An unfortunate happening....

Salve! Come stai? I hope this finds you better than I have been feeling the last 12 hours. As you likely have figured out, I love animals. They love you unconditionally, most love to be petted & made over and are simply tender little souls who require humans to thrive in this sometimes unkind world. Those unfortunate ones who manage to survive on the streets without the love and attention are the ones that truly tug at my heart. And here in Sorrento... there seems to be several.



Last evening after class and before dinner, I went with a fellow student to the little corner store to pick up some wine. On our way back and less than 30 feet from the front door of Mami Camilla's a kitty was struck by a car. The driver of the vehicle kept on going ... a hit and run. I quickly put my items down on the sidewalk and ran into the street to help the little friend. I scooped her up to carry her to the side walk.... she died in my arms. I don't think I have cried like that in weeks. I gingerly laid her down on the sidewalk and ran to my room for a towel. With her wrapped up, I simply held her and cried for this little lost love. With the help of one of my class mates (who volunteered to climb the fence to the lemon grove next door) we buried her. I am not sure but she may be one of the little pals I met my first day here. A black and white and very friendly friend. If it wasn't her, she was her twin. It doesn't matter, all I know is that she left body in the arms of a loving pet owner. My heart is broken.



On the weekend I had the opportunity to spend some time in Positano... if you have seen the movie Under the Tuscan Sun you might recall Marcello asking Frances ... "What brings you to Positano?". She had made the trip from Tuscany to the coast to see him and he was otherwise engaged... D'allora, my reasons for heading to Positano was simpler; I went to see the sites, eat the food and enjoy the beach.

I have come to the conclusion that the most heart healthy and fit people must live in Positano! There are stairs EVERYWHERE!! And I don't mean 7-10 here or there... I mean some 400+ from the street I stayed on to the beach! If you ever have the opportunity to visit this charming Italian city bring your walking shoes & walking STICK! Because of the stairs the general mode of transportation is walking. My little hotel .... 73 steps from the street level to the lobby. The view breathtaking... the knees a little sore!

As I watched people throughout the weekend I had to wonder about the logistics of life in this little slice of heaven. There is no way the 7 bags of groceries from Martin's or the laundry basket and box loads of items from Sam's club would make it up those steps!! Not to mention attempting to deliver furniture or appliances. How does it happen? It's pretty impossible not to mention expensive to build a lift on the side of a mountain simply to deliver a new sofa!

Life in general is simply different here in Italy. First of all, as Americans, we are so programed to driving everywhere. People walk here, ride scooters, bikes or take the bus. Stopping once at Walmart or Target for our items and making 2-3 trips from the car trunk to the house 50 feet away. The stores and grocery stores we shop at are owned by faceless people hundreds of miles (maybe thousands!) away from our cities. No longer do we visit la macelleria (the butcher shop) for our meat, la panetteria (the bakery) for our bread or mercato del pesce (the fish market) for our fish & seafood. Not to mention that those businesses are no longer owned by Mr. Jones or Mr. Bennett. We no longer know our droghiere verde (green grocer) but purchase vegetables from some supermarket that provides "fresh vegetables" that were not picked at the peak of freshness but earlier than when ready so they can be shipped from Mexico to appear fresh in the produce section of some store in the Midwest! My grandfather was a green grocer, he had a little shop down town LaPorte, IN in the 40's called Bilger & Sons... I wonder what he would think of all this progress that would have ultimately put his family out of business had the tradition of the store continued...

As a society we have lost touch with those simpler times of life. And trust me... I am as guilty as the next person regarding the things we call the conveniences of life! But what is really happening with all of this progress? We no longer are involved in peoples lives and livelihood. On the theory of seeking value we are trading our dollars out of our local neighborhood and into the pockets of large companies (read the book Big Box Swindle ~ S. Mitchell if interested in learning more). Food picked before it's ready and shipping in time to look pretty sacrifices taste and nutrients. As we continue to purchase from large producers and have less and less control over where and how our food is grown the less healthy a nation we will become. The less and less connected we will be as a community......

Wow... not sure what prompted all that but thank you for hanging in!

Today I went to the local market here in Sorrento. Sorrento is a tourist town and many things are rather expensive. The market is where the local residents seek out many different items from clothing to shoes to electronics; cosmetics, fabrics and food are also available. It occurs every Tuesday morning from around 9AM to 1PM or so. It was great! I picked up a pair of jeans for 10 euro and a pair of cheater reading glasses for 3 euro!!! OUTSTANDING!!

Then on the walk home the meat packers were delivering meat to a local macelleria! They were so tickled that I was snapping photos of this seemingly crazy event that they posed! When we initially saw this and before I could pull my camera out of the bag, the fella in red outside of the truck was carrying an entire side of pork on his shoulder! It was wild!!

So today ended my time in the kitchen cooking at Mami Camillas. I begin in the kitchen at Il Buco here in Sorrento on Friday. Il Buco is an interesting, upscale restaurant in the heart of Sorrento. It is the only Michelin Star restaurant in the near area. I am nervous and excited to begin the final phase of my externship. It's hard to believe that four weeks have passed already and I am moving into the home stretch here in this beautiful country.

Take a look at the newest photos and enjoy the sites. Be sure to check back to albums you have already viewed as I add photos to "In the kitchen" and "Dogs & Cats" regularly!

Ciao!