A House in Sicily

A House in Sicily

I haven’t blogged for a long while.  I’ve been working on some other projects and (of course) travelling.  I thought I’d resume the blog with a review of a book about travelling.  The charm of this memoir, A House in Sicily,  is its delightful narrator and her storytelling ability.  Daphne Phelps tells the story of how she happened to inherit a home on a hilltop in the Sicilian town of Taormina.  With virtually no money to care for the house and property, she turns the place into a small hotel and invites her friends from England to come and stay for a small fee.  These friends include artists and literary luminaries such as the cranky Roald Dahl, Bertrand Russell, and even Caitlin Thomas. Rumor has it that Greta Garbo once stayed in the house for a summer, although Phelps was too classy to admit this.  The book is a series of vignettes about her guests, the struggle she had to keep the house and navigate through the Sicilian legal (or not so legal) system, and about the characters who inhabit Taormina.  If you have been to Taormina, the book will make you want to go back.  If you haven’t, the book will entice you to go.  Either way, it’s worth reading.  By the way, Casa Cuseni is still a hotel where you can stay.  I, for one, am planning to do just that.  

La Fenice Opera House Venice Italy

La Fenice

In John Berendt’s book The City of Falling Angels he writes about the mysterious fire that destroyed La Fenice opera house and nearly destroyed all of Venice.  I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to see an opera while I was in Venice and see the magnificent renovation. 

This banner was hanging outside when I  visited.  Anyone knowing what it means, please comment.

La Fenice is a golden sparkling treasure.  If you go, be sure you are a buying a seat where you can see the stage.  In Italian opera houses, many seats are available where you can’t see without standing and leaning over.  It’s kind of like parts of Yankee Stadium.  Buyer Beware!

La Fenice

Searching in Venice for John Berendt

Olga Rudge Ezra Pound

Dorsoduro statue

John Berendt is one of my favorite writers.  No trip to Venice would be complete without searching out the places he describes in his book The City of Falling Angels.   One of my destinations was to find The Hidden Nest; home to the writer Ezra Pound and his lover Olga Rudge.  This was not as easy as it sounds.  The address is 252 Calle Querini near Rio Fornace canal on Dorsoduro.  I strolled the main street next to the canal taking in the sights as I walked.  The narrow Calle Querini was difficult to find.  It was indeed hidden.   Read the book.  It is filled with rich stories about Venice and Venetians.

Dorsoduro

Hidden Nesthiding in plain sight

Shopping in Venice Italy: Luxe and Lovely

Although it’s not known as a shopping mecca, Venice is still part of Italy. Shopping anywhere in Italy is an experience not to missed or overlooked. Okay, much of my shopping consists of window shopping (“licking the window” is an apt phrase although French, not Italian it still applies). The window displays are sometimes enough to statisfy me. For example, these stunning glasses:   If I owned them, I’d be terrified of breaking one. So I am completely content to ogle them in the window.

glasses to covet

I am also elated to gaze at the windows at any of the Venezia Stadium stores. Look at these colors! Look at these fabrics! One pillow can cost 75 euros! I’d be terrified to own anything that came from these stores. Even if I could afford them.

Venezia StadiumVenezia Stadium

Of course, shopping makes me hungry so I have to stop and have some bruschetta and vino while being serenaded on San Marco Piazza.

snacks

 

But my all time favorite non-purchase were the tiny figures that are as big as my thumbnail. I stood transfixed forever watching these “Tiny Dancers.”   

Unfortunately, this site wouldn’t let  me download my videos.

Murano Glass, Murano Italy

I am obsessed with glass and glass-making. My favorite contemporary artist is Dale Chihuly from Seattle and I never miss a chance to see a piece by him or an exhibit in whatever city I’m in.  In fact, I first encountered his work in a PBS documentary that was filmed in –where else?—Venice.  This one-eyed genius was floating glass bubbles down the Grand Canal and trying not to get caught by the water police!

murano sculpture

Take the vaporetto (water bus) # 41 from San Daniele to Murano and plan to spend the day.

Murano

 Buy a packet of at least ten tickets if you are going to spend a few days. 

murano baubles

The glass museum is closed on Wednesdays.  Wander in and out of the show rooms and ask to see something special and they will take you to their back or upstairs which are museums in and of themselves.  Some will offer you a factory tour.  Although the hope is that you will make a purchase, it is fine to just be a tourist and take it the beauty of the craft.

In Venice, my personal  favorite is Seguso glass, but there are many that I appreciate for their beauty such as Venini. 

Of course, because this is after all, still Italy, I stopped to eat along the water.  I had this delicious seafood appetizer and a lovely glass of wine.

seafood

Murano

EATALY NYC MARIO BATALI’S FOODIES’ DREAM

Mario! Mario! Mario! To say that I am a groupie is putting it mildly. I’ve been a fan from his Molto Mario days. I stood in line to get his cookbook signed at a Barnes & Noble in Freehold, NJ. I had a dozen things I wanted to say to him. Like how the soup at ESCA, one of his New York venues, was THE best soup I’ve tasted. When it was my turn to meet him, I stuttered and stumbled like a teenager. Ridiculous. I admit it. I’m obsessed. I’ve watch the entire Spain! series more times than I care to admit and I mimicked his trip to Mallorca and Barcelona. Minus Gwyneth, Bittman and Claudia, sadly. So when Mario teamed with his partner Joe Bastianich and Joe’s mom, the revered Lidia Bastianich and they opened a huge emporium/restaurant…well I was there. And again; Mario is simply the best. Unstoppable! 

EATALY

 EATALY, as this huge space is called, is unique in New York. Located at 200 5th Avenue, there is a café, gelateria, pizza place, beer garden, fish restaurant and more places to eat than there are days of the week. Entering EATALY is to enter Mario heaven. Laughably, the first person I spotted wore his signature orange crocs, although they are not de rigueur by any means; just an homage to the master genius known as Batali.

IL PESCE

 When I entered EATALY I had two simultaneous thoughts. First, I was on sensory overload. Where to go first? Should I head towards the fresh fish or towards the lovely bakery that was seducing me with the smell of carbohydrates? My second thought was, is there really a recession? Because this overpriced emporium was packed in its second week of existence. My next thought was, “Wow! How many people does EATALY employ?” A lot. And so Mario is certainly doing his bit toward helping the US economy recover. What a risk he took, along with his famous partners Lidia and her son Joe Bastianich. This space is nearly 50,000 square feet of prime New York City real estate. How did Mario find the confidence, the cohunes, to boldly open this Mecca devoted entirely to Italy, Italian food, and Italian products.

TOMATOES

Wherever his nerve came from, I’m glad he did it. EATALY will be my Italian home away from Italy. Whenever I need an Italy fix and can’t get there, I’m coming here. Here, I can have my choice of fine olive oil, balsamic vinegars, prosciutto, fresh produce, fish, parmesan reggiano, tapenades, sauces, pastas, gelato as close to the real thing as I’ve had in the states, espresso, brick oven pizza, and wine. I can bring home whatever I can’t find room to eat here. And I ate a lot. Pizza, salamis, gelato, bread with olive oil; everything was delicious.

PRODUCE

 The prices are absurd. Of course they are. Everything is imported. There is a flat screen tv showing Italian news. In Italian. But considering the price of an airline ticket to Italy and a hotel in Milan where I could go to PECK to purchase similar items, it’s a bargain. I will be there again. Soon. And often. And Mario…like a fine piece of Italian cheese; you get better and better with age.

SALAMI MISTO

More things to do in Dorsoduro: Venice

 Venice is famous for its masks, now used mostly during Carnevale.   The tiny mask shop where Stanley Kubrick had masks custom-made for his film Eyes Wide Shut was around the corner from my apartment. 

Venice mask shop

 As was this fountain.  Every day, for a few hours each day, a large dog was tied to this fountain and greeted everyone who passed by.  When he wasn’t sleeping, of course. 

fountain

The Dorsoduro is made up of small neighborhoods.  My apartment was steps and one tiny bridge away from the Piazza San Barnaba where locals gravitate before school or work to have a quick espresso or cappuccino at the bar. I had mine with a warm brioche filled with marmalade.  You could smell them baking from down the street.  The piazza fills up again at lunch (siesta) time. Later in the day, people once again flock to the piazza for an aperitif after work. This being Venice, prosecco is the local favorite.  Some of the crowd lingers on for dinner.  I had a lovely meal and delicious house wine at Oniga.

oniga

This is a small piazza but it has all the essentials; incredible gelato at GROM …crema grom is the specialty and it’s amazing…a few small restaurants, shops, and a church. 

GROM

 The church was hosting a small show of models of Leonardo Da Vinci’s designs.  That’s one of the features about Italy I love best.  Even in the smallest neighborhood, in a relatively obscure church, you can find wonderful art that is not really there for the tourists.  The locals were the predominant audience for this show. 

DaVinci

Venice: Things to do in and around the Dorsoduro

Things to do in and around the Dorsoduro

bruschetta pesce misto

Wander.  Get lost.  Eat.  The Dorsoduro has many little discoveries you don’t need a tour guide for.  When you walk across to the end of the island you look across at La Giudecca on the southern lagoon; an incredible view.  Walk along the water and take in the views. Stop and eat or have an aperitif and an antipasto at one of the many restaurants that dot the shoreline.  I stopped at Caffe La Piscina (www.lacalcina.com) and had amazing pesce misto bruschetta; mixed fish.   And the view from the restaurant…. Well, you can see for yourself.

At the furthest tip of the Dorsoduro, beyond the church, Santa Maria della Salute, is the newest art museum called Punta della Dogana.  Part of  Palazzo Grassi, the building itself is a renovated palazzo that alone justifies the price of admission (7 euros).  But the art is worth seeing, as well.  While the Palazzo Grassi houses older, Renaissance art, this museum showcases modern art and much of it is political and disturbing.  Pieces such as this soccor (futbol) game are thought- provoking and a contrast to the art that you find all over Venice.

disturbing futbol

  The naked statue holding a giant frog is a conversation starter outside the museum.

Punta della Dogana

Return to Venice: First Night, First Meal

Pizza in Campo San Margherita

On this trip to Venice, I stayed in the Dorsoduro section of the city in a small apartment on the Grand Canal.  Go to ( www.viewsonvenice a reliable rental service.)  Staying in an apartment is not for everyone, but if you truly want to feel like you are living in a place then I highly recommend it.  The Dorsoduro area is where the Accademia and the Peggy Guggenheim Museum are and my apartment was a few steps away from Ca’ Rezzonico, one of the most beautiful of the grand palazzos that is now restored and open to the public.  This part of Venice has a few hotels, but is quite residential and gives you a true Venetian experience.

Accademia Bridge

If you are standing in San Marco Square and look across the water, that is the Dorsoduro.  It is connected to the main part of Venice by the wooden Accademia Bridge.  Or, you can get there by boat.

Sports Bar in Dorsoduro

On my first night, I ate four cheese pizza in Campo San Margherita at a great little outdoor pizza restaurant.  Next door was a sports bar where a few dozen Venetians stood watching soccer finals and cheering raucously. At the next table were Lenny and Russell; two great guys from LA who had also just arrived in Venice.  The pizza was amongst the best I’ve ever had.  The house wine wasn’t too shabby either.   It was great to be back in Venice. 

Four Cheese Pizza

Capri: A Day Trip from the Amalfi Coast

Everything you have heard or read about the Amalfi coast is true.  The views are stunning, the traffic is appalling, the cuisine in southern Italy is unforgettable, and the drive through the hills gives new meaning to breath-taking.  You hold your breath because you are sure you are never going to survive the trip.

View of Capri from the Water

There have been many words written about the coast, but just off the coast is the island of Capri.  Famous for being famous, Capri is definitely worth seeing, but I think it’s a day trip, not a place to stay.  It’s also not a place for the feeble.  Nor is any of the Amalfi coast for that matter.  You must be in decent physical shape, because everything is a climb and there is little you can do to circumvent that.  Forget the Italian stilettos; wear your walking shoes, bring lots of water, and be prepared to trudge up and down hills all over the coast.

 

 

Scene in Capri

Capri is a short ferry ride from Sorrento, which was my base.  The ride was cool and the scenery from the water is spectacular.  The water was a deep, sapphire blue and dared you to dive in.  Capri was a touristy, but pretty place.  The higher up you go, the better the views.  The crowds do not, however, thin out.  There are stores galore and you buy everything Italian; from sandals to exquisites tiles.  The namesake perfume Capri is a delicious-smelling scent that can’t be found anywhere else.  Lemoncello flows freely and the seafood is fresh and delicious.  Ferries run frequently, so you can linger by the port and watch the boats and the tourists come and go while sitting outside and sipping your favorite drink.    

Capri