Day 16: Meditarrean Coast

We awoke to the cathedral bell around 10 o'clock, (I know because the bell rings ten times, one for each hour). I took a walk around outside to see where our journey had taken us the night before. We had arrived at night so we had no idea what the surrounding area was like. Walking outside was enough to find out...



Walking around the complex I came across a bulletin board with a short description of the hotel. It stated that the hotel was in compliance with the Kyoto Protocol and used environmentally friendly materials around the hotel. Also, all the food is locally bought and transported without the use of petrol, all by train.
Link to the website

I was able to meet the resident dog, Shantila...


Downstairs we were treated to a traditional Italian breakfast (minus the cornflakes): Italian ham, sheep's cheese, bread, and Italian sausages. One thing of note, Chestnuts were commonly used in this region and they made for some amazing Chestnut cake. The nuts are ground into a flour, and then used for baking.

The plan for the day was to drive to the Mediterranean coast and hang out for the day. We took the Autostrada for part of the way. Let me explain a little about Italian driving. They don't use signals, it's every man woman and child for themselves, they honk and make hand gestures, if you're in their way, you get the brights, most roads don't have lane stripes, and if you're on the highway going 100mph, you will get passed like you're standing still. All of these factors make for and adventure every time you hit the roadway. Fortunately, the end of the ride involved some beautiful back country driving where the only obstacles you have to deal with are, three wheeled mountain vehicles going 20 mph with elderly drivers, no barricades, sheer cliffs, falling rocks, and crazy locals. I wished we had a sign on our car that said "It's ok, we're Americans".




We arrived at the small town of Levanto which greeted us to a beautiful view as we came down the mountain; the sun shining off the water like a mirror...


We drove through the town and found where the road ended...





We were content for the rest of the afternoon...





After the sunset and Cubans, we decided to head back to the hotel as the owner offered to make us some dinner even though we were the only ones staying. We were glad we came back, we arrived to an indoor fire pit right next to our dinner table.



Then the food started coming...

Locally grown olives, olive oil

Liver pattee, butter and herbs on bread

chorizo

mmm pigs leg, prosciutto

salmon and capers

ravioli with poppy seeds and pinenuts, stuffed with ricotta and spinach

muscles

t-bone


and chestnut cake for dessert..
after the overload of food, it was cigars and camera tricks...

Day 15: Italian Road Trip

We had the car, a blistering fast 1.3L diesel Fiat Punto, music, 80's mixes and road trip mixes from Tim and I, and a destination, get lost in the Italian countryside. Hall and Oates, and a freestyle session over the 10 minute song by Neu topped the mix list. Of course, we can't forget about Mista Fab, but that will come later...





Although neither Tim or Raf had any place they specifically wanted to go, they made it clear, jokingly, that they didn't want to go where I wanted to, Bologna. It happened to be on the way to the west coast, and it happens to be home to the Ducati factory. And for someone having a love for Italian motorbikes what better place to go? It's not my fault my two travel mates don't have good taste...





After the glorious stop in Bologna, we headed for the Tuscany region where our hotel was stationed. Unknowingly, we headed north for about 30 minutes and had to turn around. Then the night came, as well as the rain, (a perfect time to be on the Italian back country roads). I was very tired, and driving, but the sheer adrenaline of steep cliffs, rain, and cars passing me and whizzing by the other direction kept me going... We finally made it to the hotel and crashed...(fell asleep, the car is ok).

Day 14: Rafael's Restaurant

We woke up today hoping to take a day trip with the rental car we were expecting. Unfortunately, we had a miscommunication and the rental place was out of cars. So, we spent most of the day waiting around for the car to get in.


Finally, the car came in around 7. So we picked up the car, came back to the house for a bit, then headed to Julius. Raf wasn't expecting a whole lot of business because they had just reopened from the winter break, and it was a Tuesday night. To Raf's surprise, they filled up most of the first floor, and that allowed us to have the upstairs to hang out. Not before getting a tour of the nicely appointed restaurant...




Being an ex pizza tosser, Tim decided to make his own pie. We were skeptical at first, but he surprised us with some sweet tossing skills. The hard part was getting into the oven...




Tim enjoyed a smoked salmon, arugala, onion and tomato pizza, while I opted for a thick sliced pepperoni, tomato, and pepper pizza. Both looked and tasted delicious. After the pizza, we hit some Foccacia, which is a big type of sandwich with a light cream cheese, prosciutto, and arugala. Once again, it didn't disappoint. As we reached a state of delirium from the amount of food just consumed, a game of "flip the bottle cap into an espresso cup" emerged and kept us amused for about an hour. Partagas 150's and more sparkling water were on the dessert menu, as well as a home made brownie.





After dinner, I decided to hit the 1's and 2's to work off some of the fantastic food we just ate.


Many props to Rafael for bringing us in to his restaurant and being a gracious host. Dooooooooooooood!