Italian Observations: Time, Illumination, Toilet Paper, Laundry and of course, Garbage Please forgive me in advance; I could be wrong about everything. I have been trying to understand this strange and beautiful country since I first visited Italy in 2004. Even as I write, my arrogance and biases are on display. I have only scratched […]
In the summer, Cristina and Luca live in their house, Acquafregola, in the Vallombrosa forest. With winter coming, they move back to Paterno, a 20-minute drive down the mountain. They will return daily to feed the feral cats and fill jugs with fresh drinking water from the spring. I believe this water has medicinal […]
I left Florence in late November of 2019, expecting to return in the summer to spend time in the Vallembrosa forest with Cristina to learn how she makes her natural remedies. Of course, that was not to be, due to the Pandemic. It is now 2022 and I am in Italy for the first time. […]
It seems to rain almost every day but It does not distract from the beauty of Tuscany and good times with friends. Let’s start with Firenze And now we are in Bologna to see Tiffany Poon. We stayed with Cristina and Luca, in the mountains above the Vallombrosa Abby and a day trip to Certaldo […]
When my good friends, Carolyn and Larry invited me to stay with them in Trastevere I said “yes!” What a wonderful vacation from my vacation! An unexpected surprise: the Globe and Mail wrote to me that they accepted one of my stories for their “First Person” column. My piece is a nostalgic look at the […]