What Fills My Plate

I am involved with a few blogs where people who are seeking information on life in Italy.  Many are considering moving to Italy, and are researching the hows and wheres, etc.  These blogs are helpful and I try to make a few comments in them about life here besides writing my own blog.   For my subscribers….. I am back to writing about Italy.  Here we go, my attempt to season your romantic world view. The sky today is  gray, the clouds are low, the humidity is heavy like a wet blanket.   Italian pop music rhythmically reminds me in what country I reside in, while  three old guys sit near my small table in my coffee bar, Cafe Jolie.  A balding guy with a neatly trimmed mustache is speaking in Veneto, the dialect of this area.  He bears a striking resemblance to  Higgins, the character on Magnum PI.  Looking over the top of his glass he says, “ Heyay gowa sua eeah ay cava subata laya comeeah waka veeyaw, si, roba comabah….”...

Old Center of Tallinn I wonder how many people in the United States could correctly point to Estonia on a blank map of Europe.  Shamefully, I have to admit that I might have guessed right with a 33 per cent chance between Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania.   You almost never hear about them, and the last big news was years ago when they broke from the Soviet Union.  Think about what you know about these countries.   Not much, right? I had my eyes opened this summer.  Landing in Riga, Latvia and riding a fancy but cheap bus to Tallinn, Estonia.   Walking through the center of both Riga and Tallinn, we visited the wonderful markets and later found some great local cuisine.   It was easy to have our eyes opened to see the gathering weight of two economies.  Clearly, the citizens have decided to use a strategic approach and compete with the rest of Europe.  That took  hard work and a truck load of time.   For several months...

Turkey has so many beautiful beaches, but one of the best is Cirali.  Our research had revealed that this beach was a prime stop and still not overrun with sun-seeking tourists.  Every article written by travellers spoke praises, and we took a look using Google Earth and it looked perfect.  Backed by the green hills, the beach stretched for miles and near the village had many beach side restaurants.  What google couldn’t show us was a man standing at the gate of the restaurant called Ikiz, which means “twins” in Turkish.  That man made a striking impression with us through his ambitious work and his pursuit of making our visit a memorable one. Two years ago Meet Umit.  Umit the manager.   Umit the translator.   Umit the concierge, the helper, the friend to all foreigners, the hardest worker with the longest hours in Cirali.  He’s the guy at the gate, and when you come to know him you find him to be a funny person balanced with...