Benvenuto a Genova!

There is a preface to my Summer spent in Italy, but rather than starting there,
​I'd like to dive right in!
​Thank you for following along!

Day 1 & 2
Cibo e Caffè
(Food & Coffee)

If you've ever seen the movie, "Under the Tuscan Sun," you'll most definitely remember my favorite, fantastico character, Katherine. She's the free-spirited, sensual, confident woman for whom the leading lady of the story, Frances Mayes, observes eating gelato as though she's making love to it. Frances is immediately enthralled by her. She's everything Frances wishes to embody. Actually, I should say, Katherine gives Frances a glimpse into the parts of herself that have gone dormant. 

Slowly, throughout the story, Frances reignites her senses through the manual labor on her newly, spontaneously purchased Italian villa, the explosion of flavors in the food and wine, and most importantly, falling in love again with her Self.

This (below) is from the moment of my first Italian gelato.
​
Two scoops. One, cioccolato (chocolate), and the other, Nutella bianca (white nutella). I sat, with my legs crossed (like a lady), on the side of some old ruins in one of Genova's piazzas. Suddenly, I realized I was making audible sounds, taking deep breaths and smiling as I savored this brief love affair.
​The melted gelato dripped down the side of the cup and onto my fingers, which I had no shame in licking afterwards.

Ah, okay Katherine, I get it now...

Enjoying a nettarina on the terrazza.

And the moment I've been waiting for and rehearsing for months--
​"Un caffè per favore"

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My first pasta in Italy!
Ravioli di manzo con ragù
(Beef ravioli with ragu sauce)
Paired exquisitely with a vino rosso from Multipuciano