Fa Caldo, Nikos!

May 24, 2022

Fa caldo— it’s hot. But Nikos loves the heat.

Today is Andrea’s birthday; I brought the chocolates I bought when we were at Condorelli on Sunday. She was appreciative and cheerful as always, and made us all caffe to accompany the lovely pasticcini she brought to Elena’s today.

Joe and I took Ettore to the park again. A girl, who seems school aged (8? 9?) was there with whom I assume is her mom, and two other women. Although she chattered constantly, she didn’t answer Joe either time he asked why she was off school.

I couldn’t stand it much more than 45 minutes in the 90°F sun. Energetic Ettore wanted only to swing (meaning, I pushed the swing). It was too hot even for him.

Oh look; it’s cooled off. But Accuweather always reports 5-8 degrees cooler than it actually is here.

Dinner is on our own tonight, which is perfectly fine. Who wants to cook in this heat? Nikos was interested in checking out Gryffindor Pub in Biancavilla, so we’ll go there—but I’m suggesting Scandura beforehand for dinner, since they have a restaurant, pizzeria, and excellent tavola calda. We can have Harry Potter cocktails afterward.

Joe ate some lunch, but I flopped on the sofa, trying to nap. Dogs, church bells, and kids keep floating their noise into the apartment. Dogs especially begin their serenading early in the morning, as in 4:45, which is why I need a nap. I may go all medical on myself and down an espresso soon. Or mainline it.

I got the sofa sleeper ready, and our data hotspot is working. We’re all set for the next few days’ adventures.

Now I’m waiting. As with my flight and Joe’s, Nikos’s Ryanair flight is 40 minutes late. This is a pattern. Why not set departure and arrival times to reflect what seems to be the norm—40 minutes in ritardo?

My time in Biancavilla this round is filled with a lot of waiting. But, it’s hot. It’s good to slow down.

*****************

YAY!!!! Nikos is here!!!!

We did a quick meet & greet (and he brought a thanks for hosting gift to Elena & family, from the Beefeater’s tour—good move, and good manners, kiddo). Vincenzo said he looks like a photo copy of Joe.

Off to Scandura, where we had to wait for a table, and dang; they were out of pistachio arancini. We ordered drinks and a ragù arancino to start, then each got our own specialty pizza. Nikos’s had tomatoes, mushrooms, etc., I think Joe’s had olives and tomatoes, and I went with Elena’s recommendation and got the mortadella-pistachio-mozzarella di buffalo (it was good). As I got the check, I asked if we could box up what’s left over. Elena’s family might enjoy this for a snack tomorrow.