The Old Cemetery On The Hill

  While staying in Panicale, we love our walks out into the surrounding countryside. It's a great way to connect with the land, the views, and each other. If the weather looks promising, we'll plan an afternoon or early evening walk into the hills nearby.

  There are marked trails all around, as many visitors come for the hiking. We often see groups coming down a trail, small backpacks and snazzy walking sticks that look like ski poles to me. I love the trail markers, usually a small wooden sign painted with a red and white stripe, or just a rock marked with red and white stripes. Most of the time we don't run into anyone, as we are always there off season.

  A favorite walk for us is up the Strada Capuccini, just outside the walls of Panicale. It's a hike that takes you way up, and divides-one way takes you to a wonderful look out over the valley and Lago Trasimeno, but this time we head towards the old church and cemetery on the hill between Panicale and Missiano.

  This isn't a hard walk, though it is up,up,up for a little while before leveling off. I like the shadowy feel under the canopy created by the trees along each side of the dirt path. There are nice crunchy leaves on the ground, and always lots of beautiful wildflowers.

Just off the main road around the walls of Panicale, this
is where the hike starts and goes up,up,up.

  We like to look for walking sticks at the very beginning of our stay, and keep them by the front door for the duration of the trip. It's always a little sad leaving them behind after that last hike out... just when your hand starts to feel super natural grabbing it, like it's been custom made for you.

  I always bring a bag with water, a bite to eat and whatever I'm reading, knowing Johnny will most likely set up and paint. What a sweet way to spend an hour or two.

All ready to hike and paint, he's one happy guy.

This year I had a really great walking stick, and we both loved taking ours out and about.

  This hike takes us way up, levels off and then goes into the canopy for some time, before coming out on top of the hill. At the top we find ourselves in the open space of the old church and cemetery, now a parking area for those who choose to go up the "easy way".

  The views up here are outstanding, as they encompass a wide area to look out on. On a clear spring day, we could see for Umbrian kilometers!

A nice spot to sit, an even better one faces the view...

  The old church is now de-sanctified. We were told that in the summer and fall there are concerts here. Jazz and small classical groups, mostly. I can totally imagine, because the acoustics are beyond reality. We've been up there several times, and I always have to sing a little tune into the outside covered area, just to hear it ring around.

I like to sing here. I hope the families buried in this mausoleum area don't mind.

  Just around the side of the church you find the cemetery, which is somewhat run down. I love the way it looks, though, and find it so fascinating. When my language skills are better, I really want to find out more about this place. 

  We talked to a local young woman who said her father is doing a computer image thingy of what the whole site looked like originally. It will have all the architectural details and such. I look forward to learning more next spring.

The entry to the cemetery, with the prerequisite Italian Cypress trees

  These days, the gate is locked, and you are not allowed to enter the cemetery without permission. The gate is easy to look through, though. It kind of amazes me that anyone can just go and see this, being that it is rundown, sort of falling apart. It seems too personal. And yet, here I am sharing it with the world... It's just beautiful to me.

  What can I say...I was one of those kids that had a love of cemeteries, and I suppose I still do.

  

The view through the old gate.

Lovely headstones and grave markers from centuries past.

  Now there is a new cemetery and mausoleum outside of Panicale, which we have visited, also. It is lovely, with lots flowers everywhere. It's nice.

  After sitting for a bit, either munching on something, painting, reading, or just resting...we take in the outstanding views and head back down the hill. We hope to see a snake, or a few lizards...maybe even the elusive Olive Tree Cat. Mostly we're happy to just be taking a stroll.

  The walk takes us through olive groves, fields, and even past some hard-to-get-to small villas. We never see anyone living in them, and assume they are summer homes, being so remote. Of course, I always want to poke around, but don't. Johnny doesn't approve, and that's a good thing. That boy really keeps me in line.

View of Panicale, with Lago Trasimeno in the far distance.

Looking towards Perugia and Assisi from the old cemetery.

   On the way down the hill, closer to town, there are the best views of Panicale ever. These are the postcard and calendar shots. On this day, with the clouds just so, and the sky so blue...magic.

So clear, you can see buildings across the lake.

Panicale, we love and miss you!

  As we wait to return to Panicale, we have so much to keep us busy and happy here at home. There is a small part of us always there, but as I mention over and over, here ain't bad, either. We'll see you again soon, Panicale!

Texture In The Garden 2

  Whenever we have company coming, I really turn a critical eye to the garden. I know I should just "let it be", but it's hard. This week I did a couple of marathon days, and it feels great to have a good clean up.

  Now, at the beginning of August, it's a little rough around the edges, even after all the hard work. So I need to remind myself of why I do it, after all. These dog days of summer don't last forever, and before we know it (hopefully...) the rains will bring on next seasons gorgeousness.

  Back at work, and at the computer, I can't help but look at photos taken earlier in the year, when all the garden was flush with new growth.....it's the textures that bring me so much joy. Especially the unexpected "Hand-O-Nature" moments that I can't even try to take credit for....

  

A great combo here. Love the Forget-Me-Not blue

  While visiting my folks in Sonoma a couple of years ago, we took a little drive into the "Valley Of The Moon" to check out the fantastic Wildwood Farm near Kenwood. This is a dream nursery for anyone who loves Japanese Maples. We had gone to lunch, and it was a perfect spot to walk off the nappy feeling we all had, after good food and wine.

  There are hundreds if not thousands of trees available here, and I was thrilled to find so many varieties in one gallon size. That's just the right size for my budget! I found a little gem called "Tuscany"....how could I resist? Now it's one I look forward to every spring as it reveals it's cinnamon/rose colored new growth. The long, thin fingers of the leaves bring a wonderful laciness to this part of the garden bed...

Tuscany in my own time zone. Nice with the red geraniums.

  Years ago I planted ONE euphorbia wulfenii, and now they populate every corner of the garden. I love them, and try to let them have their way, but sometimes I have to "just say no", and pull one or ten up. They can get humongous here, and sometimes they pop up in the wrongest of places (is wrongest a word?).

  Anyway, I do love them, in the rightest of places....

Euphorbia "wulfenii" branches doing all the right stuff here, even before they bloom.

  Euphorbia "La Dolce Vita" has had herself a little propagation party in the garden, too. When I bought the 4" pot at Annie's Annuals, a favorite nursery for us in the Bay Area, I should have known. This little gal is a wonder at self-seeding, though easy to transplant into more appropriate spaces around the garden. 

  The large flower heads, full of "inflorescences" (I just looked it up), are great with my beloved geranium "Biokovo". They bloom at the same time, and the chartreuse and pink are so nice together. The textures together are sublime.

Self seeded euphorbia "La Dolce Vita" with geranium "Biokovo"

  A wander through my iPhoto albums bring up some nice shots...

  This combo below is just one happy plant, doing it's own thing. It's just so perfectly pink, grey, and starry. The fragrance is a dream of vanilla and cinnamon. Cottage Pinks, I love you.

Old fashioned Cottage Pinks. A real winner all by itself, but needs warm sun.

Cersis "Forest Pansy" has the most amazing new growth, little hearts in the sky.

Another Japanese maple, this fellow goes back with me about 30 years...
I don't remember which variety it is, but the texture of the new growth is fine.

  Because we garden on a shoe string budget, we don't have real hardscaping. Fortunately, I've always loved pea gravel paths, both the texture under foot, and especially the sound as you walk the path. Johnny tosses bags of little colored glass "stones" through the gravel every once in a while, and over the years it's created a great look. At night they reflect light and look like tiny stars in the pathway.

Just a little garden moment

  One of my favorite new additions, thanks to a generous garden tour hostess, is this amazing little ornamental oxalis, below. This little work horse propagates like dream, is easy to control and fills a space quickly. Too bad I have no idea what it's name is. 

  It doesn't have little bulbs, like the invasive variety here, you just pinch a cutting, keep it moist, and voila! The flowers are a sulphury yellow, small on long, thin stems. It's really the texture of the zillions of "leaves" I like, though. Oh, it stays pretty low, too.

Oxalis "I Don't Know"

See how pretty?

  Well, I guess I better get back to work. Sure has been nice cruising in the spring garden for a little while, though!
  Jeez, really? 2 hours have gone by? My boss is gonna be all kinds of mad at me.....

Lunch And Dinner At Masolino's

   

 While we were in Panicale, Umbria earlier this year, we were so lucky to have friends visit. It was fun to share what we love so much about the area, one thing being the great food experiences. 

  Last year, we had a very fine lunch at Ristorante Masolino, right off the main piazza in Panicale. We looked forward to trying it again, and did. Three times this year! 

  The first time we were treated to a lovely lunch by our dear friends and guests, Christopher & Loreen, and we loved it. I think it was a special treat for us all, and especially for Christopher's up coming birthday, which arrived a day or two later. We were thrilled that they wanted to take us to Masolino. We walked by the menu almost every day, and I saw Loreen and Christopher scoping out the place a couple of times....Thanks, again, you guys!!

Dining room at Ristorante Masolino

                               

  We decided to share a couple of appetizers, and I suggested the ceci bean bruschetta, something I try not to pass up if I see it on a menu. We also tried the panzanella, which was divine. Made the traditional way, with lots of good left over bread and heavily seasoned. Tomato, cucumber, lots of garlic...

Fantastic panzanella

   Loreen and Christopher had to try the bruschetta with lardo and fresh truffle, which we "ooohed" & "ahhhhed" over, but of course didn't try, being vegetarians. Later on the trip, our pal Tasha had this dish here, also. It certainly looked and smelled awesome, and they all said it was great.

A quickly disappearing lardo and truffle bruschetta!

   I had umbricelli, the local specialty, with radicchio and walnuts, while Christopher tried an interesting house special, tagliatelle in a tomato and baccala sauce. Loreen had the tagliatelle with leeks, porcini, and truffle, while Johnny tried the very interesting ravioli stuffed with fresh ricotta and wild nettles.

My pasta, with grilled radicchio and walnuts, a favorite.

Christopher's presentation of pasta con baccala e pomodoro

Ravioli with ricotta salata on top, fresh ricotta and wild nettles inside. they were really yummy.

A couple of side dishes to share...grilled eggplant and cannellini beans

  Of course, I didn't get a photo of the famous Masolino special, "Crostino alla Faraone" which Loreen also had. It is raved about by everyone in the area, and beyond. I believe it is chunks of roasted Guinea fowl served on small rosemary toasts, almost like another type of bruschetta, but not quite. Loreen loved it, and said it reminded her of Thanksgiving flavors. I must get a photo next time we are with guests, and someone orders it.
  We had to have dessert, too, so we shared two. Both of them rocked.

Panna cotta with "frutti di bosco"(fruits of the forest), which I finally figured out
 were huckleberries!

Had to share some flaming creme brulée.

  It was a great lunch, a special treat, and a perfect day. Our pals enjoyed it, and we felt so touched to be treated to such an elegant experience. I know we had a bottle of something red, and knowing Andrea, the son and head honcho in the dining room, it was just right. He has never done us wrong, that's for sure.

  Speaking of Andrea, he and his sister, Stefania run the front of the house, while Mamma Bruna is busy in the kitchen, with her helper. All the pasta is made by hand, certo!

  We enjoyed a second lunch with Tasha, as I mentioned, which was just as good as always. 

  Our third trip to Masolino's this year was for our goodbye dinner. 

  We were so happy that it was nice enough to take advantage, and sit on the small but super sweet terrace. The evening was beautiful, and we planned to eat at sunset, enjoying the view over Lago Trasimeno. The swallows were in full force, and it made us happy and sad at the same time, knowing we would be leaving the day after next.

Enjoying some of our last hours in Panicale, sitting on the terrace at Masolino's

Golden sunset light, making the town look even more beautiful.

   As before, and because I just can't get enough of it, we started with the ceci bean bruschetta.... Yes, I have tried to make it at home. No, it doesn't come out the same. Is it the ceci? The olive oil? The salt? The rosemary? The bread itself? Don't ask me. I'm convinced everything just tastes better there. This should be easy to replicate, but I can't seem to get it.
  So, for now, I'll just have to go back to Masolino's for my fix. Fine.

Ceci bruschetta, please.

  Because I just had to try a bite of Loreen's pasta at our lunch together, I knew I wanted to order my own plate of tagliatelle with leeks and porcini, topped with thin slices of truffle...

Oh, Heaven on a plate, how I do love thee......

   Johnny enjoyed the umbricelli with walnuts in a light gorgonzola sauce. Bummer, right? No......

  We had our favorite mixed roasted veggies for our side dish. Always so good, simple, and pretty, too. I think I have photos of this dish from our lunch last year. Johnny keeps saying he wants to go in and just order several plates of these tasty bites. 

  Andrea had suggested a wonderful red wine to accompany our meal, and it was just so good. I think it was a Sagrantino di Montefalco, just not certain which label... Thanks, Andrea. We keep threatening to have him order us a case and ship it home, but it hasn't happened yet. We always wait until it's too late, and time to leave. Next year, Andrea!!!!

The best roasted veg ever. I'm serious.

  We don't always order desserts, and if we do, we will usually share one. But for whatever reason, we really went for it. Friends we'd met in Panicale said that Masolino's had the best tiramisu around, so that's what we ordered. Two of them, please. And thanks, again, Andrea, for bringing us the wonderful dessert wine we so loved. And also want to bring back home!

Tira-I miss- U....

A job well done. 

  We didn't want the evening to end, that's for sure. Everyone was so nice, and we said goodbye, knowing we'll be back next year. It was fun just chatting with Andrea, and seeing the family at the end of the night, done and ready to get home.

Calling it a night.... Mamma Bruna and Stefania chatting with customers

Andrea with customers, while we wait to say goodnight...

  Another little foodie memory for me to share, and also to look forward to.

  As we get to know the folks in Panicale more, even if it just means saying "Ciao" to each other on the way to market, we get a real thrill. We love this double life that is slowly emerging, a life we have dreamt about, wanted, worked and sacrificed for. We really didn't know if we could make it happen, or not. So far, it's looking pretty good. Our time is short here, so why not live two lives? 

  Makes perfect sense to me, my friends.

Flying

  On our morning walks, I often have the pleasure of viewing the big red-tailed hawk that hangs out in the eucalyptus grove in the dunes. Sometimes there are two of them together. It's always a treat. I actually wave and say "Hi, Hawky", as I walk or run beneath the big branches. I like to think it recognizes me, nodding it's regal head my way in greeting.

  I love to watch hawky fly in or out of the trees, wings spread wide and beautiful, screeching loud to let the world know just how grand it is to be alive. I have to stop myself from flapping my own arms in unison. 

  As kids, summers were long, leisurely and sometimes hazardous. We would spend hours and hours just running wild through the neighborhood, or even better, through the hills just over the fence. I was one of the boys, for the most part. Tomboy. That was me, either proving myself on a bike or with firecrackers, or playing "booty on the board", a truly painful game involving a basketball, that really tested your capacity for pain. Wearing the "hand me downs" of my brother, and sporting a very short haircut for swimming, I didn't really feel like I fit in with the boys or the girls in the neighborhood. 

  I found that what I enjoyed most was being by myself, hiding out in the hills and flying. I liked hopping the chain link fence that designated the county property line, and heading off on my own.

  I could spend the whole afternoon running through the waist high grass, arms open wide, jumping as I ran, just to gain some "air".  I would be a hawk, a falcon, an eagle....I would screech loud and proud, knowing that no one could see or hear me. It was a special freedom you could only have as a kid of a certain age. I was old enough to know better, but young enough to still believe it could be, if I wanted it bad enough. 

  I read ''My Side Of The Mountain" and cried because it wasn't my life. I checked out every book on hawks and falcons that I could get my hands on. I remember stumbling across a series of books in the local library about this couple in Norway or Sweden...they would take in abused eagles and owls, birds of prey that should never have been in captivity in the first place. This couple would hear about these poor birds that were in zoos, or in some idiot's backyard or garage, tethered to some metal pipe or old piece of rotten wood, their talons frozen, or feathers pulled out, often starving...Most times they were saved, but often it would be too late. There were three or four books in this series, all true, all heartbreaking. I read them over and over, writing to the authors and sending them five dollars, a huge amount of money to me at the time, to help their cause. I've looked for these books as an adult, but no luck.

  I even researched what I needed to do to become a falconer myself. I wanted to find birds of prey to save and release to the wilds. Sigh. So young. I actually wrote to the Fish & Game Department, only to discover that: 

1) I was under the age of 16, too young to have a bird of prey, and

2) You never own a bird of prey, the State does, and they can come at any time for a welfare check and confiscate the bird, if warranted.

  It was hard for my little 10 or 11 year old brain to deal with. Perhaps things have changed. That was a long, long time ago. 

  Still fascinated by the big birds, I seek them out every chance I get, pointing them out to Johnny as we drive along to work or play. I am beside myself when I see a hawk in the birdbath in our garden, though they come rarely. I have watched, transfixed, as it drinks and splashes it's too big body in the little birdbath, then swooping along to it's next adventure. 

  I find it's never too late to dream of being a hawk, falcon or eagle. Never too late to stretch out those arms, running, jumping, taking off to soar up, up, up. And for sure, never too late to let out a loud screech, just to let the world know how grand it is to be alive.

Roses: The Big Show

  It was such a joy to be in Umbria during the better part of spring. We were able to watch as the trees, shrubs and fields went from winter nakedness to full blown spring glory. And I mean like dressed to the nines... (btw, what does that mean?).

  The wisteria were amazing to watch come and go in early April, and I loved every day watching them bud up and bloom. Since it was really warm the last part of March, the wisteria came on super fast and were done over night, or so it seemed. This made it even more special to watch in anticipation, wondering if I'd even get to see the roses bloom before we had to leave. I swear, there were some I would make a point to check out every day, waiting for the buds to pop open and reveal just what type of rose it might be. 

  Just like here in the States, the Banksia roses were the first to go off...

Yellow Banksia on the walls of Panicale

Close up of the above.

Another in full bloom....nice.

  I've always loved Banksia roses for their incredible texture, both in bud and in bloom. Yeah, they only go off once in early spring, but what a show.

  This trip I really tried to notice where the old roses were hiding. The bare branches, early in the trip, were slowly covered in new foliage, and then buds...it was like waiting for Christmas morning as a kid. Like I mentioned before, what a treat to be able to watch the first blooms come on...

A little lovely in La Mura.

We walked by this cool farmhouse, below, on our morning constitutional. It's a place we dream about. Not fancy, not big, not all spruced up...just a simple country farmhouse occupied by a sweet old couple we would "Buongiorno" as we strolled by. Always, the Nonna would respond "Buona passeggiata!" Basically, "Have a nice walk!" This is a true home, complete with cats, a little dog, chickens, tractor, awesome wood pile, and the most dynamite garden, of course!

  Oh, and a great niche, covered in red roses. Sigh.

The grapevine and kitchen towel knock it out of the park.
Keeping the dream alive.

Because one picture is not enough. Notice the stars?

  Almost all of these roses were close by, and I would spy them on our various walks around Panicale, or towns close by. As a long time gardener myself, I was quick to notice the different colors of the new growth on all the different rose bushes...and I was curious about whether these roses would succumb to mildew, blackspot, rust, or aphids..like mine at home do. 

  Mainly, I just enjoyed seeing the buds getting bigger, and realizing that I would get to see some color this year.

Another stunner along the walls of Panicale. I do believe that is an almond tree behind it...?

A gorgeous Rugosa we came across on a walk near Tavernelle.

  The roses that are growing against old stone walls are like picture postcards, come to life. 

Just too good.

Love the beautiful new growth and yellow blooms with the stone wall.
In Citta di Castello.

 

 When I took the photos of the big climber, below, the woman tending this yard came out to see what I was up to. I just let her know that I loved her roses, and complimented her on them. As all of us gardeners are wont to do, she let me know (in Italian) just how bad the year had been for them, how the caterpillars were destroying them, why she needed to spray them.... in general just how terrible they looked. I understood. Gardeners are their own worst critics, to be sure.
  I thought they looked amazing. But I get it. In our own gardens, we gardeners only see the stuff that needs fixing, never the beauty that the public sees.
  It's a crying shame.

An old climber just outside of Paciano.

A close up shot. Perfect, right?

This is also in Paciano, only this one is spilling over the town walls.
One of my favorite colors for roses...creamy apricot...

  Though I didn't come across many actually in bloom, I was thrilled to see this clematis,below, in all it's glory. Especially against this old wall... this was on a walk right at the end of our trip, over near Oro. 

  Not a rose, but a rose's favorite companion, right? I just had to include it here....

The light was perfect for this photo. 

  In our "own" garden, at Villa Adriana, we had several rose bushes. They came into bloom the last week or two of our stay and I made sweet bouquets of roses, lavender, small olive branches and fragrant stems of philadelphus.
  Can I just say how much delight it brought me to have a garden during our stay? I may have missed the big show that went on without us back in our garden at home, but it was ok.
  We didn't mind too much.

One of many roses we enjoyed at Villa Adriana in Panicale.