The Red Carpets of Christmas

In Trani the local shops put out red carpets at Christmas. It is very decorative and bright. They usually have just a small carpet in front of the doors but this street put out the whole roll.

It goes on down the street and around the corner!

We were actually on our way home from the Post Office and decided to take a detour. We stumbled into this celebration by local elementary students.

Everyone was cold but they stood around like good sports. It was really nice to see this holiday jollyness.

Tutors Tutoring Tutorees

In this corner we have Mario and Eileen

Most nights from 1700 (5:00 p.m.) on you will see this scene at our house. Mario and Gilda arrive to work with the girls translating textbooks and assignments from Italian to English. There is constant chatter in "Italish" Italian/English from all corners. It is really cool to listen to how much the girls have learned to speak the language. We are so proud of them. Without a doubt we could not be here without the help of these two talented people. There is no international school here so the girls go to Italian public school. Gilda and Mario go with them.

And in this corner, Gilda and Olivia

Christmas Stockings

We had a Christmas Stocking project to tackle this year. What a joy to add a new stocking to our family's collection. Rachael's boyfriend, Pete, will be joining us. He was raised in Prague and has never had a stocking! Sooooo, we got out the sewing machine and the red and green fabrics and got to work. It is lined so when it came time to figure out where to sew in order to get it all looking like it should I called in the smarties...or so I thought! They drew pictures, they practiced on socks, they almost had '8x10 colored glossy pictures with circles and arrows and a paragraph on the back of each one'...(thank you Arlo). Well we finally figured it out and will present it to Pete on Christmas Eve.

Here are the smarties practicing on two socks! I am trying to see what they are doing.

Quilted front and back goes inside the lining or the other way around?
Finished product!

If you are interested, here is a little history.

"The origin of the Christmas stocking is a tale of a kindly Saint Nicholas. Folklore tells the story of a nobleman whose wife had died, leaving him penniless with three daughters. Left with no money for a dowry, the nobleman was worried about the dowry for his daughters to marry. On Christmas, Saint Nicholas came to their home and saw the girls’ stockings hanging to dry above the fireplace. He then filled them with gold and the nobleman’s daughters were able to marry."

http://christmas.lovetoknow.com/History_of_Christmas_Stockings

Also, from the same source:

“The stocking is an important part of Father Christmas lore. Though Christmas customs around the world vary, many include footwear as part of their gift giving tradition.

China: Muslin stockings are hung, to be filled with gifts from Dun Che Lao Ren.
France: Shoes are put out for Le Pere Noel to fill, in place of stockings.
Canada: Japanese oranges are traditional stocking fillers, and Santa even welcomes the first shipment arrival into the Port of Vancouver.

In a number of countries, children will fill shoes or stockings with hay and carrots for Santa’s reindeer to enjoy. As a token of appreciation, Santa Claus will leave small gifts or candies for the kids. This custom is said to have originated in Holland, where Dutch children would fill their wooden clogs with food for the reindeer.

Usually, the stockings or shoes will be left out on Christmas Eve for Santa, although in a few countries, the tradition is slightly different. In Italy, for example, shoes are left out on the evening before Epiphany, for the good witch La Befana, to fill.” More about La Befana later….

Immaculate Conception Holiday

December 8th is the festival of the Immaculate Conception. It is taken seriously here. The girls and Rick had Monday and Tuesday off. A few days before signs appeared on the street saying that parking was going to be prohibited from 8:00 a.m. until the end of the procession of Mary. Some drivers didn't believe the signs, I guess, because at 9:00 the parking police arrived, blew their whistles and waited for drivers to appear. When none did, they towed the cars. Now this might seem like a normal consequence for not obeying the signs but it is quite unusual here.

At 11:30 the procession participants lined up. Notice the widows dressed in black on each side of the street. The crowd is silent. They cross themselves as the procession passes. We saw rose petals being tossed onto the procession from balconys above. The cross and bearers were followed by the church officials and then...

Mary being carried on a platform. Although you can't see it here, all of the men carrying the platform are barefoot! At the end of the procession is a brass band. We were awoken by the band at 5 in the morning. I don't know if they were beginning their day or ending it but they were quite festive.

Pompeii 3 of 3

Rick and Olivia with a great Italian Tree Trimmer Tree.
Birth of Venus! And this was under ash!!! It is in the House of Venus which, incredibly, was damaged not so much by ash but by bombs during WWII!

Eileen and I enjoying a break in an indoor garden.

Here is Luigi's Pizzaria! Or so we named these numerous fast food shops that were scattered all over the ruins of Pompeii (apparently there were 89 of them!) It is said to have served hot food and drinks during it's time. You can see the bowls that are inset into the counters.

This is the modern day "Luigi's". Yes, as you are wondering among the ruins you turn a corner and run into an ultra modern Auto Grill just like on the highways! Too funny! We had to have some muffins to sustain us, of course.

Pompeii 2 of 3

Olivia and Eileen with Vesuvius in the background. Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D.

The girls looking for a drink from one of the many fountains in town.

Eileen demonstrating how small the doorways are.

Yes, the tragedy of Pompeii was evident. In the Garden of the Fugitives there was an enclosed area which had plaster casts of a few of the victims from the eruption. What was interesting to me was that the director of the dig from 1860-1875, Guiseppe Fioreli, "introduced the plaster cast method that is still used today. Liquid plaster is poured into the cavity left in the bed of ashes by the gradual decomposition of the victims bodies. As the plaster solidifies, it reproduces the body's shape."

Olivia and Eileen posing in front of what we call "Italian Tree Trimmer Trees". Their branches start so far up the tree! It looks like they are tended by Italian Tree Trimmers...but not really.

Pompeii 1 of 3

We went to Pompeii yesterday and had a great explore. I asked the girls to take this picture to show you the orange trees in the background.

Our first view of the old city. On the right is the Porta Marina, the gate with the road leading to the sea.

Studying the maps and descriptions to identify what we are actually seeing.

Rick and I in front of the Basilica

Vesuvius

Galantino's Olive Oil

We took a trip to the nearby town of Bisceglia to visit Galantino's to get our favorite olive oil. They were having a fest and gave us a great tour. We love their oil because it is from olives grown in the area, they use no chemicals and they are so nice...plus it tastes great!

Here are the big stone crushing wheels. Harvest time is from October to January so we caught a glimpse of their operation in progress.

Here is the lovely liquid. Today's batch was extra virgin oil. When they make lemon, basil, chilli, truffle or bergamont oil they add the herbs or spices directly into the crusher with the olives so you get the essential oils from the foods directly.

Rick was tasting the oil just after it was crushed. It sits on the tongue very nicely but burned the throat when swallowed...It doesn't get more fresh than that.

Our friend, Amory, was interviewed by the local media for the second year in a row. She did a great job. We love this oil. If you happen upon it in the store, do try it.

Saint Nicholas Day

HAPPY SAINT NICHOLAS DAY!

Today is December 6, Saint Nicholas Day!

Here is a little history. We have adopted this holiday since living in Germany. It is a lot of fun to look forward to and when we were back in the States it reminded us of our German adventures.

Today is the “feast day (December 6) of St. Nicholas, patron saint of Russia and Greece, of a number of cities, and of sailors and children, among many other groups. Little is known of the life of the historical Nicholas. He was the bishop of Myra (now Kale in southwestern Turkey) in the 4th century and developed a reputation for generosity. In 1087 Italians stole his remains from the church in Myra, by then under the control of Muslims, and took them to Bari for reburial, and during the Middle Ages he became extraordinarily popular. After the Reformation, St. Nicholas was largely forgotten in Protestant Europe, although his memory was kept alive in Holland as Sinterklaas. There St. Nicholas is said to arrive on horseback on his feast day, dressed in a bishop’s red robe and mitre and accompanied by Black Peter, variously described as a freed slave or a Moor, to help him distribute presents to good children or lumps of coal, potatoes, or switches to bad ones. The Dutch took the tradition to New Amsterdam (New York City), where he was transformed into Santa Claus. In Britain he was replaced with Father Christmas.” * Encyclopedia Britannica

Monestary of Santa Maria di Colonna, Trani

Olivia is pointing to the Monestary at the end of town. This is an important monastery here as it is the home of a crucifix which is said to have bled when taken by invaders/pirates. Trani parades this crucifix from the fifteenth century through town on May 3rd. The monestary was built in the 11 hundreds

Here is Olivia at the door of the Monestary. Note the beautiful rose window. Some from Olivia's class have been studying this architecture. Olivia and Rick usually run along the sea front and up to the monestary for their exercise outtings. On a hot summer day Olivia has been known to run here, jump in the water to cool off and run back home.

This is one of the reliefs on the front door. It shows perhaps a Templar knight leaving from the shores of Trani. See the outlined relief of the monestary to the right?

Here is another panel from the same door. The monestary relief is to the right again. What other historical and religous symbols do you see?

December Surfing in Trani

SURFING IN TRANI!!!

Olivia and I had decided to go for a walk after our Thanksgiving leftovers lunch yesterday, December 1st. Look what we found!
Here are two of the three surfers out braving the cold waters of the Adriatic.

Here are all three waiting for a wave. It looks pretty calm in this shot but the waves were good sized and they got quite a few rides in while we were watching.

This is a good distance shot to show you the rocks they have to stay away from. We frequently swim at this beach in the summer. As a matter of fact, we are given severe looks when we are in the water past September 1st regardless of the temperature. I wonder what looks these guys got. We stopped, took pictures and cheered them on....Crazy Americans that we are.

Thanksgiving friends 2 of 2

This the FANTASTIC Piper family. Dave is American and Yuki is Japanese. Their sons are Jay (3) and Kosei (1). They moved to Trani about three months ago. It has been such a joy having them here. Olivia and Eileen babysat for the boys yesterday and are looking forward to doing it again soon.

This hansome man is Mario. He is Eileen's tutor/translator. He puts up with a lot, believe me!!! It looks like he enjoyed himself. Good.

Wine anyone?

Sue on the left, Reese and Mauro...Oh, hi Mauro!!!...and on the right is Francesco, Sara's husband. He is such a nice man. We enjoy his company and look forward to many more meals with this group.

This is Gabbi. What an angelic face! Don't tell him I said that.

For more of our Thanksgiving pictures visit our friend Reese's blog: Rambles with Reese

Thanksgiving: The Friends 1 of 2

Lisa and Brian are new additions to Trani. They just married and she is the Boeing employee. Brian is looking for fun things to do in town. He contacted one of the fishermen down at the port to see if he could do some fishing with him...very industrious! We are excited they are here.

Rick, Dani, Dani's mom Sara and Alexandra. Sara and Alexandra are in the english language book group I go to once a month. They are both fantastic ladies. Sara is American married to an Italian and Alexandra's parents were Italian and English.

Mauro and Reese. FANTASTIC and FUN. Reese is Canadian and Mauro is Italian. We went to their wedding in September. We are so lucky to have them in our circle of friends.

Wow! What a great group of ladies! Gilda is our friend and lifesaver. She is Olivia's translator/tutor and goes to school with her daily. She helps us constantly. We could not be here without her. Next to her is Suzanna, Alexandra's younger daughter. Then my two monkeys...Eileen and Olivia. They are smiling because they are finally eating and not preparing or cleaning.

We ended up with two Aldo's! Aldo on the left is Olivia's boyfriend. Aldo on the right is Alexandra's husband. Oh, and Rick is hiding in the corner. Just a note as I look at this table. It is unusual for Italians to have all their food on the table at once. Usually it is served in courses. Passing and eating everything on one plate is not common. Needless to say, we ate American style but after trying to get everything out at once still hot I can see the advantage of bringing it out over a long period of time....

More friends on the next post....