Ikea Salerno 

by midgeguerrera, posted in Practical Matters - Living Abroad

 Somethings are the same no matter where in the world you are! Our little adventure to IKEA, took us to IKEA in Baronissi,  provincia di Salerno. We could have been at IKEA Newark, IKEA Toronto, IKEA wherever you live!  I swear the floor plan was the same as the IKEA the Jack and I have often visited outside of Newark airport.

I bet IKEA even pays states and provinces to build special exits off major highways so that it’s really easy to find them. This IKEA has its own little loop off of the autostrada, incredible.


Of course we had to try the restaurant café. It looked like all the other restaurants. The only difference might have been the bar – complete with espresso machine and prosciutto panini.  Taste testing,  I discovered that the Swedish meatballs at IKEA Baronissi  have the same effect on my digestive track as they do when I eat them in Newark.

Now that we sold our house in New Jersey, we are really nesting in Pontelandolfo. Today’s journey bought us new furniture for the living room, new furniture for my office and a bunch of other stuff. Once you get into that market area the shopping frenzy just kicks in.

Ciao for now. The car is loaded and we are trying to figure out how to get home without the desk top smacking our heads.

Young Entrepreneurs – Arochiosco

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo, Stops Along the Journey - Sites Off the Tourist Track

We read about it, hear the stories and see young people with advanced degrees in architecture, engineering, and literature sitting in the piazza bar letting the days pass them by.  The economic crisis that has racked Italy has had a profound effect on young people.  If one lives in a little village like Pontelandolfo and loves living here than finding a job is nigh impossible.  This is southern Italy – it doesn’t have the manufacturing found in the north.  Nor, does it appear to have regional governments that do something about the problem.  What’s a young person to do?  Sit and stare?  Polish your friends nails while slowing sipping your €.80 bicchiere di prosecco in the bar?  After university, some twenty-five to thirty-five year olds do just that.  Others like Elena Baldini and Jean Luca Diglio create their own prosperity!

Bar Elena

I wanted to call this story “Entrepreneurial Elena” but alliteration seemed just a wee bit lighthearted for what I hope will be a series on the young entrepreneurs who are making their own employment opportunities.  Architect, Elena Baldini – who I did first meet years ago in Bar Mixed Fantasy – has the passion and drive to be successful at whatever she puts her mind to.  Last summer, she joined forces with Gianluca Diglio – who grew up in an entrepreneurial family – get his family’s back story here – http://wp.me/p3rc2m-fd.

They created Arochiosco, a neat summer time bar perched on the side of a mountain.  Found in Morcone’s Piazza M. Giuseppe Manente, the charming outdoor space features wooden gazebos with a birds eye view of Pontelandolfo, Lago Campolattaro and incredible valleys.  Sitting there was like sitting in a magical tree house.  Last summer, Jack and I originally went to Arochiosco to be supportive of the two young Pontelandolfesi.  It was so delightful, we went back just to go back.  Sitting there writing, I was reminded of afternoons spent in Fieosole – sipping prosecco and staring out over the rooftops of Firenze.  There was one HUGE difference – price point and lack of tourists!  For €3 we got a bag of chips, bowl of nuts, Campari Soda and white wine.  We also got to sit comfortably and watch the river of life that flows through Morcone.

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Gianluca

Wait a minute?  How could two kids start a bar?  That takes cash for inventory, tables, chairs – who built the wooden structures? What is the real back story here?  Well folks – networking 101!  There is a bar in Morcone – directly across the street from the piazza.  The owner after talking to Elena and Gianluca made an offer that the two hardworking youngsters couldn’t refuse.  Network?  Si!  The owner was the uncle of Gianluca’s wife and he often thought of expanding to outdoor tables on the piazza.  Since his bar was a one person shop, he couldn’t do it.  Gianluca alone couldn’t help him but the incomparable duo – Gianluca and Elena could and did.

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Elena

Elena had the bar experience – having bar tended and Jean Luca had the contact.  They worked out a percentage deal – did the hard work and created great seasonal jobs.  Networking 101!

Arochiosco open again this summer.  We will be there.  I applaud their drive and ability.  I also applaud the other young people of Pontelandolfo who are creating their own futures.  Congratulazioni!

Cell Phone Blues

by midgeguerrera, posted in Practical Matters - Living Abroad

What? No Magic Jack or Viber?

What?!  This sim from this Phone won’t work in my iPhone 6???

The first two years we stayed long term in Italy we used the telephone carrier Wind.  Here is the flash back to that first year –  http://wp.me/p3rc2m-69.

It cost us €10 a month for each phone and that got us 400 texts, 400 minutes and unlimited data. Though – after the 1st gb the data was s l o o o o w.  Unbelievable price.  The only problem we had was logistical.  The Wind signal didn’t make it to the kitchen of our stone house or any interior rooms.  But – hey for that price we answered all calls in the dining room or if that didn’t work -on the balcony.

We bought new iPhones this year and discovered new technology.  Beh!  The iPhone 6 uses a micro sim!  Perchè?  Because then you have to buy more new stuff!  Double Beh!!

Now, since we couldn’t seamlessly insert the sim from the iPhone 4’s into the new phone.  We spent our first week in Italy exploring the sights and foods of Milan – just using our Verizon Wireless Global Plan for uber emergencies – like where in the world is JACK!  The Global Plan costs more than I want to spend just to call a local Milanese restaurant – all those roaming and I can’t figure them out charges.

We needed to get an Italian sim card ASAP.  In Milan, I asked around and no one could point me to a Wind store.  Apparently, it is not in the social register of the literati.  Everyone I asked said – “oh here in Milano we use Tim.”  Tim has always been a popular phone service so we spent €45 for two sim cards and one month of usage.  Tim worked great in Milan.  Not so great in Bellagio, Rome, on the train to Boiano and not at all in our house in Pontelandolfo.  Merde!

Since we are planning on traveling around more of Italy this year, I decided to do the smart thing and research a bit.  We heard the rumor that Vodofone – which now owns a bit of Verizon – was moving towards buying into another carrier for a USA presence.  What the hey – let’s roll the dice and try Vodofone.  €15 bought us each a sim card and the first month of service.  Now it will cost us more than Wind – €16 each month for 1gb of data, 100 sms and 100 talk minutes – I think.  I say I think because we bought the sim cards in  Media World – think Best Buy type of store –  not in a Vodofone store.  I was remiss – yes, yes, I do occasionally screw up – and didn’t ask all the right questions or get a print out of what we bought.

Vodofone works everywhere in the house – even the all stone kitchen.  We get a signal – so far – knock wood – everywhere we have been.

Klunk – that is the other shoe dropping.  I bought the card and was glad because they have an app for my iPhone and an online presence.  That means I can – allegedly – recharge the card and check out any new deals on line.  WRONG.  I was born in the wrong place to do that!  One must be able to register on-line to use the app and on line services.  To register on line you have to fill in a form that includes place of birth.  Guess what?  I was born in the USA and the form only has drop downs for the EU.  UGGGG.  We did spy a Vodofone store or two and I’ll be going in asking them to please register me.

Summary – Vodofone costs us more per month than Wind but works everywhere.  Tim – well – we will just forget Tim.  USA Global plans we won’t even talk about.

Cute Guy Finds Your Lost Ancestors!

by midgeguerrera, posted in Finding My Family - Genealogy

Alexandra Rose Niedt, my incredible niece, called one day and said, “You’re buying Richie and I dinner – where shall we meet.”  Hmm, that sounded mysterious.  Alex and Rich had gone to a Performing Arts High School together.  Last I heard he was studying theater in  – well I don’t remember but some UK place or another.  Jack and I met Alex and Rich Venezia for dinner.  As Rich chatted about what he was up to, I caught the mischievous gleam in my niece’s eyes. Rich Venezia is an ancestor detective!  Give him the clues and he will track down that wayward great, great uncle Vito. Immediately I was hooked!  I wanted to hear all the stories, learn how he did what he does and the whole maghilla! richedit2

Eye Candy and Smart – A Killer Combination!

I whipped out my iPhone and went right to his website – http://www.richroots.net/.  Yes, I know I would give the mal’occhio to anyone who pulled a phone out at dinner but..  Here’s the lead in on the site;

Ever heard about that eccentric great-uncle who may or may not have spent his last years in jail? Know your family’s Italian, but don’t know whether your meat sauce should be Bolognese or Neapolitan ragù? Rich Roots Genealogy provides genealogical services to help you find your rich roots.

The reporter in me beat up the writer in me and won.  This is the interview that we shared over caffè and a sfogliatelle. Yes, the tape was rolling –
M: Cute boy – I mean Rich, how did you get started in genealogy? 
R: I was really close to my grandma – my mom’s mom.  My other grandma died when I was 7.  When I was 13, Grandma Edna passed away.  Cleaning her house we discovered the family tree she’d been working on. I was in a strange place, having lost three grandparents before the end of my first teenage year, and I thought taking up the mantle to work on the family tree would be a great way to honor both my late maternal grandmother and my father’s parents. So, from the time I started working on the “Comprehensive Camperlino Clan,” I was hooked!
M: So genealogy is a passion?
Once I started playing detective, I knew it was a role I wanted to keep on playing. I began getting more serious about genealogy as a profession, and two years ago officially started Rich Roots Genealogy.
M:  Sounds like Grandma Edna was a catalyst for your business.  Tell me more about her. R: Edna Marie Foulkes was her name. She was my only non-Italian grandparent! She was so very proud of her Irish heritage, but she was also Welsh, English, Prussian, and (recently learned) Canadian. She was kind and funny and she loved spoiling her grandchildren. I remember she had this silly fake flower pot that would play “In the Mood” when you pressed a button, and the flowers would dance. Every time I visited, we’d dance together. I remember she was silly and had a joie de vivre. I like to think I gained some of my spontaneity and passion for life from her.
M: Let’s talk about the Italian side for a second – isn’t the rest of your family Italian?
 R: Yes, ma’am! My last name is Venezia, after all! Five of my eight great-grandparents were born in Italy, and the sixth was born in Pennsylvania only a few years after her parents immigrated. They were all born in different towns, and a lot of their families had actually moved a lot before the big move, so I am up to over a dozen ancestral hometowns… and counting!
M: How much of your research, specifically into Italian records, can you really do from the USA?  
R: A whole lot, actually. The Mormon church has spent decades microfilming (and recently digitizing) records from hundreds of Italian comuni at archives all over Italy. Some of these records are online on their website, others are online on the Italian National Archives’ site, and many others are available on microfilm at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. I’ve been very fortunate that a lot of towns I’ve been researching in lately (not my own, naturally) have been available online.
M: I know you love to travel – what about your research in Italy? What records are available there?  
R: The possibilities are endless, really. Mainly, the Archivio di Stato of the province will have the vital (stato civile) records of nearly every town in that province, as well as catasti (censuses), military records, notarial records (where one can find such amazing things as a marriage contract, land records, etc.), and all sorts of other interesting (and little-used) records. In the town itself, a visit to the church is a genealogical treasure trove. Churches in Italy were supposed to keep track of baptisms, marriages, and burials of all parishioners from 1595 onward… some started decades earlier! I am on a quest to learn about the origins of my surname (my roots are all south of Naples from what I know), so it’s on my short list to head to Atripalda and see how far Venezia goes back there.
M: How often does your work get you to Italy?   
R: I try to come to Europe at least once a year, if not more. It’s in my five-year plan to be able to offer client research in Italy, too. And now that I have a place to stay not far from Naples…
M: Any pal of Alex’s can stay with us – and give genealogical advice. What’s one bit of genealogical advice you’d give to a beginner?  
R: Never give up – because you never know where your answers may lie! Genealogy is such a multi-faceted thing. Records we’d never even think to look into may often fill in the lives of our ancestors. As well, records we may have in our home (or our close relatives may have) that we may have forgotten about could lead to some brilliant findings. Remember that dusty old shoebox in the closet, above the Christmas decorations? Time to dust if off! I firmly believe that learning about our past leads us to learning about ourselves… our ancestors’ stories are just waiting to be found. They give us – well, certainly me, at least – pride, purpose, and peace.
M: Rich, you know that I feel exactly the same way – I hope that more young people become interested in learning about their heritage as a pathway to finding out more about themselves.  Grazie mille, Rich!
Little Commercial For Our Pal – 
Since Rich began accepting clients as a professional genealogist, he has helped many others find their roots in Italy, Ireland, Lithuania, Scotland, St. Kitts, Sint Eustatius, France, Germany, The Netherlands, and of course in the USA. He is a member of local and national genealogical organizations, and has attended a number of conferences and institutes to continue his education as a professional. He recently received his Online Certificate in Genealogical Research from The Boston University for Professional Education, and is excited to be running unopposed for Vice President of the North Hills Genealogists in Pittsburgh.
Rich is based in Pittsburgh. His website is www.richroots.net.

Corpus Domini Needs Your Explanations!

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo

Baptized Lutheran and raised in the Dutch Reformed Church, I am not well versed in Catholic Liturgical ritual – I need you and your comments to round this out for me.  What!? You said – how could this nice Italian girl not be Catholic?  Mio nonno refused to let anyone go to the Catholic Church because the priest was boinking the area wives.  Grandpa conducted mass in the house!    Enough about me, let’s talk about Corpus Domini!  it was 9:00 PM and the sounds of bombs bursting in the air still surrounded us.  No need to duck and cover this is the end of the Corpus Domini Processione.  Hundreds of Pontelandolfese went to mass at 6:00 PM and at 7:20 started processing through the hilly streets –  stopping at small alters around the town.

Alter

Thanks to http://www.duomofirenze.it/feste/corpusdomini_eng.htm:

Every year, sixty days after Easter, the Church celebrates “Corpus Domini”: a religious solemnity in honor of the Eucharist (the ‘body’ – corpus – of Christ in the sacramental sign of bread): an observance that first developed in Italy the thirteenth century and in 1263 was extended by Pope Urban IV to all of Christian Europe. In Florence as elsewhere, from that period the feast has been celebrated in solemn fashion, with a majestic procession in which the Eucharistic bread is borne through the city streets in a glass container know as a ‘monstrance’, which allows people to see the consecrated bread wafer. This procession acquired ever greater importance with the passage of time.

Here is what I saw that was so interesting – these are the rituals I want you to talk about!!

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Note the Satin Drapes.

1. Driving down to the piazza we saw women hanging out what looked like their best lace tablecloths, satin bedspreads, fancy linen sheets etc.  Check out the first photo – see some on the right.  These things were waving like banners in the wind. At first we thought it was laundry but Jack remembered reading that when Henry the 8th came to a village everyone had to hang out their best fabrics to honor his coming.  In Bar Elimar I asked our friend Gennaio why the piazza was festooned with lace and he said it was an ancient ritual to celebrate the king – in this case Jesus.  What do you know???

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Flowers on EVERY Street Light, Column, Pole.

2. We also saw that yellow wild flowers were tied in bunches on every single upright thing leading into town.  Wild flowers – yellow – ANY IDEAS?  This morning I asked my favorite barista, Marilina, and she said because they are wild and always in bloom this time of year.  That makes them free.  What is YOUR TAKE??

3. All of the children who last week celebrated their first communion were leading the procession.  The boys were tossing rose petals and the girls were sporting flower crowns and looked like the promised vestal virgins.  Since this event celebrates communion it makes sense that the children were involved – but how come the tossed flower petals????    4. Are exterior alters set up in American towns?  A big one was set up in front of the cemetery – which I thought made sense – tombs – rising up – celebration of second coming etc.  Is the cemetery always part of the procession?

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This is outside the cemetery.

5. Is this celebrated in the USA with processions etc?  Are there the sounds of bombs bursting and fireworks?? Today’s regional newspapers were full of pictures and stories of the processions in towns all over Compania.

Come on folks – fill in the blanks for me and everyone else that doesn’t know.  Let us have popping comment conversations.  THE FIRST PERSON TO POST A COMMENT GETS A BIG VIRTUAL HUG FROM ME!

Diva Does La Scala

by midgeguerrera, posted in Stops Along the Journey - Sites Off the Tourist Track

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That’s me – on the right – the very young Diva.

Everyone has a fantasy right? Not that kind!!!  The kind where we see ourselves, as Walter Mitty did, the conquerer of all things.  I was going to be an actress who really wanted to be a cabaret singer with a dirty ditty or two.  Life has been an interesting journey and some of the roads had me on stage, on film and singing a dirty ditty or two.  Another road led me to Westminter Choir College to create an Arts Administration Major & Minor.  It was at Westminster – where I was blessed to work with the brightest of the bright students who were also incredible singers – that my secret inner Diva started worming her way out.  Every day on that wonderful Princeton Campus I would hear incredible vocal music floating out of studios.  Opera!  I want to sing on the really big stage.  Now my voice ain’t ever going to get me there but wow what a fantasy.  I think it’s really the costumes I want – imagine those head dresses!!!!

We were in Milan on my birthday and I decided that the present I wanted was to explore Teatro alla Scala.  The day before, I went to the ticket booth to see if we could get tickets.  It didn’t matter what we saw – I just wanted to get inside the place and absorb the centuries of music.

 It’s my birthday – of course I want to sit in the orchestra wear pearls and hope the paparazzi snap my photo.  €250 a ticket?  What??  OK, how about the next ring – sold out?  No, No, I will not sit up there with the Gods.  Saddened by my poor planning – yes of course you can buy tickets on line.  Yes of course we could have bought them months ago.  I tearfully departed, stopped and started dancing in the street.

We would still get in. The  I would still absorb the magic of La Scala and it would only cost us €5 or less – thank you for those biglietti per cittadini anziani – by visiting the museum.  The next day we headed back to Via Filodrammatici, #2.  Catchy street name – notice that drammatici – Word Reference says it means exaggerated, dramatic, theatrical!  Great place for Teatro La Scala.

The 2,800 seat house opened on August 3, 1778 as New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala.  If those walls could only talk…

We wended our way to the iconic structure at lunch time – note it is my birthday we will spend a foolish amount on lunch.  Teatro alla Scala Museum is located on Largo Ghiringhelli, Piazza Scala.  It is essentially the side of the theater.  Piazza Scala also sports for the well heeled music afficionado, Ristornte Teatro Alla Scala Il Marchesino.  The celebrated Italian chef, Gultiero Marchesi creates meals that are delicious and incredible to look at. The two well dressed men sitting next to us ordered something that was actually coated in REAL gold!  I couldn’t believe it when one of them took out his phone and snapped a photo to promptly send out to the world.  We were too busy to tasting and staring, staring and tasting to snap any photos.  Sorry.  Oh, yeah the menu is on iPads!  The head waiter presents each diner with an iPad!  Check out their website – http://www.marchesi.it/it/il-marchesino.html.  Happy birthday to me – of course for what we spent we could have bought one of those tickets for that night’s performance.

Smiling like a well fed and wine paired diva, I strolled to the museum and enjoyed every bloody minute.  From peering into see the grand auditorium, sitting in a box and waving at my fans, to wishing I could just wear the antique costumes for a nanno second, the museum was magical.

Click on the link to see the two minute video of some of the things we saw –

https://youtu.be/NtN-1gXsypQ

If only I had done my research before we got there!!!!

Tailor-made guided tours are available for tourists looking for a more “behind-the-scenes” experience. That’s me – I want to be in the scene. These tours must be booked in advance. Note that word – ADVANCE.  “Depending on the type of tour, your guide will take you on to the celebrated La Scala stage, into the famous royal box, into gold boxes and into the recently restored auditorium to uncover the hidden gems of La Scala, the prompter’s box, the impressive chandelier, the new fly tower, and other areas of interest.”

ERRRRRR next time!

Let out your inner Diva and check out La Scala’s website – they have virtual tours too.

http://www.teatroallascala.org/en/you-and-lascala/you-and-lascala.html

Mail Boxes ETC. Italian Style!

by midgeguerrera, posted in Practical Matters - Living Abroad, Travel Comments

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Jack had two large suitcases.  I had one large suitcase and a small suitcase stuffed with books.  He had a carry-on.  I had a carry-on and a purse.  Easy peasy – we get a ride to JFK International Airport and are a scant few feet away from the Air Emirates counter.  They take the bags and we go off to have a drink and talk about our next six months.  In Milano we use a FREE cart to hold the bags and take them out to the taxi kiosk.  There the driver jams them into the trunk and escorts us to our apartment building – where he hands over the suitcases to a charming man who worked there.

Ahhhhh – we open a bottle of wine and stare out the window at the street. “Look Jack – the subway stop is so close it will be easy to get to the train station.”  EASY – we have three huge suitcases, one book stuffed sack, two carry-ons and a purse!!!!  What were we thinking!!!

We decided we would end up paying big bucks to take a cab to the train station – in rush hour traffic and not worry about the bags.  Than one morning we decided to walk down our street in the opposite direction.  There, on the corner was a Mail Boxes Etc.  Dragging Jack over to the window I pointed out the sign that talked about a cheap rate if you could stuff a bunch of stuff in a box and it weighed less than 10 Kg.  “The books,”  I screeched – let’s at least offload the books.  I went in and talked to Fernando La Vigna, the store manager, and he said the books would get to Pontelandolfo in 2 days.

The next morning, we dragged two shopping bags full of books back.  It cost us €16.90 to send the books – we were under the 10 Kg too.  I jokingly said, “lets go back and get more stuff from the suitcases to stuff in the box.”  Fernando looked at us and said, “we can ship the suitcases.”

The thought of a way not to schlep all the suitcases on the train and drag them around Roma Termini to switch trains was incredibly appealing.  We had looked into shipping the suitcases from the USA and the average charge door to door was $250 each.  I asked how much it would cost – “not to worry – not much.”

The day before we left Milan we dragged the four suitcases to Mail Boxes Etc. located at Via G. Pelitti 7 – 20126 Milano.  (info@flaservizi.it or 02 395 46101)   For €80 all four pieces went from Milan to our house in Pontelandolfo.  They actually got there the next day before we did!

Would I do that again?  In a nanosecond!!!  Riding the train is a great way to see the country – dragging the suitcases for a six month stay on the train is not.

EXPO MILANO 2015

by midgeguerrera, posted in Stops Along the Journey - Sites Off the Tourist Track

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L’Albero della Vita – 37 Meters High – Palazzo Italia

EXPO Milano opened just before Jack and I arrived.  It runs from May 1 through October 31st 2015.  We decided it was a once in a life time opportunity to attend the “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life” themed worlds fair.  We got up early that morning, put on stout walking shoes, and headed for the Metropolitana.  The M-1 train that stopped by our apartment went right to the fair grounds!  (The was a scant up-charge on the daily metro ticket.)  We had read about EXPO and chatted about how varying countries could

…reflect upon, and seek solutions to, the contradictions of our world. On the one hand, there are still the hungry (approximately 870 million people were undernourished in the period 2010-2012) and, on the other, there are those who die from ailments linked to poor nutrition or too much food (approximately 2.8 million deaths from diseases related to obesity or to being overweight in the same period). In addition, about 1.3 billion tons of foods are wasted every year. (http://www.expo2015.org/en/learn-more/the-theme)
 
 Some may call me a heretic but – all that reflection just wasn’t evident.  That stuff sounds great in a plenary session but hey – how do you force – for example Sudan to do that?  Their pavilion was a hut with three guys selling stuff that was probably made in China to look Sudanese.  Let’s talk about Ireland – it was a lovely tourism promotional environment – large screens showing clips of the fabulous farms and countryside.  Know what was missing?  People from Ireland.  Not one was evident!!!  We noticed that a lot.  Maybe there were visa issues and only the countries with buckets of cash like the United Emirates were allowed to send over people.  Oh pshaw you say – why is she being so bitchy?  My legs ached that’s why.  The walk from the metro to the EXPO ticket booth was a few blocks – that was OK.  Then we had to walk what felt like a mile to get to the actual fairgrounds.  I asked about “people movers” – the attendants stared.  Where was the bus noted on the maps?  No one seemed to know.  So Jack and I walked and walked up and down man-made hills to the site.  
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                                         The covered walkway was about a mile long – Jack says so!
We entered at the end that has the pavilions that certainly weren’t on the “A” list like Sudan and Ireland.  Walking a wee bit more we noticed lines at Angola.  Than it hit us – the places with the Disneyland long lines are the pavilions that are worth visiting.  Some folks – actually teachers because the lines were full of students – had done research.We truly enjoyed the three story Angola pavilion which had great displays of the countries farming, food sources, cooking and daily life.  France was interesting but you had to take a long hike through “fields” that were only 1 inch high to get to the pavilion.  I think in August the EXPO’s farming exhibits will be great – there will be something to see.  Now the rice paddy area is just – well – an area with tiny little green shoots of I guess rice.  Actually, by August the whole place may be great – all the kinks worked out.

There was a really, really long line outside of Brazil. Being nosy and suckers for long lines we wended our way through the crowd to see what was going on.  Holy Baloney!  Brazil had set up this huge net – I mean a hundred yards long huge.  Like the nets set up for walking over the Rain Forest – at least that was my thought.  Throngs of students were slowly making their way over the net to the opposite side.  The really athletic kids were climbing up the side walls of the space to reign from above.  It was cool.

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Some Kids Climbed to the Top!!

The day was saved of course by FOOD!  The fabulous exhibit – Identita Golose EXPO – cost us €150 but was worth it.  Each week a famous Italian chef comes in with a crew to prepare a wine paired lunch and dinner.  We were stylishly fed by Chef Marco Stabile of Ora d’Aria in Firenze – a Michelin 1 star restaurant.  The Identita Restaurant was well appointed and the staff was the optimum of professional.  I could describe the courses and the wine parings but you would just get hungry.  If you do go the EXPO save up €75 and spend it just on lunch!!!  (Check out the Identita Website – they could be coming to a city near your – http://www.identitagolose.it/sito/it/)

After our awesome lunch, we were refueled, refreshed and ready to continue walking. Happily we stumbled upon a number of countries that featured folk dancing, music and theatrical performances.  They may not have anything to do with the theme of EXPO but to this tourist they made the day special.

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Brava Belarus!

Tired and knowing we had a huge walk back we decided to leave fairly early.  I asked again at an information booth where the buses were – there – maybe –  or there.  I asked a young woman who worked a concession if she knew and she led us the long walk to a bus stop.  I think the advertised buses are really for the help – with stops near various groupings of pavilions.  The bus got us closer to the entrance/metro but we still had to walk over the incredibly long hilly walk – I’m guessing 10 – 15 city blocks.

The senior citizen ticket to EXPO was €28.  Would I spend it again?  No.  Would I go to Florence to Marco Stabile’s restaurant and plunk down €75?  YES!!!