Hoping for a Sun day...while waiting, I shop.

Greetings...

our weather has been really rather beastly.

This weather is for the birds!!!

Rain with high winds and all manner of things blowing away.

We are hanging onto our hats in hope

as we read the forecast for the start to the week 

which is promising (teasing) us warmer temperatures and some sunshine.

If you are reading this post you know that I have decided to continue to blog

using the free Blogger platform.

My research revealed that it would cost me about $2,000 to transfer all my posts

and migrate to a new host. The host would then be charging me an annual fee for the posts and GB that I would be using to keep my blog live.

I am retired and this is a hobby so that was not going to be reasonable.

Thank you again for following.

It is great to read all your comments, I really appreciate them.

I have been forced indoors during the inclement weather

so I have had a few shopping trips to 

 the local shops and malls.

I found a comfy and fun pair of Converse sneakers.

I chose the blue ones but they were also available in red 

which was SO tempting...I really didn't NEED two pairs.

I think they will look great with all my denim pieces and my white jeans.

I have a faded blue linen skirt that I purchased last year which might be fun to

wear white ankle socks and these together.

Oh and I also found a new backpack...

to replace the thrifted one that I repaired .

Hands free for hiking, walking, shopping and beach combing.

Soft leather, attractive details and wonderfully made.

Big enough to pop in a book and my usual wallet, keys, sunglasses and lipstick.

It looks smart too...

I am pleasantly surprised by the quality for the price.

I've been having an espresso on these cold windy afternoons.

I made coffee this way when I was in Roccatederighi, Italy

The Lavazza brand Crema coffee is smooth and needs no cream.

The new to me espresso /demitasse cups are vintage by Susie Cooper.

Made in England.

I found them at Kay's Korner in the Cook Street Village.

I love Karin's shop...

I regularly walk in our Fairfield neighbourhood and will pop in on my route.

If you haven't been to Kay's Korner yet...you have a treat in store.

 Spook Street is a book in the popular British spy series by Mick Herron...

my husband has read the entire series and purchased all the books so I am reading them now.

Interestingly, he has picked up the Louise Penny series which I love and is reading the first one now!

I have a few more things to share with you but will leave those for the next post.

For those of you who were enquiring about my back...

I had some X Rays of my back and hands, 

both have been very surprisingly stiff, uncomfortable and very painful.

 The doctor also ordered blood work.

I haven't seen my doctor since before Covid.

He is very busy and it takes a long time to get an appointment to see him.

He's thinking it may be arthritis 

 I won't know more until my follow up appointment in early May.

In the meantime I am taking Tylenol at night which is helping me sleep a bit better.

We'll see...

Hope that your week has some sunshine and fun packed into it.

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Cook Eat Discover ~ Pasta

Ollie and Flo live in a hilltop home with expansive views.

They have a gorgeous garden above the valley below.

Stuffed pasta from our welcome dinner.

Emily with Frank, Ollie and Flo's lovely dachshund.

Pasta makers 

ready set go!

We have been shown and have practised a variety of techniques for pasta.

Bow ties

OO flour and Semolina are used for pasta.

Stuffed pasta

We were concentrating and were very serious as we made the suffed ravioli.

Picture taking is serious business.

We all snapped photos with our phones!

Happy to show off our pasta shapes!

Snack time while Ollie makes sauces for the pasta.

JuJu and I at the table...

We enjoyed cooking outdoors and really loved the view...

I highly recommend Cook Eat Discover!

Are you ready to see the Villages of Provence France?

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Fishing with Paolo

Paolo the Fisherman

is an advocate for sustainable fishing.

He's been fighting to change the way that people fish for many years.

He's been written up in The New York Times, National Geographic and many more publications.

We left the dock early in the morning from Talamone Italy

and we headed out to meet up with Paolo.

Paolo caught a wee octopus and showed us before throwing it back into the sea.

We were in an open Zodiac small enough to enter this cave...

the water was a beautiful shade of blue.

Paolo has organized carvers and artists to decorate huge slabs of marble.

These are barged out to sea and sunk to prevent large nets laid by big commercial fisheries to over fish the area.

Read the New York Times article.

Paolo and his wife fed us a tasty lunch after our morning at Sea.

They have many visitors and show films while serving dinner to people who come from afar to learn more about the fight to save the fish.

Cook Eat Discover 

is so much more than a cooking school

it's a wonderful adventure!

We learned about organic and sustainable practises...

vineyards and wines, 

fishing,

cheese making, 

rice growing, 

buying fresh foods grown locally and in season.

I've a new appreciation for the way our foods are grown and harvested.

Next post I will share some of the pastas we made.

Until next time...

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Bike ride...20 km

One of the adventures on the tour was a 20 km bike ride to a vineyard...
Having not ridden a bike for decades I was a wee bit anxious...

I was assured that the roads were "mostly flat"
which was not entirely true!

I had to get some help learning how to change gears...
my old bike, an English Raleigh, was a "one speed."

Our guide stopped to show us his family's olive grove.

We pedalled uphill to Montemassi...

(I was able to switch gears!)

Tom, the food photographer, rode behind me.

At times  I was lagging far behind the group.

I felt so grateful for Tom's kindness.

Gorgeous old ruins.

a popular spot for people to stop and walk around

Set high above the valley below.

Yes

 I pedalled up to this site!

I didn't take photos of the vineyard we visited because it was dark by the time we got there!

My muscles ached for several days after the ride!

Tuscany...cook eat discover tour.

I was going to publish a post about our visit to The Vatican 

but when I looked over my photos I realized that there were only a couple.

I was in awe of the place and paid full attention to what we were seeing...

BTW there are NO photos permitted in The Sistine Chapel.

We took an early morning tour with a small group of about 20 people to avoid the crowds that gather during regular visiting hours.

We stopped for a coffee in the cafe across the street from the Vatican and made the mistake of sitting while we drank it...

Let's just say it was the most expensive cup of coffee I have ever had.

(8 Euros)

And now on to Tuscany...

We arrived in the Maremma area of Tuscany by train and were met at the station.

We were driven to a hilltop medieval village called Roccatederighi.

Emily a guest from the UK and Ollie the chef and owner of Cook Eat Discover.

We got settled into our rooms and then were picked up for a welcome dinner.

My view from the terrace to the pool and valley beyond.

The week long tour includes daily excursions as well as cooking instruction.

Lush groves and cypress trees.

Quiet except for the cacophony of birdsong.

We met Martin the owner of Valdonica Vineyards in the village of Sassofortino.

He is a former doctor who fell in love with the area and purchased several hectares of forested land.

He cleared some of the land and planted grapevines.

Martin grows his vines using organic healthy practises.

 We tasted a variety of his wine...

as well as some of the olive oil that he produces.

His rose wine won a 98 point award a few years ago.

Martin runs a rural "hotel" which is attached to the property.

Martin loves the colour orange...

It features prominently in his tasting room and patio.

Another lovely pool!

Beautiful orange sunset...

Tom McGovern was a guest on the tour.

He's a professional and very talented food photographer 

you can follow him on Instagram "Food Photographer."

Tom is the nicest fellow you could ever meet.

It turns out that he took the photos for Jane Green's cookbook "Good Taste."

(I have the book!)

Water Buffalo

we visited a farm where they make buffalo mozzarella and other assorted cheeses.

We then drove to an Organic Tuscan Rice Farm

Tenuta San Carlo

 where we purchased the risotto for our cooking lesson.

Agritourismo is an important part of farming life in Italy.

Visitors can stay on the farms and participate in farm related activities.

These guests help to subsidize the farmer's income.

We explored the picturesque lanes in the village of Roccatederighi.

Loved the pots and charm of this stone home and garden.

The Village "community kitchen" 

we made our risotto here.

Flo served us bubbly and appetizers atop the rocky outcropping 

in the setting sunlight before we ate the risotto.

In the next post I will share some of the pastas that we made.

~ Be well and Be Kind ~