gelato ;-)

it is definitely gelato time in italy- almost every bar has homemade ones, or at least the ones in a wrapper. isn't this look appealing? (i don't know about the blue one, have not tried it)

the tomatoes are HUGE
the corn so sweet,
mozzarella and fresh basil from the balcony
Jon's home-baked bread
with olive oil from the neighbor ...
we must be in heaven
...

but than there was this at the restaurant the neighbors daughter runs:

mocetta, arugula with parmigiano and thick sweet balsamico

more prosciutto/salami marchigiana

ricotta with lemon-jam red pepper and walnuts

my plate: fried mozzarella with truffle, olives with fennel/garlic,
baby-mozzarella in green olive-oil, foccacia with rosemary

we made it into the summer and temperature turns us into italians. getting up at sunrise, work in the garden until it gets too warm. after lunch a long siesta and around 17:00 some activities start again. than there could easily be a festa or sagra, where you can join in. that will be a place where someone else is cooking and lots of people sitting at sunset out on a piazza and have a great time. dance, wine, home-cooked specialties. everybody, all ages come together and chat and enjoy the summer in the community.


this is the festa di san severino mit pizza e birra auf dem stadt platz

afterwards a marchigiani band lit up in front of the old buildings

kids danced a quadrille

at the lake in the mountains, 45 minutes away a HUGE firework lit up over the water at 23:00 with hundreds of cars blocking the road and people sitting on the lawn in front of the lake.



the drive home was actually a race on the twisty mountain roads. because they thought nobody is driving towards the lake they all passed in these narrow curves

parties at the neighbors


wonderful all homemade pizza in a pizza-oven in the garden

by a professional chef

another party on the same road - this time spinach fussili with shrimps and porcetta. homemade potato chips (wonderful) and fried zucchini (i tried that recipe at the next party also fried onions - was a hit)

Nello would love to sell his house and 3 ha ground and gave me a tour

the other neighbors dogs had a blast with all the shrimp skins

a family photo with that darling old mother, who could just stand up to a 90 degree angle - but was cooking this delicious meal.Jon thought i should be on this photo :-)

a party for the elderly from gualdo, lots of home baked goods and

even a little bit of music

the major is always part of the commune life and easy to recognize through his heavy smoking



progress at the little house moves v e r y s l o w no way we will get a new roof on before winter comes :-( pazienza and piano-piano ) or 'nur net huudle' ....... but the stairs become more real:

Jon is the best backer ever

he did not want me to move the flower pots. he passed the trailer with the future stair oak-beam by 2 inches away from my new rose-cuts

the 1/2 tree trunk got cut by a handsaw to the perfect angle

still a provisorium- more next blog...