Nicholas aka Nicky

Tags

Capena, dachshunds, Italy, Lazio, Nicky

Nicky will be 14 years old next month and he is starting to have some health issues. At first it was his eyesight, he was becoming progressively blind, despite treatment this has sped up and he is now mostly blind and this affect his walking and his overall need to feel secure at all times. So we spend a lot of time making him comfortable. However in the house we cannot leave a room now and leave him on his own, he start to whine if he sense he is not near us. I do his eye drops every day but I wonder to what extent this is helping him now, except to keep his eyes moist. He has taken to come to me by the sound of my voice and then tilting his head as if to catch what I am saying, he also walks beside me now, my foot step guiding him, surprising how he adapted to changing circumstances. He also like to sleep next to me on the sofa knowing he is safe all wrapped up in his blanket.

Nicky and Eleonora aka Nora who is older than him by 7 days, have been with us since their birth, so they are truly a part of our little family and a presence in the house. Yes we have spoilt them and given them the best life possible. I know that it is extra care to look after Nick but he is very dear to us, we have to understand that he like Nora will not be with us forever.

Here in Capena at the home of Tiziana Tola who is very well known in dog breeding circles in Italy and her husband Dr Massimo Buzzanca. Will with our week old Nicky and Nora. Their mothers where also with us in the room, we came back to fetch them 7 weeks later.

Nicky in our home in Rome in 2010, my favourite photo of him. He loves the sunshine and sleeping in the sun is his thing, our sunshine boy. It is said that you will forgive your dog almost anything instantly, however we are not so forgiving for other fellow humans. I do not know why that is but maybe it is the relationship you have with your dog. Maybe is it because they are very perceptive, we have had dogs, all Dachshunds, for the last 34 years, so you learn a thing or two about them after all this time. Yes they are stubborn and will often only listen when it suits them, they are difficult to train and it requires persistence, however they are great companion and can be little clowns. I really cherish my time with Nick now more than ever.

A cold gray weekend

Tags

Christmas, Italy, PEI, Plum Pudding, Rome, Storms, turmoil, winter, World

The weather is not very nice at the moment as we approach Xmas. This morning I was listening to a very nice rendition of Black Bird by Paul McCartney on saxophone it was beautiful, modern interpretation. It is one of my favourite piece of music. The other one which makes me stop to listen is by Cesar Franck, Prélude, Fugue, et Variation. Absolutely wonderful and this is the music I love to listen before going to sleep or before I die this would be the music I would want to hear. It evoque in me many recollections. Have a listen it is well worth it.

We do live in troubled times, it seems the world is gone mad, pandemics, inflations, climate change, extinctions of species, war in Europe, failed politics and violence, threats to democracy. It has been getting worse since March 2020 when Covid became a thing. Let us hope that 2023 will bring a return to more balance and stability. Though I know that it is unlikely, possibly more horrors will come our way. But in the past there has been periods like 1929 to 1945 deep economic depression and then world war and all the horrors of it, with millions of dead. Before that 1914-1919 another great period of turmoil with a flu epidemic. I just feel strange that we will not return to a life as it was prior to 1990, it will never be the same.

I hear friends who are my age or older saying they are happy to be at the end of their lives because they lived through good times, though there was trouble but never as we see it now. From 1946 to 1990 there was stability despite some events, people remained optimistic for the future. This optimism seems to have gone out.

We have talked of travelling in 2023 but we would do close to home travel, nothing in Europe despite wanting to go. Then again at home much will depend on the recovery and good health of Will. More months to go before the final word.

Given that we are 2 weeks away from Xmas, today I decided to go and get my Xmas bird, well not a turkey but a Cornish Hen which I will cook and serve with the appropriate side dish and for dessert will have the Plum Pudding sent to us by Will’s old school friend who lives in Vancouver.

Tomorrow Tuesday the first Winter storm is coming our way with hurricane force winds which is the real concern since the clean up from Fiona continues and many trees are still to be cut down and taken away. We may get more power outages. Though I am not worried here being on the strategic power supply axis of the capital. Winds from the NW at 90Km per hour and snow accumulation of 15cm.

We have done our Christmas decorations and this year it is a small 3 foot tree, no sterling silver balls, no Wedgwood ornaments, only smaller simpler ornaments still collected over 40 years from all around the world. Maybe it is better to go for simpler, nothing says you have to over decorate or go over board with gifts or meals. I prefer to listen to music from J.S.Bach or other classical composers Praetorius, Charpentier, or old French 18th century music or some Chet Baker.

Whatever you do this year, I hope it will make you happy. By the way in and around 1100 AD you would have said Merrie Christes Maesse. The photo below by Mauro Pagliai is the centre of Rome, Piazza Venezia and the lighting of the City of Rome Christmas tree. The long straight lighted street is Via del Corso which takes you to Piazza del Popolo. This street was known in antiquity as Via Flaminia built in 220 BC. imagine walking on a street that is 2220 years old and still very much in use. If you follow it outside of Rome it would take you over the Apennine Mountains to Ariminum (Rimini) on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. How we miss Rome and living there after all these years.

Another view this time from the top of the Vittoriano dedicated to King Vittorio Emanuelle II who unified Italy in 1870 with Garibaldi.

Whirlwind

Tags

books, Charlottetown, dachshunds, EUR, Haviland Club, Italy, Rome

This week has been very busy, the big good news and I big uplift is that Will was able to start drinking tea and eating pudding. He has not had anything to eat through normal means in the last 3 months. Now he will have to do therapy to learn to swallow again normally as the tumour shrinks and dies. He is relieved and so am I and we are happy about this outcome, but we do have many more months until the final results are known. It is however looking good.

Monday I was invited to attend the inauguration of the new City Council. The next municipal election will be in 2026. The Councillor of my Ward 1, is now deputy Mayor, she was my opponent in the election of 2018. A smart lady, very political and we have become friends. The Mayor is trying hard to forge a new agenda, hopefully with this new Council it will be possible.

This week I had things to do each day. Wednesday went to Belle River about 45 min outside of Charlottetown to see a friend who has a beautiful old house in the area. He gave the Club 85 art/culture books, truly a wonderful gift for our Club Library. His house is full of treasures and has that old European feel about it.

Picture taken by Reg Porter in his house.

Then Thursday it was off to Kensington and Summerside in driving rain and fog to get the old puppies to the groomer. They do not like it but it has to be done and she does a great job. Now they are clean for Xmas.

This is so stressful for them and when I came to pick them up at 4:30pm they first peed and then ran for the car. Sleeping on their blankets on the back seat all the way back to town.

Nora at Home waiting for her dinner.

Nicky the quiet one in the family and now blind.

Tomorrow Friday should be quiet only the Club in the evening. Now the Xmas decorations are up, it will be quiet just the 2 of us, that is perfectly fine. I made an appointment to get a pre-Xmas haircut.

One stem and 5 blooms of this white Amaryllis, a beautiful elegant flower. I have another one growing, a red one. The stem is 2 feet tall.

Last Friday at the Club in what was once the formal salon of Esther Lowden’s home, a nice Winter fire in the Pink Sicilian Marble fireplace. It is so pleasant to sit in this room and just enjoy a glass of wine by the fire.

Here is another view this week in the afternoon. It is a very comfortable room.

Now I saw this photo this week of the EUR neighbourhood of Rome (Esposizione Universale Roma), it is on the outskirts of the city on the way to the airport. It was started my Benito Mussolini in the 1930’s and was to be his modernistic view of Rome, it was never completed due to the war and his fall from power in July 1943. However it is surprising by its modernity of style.

This building dominates the area and is very interesting. The Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana, also known as the Palazzo della Civiltà del Lavoro, or in everyday speech as the Colosseo Quadrato, is a building in the EUR district in Rome. It was designed in 1938 by three Italian architects: Giovanni Guerrini, Ernesto La Padula, and Mario Romano. Despite its origins, Romans are very proud of its architecture and what it says about Rome and the future. The sky is dramatic like it is usually in Rome.

ARTICHOKE Season

Tags

Food, Italy, life

Yes April is Artichoke Season and here are some beautiful photos

We would go to the market in our neighbourhood and see this beautiful display of fresh artichoke. You can prepare them 2 ways Alla Romana stuffed or Alla Judaica which is fried.

Both are very good and you should see the flower produced by the artichoke plant, spectacular.

Carciofi alla Romana, literally “Roman-style artichokes”, is a typical dish of Roman cuisine. During spring-time in Rome, the dish is prepared in each household and is served in all restaurants.

Carciofi alla giudìa is among the best-known dishes of Roman Jewish cuisine. The recipe is essentially a deep-fried artichoke, and originated in the Jewish community of Rome, it is a speciality where it is served by Jewish restaurants in the springtime. The best restaurants can be found around the Portico D’Ottavia. The Porticus Octaviae is an ancient structure in Rome. The colonnaded walks of the portico enclosed the temples of Jupiter Stator and Juno Regina, as well as a library. The structure was used as a fish market from the medieval period up to the end of 19th century.

Now this is a real deli in Rome. Look at that selection, including beautiful Italian cheeses, so much variety. Then cured meats, olives and excellent olive oil from various regions of Italy. You can also buy wine, much of it is from the Lazio, the province of Rome. I really miss this aspect of life.

Italian Cheeses, balsamic vinegar, etc… A feast for the eyes.

Then the wine merchants with an unbelievable selection of Italian wines from various regions of Italy. The country has 20 different wine regions, producing a great variety of wines and then many Italians still make wine at home, especially those living in the country side. Another delight. Look of DOC on the label or DOCG, an indication of quality.

Monuments that fascinate

Tags

documents, Italy, Rome, tomb, Vatican

Living in Rome means that you will everyday see some type of work on very ancient buildings or monuments from the Republican period before 50 BC to Imperial Roman period up to 400 AD. Archeology is a huge business in Rome and employs scholars from around the world. Romans are very attentive to their past and guard it carefully. The reason why the construction of Line C of the metro of Rome is 20 years behind schedule is because of historical discovery and extensive archeological work. While living in Rome we were fortunate to visit sites that reopened after being closed for 50 years for extensive research and study work. The private house of Augustus on the Palatine and next door the house of his wife Livia is one example, I would call them austere and simple, not Hollywood palaces. The Domus Aurea of Nero reopened just last year, it was and had been closed for decades while we lived in Rome. Also we were able to visit exhibits of rare artifacts very rarely seen in public. One such exhibit was on the Secret Library and Archives of the Vatican. The secret is that there are no secrets, what we did see though was fascinating, the Vatican keeps every piece of paper, every document on any topic. All carefully catalogue and preserved, correspondence between the Holy See and Princes or Kings. Books of all kinds, official decrees, even pornography from ancient times. Why keep it all? Well because then you can use it to support your point of view and show what was said or done. There is or was an element of vanity in all this, to show how the Holy See communicated with the powerful of this world. Who could then deny that the Pope was not important or did not have authority to influence the course of history. What mere mortals think would be sinful or forbidden is kept, why? Well maybe to show that human nature does not change, there is a certain moral story about it all. Some of the Official documents when you read them shed a different perspective on history. Letters often have a personal and intimate tone, despite the fact that they are official documents.

Then comes the monuments and various buildings of Rome, starting with the huts of Romulus, the ruins of the Temple of the Sybil or that of the Furies in Trastevere which was a cursed site, how about the Gate of Hell with its staircase in the Forum next to the Arch of Septimus Severus.

One such ancient monument is the Mausoleum of Augustus, the first Emperor. He was know as Octavian and was the nephew and adopted son of Julius Cesar. He was proclaimed Imperator and August by the Senate of Rome. His legacy to the Western World is important on many different levels. His ruined Mausoleum in Rome survives to this day and has undergone studies and renovations since 1933. Since 2000 even more in depth study of the structure has been undertaken and the amount of information on this monument is impressive.

Photo from the 1970’s before the latest round of study were undertaken. On the far left of the photo we can see the Ara Pacis (Altar of Peace) dedicated to Augustus, his life’s work and his family. The Ara Pacis is very well preserved and wonderful to visit.

This is what the Mausoleum of Augustus looked like in antiquity. Several members of his family had their ashes interred here. The round tomb concept recalls the ancient Etruscans whose mausoleum can be seen just outside of Rome.

Boxing Day + plus

Tags

Boxing Day, covid, Food, Italy, Meatballs

Well today was a quiet day, many years ago Boxing Day was the day you rushed the department stores to return gifts you did not want, receipt in hand. I think that tradition has died with online shopping. I cannot imagine going to a store with hundred of other shoppers frantic to exchange gifts, it was chaos.

Will surprised me this morning by making Croissants filled with mincemeat, they were very good. I must have been very tired from yesterday got up at 10:30am and the puppies slept until 09:30am unheard for them.

The rest of the day was spent tidying up the house, nothing too strenuous. We are having two friends tonight for dinner, so a different menu, no turkey this time. A simpler menu from yesterday but the starter with Crémant is Lobster paté. Will is at the kitchen and I set the table with a different table setting from last night, the placemat are the PEI Tartan.

Listened on the BBC on YouTube to the Christmas message of HM the Queen from Windsor Castle. So well done and to the point, very nicely expressed, as they say not one word too many.

This post now extend into Tuesday since I did not finish it, on 28 December 2012, I retired from the Foreign Service after 34 years. It all seems so long ago now. I really do not have any contact with former colleagues, yesterday I heard from one, out of the blue, we were together in Beijing many years ago. She is now in Wash DC and it would appear that work has changed quite a bit from what it was then.

Will has been cooking up a storm, made some fantastic Italian meat balls with parmesan and parsley, I tasted a few they are soooo good. Turkey was made into a very good soup, Plum Pudding is gone. Tonight we finish the left over Tourtière.

Italian Meat Balls, absolutely delicious.

There is no New Year’s Eve celebration at the Club, cancelled for safety reasons. I do not disagree with that approach, it will be just as nice at home with the puppies.

Our Christmas table with place mats in the PEI Tartan colours.

It seems that a lot of people have taken the entire week off between Christmas and New Year’s, it is again very quiet everywhere, few people about. Despite the fact that people have been told that now is not the time to travel, I have heard that many are travelling either in Canada or in the Maritime region, in one case to Paris, in all cases tests and isolation is required upon return, it can get a bit complicated. Myself like many people are very tired of this pandemic, it has been 2 years and looks like it may be with us for some time to come. We are getting our Booster in 3 weeks, earliest we could get them, that is fine. Life has changed in many little subtle ways, not just with masks everywhere, but how you go about daily chores or general activities. I do miss not seeing our friends in person and sharing a laugh or a good conversation. At the same time I am reminded that in the last 100 years we had two World Wars an epidemic of Spanish Flu, the great depression, etc. so if in this case all I have to do is wash my hands, wear a mask and observe other sanitary rules it’s not that bad really.

Today the Health Dept of PEI announced 118 new cases, which is terrible for our little Island, statistically with a population of 150,000 this is a huge number, never seen before in the last 2 years.

Markets

Tags

Food Market, Italy, life, Rome

I recently purchased a new computer and I am going through a bunch of photos some 11K to be exact.

Many I no longer want and sometimes cannot remember what I am looking at. However this photo jumped at me.

Mercato Via Alessandria, Roma

This was our market in Rome about 3 blocks from our house. It was and is open Monday to Saturday from 8am to 1pm. It sells, all manners of vegetables and fruits in Season, no imports here. Italian cheeses, farm eggs, meat, olives, olive oil, the best is sold in December/January, flowers, freshly made pasta, freshly baked breads, local Roman wine, which is good for the table or cooking. No frozen foods here. This photo was taken in March, I know because you can see artichokes on sale and they only appear in March. All of what you see on sale comes from the farms in the Lazio region around Rome. The exception is bananas and oranges which are not grown in Italy.

When you shop, it is better to go early, that is what the old ladies do, to get the best selection. It is a pleasure to shop in this environment, everything is beautifully displayed with great care by the vendors. No big corporations here, the Italian Government has been very careful to encourage/protect local instead of big box. It’s very local for locals and all in Italian of course. I learned the terms use for measurement of how much you wish to buy, you can say one kilo, but let’s say you wish to buy less, like 100 or 200 grams the word is Un Etto or Due Etti, it’s informal Italian.

The protocol of shopping here is that you touch nothing and do not serve yourself. You say hello to the vendor, first, then ask for what you want, the vendor will take care of choosing for you and bagging it all. Very civilized.

As for fish, you have to go to the fish merchant, which is located nearby, but go early, before 10am, they usually close by 11:30am. What you will see on display is what was available today, it changes constantly. So you have to be flexible on what type of fish or seafood you want, because we are in Italy, you will find local fish, nothing imported. There is a good variety. You can also buy fish in some grocery chain store but again the selection is based on daily catch.

Italians are fussy about food and what they buy, freshness and good quality is everything. I have seen arguments between some lady and the vendors, it’s all polite but has the tone of a police interrogation. Vendors have to be able to tell where their supplies come from and when it arrived. When it come to fish or seafood, the old lady will want to see the books for arrival dates. Don’t try to fool them, you do so at your peril. That women buying from you is cooking for her family, it is a question of honour.

I only wish that here in Canada, we would be so fussy, I cannot imagine someone not knowing how to cook or not knowing what type of cheese, vegetable or meat to buy, everyone would think you are poorly educated. Same for wines, I forget how many labels there are in Italy, I believe it is above 27000. You have to know your stuff and if you don’t at least ask for suggestions without showing you ignorance.

All these markets in Rome, there is one per neighbourhood, most of them were built between 1926-1935 by Mussolini’s government.

Busy, busy

Tags

Chicago, Food, Friends, Italy, life, Palenque, Quahogs, Rocky Point

Last weekend appeared as if there was nothing to do, quiet. However like the weather in PEI, if you wait 10 minutes things take a dramatic turn.

So Friday morning we went to a schedule appointment at the Vet with Nicky and Nora for their annual physical, they are both 12 yrs old now and for their annual shots. They are both in good health with some medical problems connected to age. Otherwise spoiled and happy puppies. Nora is particularly a drama queen at the Vet and it is quite the scene. Nicky on the other hand is quiet and stoic, not a peep out of him, such a good boy.

We returned home and out the door we went to Rocky Point for lunch at friends Summer home, though they can also live there year round and they have been doing that quite a bit in the last 15 months. Rocky Point is reached by doing a semi-circle around the bay of Charlottetown, crossing the North River and the East River to reach the point which faces the Strait of Northumberland. Our friends just extended their property to 70 acres. From the road you cannot see a thing, it is all treed and you have to know where to turn off to the long unpaved driveway towards the house, at on point you turn left and then right again facing on a high cliff the Strait and the view of water with in the far distance Nova Scotia.

When they bought this property many decades ago, the land belonged to the great grandfather of my current barber. The next door neighbour is the brother of our neighbour in town. The land itself back then did not have one tree on it. It was all farmland and no house. Today a forest has grown all around and dominates the area, making it a very private and secluded residence. The house is also quite beautiful, all wood recycled from the old railway platforms of Charlottetown Train Station when it was all decommissioned 35 years ago and the wood was free for the taking. The house is filled with art work and has a giant deck which dominates and gives panoramic views of the Strait.

The only reason we wanted to see our friend was to give him a birthday gift and say hello, but we got invited to a fantastic lunch of Quahog clams and spaghetti with lots of lemon and clam juice for the sauce, a green salad and a tomato salad, accompanied by beautiful wines. For dessert we had ice cold Limoncello. The sort of lunch we would have in Italy.

We also walked around the new purchased land which is connected with their own.

The land seen extending into the strait is Point Prim, where one of my favourite lighthouse is located. It indicates the way for ships into the bay of Charlottetown. This photo is taken not far from the Block House Light House which indicates the actual narrow entrance into the bay. It is a big lighthouse and has a house attached to it. The house belongs to the Federal Government but no one lives there and apparently it is for sale. It is a located next to the old French Fort of 1700 and is splendidly isolated with views of the water and the city in the distance. All ships coming in past this lighthouse.

We have been many times to the Summer house but this time was somewhat special.

High Tide, the beach is red sandstone.

Then on Saturday we went to York which is outside Charlottetown, very rural and green.

We love to go there to chose plants and flowers for our garden. They always have a good selection and offer good service at reasonable prices.

Corner of the deck, with the terra cotta head of the Prince of Palenque bought in Mexico in 1986, it travelled with me all over the world.

Citronella plant on top of the terra cotta pumpkin bought at the florist in the Drake Hotel in Chicago in 1994.

We have been busy and now tonight we are promised muggy weather in a few days. The expression here on PEI is, We are having the muggys (high humidity). I have not mentioned what I am also involved at the Club or everyday, so no we are not bored.

The Haviland Club at Haviland and Water street in Charlottetown.

Going through old photos

Tags

Italy, life, Padua, Veneto, Venice

We have been to La Serenissima as the City of Venice is known in Italy, many times.

It is a city we saw change from being a real live city to slowly becoming a tourist trap, from selling beautiful objects, books, beautiful paper products for wrapping, to letter writing and papier maché masks to basically going whole hog with cheap chinese plastic crap putting out of business, many Venetians. Good restaurants becoming fast food junk and hotel prices in the $400 dollar range and up. Far too many cheap tourists tours, garbage everywhere, a truly sad situation.

There are still pockets where in this small lagoon city you will find the quiet pace of old, but it is becoming increasingly rare. Only the pandemic put an end to the onslaught and emptied the city.

These are photos of one of our visit in Venice, having tea at Café Aurora on an afternoon, having tea, sandwiches and pastries. The last time we were visiting Venice we stayed in Mestre which is on the mainland but not the same. We did discover that Padua is only by train about 20 minutes from Venice and a good alternative for an hotel when visiting the Veneto region. Padua is a beautiful small city, and tourists do not go there in hordes, probably because it is known for its pilgrimage sites devoted to Saint Anthony, who was Portuguese. Padua is also a university town.

Wearing my Borsalino bought in Naples.

Excavation

Tags

Archeology, Germany, history, Italy, Pompeii

Reading and reading a lot about various historical sites and discoveries and history, renovations and reconstructions, archeology and discovering ancient artifacts shedding light on the past.

Here are paintings on the topic of Pompeii, a resort city of ancient Rome destroyed in 79 AD by the spectacular eruption of Mount Vesuvius.

Here a young peasant woman from the area of Naples admiring the frescoes of ancient villas as the site is unearth. Much of the frescoes discovered were then removed and placed indoors in Museums both in Naples and in Rome. A highly romantic painting but nonetheless it gives an impression of what workers saw.

The book of Teresa Demauro entitled Restauri a Pompei 1748-1860 is presented by the Parco Archeologico a Pompei. In her doctoral thesis she narrates through her research the story of the discoveries of the archeological work in Pompeii from 1748 to 1860 the last period of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. pompeiisites.org/en/projects-and-research/publications/

Pompeii and Herculanum are two very rich sites, though it requires some knowledge of history before you go otherwise it won’t make much sense.

Here is another painting showing char women carrying basket full of rubble in an area which looks like the central Forum of Pompeii with the Vesuvius in the background.

Italian Universities and international teams of archeologists publish on a regular basis studies of findings, it really never ends because what we know, though important and somewhat extensive, is not complete and so the research goes on.

Martin G. Conde in his blog details archeological research and also for many years now the damage done to sites like Pompeii by the constant flow of mass tourism. https://romaarcheologiaerestauroarchitettura.wordpress.com/author/romaarcheologiaerestauroarchitettura/

Martin has also written a lot on the new Metro line C in Rome which has become one of the most expensive infrastructure project in the world. The Metro line C currently under construction crosses the Roman Forum one of the most rich archeological sites in the world. Metro Line C is also a decade behind schedule and no one is counting the cost overrun anymore in the billions of Euros. Eventually line A and B of the Rome Metro will connect to line C and everyone it is hope will be happy.

Other site I follow currently, The rebuilding of the Garnison Church in Potsdam built in 1735, blown up by the Communist regime of East Germany in 1968.

The Palace of Versailles multiple projects of rehabilitation, conservation and re-furnishing of various rooms, an unending process with dramatic results, not to mention the gardens and the rehabilitation of the numerous water fountains and sculptures.

The Berlin City Palace now Humboldt Forum built in 1445 and blown up in 1957 by the Communist regime of East Germany, rebuilt and re-opening on 17 December 2020.

Reconstruction work in Dresden old city centre which is almost complete and re-creates the city centre as it once was prior to its destruction by fire bombing on 14 and 15 February 1945.

Potsdam old city centre of the 17th and 18th Century and the palace complex and gardens around Sans Souci and the Neues Palais.

What is fascinating about all this is the number of stone cutters and sculptors, artists and artisans employed for this work using original techniques and finding inspiration in paintings, drawings and old photograph and archival records for their work.