Paula's Tour Talk

A Few Changes and Some Navigation Tips

I've learned a lot since I first started this blog in November 2005. This is the 100th post and it's time for some changes.

I am ending the "Italian Words and Phrases" feature because there are so many great ways to see and hear Italian online, whether you want a daily word or a complete lesson. For instance, at Italian Word of the Day from About.com's Italian Language page, you can not only see and hear a word of the day, but also see and hear it used in a sentence. You can look at previous "words" and find mini-lessons and more. And, this is just one example; if you search "free online Italian lessons," you will find hundreds of resources; you can also find Italian phrases for travelers and basic "survival" phrases like please and thank-you at many sites.

If you have a Google homepage you can add modules like an Italian-English dictionary, or even get free podcasts from LearnItalianPod.com delivered to your homepage daily. (If you don't have a Google homepage, you can, of course, just click on the link above and access the free lessons for both beginning and intermediate students). I use these lessons to supplement my ongoing Italian language studies and really find them fun and useful.

You will also notice that there is no longer a "Cultural Tidbits" section on the right. I will still write them, but they will be posted as regular short blog articles. I have heard from several readers that they often miss or overlook them, or simply don't have time to read them when they are included as an "extra" bit on the side.

I am pleased that every week more new subscribers are signing up to receive an e-mail notice with link when there's a new post. This is a free service provided by FeedBlitz--see  the box on the upper right. It keeps you up to date, and it helps with my ratings with search engines if you subscribe (so please do). After filling in and submitting your e-mail address, you will have to copy a code and submit it again to verify that yes, you actually do want to subscribe and that no, you are not an evil robot.

If you want to see all the articles that have been posted on a particular subject, go to the Categories section and click on the category of your choice. This way you can find all the recipes (under Food and Drink) or all the articles on Italian art, etc.  Or if you'd just like to see previous entries as they were posted, go to the Archives on the left and choose a month to browse.

You can help support this blog (and my serious book addiction) by clicking on one of the book icons on the left and entering Amazon through Paula's Tour Talk any time you have a purchase to make at Amazon.com--it doesn't have to be the recommended book, it doesn't even need to be a book at all. ANY purchase made through this site adds a few cents credit (at no charge to you) to my account and about twice a year builds up to enough for me to buy a book on Italy that I can't find at the library. Thanks!

Finally, please don't hesitate to make a comment or a suggestion by clicking on the Comments link at the bottom of each post. You can also e-mail me by clicking on the link under my picture. I love to hear what you think--I never have any idea if my articles are useful and  interesting, or even if anyone is reading them unless I get feedback from you.

Thanks for reading--I really enjoy writing the articles in Tour Talk and will continue to explore ways to make it better.  Ciao for now, more soon.

My Favorite Tuscan Antipasto

Of all the myriad delicious antipasti you'll find in the restaurants of Florence, a platter of crostini di fegatini, chicken liver puree on toasted bread, is my favorite. You will often find them on a plate of crostini misti (mixed), where the toppings might include chopped tomatoes, eggplant, mushrooms, or cheese. But sometimes you can order a whole plate of just fegatini ones. Add a glass of Chianti and a salad of mixed greens for a perfect light lunch or supper.

And, they're easy to make at home when I'm dreaming of Italy....

CROSTINI DI FEGATINI

1 thin baguette, cut into slices

1/2 pound chicken livers

3 Tabelspoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, crushed

4 Tablespoons of Marsala wine (or a bit more to taste)

5 or 6 small anchovy fillets*

Capers and tiny cornichons for garnish

Toast the bread slices in a 375 degree oven until golden, turning once to brown both sides. Fry the chicken livers gently in the olive oil with the garlic for about 5 minutes, until they are brown on the outside and still pink and juicy on the inside (do not overcook). Add to a food procesor with the rest of the ingredients (except the garnishes) and blend until smooth. Spread on the warm toasts, arrange on a platter with the capers and cornichon, and serve.

*Go ahead and add the anchovies even if you usually don't like them. You won't taste anything fishy, and they add a subtle flavor and just the right saltiness that make these crostini so scrumptious. If you simply MUST leave them out, be sure to add salt to taste.

Buon appetito!

Gondolas

Even though it's expensive, even though it's completely touristy, I can't imagine not taking a trip down a quiet canal in a gondola when visiting Venice. It's a magical experience, especially in the evening when the moon is shining above...

For everything you ever wanted to know about the Venetian gondolas, check out Gondolas: Its History, a fascinating website, with lots of information and pictures and links to other sites about Venice.

Also, here's a link to a story from the NY Times, On the Canals, A Woman Paddles Against the Tide, about the only female gondoliera. It's almost inconceivable that she was able to break this gender barrier!

Many guide books will encourage you to save money and skip the gondola ride, suggesting that the trip along the Grand Canal in the noisy vaporetto (water bus) is comparable. But it is not. The vaporetti  are great for getting around Venice when your feet are tired, and it's defintely worth riding one for the whole length of the bustling Grand Canal. In fact, it's the very best way for seeing the palazzos that line the famous waterway, an absolute Venetian must-do.

But there is nothing like seeing Venice the way its people have done for centuries, down close to the water, in a beautiful, slient, black gondola through the small canals that flow through this special place.

The Sixteen Pleasures by Robert Hellenga

This  elegant, intelligent novel opens with the following words:

I was twenty-nine years old when the Arno flooded its banks on Friday 4 November 1966. According to the Sunday New York Times the damage wasn't extensive, but by Monday it was clear that Florence was a disaster. Twenty feet of water in the cloisters of Santa Croce, the Cimabue crucifix ruined beyond hope of restoration, panels ripped from the Baptistry doors, the basement of the Biblioteca Nazionale completely underwater, hundreds of thousands of volumes waterlogged, the Archivo di Stato in total disarray. On Tuesday I decided to go to Italy, to offer my servies as a humble book conservator, to help in any way I could, to save whatever coudl be saved, including myself.

That is, Margot Harrington, the heroine of The Sixteen Pleasures, sets off for Florence and becomes one of the hundreds of angeli del fango (mud angels), young foreigners who flocked to Florence to help clean up after the huge flood of 1966. Eventually she finds herself working to preserve the books in a cloistered convent library. When the nuns discover a priceless volume from the Renaissance, depicting sixteen sensual pleasures in poems and illustrations, Margot is asked to help them secretly sell it.  As the story unfolds, she finds adventure, intrigue and passion in this delicious novel.

I enjoyed so much about this book. I liked revisiting the mid-60's; I liked the behind-the-scene glimpses of life in a Carmelite convent; I learned a lot about the arcane world of rare book conservation.  Plus, Margot is a thoroughly appealing character, and The Sixteen Pleasures has some truly funny, occasionally laugh-out-loud funny, moments.

This is a great book to read before visiting Florence...maybe even on the airplane. It gives you the feel of the city and its inhabitants, a glimpse of daily life, a smattering of Italian words (and one hilarious episode about a linguistic mistake), and well, many other pleasures. It's sensuous, exciting, very sexy, and smart. Highly recommended.

FYI: I found a three and a half minute video on the mud angels and the 1966 flood on YouTube. It's worth watching if you have a few minutes: Florence Flood.