A Few Hours In San Feliciano

  Since we returned home from Umbria last year, and knew we would be coming back this year, we have been playing the "What do you want to do, first thing after we get to Panicale?" It's a fun game, no doubt about it…..but so completely useless, in reality. We are just so happy to be here, that everything we do is the first thing we want to do. None of our game guesses were even close…

  We knew we would eventually go to San Feliciano, on Lago Trasimeno, but had no idea it would be the first drive we took for fun. The weather is pretty darn nice, though chilly, and Johnny wanted to get some driving under his belt, so we headed on over. The small, winding road, with lots of uneven surfaces and giant trucks zooming along, not to mention the little old ladies along the roadside foraging…and cyclists everywhere, is a great way to dive right into the reality of driving here.

  San Feliciano is right on the lakeside, with a charming park, a favorite bar/cafe, a small but quaint marina, and a small "centro strico" or old town, above the lake. We parked in our usual spot, so we could walk along the waterfront….

A nice day for a walk near the lake.
We hear that the lake is really high this year from so much rain.

The little marina. 

  Of course, I love seeing the trees with out any foliage, because we'll enjoy watching the magical transformation while we are here. Later on, I'll have photos of all these trees in massive, full green….

The park is at the very far left, as well as one of our favorite bars...

I enjoy the naked trees against the blue sky.

We called these "Monkey Ball" trees as kids. There was one in our backyard.

 So, along the main drag near the water, the city workers were cutting back the trees along the sidewalk, down to the main branches…They may be Plane Trees, but I'm not so strong on names of trees. Anyway, I was AMAZED at what they were doing with all the branches they cut…..

I think Johnny was loving watching
the city workers….see the little pile at the bottom of the tree?

They actually cut to size & bundled all the branches…
I can't imagine how much longer this must take. There are so many trees!
Really pretty, though..

  After watching these guys for awhile, we headed up to the old part of town, to see the view, and just enjoy the surroundings. It's a good, steep climb, but not a long one.
  There are tiny walkways and stairways that lead you up through the village, eventually leading to the church.
  Along the way, I enjoy peeking into gardens, or scoping out little niches, like these, below:

This one was right in the wall of a house….beautiful.

I love this one, in all of it's imperfection….
This Madonna is just fantastic, that blue and creamy white.

  Up, up, up the hill, the views on the lake are the best, with the islands standing out…it was an incredible day for this walk. 

  In the church garden, another Madonna….

  We had wanted to have lunch nearby, at a small place we have driven past many times, but needed to kill an hour before they opened for business. Worked for me. I'm always up for a nice hike on a beautiful day.

  As Johnny found a place to do some sketching, I walked up the hill, and fell in love with the cement posts of the fencing around an old olive grove. I just think these posts, with their outrageously colorful lichen are the best. 

  Seriously, and I may have written it here before, I would kill for some of these in my garden.

Favorite. Fenceposts. Ever.

  So, though he hasn't started working yet…officially, I can tell that between his excitement at being back, and his delight in the light and landscape, Johnny will be painting up a storm soon. Here, I managed to catch him just doing some sketching…

  Can't wait to see what he will produce this year.

Working, with a view to die for.

  Oh, and that lunch we waited for…Dee-Vine! I will be writing about it later this week, no doubt. First lunch out and about! Coming soon to a LIVE PRONTO blog near you...

Just A Few First Looks, Panicale 2014

  So, some twenty-hours later, we are here, in Panicale….despite the non-stop crying baby on the longest leg of the trip, we arrive happy, if a little pooped. Nice to be welcomed by old friends, and see the apartment again…

  A sweet bouquet of acacia(here they call it mimosa)flowers with a nice card, wine and treats were waiting for our return.

  

A nice welcome "home".

  We picked up our car at the train station, but before driving up to Panicale, we loaded up on some firewood…it's beautiful and warm during the day, but quite chilly in the evenings, so we enjoy having the fireplace…..

The smaller branches are olive wood…they were here for us when we arrived.

   We got in later than usual, so our first evening was mostly trying to do a little organizing, get some food into our bellies, check in at Bar Gallo, and into bed for a much needed sleep.
  Today was market day in Castiglione del Lago, so we drove over to check it out…this market requires strong leg muscles.

To Market, To Market…up the stairs.

  I just picked up a few things, still feeling the effects of jet-lag. We will head out to some of our favorite local purveyors as the week progresses….for today, I'm happy to have these fixings for salad...

Must get more of this rosemary focaccia…..

  We were really happy to run into an old pal in the olive grove nearby…..

An Umbrian weed-eater.

  Of course, a quick walk-about the village was a must, just to touch the old walls and make certain everything is in it's place. Plus, it was looking like a killer sunset was brewing.

Just walking around town...

A perfect stop at the top of town for vino with a sunset view.

Tired, yes…but happy to be back.

  I'll be taking lots of photos, and blogging as much as I can. Johnny is all ready to get down to business painting, though I think we'll take a couple of days to get our heads together. 

  Be sure to take a look as his blog, too. We'll both be writing and working here for the duration…..

  In the meantime, I think I'll enjoy another glass of wine, fix some dinner and try to sleep the whole night through. 

  Ciao, until next time……..

Last Looks At My Spring Garden….Sigh.

  So…I'm all ready to take off and hand over the garden to Pedro, my awesome garden helper, as well as James and Anna, our illustrious house sitters….but it's so hard!

  This year we had crazy weather…way too much drought, and then super warm weather at the wrong time, and finally a spit of rain…well, all in all it leads to a garden that is bursting forth with gusto, but way too early. Tough for me to see everything coming into full glory just as we are hopping a plane to Umbria. 

  All I can say is…enjoy the fruits of our labors, you well loved members of Team Apodaca! At least I know that veggies will be harvested and eaten, roses will make awesome bouquets, and those who help to make our 'other life'  possible will enjoy the fruits of our labors…..

  This all being said….damn, it's hard to fly away from the garden this spring…at least I know I will be enjoying the garden life in Panicale so very soon…like day after tomorrow..

  In the mean time, here are some recent shots from "Cento Uccelli", or "100 Birds", the chosen name for our property…..

Some lovely textures working together...

Random bulbs coming up in the pathway!

Just more texture

A favorite bulb going off...

I just love this combo

More wacky combos….

  I planted beets, carrots, arugula, artichokes, potatoes, green onions…..I know our various helpers will enjoy at it all! 

Beets and carrots…..

I'm loving the beet greens

Arugula just getting ready….

I adore my flowering crabapple…it reads springtime to me!

Heirloom roses behind the crabapple

  I replanted several clematis this year. While dormant, I dug them out, cut back the roots, and replanted. Oh, and I kept my fingers and toes crossed…who knew? They are coming back like freaking gang busters. I hope I get to see some blooms when we return...

The new growth on the clematis looks great….

  I am in total love with all my hellebores. 

  Seriously. It's obscene. I LOVE them.  They are finding there way all throughout the garden. They are like the best guests EVER. They cook, clean, shop, do the dishes AND wash the car. I love them. 

  Just stay away from my hubby, ok?

   

  The roses….well, I'm crying. I will miss the big show. And it looks to be very big indeed, this year. Again, I am just really happy to have someone staying here to cut massive bouquets of old fashioned, heirloom and English roses.
 Enjoy.

Just a bit of new growth on an old rose….
I like it with the succulents.

  The succulents are just rocking my garden world right now. I keep taking bits and pieces and putting them everywhere…they are what I need in the garden, to calm things down…and use less H2O...

  In other areas, it's always a combo of texture, color, and easy care….

I love my variegated geraniums…..

Lots of plectranthus in the front garden..
so much pleasure from such an easy going plant...

My much loved(and pulled out!) Geranium Maderense.
A beauty in the spring garden, but reseeds like CRAZY!!!

Maderense just starting to open up...

  I had this massive and very out of control Banksia rose that we severely cut back this past fall.Well, it's coming back beautifully, and I am committed to keeping her under control. In a good way.

Lady Banksia is looking' good!

Very pedestrian, sure…but I do adore my variegated geranium. She is an old fashioned Dame that I'll have
in my garden any day. Plus, she serves a mean Mint Julep.

 As a parting shot, it's my artichokes. So Italian, so right for our own central coast climate….I have two varieties…the local Green Globe, as well as an Italian Veronese Purple. Why not? they look great in the garden, and give even more of a feeling of living in two worlds.

  Tomorrow I'm on a plane to Italy. I'll be writing more than ever, I hope, and sharing lots of garden, food, travel, art……it's always an adventure when you Live Pronto!!!