of the last photos of my injured camera).
Don’t you just love the shape of fig leaves? I hear Adam and Eve sure did. Hah!
And here is a much better, nay awesome photo of the “black” variety, which I found through a Flickr search and am using here under a Creative Commons license (great way to *legally* use others’ pretty photos! Notice I did this on the Spaghetti Strike post as well):
Click here or on the photo to go and see more photos by Xerones–fabulous. Leave him some comments and let him know I sent you.
But back to the figs, did you know that the fig is one of the first plants cultivated by humans? And they’re good for you too!
I had never eaten a fresh fig before I came here, and man oh man, I had no idea what I was missing. This little seedy (in a good way) fruit is by far my new favorite anything–and like Amanda, I prefer it fresh to any other way.
So that’s my first serving suggestion for figs on this What’s Cooking Wednesday.
How do I eat them? Like P taught me. Cut a cross in the top (the end that used to be connected to the tree) and then peel back the skin one part at a time with the edge of the knife. It’ll come back easily if they’re ripe enough–just do be sure to eat them within a day or two of picking them off the tree. They won’t last much longer than that.
Next, I’m going to point you to my second favorite way to eat figs aside from plain with the juice running down my fingers, and that’s with prosciutto crudo.
Jenn, also known as The Leftover Queen and founder of The Foodie Blogroll, has a great description of this dish here. I was setting up a photo of this about a month ago when I realized my camera was dead, so this is a bit of an emotional plate for me now, but I still love it.
Judy of Over a Tuscan Stove and the Divina Cucina Cooking School in Florence also recommends pairing figs with salami–something I’ve never tried, but sounds tasty as well.
And last but certainly not least, I’m going to go back to the inspiration for this post, Amanda, and send you to her Fresh Figs with Fleur de Sel, Aged Balsamic, and Hazelnuts, which she put up just yesterday, reading my mind on what I was going to talk about today.
So, the fresh fig. Simple, delicious, and quite honestly one of the best things I’ve ever eaten in Calabria or anywhere. I also like them dried and in jams, but fresh? Just. Wow.
Doesn’t need to be complicated to be good folks, so even if figs aren’t your thing or you can’t manage to get them, do try to eat lots of other fresh fruits while they’re still in season.
Pair them with flavors you think would complement one another–sweet and salty is always a good bet. Pears and gorgonzola? Apples and cheddar? Grapes and Parmesan?
Be creative, have fun, and keep an open mind!
You never know when your next favorite food combination could show up.
Buon appetito!
*[For those just joining us, feel free to go back and read parts 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the answers to the questions that were asked.]
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[tags]figs, what’s cooking wednesday, figs and prosciutto crudo[/tags]
what’s in a (middle) name?
Right at the beginning of my blogging break, new friend Sparky Duck of Philly Transplant fame *almost* tagged me with a meme. You see, he wanted to, but thought I wouldn’t get around to it since I was resting on my laurels (which sounds more flower-scented than it really is, by the way).
So he pseudo-tagged–he threw my name out there during the fateful virtual-finger-pointing moment to get my guilt going. And then Laura from Blame it on Paris thought I might enjoy this one, as did a chap named HART who selected me randomly from the list of 2k bloggers.
So here’s my Middle Name Meme, starting with the rules:
You have to post these rules before you give the facts. Players, you must list one fact that is somehow relevant to your life for each letter of your middle name. If you don’t have a middle name, use the middle name you would have liked to have had. When you are tagged you need to write your own blog post containing your own middle name game facts. At the end of your blog post, you need to choose one person for each letter of your middle name to tag. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged and to read your blog.
A is for Aware
I like to know what’s going on, although not necessarily in a gossipy way. I don’t watch the TV news very often, though, because I usually don’t like its slant on things—always tragedy after tragedy, and let’s put aside any political leanings.
Yes, I know bad things happen all the time, but I’m not sure how it helps me to be a better person to know just how many people are murdered or in car accidents, etc. Don’t good things happen every day too? Yeah, I know that’s not news, but too much of the bad stuff brings me down.
In fact, I finally convinced P of this a little while back, and out of the blue the other day, he thanked me because he’s a much calmer person since we’ve rejected Telegiornale. I’ll take my news via word-of-mouth at the bar, newspaper, or on the Internet, thankyouverymuch, where I can click off (or just stop listening) when something is too disturbing–and I can also seek out feel good stories on my own.
Yeah, I’m one of those.
N is for Nerdy
In a good way, of course. I like to know things, which of course ties into the A above.
If curiosity killed the cat, well, let’s just say I’m happy I’m not a cat. I’m a big ball of “why?” and yes, that annoys some people, but I’ve learned that if you ask questions the right way, people often enjoy giving you the answers–the trick is to phrase things so you don’t appear to be challenging them, only curious.
It’s a tough line to walk, but I do it often. I’m a risk-taker that way.
And I’ll read just about anything I get my hands on, which was true even before getting English reading material wasn’t so easy. I only wish I had a better memory for things, because then I could actually use whatever knowledge I ingest.
I’ve noticed though, that the older I get, the harder it is to remember even the basics sometimes. I mean, I still remember what I had for breakfast and stuff, so I’m not going senile yet, but there’s definitely a change in fact retention.
*sigh*
Ooh, and have I mentioned my addictions to the History Channel, Discovery, National Geographic….
N is for Nifty
OK, well *I* think I’m nifty. Besides, this is one of my all-time favorite words. Say it enough and it just starts to sound wrong, like something Suessical, which pretty much explains why I love it. I’m a big fan of fun-sounding words–hi David!
It also reminds me of something one of my grandmother’s friends would say, and I was never sure if she was trying to be hip or just so far out of word fashion that she came back in.
Plus, come on, there aren’t a lot of great words starting with N out there, are there?
So now I must tag. Mwahahhahahaaa!
I’m going to tag the three lovely women who promoted my Bella Bags E-Party and Contest on their site–do be sure and visit them!
1. Amanda: a stay at home mom’s point of view
2. Lizza: I am Woman, See Me Blog!
Some thanks that is, huh ladies?!
By the way, if anyone else mentioned it on their blog, please let me know, and I’ll give you some extra special linky love here soon.
And if you weren’t tagged, please don’t take this to mean you can’t still do this meme–meme away!
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[tags]middle name meme, memes[/tags]
STRIKE! drop the tagliatelle & no one will get hurt
I’ve been away from here for a while, so you may be wondering what’s going on in Italy.
Well right here in the Bel Paese where a third of citizens say they prefer a plate of spaghetti over sex, Italy’s going on a pasta strike on September 13.
Seems impossible, insane even, but Italy’s four largest consumer groups are stufi with the planned price hikes of electricity, gas, train service, bread, milk, school books, and, of course, pasta, and they feel that a strike on pastasciutta would be a symbolic demonstration of citizens’ feelings on the matter.
Some say that these planned increases would cause Italian families to shell out another 1000 euros per year on such items, spending up to 25-30% more–a huge increase especially if you consider that the average monthly salary in Italy hovers around that magic 1000 euros mark.
Go ahead. Gasp.
We all know that Italians are famous for their strikes (I’m guessing more than a few of you reading this have been affected by one or another), but a “sciopero della pasta?”
Unheard of, so you know this is serious.
Most Italians eat pasta every day, and some estimates say that an average Italian eats 54 kilos (119 pounds) of pasta per year–for some, as you can imagine, that’s their own body weight or more.
The increasing price of wheat is really behind this, and it brings to mind Mexico’s recent problems with the rising cost of corn to make its famous tortillas. What else is a nation to do when their food staple is threatened?
I have to say I think the Italians have a point here.
Now you may be worried about those Italians who might suffer the side effects of no pasta for a day, but don’t worry–volunteers from the consumer groups will be handing out bread and milk throughout the country to assuage any pangs.
So if you’d like to support your Italian friends, just say no to buying or eating pasta on Thursday, September 13.
And an inside tip?
Start savoring that espresso, as it too has been the victim of a recent price increase.
And if you think Italians are protective over their pasta . . . .
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[tags]sciopero della pasta, sciopero, strike, pasta strike, italy[/tags]
arrivederci august–and happy BlogDay 2007!
Again I’ve waited until the last possible day for my Monthly Musing. What can I say? I’m just not a summer person, especially when summer equals over a hundred degrees Fahrenheit for more than half the time.
Go ahead, smart aleck–ask me why I live in southern Italy. I know you want to. But that’s a post for another day.
The month of August gets a reprieve from my otherwise lukewarm (hah!) feelings, though, because as you’ve seen, it has given me two of the most precious people in the world to me, my niece and nephew.
My childhood best friend’s birthday was yesterday as well, and one of my best friends from college turned another year older on the 23rd–indeed, the last couple weeks of August are packed with celebrations of the birthdays of those I love…new friends included!
And then there’s a little matter of school starting up, which I always loved so much. Yeah, I was a geek like that.
In fact, starting Monday (a holiday to you in America, but not to me!) I’m starting my new regime of taking the next step in learning Italian. I have some grammar books, yes, but I also acquired a high school textbook (from two of the cutest 17-year-old boy twins you’ll ever see) on what I’d call “government and civil law” or something similar in America—I’m ready to learn about Italy’s governmental structure (sorry, I don’t get the Parliament thing) and what it considers basic human rights.
You know, all that knowledge you take for granted because you grew up with it *and* had to learn it in high school?
So I’m starting school with many of you, but before I hit the books, I have time for one more silly haiku (there’s always time for haiku, right?):
Heat, humidity,
Mosquitoes, sleeping is rough–
Sticky, sweaty, blech.
And now on to BlogDay 2007, a day on which all bloggers are encouraged to find and publicize five new blogs. I was tipped off about this by Sara of Ms Adventures in Italy, and I thank her kindly.
Here are five great new-to-me blogs for your enjoyment:
(1) Vanielje Kitchen: I’ll let the author describe this blog–“The kitchens of my childhood reflected my heritage, loud, boisterous, always full, the air thick with laughter and spices, a simmering melting pot of cultures and influences, French, English, Dutch, Malay & African, and underpinning it all a deep reverence for family and food, and the smell of home: vanielje.” Great stuff.
(2) The Late Bloomer: An American living in France who calls her blog “The Late Bloomer” not only because she finds herself blossoming in new ways into her 30s but also because she started blogging late in the game–only a month after I did, though! Charming, witty, just fun to read.
(3) Charlotte’s Web: A South African mom, wife, writer, editor, reader, traveler, dreamer living in Germany. Makes you want to get all tangled up in Charlotte’s Web. *groan* But seriously, on my first visit, I spent quite a while looking through archives. A true pleasure.
(4) A Child of the Universe: Dana is a nutritionist and herbalist in California and often writes things that I wish I would’ve written myself. Seriously. She uses the words “wanderlust” and “vintage” in her profile and talks of her dream of having a farm/B & B in Italy and taking lots of wonderful photographs. Are you starting to realize why I like her so?
(5) Debbie Egizio: An artist and designer whose blog really is her playground (she even says so in the blog description); it’s so much fun to wander around there and see her creations–and I have my trusty bloggy-friend somepinkflowers to thank for leading me to Debbie’s place. Thanks somepinkflowers!
So what are your five? Come on, you know you want to play!
Happy Labor Day weekend to my American readers,
and arrivederci agosto!
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[tags]BlogDay 2007, august, haiku[/tags]
Michelle Kaminsky is an American attorney-turned-freelance writer who lived in her family's ancestral village in Calabria, Italy for 15 years. This blog is now archived.
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