Easter Countdown

I really am getting use to the farm and enjoying the family. It is so interesting to watch how they communicate. The girls are always giving me rolling eyes when their father says something. It is the same all over the world. They keep telling me and Mirta (the other Wwoofer from Holland) that Paula seems nice but just don’t do anything wrong. I really get a kick out of it.

Everyone is a little tense with so many people arriving for Easter. It is really a lot of work to run the farm, the restaurant, and the hotel. Paula is really tired and would love to get out of the restaurant business. Today a whole pig was delivered and Gabrielle had to debone it. They then put parsley, bay leaves, pepperincino, pistachios, parmesan cheese, and rosemary inside and rolled it. I just can’t wait to eat it on Easter.

I have really loved learning new recipes and watching Paula cook. I definitely have not enjoyed the yard work. Today Gabrielle used an electric weeder and we had to use a rake in front of him. I finally told him I was going for glasses, when the stone hit me in the face. It is really hard work and the vines are either roses or some type of thorn bush. My hands hurt just to type this blog. I have blisters and cuts all over my arms and hands.

Guests arrive in the Agriturisimo tonight so we are limited to the back bedroom. When they have a full house we can’t use our bathroom. Not sure what we are going to do in the middle of the night when we have to go the bathroom. We are a little concerned.

The only drawback of this farm is the lack of a high speed internet. I have not been able to talk with my family and friends and I feel a little homesick. I didn't realize how important the phone conversations were to me. I am anxious to get to a internet point where I can have a conversation with everyone.

Ciao for now

A Cooking Day at Tholos

Last night we made a type of appetizer that was made with pasta, consisting of oil, wine, eggs, and a little flour. We made small circles our of the pasta and put a wonderful cheese mixed with egg inside and then made a small cup out of it with crisscrossed dough on top. It is hard to explain, but they tasted delicious.

This afternoon five of us made lasagna. We made 10 pans of lasagna to feed customers through the weekend. The lasagna is made with fresh pasta, sauce with a little meat, mozzarella, parmesan, and a mixture of peas, milk, etc. I do not have the recipe yet, but I promise to get it for all my cooking friends. It is so interesting how they make it. It is definitely an established technique because they were very specific on how to arrange everything. I am anxious to taste it this weekend.

I mentioned to you in an earlier blog that two baby goats were just born. One baby goat was not doing well. It would not eat, so we have been feeding it with a bottle. This morning we were so excited that it started sucking. It looks like the baby will survive. I named it Sweet Pea.

After lunch we went into the forest and picked dandelions to use in the salad. It brought back childhood memories, when my mom used to do the same thing. Now we just try and get rid of them in our lawn with weed killer. It is amazing how creative the Italian farms are in using their surroundings.

We took Nina (the donkey) to be with another donkey to mate. It was hysterical. The poor male donkey was willing and able and Nina was having nothing to do with it. Nina would run away and refuse to go back, even though Madera (the daughter) was pulling her. I felt so bad for the male donkey. We finally gave up and were laughing all the way home. Nina was walking very fast to get back home.

Well it has been a long day and hope this blog is more agreeable than my Killer Day yesterday.

Ciao for now.

A Killer Day

Before you read this I would like to put in a disclaimer. My husband believes that I am giving too much information in today's blog. I believe I need to be honest and open on all my activies. If you agree with my husband, stop now and do not read the blog. If you agree with me, enjoy my adventure!

I started the morning watching Gabrielle skin the goat that he had killed this morning. It wasn’t a site that I was looking forward to seeing. He even skins the head. I am not sure what he is going to do with the head. I hope it isn’t included in the dinner menu.

Gabrielle has been teasing me all week about killing the chickens. I kept saying that I do not want to see it. I guess I shouldn’t have said anything because I ended up holding three chickens while he killed them. In case you didn’t know chickens take a long time to die and they are very strong. Afterwards I skinned the chickens in preparation for Easter. It brought back childhood memories of when I was on my aunt and uncle’s farm.

I have decided that farm life is probably not in my future. I am enjoying this adventure, but I know that it is for a short time. There is no way I could raise animals and kill them. I would be too attached.

On a lighter note, this afternoon we took a walk in the forest. The snow capped mountains and the waterfalls are beautiful. All the flowers are starting to bloom. I am trying to take a day and go to St. Bartolomeo and the hot springs. Not sure if I will have time or transportation.

Ciao for Now

Today is Sunday and we have about 20 Italians from around Pescara that will be arriving for lunch and seven for dinner. I woke up early and decided to walk to town to see Roccamorice. There is not much to see. At least there was a bar where I could get a caffe. The walk was beautiful and very hilly. So I did get my 10000 steps in today.

When I returned I went with Dahlia to take care of the goats. I was the last one in the gate and thought I had closed it. We were in the goat house taking care of the babies and the other goats were outside. I was feeling uncomfortable that I had closed the door, so I went out to check. I bet you can guess what happened. Four of the goats were outside and the door was open. I was frantic trying to get these goats back into the pen. It was an experience to remember. I can’t believe I actually got them back in the pen. I sure get myself into trouble at these farms. Perhaps I am not meant to be a farmer.

Everyone was very busy preparing the food. I was a little disappointed that I did not prepare the food, but I got to sample everything and made sure to get the recipes. The menu was: rabbit pate, antipasta, pizza filled with broccoli and mozzarella, ricotta balls, polenta and hummus as the first course; fresh made pasta and ricotta crepe with saffron as the second; lamb or rabbit or beef for the third; fresh made cake and cookies as the desert. They were all made fresh by Maria and the family.

I was the dishwasher of the afternoon and we still have guests this evening. It is hard work washing all those dishes. Definitely was tired afterwards. I have a new appreciation for the dishwashers in restaurants.


Ciao for now

Great Recipes

It is a beautiful day in Abruzzo. This morning we did a lot of gardening to get ready for the guests, who arrive today. I can imagine how beautiful the farm is when all the plants begin to bloom.

While we were working, one of the goats had two babies. We saw them right after they were born and I took a video. It was so wonderful until the other Wwoofer reminded me that I will be eating a baby lamb this weekend. I love lamb, but it will make the meal less inviting (not that I will stop eating).

For lunch we had chicken cacciatore. Gabrielle killed the chicken in the morning so we could eat it at lunch. I am glad I did not know which chicken I was eating. You know how I love my chickens!!

I forgot to mention a comment that Dahlia, the daughter, said to me yesterday, when we were making pasta. She noted that I must not cook a lot because of the way I was standing away from the table. I tried not to take offense. There are so many lessons on this trip including humility.

A couple things about Abruzzo cooking: In American we eat our vegetables cooked just until tender. In Abruzzo they cook and cook and cook their vegetables until they are almost mushy. I feel that it takes away from the taste, but that is only because I am use to one way versus the other. The cheese in Abruzzo has a “wild” taste to it. I don’t really know how to describe it. For example, the Ricotta does not have the sweet taste like I am use to; you can tell it is from goat’s milk.

This afternoon we exchanged recipes. I lucked out on getting a fantastic ricotta recipe. It is a traditional pie from Naples. I learned how to make a beef recipe that was also delicious. I will definitely be cooking when I get back.
Ciao for now

Agriturisimo Tholos

Today was my first day at Tholos. The agriturisimo is run by Maria (really Paula) and Gabrielle and their three children. It is a beautiful farm with sheep, dogs (plus three puppies), fifteen chickens (minus 5 that Gabrielle is going to kill today), and a donkey. The farm is large with: six guest rooms, three dining rooms, a large patio, and swings / hammock. Go to the website at www.agriparktholos.it to see the farm, since I can not attach pictures.

One of the dining rooms is an old stone building where they used to house the sheep. It is so unique and romantic. They have a large table with candelabras for intimate dining. There are a number of balconies to enjoy the views of the forest and snow capped mountains. The farm is inside the Majella National Park with hiking trails right outside the door.

Today we were preparing the farm for Easter because Paula is expecting guests in the Agriturisimo plus a number of dining guests for both lunch and dinner during the Easter weekend. Easter is a big event in Abruzzo and all of Italy. It is celebrated throughout the weekend and on Monday.

Paula is known for her cooking and has won a number of awards, so many people travel all the way to Roccamorice, which is a stone city high up in the mountains, to eat at Tholos. The guests are all from Abruzzo region in Italy.

We spent the morning gardening around the patio after a long winter. It was one of the first really beautiful days they have had this year. Paula also taught us how to make a pasta called Orecchietti (means little ears) and she made a broccoli sauce. It was so easy to make but delicious. Of course we had a fennel salad and fried mozzarella for the second course. I love the way they cook in Italy. They are simple dishes (very little preparation) but beautiful to see and delicious.

After lunch we had a chance to relax. I am really focused on learning my Italian. It is so bad to not be able to understand. Gabrielle and Paula only speak Italian and the daughters translate for me. I feel I am getting better but very slowly.

Before dinner we are made crepes (called crespelle) for the guests tomorrow. It is another traditional dish. I am so excited to be learning more about the Italian cooking.

Ciao for now

An Interesting Travel Day

It was a sad farewell to Naples. I hope to return soon. The atmosphere is so energizing. I started out at 5am in the morning to catch the train to Sumona. It was a beautiful train ride, when I was awake. With the lack of sleep the night before and the movement of the train, it was hard to stay awake.

Rather than sit in Pescara until the 5pm bus, I decided to spend the afternoon in Sumona. It is a wonderful small city, so one day was enough to see the whole town. One thing I immediately noticed were how nice the people were dressed, especially the men. In Italy there are always a lot of men standing around chatting. In Abruzzo all the men had either suits or leather jackets, or very nice casual jackets on with nice casual corduroy pants. They also were much better looking than the men in Sicily (you know my impression of Sicilian men). I may be bias, since my heritage is Abruzzo.

I had a very nice lunch with good wine, which was a mistake. While waiting for the train, I did not hear that the binario changed for Pescara and I was getting on the wrong train. The conductors stopped me and said I should have been listening. I played dumb and said I couldn’t speak Italian. The bad thing about traveling alone is that you can never let your guard down (or drink too much).

Once I got to Pescara, I looked for the bus to Roccamorice. Did I tell you how much I hate the bus system in Italy? There is no clear indication as to which bus went to Roccamorice or where to stand to wait for the bus. I was finally told to take the bus going to Sumona, which stops in Roccamorice (wasn’t I just in Sumona??). After 1 ½ hours of driving back through cities that I just saw on my way to Pescara, a bunch of people got off the bus. The bus driver said I needed to get off the bus also and get on another bus (now I was really confused). Apparently there is a special bus that goes up to Roccamorice; again I was never told. I was told by Maria at Tholos to get off at the Pit Stop Bar. It was very dark and buses do not stop unless you ring the bell; I had no idea if I was in Roccamorice or where this bar was. I tried asking the driver to let me off at the bar and he acted like I was saying something foreign (it is called the Pit Stop Bar even in Italian). I finally found someone to help and after being in a bus for 2 ½ hours, I finally arrived at my destination. It has been a very long day.

So far the Tholos is beautiful and the people are fantastic. They have chickens, dogs with puppies, and a donkey. It feels like home already. Tomorrow I will give you a better description of the farm. For now I am going to bed and get some sleep.

Ciao for now

On the way to Farm 4

Today was a travel day and an evening in Napoli. I really enjoyed the seven hours on the train to Napoli. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, the train actually goes on the ferry. Part of the time you can sit on the deck. I really needed some quiet time, so I used my headset as a way to avoid conversation.

I finally had a chance to see my body in the light with a full length mirror. I am full of black bruises on my legs!! No wonder my body hurts. I also have cuts all over my hands and arms from picking the oranges. I will enjoy an inside job for the next couple weeks.

I spent most of my time in Napoli hunting down a shop called Limone. This is the shop where I found my “non permanent” hair color. I walked at a very fast pace for over two hours and never did find the store. Now Napoli streets are filled with people and cars, so I am sure I knocked a few people down. I did a double “Scouza” for a very old woman who was being helped by her granddaughter. I am really soooo bad.

Although it is really “bad” to be so addicted to hair color, in my search I found some very interesting areas of Napoli, where the shops are fantastic. The shopping here is better than Rome and Florence because they have the same clothes at a better price. Good thing I can not fit another thing in my suitcases.

For those truly concerned about my hair, I did find a store that sold the hair color and bought two boxes. I don’t want to be without again. I really feel so vain when I am writing this!!

Once again I am exhausted and need to be up by 4:30am to catch the 5:51 train to Sumona. I am really excited because I will be on the train for sunrise. The train ride is a tourist attraction in itself.

Ciao for now

Day 1 of my trip to Farm 4

I said my farewells to Casa Della Acque and set out on my three day trip to Abruzzo. My first stop is Catania, a wonderful city in Sicily, where I will spend the night. I leave early tomorrow for Naples, which is a 7 hour train/ferry ride. The following day I will take a beautiful train ride across Italy to Pescara, which is on the eastern coast of Italy. Pescara is about 13km from where farm 4, Tholos, is.

In Catania I finally had a nice grilled veal steak for lunch. Since I have been mostly eating beans and pasta, it was great to have meat again. I typically don’t eat a lot of meat, but I really miss the protein. I also had one of the most delicious pistachio and ricotta cannoli. AND I did not have to do any dishes!!!

I am still trying to recuperate from the hard work, so I took a long nap and am going to bed early.

Ciao for now!!

Farewell to Sicily

Tomorrow is my last day in Sicily. Although I have enjoyed my stay, I did not appreciate the Sicilian culture as much as I thought I would. I learned a lot about Sicilian life, food, organic farming, Tai Chi and my personal ability to work as a laborer in a commune environment at Casa Della Acque.

Although the people were very nice, I have found at Casa Della Acque that we are viewed as free labor. The lesson learned is how to overcome my pride and be a subservient laborer as part of the growth process. It is a very humbling experience and I was having some difficulty at the end. Since I am older than most Wwoofers by 30 plus years, perhaps my experience is different, but the younger Wwoofers I have met here felt the same way.

This is very hard work and I am really feeling my age lately with the heavy labor required to pick oranges and haul the crates of oranges. My body is very tired. I just do not have the energy of the younger people, but I did not want to get any special treatment, so I have been doing as much if not more than the other Wwoofers. This morning I could barely get out of bed and my knee is really starting to hurt. I definitely need a few days rest. It really sucks being older.

Living in a commune environment requires a clear understanding of each person’s responsibility. In Sicily nothing is that organized. It created tension between the Wwoofers and the people living at Casa Della Acque. I am trying not to judge the environment too harshly because I really enjoyed my stay and I felt that it was a real growth experience. Also, the commune was a combination of Sicilian men, Germans, a Belgium lady, a French lady, an Estonian man, and three Americans. Talk about a culture jigsaw puzzle.

Sicilian men, what can I say? One the one hand they are more arrogant than Italian men and they have major egos. Conquering women is an ego boost for them. I do not want to generalize, since my exposure has been very limited in Sicily, but that is what I experienced. I apologize in advance to all my wonderful male Sicilian friends back home.

It was a sad farewell as I passed the baton to another Wwoofer for Peter and Haide, the donkeys. The hardest part of leaving is the animals. It really makes me want to have a farm some day.

Tonight was a birthday party for Nela, who turned 30 years old. Ellen, the Belgium woman who lives here, and Alfonso were making pasta as a special treat for Nela. Since they had never made ravioli before, I was helping them. They filled some with beets and ricotta cheese and parmesan cheese; they were delicious. The others were filled with a wild flower called Borge with gorgonzola cheese and garlic. It was spectacular also. As a tradition in Sicily, our dinner started at 9:30pm. It was a long night.

I leave first thing tomorrow for a long two day trip to Abruzzo. I am so excited to be going to where my ancestors were. I feel that this is really the primary purpose of the trip. I will be cooking for the Easter Holiday, which is one of the major holidays in Italy.

Ciao for now.

Winding Down in Sicily

I am winding down at Farm 3 and am already looking forward to Farm 4 in Abruzzo. It will be hard to leave the puppies and Haide (no it is not a misspelling) and Peter, the donkeys. In preparation I cleaned the donkey house and they have fresh hay on the floor. It took three wheel barrels of donkey stuff (you know what). Apparently it makes great manure for the orange trees.

Before I talk about the day, I would like to spend a little more time on the food of Sicily. They have simple but extremely flavorful dishes. Last night there were two kinds of Risotto: mushroom and pumpkin. I know there was some type of meat in one. They had both chicken cutlets and cotoletta, which is a breaded beef dish. There was white lasagna, which was filled with different cheeses. There was a pastry with cabbage inside (outstanding). The most popular meat in Sicily is sausage. It is not the type of sausage we buy in the store. The Sicilian sausage is so much better. My salad with oranges, fennel, sweet onions and oregano was a hit (they ate a huge bowl). The above are just a few of my favorites. Deserts were plentiful: tiramisu, cannoli, wonderful cakes, etc…… I hope to be able to duplicate these dishes.

Nirav ended up with a woman and she spent the night. It was so funny when Nirav came down and was putting a tray together for breakfast in bed. We were teasing him. I met Paolo from the other farm last night. I didn’t realize that he was hitting on me until he showed up again today. I immediately went and pick oranges.

We had another lesson this morning on Tai Chi, even though everyone was up until past midnight. I am hoping to continue lessons when I return because it is a beautiful way to meditate and exercise at the same time. Alfonso is getting better at communicating but I am not getting any better at following his instruction. It is very hard to keep the stance as you go through the movements.

We picked oranges and sorted most of the day because the two other Wwoofers are leaving tomorrow. I am glad the day is winding down so I can get some sleep. The swallows ended up nesting in the room next to mine and they get up very early and make major noise. I am not sure what they are doing but they fly around and dive in front of my door. It must be some type of mating ritual.

I decided that I am really not cut out for communal living. I think it is too difficult with everyone’s personalities. The two Wwoofers leaving are very difficult and are always worried that they have to do more than the others; they are also very vocal with their views. Since this is my first time with other Wwoofers, I am not sure if it is just their bad attitude and, therefore, an isolated experience or it is a normal part of communal living. I hope that I will have a chance to find out at another farm.

Ciao for now.

The Swallows in Sicily

It has been quite a day. We started with Tai Chi at 7:30am. It was great but there is a little language malfunction between the teacher, who only speaks Italian, and the pupil, me. My Italian is not getting any better. We will be having a Tai Chi lesson every day, so hopefully I will get the hang of it by just watching.

We had to pick over 35 cartons of oranges. It took all morning with 6 of us picking. The orchard is very difficult to maneuver and I twisted my ankle. Typically I would not worry, but being in Italy I am more concerned with any physical impairment. I definitely do not want to shorten my trip with a broken ankle.

Liz had a big surprise when she was picking oranges. Apparently a rat had a nest in the tree she was picking and it jumped on her and was caught in her top. She was screaming and the rat finally got loose and ran away. I am definitely more cautious when selecting my tree to pick.

We were all exhausted and starving after the morning’s workout. We had pasta with anchovy sauce, which is something I would typically not eat. It was delicious (or was I just so hungry). Of course there is always the afternoon nap.

In the afternoon we had to get ready for the big party. I was responsible for the orange and fennel salad and setting up the room. The party was to raise money to save the river. Apparently there is a lot of pollution and dumping in the river. The committee is trying to work with the government to make it a wildlife preserve, especially to protect the birds.

It was really a great opportunity to meet Sicilians and eat a lot of great food. Everyone brought a dish. I finally tasted a Sicilian cannoli. It was one of the best I have had. All the food was delicious. I had an opportunity to meet some of the other Wwoofers from Paolo’s farm. They all played musical instruments and some sang, so they were the entertainment. We had to clean up and finally quit at midnight.

One other comment is that the swallows arrived in Sicily. Apparently I am in their room; they always go back to where they had their nest the previous year. I didn’t realize that they were in my room until the morning because they are sleeping after sunset. Around 6am I kept hearing all these bird noises. I thought they were pretty close, but how close!!! I was trying to sleep through it hoping they would go away. After about 30 minutes of all the noise I finally opened my eyes and found that they were actually flying around in my room. Wow, was I surprised. I couldn’t get to the door fast enough to let them out. I cannot open my door now; when I do I guard it because they are just waiting to get in.

Well it is midnight and I am ready for bed. Ciao for now

A Full Day in Sicily

This morning was a beautiful warm day. In the afternoon I even put on my skirt and a sleeveless top. In the morning Nela and I went to pick up some bread from the nearby farm. The woman makes bread similar to Viola with integral flour and sells it to individuals and distributors. She gave us a yeast starter and we used it to make bread in the afternoon. Mt Etna was beautiful from their farm house.

On our way back we were on the road with the prostitutes. They were young, black girls. Apparently they are banned from Paterno, so they stand on the side of the road and wait for someone to stop. They looked to be in their teens. It was very sad to see.

We also were stopped by all the sheep on the road. There were hundreds of them. They looked hilarious running. It is not unusual to see sheep or cattle being herded down the road to a new grazing area.

After returning from the farm, it was back to trimming olive trees. This is really hard work. It took most of the morning. The reward was lunch in the garden. We put the tables back in the garden area and had pasta with arugula and sundried tomatoes. Obviously there was wine and bread. I picked a lot of wild flowers for the tables. It was very beautiful and relaxing.

I took a nice nap on the lawn in the afternoon. I must have really slept because I woke up an hour later. My body is just not use to manual labor.

Tonight is a pizza party because Nela and Phillip leave for Germany tomorrow. They come in November and leave in March to be at the farm during the busy orange picking season. I am not sure how Nirav will get all the work done; there is a lot of work to maintain the farm. He will definitely need more Wwoofers, but it really is not the same as people who know the farm and are here for longer periods.

Time is going by quickly. I only have a few days left and I leave for Abruzzo. I can’t believe that I have been in Italy for a month and a half.

Ciao for now

Orange Mafia

I just found out that there is an Orange Mafia. We noticed that there were cars with a driver just sitting by the road. When we asked what they were doing, we found out that they were the Orange Mafia of Sicily.

Apparently each orange farmer must pay the mafia money to watch the oranges. Since oranges in Sicily have no real value, they are paying to not have the orange mafia steal their oranges. The Orange Mafia passes down from generation to generation (ie a father and son). They just sit in the car acting like there is really something to protect. I find it fascinating.

Another thing I found out is that my pictures of Paterno are really pictures of the cemetery of Paterno. It looks like a city. The monuments and headstones are huge. You can imagine that it must be very large for me to think it was the city of Paterno.

Today I learned how to trim olive trees. It is very interesting and very hard work. We were doing minor trimming because the trees were trimmed last year. You have to cut off all the bottom branches and any other branches that are going straight up rather than hanging downward. I elected to NOT get on the ladder (good decision). There wasn’t much to hold the ladder and you are not on flat ground. Joseph, the new Wwoofer, volunteered. We were all very tired after the day of trimming trees.

I decided to bake a pie (it was a way of getting out of trimming olive trees for an hour). All their measuring cups are in ml and I did not have a conversion. The oven is definitely old and I have no idea about the temperature. The pan is too large. It is Italy so you just have to go with the flow. It was fun anyway; everyone here loves to eat, so didn’t worry about how good it tastes. As I thought, the pie was gone as it was cooled.

Ciao for now

Mt. Etna

Today was a trip to Mt. Edna, which is Sicily’s volcano. We took a train around Mt Edna, rather than trying to take a bus and hike at the top because Mt. Etna is still covered with snow. Along the train route you could see old and relatively new lava rock, sheep, and unusual trees. The trees were barren with a silvery trunk. Philipp told me that he has never seen leaves on the trees. The contrast of the black lava rock and the occasional yellow flowers coming out of the crevices was something to see.

We took a train to the highest point and asked the conductor to let us off the train. You are probably thinking: how did you talk to the conductors and ask him to stop the train at an unplanned spot, which was an old train station that is not in use. These are not normal fast trains. There are two train cabins and they are pretty old and rickety with a lot of graffiti on them. The conductors on the train are very nice and take their job seriously.

They let us off the train and we hiked for about two hours. We really did not get close to the volcano but the sun was shining and the view was breathtaking. There was smoke coming out of the volcano, which gave the appearance of snow being swept up from the wind at the top of the mountain. I dressed in multiple layers anticipating a very cold walk and was stripping as we walked. It was amazing to see some of the beautiful farms on the path. Although pretty isolated, I would really enjoy having Mt. Etna as my view every day.

After walking for a few hours (definitely had my 10000 steps in for the day), we went back to the deserted train station and waved a train down when it passed so it would stop. We went to a town that was supposed to be made out of the lava rock, but it really looked like all the other towns. Not much to see so we had lunch and started back.

When we arrived back there was no one to pick us up (not surprising). So, after already walking for two hours, we had to walk from the train station to Casa Della Acque. It was another 1 ½ hour walk. I definitely wore off the pasta and wine for lunch (probably shouldn’t have had the wine at lunch). My leg was really bothering me, so I did a 30 minute yoga workout to stretch. I am really enjoying the yoga studio and the beautiful music.

To wrap up my thoughts, I would say that it was great to see Mt. Etna up close, but not worth spending my one day off.
Tomorrow is back to work. I really missed the donkeys and dogs, so I am glad to be back.

Ciao for now

A Great Meal

Last night we went for pizza in town. It was supposedly the best pizza around, according to Phillip. I definitely have had better, but didn’t want to make Phillip feel bad. They had over 5 pages of different types of pizza. I chose Caprese . It really was foccacia bread with chopped tomatoes and mozzarella.

Today started as a beautiful sunny day. Supposedly (no one really knows) Nirav is returning, so the Wwoofers cleaned the house. I have not done so much cleaning in over 20 years. I really miss my cleaning lady. My nails have never looked so bad.

Celine and I had lunch duty. As I have said before, it is very intimidating to cook with such good cooks in the group. I decided to make something that I love, Polenta; I made it the way my mom use to make it by putting it on a large platter with sauce on top.

To make the sauce all I had was two cans of tomatoes. So I took Fennel, my new best friend, garlic, and onion and sautéed in a lot of olive oil. I added oregano and the tomatoes and cooked for 1 ½ hours. It was fantastic in my opinion. I served it over the polenta. I made broccoli in the oven with bread crumbs, garlic, and oil as my second dish. You always serve some type of second dish with your pasta. I also made an appetizer of olive brushetta.

We were able to eat outside because the sun was still shining. When the sun is shining in Sicily, there is nothing more beautiful. That lasted until 3pm and back to rain.

There is some dissention between the Wwoof group, including me, and Nela. Nela and Phillip have been managing the farm while Nirav is away. They are a young German couple. Nela definitely is a type A personality. We have an opportunity to go to another farm and watch the woman make bread. Apparently it is a beautiful farm and we really want to go. Nela said she would call, but did not. She definitely has another agenda. We are all pretty upset, since there is nothing to do around here and it is a great opportunity. Even in Italy there is conflict….

Great news – I was able to upload all the pictures to the web in Picasso: http://picasaweb.google.com/pmilano09/Farm3#

I hope you enjoy them. Stay tuned to whether we go to the new farm for a bread making class. Ciao for now.

Sicily Flowers are in bloom

It was a wonderful day today. The sun was shining and it seemed so peaceful. For some reason I was humming all day. I was driving Malcolm crazy. We had to pick some oranges in the morning and finish sorting. We had the largest order, since I have been here. Not only do people buy oranges, they also buy wine, lemons, artichokes, and tangerines. Nirav has a relationship with some of the other farms to supply the things we do not grow. Everything is organic.

We finally asked how much someone pays for a carton (which weigh around 30 lbs). They pay 20 euro including shipping. These things are heavy, so I am not sure of the cost of shipping. I still cannot believe someone would pay so much for organic oranges.

I am still trying to figure out how Nirav makes money. It takes a lot of money to keep the farm going. Most of his help is free through WWOOFERS. He does have to pay Phillip and Nela. I have not met him and really have no idea when he returns (neither does Phillip or Nela). I will let you know my thoughts when I meet him.

Liz was educating me on the many flowers that are edible in the yard. Everything is blooming and flowers are everywhere. There are over five varieties of flowers that you can use in cooking or are great in creams for your skin. I took some pictures and hope that you get to see them when I can get them uploaded. I want to try and grow some of them in my yard (either California or Montana).

I spent a couple hours with the donkeys today trying to get all the burrs out of their fur. I ended up using a scissors, but they were not happy. I could not believe how many there were. Bad news on the chicken front! The small chicken was attacked by something (the other chickens, the stray cat, etc.). She has a big gash in her neck and all the feathers are gone. We isolated her for a while but we had to put her back with the other chickens. Nela attempted to make a collar to put around her neck so the other chickens would not go after the wound, but she stepped right out of it.

Everyone is very tired from a hard day’s work. It will be a quiet night; not that every night isn’t quiet.

Ciao for now

Sun is finally shining in Sicily

Today we made up for all the rain; we picked over 30 crates of oranges and sorted them. It was good to be doing something again. While we were picking the oranges, one of the old time farms starting yelling at Phillip. I guess you are not supposed to pick the oranges when they are wet. He believes that the oranges would do better with the sun today and pick them tomorrow. But we have orders to fill, so we continued picking.

I am taking my responsibility for the chickens very seriously. I made sure they were out of the chicken coup by 7am and fed them this evening. There is one very small chicken that loves to be held. You have to make sure it gets something to eat, because the other chickens take her food.

Our steps didn’t make it. When I took the donkeys down to their grazing area, they were very frightened. Their hooves went way down into the mud on the steps and the boards were already coming out. So much for our ability to do construction. Malcolm is trying to salvage what he can.

I have to take get the bristles out of Pete (the male donkey) tomorrow and brush him. He must roll around in the plant because they are really down into his coat (or do you call it fur). When I was working at getting a few out this morning, the female donkey was biting at me; she wanted attention also. They are so cute.

We had a well deserved lunch with ragu pasta; we also had an appetizer with wild asparagus on garlic bread. Nela used wild fennel in the ragu. It was excellent. Of course, there is always wine. After all the work and food and wine I had to take a little nap.

I was definitely tired with all the noises at night keeping me awake. I am not sure which is worse: the dogs barking, the rooster crowing, or the animal(s) (we think rats) crawling over my head between the ceiling and the roof. Living on a farm is very interesting.

I thought it only appropriate and just finished reading The Sicilian. It was a great book. From what they tell me, it is very true to life in Sicily. I find this region so beautiful and hope to get to Palermo after reading the book.
We are going out for pizza tonight and have Tiramisu for desert. It is great wwoofing with chefs. I am so glad there is no scale around.

Last and very important is an update on my hair (only the grey ones). I found Loving Care Casting, a non permanent color, which I have been putting on every few weeks. It is really great. Why was I paying over $150 a month when I can get the same look for 12 Euro. Of course, the mirrors here are very little and there is no light, so I could look terrible. Ignorance is bliss.

Ciao for now.

Paterno

Last night we were given a gift. The dogs brought home a horse leg. We are not sure where they got it, but it definitely was not on my list of things to see in Italy. Horse meat is like Buffalo meat in the States. Thanks goodness Alfonso took it to the garbage.

Today was another rainy day in Sicily. It is difficult to pick oranges or do maintenance on the farm with the rain. We decided to take a walk to Paterno. The problem was that it was right after lunch, so everything was closed until 4pm. Since we could not walk home in the dark, it was not a very productive visit. What I did notice was that there were 4 driving schools. Now, if you have ever driven in Italy, you know that you take great risks on the road. They are crazy drivers. Not sure why they need so many schools to learn how to drive crazy. Another thing I noticed were the number of stores that were shut down. The poor economy is felt around the world.

When I first decided to come to Casa Della Acque, I was told that the town was only 2km away. I am sure this is an Italian 2km, because it is more like 4km. Phillip dropped us off, so we only had to walk back. Of course, we also were lost for awhile. It felt like the road would never end. We finally made it back and decided that we would watch a video. It is an extremely small TV and we were trying to read English subtitles. It was not the easiest movie to watch.

Hopefully we will have better weather tomorrow. Ciao for now

A Hard Labor Day

Martin left last night, so now I have responsibility for the chickens and donkey. As a start, we decided to redo the steps the donkeys use to go down to the area where they spend their days. The older donkey was having trouble with the rugged terrain. Nela, Celine, and I had to redo four steps. It was definitely hard labor. We had to tear out the old ones, including very large rocks. Now we are in Italy so we did not have the tools that you would assume we would be using. In order to get dirt to fill in the steps, I had to dig it out of another area. The gravel was buried under large dried olive branches. It was definitely hard work and I was exhausted after we completed the task.

Part of the process was clearing the cactus. I even had thorns in my buttocks and they really hurt. Plants grow to be extremely large in Italy with the great weather.

After completing the steps, we sat down to a well deserved lunch. As I mentioned, lunches are a main event on the farm. We had hummus that Liz made from scratch as our appetizer. We had artichoke pasta as our prima course and we had a broccoli frittata for our second course. I had made a cake for Malcolm’s birthday that we finally cooked today (the oven broke last night). Needless to say, I needed a nap after lunch.

The afternoon, which starts at 3pm, was feeding the chickens, bringing the donkeys up to their home and feeding them olive branches and making sure they had water and finally feeding Misty. Misty is the mom of the pups. The pups started eating her food. These puppies are amazing. The are definitely getting fat.

I was glad to spend some time doing yoga to stretch my aching body and wear off some of the lunch. Malcolm has already starting bean and artichoke soup for dinner. I will be very spoiled when I leave here with the great food. I am writing down as many recipes as I can.

Ciao for now

A Sicilian Day

Today was our day off. Everyone had plans to visit different cities around Catania. Rather than take a train to Catania, Phillip offered to take us with him to Catania. He had to drive Phillipo to the airport for a 9:50am flight. Phillipo was supposed to arrive at 8:15am (already a little too late, since Catania is 30km away); remember we are on Italian time. Phillipo came swerving down the road at 8:50am and we jumped in the car. Malcolm was scared s…….. and Liz and I were car sick in the back seat from the swerving. It was a wild ride. We finally arrived at the Catania airport at 9:25am. Amazing but Phillipo made his flight. It was definitely an “E” ride at Disneyland.

My plan was to visit Taormina. It was a beautiful city sitting at the top of the hill. It was definitely a tourist attraction. There were as many Germans as Italians. Anyone visiting Sicily and only seeing Taormina would miss out on the REAL Sicily. It was worth the three hours to visit the ruins and the beautiful park. I enjoyed sitting on a bench in the park and eating a Panini for lunch that I purchased from the corner grocery store.

The coastline is beautiful with the clear blue, shimmering water. I think that it would be much different if I was here in May or June, when the weather is warm and you can enjoy the beach.

Tonight is a party to celebrate Malcolm’s birthday and Martin’s departure; Martin is going back to Munich. We had wonderful sausage. It is definitely not like the sausage in America. It reminds me of the sausage when I was growing up, when we would go to the corner grocery store, Leone’s, and Joe Leone would make it while we waited. They cook the sausage in tomatoes and red wine. I will add it to my list of great recipes to use when I get back.

After the long day I will be ready to have a work day on the farm. Ciao for now

The Sun is Shining and the Birds are Singing

After a very rainy day yesterday, I woke up to the birds singing and a beautiful sunny day. I was glad that we would be busy with picking oranges and the vegetable garden today. Nyla came back yesterday and it really changed the environment. She is definitely in charge and has tasks for everyone to do.

I was a little late to the 8:16am meeting because I stopped to see the dogs. It is so interesting that puppies only 3 weeks only are barking and growling. Apparently they come from a line of Abruzzo dogs; they were bred to guard against wolves. I guess I will not be bringing a puppy home!!

After so much rain, everything was so clean and fresh and the colors were vibrant. While we were picking oranges this morning, you could see Mt. Etna clearly. It is so breathtaking and I am looking forward to going up there next week.

We only needed 10 boxes of oranges, so the remainder of the morning was spent in the vegetable garden. It is a small, well planned garden. Although they put straw down to stop the weeds, apparently not enough and we had to do some major weeding. There is a major compost to fertilize the garden. It is purely organic but everything looks very healthy. I am definitely planting a garden back home.

This afternoon we carried the olive branches out of the field. I definitely got my 10000 steps. I told Martin that we should use a rope and tie the branches in a bundle and carry it out rather than going back and forth with a small bundle. Wow, was I wrong. I got some rope and tied a large bundle. I tried to drag it out but it was so heavy and you had to go over the waterfalls. By the time I finally got the bundle to the truck I was exhausted. Back to carrying the small bundles.

Dinners are definitely an event at Casa Della Acque. Everyone takes turns and the meals are so creative. Today we had couscous with herbs and we put broccoli with chick peas and garlic and etc. on top. As a sauce we had two types of yogurt dishes (one with cilantro and one with parsley, garlic, sesame, etc.). There isn’t a recipe and it would be difficult to recreate the dish as with all the other dishes I have been eating. We typically do not eat traditional Italian food, given that our group consists of Italian, German, French, and American.

Before dinner I usually get in 45 minutes of yoga. I am really trying to keep in shape with all the eating. It is so nice to be in the large yoga room and I get to do only the yoga moves I like. I am playing some of Nirav’s CDs. They are really great. I am really looking forward to meeting Nirav.

Ciao for now

Another Rainy Day!!!!

First and most important, my pizza dough was excellent last night. We had a really fun pizza party with the family and some neighbors. I divided the dough into individual size pizza balls and everyone made a creative pizza. Phillip made a fire in the outside oven (very similar to the oven at farm one, but a little smaller) and we cooked them in the old fashion Sicilian way. The pizzas were delicious and all very different. I wish I could send pictures.

It is interesting that people drink very little in Italy. Practically no one (except me obviously) was drinking wine. If they did, it was only one or two very small glasses. I have to control myself so I do not look like a lush.

It is raining again in Sicily. We can’t pick oranges in the rain so we had a cleaning day. It makes a long day when you cannot work the fields. I cleaned the workshop where we sort and crate the oranges and lemons. The remainder of the day was reading or playing more Solitaire (I won again). I hope this rain stops so we can enjoy the countryside again while we are picking the oranges and working the vegetable garden.

My day off is on Thursday, so I am planning a trip to Taormina. The city is supposed to be beautiful. I was hoping to hike Mt. Etna; perhaps next week when it stops raining. It has to stop some time???

Hopefully I will have more tomorrow. Ciao for now

A Cooking Day at the Farm

It is pretty quiet at night on the farm (not a lot of night life). Last night we played a game where we all had a piece of tape with someone's name on it (could of been a person or character or anyone) on our forehead and we had to guess who we were. It turns out I was Charlie Brown. Definitely did not win but we were laughing all through the game. I am trying to see if anyone wants to play poker. Only Phillip is interested in a game of poker. So bedtime is pretty early but I do not mind.

It was still raining today, so we could not pick oranges, although I had to go and get one bucket and was soaked. Phillip is still nervous until the truck arrives to make sure the shipments are out. He is cannot multi-task so we are just sitting around. It seems to be a little unorganized; Phillip said that when Nirav gets back it will be even more unorganized. I have not met Nirav, the owner of the farm, but I understand that he has spent some time in India practicing meditation and yoga. I am real excited to meet him. He gets back at the end of the week.

The farm house has a large room dedicated to Yoga and Tai Chi, so I felt compelled to take a 30 minute Yoga break this morning. I am still waiting for Alfonso to give me Tai Chi lessons. I have always wanted to learn. I just found out what Alfonso does; he does massages... I may ask to get one.

In order to stay busy I washed the floor and cleaned the bathroom; hard to make that sound exciting but I really enjoyed the relaxation. Of course, I visited the puppies multiple times. They are the cutest things. I wish I could attach pictures so you could see them. Yes, I am getting attached.

I had responsibility to cook lunch today (lunch is the big meal of the day). I was very intimidated, since Liz and Malcolm are chefs and Martin loves to cook and believes his food is the best; Oh Whatever. I did not know what everything was because all the labels are in Italian, especially the seasonings. I tried reading a cookbook in Italian and gave up; also, there were limited ingredients. I decided to make two kinds of pasta: one with oil, asparagus, sun dried tomatoes, etc (whatever I could find even if I didn’t know what it was but it smelled good) and one with tomato sauce. It was ok but definitely not my best cooking.

We all wanted Pizza for dinner so once again I attempted to make pizza dough with no idea what I was doing. Alfonso was giving me directions (he only speaks Italian). I will let you know how it turns out tommorrow. I had a great time though.

I am not sure I mentioned Fennel in any of my blogs, but it is definitely used a lot in Italy for salads and as a vegetable. I really love the flavor and plan on making it part of my cooking when I return. I made a fennel and orange (of course oranges) salad.

I also had to find the donkeys today and put them back in their pen. I searched the whole property and finally found them on the other side. Good thing they knew their way back or I would have been lost.

It is so nice to be around open and friendly people. I just love the feeling of belonging to a big family; although I really miss my own family.

Ciao for now

A Rainy Day in Sicily

Today was a lazy day with the rain. You cannot pick Oranges in the rain. We sat around most of the morning talking and eating. I finally won a game of solitaire. It was very comfortable and relaxing. After all the stress of traveling, it is nice to relax. Liz made orange marmalade and I helped; I stirred the pot and juiced the oranges (not a major contribution). They will sell the marmalade in the market.

This is an organic farm. Many of the oranges are red in color. It is interesting that one tree can have both orange and red oranges some have seeds and some do not. Some are sold for juice and some are sold for eating. It makes a difference when sorting the oranges. I am learning a lot about Orange Trees.

I visited the puppies a number of times. I think that they will be up and playing in a couple days. I am trying not to get too attached. Alfonso told me that there is a place close to the casa that is a wild bird sanctuary. I hope to go there in the next couple of days.

I finally have heat in my room. Phillip brought in a new tank, since the old one was out of propane. I was able to take a shower and stay warm. I feel much better. This has been a very cold trip.

Still have something (I think it may be rats) crawling on the roof above at night. I am making sure my bedroom is tightly closed to avoid any confrontations.
I am definitely making up for my lack of food at the other farm. Meals are a big thing event and there are a number of good cooks. Every meal is bountiful and I can’t avoid trying everything (or can I and I just choose to eat everything!!).
I am having difficulty uploading pictures, so I hope to send some when I am at an internet point.

Ciao for now.

A Wonderful Second Day

Today was another wonderful day after a sleepless night. The rooster was crowing starting at 3am. What happened to sunrise? In fact, the rooster didn’t crow at sunrise. I think he went back to bed. Too bad I couldn’t. Marvin explained that the rooster is very mean because he is impotent. He has 8 women and no way to service them.
It was a great day all the same. We met for breakfast around 7:30am. No one is in a hurry to get started; we are on Italian time. We finally had our morning meeting at 8:30am. From there we sorted oranges all morning (or to 11AM… not too much work).
Let me describe the family:
Philippe is in charge of the farm while Nirav is away. He is a young German man who comes to La Casa della Aque every winter during the busy period. He is very stressed on making sure he does a good job while Nirav is away, especially working the computer. He is so helpful and willing to answer all my dumb questions.
Martin is Philippe’s friend from Germany that came to the farm last September for a few weeks and never left. He is so hysterical and has very firm opinions on drugs, sex, and politics. The two American Wwoofers are from Minnesota. They just arrived a few days before me, but were at another farm (which just so happens to be my farm 5) for over 10 months. They are cooks and I am looking forward to sardines for dinner (they have assured me that they are not the same as we eat in the states from a can). Celine is a very nice French girl who arrived in September and has no idea when she is going to leave; she is another Wwoofer. It seems a trend that people come to the farm and hate to leave. I understand why. Finally we have Alfonso, who is a friend of Nirav. We don’t really know what he does.
Everyone except Celine speaks English. We are trying to talk Alfonso into giving me Italian lessons. Everyone thinks I need them; I don’t take it personal.
The afternoon was picking more oranges. The oranges taste wonderful. Obviously I am eating a lot of oranges. It started to rain this evening and a little colder. After last month, I do not mind a little cold.
I visit the puppies often. Thank goodness I cannot bring one home. I am trying not to get too attached.
It has been another long and relaxing day. It is still hard for me to believe that I am living in such a surreal place. Someone pinch me!!!!
Ciao for now

La Casa della Aque

Today I arrived at Farm3, La Casa della Aque. I will not do the farm justice with my description; it is so magnificent that words cannot describe it. The large farm house sits looking over vibrant green rolling hills filled with orange trees and olive trees on three sides and a stark contrast on the east side with majestic snow capped Mt. Etna. I immediately felt the serenity that surrounds the casa.

La Casa della Acque name is based on the river that runs through the estate. While you work there are natural waterfalls that completely relax you. It is almost like a natural meditation as you work the fields and in the workshop.

When I arrived the bell was ringing for lunch. Lunch is outside on the patio and I was introduced to the family. The family currently consists of five people (Nirav and Nila are at the Wwoof conference). I immediately was accepted as part of the family. It was so comforting to be around people again and feel at home. I will describe the people in a later blog.

Although I loved Podere Le Lapole and all the people, I realized that the loneliness I felt at Pondere Le Lapole was because I was really separate from the family. At La Casa della Acque I am part of the family.

The family is not limited to people, I am so excited to have nine chickens again and three dogs and eight puppies (just opened their eyes and beautiful) and two donkeys and two cats. I need to digress for a moment and give you bad news. One of my chickens at Podere Le Lapole was eaten by a fox. I was really sad to get Viola’s email.

Immediately after lunch we started the work of picking oranges. I finally found something where I excel; it is not real difficult to pick oranges. It was so peaceful to be in the countryside and you work at a very relaxed pace. I am definitely getting a workout carrying the baskets of oranges. Afterwards we have to sort them into boxes to fill orders.

I have my own room and share a bathroom with the other wwoofers. My room has doors that go out to the vegetable garden. You will be glad to know that it is clean. I have unpacked and am settling in for three wonderful weeks.

After work we all went into town and did some errands. I bought some dolce (cookies) for the family. I had my first taste of a Sicilian staple food Arancini. It is made of cold rice with meat inside. It was delicious.

Dinner is at eight o’clock and I am definitely ready to go to bed after a long day. I will have pictures in tomorrow’s blog.
Ciao for Now.

Noto

Noto is as dramatic as Perugia. The large beautiful buildings and architecture are amazing to see. I am looking forward to seeing the buildings tonight, when they are all lit up. I was able to tour a prince's home but most of the buildings are closed to the public because the insides were destroyed and still in reconstruction.

I arrived by train, which was my first mistake of the day. The train station is 2 miles from the center of Noto. Again I owe thanks to my Remarkable Women Boot Camp Team for pushing me to go beyond my endurance during our workouts. I was glad I was somewhat in shape climbing the hill to the town (or was it a mountain). I asked more than five people along the way hoping they would point downward, but all I got was dritto dritto (straight ahead). Remember that I have a backpack and a very full suitcase; I had to take a nap this afternoon.

Noto is definitely a place to visit and I am glad I stopped on my last day before farm 3. I am a little anxious to see farm 3, but that is part of the adventure. So far the people and the landscape of Sicily is more than I even anticipated. I am glad I chose Sicily as part of my adventure.

Starting tomorrow I will begin my blog on Farm 3... stay tuned.

Ciao for now

Touring the Southern Coast of Sicily

Since I am in a transition before arriving at farm 3, I decided to combine two days on my blog. Catania and Syracuse are both beautiful cities. The baroque architecture is fasinating. Annette would love it. A must on the list of places to see. The picture is of sunset in Syracuse.

I found that everyone is very nice but very few speak English. I had a conversation with the receptionist in Italian (she does speak English) and I asked her how I did. She let me know that I am thinking in English and, therefore, my grammar is terrible. Italian is so different in how you structure sentences. I will not let this depress me. I will keep trying to talk and make a fool of myself; thankfully I do not know these people and will never see them again.

I am trying to see as much as I can before I go back to farming. Catching trains and buses can be very exhausting (both body and mind). You are not always sure you are on the right bus or how to get there. The trains are easier because they clearly show the binario to use and the train station is usually marked on the map. Walking and taking the metro (I do not use taxis to save money) is also stressful, since I am carrying a lot of luggage and it takes time to get the lay of the land or I end up lost.

When I arrived in Syracuse, I had no idea how to get to my hotel or what bus to take. I just started walking and ended up at the right spot after an hour. My whole body was exhausted from carrying the back pack and dragging the suitcase. All in all I was successful in packing to be mobile. I decided to stay in Syracuse two nights to recuperate. Really glad I did because it is so relaxing and beautiful.

I will go to Noto tomorrow via train and stay one night before traveling to farm 3.
Please feel free to give me any feedback on my blog. You can post comments.

Ciao for now

Train to Sicily

Today was mostly traveling for over 7 hours on a train from Naples to Sicily. Two notable things:
1, They actually put the train on the ferry to go from Italy to Sicily. I guess I should have known this, but it was so cool. We were able to get off the train and enjoy the view from the top deck.
2. The landscape changed dramatically when we went from Italy to Sicily. It was much cleaner and it looked to be a more wealthy environment. The houses (or villas because they were very large) were beautiful and there was not trash all over the streets and country side.

I am looking forward to my time in Sicily.

Ciao for now

POMPEII

Today I spent the day walking around the ruins in Pompeii. It was fantastic. I definitely was able to get my 10000 steps in after walking for five hours. I finally met a couple from America and I talked the whole time. I did not understood how much I missed being able to talk to someone until then. My Italian is not getting better. Even when I speak in Italian, people think I am talking in English. Oh well!!!

Tomorrow I travel to Sicily. I will spend four days touring before I go to farm 3. I am definitely hoping that this farm is more like farm 1 rather than farm 2. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Ciao for now