Il caffè…

Italians love their coffee. We are certainly not slouches in the coffee department either, so while in Italy we have taken advantage of the high quality of the espresso and macchiato made here.  On occasion we have had a cappuccino or a caffe latte but find them too milky and lacking in coffee taste. Two notable exceptions are the Cappuccino made by Dani at Hotel Aetna 316 in Catania, and Guiseppe of Cafe del Porto (also owner of Il Vicolo B & B, highly recommended) in Milazzo.

Coffee, of course, goes hand in hand with pastries and Andrew and I have sampled our share along the way.We are particularly fond on things with ricotta or chocolate or nuts, especially pistachio. But we are not averse to the odd croissant either. Here are some snaps of the varieties of cups and coffee brands that have fueled us through Italy.

Macchiato

Macchiato at a train station bar

Perfect Cappuccino at Cafe del Porto Milazzo with fresh OJ and croissants

Due Macchiate

The trifecta of pastries – ricotta, chocolate and nuts

Macchiato with funky spoon

Espresso in a disposable cup

Read Full Post »

Siamo arrivato

We have arrived in the Tuscan town of San Giovanni Valdarno for two weeks of Italian language study at ‘Il Sillabo‘. But not before first stating out with family in Rome.

What can I say about Roma? It is crazy and hot and crowded and charming and noisy and beautiful and well, you get the picture. It’s an enigma. There are four million people inside the big ring road that surrounds Rome but the suburbs are spread way outside that ring. Finding parking is an art form at which our 20-something cousin Giulia is already an expert.

Thanks to our lovely cugini (cousins), we have been taken to some of the main sites and, more importantly, to some of the local joints.

You would think that Rome’s water supply would have been sucked dry by now, but not so. There are fountains on the streets of the old city and ancient quarter where you can drink freely. Locals and tourists alike stop to drink or to refill water bottles.

Maybe there’s something in the water that makes the coffee so good. I don’t know…it’s just different. So, ‘when in Rome’ and all that…

It’s just different, the coffee.

Read Full Post »