Che Bellisima-The Food of Rome

Rome isn't all just churches and the remnants of ancient worlds. Like many cities with seeming impossibly long histories (like Istanbul, Cairo, Amman, etc.) the old stands flush alongside the new. So much of what has allowed these places to survive in Rome is the long history of repurposing.

Castel Sant'Angelo

Bridge over the Tiber Castel Sant'Angelo (behind), St. Peter's (R)

Altare della Patria

The Castel Sant'Angelo, completed in 139 AD, was originally a mausoleum for Emperor Hadrian and his family and later emperors. In the 5th century it was converted to a military fortress and sadly much of the original treasures and the ashes were lost to Visigoths (there's something so satisfying abut the 'Visigoth') in the 400s. It wasn't until the 14th century that it because a Papal refuge, residence, and even prison. Now it's a museum.

Not quite so respectful to the city's history is the 1925 AD Altare della Patria, also known as the Monumento Nazionale a Vittorio Emanuele II, and less respectfully, the Wedding Cake. Built to commemorate the unification of Italy but it's first king (Victor Emmanuel) the base houses the Museum of Italian Unification and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier with an eternal flame. As the construction of this rather ostentatious thing destroyed a large part of the Capitoline Hill and leveled a medieval neighborhood it's not the most beloved site by Romans.

One way to explore a city is to just wander and get lost and I have always been a proponent of that method. Another favorite method: food tours. L and I discovered Trastevere that way with Eating Italy. I would be happy to go back to Rome and do nothing but Eating Italy's tours.

Da Enzo

We met our guide on the Isola Tiberina and crossed into Trastevere to the first of our seven stops. At Da Enzo we were greeted by the owners and a glass of prosecco. Here we had burrata, a fresh (and not easy to find) cheese made from mozzarella and cream. The outer shell is solid mozzarella but the inside is a mix of cream and mozzarella. For my DC peeps-sometimes Dino in Cleveland Park has this. We also the most amazing artichoke I've ever eaten. I can't remember the type of artichoke but basically all the do to it is pop it in peanut oil for a couple seconds then sprinkle it with salt.

Spirito di Vino

Spirito di Vino

Spirito di Vino

While I would happily have just stayed at Da Enzo for the entire evening I'm glad I resisted the temptation because the next stop was not to be missed. Spirito di Vino not only serves up amazing wine and food made from traditional, Roman recipes that date back to the emperors, the building itself is older, OLDER than the Colosseum. Here we ate pork cooked in red wine, apples, onion, honey, vinegar, and spices from a recipe created by Julius Caesar's chef. Whaat?! Yes.

Innocenti

From there we wandered Trastevere's charming and picturesque streets to Innocenti where this family has been baking its cookies since 1920. We were offered a section of biscotti but I believe the resounding favorite was the brutti ma buoni (middle above). These cookies, translated as 'ugly but good' are a meringue hazelnut cookie that are stupid good. Since we lack not at all for hazelnuts in Turkey I may try my hand at making these.

Antica Norcineria

After leaving Innocenti we had a longish walk of about 10 minutes for which I think we were all pretty grateful. We were feeling a bit on the rolly polly side and we weren't even halfway through the tour! Eventually we came to Antica Norcineria, a delicatessen offering amazing cheeses including Parmesan and Peccorino Romano and the city's best porchetta. I deeply love the description of porchetta: a savory, fatty, moist, boneless pork roast. the body of the pig is deboned, arranged carefully with layers of stuffing, meat, fat, and skin then rolled, spitted, and roasted for hours over wood. Every evening the family who owns Antica Norcineria prepares its porchetta which is then sent out for the roasting so its ready to be sold the next morning.

I asked if I could marry into the family but was told there were no sons of any age. Maybe they'll adopt me.

I Suppli

When it looked like things couldn't get any better we arrived at our next stop, I Suppli for Italian street food favorites suppli and pizza. Suppli are a balls of rice that's been mixed with tomato sauce, stuff with cheese, and deep fried. What can go wrong there?! We also had squares of Pizza Marinara which was just pizza with sauce, no toppings. I say 'just' but as soon as I tasted the marinara sauce with its perfect balance of biting garlic and sweet oregano all I wanted to do was dive into a vat of it and eat my way out.

Enoteca Ferrara

At this point, even I was getting pretty full but we still had actual dinner to go!At Enoteca Ferrara we were treated to a dinner or hand-made gnocchi, spinach and ricotta ravioli, and tonarelli cacio e pepe which is the fist pasta dish ever made. It was also my favorite of three.

How we managed to put away more pasta and wine is a little beyond me stuffed as we all already were. However there was no question of not being able to indulge in some gelato at the evening's last stop: Fatamorgana. It was here that I had one of the most interesting gelatos ever which I will try to recreate as soon as I can find enough fresh basil. Yes...basil. Fatamorgana carries a lot of the classic flavors you find anywhere else but they have also their own creations like: black cherry and beer, chestnut and myrtle, banana and lime, chocolate wasabi, Gorgonzola, cream of lavender and chamomile...the list goes on. However my favorite was the basil honey walnut. It was a revelation. Unfortunately I have no picture because I gobbled it down too quickly.

So basically...take at least one Eating Italy tour!

A Visit to Asia: Kanlıca and Yogurt

Since summer has finally arrived in Istanbul, E&M and I have been trying to put weekends to good use with trips like Mount Nemrut and a blue cruise (post coming soon!) and day trips around the city. A few weeks ago we decided to trek over to the Asian side to the village of Kanlıca.

It takes a lot to get me over to the Asian side. I can't really explain why I avoid it since I generally love any reason to get on a vapur, but avoid it I do. However a trip to a village famous for its yogurt was reason enough even for me. Especially when you realize that Kanlıca is up near the second bridge so it's a vapur (from Kadıköy to Üsküdar) then a bus (any of the 15s). A bus on a Saturday. There just aren't words for how horrible that is. Buses get so full, they rarely have AC and a couple open windows does not generate enough air to counter the million sweaty, non deoderant wearing bodies that are pressed up against one another. You really don't even have to bother holding on; you're packed in so tight you're not going to fall.

Yogurt with strawberry & kaymak ice cream

An hour and half after we left home we arrive in Kanlıca (Kan-lih-dja). We head for the first yogurt place we find and luckily get a spot near the water. Kanlıca does have a ferry stop but it's only serviced by the Bosphorus tour line which means the four (possibly?) departures each day are not at convenient times.

We sit down and order water (we need to rehydrate after that bus ride) and yogurt. E and I both order

ballı yoğurt (yogurt with honey) but M decides to be adventurous and orders the dondurmalı yoğurt
(literally, ice creamy yogurt). When it comes, the yogurt arrives with a bowl of powdered sugar. Apparently this is a thing. Ookay. Why not. It's good...but I am not a yogurt connoisseur so to me it just tasted like yogurt.

After yogurt we hopped back on the bus (sigh) to backtrack to Küçüksu Pavillion. Possibly the least expensive palace ticket (5TL) I've ever paid, it also comes with the world's shortest tour. A bunch of people gathered in the entrance foyer for a brief history of the small palace and a description of some of its features. The guide spoke only Turkish so I interpreted for E&M.

My stellar Turkish resulted in a truly informative discourse for them. Somewhat along the lines of:

•  Built in 18-something something
• two floors
• look an impressive staircase
• there's stuff in that room made out of walnut (wood not nuts)
• Ottomans did something
• Dude, who really wants chandeliers this ugly?
• Gardens...

It was a truly informational day for us all.

After his speech we were left to wander the rooms on our own. Holy over-decorated, Batman! I like me some bling but really? No. I can never help but wonder if all the gilding is really real or how it made it through wars and revolutions unlooted. Generally one is not allowed to take pictures in these palaces but I find that if you raise your voice a register, address the guard/guide as abi (big brother) and super politely ask if you may take a picture that they'll let you take one or two. I did not actually take any pictures though after going through the difficult process of being charming and asking, I brought the wrong lens.

Being as the pavilion is near the second bridge we had a great view of the European Fortress on the other side of the Bosphorus.

So, maybe I wasn't totally blown away by the yogurt, but it was definitely worth the trip. For the parts of the bus ride I was able to see outside I had a heck of a view.  The icing on the day's cake was not the powdered sugar served with the yogurt, but the fact that, after missing two buses coming out of the palace, the bus we caught back to the ferry stop was both air conditioned and empty. It's the like the unicorn of Turkish buses.

Hunting for Nessie

The last of our Scotland adventures took us to Inverness.It's not quite as old and not nearly as charming as Edinburgh but since we were there pretty much for Nessie that didn't matter so much.

River Ness

Inverness Castle

Saint Andrews Cathedral

We took an early morning train from Edinburgh and arrived in Inverness...or did we? It was so, so foggy that we could have arrived in Budapest and I don't think I'd have known the difference. Between the weather and my back the first day was a wash. We walked around a little bit and went to a Highland arts and crafts fair. My back had got so bad though that I was walking like a feeble, old person, moaning a little every few steps. The craft fair was a nightmare for me. The venue was really too narrow to shove as many stalls in it as they did and it was so crowded that I was getting bumped every other second causing me to emit increasingly less brief, piteous moans of pain. It was worth it though because that's were we found Damn Fine Cheese.

Thanks to the magically curative beds at Pitfaranne Guest House, I was virtually cured and ready to hunt down Nessie the next day.Pitfaranne Guest House, by the way, is a fantastic choice for your stay in Inverness. It's very central and everything is within walking distance. The beds are so comfortable, breakfast was great, and the owner, Pearl, was so lovely and helpful.

Me freezing on the Loch

Urquhart Castle from Loch Ness

Of course the real highlight of Inverness (aside from the cheddar) was the trip to Loch Ness.  We booked a tour that picked us up at the central bus station and brought us to a boat for our Loch Ness cruise, picked us up at Urquhart Castle, then took us to the Loch Ness visitors' center. The last, which chronicled the history of the lake and the monster was a lot more interesting than I thought it would be. We also had a lovely guide who provided laughs and some fun an interesting information.

For example, no matter how cold it gets, Loch Ness never freezes. There is simply too much water. In fact, Loch Ness holds more fresh water than all the lakes in England and Wales combined. And at 755 ft (230m) deep and covering 22 square mi (56 square km), if it were to be emptied of water it could hold the world's entire population. Multiple times.

As much as I would love to be able to say that we saw shadows moving under the surface of the water or a head breaking the loch's surface...we didn't. We had fun freezing our butts off on the boat though and wandering around the ruins of Urquhart (pronounced: er-kit) Castle. Thankfully the weather was no where near as foggy as it was our first day; but there was still enough haze around to lend the loch and castle a sense of mystery and the promise that a monster could be lingering nearby. We learned all about the hoaxes people have perpetrated and the natural phenomena that could be mistaken for a monster. My favorite was the deer. Apparently the local deer like to swim across the loch, which I believe is a mile across. Deer where I'm from don't do that.

This is as close as I got to Nessie

Just because we did not spot Nessie did not make this a wasted trip. If nothing else, the excellent, comfortable beds at Pitfaranne cured my back injury. I really enjoyed this brief glimpse of the Highlands though. The Scottish country side is stunning. I didn't even mind the cold.

Thus ends my adventures in Scotland. I fell in love with the country; especially with Edinburgh. I feel very much about Edinburgh as I felt the first time I came to Istanbul. Unfortunately the UK dosn't hand out residency permits with the same sense of abandon as does Turkey so the chances of my up and moving to Edinburgh are pretty slim. Which is a pity. For the time being I will have to make do with more visits. So ta for now, Scotland!

Prague and the Christmas Market

So Prague. I don't really even know where to begin! Prague has been on my travel wish list since high school and it was just so exciting to be able to visit. Especially at Christmas!  But before we get to the Christmas market we must first explore Prague itself. Because any city that randomly has water gnomes hanging out in its rivers is entirely worthy of exploration.

The Astronomical Clock in Old Town Square is one of Prague's most well known sights. Every hour crowds gather to watch Death ring out the time accompanied by a parade of the Twelve Apostles at the top of the tower.

Crowds gathering to watch Death ring the hour

Death ringing the hour

The clock is not Old Town Square's only site though. The large Hussite church of Saint Nicholas takes up one corner of the square.

While the spires of the Church of Our Lady before Tyn dominate the center of it. The square is rung with shops, hotels, and restaurants housed in beautiful, colorful buildings.

Prague was once one of the most important cities in Europe and was large and bustling while London and Paris were still villages. Because finding one's way could be very confusing, house signs were added to a lot of old buildings to make finding an address easier. Among the house signs we saw were: a trio of violins (3 generations of violin makers), a unicorn that looked more like a mutant sheep, a mermaid, and my favorite adorns the wall of the first Cubist house; the Black Madonna.

I tried to prepare for the cold in Prague. The week before I left Istanbul was enjoying a pretty balmy November with temperatures as high as 17C/63F. Thanksgiving was pretty chilly at 7C/45F but I hadn't even taken my winter coat out of storage before getting ready for Prague.

You can see everyone's wrapped up!

I was glad that I'd not only got out my winter coat but also packed silk long underwear, two pairs of of leggings, two pairs of gloves, a scarf, and enough socks to keep my feet warm because it was a chill 2-4C/35-39F in Prague! Thank goodness for a sensible city with no open container laws and stands every couple feet selling mulled wine and hot chocolate! I think our favorite mulled wine stand was one near the Charles Bridge where you could garnish the wine to your own taste with sugar and various fruits. Once I feel like making a trek out into the thundersnow Istanbul is currently experiencing to pick up some wine I'll start my own gluhwein production!

And despite the cold I also walked around my last day with several pints of the most delicious (hard) cider I've ever had. I really wish I could get Kingswood cider in Istanbul! Even if not for the bargain price of $2 per pint.

I loved the small square just before the Charles Bridge. The Catholic churches of Saint Francis of Assisi with it's pink and green dome and Holy Savior with all its statues, statue of Charles IV in the foreground, and the Torture Museum off to the right...I think I took about 20 pictures of this square alone. I took a ridiculous number of pictures of the Charles Bridge which gets its own post.

The Prague Castle, i.e. that entire complex on the hill, is the largest castle compound in the world. It contains several palaces, outbuildings, museums, and two churches. Dominating the hill is the Cathedral of Saint Vitus, which also gets its own post because I took something like 260 pictures of it. Only about five are worth anything but it still gets its own post.

View of the Vltava River from the Charles Bridge

Crossing the Charles Bridge gets you to Lesser Town which, kind of ironically, is now the more expensive part of the city. And Lesser Town, much like Mykonos, has its own Little Venice. This water way, now the home of the jaunty water gnome at the top of the post, used to power mills.

They're big fans of John Lennon here. Not only was there a John Lennon pub just after crossing over the waterway, there's also a wall, which actually belongs to a Catholic monastery, that has been covered with messages and art dedicated to him.

The first time we trudged up to the Prague Castle I was feeling pretty ungracious about hills and having to walk up them. In my defense, we were at the tail end of a four hour walking tour and we had already done some pretty serious walking. I went up again a few days later to visit the Cathedral of St. Vitus again and the hill seemed quite innocuous that time.

It's at least a pretty climb. the buildings lining the hill, a couple of them embassies (this the flags) were lovely. And the view of the street down was alone worth the small climb.

Back in Staro Mesto (Old Town) I was completely disturbed to be confronted by an entire theatre devoted to puppets. I may not have full on automatonphobia (fear of puppets) but the freaking creep me the hell out. Marionettes, which you can buy EVERYWHERE here, are only slightly less scary. But if I'm going to see Don Giovanni I'd rather see it sung by opera singers and not acted out by creeptastic marionettes, thank you very much.

Along that vein though, Prague had concerts galore! I'm not sure if that's specific to Christmas market season or not, but we could have attended two-three a day if we really wanted to. In the end I only went to two. I went with my friends to a fantastic concert in the Spanish Synagogue. The Spanish Synagogue was absolutely stunning. Done, apparently, in the Moorish revival style, it was an amazing setting for a string quintet sometimes accompanied by a really good soprano. I also went to a concert at the Saint Michael the Archangel Monastery. While the musicians were equally as good the soprano was a disappointment and had me cringing during her Ave Marie. *Shudder*

Prague State Opera House

One of my favorite sites in Prague was the State Opera House. One of my favorite movies growing up, and still actually, is Amadeus. Which was shot in Prague. It was the first American movie filmed in Prague actually while Czechoslovakia was still under Communist rule. Not only was it shot in Prague, many scenes were filmed in the State Opera House where Mozart's Don Giovanni originally premiered. It was a very geeky excitement I was feeling.

The 'Powder' Tower

What was the main reason for meeting two of my friends in Prague for a long weekend? The Christmas Market! For the last couple years my friend Sarah has visited a Christmas market somewhere in Europe and now that I'm ever so much closer to Europe than I used to be, I met her in Prague for this one.

Mostly we wandered around the market set up in Old Town Square but stalls could be found in just about all the squares around the city. I lusted after a lot of the ornaments but thought better of bringing them home. My cat Sherlock's second favorite activity is to knock anything and everything off tables, shelves, beds, chairs, etc. I can't count how many times I've yelled "Sherlock, you leave the Virgin Mary/Jesus (statues) alone!" So putting out delicate, handmade Christmas decorations was pretty much off the table. Pun intended.

I was able to at least honor the food vendors though! In addition to the cider, mulled wine, and hot chocolate there was barrel bread, sausages, and roasted pork to be enjoyed!

Trdlo-barrel bread

I'm afraid I may have over enjoyed the abundance of pork though. It's not exactly on every street corner in Turkey so when it was literally on every street corner (either in a restaurant or street stall) in Prague I went a little...hog wild shall we say?

That's us in the Christmas bulb!

Prague really turns it out for Christmas too! Not only were the squares done up for Christmas, but so were hotels, restaurants, and streets. There were random Christmas trees everywhere but Old Town Square housed the mother of them all.

You can't really tell from the picture but it was decorated with a clock theme to match the nearby Astronomical Clock!

After having this city on my travel wish list for so long I am happy that it did not disappoint! It's a pretty walking friendly city which I always appreciate but there is a metro and plenty of trams for easy access. People were super friendly and while they speak better English than many of the native speakers I knew growing up, they always seemed pleased when you could break out a 'thanks' or díky in Czech.
I will definitely visit again, regardless of season.