It wasn’t the sun creeping in our windows that woke us up this beautiful, ferragosto morning. It was the braying of the donkeys in the field below our room.
The view from our Juliet balcony.
The happy sounds were the perfect welcome to Borgo Cerquelle! Wait, is that a rooster I hear? A goat? Borgo Cerquelle is an incredible agriturismo in the Sannio Hills.
Historically, ferragosto is celebrated by workers leaving work behind and heading to the country. Picnics, outings to the woods, trekking , dancing under the trees are a healthy way to forget about that job. Since I am too lazy to pack a picnic lunch and hike up the hill, Jack and I decided it was fitting for us to celebrate at Borgo Cerquelle! Where by the way, there are trails in the woods and lots of outdoor spaces.
A trip back in time.
It is impossible to come here and not gain a kilo or two. The food is exceptional. It is homemade fare, farm to table, and definitely prepared with love. Served family style, one becomes engaged with the other people at the table. At dinner last night we chatted with a couple from Benevento. Food, politics, what we all did in other lives and more food.
Today the place will be packed with people for lunch. Pranzo on ferragosto will be a luscious affair – and I didn’t have to make a thing. Afterwards, Jack and I may be forced to take a walk up to see the animals or we may sit in a chair in the shade, staring at the tower of Pontelandolfo down below 
Taking something precious from the past and building something new is the basis of the fiber art of Adele Gentile.
One old sheet from her grandmother‘s house, accented with pieces of fabric found in the same house, transforms into a beautiful table clothe with matching napkins,.
When we had the farmhouse in Flagtown, New Jersey, I would troll shishi home goods stores looking for sales on something that looked French Provençal. My creative pal, Adele, would hit her family’s attics or go to the market and buy a piece of fabric. Recycling fabrics suits Adele and her lifestyle. The retired pharmacist has a great eye for color and loves to create tableware that suits her lifestyle.
Adele’s lifestyle includes a zest for living. About ten years ago, I went to a doctor in nearby Santa Croce. It was close to seven pm and I knew I wouldn’t get back to the pharmacy in Pontelandolfo to get the prescribed pills. We pulled into the Santa Croce pharmacy and speaking what I thought was passable Italian asked the glamorous woman in the white coat to help me.
“Are you British?” She asked.
“American,” I said.
Ten minutes later we were blabbing on and on about travel, ex-pats, entrepreneurial women and where we could meet for drinks. Those ten years have flown by and we are still meeting for drinks.
Last week on our way Radici Enoteca Libreria, the neat Morcone wine bar/bookstore, we stopped at her storefront. Adele has set up a show of her recycled works and hopes it inspires other to make something new out of something old. Entrance is by appointment only – she is retired you know and can’t be expected to sit there all day! You can easily message her through instagram page, adele_concept.
Walking around the industrial space, I started giggling. I don’t know about you, but I stopped wearing jeans, and somehow they still manage to live in the back of my closet. Well, if you have that problem, eliminate the jeans and turn them into interesting bags, pillows, baskets, table runners. That’s what Adele did.
Imagine the stories these jeans could tell.
Old boxes that may at one time or another have held cigars became a piece of art that could hold any mysterious object in your future
Don’t throw away that panettone box. It looks remarkably like an interesting 1930s hat box. Box sculptures, glued, stacked, cut and decorated could be an interesting place to hold your necklaces. Adele kept saying, “Just let your creativity flow.”
Remember that fancy dress that you wore once to that posh event and now you can’t get your arm in? Don’t just toss it to Goodwill. Buy some hardware downtown or online and turn that dress into adorable little purses that will make all your lady friends happy at Christmas time.
Knowing Adele, these dresses could tell super duper tales.
Adele, is so used to working and so high energy she just can’t sit still. Nights find her crocheting. Anyone can make a cute blanket – Adele certainly can. But who else but someone with a passion for life turns yarns into booze gift bags! She made bags for everything from a magnum of Champagne to back pocket pints.
Look for Adele Gentile on Instagram – adele_concept
When we return to the USA, Jack and I obviously go through a bit of culinary culture shock. Well Jack really doesn’t, he is the zen dude, but I get INSANE. Since I am a lazy working woman, I cook only when it is necessary. In Pontelandolfo we can enjoy a wonderful lunch for €14. That is fourteen euros for two people! Imagine lunch that is home cooked in New Jersey for less than twenty dollars for two. I can’t. If you know of a place message me.
Cooking in the Kitchens of Pontelandolfo participants enjoying adult beverages and charcuterie for about €10 a person. What does an Aperol Spritz cost at your local bar?
Forget going out to dinner near our condo in Ewing, NJ and having a drink – boom there goes a quick $150. How much for a glass of wine? WHAT, I screech at the $15 to $20 charge. In Southern italy where the wine is incredible we pay less than $5 a glass. Dinner for two in our favorite restaurant – which has linens on the tables, great food and exceptional service – with a bottle of wine may cost us about €60.
One of the reasons we spend half a year in Southern Italy is so that we can save up enough to spend half a year in New Jersey. I’m not kidding. Everything is less. Again, we live in a little hill town not a bustling tourist infested city. I complain about the cost of living in New Jersey – well not a lot because you could have a brain explosion if you thought about it and complained about it too much.
BUT WHAT REALLY PISSES ME OFF…..
Every year I take my Goddaughter to tea for her birthday. This year was no different. Since we are adults who not only know how to raise our pinkies when drinking tea but how to delicately hold a champagne flute, I made reservations at an incredible place for tea with sparkling wine. Everything was perfect. The service, the setting, the food was incredible. They even made accommodations for my inability to climb stairs and had a handicap bathroom. I have been happily raving about the place since we went. Ok, ok, I’ve been raving – so why am I talking about it in this blog/rant?
Like I learned from my Dad, the bill comes and you plop a credit card down. They take it, bring it back, you add a tip and sign. I did. We got in the car going on and on about how wonderful the place was. When I got home, Jack wanted to hear all about it. To jog my memory, I got out the receipts. Looking at the receipt I let out one of my usual FFFFFF bombs. I spent close to $300 and they charged me a $7 + service charge for using a credit card. Unacceptable. Every time we eat out in New Jersey, I complain about the credit card surcharge. I called this fabulous restaurant, told them how much I enjoyed the tea, service and ambiance and asked why they cheap out and add the surcharge. “Corporate policy.” Everyone does it. In my snootiest voice I replied, I live in Europe and there no one does it..
Hey New Jersey restaurants, I do not want to hear everyone does it!!!
California: Prohibits surcharges on credit card transactions.
New York: Bans businesses from imposing credit card surcharges.
Texas: Does not allow credit card surcharges under state law.
Illinois: Prohibits credit card surcharges in retail transactions.
Massachusetts: Bars businesses from adding surcharges for credit card payments.
Surcharges are banned in the entire European Union!
Card surcharges are not allowed! You’re not allowed to charge your customers extra for using a credit or debit card. This applies to all card purchases (in shops and online) made throughout the EU.
Here is what we have in New Jersey. In 2023, Governor Murphy signed P.L. 2023, c.146 (N.J.S.A. 56:8-156.1 and -156.2) into law, which, among other things, prohibits sellers from imposing a credit card surcharge that is greater than the actual cost to the seller to process the credit card payment.
Big freaking deal. I voted for Governor Murphy and this piece of legislation – which includes the fact that businesses have to post a sign alerting customers to the surcharge – is a big piece of bullshit. Why not have the balls to tell VISA and the other credit card folks that they shouldn’t be putting surcharges on the businesses that accept their cards. Or make the charge nominal. I mean just how many FU&^%ING billions of dollars do you need to make? The Bs bellow stand for billions!!!!!
GAAP net income of $6.0B or $3.14 per share and non-GAAP net income of $6.3B or $3.31 per share
Net revenue of $11.2B, an increase of 17%, or 16% on a constant-dollar basis
Growth in payments volume, cross-border volume and processed transactions was strong
Thank you for listening. If the surcharge pisses you off too, send an email to your state legislature. It may do nothing, but you might feel better. I know I will.
Dear easygoing Jack has one giant quirk. He hates birthday parties, birthday hats, birthday presents – just about anything that has to do with birthdays. Now, me, I adore all the bellowing, trimming, gifts, chaos and energy of everything birthday. Since Jack’s birthday is mid-August, we have developed a compromise. Simply called, “Jack’s Birthday Staycation.” There are no gifts, no whistles no party favors. However, the staycation is not at home but fifteen minutes away at Hotel Ristorante Il Grottino.
Jack may hate birthdays but he loves cake from Pontelandolfo’s Diglio Forno!
Why drive a scant few kilometers up another mountain for the staycation? The place is fabulous. There is a beautifully landscaped pool surrounded by mountain vistas, an outdoor seating restaurant area with linen tablecloths – OMG I sound like a snob – comfortable rooms with balconies, and the food is terrific. For the past few years, to celebrate another trip around the sun, we have booked a room for a few nights at Il Grottino. Michele and Giovanna, our hosts are friendly, accommodating and love what they have built. In other words, it is perfect for Jack. (Is it too self serving to say it is also perfect for Jack’s adorable wife?)
Each morning we got up promptly – ha ha – slowly, tossed on a bathing suit and wandered downstairs. The hotel has an elevator so folks in their second and third acts can easily get to the upstairs rooms. There waiting for us was a set table with croissants and the smiling Giovanna. Soon cappucini ( no spell checkers it is not misspelled – that is plural for cappucino) arrived with whatever else we wanted. The blue sky over the mountain, cool mountain breeze and lovely piped in music made the morning bright. We wandered to the pool and did what we do best on vacation.
Read! For me, read and wrote. This book is fabulous and written by my pal Adele.
I am working on a couple of plays. ‘I’m Ann” is about a Sicilian woman’s experiences in the USA. “Born to the Sea” is an exciting new musical about the Swedish VASA ship. And – this is super exciting – my 9/11 themed play “Email: 9/12” is being produced in 2026 by a company in the Netherlands. I am creating a monologue or two that takes place in Den Haag. All projects needed a breath of fresh air and Il Grottino provides just that. Jack read, snoozed pool side and smiled a lot.
Each day between snoozing, reading and writing we ate seafood lunches outdoors under the pergola. I love impepata di cozze, mussels steamed and served with a dash of pepper and their own juices. Giovanna served me an enormous bowl and I grinned bigger than Jack grins. Our New Jersey friend Maryann C. was visiting so she got to come to Il Grottino too. She had what I thought was a riff on my favorite dish, La Zuppa di Cozze. The mussels were steamed with tomatoes and served with points of focaccia. It too was exceptional.
Il Grottino is known locally for its metre long pizza. The place was packed one night with whole families there for pizza. What else could we do but order a three foot plus long pizza. Cleverly, the super charged pizza is divided by toppings. Jack loves pizza Margherita, Maryann wanted vegetables and I only eat pizza con tonno. The thin crusted mammoth pizza arrived with sections of each topping. All three of us dug right in and enjoyed each bite.
One of the reasons we come back each year is that the food is great. We also come back because the staff and owners are willing to go the extra mile to make guests comfortable. The real reason – being there makes Jack smile.
Happy Birthday Staycation to Jack. Thank you to Il Grottino, Giovanna and Michele.
The following blog may contain content that vegans, vegetarians and lovers of small farm animals may find disturbing. Reader discretion is advised.
Did you ever lust for something so much that the thought of it made you salivate? Admit it, you have. This week all I could think about was eating lamb. I love roasted lamb, lamb chops, lamb-burgers and most of all real hearty Shepherd’s Pie made with – what else – lamb. The little baa baas had been tempting me for a month. Daily, I watched the little ones romp in Pontelandolfo’s verdant fields, stop traffic and then suddenly they disappeared . Disappearing lambs? My mind was wandering hither and yon, over hill and dale, wondering where Bo Peep was hiding the baby sheep.
Love the Lamb Jam. Driver beware.
My tummy wanted to find them. That is a big juicy lie. I did not want to find a lamb, I wanted to find mutton before it became mutton. Knowing that I would make Jack insane if I didn’t stop talking about Shepherd’s Pie, I dashed down the hill to Marcelleria Mancini.
One of the primary joys of living in Pontelandolfo is being able to shop at a real butcher, baker and cheese maker. Stefano Mancini of Marcelleria Mancini is an amazing butcher. All of his meats are locally sourced and he prides himself on working only with select farms. The meat found at Marcelleria Mancini tastes like meat that was on the hoof a few days ago. Free range, scrumptious and not spiced up with hormones. Of course, I would head there for lamb.
Stefano, our always smiling butcher.
What is wonderful about Stefano is that he doesn’t look at me like I’m crazy when I ask for something that most of my neighbors would ever ask for. Like agnello macinato – ground lamb. Not just ground but thickly ground. Here, ground meats are passed through the grinder a few times. For my rustic dish I wanted it rough.
Stefano looks at me and asked – what are you making? My Italian will get us fed, a room and a hospital but how do I explain Shepherd’s Pie – torta dei pastori? Sauté lamb with veggies and cap with butter-rich mashed potatoes. As I described it, I could see it and couldn’t wait to make it.
Dashing to the back room, Stefano returned holding aloft a leg of lamb. Literally, aloft. He was holding the leg by the tibia (shin bone), above the knee was the meaty thigh. La coscia sarebbe perfetto, he said. This is the first time that I realized that the leg of lamb we buy is really the thigh! That incredible meat would be perfect for my Shepherd’s Pie.
As the butcher deboned the meat, I asked if I could have the bones for bone broth. He was impressed that I would make a broth and promptly dashed the bones into manageable pieces. From leg to grinder to packaged, I soon had the lamb I needed for dinner and a package of bones.
Don’t tell Jack, please but another thing I love about Macelleria Mancini are their “pretend you spent the day making interesting meat based dishes.” Stefano’s fiancé, Ilaria, creates amazing to go dishes. As their website says: Avete voglia di qualcosa di sfizioso ma il tempo stringe !?! Passa a trovarci…tutti i giorni prepariamo diversi “pronti a cuocere”…con carni fresche e di qualità !Craving something tasty but running out of time!?! Come visit us…every day we prepare different “ready-to-cook” dishes…with fresh, quality meats!
Pretty Isn’t It!
My Shepherd’s Pie was scrumptious- and I had made enough for a couple of days. After cooking the base, I made the mashed potatoes. No, I tried to make the mashed potatoes. Where are all my potatoes??? Merde, I only had four little potatoes. That would never be enough for my mashed topping. What do do???
Think about where you are and use what you have. What did I have corn meal for polenta? I made a batch of polenta, added Parmesan cheese, and mixed the polenta with with the potatoes. It was absolutely fabulous. My mashed potato – pontenta may become a carb mainstay.
Wherever you are enjoy what you make. Buy local and serve every meal with a smile.
This year we are celebrating the holidays in the Sannio Hills of Southern Italy. The house is ablaze with lights. Thanks to our talented landlord, there is even a 20 foot tall Italian flag that seems to billow in the breeze. Inside, with the pellet fire roaring and a single malt to sip, I’ve been ensconced in a comfy chair binge reading a series by Carlen O’Connor. The books set in a small Irish village made me realize that village life, wherever your village is, has a similarity. People taking care of each other. Holiday events filling calendars. Decorations making every village even more beautiful. Scents of baking, prepping and bubbling fill kitchens. The shops are stocked with “must have” new goods and their instagram feeds are bursting with photos. We are blessed to live in such a village.
Is everything perfect? Nah. That charming roaring pellet fire is our boiler. That means freezing or filling the pellet stove with 30 pound bags of pellets, cleaning the pellet stove and dragging the ash vacuum outside to empty; cursing at the error 12 on the freakin’ pellet stove; searching for that wool sweater that we (Jack) swore he left here; and of course seeing mountains of baccalà in every market and enough delectable sweets to keep me lying on the couch binging holiday movies for weeks. Sounds terrible – not! Yes, there is snow on the mountain peaks. Yes, the wind is whipping in the Sannio Hills. Yes, our cheeks are rosy. AND YES this little village is full of happiness, good cheer and enriching our lives.
Village life and Pontelandolfese have warmed my soul. Nicola makes sure the too heavyfor me to even drag bags of pellets are near our door. Lina arrived with enough homemade pasta for me to freeze for Christmas Day. Adele dropped everything when I had a WHOA was that an earthquake vertigo attack and quickly got me into see a specialist. Our car was in the shop for 7 days – don’t ask. Alessio has turned his free time into “drive Midge wherever she needs to go time.” Other people hearing through the village network that our car was on the fritz, offered to drag our butts wherever we needed to be.
Starting with the December 8th lighting of the Christmas lights in Piazza Roma, we have been out and about enjoying the season. Pontelandolfo, as I’ve bellowed from the rooftops before, is full of creative and energetic folks who produce events, art, and cultural happenings. Check out the calendar –
This holiday season enjoy your village, wherever you are. Spread the good cheer, love and peace that warms the hearts of others. Buon Natale! Buona Feste!
PS. La Befana arrives during epiphany bringing candy or coal to Italian Children throughout the world. Take a peek at the play I wrote. It is available through Next Stage Press. Mamma Mia, La Befana??!!
One blustery Saturday night, the theater in Pontelandolfo was full. Men and women of all ages braved the cold to see a production developed by two amazing women, Michela Delli Veneri and Fiorella De Michele. Posters for Conto su di Me – Libere e Vivere had been zapping around social media and tacked up everywhere. I had no idea what to expect. The one thing I did know, was that Michela and Fiorella, both powerful women, would present something professional and relevant. Nestling into my seat, I looked around and noticed the hand made signs surrounding the space – My Body My Choice”, “Non Una di Meno”, “no è no” “Girl Power “.
Women Can Do Anything
Reading the signs triggered a response this 75 year old woman didn’t anticipate – sadness. Silently, tears dribbled down under my glasses. Didn’t we march for these same thoughts and rights when I was a girl? How many generations of women need to be treated like chattel? How long will society allow the minimization of women? Suddenly, I realized I was going to be in for a roller coaster ride of a production.
The multi media event was well developed and staged. This wasn’t a pound the idea on your head lecture but a thought provoking presentation that coupled actresses with real psychologists. The theme – Economic Abuse of Women. When I heard that, I thought equal pay for equal work or how to crack the glass ceiling. After seeing the performance I realized, economic abuse by one’s partner is horrific on both an emotional and physical level. Frankly, I was embarrassed that I had never realized holding back and controlling money was a form of abuse. I should have realized it. Having grown up in house full of tears, shouts and begging for love. Money, or the lack of it, was an embarrassing topic. My parents separated when I was about 11. Dad was caught “in the cookie jar” and mom was – well not very stable. Being the obnoxious child in our family, it was my job to go and “ask” my father for money. Mom, my sister and I were often just making do. My lack of patience and pushiness may be learned behavior. I learned how to be tenacious. One event that crushed me was my eight grade dance. After my asking dad for the money for a new dress and getting turned down, I was decimated when my younger sister came home from school crying and told me that a boy in her class whose mom was a ‘good pal’ of my dad’s just got an expensive train set from our father. I didn’t call it economic abuse – I was 14 – but after seeing this show, I realized that causing that kind of pain is indeed a form of abuse.
The staging was interesting. An actress would enter the set and tell their story. Then, the psychologists would either interact with the actress or talk about the case. The psychologists were wonderful performers in their own rights. I felt as though I was part of a group session and was throughly engaged. One scene that obviously tugged on my heart opened with a mom and son going to see a therapist. As the little boy was in his session, the mom shared her grief at not being allowed to use any money – money her husband earned – to pay for the boy to participate in a traditional dance company. Obviously the mom didn’t have money of her own. The arguments that the boy witnessed included screaming, pushing and threats. The husband would not give up a penny for this child to join the other children in the village and dance. Yes, they could afford it. He controlled the money – period. That seems like such a small thing but the impact on both the mom and the child was incredible. The dad was so controlling. The money was being withheld as a method of controlling and punishment. Damn, I had been there.
Always having worked and maintaining my own bank accounts, it took a while for me to understand the stories of women who were totally dependent upon their partners. Stranded at home without cars, driver’s licenses or any form of recreation that wasn’t blessed by the king of the house put women in dangerous positions. The psychologists brought the truth of this battering home for me.
Media, music, monologues and scenes seamlessly worked together to further the theme. I hope the young women I saw in the audience realized, they are in control of their destiny. I hope the young men in the audience learned that men who promulgate any kind of physical, emotional or economic violence against women are cretins. ( I wanted to use really bad words here about abusive men – FFFFFFbomb ASSSSSSh#$#^$.)
I can’t believe our first playwright’s retreat has just ended and I am about to blab on about 2025. How could I not?! The playwrights who just left after their ten day writing adventure were effusive in their praise. (When I get their video done, I will write about their catalysts for creativity – like my falling in a deep hole during their ruzzolo, cheese rolling game.) Back to 2025!
Literally Italy (that’s my new moniker) and Scott Editorial put their heads together and came up with a writer’s retreat with a few twists.2025 Writers’ Refuge in the Sannio Hills takes its name from the rifugi, mountain huts that provided a haven for shepherds. Dear writers, imagine a nurturing sanctuary that provides the time and place to work on your creative projects. In addition to time for your own daily writing, workshops, group feedback, and one-on-one critique sessions will support your work. The best part is, you are able to write in a villa, in a bar, outdoors and wherever your muse takes you. The June 21 to June 28 retreat is only open to eight writers.
The “Write Where Your Are” 2024 Playwrights enjoyed writing through out two villages.
Participants in the 2025 Writers’ Refuge in Sannio Hillswill share large, double rooms with ensuite bathrooms in La Locanda della Presuntuosa, a unique villa built into a mountain on acres of land. The villa includes a swimming pool, tennis court, washing machine, and park like grounds that are minutes from Pontelandolfo and Morcone village life. Savory meals are cooked by an Italian chef using local produce. Our chef spoiled the playwrights with homemade pasta, interesting sides and succulent roasted meats. The Tiramisu was incredible! Nothing came in a box or wrapped in plastic. This is Southern Italian farm to table home cooking. She will spoil those who come to the Refuge too.
The Italian landscape and village life are inspirational. For additional character studies, shuttles will bring you and your computer to Pontelandolfo’s Piazza Roma caffès or the bars a bit further out of town. Imagine sitting in a sunny piazza, sipping Prosecco and finishing that novel, short story or memoir. Or imagine wending your way up the hill to Morcone’s historic center and sharing work in this cool bar.
Amy Scott, the founder of Scott Editorial, will lead the writers’ retreat. Amy is a PhD candidate with a Master’s in Creative & Critical Writing and a BA in English Literature. With 20 years’ experience editing fiction and non-fiction, she has gained extensive knowledge of both the self-publishing and traditional sectors of the industry. For the last four years, she has been running writers’ retreats in Italy and the UK and is a guest lecturer on undergraduate and postgraduate courses, teaching the importance of editing. This year, Scott Editorial has joined forces with the University of Gloucestershire, where, along with a selection of creative writing professors, Amy is delivering workshops to help new authors develop their craft.
Literally Italy is the American company founded by Midge Guerrera – that’s me. You all know that I’m a published author of numerous books and plays. The retreat gives me time to work on that next epic. Our team knows how to produce a retreat. Remember along with Rossella and Annarita Mancini, I’m the founder of the award-winning program, Cooking in the Kitchens of Pontelandolfo. That local team will be the on-site organizers for the retreat.
Here is what you get for one fee:
Round Trip Transportation from the Benevento Train Station.
7 nights in shared, large double rooms with unique, architecturally-appointed ensuite bathrooms in La Locanda della Presuntuosa. Enjoy the swimming pool, tennis court and trails. (There is also an optional 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom village apartment for 2 to 3 participants in the historic village center.)
All meals cooked by an Italian chef. Vegetarians can be accommodated.
Four morning workshop sessions, including “Location as a Character” that will be held at the Altilia Saepinum Archeological site.
Daily group critique sessions
1-to-1 personal critique sessions – on your schedule.
Welcoming “Bar Crawl” – Drinks and local snacks included. Discover off-site places to write while absorbing local Italian culture. Transportation to bars provided daily.
We are organizing cultural add ons too. I can tell the interested writers all about those. For now, shoot me an email at info@nonnasmulberrytree.com for more information. Remember this is limited to only EIGHT WRITERS.
Nonna's Mulberry Tree 