Sogni di Sicilia

I washed some clothes, edited some photos, showered, and walked to the Wednesday market. I never intend to buy anything there (except produce), but it's Biancavilla's form of community church. The bustle of people and the eavesdropping opportunities are great for language learners. In fact, for the first time in 5 years, I wasn't the sole non-native. A German couple were at the fruit stand. A few familiar words from my time in Deutschland caught my ears, but mostly, I thought — what brings them to Biancavilla? Horsemeat has gone up in price The new caffè bar, Makea At the market  Preparing for a wedding.  I got a glimpse of a bridesmaid in a beautiful silk chartreuse gown. Spotting the little bread house  on my walk home I checked out the advertised new spot, closed for the ferie;  a caffè bar on viale di Europa. It doesn't appear to be anything special. Joe was at the apartment; we met and drove to the vigne. Today's lunch, pasta with pesto, and grilled flank steak...

We were the only ones celebrating Labor Day in Sicily. We took the day off and relaxed.  We stopped at Decó to get wine, and at the last minute, I grabbed some beer — Messina Cristalle di Sale. Today is swampy, and I thought cold beer might be appreciated. This is a particularly good one. We tucked the beer into the garage kitchen's fridge, and I brought wine to the house kitchen. Everyone was lounging, except for Elena, Luisa, and the granddaughters. They were at Centro Sicilia, where Luisa bought a pair of sexy-fit Levi's (pronounced Levvies here). Elena apologized for not telling us they were going; it was spontaneous. I had absolutely no problem with hanging out and not spending money  The kids were playing a game, Who Killed the Wolf or Who Did the Wolf Kill, something or another that seemed akin to Who Took a Cookie from the Cookie Jar. Ragazzi at lunch Happy baby Giulio Mozzarella di bufalo, pepe, origano, olio d'oliva Playing wolf game Teà, reflecting Marta with the...

After a relaxed start to our morning, Joe and I took off for Catania, to go to the Mercatini -- the Christmas Markets! There are six of them; I planned to hit three or four. Most are walking distance from each other. Parking on via Garibaldi, all we had to do was walk toward the landmark elephant statue, way down the street in the Piazza del Duomo . I grew up in White Bear Lake, Minnesota, where it was almost compulsory to have a concrete white bear sculpture somewhere in your house or yard. In Catania, it's the elephant. They're everywhere, but it all began with this fella. I feel I can only photograph an elephant from this angle for the next four years, out of disgust for the Republican party. A little background excerpted from Etna Experience , because I know how much y'all love history: ********** “The Elephant” is one of the legends about Etna. The elephant is the official symbol of the city of Catania, thanks to an old legend. During the Upper Paleolithic Times, a dw...