Giorno quattordici

Today was our second-to-last day on our journey and it was time well spent.

We drove to the top of the mountain to an agriturismo by the name Le Volte. Like most other agriturismos, Le Volte is a self-sustaining farm that produces most of its own food. This one in particular is 16 Hectares and specializes in olive oil, apples and seasonal vegetables. We opted out of yet another olive oil tasting having had several before and instead, opted into the kitchen to spend the day with Anna, the resident cook.

Anna was a blast but very apologetic for not being a classically trained chef. She could not comprehend why we would want to learn from her instead of a professional chef. My response was simple. Italian cooking starts at home and most chefs first learn from their mama. We walked their garden and harvested a large squash (zucca), some eggplant and fresh herbs to cook with. It took us 3 hours but we prepared a lunch feast. Squash puree, gnocchi pasta baked with tomato sauce, mozzarella, basil and parmesan, spaghetti with braised squash, grilled squash, eggplant rolled around mozzarella with basil and baked in tomato sauce, eggplant “meatballs” fried in EVOO and then real beef meatballs (polpetine) also fried in EVOO and then baked on top of lemon wedges. For dessert, potato donuts with sugar and cinnamon, also, fried in EVOO. All very good and despite what it sounds like, very fresh and healthy.

Helping us in the kitchen was Joanna, a mother of 3 and transplant to the region from Maryland 12 years ago after falling in love and marrying a local pastry chef, and Mario, a very jovial Unkle Fester-like guy who unfortunately, did not buy into Western hygiene and smelled like what I imagine the inside of a well-worn leather-rode glove smells like. Prior to sitting down for lunch, Ryan and I decided to play Mario roulette at the table by sitting down and seeing who Mario would sit next to. Yours truly won and I spent the first course of the meal pseudo holding my breath before I decided to just deal with it.

After cooking for 3 hours and eating and drinking for 2, we were all tired and in need of some stimulation or a nap. We had initially planned on driving 2 hours away to a Buffalo farm that specializes in the traditional Buffalo Mozzarella, but the thought of spending that much time in the car to see a big cow seemed torturous. Instead, Carlo our host suggested a hike to Punto Campanele. Little Bell Point was a little more than I bargained for but this 45 minute hike led us down to the farthest South West point on the peninsula and overlooked both directions. To the South was a beautiful bay and to the West with the sun slowly setting behind it, was the large silhouette of the Island of Capri. At the risk of sounding corny, watching the sun set today put some closure on this adventure.

While we still have tomorrow’s drive back to Rome and a few tourist stops along the way, namely, the ruins of Pompeii, the educational portion of this trip is now essentially over. I will let my thoughts on the trip at large marinate for a day or so before I try and put it all together, but then again, I will surely find myself with lots of time on my hands on that long 17 hour trip back home. Until then, those of you that have taken the time to read these “journal” entries, thank you for sharing this journey with us. We are tired, homesick but very eager to return to work and to apply what we have learned.

Ciao…