Food(less) Journey

  While you are in Italy it is quite natural to develop an unnatural attraction to bread. The unfortunate consequence of the affinity is purchasing more bread than you can eat before it goes stale.   I abhor waste! When fruit is dangerously teetering on the brink on the wrong side of its ripeness peak, I freeze it. The same with vegetables.   Bread on the other hand is best frozen before it goes hard. And one simply does not waste bread in Italy. Economy is of course a factor, but the primary reason is fresh or hardened by age it is delicious   I was eating at a restaurant and a couple at a table across from me sent the bread back to the kitchen.   This offense was great.   It was very late in the evening so the bread was not soft as when it is freshly baked but there was not a thing wrong with the bread. (also you do not send food back to the kitchen by insulting it but that is another story for another post.)   ...

  Amazing that lovely spring flowers were in bloom when I left for Florence.   And I returned to the full heat and humidity of summer. Although the humidity is never desirable, how lovely it is to have summer produce ones disposal. Eating local is exceptionally pleasurable is the summer when berries and squash are ripe.   What quick meals do you enjoy in the summer season? When its too hot to cook?  If you're expecting a recipe for salad I'm terribly sorry to disappoint you. I like nutrient dense foods and lettuce is not particularly high on that list. And I'm not much of a fan of raw spinach although it is higher on the list.   Sushi is a lovely treat any time of year. Lazy sushi is a great way to get the taste of sushi without the work of rolling.   Step 1: put rice on a place other sushi toppings Step 2: Use your hand or foot to grasp some rice with a piece of sushi paper.   Stir fries are also great. Quick, ...

    It's hard to believe I've been back in Pittsburgh for a little over 2 weeks now. It felt like I was gone for years. Not in a bad kind of way either. Just a few days in Florence and I felt so comfortable as if I had never left.   The walls burst forth with beauty.   I'm having a bit of a struggle adjusting back to life in the U.S. The pace is different, the prices are different, and strange sensory things like the smell. Another thing, my mobility is different.     It's amazing what a difference being able to afford a monthly bus pass makes. That alone makes day to day activities easier in Florence. I don't mind walking one bit, but Florence proper is flatter than my stomping grounds in Pittsburgh. And even with the awkward sidewalks it was easier to just walk places.     For instance, one evening we were invited to our friend M and S's house for dinner. They happen to live out...

  I was a tad nervous about going back to Florence. First impressions can be wrong.   What if the love has cooled? What if I have a horrible time?    Thankfully, neither of those questions, those worries, had any validity.   Strawberry and Banana Gelato from Riva Reno on Via Borgo Degli Albizi  Our very first meeting was the TheocraticMinistrySchool/Service Meeting on Wednesday night. After the meeting we were bombarded with open arms and bright smiles many "we missed you from those we met on the last trip and "lovely to meet you" from those who have joined the congregation since the last time we were there.   And we quickly found ourselves with 'appointments' for service (On days or at times when there is no arranged meeting for service work we set up appointments with each other).   No matter the amount of time that has passed... Tuscany maintains its charm and character.   The...

  No more of this view for a while....   A four and a half and then ten hour layover in Moscow, Russia.. It was quite lovely to observe the Russian people for a "day".   It might sound rather boring, but the view was actually interesting. Giant beautiful window with planes coming and going. People coming and going as I sat and read and waited.   On the four hour layover I was waiting.. Waiting to go to Italy.. Waiting to go home again to my adopted country of "birth".   On the four hour layover I was waiting.. Waiting to return to Pittsburgh.. Waiting for a hot shower and a decent meal.... Waiting to start planning my return to Italy...     And no more of this view....   80 stairs to get to my apartment..... 79 full stairs and 2 half stairs...   They were lovely! Beautiful grey stone and such a great workout! Down and up them everyday at first. When I got used to them it was do...