il mio staff: my staff

il mio staff: my staff

  If you take the train in Italy, down away from the busier, more jaded parts, you'll find a place virtually untouched by international tourism, the part that is still so geniune as to charm completely. The food is excellent. The wine too. But it's the people that make the region

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la crostata col fichi secchi: dried fig tart

la crostata col fichi secchi: dried fig tart

January 25, 2012  |  Conserve, dolci, il popolo, vino  |  9 Comments

  Her tiny features appear in my cameras viewfinder as I focus, her self-consciousness something new between us. 'So, Anna, tell me what you're doing while you're doing it', I say, the tiny mirror in my camera clinking up and down. 'Hello, I am Anna, Silvestro's house keeper and I'm making a

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who you'll meet at the castle: salvatore il barista

who you’ll meet at the castle: salvatore il barista

April 11, 2011  |  dolci, il paese, il popolo  |  2 Comments

Every job has its drawbacks, even being a barista in Italy, as a good chunk of your clients arrive before they're awake enough to say anything all that interesting. Not that Salvatore would ever admit to that: he's too nice of a guy. And he has a talent for coffee, notable,

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who you’ll meet at the castle: piero, il panettiere

March 19, 2011  |  Altri Primi, antipasti, il paese, il popolo  |  2 Comments

  Just outside the castle walls- but still inside the epicentre of the city- you'll find a bread baker named Piero, a soft spoken man who just adores the local bread. While he makes several kinds, all in the Salento style, his 'pucce' are famous enough for folks to come from

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who you'll meet at the castle: il barone

who you’ll meet at the castle: il barone

February 26, 2011  |  il paese, il popolo, La scuola mia.  |  5 Comments

  He's the doctor.  You're the engineer. They are the masters. She's a conductor. And on it goes. You could call it a 'tendency' but 'fixation' is closer to it, this preoccupation here in Italy with titles: It's not uncommon to witness long and rambling conversations between adults, without the single

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who you’ll meet at the castle:giuseppe the caretaker

February 22, 2011  |  il paese, il popolo  |  6 Comments

'Giuseppe The Butler' If you're a man, it's best not to think about it too much. I try not to, but still, the shame creeps in. It's difficult not to feel a bit like a girly girl around Giuseppe. Ask him to build a wall and he'll have it done by noon,

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Il Vincotto

January 20, 2010  |  il paese, il popolo, Uncategorized  |  7 Comments

Today started with a sloppy banging sound on the school’s library window. It was supposed to be a knock, but the person out in the street was clearly using more the palm versus knuckles. I recognised her hand immediately. It was Annalisa, panicky over the huge quantity of grape must

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