Finalmente

I know, I know.....It has been a long time.
And goodness knows......I am in need of going to a happy place...so here we go!

Our first full day in Italy involved waking up on a chilly morning. I knew that the first thing I needed to do was move the body around.
Marisa and I decided we would take our walk first thing, and then return to have breakfast.

We slipped into our 'walking' gear and headed down the road.
The farmhouse sits just a short distance from the Mediterranean. We knew that walking, we could be there in 20 to 30 minutes. It was a straight shot down the road....and how amazing it would be to end a walk being greeted by the ocean!
We began chatting and heading down the road. We were mindful to walk facing the oncoming traffic.
Cars zoomed by us. As we reached the end of the road, we had to navigate thru a traffic circle....A little scary, but also a little added cardio!
As we came out of the circle, we noticed that the road to the ocean narrowed considerably...and the cars were driving by even faster. The walk now required us walking single file and occasionally jumping into the weeds to avoid death-by-truck.
I recall thinking that if I was going to improve one thing about Italy ~ it would be to put in a sidewalk. They would not have to be everywhere......but one on this particular road would be quite beneficial.
Almost immediately ~ Marisa asked that we turn back. She felt that while walking was certainly health beneficial ~ it would be awful to die in the pursuit of health.
We quickly turned back and headed to the farm.

When we arrived.....Chiarrina had our 'colazione' waiting. For the feasting that occurs thru the day.....the breakfast is very simple.
If you are a protein in the am junkie - Italy is not the place for you.
Breakfast consists of coffee and bread. The espresso is made, the milk is heated, and you are treated to the most wonderful latte this side of Starbucks. When in Italy, don't order a latte, you will get a glass of milk. You have to order caffe latte. Spread before us was an assortment of dolci. My favorite is the torta allo yogurt. Picture pound cake that is very dense and very moist. There was also a wonderful bread that had been made with anise. It was not quite sweet, not quite savory.....but delightful dipped in the coffee.

After breakfast, it was time for our 'doccia'. The family thinks we are nutty with the daily shower and hair washing....but they humor us and don't make a big issue out of it. We each were given an enormous terry robe to wrap into when we stepped out of the shower. No towels. This may have been the biggest adjustment for me. I am a towel junkie. I like one for my hair, one for my body, one to step on when I get out of the shower and then a clean one again to use when I brush my teeth, do make up etc....
Here I was limited to one terry robe.....and a communal bath mat.
Ah well......when in Rome!

I knew that the scariest moment was before me. Touching an electrical appliance. My experience has taught me to expect a severe electrical shock with every trip to Italy. As I reached for the hair dryer......I was pleasantly surprised to not be greeted with the typical electrical jolt. I did manage to blow the power in the electrical socket - and had to go to another room to finish the task....again.....thankfully, no shock!

From the conversation of the previous evening, I knew that the family was disappointed at the short duration of our trip. Given that we would not be there for the upcoming weekend, they were frantic in trying to ensure that we would get to see and eat with as many family members as possible.
For lunch on Monday, we would be going to Zio Richetto's and Zia Fausca's. For dinner that night, we would be going to Luciana's and Franco's. I was so excited about Luciana's. She is a fantastic cook, and already at this early hour of the day, I was anticipating the meal that would greet us that night! Hurrah!

Food, food and more food.