The Venticello is Gone With the Wind
We arrived here two weeks ago to the most amazing weather. It was hot – in the 90s – but very low humidity and and the most delicious breeze, the venticello. That breeze kissed your face and brushed your body with a gentle coolness that made you feel like...
Flea Markets and Bargains Galore
I’m typically not a flea market kind of person. I’m good for about 10, maybe 15 minutes, then I’m ready to hit the road. However, our friend Michelangelo told us about a place near Citta di Castello that is only open on Sunday mornings and is kind of a...
The Miracle of Leroy Merlin
We visited the Leroy Merlin near Perugia to look for some outdoor furniture for our terrace. Leroy Merlin is kind of like a Home Depot. Getting to it required a trip on the E45, the main highway that cuts through Umbria and eastern Tuscany. Now you may think this...
The Angles of Anghiari
Anghiari is a small town. It’s about 5,500 people. I call it a partial hill town because if you come upon it from the east you will see it as a majestic hill town, but if you come upon it from the west, it looks pretty ho-hum. The hill...
Jesus at the End of My Street
I live on Via della Propositura, which is basically the street of the parish church. As the name implies, the parish church is just down the way from us. There’s really nothing else on this street – a few houses and a couple of entrances to the centro storico...
An Italian Pizza Party
Saturday night we had dinner with Michelangelo and Rossella and their daughter, Anna. Rossella made pizza, pizza, and more pizza. Remember how many times I’ve eaten pizza? Well, I outdid myself on Saturday. She made four pizzas and we ate all of them. Completely. I’ve tried to make pizza...
Italian Complications
I know it seems like my life is perfect (and for the most part it is right now – I’m continually pinching myself), however, we do have our share of complications. And they’re complications in Italian which is whole new sphere of weirdness. We recently ran some errands in...