After Wine....Food!

Upon a successful completion of our wine tasting mission we retreated back to Martina Franca and went to a great restaurant in the old town. Notice the stone walls and archways! It used to be a stable...hundreds of years ago. The old feeding troth's are in the room behind the girls. Here are Eileen and Olivia waiting for their meals.

Gary and Eileen

Rick and Sue

Sean and Anna

Doesn't this look divine!

More scrumptious pasta! Love the plate! This had fresh veggies in it.

Wait there is more! I thought the pasta in a heavy tomato sauce would be too much for a hot summer day but it wasn't. It was light and so delicious.

I want this jug! It will look divine in my living room in Kent. Acquiring said jug will be a future mission.

What a great day!

Wine Tasting

Eileen looking through the brochure that the winery publishes...so many choices!

Sue after seeing the choices!

What a happy camper!

We made a good dent in their supply but we will be enjoying it for awhile. We came home with a Salento Rosato made from Negromaro grapes, a Salento Rosso made from Primitivo grapes, a Salice Salentino Rosso Riserva from Negromaro and Black Malvasia grapes and Vino da Tavola from Susumanillo grapes.

Anna, Sean, Olivia and Eileen enjoying the tasting.

A little wine shared between friends...and I mean shared!

Antonio loves watching people enjoy his wine.

Lomazzi & Sarli Winery

The real reason for our trip to Martina Franca was to pick up Anna and Sean and travel south to Latiano to visit the Lomazzi & Sarli winery. This is one of Gary's "finds". It was a great treat to go with him since he has a great friendship with Antonio, not sure what his connection to the winery is but he was there to serve us. Here is the main gate. Not much to look at but the grapes are all organically grown and you can see the pride of the owner in the quality of wine they produce.

Here are susumaniello grapes that will be used in a few months to make a hearty wine.

Our group: Gary, Olivia, Rick, Eileen, Sue, Anna and Sean. The girls did a good deal of translating and have a new wine vocabulary.

Antonio showing us some of the vines. This vineyard has been operational since 1869 but the land has been used as a vineyard since the 8th century B.C.

Voila! The reason for our visit!

Martina Franca

Martina Fanca! What a beautiful town. We visited this past weekend and saw some lovely sites. Here is the lovely cathedral in the old town.

We traveled with our friend Gary and had a coffee and croissant while waiting to meet up with some other Boeing-ites.

Cappuccini and coronetti for all!...Except Olivia who is restricted to tea because coffee makes her crazy! These coronetti were very dense, not flaky, and were filled with a delicious cream filling. Need I say more.

Some of the winding narrow streets in the old town.

The Boeing-ites we met lived in this fantastic narrow but tall building and we went out on their terrace to enjoy the view. I have become a complete convert to living in the old centers of towns on a pedestrian street if possible. What a great way to experience the life of a town. The cathedral above was a short walk from Sean and Anna's tall apartment, everyone stopped to say hello and you can get everything you need within walking distance. Nice.

IKEA Bari

Today, instead of going to the beach we went to IKEA! I know, a little crazy but you need your IKEA fix every now and then. Notice the lovely palms in the parking lot and the grass parking spots...Plus the two happy shoppers. We came home with 8 new pillows, a new frying pan, a one cup coffee press, some drinking glasses, a storage box, a travel bag and some lingonberry jam. Where else in the world can you get all that at one store?

These lovely flowers were in the parking lot. I have seen them elsewhere and was impressed with their height and delicate bloom. Does anyone know what they are?

Calling all Sleuths!

I was at the market on Tuesday and found this green. I thought the farmer said it was chicory but upon looking it up I realized it wasn't what I thought. Any ideas?

And how do you think I should prepare this?

Food, Fathers, Friends and Fans

Sunday, June 20th, was the US celebration of Father's Day. We gathered with some friends, had a great meal and watched Italy play in the World Cup. A fantastic way to celebrate!

Mulberries from our friends garden. I had seen these at the market but didn't understand what they were! So glad to have clarification! Who remembers the Dr. Seuss book "And to think that I saw it on Mulberry Street!"? Apparently they are very sweet...my allergies prohibit me from actually eating them but I sure wish I could.

Snails! A Puglian treat cooked in tomatoes! Actually quite good but one of those foods that requires some work for a little reward.

Eileen trying to eat the snail the traditional way...using your canine tooth, poke a small hole in the shell and suck out the contents.

Sara preparing a delicious peach and apricot crumble from fruit off her own trees. It was delish!

Dining al fresco. We had a great American/Italian lunch...hamburgers, potato salad, snails, spinach torte.

The watermelon presentation was fantastic!

Fabulous Italian coffee afterwards...I love the coffee sevice!

And then my favorite Team Italia fan!

Danny and Italian Anthem

Today we went to a friend's house to see the Italy vs. New Zealand game in the World Cup. Sara's son, Danny, was really into the Italian national anthem. He did such a good job that the team should have won just on the force of his singing conviction! Unfortunately, the game was a tie and we did not get to see more of his enthusiasm.

Trani in the Morning Light

A view of the Trani beach facing south.

Rotating a little to the left...

Isn't this beautiful? What a morning!

And finally ending up looking North towards the Villa.

Good Morning Trani! Sometimes I just pinch myself when I think how cool it is to live so close to the sea. Other times I forget to even look down the street to the water...what gives?!

End of School/Beginning of Vacation

Here is a picture of the street celebration with flares after school dismissed for the last time
May 31st. FLARES! It looks like a riot!

Olivia decided to celebrate by baking. L-R: chocolate cake, Scottish shortbread, chocolate mini cupcakes with frosting. Mummm, mummm good!

And the next morning a jog along the lungomare (seaside).

Beach Day in Bisceglie

Our friend, Amory, lives in the next town south of us called Bisceglie. It has a lovely beach area. We went down for Olivia to have an SAT English lesson and then a quick swim. The beaches here are different than the sandy ones we are used to in the States. Notice the stones here...not the easiest to walk on.

Here are some lads enjoying a dive.

Olivia, Eileen, Amory and Mike enjoyed a swim to the breakwater. They had to keep an eye out for sea urchins which gather on the rocks out there.

This will give you some perspective as to the distance from the shore to the breakwater...about 100 yards.

When we arrived Amory shared some pastries with us that were delivered to them this morning from a local "bar". A friend was celebrating his birthday today and he sent them to his friends. Happy 30th birthday, Moritzio!

Amory and the birthday pastries. Presentation is very important. The box they arrived in is as beautiful and the goodies inside!