You Can't Beat Home Sweet Home

You all know I love my Christmas songs and since it was a trivia free December, I decided to re-write the 12 Days of Christmas and then illustrate it. Just a mini peak into how my 2 amazing weeks were spent in Monterey...feel free to sing it out-loud but a line or two are tough to squeeze in so be warned!

Reverse Culture Shock: Laundry

I've been back in the states for just about a full week now and in true Katie O. fashion, I want out!

Don't get me wrong. Being with my family and friends through the holidays has been even more amazing than I though it would be. It's been a blast to visit my old stomping grounds, laugh with friends, and continue traditions and I'm beyond thankful for this opportunity. Really, I am.

But there are so many things here that are completely foreign to me now. Like right now I just sorted laundry with my dad and was in shock with how many clothes each load can have since (gasp) the machine can hold that much. Don't even get me started on how much faster the load cycles are or the fact that the dryer actually dries clothes and won't cost a small fortune.

One of my buddies in Italy posted the greatest link this morning and it made me miss Italy even more. You may think that I'm crazy for missing all of this but really you learn to accept it, adjust to it, and adopt it really fast. Your sort of have to...or else you risk missing out on a great adventure. And I guess once you've made that transition it's sort of difficult to transition back to "normal."

Oh well, one thing is sure- once Nini arrives tonight we can both relate to all this culture shock. Of course, she's a little more used to here since Roma (the one in Texas, not Italy) is little more similar to Salinas. But whatever. I'm just excited to see her since it's been WAY too long since last Christmas and we have lots of shopping to do!

Who Says You Can't Go Home?

Hey, Bon Jovi asked it and I'm asking (well, really singing it)- who says you can't go home? Sure I've been "home" for just about a week but between the jet lag and family members dealing with work I've really just been at the house.

Today was the first day that I ventured into 93940 and 93943 territories. For you non 831 area experts those are the zip codes to Monterey proper and NPS. (Yeah, Del Rey Oaks too but really? They don't even know the real city boundaries over there so if you're not from here just hit the "I believe" button on what I said- Monterey and NPS.) It was this section of peninsula that had me freaking out last Friday night as my plane flew over them. Like I mentioned a few months back, it's in these zip codes I've done most of my living and the much needed change of scenery is what prompted me to take the Naples job.

Don't get me wrong- amazing people live and work here. People that I would love to scoop up during my tour and smuggle back to Italy. I mean, I easily have room for them, all of them, and I really do miss my group of girls at work. I mean, just how many married men can one possibly work with?

Oh wait. I'm off topic. And for the record, the guys I hang out with are fabulous and never cease to amaze me over our coffee breaks. (And no, they don't know where to find this blog so I'm not just saying that for their benefit- it's true.)

At any rate I think the purpose of this post tonight was to say just how fabulous it felt to walk straight into offices and buildings (with a ton of windows) and after a quick double take be greeted with a smile, a hug, and an excited "Katie!" Again, I find it hilarious that one of the things I wanted to leave behind is one of the highlights so far of being back here. Sigh. 

But you know what? It also reaffirmed that my decision to pick everything up was the right one for me. The lack of military friends and recent graduation reminded me that people leave here every 18-24 months. The fact that just about everyone was still in their same office that I left them in reminded me that there really wasn't a place for me to advance. The updates I heard from people included the same issues that we've been dealing with for ages...KFS...contracts...funding...

Rome wasn't built in a day and neither was my social network at NPS. Given the nature of our dungeons windowless offices and independent commands in Naples, it's going to take a little longer I guess but I can deal with that since I know I'm working for an amazing organization in the business of fixing ships (or fish-n-chips if that's what you hear late in the afternoon after a particularly stressful day). And besides, half the people I visited today asked when I was going to come back and be comptroller. Any idea how tempted I was to walk up to his office and tell him I was coming after his job? I refrained...need to keep those return rights for as long as I can...just in case!

Reverse Culture Shock: Driving

I've only been in Italy for a smudge over 6 months yet since getting out off that plane at LAX last week I feel like I'm a visitor here in the Golden State. Today I finally got behind the wheel as my brother lent me his car to drive into Salinas for an appointment and shopping...


Stop number one was to get gasoline. I had a momentary memory lapse when I couldn't recall my zip code associated with my VISA card to pump the gas! This of course was after I pulled out my book of NATO gas coupons. Oops. And although he said he only need a few gallons, I filled it up since poor Ravi hasn't had a full tank since before leaving Oakland and I figured Cami would appreciate a full tank. Hey, it's been a while since I've pumped gas...go big right?


Merging onto the freeway I quickly realized that I could use the big numbers on the speedometer rather than the itty bitty ones. Best part? I actually got to see the needle go past my normal 50mph mark. One good thing about driving on the tangenziale all these months makes 65mph seem fast! And yes, I do obey the speed limit to/from work since the cameras still make me paranoid! 


Somehow I managed to remember to pick a lane, stop at red lights, and watch out for cars in front of me rather than watching my rear view mirror for those flashing lights telling me to speed up or move over. Shocking? Yep. Another shocker were the size of parking spaces- they were so large! 


Yep. Perhaps the most foreign thing  of my entire driving experience today was the fact that it took me even less than what I have estimated for my travel time. In 20 minutes I was able to get to my destination. As in for the first time in months I was not only on time, but early! I was able to get there without gridlock, without cobblestone roads, without potholes the size of craters, and without ancient ruins along the side of the road. 


On my way home I had to smile as I saw a tractor on the road ahead of me, fields on either side of me, and a beautiful blue sky above. Not quite Italy now is it? 

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig!

I arrived on schedule last night to two very happy parents, my brother and a freezer with several containers of peppermint ice-cream- I'm a happy girl. Of course I would be happier if Nina would show up right now but I can be patient. Sort of. If I have to. 


My flights were pretty uneventful on the way over here; minus some serious turbulence from Naples to Munich. It didn't bother me much though as I was (for some reason) thinking about just how much cilantro I could buy for $5 once in California. I know- random right? I guess I was still in shock that for the first time leaving Naples I didn't have to load a bus to travel 5 yards. (Did any of you know they did this?) 


The Munich to LAX flight, all 11 hours 22 minutes of it, proved to be not that difficult to stay awake. Granted, it may have been the fellow passenger a few rows back snoring so bad I still heard it over the engines but that was okay...I got to catch up on movies. I did get a few cat naps in because when I thought we hit more turbulence it turns out we were actually on the ground. Oops. Totally allowed though since my flight didn't leave Naples until nearly noon my grand plan of being on CA time didn't exactly play out since the bulk of my travel hours happened during day time in CA. (And starting my day Thursday evening in CA sure didn't help matters...)


Once in "enemy territory," through customs, and in my next terminal, I wasn't quite sure what to do. 


The lack of coffee bars, pizza, or panini places threw me off. 


Stores filled with USC, UCLA, Lakers, & Dodgers merchandise made my skin crawl.


People were dressed in sweatshirts and flip-flops wore backpacks. And, they spoke English. 


(Queue the culture shock.) 


I survived. How? I tracked down a Starbucks for my first (and way over due) peppermint mocha. I was thrilled to see it came in the skinny version, however they didn't have anymore of that mix but nothing was going to stand between me and that peppermint. The guy at the counter assured me that it's better with all the calories anyway. I didn't care. I'm not going to have a decent cup of coffee my entire stay here and I wanted that mocha. Bad. As in, just make it already and pass it over the counter. Grazie! 


With coffee in hand I found my gate. On the way though, the signs for Baja Fresh, CPK, and other various chains still overwhelmed. So I did what I any person would do- called home with the flight status and to confirm the fog was cooperating. Now I had to wait. Wait. Wait. 


When then waiting was over it was time to board. The plane was barely half full so we all spread out. That's a good thing because if someone had been next to me I would have driven them crazy. The less than hour flight was anything but restful. As my emotions went from pure panic, to anxiousness, to pure joy I saw my favorite coast line pass below my window. For a while I was playing guess that city but they sort of all look the same at night. 


Then I heard the engine noise change; we began our descent. Scanning anxiously the city below I gathered we were near Salinas and as the plane turned I knew we were over the bay. Still frantically looking for my landmarks- MHS, Del Monte Mall, the wharf I didn't see them. 


Then I spotted it.


Just off my side of the plane stood a round tree with blue and green lights. Knowing exactly where to look I saw my next tree of white lights on the Marriott roof. *Sigh* Sports Center. Check. NPS. Check. Taxing to the terminal I couldn't get off that flight soon enough but when I did there were my parents.Who apparently had been waiting there long enough to get the stories of other people also waiting in the terminal? I <3 the Monterey airport...my luggage made there before I could walk, that's right, walk to the terminal. 


Once home we caught up (since I was rather awake) over peppermint ice cream and homemade lemoncello from my landlady sent home for my parents. Sitting on the kitchen counter with my family (minus one) made my forever long day totally worth it. 

Ciao Italia!

I'm headed home today- come protests, strikes, or whatever else Italy can throw at me.

Seriously. It's like she's trying to keep me in country and I haven't even made it to the airport yet!

Last night on my way home I had to turn around about 5 minutes from the end of my route because a ton (and I do mean a ton) of people were blocking the road. *Sigh* Time for the scenic route.

After dealing with even more traffic on the other side of our little penninsula I made it up the hill to my normal turn. But unlike other nights, I found an officer on every corner talking. When I realized the car in front of me didn't stop I did the same thing, but then he started to talk to me. I tried in my best Italian to explain to him that I live on the street as I pointed to that direction. He quickly realized that I was not a native speaker and I kid you not asked "why don't you speak English?" and I laughed. Dangit. I tired to explian (in English) that since I live in Italy I don't assume everyone speaks English. But wait. I live in MDP so it's a different place.

I finally made it home- did a power clean because if things aren't in order before I leave it's not cool. A quick trip downstairs for my last real pizzas before departure filled me in with what was going on. Yes. You did real that correctly- pizzas. A real one and then una con nutella. But perhaps more importantly was getting the scoop on what was happening in the streets below.

Here's a look at what was going on but the long story short: they're actually beginning to crack down on taxes and law enforcement. (I'll hold for you to catch your breath.) There are three houses that were built a few years back without permits. For some reason, the family that owns the homes are being targeted and they are scheduled to be torn down. This morning in the office we were commenting that if they are really going after all illegally built homes...Italy is going to look a heck of a lot different in the next few months.

Well, the mobs you see are blocking the roads with their numbers in addition to road signs, lawn chairs, boxes...basically anything they can get their hands on.

We had way too much pizza for me to eat. Nico helped a bit but we then admitted defeat and he happily curled up in his crate. Nico was then dropped off at his spa. Well, that is after we took a very scenic route again since the protesters were still there. My what should have been 45 minute adventure turned to about double that. Oh well. Not like I still had bags to pack.

I eventually got everything pack; well, I think it's everthing and even got a few hours of sleep. This morning down the hill I was optomistic but when I turned the curve I saw sleepy Italians once agian piling up whatever they could to block the road. Luckily, I was able to turn back around to take my scenic route once again. A few of my coworkers weren't so lucky and had to pled with the prostesters to let them back up the hill since they were blocked between the roads.

Sigh.

You all probably think I'm crazy with my next statement but it's still true: I absolutely LOVE Italy. Sure my neighborhood isn't supposed to have stuff like this going on but it's what makes every day an adventure! I am however ready for a different kind of adventure- one through lettuce fields in a car that looks tiny compared to the others, where drivers stay between the lines, and I can actually talk in English.

Next stop: Monterey! Well, not really but I'll be there eventually...assuming I survive enemy territory (LAX).

My City on the Bay...Just a Different Bay

As round two of Italian class comes to an end, it's field trip time! The various classes met up early last Saturday despite the dark sky to gain even more culture and history of the place we're currently calling home.  Although we treked through many areas I've already seen, this time around we were lead by locals that new the history of the city. Instantly the buildings and streets came alive with stories from the past. And don't get me wrong...when I say "past" I really mean past...like 2,500 years ago!

Our first stop was a castle, now transformed into a B&B, to see what a typical Neaopolitan house. Once again I had the feeling that I was born in the wrong country, in the wrong time period...

The outside of the building was being restored and as we walked under the scaffling into the entry way it looked just a little sketch. Just for a moment though because as soon as we climbed the stairs, faded frescos and mosaic tiles greeted us before one of the members of the family that owns it. We toured the beatiful building while being told the history and on several occasions that it was used for a scene in a Jack Lemon film.

Our next stop lead us through Piazza Dante where the statues overlooking the piazza were explained and also how the different parts of the city used to be separated by walls and gates. We stood in a parking lot where they unification of Italy was announced. After hearing history, we then proceeded through one of the old gates (now Book Alley). Orderly. Not breaking down the gate like they did in the old times when the plague hit the city.

It this square we stood next to a 2,500 year old Greek wall (Greek because they stack stones on top of eachother like that) while being surrounded by modern buildings.

Then it was off to a church. A church that I honestly can't remember the name of but someone really famous in church history used this place as his library. I want to say it was St. Agustine, but don't quote me on that! We snuck inside the church moments before a wedding was starting and truth be told, the red ball gown being worn by one of the guests is still what I remember the most. That and a NY Catholic official in burried there as he apparently died when in Italy, with his Italian girl friend. Oops.

Through the exit of the chuch we ended up near the Univerity and stopped for coffee. We stopped for coffee and the rain started to pour. Within minutes the semi crowded streets cleared out, and my to my regret even the two Santas playing African drums moved out. We booked it up the hill to the Museo Cappella Sansevero where some of the most amazing statues I've ever seen were. Check out the link because pictures aren't allowed so you have to look at the professional ones. The ceiling of the chapel was beautiful in brillian greens, blues, reds. Legend has it that the artist Raimondo de Sangro  used bile, blood, and other biological "pigments." Like I said, the art was amazing. Symbolism, technique, all of that but the most interstesting thing? As we left there were two skeletons, a male and female that still had their vascular systems. Again, legend says that an imbalming agent was injected into the live subjects to preserve the system while the flesh decayed. Well, I explored a little more (since it didn't look quite right) and I guess a study back in 2009 found that parts of the skeletons were actually contructed of silk and wax.

Another great day in Bella Napoli and even more fabulous new places to take visitors! Best part? I didn't even have to speak Italian.

Che cosa è il Natale come in Italia?

Well, I don't know what Christmas looks like and won't this year, but I can sure show you and tell you what it looks like a few weeks prior!

This past week on the 8th, the Immaculate Conception was celebrated. That night heading home from work through my little towns I was rather impressed with all the lights now illuminated. (Some of them had been up for weeks, just never turned on.)

Seriously. I can almost give directions from the "Bumpy Tunnel" on just by types of Christmas lights out there....follow the red chasing lights, pass under the white stars surrounded by blue outlined garland, turn right at the bush covered in large blue lights and follow the road under the shoot stars up the hill. I could go on but none of you should be visiting me in the next few days and I'm sure next year the creativity will continue. All I know is Nico loves the blinking lights our neighbor has flashing out our window and just stares at them when he's not checking out his Christmas tree.

There are also a ton of LED lights flashing across our kingdom. Once the sunsets, many, many rooftops look like airport landing strips with their blinking red and green lights. A little closer to home, our local piazza has a tree made of blue lights at the perfect level for our rooftop patio. I still get a little confused as to why my living room is glowing blue in the morning, but another day or two I should remember. Should.

The garden shops now have a ton of cyclamen and poinsettias. They also have small potted evergreen trees. I've noticed that even the ones not in pots are sold with a root ball wrapped in canvas. Maybe they are just clearing out their landscaping department but I'd like to think that they are doing the more "eco friendly" thing. (Yes, I do realize that I live in the part of Italy notorious for their trash issues...)

Over the weekend my music playing Santa count started. It started with two walking down my street carrying a keyboard and guitar on my way to the field trip. When we were downtown, two more Santas played African drums as those walked by got an instant dose of holiday spirit. Later that evening driving home, another one was spotted but I only saw his tip container so I'm not sure if he was a musical Santa or maybe a dancing Santa?

Speaking of Santa- his name out this way is Babbo Natale. The commercially produced images of him still portray him as an old, fat, white guy. I'm not sure if this is because these items have been produced in China and they are producing them for the main market segment or what. And yes, for you large inflatable fans- I have spotted a few of them throughout the neighborhood. (These may be American homes...I know they live out here but since I never see them I can't tell you for sure.)

Well, that's what I've experienced so far. I'm still on the hunt for a deformed Ariel but I just may have to wait for Candy Cane Lane...I really don't think that one can be beat! 

As for me and Nico's Christmas decor I'm so thankful that I went a little crazy last year (okay, and the year before) because I've been able to rework some of my decorations since running to Michael's for new supplies really isn't an option. Shoot. Running anywhere for craft supplies really isn't an option. With little BP racing around the house and looking at a few of my ornaments from years past I was once again reminded why we always had "cat decoy ornaments" on the lower branches of the tree. Rather than tempting fate and having one of my ornaments destroyed via being dropped in a water bowl (his newest game) or rolled downstairs those were put in cat free zones and/or packed back up.

This also goes for our cute little tree. Again, thankful that I bought a ton of plastic ornaments for wreaths last year. Nico decided to go for a black, silver, and white theme. I helped him out by purchasing "shocking" lights  (which apparently means obnoxiously bright and blinking) and tying the bow on top since clearly the gold star I have won't work with his color scheme. 

If time permits tonight we're going to watch A Charlie Brown Christmas so he can try to get the real meaning of Christmas. He does keep checking out the nativity scene though. As in thinks he needs be part of the party and just like that catzilla is sticking his head into the manger. Entertaining? Yes but another reason I need to look into getting a wood set and always have superglue on hand.

At any rate, it's definitely Christmas time out here and my office advent calendar that gets raided daily for chocolate proves it. (Shoot we hit the ones from this weekend on Weds last week). It's come without peppermint ice cream or a red Starbucks cup full of chocolatey, peppermint, coffee. And I'm okay with that for the time being BECAUSE it's come with the opportunity for me to get back to the states and the state that I care most about...California since it's where the family is. Well, will be once Miss Texas gets herself back to the 831.

Meeting My #1 Customer

It's one of those weekends again. The kind  where I'll be running from event to event and come Sunday night I'll be more exhausted than I was Wednesday morning when that gym alarm goes off way too early.

But it's okay. I do after all choose to do all of these things and I mean why wouldn't I choose to take my boss up on his suggestion to go visit our other office in Gaeta on a Friday? Why wouldn't I plan on going to a dinner with local orphans to present them with Christmas gifts? Why wouldn't I plan to attend my class field trip to Naples? ...but I get ahead of myself. One day at a time.

After a rather hectic week in the office and my cancelled trip yesterday, my boss fully supported our reschedule trip to Gaeta to happen today. So this morning, a good hour after I normally leave my house I met up with my coworker and we headed up the coast to Gaeta. Gaeta several years back was the base for this area and still remains the home port of 6th Fleet's Command Ship- USS Mount Whitney.

The MW and I have really gotten to know each other over these past few months as I process, log, and closeout all funding documents for her necessary repairs. Let me tell you- she has a lot. Only recently did she return from Croatia from a dry dock. Yeah, as in they pulled her out of the water to make some major repairs. At any rate I feel like she sealed her fate as my #1 customer this week when I processed at least 2 documents for her each day and stressed over the fact that although these were emergency things I had no more money to use. Nothing like having to wait 6 hours to have the east coast to approve funds before your person signing documents in Bahrain goes home...like I said, busy week.

Today's mission was to gather information the MUSE barge, the power supply for the ship when it's in port. I tagged along as "official photographer" and to foster customer service. It was good to see some of the guys I talk with weekly (if not more) but never see. After hanging out in their office reminding that accurate estimates are key to not tie up funds in jobs (the reason for my headaches this week) I headed out to the barge with the real engineer. The Italian contractors gave us a great tour and offered us coffee. I'm still not 100% sure what all I saw but come Monday I'll get the big picture from my coworkers and start making sense of all of this.

After a fabulous seafood lunch with great company talking shop and other stuff we headed back to the port to get on the ship. The SSU engineer, knowing the week I had, suggested that I meet the chief engineer on the ship so I had a face to go with the next requests I saw. Why? Apparently he feared for my computer screens' safety this past week when I kept seeing the requests come through. Well, like most of his ideas this was a great one. As in gold star quality. The chief engineer is a great guy who agreed to take me on the 5 minute engine room tour but it quickly turned into the 45 minute tour as  he lead me around, taking the time to explain how things work. (Can I just say that I find it rather ironic that after my days on the TSGB I never though I'd be in an engine room again and yet this is the second one this year?) During our tour I got to see the galley with its new hoods and met the Captain of the ship. He personally thanked us for the support our office provides him- sweet!

Realizing that we'd put in way more than our 8 hours and it was late Friday afternoon we thanked everyone again and headed back south. Along the way we called our boss to report in. He was once again impressed that I have no fear running around engine rooms. Shoot, I was even in heeled boots today. No. Not exactly ship exploring shoes but that wasn't our original plan! Oh well, as it was also pointed out on the drive back, when I tag along for visits we get the VIP tours. The things I do for my country :)

Another Thing I Can Cross Off...

...my "well, I never thought" list.

This morning when I was already running a smidge late, I saw something I didn't want to see as I came out of the curve along bamboo road: the red lights indicating the guard rails were down over the train tracks. Well, as I slowed down to see what was happening the car in front of me crossed.

Turns out the guard rails were down, but seriously out of whack. This is the same crossing that several months back the rails were down but no train for ages (they don't even run at this hour of the morning) but since they were down I couldn't cross so I had to go the wrong way down a one way to get back on the main road....remember?

So after making sure that no train was coming down the track I too crossed between the rails that were running somewhere in between parallel and perpendicular to the road. My guess is a car went plowing through them in the night...unless some of these CAT4 winds messed them up. No lo so. Some things just can't be fully processed that early in the morning, before several shots of espresso.

All I know is I may just head that way tomorrow morning on my way to work to see if I can't get a picture, however with my luck they've already been repaired.

Well, Now I Know...

"Ciao Enzo. Questa Katie. I have a problem- my oven, stove, and dishwasher aren't working. I've flipped all the breakers and still nada. I hear/smell the gas from the stove top but don't hear the clicking to ignite it."

"Did you flip the switch?"

"In the breaker box- yes."

"No, the switch in the kitchen. It needs to be on in order for it work. Maybe you hit it while cleaning."

"Um, I don't think so. I did a fair amount of trouble shooting prior to calling you. When I get home I'll check though. Grazie." (I couldn't admit to him that I haven't actually cleaned my kitchen in a week...or the fact this wasn't a new discovery but I finally remembered to call him and I knew I'd be home before 9pm.)

After hanging up the phone I had the feeling that he honestly believed that I had no idea what I was talking about and I couldn't help but to think that it was because of my gender. Really? I've been without what I figured to be power to my 3 appliances since Saturday, but maybe even Thursday...since that's when I ran my dishwasher. 

You see,  dirty dishes, coated in blue frosting and a light dusting of flour from sugar cookies were very festive transforming my counter into a winter wonderland scene, but they were also daunting.  Very daunting, especially late at night after a long day at work. Finally on Thursday when I realized I needed dishes (those of you who have been my roommate know how long I wait sometimes...) so I started to attack them by hand I remembered that I have a dishwasher! I'd still trade it for a garbage disposal any day of the week but it's a good thing to have when you make a mess with just about every pot, pan, cookie sheet, and utensil coated in food. It wasn't until Saturday afternoon when I really wanted coffee did I realize that my kitchen was not fully functioning. Grr.

That's when my engineer Katie mode started and after exhausting my ideas I called in a few experts for their feedback. They suggested everything I had already tried. Finally today I called Enzo to see if he could relay the message because I still can't talk home repairs in Italian. That's when we had that conversation. That's when my cranky day at work got even worse.

At any rate, as soon as I chased Nico down from when he ran outside when I got home (yeah, that was fun) I went to straight to the kitchen to prove Enzo wrong. Unfortunately I proved myself wrong instead. When I called him to let him know it was fixed he had to ask if it was the switch. I fessed up and told him yes. Then he went on about how it's a safety thing which I disagreed with him...it's clearly a decoy for Americans. Oh well. Like I teased earlier- now that my kitchen is up and running again I better go spend more time in it because clearly this woman doesn't know her way around it well enough!

Seriously though, I know I didn't flip that switch. Maybe one of the cookie sheets hit it? Maybe it was Nico? I mean, I don't mind the fact that it was a such a quick fix (once I finally called) but it would have been nice to see my favorite repair guy...just sayin'.  And yes, I find it hilarious that just today at work we were once again laughing about  although we have "degrees" sometimes the simplest of things gives us the most difficulties.

Soccer & Wine

Um no. Not together but combined into the same day makes for a pretty fabulous Saturday, especially when you add a Nap. Yeah, you read that right. Nap with a capital n.

Actually, let me back up. The first event of the day was running out in Lago with my training buddy. Just 5 miles today but for some reason it was rather brutal, even with the promise of coffee and a pastry at the end of our miles. Luckily, a portion of the pack of dogs realized that we were lacking motivation and on our way back up the hill they came barking after us. Our days of "stop, drop, and roll" were quickly adapted to "halt, turn, and yell." Even in English those dogs knew not to mess with us. Adrenaline rushing, that last half of mile, up hill was no problem. Oh and that cappuccino was fabulous too.

Next stop of the morning (um yeah, it was only 930 by this time) was Carney Park for...drum roll please...queue trumpet fanfare....the last soccer game of the season! Don't get me wrong, coaching was fun but with holidays interrupting the season it was beginning to feel like the season would never end. My Blue Dragons rocked it on the field once again and ended their season with only one loss. Turns out the team we lost to (that nasty orange team) lost to another team we beat so- had we been at full strength that day the outcome may have been a tad different. None the less, as I passed out their blue jersey and gold star sugar cookies I was really proud of them.

After our award ceremony I went to watch my coworker's youngest kid play since I'd been trying to all season. This is the kid that I've been asking to run with me for months and the one I've won over by telling him about Nico and that I live above a pizzeria. He's such a cute 4 year old- but then again I find most 4 year olds adorable. His team also won (yay Red Dragons!) and I watched him get his soccer medal. And with that, I was totally soccered out.

Once home rather than cleaning my rather messy house I found a sleepy kitty and decided to make him share my big bed. How is it that something so tiny can take up so much room!? Three hours later I decided it was probably time to wake up. Told you- it was a Nap. A fabulous nap.

Last event of the day was a wine tasting event at the bottom of the hill organized by a coworker. It was a lot of fun to hang out with coworkers outside of the work environment. My co-coach and his wife were there, with a beautiful picture drawn by my little buddy when he remembered that they would see me. As the rain came pouring down (because it couldn't rain during my run or soccer game) we sat and talked about things other than ship repair and it was a blast. Once again I was reminded just how much I like my coworkers.

Wine sampled, yummy food consumed, and bottles purchased, it was back up the hill for bedtime. So what if I slept a large portion of the afternoon? Not only was it a busy day but the morning held the promise of a trip to Shoe Alley. Yep. Again.

Holiday Party/Farewell with LPN

"Are you almost here?"

Grrr. Yes. I've "been here" for at least 2 laps around the rather large block but I can't find a place to park. I did however teach my GPS the difference between roads and pedestrian areas as I backed out a very narrow road with cars parked on either side. Of course this was after the thought of "I sure like this one better than the one I was using ..." Figures right?

Uncle Gianni to the rescue and a primo spot in front of the news stand was there just for me. Totally worth the risk of being on the street with the parking guy watching it rather than being blocked into the lot made for 8 (American sized cars) but currently holding way more than that.

I'm here!

As were lots (and lots) of the LPN members to unfortunately say good bye to a few of our members but also to celebrate the holidays. And that's what we did with pizza after pizza, Christmas karaoke, and the Italian version of Bingo.

That's right- Italian version. The cards were were handed had blank squares on them and only 5 numbers printer per line by 3 columns. To win you first only had to get 2 in a row. Then for the person with 3 they got a slightly larger prize...4, 5, and then all the numbers covered. Well my card stunk but my fabulous marathon training buddy's didn't and one won her a free registration to the marathon! We of course credited the win to G.Nome who was her good luck token. I guess he was sick of me and Alida at this point? 

Christmas Time is Here!

Okay, well maybe it's already been "here" for several weeks as I do reside in a country that doesn't do Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving morning I headed out to Auchan with the most adorable blonde boys and their mom. While we were there I bought a baby tree that will be decorated with Nico safe ornaments before too long.

Although I tried to decorate the apartment that afternoon, I found it odd that I didn't have twinkly lights or a normal sized tree (fresh from Roseburg, OR). Then again, maybe it was because I was on my way out the door for Thanksgiving dinner. Who knows?

Well after deleting the hundreds of Black Friday sale emails from my inbox today, I decided to take another approach to getting into the holiday spirit by watching The Grinch. I also decided that Nico needed to watch it with me and he did. I think he was cold and wanted to steal my body heat but he didn't sleep and actually kept his eyes on the screen.

Then I made the mistake of moving my foot which of course took his attention from the movie and over to attacking my foot. When he was satisfied that whatever had moved was gone, he hopped off the couch. I was busy watching perhaps my most favorite Christmas movie of all time, but out of habit a few minutes later I chirped out for him to make sure he wasn't causing problems. He wasn't. In fact, he was only a few feet away from me.

Yep. I think he was concerned that the Grinch (or Erin) was going to steal "his" Christmas tree! My cat is such a smart one! I guess we now need to watch A Charlie Brown Christmas so he knows how to decorate it himself?

I did make him watch the rest of the movie and although he saw the Grinch's heart grow and return everything, I had to laugh when I just now looked up and saw him sleeping on the chair next to his tree. I'm just glad he likes the tree and has moved on from attacking the moose hanging from the banister!

Cento Cose Di Cui Essere Grati

It's that time of year again when hand prints are turned into turkeys, stomachs expand to accommodate a feast, relatives gather, and yes, you reflect on all the things you are thankful for. For a split second this year I started feeling sorry for myself- sorry that I wasn't going to be able to join my cousins at the kids' table. Sorry that I wasn't going to eat the pies my grandma makes. Sorry that I wasn't going to make the Fred Meyer sock sale on Friday. Seriously. It's hard core.

Then I saw a picture of Carolyne on my desk- the amazing little girl I met this year in Kenya. Then I recalled all the other little kids I saw on the trip, and remembered that for each one represents several others living in the same conditions. These children were so thankful for everything- no matter how small. Once again I was reminded that the opposite of poverty is not rich, but just enough.

Enough.

I don't know about you, but I feel like I have way more than enough. Way beyond the things that fill my ridiculously large house I've been given opportunities that many could never dream of having...including this adventure in Italy.

So sure I'd love to be seated at the kids' table with my siblings and cousins with our glasses of wine (seriously...over half the kids' table has been at a legal drinking age for at least a few years), eating pink cranberry stuff, and laughing with my family but I'm going to be spending it with my "other" families here in Italy.

This Thanksgiving I'll be starting some new traditions but 2 must go on: turkey hand prints & pink cranberry frozen deliciousness. No matter how you celebrate today- in a foreign country, out to eat, in front of the tv, or with family I hope you too are reminded just how much we have to be thankful for. If you need some help thinking of things, Nico and I got into the holiday spirit. Yes, his turkey looks like a hawk but since he's Italian I still need to teach him all about Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

A Germana

I know! I am suppose to be headed to new countries, not ones I've already seen multiple cities in! Oh well, it was nice to actually see something other than the Munich airport for the first time this year. This weekend I headed to Garmisch for a women's retreat with 10 others from Naples. The conference was decent- although I swear if I was asked one more time what service my husband was in I was going to slap someone.

Getting there was quite the adventure. My traveling buddy quickly dubbed it as our "planes, trains, and automobiles" day and it was 100% accurate. We left Naples at 0700, took a train from Munich to Garmisch, and then a cab took us the last few miles. On the first segment of the flight (the 30 minute one) I was in what would have been the perfect seat for flying home in: tons of leg room, cushy, wide, window seat in row 2. The Rome to Munich flight had me seated much further back and sharing my aisle with a German who I'm pretty sure was shocked when he heard my American accent. Yep, it never gets old playing my "I'm going to keep my mouth shut and see what language people talk to me in" game.

When it was time to catch our train, we all got on the first one with no problem. As we tried to get on the regional train at the main station there were very few seats. Luckily my traveling buddy didn't want to sit around waiting for the next one, so we boarded using our luggage as seats for the first few stops. I really wish I had pictures to show you just what we experienced on this close to 2 hour trip because I fear that you won't believe me!

While we sat on our luggage in the crowded exit area of the car we had no personal space. No personal space as in I was thankfully the one in the corner. Then again maybe not. At one point I glanced over to the passageway (on the other side of my friend) and saw a college student bending over. Well, that's what I thought I was seeing but upon closer inspection I think he was adjusting the zebra print thong on the outside of his jeans. Um yeah. You try not to laugh when you see that. There was a girl about the same age standing across from me and the looks we shared translated just fine even with the language barrier.

As soon as he left, the beer pong parade began. Yep. More college age guys started to make their way through. First we saw a drunk guy. Then it was a guy holding a stack of plastic cups with ping pong balls in one hand and a bottle of beer in the other. Next up was a rather intoxicated guy balancing a crate of bottles on his shoulder. For some reason he felt the need to stop right in front of us and once again, my travel companion was subjected to danger. Keep in mind, we're on a moving train, this kid has been drinking, not holding on to anything, and he's balancing a crate of glass beer bottles (German sized, not American). A few times it looked like we would have beer falling on us- both in liquid form and bottles filled of it. When a hand reached upward as to prevent the corner of the crate in her face, one of his friends thought she wanted one. Ha. That triggered the "I bet if you take one they won't even notice" talk but luckily for us they got off within a few more stops- along with their traveling table.

We didn't realize we were on the party train!

As the entertainment ceased we started to realize that we were starving and tired; it had been nearly 9 hours since we woke up for our coffee. Not a minute too soon we pulled up to the station. As tempting as it was, we didn't head straight to the Mexican place by the station- I don't think it would have been any better than Taco Bell. We headed up the street in search of anything open and non Italian and settled on a little bakery where the girl spoke English. You know who didn't speak English? The cast of Scrubs on TV. Talk about confusing! We got over it rather fast as we inhaled our sandwiches, coffee, and strudel.

Finally we made it to our destination (via cab), as did the rest of the group not too much later.

Like mentioned before the conference was okay. The highlight of the weekend for me was running around the downtown area early Saturday morning. It was so cold even with my 4 layers on but after the initial shock of cold mountain air it was a great run. I've really missed running the empty streets of a city with the stars overhead. It was relatively flat too so I was a happy camper. Of course after I got back and saw my skin was cold to the touch even under all those layers I was a little thankful Naples is warmer in the winter. I did get the shock of a lifetime when after the sun came up I realized just how much frost was out there. Guess that explained the lack of sweat!

Um, I really didn't see anything new in this town nor did I see anything new while back in Munich the day we were flying out. Again, had fun and did some shopping (yummy raspberries) but nothing I deem blog worthy.
Maybe my attitude wasn't the greatest- I was just ready to head back to Naples. don't get me wrong, I love the mountains and it was a nice change of pace but Garmisch in particular is such a touristy place it sort of reminds me of why I hated Monterey so much. It's funny. For the 3rd time this year I find myself in a beautiful place that is a lot more like home than Naples is and yet I find myself longing to be back in Naples.

Who'da thunk!

VISITORS!

My second official visitor group to Bella Napoli were my aunt, uncle, and cousin from Indy. Their ship left them in the port early this morning and eventually they got off the port to meet at our designated spot.

Of course I wasn't there as planned (I run on Napoli time these days) and as I climbed the stairs I heard my dad's voice on the phone held to my aunt's ear. We assured him everything was okay and let him get back to sleep since it was close to 0100. Stinkin' time difference. So why was I late? Well I have the tendency to forget that driving at 0800 is a little different than 0500. That compounded with not being 100% sure where I was going and being on a train into town with what appeared to be a bunch of protesting students...like I said Naples time.

After being handed the most glorious bag of peppermint items (have I mentioned lately just how much I am in need of a peppermint fix?) we ventured out a piedi with no real destination in mind other than wanting to see a few new things. After a cornetto break, we wandered through some back streets while migrating towards Christmas Alley. I had given up my map at this point (I get too distracted looking at everything that I forget to check where we are...hey didn't someone once say it's all about the journey?) At any rate, we walked through some seriously narrow old streets. I'm sure we gave the old ladies hanging out their windows something to talk about for at least a little while.

We continued to wander off the typical major roads in downtown and quickly found ourselves in the neighborhood 2 of my coworkers had told me the day prior to be wary of. So naturally that's where we ended up right? Well, it wasn't too sketchy and I had to see Il Duomo one of these days- so why not on a day I wasn't touring solo? Walking inside the church, I'm sorry- cathedral, we really didn't know what to expect- but I think the vaulted ceilings with golden ornate images and marble everywhere really weren't in our mind. Attached to the main cathedral there were several side chapels, also decorated with statues which pretty much blinded us as the sun came pouring in the windows. We joked that I could never attend church there on account of it being so distracting! Well actually, the fact that I'm not Catholic would already making it tough and the language issues are sort of strikes uno e due. In this chapel is where the skull and vials of blood from San Gennaro blood that liquifies three times a year. Well, the city prays that it liquifies because the years it hasn't has resulted in catastrophic events for Napoli.

When we were duomo'ed out we headed back to the street and continued our walk to Via San Gregorio Armeno in search of  Christmas Alley. As the presepi became more and more frequent along the street vendors we figured we had made it. Turns out we passed our turn when we checked out a fish vendor. Yeah, fish. It's a very common view in the markets and along the streets- tubs of clams, muscles, octopi, squid--all still alive! The fish are already dead at this point, but you know just a few short hours prior they were swimming along. If you're picturing an aquarium in your head, you aren't that far off. Just like we weren't that far off of the correct street to see some of the largest and some of the smallest nativity scenes I've ever seen. The presepi are all handcrafted with tree bark and moss (preventing me from being able to take one home!) and then custom occupied. Il bambino Jesus, Mary, Joseph, livestock, shepherds, wise men, and angels predominately lined the shelves but among the traditional items/characters there were others. Should you want a Pulcinella, Santa Claus, or Bart Simpson you could easily find one. How about a pizza oven to add to your manger? Got one of those, look for them between the lamp posts and mini pizzas. It really was amazing to see all the accessories lined up and yes, I do love living in a country that doesn't celebrate Thanksgiving- BRING ON CHRISTMAS!

With our one destination reached, the stopping in stores back to the main road continued and I found a few great deals. I'd write about them here but should they end up as presents (as in, I don't keep them for myself) I don't want to have the element of surprise ruined. Before hitting the main street again we were by Santa Chiara. This church was recommended to visit by my Italian instructor so I had to check it out since it's her favorite. This Gothic church was much different than the ones we had seen previously. It was only in this form though after being bombed during the war and being almost completely destroyed. When the decision was made to rebuild, they restored it to its original style (even after it had been "updated" to Baroque style well after its 14th century construction). My favorite part was the stained glass windows, for now. Next time I'm going into the museum area to see the rest of it.

As promised, we made our way to Via Roma/Toledo and once again joined the fast paced city. It's really amazing how just a few streets off from the main roads you can be transported to what Italy must have been like earlier on. On Via Toledo, the vendors promised great deals even if every other one had the same items. Business suits walked by at a fast pace while older women took their time with their produce from the market. Coffee shops were busy- even if by American time it was time for pranzo...not another coffee break. One block found us across from a sea of people. Just what was the commotion? A new H&M was opening. Craziest part? It actually looked like people were lining up on the sidewalk.
Katie's tour now took them to Galleria Umberto, Palazzo Reale and the likes. I figure if these are a few of the sights that made me fall in love with the city, I have to share! It was a success and we even had a ton of carabinieri heading to the Palazzo Reale. Nope. Still not sure why but since we're sort of going through some political changes I'm sure it had something to do with that. Well, maybe not since I find that the most logical explanation for many things here couldn't be further from the truth.

With several kilometri under our feet and almost an acceptable lunch time for the locals, we went in search for a place my aunt and uncle had eaten at last time. Apart from knowing the general location and that it was a 2 story pizza place "with baskets" we had nothing. But guess what? They found it. We also found a guy willing to give us a great deal on an iPad along the way.

No. We didn't buy it. C'on. Electronics from the street?

Lunch was pretty good. It was nice to choose from pizza options other than what my pizza man makes but I still like his best. I'm not sure if it's the electric oven or what. This place was super cute though and since the kitchen was upstairs, they used baskets on pulley systems to send up the orders. Dopo il pranzo, siete andati per gelato. And it was almost more difficult to find than the restaurant! I guess we were a block past were we spent most of our day and as the old heart of city gelateria were not part of the original city plan? It was very odd. As the search continued we walked towards the closest metro station so I could eventually make it to soccer practice. Not only did we find our gelato, but we also found a coffee bar right next to the station. Not really wanting to head off to see my team (the season is almost over), sleepy, and impressed that we weren't just at any bar but at the 3 Gnome/Dwarf bar I had to have un caffe! Only as the sun began to set behind the tall buildings did I realize it would take me a while to head back...so that's what I did.

On the train back  I couldn't help but smile at what a wonderful day I had with my relatives exploring and sharing my new home with them. Sure there is trash on the side of the road, traffic, a ton of people, poor air quality but that's only a portion of this place, and the coffee, ancient history, beautiful buildings, friendly people and amazing views out weighs all those "cons." Shoot, I'm not even sure if all of those things are even cons...I think they are still in the "quirk category" in my book so they are a few of the many things that make Naples Bella Napoli. I'm sure the onlookers thought I was crazy  with my hair getting further out of control in the wind as I stood bracing myself with a pole as we made our way down the track with graffiti and sunbeam covered buildings but I don't care. Sure my attitude changed a tad when I pulled up to practice with 10 minutes left (it was on my way home) due to traffic but it quickly adjusted back while I ran inside an extinct volcano.

Seriously. 

How did I get so lucky to have this be my life?

Can someone please pinch me to make sure I'm not dreaming?

It's Go Time

Today is the first day in an 18 week marathon training program.
Yeah, 18 weeks.
And yes, I did say marathon.

142.195 kilometers or you know, 26.2 miles.

Get ready to read even more posts about running because I'm about to get serious about this.

SB out.

Another Milestone Reached

As most of you have heard, I've been fighting this cold that's making its way through Naples. I believe one of the soccer kids decided to share with us coaches as my coworker came down with it last weekend and come Monday we were both sad cases. Our entire shop (the whole 4 of us) were sneezing and coughing by the end of the week. To be fair, the other 2 were also exposed to it at their homes and I really do keep my germs to myself.

Well, apart from the Shoe Alley adventure yesterday I told myself I wasn't allowed to leave my house expect for in search of pizza or in case of emergency. There was a point yesterday where I almost restricted my outings to only life threatening emergencies. I even told Nico he was responsible for saving me.

It would be a lie if I said I was super productive today but progress was reached in the unpacking department. I finally opened the last few boxes and all but one is now unpacked. The one with items still in it is from my office and given that I don't even have enough workspace now, these items will need to find a new home eventually.

The office/craft room finally looks like a room rather than a room out of a hoarder's home. Unfortunately the zebra couch remains in there but hopefully that's not for much longer. I did open it up (why yes, it is a sleeper couch). Did you know that it's part of the New York City series? The copy right date? 1982. If this is an original...it's older than me! With this discovery and realizing it was nearly 1pm, I went up to my much newer couch and took a nap. Well, maybe like 3. From time to time I was woken up by Nico sharing Baby Mouse or wads of packing paper with me.

Round two in the office made me laugh because once again I was finding things I forgot I had. Like a set of glasses? Oh well, I still don't regret my new set from Ikea! My creations from high school ceramics? Oh just you wait till they are worth big money. What really triggered my need to unpack was my list of a few missing items. Nothing huge but I was finding it odd that both of my aprons are still MIA. Yeah, still MIA. Guess it's time to look through my clothes again? No lo so.

Who says you can't have it all? I slept in, got a room unpacked, napped for 2+ hours, and even had pizza today. Yeah, I am productive even when sick.

BEWARE THE BOX TROLL!

To Market, To Market

One huge perk about American holidays these days (I mean, apart from the 8 hours of holiday pay) is that the Italians still go on with business as usual. This means markets, businesses, schools, and the likes are all open and for once I'm able to live the Italian life.

Today's destination was Shoe Alley. Yes, I have been there before but not for months! My coworker and I had been talking about needing boots for a few weeks and we made the plans late yesterday afternoon. (What else would 2 government employees be talking about late in the afternoon before a long weekend?)

With my coworker taking over directions (my GPS and I are still working through our issues) I drove my car closest to downtown Naples it's been. The drive proved to be entertaining and the traffic at 940 suggested it was still early in the work day. We arrived without incident and I even backed up onto the sidewalk for a very Italian parking job. By the way, Ravi is really learning to love some of his all terrain capabilities in this urban center.

The sun shone down on the shoes causing buckles and bling to glisten like treasures. The stacks of boxes reached several meters high, each containing a pair of shoes. Like two pros, we wandered back and forth between the stalls in each row- careful not to to miss any! In today's search for boots nothing really caught our eyes until the 3rd row. It's here I found the first pair of suede wedge with a little faux sheep wool lining- super cute but just filed away as we continued our search.

Our search for boots was temporarily detoured as I realized I want to find a few scarves since I'm determined the key to dressing like an Italian is to accessorize. My research has concluded that the reason the women always look so fabulous in their outfits is because they've layered and accessorize everything on their person to be art. Granted, it could just be the shoes but I'm not willing to give up my flip-flops just yet.

Row after row we searched. It wasn't until the very back that we finally found one of our favorite types of stalls- cinque euro! Although the selection wasn't too fabulous, for 5E you can buy a pair of shoes and if you don't like them after 2 or 3 wears you pass them along or not feel guilty as they sit in your closet. My coworker found her (only) pair of boots here, but I was still on the hunt for something similar to the ones I saw previously.

And then I saw the most adorable dress ever. Okay, maybe not ever but marked 10E it was pretty fabulous. After checking it out I was 99% sure that this body with my "no carb left behind" Italian food plan was not going to squeeze into it.

Onward!

I finally found a pair of boots. No, they weren't like the ones I saw before (and despite going back for a second look still didn't come home with them) but they looked like something my shoe collection was missing. As we made our way back I once again crossed paths with that dress. Feeling optimistic (I knew it would fit, but it was the "how would it fit" that was the mystery) I tried that and another dress on. And this is how the  clothes shopping at Shoe Alley happened. The original dress was a no go, but I found another one. The only problem is I have a feeling I'll be checking Nini's closet for it should it ever go missing.

So today's trip was successful: boots, a pencil skirt, a dress, and a top all for way less than the holiday pay I was paid while I was outside enjoying the sun rather than in my dungeon.

Non Ho Fatto Niente

Well, that isn't entirely true. After putting in my hours at the office, I head home  to spend some time with mia gatto.

Today's post is a tribute to my past life as Queen of the Front Office. In those days, my kingdom had windows (that's right, more than one) and I had a desk that if in my current office 3 would be expected to work at. Ah, the good old days. Things weren't always golden in that kingdom though, and when times got tough in those post lunch and "did the clock stop advancing?" times, we knew only one thing could solve the problem- a cute cat picture break.

So since I hijacked his posts (he didn't really have anything else to say) here's his photo journal of the last few days:

Left to Right: Nico discovers he can sit on the ledge and watch water drain. Nico loves Mr. White Rat. "Mom, we have a spider problem I think that's more important than the no jumping up here rule."

I realize that most of you think that I've already completed step one of transforming into a cat lady. I assure you, I have not. I know I talk way too much about this little guy, but he's so stinkin' cute and too entertaining to not tell you about his adventures.

And besides, it's still il gatto not i gatti so I'm good.

We Survived the Night

Despite being exhausted after yesterday's 9 hour touring evening full of eating when I got home sleep really was not an urgent thing. Maybe it was due to my nap on the way back, my belly being a little too full, the desire to see my pictures, or the wind.

Yep. The wind.

For some reason it's always very windy in my part of Italy. I'm beginning to think that it's due to my house being on a mountain facing the water with pretty much nothing blocking it. It was insanely windy last night to the point that both Nico and I were paying a little too much attention to every sound we heard.

No. I'm not insane. This wind was so strong that in my sun room (all windows, facing into the wind) were shaking. I almost, just almost, relocated my location but then I realized that the windows blowing out would be a rare (if not near impossible) event.

On my last tour to make sure everything was secure before setting the alarm I looked out on the patio to see two terra-cotta pots smashed against the patio, no longer on their ledge. No, they weren't large ones but just some indication of the wind.

Alarm set (with keys near by should the alarm be triggered by all this wind) we tried to get to sleep. Tried. That oh so fabulous automatic metal shutter on my bedroom window rattles like an angry momma rattlesnake. It was one of those nights that every time I drifted off I heard something that caused me to jump. Little Nico was curled up next to me all night which was somewhat comforting but still- he was even more nervous I think. We were good until the wind started driving the rain (or maybe it was hail) into the metal shutter causing him to jump and run over me. Ouch.

I was happy to hear the rain to start though but still didn't get a very restful night.  And actually for the first time in a very long time I was scared to be in a house alone. Seriously, I was about one major noise from calling home to just talk with them since it was still a decent out there & they got an extra hour last night...

Fast forward to this morning- rain, wind, thunder, lightning, and hail.

Coffee was task #1 on my list. Shoot, at this rate it's going to be task #2 and #3 as well. As I made my way upward to the kitchen, I opened up the shutters to see just what type of day we're working with out there: stormy. While waiting for my coffee to percolate, I went out on the non windy side of the house. By this point, I could feel the thunder every time it blasted and lightning bolts flashed across the gray sky. With the thunder claps practically back to back and my cat MIA I kept looking out the window impressed with the buckets of water on my balcony...until I jumped back because my kitchen was shaking, my ears were ringing after the thunder clap and I saw sparks coming from a roof about 2 blocks away.

Time to step away from door. 

Katie, you survived the wind last night, you've got this. Weren't you just talking about how you love storms?

Um...yeah, but not scary storms that look like they should be in a movie and not in real life. 

Queue hail.

Seriously. I was one of those "hit me with your best shot" moments in which mother nature did just that. By the way, I may have been a little freaked out during all of this but Nico? I still don't know where he went. He came from downstairs when I called him but is only now getting semi comfortable with each thunder clap.

 So there you have it. They weren't kidding when the weather forecast called for rain today. Oh well, I have (more) coffee drinking, homework, cleaning and some cooking to do so assuming I don't fall asleep here on the couch I just may get through that list.

Sagra della Castagna

It was a soccer bye week so of course I couldn't sleep in or have a rest day. Nope. I haven't changed that much. Weeks ago I had signed up for trip to the Chestnut Festival. At first I was just laughing about why chestnuts would need their own festival but coming from the land of strawberry/artichoke/garlic/squid/jazz festivals I figured I didn't have much room to talk.  With the weekly festivals occurring out here I have a feeling all the festivals in Monterey are due to the high Italian population. Of course, that's just a theory. 

At any rate, early Saturday morning the two buses rolled out headed to the town of Montella. It's in the same direction that I went a few weeks ago for the wine tour within 30 minutes of driving we were seeing mountains and valleys which I sometimes forget exist when I'm doing all my driving in/around Naples.

Our first stop on the Sagra della Castagna tour was one of the producers of the area. (Are you ready for some chestnut information because here is comes...) Montella is one of the top 3 towns that produce chestnuts. Just how many? Well, this region produces 50% of their product (60,000 tons) to the US market. The quality of their product is so high that they've been awarded a mark which is somewhat equivalent to the marks for the ones given to wines. At the production facility we learned how they were sorted by size before being placed on the second floor on a grate with a fire drying them out from the ground floor. Apparently only removing 13% of the humidity from the nut is key, as is being delicate with them as to avoid injury which can change their flavor. The ones roasted in this facility are roasted over chestnut wood fires and raked around with a shovel made from chestnut wood. The rooms were chalked full of chestnuts and pretty crazy looking.

After hearing about the process, we got to taste their products. I don't think I've had a chestnut until today and I think I picked the perfect time to try them in various forms: cooked with mushroom, made into a chocolate spread, soaked in rum, boiled, baked into cookies. And here I've thought for all these years that you could just roast them over an open fire while Jack Frost nips at your nose. (Um yes, we did keep singing that all day....you couldn't help it!) With roasted chestnuts purchased and a jar of the rum marinated ones (that look like little brains) we loaded back up on the bus to head to the Monastery of S. Francesco a Folloni.

At the Monastery we learned about Saint Francis by one of the friars living there. (Story time!) Many (many) years ago Saint Francis was passing through the area to visit a higher up. That night when he was sleeping under a tree there was a snow storm that covered the ground everywhere but under the tree he was under. The towns people begged him to stay but he had to continue on to his destination, but left two friars there. The church was then built where the tree had been. The original church is now under the building you see, which was built in 1743. They are in the middle of restoring it and in the process are excavating portions of the original church. The tour was pretty amazing, we actually could take pictures within the church, were shown books from the 1400s showing records of people, and also robes over 500 years old. We also saw the last remaining portion of a sack the bread was delivered in one very snowy winter when the friars were starving since they could not get food. After days of prayer, they opened their door and saw the sack full of bread but no footprints in the snow. They thought it was a miracle but in reality it was from France but they still recall that story for hope. After the 9/11 attacks, some of the friars took the swatch of the sack to NY as a symbol of hope.

Did I mention that the friar that was telling us all of this had the best outfit ever? He had jeans and a collared shirt on under his gray robe complete with a slight hoot and cord belt...which was covered in his down jacket. I really don't blame him though. It was freezing in that church! But that's not all, at one point during his presentation his cell phone rang. Yeah, not what I have in mind when I think friar or monk...which is why I love seeing these things!

Starving and a little frozen, we left the monastery around 2 to finally hit the Sagra della Castagna in the downtown area. First stop was food. Joe and I (did I mention he was on this tour too?) had found a couple at the production place where she had been on the trip last year. We practically drooled over her retelling of the melted cheese spread over bread and told them we'd be joining them on the search to find it again. Over our lunch of pasta (with chestnuts and mushrooms) and some local wine that required my newly acquired skill of wine blending we chatted. They were incredibly entertaining and just fun for being significantly older. Hey, it's true. At any rate with the hunger edge removed we started off our "cheese quest" which I told them I'd join if it included a side trip to the pastry booths we'd passed on our way to lunch. Not only did we need to find the fire melted cheese but also the sharp provolone she had purchased last year that her husband loved but we had several hours so off we went.

We didn't make it very far before finding the fire melted cheese smeared on bread with a tad of truffle cream. I think I could have stayed there the rest of the day eating it slice by slice, but we still had the second part of the cheese mission accomplish. After making it back to the main street we were once again distracted, this time by a booth of various liquor. Some looked (and tasted familiar like the melon creamy liquor you find in the limoncello stores in Sorrento. We had asked for a sample of the chestnut variety and a few communion cup samples later we had tried several, including a strawberry one that looked like cough syrup but tasted 1,000,000 times better. It didn't take much convincing and we each walked away with a bottle of the chestnut one. Hey, when at the chestnut festival you gotta purchase chestnuts!

As we continued to walk around the streets we saw every type of chestnuts possible and were handed samples from every booth- meats, cheese, olive oil, chestnuts and had to try a 50euro cent glass of wine! Yeah, no shortage of food. In the main piazza the cheese booth from last year was located and part two of the cheese mission was accomplished. Now time for the dessert part! I actually took a side trip to purchase "raw" chestnuts. Again, if this is what the region is known for, it's what I'm taking home with me. We wandered up the street and found a booth with a chocolate fountain. No big deal (shoot, my parents own one) but he was also selling cups of liquid chocolate. After our cookie-kebabs dipped in chocolate, we decided that the best euro (possibly EVER spent) was for the cup of chocolate. The vendor was super nice too and let me go behind the table for my "kid in candy shop" picture. I think he was just passing time because I didn't see many Italians walking around with cups of chocolate at 5pm.

Needless to say we did a ton of eating and it didn't stop there. I still needed some pastries! With a bottle of white wine in hand we headed back to the piazza to sit and enjoy it with a pastry while we people watched. Okay, they were watching people and I was starring at 3 young (really too young) Cabinieri officers across the street. We were off again to make sure we saw everything and in the process I may have found another pastry stand and left it with several thousand more calories. Our last stop was a small park while waiting for the bus to take us back home. It was in this park I found my first Italian bocce ball court. Next to it there was a statue, probably their patron saint, but she had a crown and held an orb like thing. I think it's their tribute to my bocce ball skills.

So it was a fabulous day. Much different in some regards than the other tours I've taken but still a blast and I loved learning some of the history of the town and really getting details of the production and monastery. Chestnuts and I will no longer be strangers and I may start blending them in with potatoes...since that's still what they taste like to me!

Cooking Class- Round II

I've said it again and I'll say it again- I'm not a huge fan of Italian food. It's not that I hate it (I rarely meet anything I won't eat) but it's down my list of picks. Pizza is the only Italian food not part of this list- I can eat that every day of the week. But that doesn't mean I'm going to stick to my typically very American diet while I'm here- if I were to not try real Italian food I'd be missing out on a huge part of the culture.

Even before departing Monterey I had made the decision that I wanted to learn how to cook authentic Italian food (and find a pasta I like) so once again I signed up for a cooking class at La Vigna. Yes, the place I took the last one and probably more familiar sounding from the stomping of grapes adventure. So after work Joe and I headed over to La Vigna to learn how to make gnocchi di patate alla sorrentina and pastiera napoletana. Some faces were the same and others were new. I once again met some really fun people that are civilian, close in age AND only got here a few months prior to when I did. Sweet! New travel buddies.

Chef Raffaele lead us through the first steps of making Pastiera Napolentana, a very eggy cake typically eaten for Easter in Naples. Just like the chocolate cake from last time, we started with a ton of butter. I think it was 2kilos? Granted we ended up making 5 of these things but still, nothing says health food like a slab of butter on the metal counter...unless you toss just under a kilo of sugar on top of it and are told to start mashing it up. Hey, it really was a hands on cooking class! While two people mashed the butter, sugar, and a touch of flour together another person "melted" a huge bowl full of ricotta with more sugar until it was a batter like substance. Once the batter/filling was smooth candied fruit, a ton of eggs (28) and perfume were added. With both portions ready, it was time to roll out the crust. After he demonstrated once, someone did one and I had to laugh at the lack of rolling out dough skills. Granted he was a high school student, but seriously? Once he was done I volunteered to roll out the 3rd crust. I'm a pro- chalk one up to all of those sugar cookies I've made in the last few years. My crust was rolled out within a few minutes and pressed into the round pan. Filled added and then more dough rolled out to cut the lattice for the top. Our group pounded it out pretty fast. While the cakes were taken into the kitchen to bake for 100 minutes we turned our attention to our first plate- gnocchi!

By this time little mounds (okay, 2kilo mounds) of riced potato had been placed around on the work spaces. We worked the potatoes with flour until the flakes turned to a dough. Once that happened eggs (yeah, we must have used about 100 all night) were added to the already sticky dough before just a touch more of flour to make it the proper consistency. Dough done, it was then cut into tablespoon-ish sized clumps and rolled out to equal length "snakies." It was pretty fun, I mean who doesn't like play-dough? Once we had all our snakes lined up, we got to chop them into the little pillows that looked like after dinner mints and toss them in boiling water. When they floated to the top, they were scooped up and tossed into cool water to finish cooking. I'm not sure how many pounds we made, but it was about 3 huge trays full. After the last gnocchi was cooked, they were mixed with a tomato sauce and cheese- lots of cheese.

It was so pretty and smelled amazing! But then again, I think anything would have after working a full day at the office and then cooking for 2 hours? We finally were told to go sit down and were served antipasti and the wine appeared. The first wine we were given was sort of a cider? We were calling it a wine beer since the aftertaste was beer-ish. All was forgiven though when the bottles of red hit the table. The gnocchi was simply fabulous. I'm already trying to figure out when I can make it again because this was the second time I've had it and I still liked it. I think I want a little more cheese on it next time around, but the chewiness factor of it is fabulous and it doesn't seem like a pasta.

The second plate was veal (veal is still not my favorite but it's not raised the same as we do in the states so I'm not so opposed to it here). It was served with a pretty tasty gravy but I almost would have preferred more gnocchi instead. Shoot, I made those by hand so I wanted to enjoy them!

Finally, it was dessert time. The cakes turned out beautifully so of course I still had to taste it. My verdict? The crust was fabulous- it's amazing how butter makes everything taste so fabulous. The filling was rather eggy and the candied fruit pieces (tiny ones) caused texture issues for me. Someone at the table suggested removing the candy and perfume and just adding rum...he may be on to something.

Now I just need to track down the recipes so I can try these again, unsupervised.

Wine Blending

Now that I don't have Italian class in the evenings I'm rediscovering that I can go out after work to do fun things like...Wine Blending at Stappo! Way long ago (like 3-4 months ago) I met Heather who does wine info classes at the local wine club here in MdP. It's not quite Taste of Monterey but it's a ton of fun and I always learn something new. Tonight's class was about blending wines and how with the correct blend you can get something a whole lot better than the individual wines. We learned about the different quality levels in Italy and how with each level up the "pyramid scheme" there are fewer and fewer. Yes, house wines and home blends are the bottom of the pyramid but we all know that some of our favorites are from that category! Don't under estimate your unlabeled bottle of wine from the local grocer.

After tasting 2 wines we were put to the task of blending them to make our entry for the taste test. Our team of three liked one bottle a whole lot better than the other so it was our base with just a splash of the other.

Yeah, that didn't work.

With several more splashes and swirls we had a drinkable product and poured it.

We apparently had gone for a different market segment than our judge belonged to, but what I learned in Napa was if you don't like it, don't make it since if you don't sell it...you're going to have a whole lot to drink! Nope, we didn't win but the glass handed to her was empty by the end of the evening. It was a with food kind of blend.