Top 5 Memories from October

It is often said that the best experiences in life are often unplanned – such was the case for us during the month of October. While the month of September was the month when we settled into our Florentine lives, October was the month of an unexpected diversion to the United States for THREE WEEKS. As a result, we were only in Italy for one week during October.

It is a long story, but essentially we had to return to the United States to secure a long-term stay visa (in person from the Italian Consulate). Although other families we had spoke with stayed in Europe indefinitely on a travel visa (traveling between countries) – that loophole was closed by Italy in late July 2009 (while we were cycling across France). As a result, notwithstanding the appeal by our Immigration Attorney in Florence, our request to stay on a travel visa was denied at the end of September. Bummer! (Expensive) Lesson learned: never rely on loopholes. Ugh!

Although we could have legally stayed another 45 days in Italy, we elected to return immediately to the United States to minimize impacts on our kids’ school and soccer. You could read more about our crazy trip in Janelle’s prior post: Segue to the States.

Here are my Top 5 Memories from the unplanned events in October 2009:

5. Swimming with Cousins in Vancouver, British Columbia. During our stay, we made a brief day trip to visit family in Vancouver, BC, where we “soaked” up good conversation, food and the local community pool. Our family has a special affinity for swimming pools; but they are doubly fun when they include cousins, water slides, rope swings and lazy rivers. We made the most of our time at the pool, including plenty of “whoo-hooing” down water slides, flips by everyone off the diving platform (including my lame attempt), and the token game of tag in the pool. A fantastic outlet for energetic kids and fathers who like to think they can keep up.

4. Playing Guitars with Cousins in Yakima, Washington. Notwithstanding several years of lessons on the saxophone and viola, our adolescent boys are developing their own appreciation for music and instruments. During our stay with family in Yakima, our boys’ curiosity was peaked by their cousin when she showed up at dinner with her acoustic guitar. After a year of teaching herself via YouTube! she has developed into a good guitar player (her father, my brother Mark, is also a fantastic guitar player). Needless to say, our boys were entranced as their cousin belted out classic tunes from Boston, Kansas and U2. Awesome! No surprise that one of our boys, Caleb, is now playing the guitar in Florence, Italy (a recent birthday gift).

3. Breaking Ice with Canoes in Montana (to help the Minks!). Montana should be re-named the state of “Adventure” – since it never seems to end. We had never spent anytime at the family cabin during the month of October; this year was our first experience. In stark contrast to sunny summers and snowy winters, October offered gorgeous fall colors (as the larch trees turned golden), relatively warm, partially sunny days and freezing cold nights (that resulted in ice on the lake each morning). We elected to pull out a canoe from summer storage and provided the boys with countless hours of entertainment to “break ice” on the lake. Given that the ice was about 1-2” thick, it took some effort. However, they boys were inspired to carve a path for the resident minks that wanted to travel from a nearby gurgling creek to a swim dock on the lake. It was fantastic!

2. Receiving our Long-Term-Stay Visas back from the Italian Consulate. We were told it would be 2-3 weeks before our visa applications would be issued by the Italian Consulate (hence we planned worst case, and bought airline tickets providing a 3-week layover in the United States). To our amazement, the Italian Consulate turned it around in record time: only 3 days. It was welcome news, since all of my anxiety about any visa hiccups vanished in an instant, and I could simply enjoy the remainder of our time in the United States.

1. Spending time with Extended Family. The most enjoyable aspect of our trip, by far, was spending time with extended family. We both come from big families, with lots of nieces and nephews. Naturally, everyone is busy with work, school, sports and other extra-curricular activities. Nonetheless, we managed to see everyone in Washington, Oregon and Vancouver during this brief stay (with the exception of one nephew, and my sister’s family on the East Coast). It was amazing to see how much everyone had grown and changed in just 6 months since we originally departed for Europe back in May. Needless to say, we spent a lot of time catching up, laughing and playing. Time flies. Fortunately the memories live on (provided they get written down to jog my memory later!).

Other Top 5 memory runner-ups, and strong candidates for a story-telling of their own, include: running in the Rome airport to get receipts stamped for a VAT tax refund before departure, having our jet engine “catch-on-fire” during take-off from London after a 3-hour repair (fortunately, the flight was aborted, and 11 hours later we took off on a different plane that did not require repair), eating American thick-cut bacon, driving over Chinook Pass, Washington on a clear fall day (while my kids sang along to the Juno Soundtrack), playing cards, dominoes and carpet ball, picking apples, submitting paperwork in person to the Italian Consular representative in Portland, Oregon, playing in Portland fountains, painting my brother-in-law’s house, cutting, stacking and burning wood in Montana, and (without a doubt) Janelle’s puking and fainting episode somewhere over the Atlantic on our return flight back to Europe!

Life is a mixed bag. We’re all thankful to be back in Italy (on the ground), healthy and immersed in our Florentine lives. While unexpected adventures are often memorable, routine is a welcome comfort too (wherever “home” may be).

La Passegiata and Cinghiale Bianco (White Boar)

One of the most fashionable times to be out in Italy is early evening, between 500p - 800p. While we reserve this time in the US for dinner, the Italians reserve this time for la passegiata (the walk). Of course, dinner follows after you have worked up an appetite, perhaps ran into friends, and settled into a cozy neighborhood trattoria for a lengthy meal (700p - 1000p).

Last night we enjoyed "the walk" down Via del Corso before landing in Piazza Republicca. The street was packed with families, couples and teens (ragazzi) enjoying the shopping, the flair (Christmas lights strung across the streets), the air (roasting chestnuts), and people watching. Of course, everyone was decked out in fashionable clothing (including babies too!) - it was quite a scene.

Upon landing in Piazza Repubblica we were unexpectedly greeted by an Artiginal Festa d' Agricola (Artisan Festival of Agriculture) - which means local farms bringing out fresh, organic cheeses, wines, salami, honeys and, of course, just pressed olive oils. To everyone on the street - this also means free, tasty morsels of food and drink. We made our rounds through the festival, under the stars and amidst all the Italians, sampling and enjoying the local fare.

All the samples and smells from the festival jump-started our appetites, so we made our way to the restaurant we had selected during our walk on Friday in the Oltr' Arno - Cinghiale Bianco (the White Boar). From, Piazza Repubblica, we walked down Via Santa Maria, over Ponte Vecchio (stopping to enjoy to nighttime view on the bridge and gawk at all the jewelry) and then down Borgo San Giacopo. Cinghiale Bianco is a prototypical Italian trattoria with traditional Tuscan furnishings and ambiance on a tucked away neighborhood street. The owners greeted us warmly and seated us immediately.

Naturally, dinner started with a bottle of wine (a Ruffino Chianti Classico - Sante Dame), complemented by bread and freshly pressed olive oil. At our request, the owners did not hesitate to bring out additional wine glasses for our teenage boys (who should, of course, sample good wine too - this is Italy!). For our meal, we opted for house specialities: Vitello Ossobuco (veal shank), Bacalla alla Livornese (cod fish baked in tomato sauce with white beans), Tagliatelle Cinghiale (pasta with wild boar sauce), and Entrecote (beef steak in chianti wine sauce). The food was excellent, the wine a perfect complement, and the venue and warm service made it a memorable experience.

Following dinner, we walked home slowly, soaking up the sights and sounds of Italy. We were thinking about gelato, but the boys opted for fresh waffles with Nutella, which they enjoyed en route back to our apartment. Perfect!

Altogether, the evening was splendid. Most importantly, I enjoyed the slow pace, conversations and opportunity to enjoy time together as a family in this magical city - Florence.

frolicking fridays, round 3

Ciao! I like the name frolicking Fridays, even a bit more than fabulous Fridays. There is no guarantee of fabulism when one is frolicking. Frolicking is a state if being, of pursuing novelty and adventure---for better or for worse. Fabulous may or may not happen... but it is worth the search!

This Friday, James and I took the day off. We are now trying to be tourists on Fridays---while the kids have long school days. (Mon and Fri they have school until almost 4pm; Tue/Wed/Thurs school only goes until 1pm).

We reserved a tour for this past Friday: the Secret Passages of Palazzo Vecchio. The Palazzo Vecchio is a building adjacent to the Uffizzi Gallery, and is also known as the Palazzo Signoria. This was a tour worth attending; it was about 1 1/2 hours and our tour guide was wonderfully knowledgeable and engaging. You can buy tickets right online, or pick them up inside the Palazzo at the ticket office (biglietti ufficio---which is where you meet to begin the tour).

We walked secret passages in the Palazzo, and saw rooms hidden from the public's eye. The most notable was Francesco Medici's studiolo. It is shaped like a treasure chest, with paintings all over the walls and ceilings. The paintings had specific themes; there were 30 paintings in the room, commissioned by Vasari. Many of the paintings were actually fronts for cupboards or passage-ways.

James and I also tucked into Palazzo Davanzati, a museum of a renovated medieval aristocratic palazzo. They offered guided tours only (in this case: yawn). It was interesting for about 10 minutes, but the tour was over an hour long. We wouldn't recommend it.

We walked about town. We started our day with coffee at Les Amis---a quaint coffee shop on Porta Rossa. We found a great little food shop, full of hand-selected wines and frequented by non-tourists. Also, a good friend of mine was in Florence a year prior to us, and has been sending me lots of little tips of shops and cafes to check out. So we did:

1. Print shop (etchings) called L'Ippogrifo on Santo Spirito. She loved the lobsters (saw them!) and I fell in love with some of the fish prints---and one of Pinocchio. I actually bought a similarly fashioned print weeks ago at an outdoor market. (Picture of me in front of shop).

2. Hotel Lungarno. It is a hotel with multiple venues. She loved the bar on the oltrarno side (cozy white couches); we liked the bar on the florentine side. Hers has a better view, especially for a rainy day. Ours is outdoor and swank---perfect for a sunny day.

3. S.A.D.A. jewelry shop on the Ponte Vecchio; we saw it but I didn't find the exact rings she had found (sorry K!). It is fun to stroll across the bridge, to peak at all the jewelers. Fun fact: the bridge used to have butchers and leather tanners, but the smell was offensive to regular passerbys so at one point they were pushed out and replaced by jewelers.

When checking out the Hotel Lungarno (oltrarno side), we opted to grab wine and olives at the trattoria next door named L' Ristoro (via San Jacopo 48r). I recommend it for lunch or grazing: you very nearly feel like you are in someone's home---in a relaxed cozy atmosphere. It is super casual but the food is just what you would hope to find: wine by glass or liter, with olives, sliced meats and cheeses---or a little lasagna, salad and piled bread if you are hungrier. Share, chill, visit. We did, and it was great.