More Panicale Dreaming

  Well, It's mid February, and I guess my heart is being tugged by Panicale. 

  Fortunately, it's a bit quiet here at work, so I can sneak into my iPhoto files and get a good dose of Umbria. Why not? 

  I can't wait to go back, and because it's getting closer to take-off, I thought I might share some favorite things I miss when I'm away. No, not just the food. How dare you? Ok, it's mainly the food. Who am I kidding…?

  But…..between all the plates of pasta, there are other things I enjoy about being there. 

  Honest.

  I love views of the surrounding countryside:

From the walls of Panicale

A nearby olive grove

Just below Panicale.

  I can't wait to be back in the groove of walking to Paciano in the morning, on this small road….It's a lovely walk, and I love it as the season changes.

Our morning walk.

  Walking around the walls of town is a joy, and we'll do this several times a day,  just for the hell of it. Morning, afternoon, early evening….even at night. It's a simple pleasure, and we embrace it.

Views all along this "promenade" around the walls of Panicale.

It's nice to take an evening glass of wine to enjoy on one of the benches.
Sunset time is perfect.

  The stuff we do every day is pretty tame. I'll try to head over to the bakery a couple of times a week for my most favorite onion and sage "pizza". I know I've written about it before…it's because I dream of this culinary delight all year long.

One of the first things I will do…

  I can't wait to go to the small but so amazing Fontemanna, where we will pick up fresh cheese and yogurts. All organic, all from the sweetest sheep ever….. and the sweetest family!

The little cheese shop with the big heart.

  The every day chores can be challenging because of language difficulties, but it's always fun, and sometimes an adventure. I love it, and it pushes me to improve my speaking skills.

Getting some painting tools at the local hardware store in
Castiglione del Lago

We'll take the train sometimes just for a day trip. I like to use the machines, on the right...
This is the station in Chiusi, near Panicale.

I never get tired of scenes like this. 

  I'm really looking forward to having the chance to make another little "pot garden" on our steps. I loved hitting all the different nurseries in the area the last few trips. I just can't help myself. Plus, I need to have some fresh herbs growing, of course! I'll be curious to see if these pots are still there…my poor hostess, Katia, didn't need the extra chore of keeping them watered, so they may have found new homes. I don't mind starting from scratch again.

Working in my little garden.

What's not to love?

  Having a place in town, or very nearby, is my favorite. We can't help ourselves, we walk up to the piazza so many times a day, it's silly. But that's what everybody does. It's a small place, and you have to keep checking out what's going on. Nothing? Hey, it was only a three minute stroll….we'll do it again in an hour or two…that's why we're here.

We walk to the piazza either this way, or that way. Panicale is laid out
in concentric circles that pretty much all lead to the piazza. Nice.

Piazza Umberto 1, with all the usual suspects.

Same piazza, different angle.

Simone & Lorena's very fine 'Osteria il Gallo nel Pozzo'

Our hang out, Bar Gallo.

  What can I say? Bar Gallo is our place. We'll spend way too many hours and euros here, and enjoy every last second. Sometimes we bring books to read, or Johnny will work on a small painting, or in his notebooks and journal….

  I like to spend some time playing dominoes….a little glass of vino, perhaps...

  If we're really camping out, we'll order one of Aldo's fantastic salads...

  So, of course I'm getting excited thinking about food. I'm always thinking about the food.
  I miss the PASTA!
  (cue pasta music…and go!)

mmmmmmm.

mmmmmmm.

mmmmmmmm.

ahhhhhhhh. mmmmmm.
A must every year, at least twice!
Truffle & Leek pasta at Masolino's.  Sigh.

  We have a few animal pals I look forward to seeing again...

The famous Mitchell.

The infamous ZaZa (left) and Briciola.
Hi, guys!

  Of course, there are all the wisteria and wildflowers to look forward to seeing and smelling….

Right below the apartment...

A walk up the hill above Panicale, this was in late April….

  When we aren't having our late afternoon rest-up at Bar Gallo, we find ourselves close by. We've found some extra special places we'll always go back to, though Bar Gallo is home base.

On nice days, it's fun with a view at Pescatore, down on Lago Trasimeno,
just below Castiglione del Lago. 

Another favorite on the lake, the bar in San Feliciano.
Does it have a name? I'll check this year…
We watched these trees go from bare to this in one or two weeks, late April.

Though quite a drive, we always end up at least once here.
La Porta, in Montichiello.

  Really, though…when I dream about Panicale, I dream of the stone, and the color of the stone at sunset. It's warm, it speaks to me…it calls me back.

 And here I come.

Graffiti, Italian Style

  I'll admit it….I have had a love/hate (mostly hate) relationship with graffiti. It has just 'tried my last nerve' at times. I mean, really, must you defile the walls of towns that were built in the 11th century? 

  Then you come to realize that those same walls were tagged back in the 12th century, so give it up, girl. 

GET OVER IT.

  In all honesty, I was pretty distressed at the amount of tagging in various hill towns we've visited in France & Italy, but oh well….. It's everywhere, and lots of the tagging is political, or lovey-dovey sentiments….or downright cool art. There. I said it. I've gotten over it. For the most part….

  Thing is, some of it is great, fun, and often thought provoking. Of course. It's cultural expression, and I'm trying to see it this way. Then I don't get myself into a froth, screaming in outrage at my loved one

(sorry, Johnny). 

  So, instead, I snap pictures of some of the best I see. These are all shots from Italy, over a couple of trips. I particularly like the "stencil" type of graffiti, which you will see here. 

  Some images are quite simple..

  

One of a flock of birds in Venice. They flew all over town...

Chirping out a tune in Florence.

Shy Boy.

Staring me down in Citta' di Castello.

  Then, when you least expect it, there he is, in all his wrinkled glory, gun in hand. Of course.

  You can't get away from this hometown dude. Jeez.

Don't make me say it….

More finger pointing. 

  I've seen these 'HOGRE' stencils all over, in many different forms. I assume it is 'ogre', as the letter 'h' is silent in Italian. Always the same font, but you never know what the image will be:

Scary, at times...

…funny, and scary...and one of my favorite fellows ever….

…and sometimes there's a message. 

  The 'hogre' above is all about the battle over gigantic cruise ships in Venice. 

  Below, next to the cute gnome, is a little "post-it" that says, "YOU LOVE VENICE, NO GIANT SHIPS".

  

  This is a huge issue in Venice, as the cruise ships have gotten so large, they dwarf the city, displacing massive amounts of water. This causes damage to the already crumbling facades along the canals. These monster vessels also spew stinky exhaust from their smokestacks….nice.

  The graffiti and this photo tells a bit of the story:

Yucky.

Taking off the rose-colored glasses is good.  

  Something for the animal rights activists…….

Bunny Heads.

Not graffiti, but a painting by artist Llyn Foulkes ("Pig" 1963),
which I saw in the fantastic museum, Punta della Dogana, in Venice.
Then I spied the graffiti, below..

The brutality of seeing a pig as just "pork product".
Sadness.

Beanie Boy….

….and his gal-pal,  Gloomy Girl.

  And then there is sweetness and light:

Happy Valentine's Day!

  But, I have to say…my favorites so far, are these last two images. 

  It's hard to comprehend how the artists could have whipped them out fast enough to not get busted. Granted, they were both in an area that was not a high traffic zone, but still…there appears to be a whole other level of work going on with these..

I like this one a lot.

But this, I love.

  I guess I've gone and gotten over graffiti a little.
  It's a start.
  But please, unless you are the artist above, leave my back fence alone, ok?

Lunch In Citta' Della Pieve: Il Capriccio

 In an earlier post, I wrote about a fantastic art destination Il Giardino die Lauri,  just outside of the lovely Umbrian hill town Citta della Pieve. We went twice in 2013, and I imagine we will return this year…. not only for the outstanding private collection of contemporary art to be found here, but also to enjoy lunch again at Il Capiccio, located just across the street from the museum. 

  Nice and convenient.

Il Capriccio from the parking area across the main road into Citta della Pieve.

 So glad we made this choice. The hostess and chef were happy to accommodate our requests for something vegetarian…there were a few tasty sounding options on the menu, but really the specialty is fish. No problem, especially on a rather chilly and wet day. We were the only guests for lunch, and they were happy to have some fun with us.

  The dining room is cozy and bright, and there is also an outdoor terrace with an amazing view across the valley towards Lago Trasimeno. It was too early in the season, though, and way too wet for lunch outside. I'm hoping for a warm, sunny day next time. But hey, inside was just perfect...

The main dining room.

  While we waited for our wine, a nice local grechetto, we looked over the menu and chose an appetizer to share. The waitress told us we would love it, and we did. 

  I find these tasty "flan" type treats often on menus here. Savory, custardy and always good. I order them whenever I see them. In this case, the flan was made with wild mushrooms and pecorino. Hey, it's  a combination that works every time…. in pasta dishes, risotto, raw salads, roasted and melted…perfect! 

  

OK, I'll admit it. We didn't share.
We each ordered a plate of two…sigh. They were good. 

  The flan was served with a very flavorful, nutty tasting cream sauce. It may have been hazelnuts…?

See? These were too yummy to share, right?

  We both ordered pasta for our main course.

  Mine was a tagliatelle with super thin slices of pan roasted artichokes. It was very buttery, in a good way. Browned butter nuttiness added to the roasted flavor. Mmmmm. Of course, the pasta itself was perfectly al dente, and made in house.

A little browned butter, a little good olive oil….touch of salt…I could go for some right now.

  Johnny is all about a good red sauce. He loves the "tradizionale"- simple and beautiful. The pasta was a very fun shape, known as "gigli" or lilies. Like the flowers. 

  On a cold, grey and wet day….a plate of warm pasta in a red sauce like my Grandma made... life is good. Add some of the best parmesan cheese in the world… 

  You will cry tears of joy, my friends.

Sigh.

  We did share a gorgeous plate of grilled zucchini, dressed with good Umbrian olive oil. We never pass up a plate of whatever grilled veggies on offer. You know that by now! These were especially good. They still had a crispiness to them, but with that nice "char" flavor.

Honestly, I could just eat these day in and day out.

    I can't help having just one more quick look at the pasta dishes…up close. 

 (Johnny….what's for dinner tonight?)

It's all about the texture, man. Would you look at that tagliatelle? Yum.

Johnny showing us his lily flower pasta. Pretty sweet.

  We passed on desserts, and each enjoyed a macchiatto, while chatting with the delightful owners and chef. They were thrilled to have some Californians there on such a dreary day, and asked how we came to be there, where we were staying, etc. It was nice to just relax and hang out with them. As I mentioned, we were the only customers, so it felt as though we were in the family home. Especially with a toddler in the mix, being carefully watched by Dad.
  A nice afternoon.

A perfect end to a leisurely lunch.

  We are now down to counting the few weeks until we go back to Umbria for this year's new adventures, so I have a feeling I'll be writing more often. I just need to get so much done before we go..but it seems like instead of doing what I should, I just want to go back and look at my photos from last year, and write… and get excited.
  I can't wait.