Saying Goodbye

    
     

     As with  many times in my life before an adventure, I had some sort of     grand, romanticized version of how things would go. This was one of those rare instances where the reality was better then the dream.....And I truly mean that.

     Aside from Enea being the most talented chef that I have ever worked with, he was also fun to work with,extreemly funny, an incredible teacher, and a wonderful friend. He really made it a great experience for me.

     The kitchen was amazing, I learned so much, I was able to see all of  beautiful Umbria, and everyone that I had the privilege to work with, I now consider to be a close friend, and I can only hope to be able to see them all again. 

     October 15th was my last day of work and everyone made it very special for me. It was a really emotional night. After we finished they gave me a bunch of great gifts, notes and pictures, and then we went to the local pizza shop for some beers. People were coming all the way from Spoleto to say goodbye. I still get a little choked up thinking about it.

     There were 18 of us at the restaurant all seated at one giant table. I was forced into making a speech, which is the kind of thing that I have never been good at in English let alone Italian. Some how I pulled it off. I kept it short but sweet and sincere. At the end of the night I gave my thanks and said my goodbyes to those that I knew I would not see before leaving Umbria. 

     On the 16th Niki and my mom arrived and we hung out at the restaurant for dinner that night. With Enea preparing to leave for his two weeks teaching in the US, it was just the ladies in the kitchen. After dinner, I said my goodbyes and there were some tears shed, but I knew that I would see them again before I left.

     I was able to go out for breakfast with everyone on the day that we left for Tuscany. It was a good way to say goodbye. We swung by the restaurant one last time before leaving town and continuing our journey.

     Upon returning to the US, Niki and I were able to go to Boston and hang out with Enea for Halloween. It was a great time. On Saturday, we woke up, checked out of the hotel, and drove from Boston to the Hudson Valley to drop Enea off at Chef Tonelli's house. We stuck around for some wine, an absoutely amazing dinner, and an all around wonderful time. After dinner, We said our goodbyes to everyone, I gave Enea a big hug, and Niki and I hit the road.

     To say the least, it was a bit difficult to adjust to the time difference and I have been a bit distracted since I have been home which is why it has taken me so long to get to the blog. I am afraid that this is the end of the road for My Umbria. Thank you so much to all those who have been reading along and sharing in my experiences with me. Also, thank you so very much to all those who have been writing me all those wonderful emails, keeping me connected with home. You all really made this feel that much more special.

     And a final thanks to all those who made this possible and made it awesome. Thanks so much to Enea, Andrea, Antonio, Antonio,Francesco, Maria, Giuseppe, Michelle, Marta, Ketta, Rossella, Enrico, Arturo, Giorgio, Roberto, Audette, Mimmo, Daniella, Banana and last but not least SPELLUUUUUUUU..............Grazie a tutti, buona fortuna, e ciao alla prossima volta!!!!!!!!!!!! 

     

     

Vacation Time!! Tuscany Like Whoa!!

     On Sunday I said goodbye to everyone, and we made our way to Tuscany. On our drive from Perugia to Siena I went off the beaten path a little and we drove through the rolling hills of the region. 

     After our tour of the scenic rout we ended up in Siena and we began our celebration for Niki's birthday. We had a nice lunch and then we walked around the city until we found a cool spot to settle, enjoy a bottle Asti, and give Niki some of her gifts. 

     After a bit, we went off to explore the city some more and do some shopping. We were able to see the major sites and snag some cool stuff at the shops before we set off to near by Colle di Val d'Elsa to check into our hotel and find a place for dinner. 

     After searching the city for what seemed like forever, we found a great place for Niki's birthday dinner.  The three of us had a great meal and tons of wine before we headed back to the hotel and rested up for our journey to Chianti the next day.

     On Monday, we awoke early and drove to the Chiati wine region which was about a half a hour from the hotel. We spent the entire day drinking great wines, checking out beautiful scenery and zooming around winding dirt roads from one winery to the next with my mother cursing my name in the back of the car because of my "poor" driving style.

     At the last winery that we hit, upon hearing our plans for the next day, Joe,the gentleman who was serving us, recommended that we stop into his girlfriends restaurant in Montechiello.  We thanked him, got directions and then headed back to hotel to grab some dinner and get some sleep.

    We got up on Tuesday and set off to the Val d'Orcia region for our final full day in Italy. Our first stop was the quaint town of Pienza to see the sites and do some shopping.  Once the shops began to close for the lunch break, we headed over to near by Montechiello to grab some great food at La Porta, Joe's girlfriends restaurant. After our meal we walked around the charming town for a half hour or so, and then we made our way to Montalcino.

     We toured the city for awhile, drinking some great Brunello and finishing our shopping and sight seeing before we went back to the hotel to repack our bags and figure out where the hell we were going to put all of the bottles of wine and olive that we had bought(14 total). We had one last great meal and then got directions to the Rome airport from the front desk before going to bed. Ultimately, this would be our down fall.

     We awoke at a quarter to six on Wednesday in order to make our 11:55 flight from Rome to Newark. Normal travel time if you take the A1 superstrada from Siena to Rome is 2 and a half hours. The front desk clerk gave us alternative directions in hopes of avoiding possible traffic, and told us that this way takes the same amount of time. I still have anger towards this man,and some day he will feel my wrath.  

     To make a long story short we missed our flight. After getting lost for 15 minutes and realizing that we weren't even close to Rome I drove that poor little Panda as fast as she would go until we reached the airport.It had taken us over 4 hours to get to Rome. With an hour to go we returned the rental car, and frantically sprinted through the airport until we reached Al'Italia. With all of these bags strapped to me, and pushing  a cart full of bags, I was sweating like a beast. With 48 minutes before our flight leaves we found the first Al'Italia representative that we could. We asked where we could find our check in. She asked what time our flight left. Upon our 11:55 response she looked at her watch and shook her head. "I'm sorry" she said,"All gates are closed an hour before that flight leaves."

    

My heart sank.It was a big mess after that. Despite missing the flight, we were still able to get home safe, and on the same day. Niki would later say that our airport adventure made her feel like we were on the "Amazing Race".  

     Aside from our last struggles to catch our flight, the trip as a whole was really amazing and beautiful and it was a great way to end my adventure in Italy.

Vacation Time!! Umbria Style Yo!!!

     My ladies arrived on thursday afternoon at  around 4 and didn't seem to be in too bad of shape considering the grueling journey that they had just compleated. 

     After a whirlwind tour of the restaurant and a quick introduction to Enea, we headed back to my apartment so they could get cleaned up and get a little rest before it was time for dinner at L' Osteria.

     We were able to have a very fun, relaxing and delicious meal and then it was back to the apartment so we could all rest up for the next day.

     On Friday we got up early and headed off to Assisi to show my Mom the sights for awhile and then we headed off to Gubbio, a medieval city about 45 minutes north of Assisi. Upon our arrival we were greeted by a crazy thunder storm that just about soaked us to the bone. Being the stand up American citizens that we are, we took refuge in the closest bar that we could find until the storm blew over. 

    When the storm let up for a bit we were able to get out and see the sights. We found a really cool lift that takes you all the way up to the top of the mountain. It was amazing and kind of surreal. We even got some cool rainbow action when we were on our way up.

     After a bit, we made our way back down the mountain, toured the town and checked out the shops some more until the sun began to set. After dark we went back to San Mariano for some great pizza at Ricomincio da Tre and then it was back to the apartment for a good night sleep.

     On Saturday we slept in a little and then we hopped in the car and set out towards Orvieto, about 1 hour south west of Perugia. It was a beautiful day for travel, and we were able to get a lot of eating, shoping and sight seeing in before we made our way back to Perugia in the evening for the start of Eurochocolate, the week long chocolate festival that takes place in the city every year.

     After the festival we went to get some more pizza at Ricomincio da Tre and then we went home so I could start packing and we could all get ready to leave for Tuscany the next day.

     Pics are of, from the top, a map of Umbria, then my mom and Niki in front of the Basilica of San Francesco d'Assisi. Following that is a shot of the Palazzo dei Consoli in Gubbio and the a couple of pics of the lift then the rainbow. Next is my mom looking out over the surrounding lands by Orvieto followed by the Duomo and a shot of Niki on a ledge in Orvieto. The last pic is one of my new all time favorites. My mom went for a morning walk and ended up getting a little lost so Giuseppe took "Baby Girl" and went and tracked her down. I was rolling with laughter when they pulled up.