The Fall of Rome (ours at least)

Kathy here-
Last days in Rome. Having avoided some of the biggies (David in Florence and the Vatican in Rome) and now avoiding the question of whether to try to get to the Sistine Chapel before leaving Italy altogether we finally settled for a couple of lesser sights and then a trip to the modern and fabulous Auditorium Parco della Musica (above), which I have longed to go to since seeing a photo in our Lonely Planet Guide to Italy (more on previous blog entry). So we got to The Pantheon, which was a highlight for me; such incredible dimensions and beauty and proportion.

While trying to get to the Trevi Fountain from there, which really should have just been around the corner, we stumbled across the Piazza Navona which was a long, rectangular public space that featured the best hip hop dancers I have ever seen, a strange man dancing while setting up his finger puppet show (didn't stick around to catch THAT sure-to-be-scintillating show), brides and grooms looking for photo ops and a ton of artists painting and selling their paintings, some of which were pretty good!
We did finally make it to the Trevi fountain (ok we grabbed a cab which took us the long and circuitous but necessary route). It really is huge and beautiful and is fed by one of the oldest aqueducts in Rome but is absolutely surrounded by swarms and swarms of people and their cameras. I know, I know, we are included in that bunch. Hard to get near it though, so we gave up and enjoyed the aforementioned best gelato in Italy.

The next day we kept our reservations at the Borghese Gallery (the second best museum in Rome apparently, and really not crowded at all). We took public transit and not realizing how big the Borghese Gardens are and forgetting how ridiculous the signage is here, basically had to run through the gorgeous grounds to get to it in time for our reservations. We arrived sweaty and grumpy. It WAS amazing, especially knowing it was someone's residence. An incredible collection housed in rooms with gorgeous painted ceilings. After leaving there it was off the the Spanish Steps, very close by. Another disappointment, although perhaps another time of year and it would be less congested. Really, it's a bunch of stairs. We went up and down, looking for somewhere somewhat affordable and interesting to rest our weary bods and quench our thirst. After passing the expensive and empty wine bars, and the full and crappy looking trattorias, we found a dark enoteca with a big wooden bar. Good looking men of all ages behind the bar, waiting to dish us out a plate of antipasti from the ten or so bowls laid out on the bar of olives, cheeses, meats, breads, sun dried tomatoes. Yummy. And a dozen or so wines by the glass. In the menu I mean. At Iris' request we sat at the bar (she loves to watch how they do things) and quickly settled in. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that they were playing some great 80's music -for me at least:) Now happily cooling down, eating, drinking and groovin' we decided to stay and ordered a great thin crust pizza with olives and fresh anchovies. Yummy. Then, on to Paulo Nutini at the Auditorium. A great and BUSY end to the trip.

Transit of Venus

Rory - Got day passes for the Roman transit system, a steal at 4 euros a day for each of us. Took it out to Renzo Piano's Auditorium: three adjacent concert halls, quite organic looking, each building more than a little resembling a whale (very like a whale, or so said Polonius). The shapes said whale, the colouring and finish could be whale, in fact the skin covering the three halls was very like a whale's skin. Taking shade under the overhang where the skin separated from the building, we could look up and see the skeleton. We saw a sequence of laminated, curved wood ribs -- a ribcage -- holding the skin on. There were even little intentional tears in the skin here and there, perhaps to ventilate areas or to offer hidden views.



Learned that the Standards Trio with Jack deJohnette, Gary Peacock and Keith Jarrett would be playing inside one of the whales that very night, though for a princely sum. Learned also that a Scottish pop star with an Italian name and a sometimes Jamaican accent would be playing that night, at more plebian prices, in the open-air amphitheatre nestled among the whales and backing onto an excavated floorplan of a house from millennia past. We went for the pop, bought tickets for the Paolo Nutella show that night, and got back on the bus in search of antique treasure. Incidentally, the bus to and from the Auditorium has no number, but rather just a letter. It is the M bus and that stands for Music. First city bus that any of us had ever seen named for music. Co-incidentally, while riding the M, we crossed paths with a bus called the 310 Muse; then later, the extravagantly named 90 EXPRESS L.go LABIA.
L.go? Let's go? L.go would be short for Largo. Our dictionary defines largo as a small piazza. But it gives a couple of alternate definitions too: wide,and open sea. The Roman bus poetry was getting a little too intense. We never got on the 90 EXPRESS.     

Panthing for New Roman Food

Kathy-- what a breathtaking structure!!!! Just entering it gave a feeling of such spaciousness it immediately melted away all the chaos of downtown Rome, which was right outside, as this amazing building is nestled in between a bunch of other buildings and narrow streets with only a small piazza outside to give any perspective on it. A naturally cool and likely amazing acoustical space, we were pretty mesmerized. Probably or favourite piece of architecture on the whole trip. Sacred in many ways for sure.
Rory -- Taking in the magnificence of the domed roof of the Pantheon with its oculus at the top opening to the sky, pouring sunlight in at ever-shifting angles onto the brilliant geometric facets of the volcanic-rock dome high high overhead.....sure does build an appetite. So we followed the guidebook to a great spot around the corner called The Sacred and the Profane, except in Italian.

It was once a church, with no dome and no oculus, but has been retrofitted so that we could sit and eat dinner a few metres above what was once the altar. Holy cow. (We did not have beef.) We did have a superfine Calabrian antipasti misto. Almost like a meze or a thali, with a procession of small silver dishes arriving oven-hot one after another, offering an array of southern Italian tastes and textures, some rich, some spicy, serving as a counterpoint to the solid loyal goodness of the Tuscan cuisine we had enjoyed so much for the last couple of weeks. We had eggplant cooked as if into a curry, but with mild and intriguing seasoning. Potatoes three ways, one of them resembling fries but much better. Hot pepper tomato paste dressed in olive oil. A lonely lovely fresh sardine. Crepes of some sort, filled, rolled, sliced and grilled, no clear idea of what was going on but two different types and darn tasty. Also good olives -- not as commonplace in Italy as we had expected. Sun-dried tomatoes. And a basket of hot, fresh flatbread -- a nice change from a steady diet of panini and other crusty breadstuffs. And a salad with it, mixing three very complementary elements: smoked ham, walnuts and arugula. Rucola is abundant and fresh and young in Italy, tender and spicy, and is usually translated into English not as arugula but as rocket. On this menu, however, it was presented as racket.   

Confessional

Kathy here-
So I lied. We didn't actually leave Tuscany when we left the villa Saturday morning. On the way to dropping the rental car off in Chuisi, we made a quick return visit to our favorite spot, Montepulciano, where Rory and I picked up two new rings we had commissioned from a lovely jeweler there on the Corso. Alessandro makes these very cool rings out of silver with Etruscan symbols on them. Etruscan history is important and  prominent in Tuscany of course,  and was a subject I studied and loved in high school. We chose one that resembles a circular pattern we know from Ghana. The Etruscan symbol is called "Patera" which is an offering plate symbolizing libation and sacrifice. Seemed like an appropriate symbol for us, this being our twentieth year together. ha ha. Libation and sacrifice, no kidding.  The richest paradox.  :) They are beautiful and we celebrated with our last three cappuccinos in Montepulciano, then headed for the car return, and train to Rome.

The other lie, was that the favorite gelato place I talked about with locations in Siena and Florence,  has now been replaced by a STUPENDOUS shop called San Crispino near the Trevi Fountain here in Rome. Insanely amazing gelato with the most interesting flavors. We were stuffed with an awesome meal I hope Rory will blog about, but all three of us indulged once we saw the offerings at this gelateria. Like our other favorite, all the ingredients were fresh and organic. The guy behind the counter was even tossing/flipping the cups before filling. He was so fast and fancy, he was like an award winning bartender or barista.  So, I know you are wondering just what flavours did we have? Iris had hazelnut and limone; Rory had licorice root and fig, and I had ginger-cinnamon and honey. Unbelievably gorgeous flavors. We may have to go back tomorrow, even though the Trevi Fountain is like Niagara Falls, there are so many tourists and tourist shops (lovely fountain though).
OK that was my confessional. Ciao.
     

Goodbye to Tuscany

Kathy here- what  a dinner!!  We celebrated our last night here at the villa with a spectacular dinner. Prepared by Kathleen and Iris and Rory. The girls worked studiously for HOURS chopping tomatoes, mushrooms, lettuce, shopping for a beef bone (eventually given for free from the butcher in Radda), writing menus, picking local herbs, organizing the shifts, and generally just getting the perfect vibe together for a fabulous Tuscan meal. They have watched the locals carefully and practiced with two different and yummy breakfasts, so they are well versed in the challenges and tasks. Plus, they had the-oh-so-professional aprons given to us at the cooking class on Tuesday in nearby Lecchi. After a cool swim, we dressed for dinner and opened a couple of local bottles of wine, one 2004 Reserva from the lovely Gattavecchi woman a couple of weeks ago in Montepulciano,  and then a couple of current award winning Chiantis from "the next hill over", 2000 and 2003. We then proceeded to the menu:
Bruschetta
Mushroom salad
Mixed salad
Tomato salad (sold out)
Potato salad
Risotto with chicken ( stewed in the aforementioned beef knuckle)
Mixed dessert platter (fresh local apricots and chocolate wafers )

Awesome. We cannot believe we are at the end of our week here. It has flown by. For the O'Nyons, they are headed to Venice, and then to the coast for more Italian adventures, while we are headed back to Rome, before flying back to Canada on Monday.  

Siena

Kathy here- Since our villa is only thirty minutes from Siena (more without GPS, especially getting out of the city) we managed two half-day trips into the lovely and ancient city. it does have an amazing history, full of rival city wars, horse pageantry and strong links to Rome. All seven of us went in the first time. Try moving seven people from the Stadio parking down to the stunning Il Campo Piazza (shaped like a kitchen sink, so aptly described by the Lonely Planet guidebook). We all thought our respective three and four person excursions were challenging, but this was even funnier. So, maps in hand, stopping here there and everywhere, including our new favourite organic gelateria "Grom", which we had first discovered in Florence, we slowly made our way into the large square. We went to the Museo Civico, which among other items, houses the famous "Effects of Good and Bad Government" frescoes by Lorenzetti. While mentioned in the guidebooks, it was Michael's suggestion that made me want to go, having had lots of political discussions with our American friends, and knowing Curtis would also enjoy it. I must say it really is thought provoking. This fresco was to promote the idea of prosperity through justice and so in the room where the city council met, one wall is windows and the other three depict the effects of good and bad government. Of course, good government is painted directly across from the windows and receives the most illumination. Very cool. I loved it and bought several cards and posters to bring back.
We did some shopping, had cold drinks; Lois and Kathleen climbed the Torre del Mangia (city tower), and we all waved to them from the piazza below.
Rory and I took the kids to a very traditional trattoria to get started ordering on dinner while Lois and Curtis hoofed it up to the Duomo for a brief visit. They LOVED it and said it easily rivaled Florence !!!!!!! We all ate together some lovely and traditional Tuscan food and then headed back to the villa.
Lois and I returned Friday to Siena for a mom's day out, as I really wanted to get a chance to see the duomo as well, and it did not disappoint. especially the colourful and intricate inlaid marble floors with lots of beautiful designs, surprisingly not all sacred,I enjoyed a small statue of Paul, done by Michaelangelo before he was whisked back to Florence to begin his David. Lois and I did a bit more shopping, had a great snack with wine on a very sloping street, shared the table with a young Italian couple and next to a French foursome (who were mightily confused and then impressed when Lois asked them en Francais to take our photo). A great day and city.

Dinner in Radda

Iris and Kathleen here-
Last night we got dressed up and went out for dinner in Radda.
We ate at a fancy restaurant!
Iris had dumplings filled with ricotta cheese and spinach on top of a tomato bread sauce. Kathleen and Emma had ribbon pasta with traditional meat sauce. And their parents Lois and Curtis had tuna and strips of beef. Then for dessert me and Iris each had a chocolate soufflé. They were delicious!!!!!!!
Then we came back home and went to bed. Night, night!