Sunday, January 27, 2008
Things I Bought in Italy
I’m home and I’m happy to be here and finally, after nearly a week, I’m back in rhythm with my normal life. I think it takes me that long because I do the wrong thing when I get home. I use all the false hyper-energy that I get from jet lag and frantically try to catch up with every scrap of paper that has been delivered to my door, and every phone call, and transcribe all the names, addresses, and notes I’ve collected … . There’s no need for me to rattle off all the stuff that keeps me too busy. Then, after waking up at 4 a.m. for a week, I crash. The crash came two days ago. After 2 p.m., I couldn’t do another food/work/answering mail/eating/caloric/paying bills/writing thing. I went to bed, drank cold water from my new Brita pitcher, and watched Dream Girls for the third time, this time on my new HD flat-panel screen.
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Thursday, January 17, 2008
Rome in the Winter
Ah, Rome in the winter, the first week of the New Year. I love it. I come in every season, so I can say with some authority that in certain ways this may be the best time to visit. Many trees may be bare, but the grass is green and Rome is filled with umbrella pines and date palms, other evergreens, and shiny dark acanthus growing under the brush of embankments and parks, the leaf that is inspiration for countless ancient columns (Corinthians), consoles, and Baroque curlicues. It’s enough green for me, and in winter the bay leaves (laurel) from the many bushes all over the city are particularly fragrant. I pick them from the shrubs that enclose the street-side restaurant and café seating on almost every block, crumble them and sniff them. Even in winter, Romans sit outside, albeit under gas heaters set under umbrellas. Red, pink, and white cyclamens are everywhere.
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Monday, January 7, 2008
Pizza in Naples and the Bronx
I am now in Rome, very comfortably ensconced at Caesar House. (See Italian Travel Links for the details.) But I started writing this while I was in Naples, staying at Donna Regina, the bed and breakfast operated by my friends Domenico and Gabriella Mazzella, son and mother. (see Italian Travel Links for more details on this lovely place to stay.)
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