Daily Affirmation - Apologies to Stuart Smalley

Over four weeks into our trip here, and entering the home stretch. We head to Rome in three days and then back to the U.S. the following day. What a journey it's been.

As the final days whiz by, here are some random musings and images from the past couple of days . . .

Assisi

I can remember the first time I visited Assisi nearly twenty years ago. My father was driving a rental car with Suzy, my mother and me and we had been planning to visit the basilica of St. Francis to see the famous frescos by Giotto that depict the life of the saint. As we arrived in town, despite there being a perfectly good parking lot below the basilica, my father insisted on getting closer to the basilica, ignoring the "pedestrian only" and "restricted access" signs and driving into the enormous piazza right in front of the church. I had no idea how athletic my mother really was until that moment, as she was able to fold herself in half and literally hide herself underneath the passenger seat as we parked our van in front of a sign that read "reserved parking." I'm sure the pope didn't mind that we parked there that day.

Happy Returns

We're back home in Cannara after an overnight in Florence to pick up our twin sons. Today will be a short post. We have a house full of 16. With a group this size there's not a lot of time to think or write.

Bistecca

Ok, so I lied. When I wrote previously that Cannara was our home, I lied. Today we came home. To Florence.

Home Sweet Home

Home. That's what Cannara has become. Home.

The Day the Earth Didn't Stand Still

I have a very vivid mental image from one of my trips to Italy, a sort of motion picture or clip that replays itself in my mind, one that is etched deeply in the recesses of my mind but which can erupt to the surface when triggered by the right stimulus. It is a memory that is the result of an instantaneous, violent twist of fate. When I close my eyes, I can see it in detail as real as the instant in which it transpired.

Dimora Novecento - Pescara

Abruzzo holds a special place in my heart. Shortly after we first opened Bella Italia we received an invitation from the Italian Ministry of Foreign Trade to be part of a delegation to visit Abruzzo and meet key producers in the confectionary industry. The five day visit,