I thought you were in Italy?
Plus, what I've been reading
Some people have been surprised to see me in St. Louis recently. I did go to Italy, I came back for a bit, and then a leave again next week.
My recent trip to Italy was a preview of the school and my apartment in Bra, and mostly a visit to Terra Madre, the biannual global conference for Slow Food. I wasn’t originally planning to go, but 1) I finished all my paperwork and received my student visa in plenty of time, 2) I was already paying for an apartment in Bra throughout September [a “feature” of the academic year traditional for students not in my masters program], and 3) I found an incredibly cheap flights [which might explain my travel challenges, although I still believe my Travel Karma is strong, or who knows what would have happened].
Outside of a few snags, the trip was great. Terra Madre is like drinking from a fire hose, with SO MANY sessions and discussions and demonstrations and tastings and pairings and new foods and people to meet. You’ve heard a bit, and I’ll share more later.
I also got to in-person meet my apartment and spend some time there, albeit without electricity or gas — so it was kind of like camping. It’s a cute little space, though, and once I find a comfortable chair to replace the smallish club chairs, it will be super. Well, and I’ll need to get some kind of oven. And hot water. But aside from all that, it’s great.
(It appears to be a typical Italian thing that one needs a tax code number in order to get things like gas and electric connected, and the tax code needs to be registered officially, but that can only be done by providing your stamped passport to prove that you’re in the country. Knowing it takes from two hours to five days to get the utilities connected, you can see how efficient it is to not allow one to begin the process until after one arrives.)
In any case, I leave St. Louis a week from tomorrow, with bags full of everything I hope I’ll need, at least until I come back just before Christmas.
Which means I have a lot of Lasts, at least for a bit. My last Chocolate Tasting is tonight. My last Pizza Class at Tale to Table is Thursday, as is my last Wash U Market.
And my last Farmers Market — after working at least one or two each week for the past 16 years — will be at Tower Grove on Saturday. If you get the chance, please stop by and say hey.
Before I go, I want to share a few things I’ve been reading, and perhaps you’ll enjoy checking them out as well:
I’m enamored — and validated — by the awesomeness of this pickle pizza.
Since I’m moving to a place, and at a time, where truffles — the fungus variety — are a really big deal, I’ve been reading about truffle and wine pairings. Did you know you can smell truffles, but not actually taste them?
The best burger in the entire world is in…Spain?
It’s extremely cool that a new cheese shop just opened up in my hometown of Duluth, Minnesota. You betcha!
This interview with Evie Colbert and her husband Stephen makes the cookbook irresistible.
Last but not least — if you’ve made it this far — this is how we recycle in Bra. The key is the different colors of bags, I’ve been told (by my landlord, in Italian, of course).
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