Palmabella's Passions

Brad made another RT to the Rome airport, and picked up our other two couples, who had been visiting Prague for 5 days. Michael got them settled in their rooms, and soon we were gathered for a welcome wine gathering on the terrace. The Genius Loci wines are delicious. Their "Palmabella Italy" tote bags were filled with binders of info we prepared on our itinerary, maps and brochures on each town, Italian travel journals, pens, small gifts and chocolate from Perugia.

We arrived in Bevagna for our special "Welcome Dinner" at Redibis Restaurant.
The restaurant is built in part of what was once a Roman amphitheater. It's stone walls and elegant furnishings are quite charming.

The eight of us were seated in a very special private dining room, where a window was built into one wall where we could see into the kitchen. I was fascinated by watching the four chefs prep, cook, and plate the wonderful food.

Here are our starters and primi piatti: Spelt tagliatelle with ricotta and sausage, Chianina beef carpaccio, Stuffed tomato in a herbed yogurt sauce, zucchini and chick pea puree salad, eggplant ravioli, prosciutto and mostarda with warm bread, and ravioli in a lamb ragu.

Our entrees were also wonderful. Here were our grilled Chianina filets with thinly sliced zucchini in olive oil and mint; veal cheeks in a Sagrantino wine reduction with barley risotto, and a round "zucchini" basket filled with meatballs:

Only two desserts were sampled, as we were pretty full by then, but here is a beautiful fruit plate and some cinnamon gelato:

You can see our happy group with our window toward the chefs! It was a delightful evening.

Our first night's "official" dinner is on Wednesday, but Tuesday night, we decided to try out one of the restaurants where our group will be dining with Jan and Les. We arrived at Enoteca Piazza Onofri a little after 8:30, and were delighted with the charming restaurant. We were brought cheesy bread and then we began with two shared orders of gnocchette with coniglio, zucchini blossoms and sprinkled cheese and CHOCOLATE! Who knew? It was light as air, and delicious!

Jan had a big bowl of pumpkin soup for her entree, but the rest of us were quite hungry. I had probably the best pork I have ever tasted, "mailolino" (saddle of pork stuffed with fennel and grilled veggies).

Brad and Les both enjoyed "tagliata di cervo" (sliced venison) with raspberry sauce. It was served with caramelized cabbage and onions. Oh yum!

Let the group games begin...

I've been away from the laptop since Monday, but I'm back on wifi at Genius Loci so, I can catch up on some blogging!

We picked up our rental car, the "Monster van" in Rome on Monday morning. It is a comfortable, although HUGE Ducato 9 passenger van with cup holders and separate AC for the back 2 rows of seats. Brad has been doing a fabulous job of navigating both city streets, and country roads in Umbria. Better Brad than me! I couldn't park a Smart car in some of these spots!

We arrived at Genius Loci Monday afternoon, dropped off our stuff and headed out for a full afternoon and evening of errands to be ready for our guests. Grocery shopping, pick up some local maps, and scout a couple of restaurants we will be visiting. We had a quick pizza for dinner, and an early bedtime of 10:30.

Well, that will teach me to go to bed early in Italy! I was wide awake at 4am, read until 5, and then sat on the terrace at first light. I was rewarded with a glorious Umbrian sunrise.

We left at 7 am for our first Rome pickup, as our friends, Jan and Les arrived on a late night flight, and we picked them up at their hotel in Rome at 10 am. Since it was too early for coffee at the inn, and I can't say my name without it, we stopped in Bastardo (don't you love the name of this tiny town?) for my latte. I asked the lady in Italian for the "piu grande bicchiere con cafe e latte caldo" (largest glass with coffee and hot milk). She came up with a Palmabella sized beer mug. PERFECT!

We found Jan and Les, and returned to Bevagna for lunch. I was saving myself for dinner, so I just had a salad. We did a few more pre-group errands, and relaxed on the beautiful terrace with some prosecco. Jan and Les are thrilled with the gorgeous surroundings, views, and perfect weather. All is good!

Sunday Evening, with rested feet, and new found energy, we set out for dinner at La Taverna dei Fori Imperiali. Grazie, Colleen K, for the recommendation. We had a fabulous meal! We began by sharing a special pasta of the evening: Large tube pasta with caramelized onions, broccoli and fresh sausage. It was amazing! Then I had a delicious saltimbocca, and Brad had roasted lamb with wine sauce and potatoes. The chef and waiter were charming. Dinner with a bottle of wine: 57 Euro.

After dinner, we had coffee and grappa at the charming rooftop terrace of the Hotel Forum. It was a gorgeous evening with a lovely view.

We ended up back at Campo Dei Fiori around midnight, and decided to stop at the Mozzarella Bar for a nightcap. I began my day at this deserted campo at 6:30 AM:

Peaceful, serene, quiet, sleepy...

At midnight, it is a boisterous, pulsating, vibrant, FABULOUS scene!

Buona Notte di Roma!

I awoke at 6 after a wonderful night's sleep. It was a gorgeous, quiet Sunday morning. I was in search of coffee and didn't want to wait until the hotel breakfast at 7:30, so I left Brad to sleep a while longer, and strolled through the quiet Piazza Farnese. No one was around yet. I journaled at a table at Cafe Farnese, until they opened at 7. Then I met Brad for breakfast at our hotel's breakfast room. We set out for a walk a little before 9:00.

Our hotel, Hotel Residenza Farnese is steps from the fountain on Via Mascherone and Via Giulia.

We crossed the Tiber at Ponte Sisto, and wandered around the streets of Travestere for a while.

We were thrown out of a military base, and proceeded up hill.

We then walked (uphill) on Via Garibaldi for a bit until we reached Porta San Pancrazio.

Next, we saw the Fonte Aqua Paola, and panoramic views of the city.

We kept walking, and reached the top of the hill: Piazza Garibaldi.

It was quite warm in the son, so we were grateful for the tree-lined sections of the walk.

By now, we had been walking for about three hours. My feet were beginning to swell and get tired, but we proceeded on toward Villa Doria Pamphili, and it's surrounding acres of park. The entrance to the public park was full of runners, walkers, and families with picnics.

We walked and walked and walked and walked, thinking, the villa must be right around the next turn. I had flashbacks of the walk to Villa Balbianello. This was 4 or 5 times as far. The villa grounds were beautiful, and I was happy we had continued.

Nice yard, huh? Ok, we were ready to leave the park. My idea of a comfortable mile or two walk had been exceeded three miles ago! Add hot and hungry to tired. We kept walking, looking for an exit to the park. We followed all the main paths, but it just kept going. It was like being in Golden Gate park with no exits...FOREVER! We finally got out, and were three miles south of Travestere. We called a taxi, and headed back to lunch. Exhausted, we enjoyed our meal at Trattoria da Gino alla Villette in Travestere.

I had risotto con langostino, and Brad had tagliatelle con piselli e porcini. We also shared some grilled salsiccia.

It was a short walk home, but we were ready for a nap and a shower! My feet want to know where the couch potato Palma went?