The Places I Love In Italy: Ischia

There are so many amazing places in Italy to visit, it is difficult to find the best memories.

This lead photo was taken on the Island of Ischia. My wife Angela suggested we visit the island which is off the coast of Napoli. It turned out to be an amazing experience, Hot mineral springs filled a swimming pool.

The green color of the water is from the high mineral content.

Castello Aragonese d’Ischia is a great place to visit.

Some great restaurants are all around the island.

This was a great light lunch of antipasti.

We took the bus to the small village of Sant’Angelo on the tiger side of the island for dinner.

Il ristorante Lo Scoglio was amazing, The name means the rock

Seafood us the specialty. It comes with some amazing views

A view of the Rock

It is well worth the quick trip from Napoli to Ischia. Take the ferry it is a good day trip of a long weekend stay. You can also visit the island of Procida. This is where “The Talented Mr. Ripley” and “Il Postino” were filmed.

More posts coming on my favorite places.

November 15, 2022 0

More of Italy Food

When it comes to food, Italy tops.

Here is a one minute video of some of my finds.

October 8, 2022 0

CATANIA, SICILY FRESH SEAFOOD FOR EVERYONE

I recently watched an other episode of Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown. It took place in one of my favorite cities in Sicily, Catania.

Take a brief look at the you tube video that shows what he sees in Catania

Angela and I came upon this frenetic splendor in 2008,. We had a small BnB around the corner and walked to the market after breakfast.

Crowded and lively, it is an amazing spectacle.

The market is in full swing by mid morning..

It is not all about fish, the market spill out to the street

Dinner out was a simple antipasti from Via Monte St Agata which we discovered by accident

Trattoria Monte Sant’Agata

Yes we enjoyed the meal. Not fine dining,but good food at a veru resonable cost

We always stop at an Ikea store.

A one night stay in Catanioa before we haded over to Cefalu

We found La Canoica on Via Raddusa. What a great little restaurant

Catania night time walks

April 29, 2021 0

ROME, FOOD, ITALY

A short video of Good Eats In Rome and Other Places Over The Years

Do not view on an empty stomach.

<p><a href=”https://vimeo.com/456640117″>Good eats in Roma over the years</a> from <a href=”https://vimeo.com/user32714423″>Greg Speck</a> on <a href=”https://vimeo.com”>Vimeo</a>.</p>

September 24, 2020 1

Non vedo l’ora. I can’t wait.

The best cheese comes from Italy. Visiting this year is out, and I got hungry,

So I searched on Amazon for Pecorino cheese. Sheep’s milk cheese. I found a great product and decided to order it,

It was shipped UPS Air and arrived in two days from Parma, Italy.

It was packed with a styrofoam inner container with cooling jej.

This is it. Just about 4 lbs.

It even includes a cutting knife.

It is a softer cheese than Parmesan with a wonderful aroma and taste. Pecorino Toscano is a PDO cheese made in the Tuscany region of Italy. You can order directly from them at the following web site

http://www.parmashop.com

For me all cheese that I have eaten in Italy is great, and now I can bring it home. My 2 kilo order cost $79 with UPS air shipping. That was a good price. See the photo below that show a shop window in the Trastevere section of Roma where the price for kilo was 63 Euro.

In Florida you can visit Doris Market in West Palm which specializes in Italian Foods.

June 6, 2020 4

I Never Forget A Meal

I am borrowing the title of a book by Michael Tucker who also fell in love with Italy and has always loved food. Italian food and Italian meals are to be savored and enjoyed. His book was great and you can find copies on Amazon. Also recommended is “Living in a Foreign Language” also by Michael Tucker which is similar to Under the Tuscan Son, but with more humor and a bit of attitude.

We are on the island of Ischia, a small island off the coast of Napoli. We stayed in a small hotel with great views of the area and had a pleasant lunch of Prosciuto e Melone.

We also hand Insalata Capresse with fresh mozzarella di buffala

At anolther ristorante in ischia we had frutti di mare. As fresh as you can get.

While staying on Lake Carda in the town of Brenzone we had a waterfront dinner of Cacio e Pepe

Lunch at a winery in Vicenza

Below is home made pasta in Milano, I took a pasta making class.

Felt is was time to lear how to do it, I had a pasta making machine at home that my bother bought about thirty years ago.

Nothing like your own fresh pasta

Pasta alla Norma

Mixed fruit that we bought at the market in Siracusa Sicily

Below is beefsteak Florentine

You start with aged meet. This is from Il Pandemonio, Florence Italy

It comes rare to medium rate, It is a think steak, about 1.5 to 2.0 inches.

There is nothing like it.

Back in Catania, Sicily

An entire meal of antipasti

My wife Angel and I after a wonderful meal.

Il Torre Del Mangia, Siena

Piazza del Campo

Insalata Capresse

There are more to come. This Brunello from 2011 met it Demis in 2020 as we reminisced about Italy.

May 31, 2020 1

The Markets of Italy

To me nothing is more beautiful than the way Italian markets display their food. The quality is overwhelming, the aromas intriguing, and the tastes are fantastico.

Fish Market In Catania, Sicily

Catania Fish Market

Stall in Amalfi

Catania

Fruit and Vegetables

Lemons, Catanzaro Calabria

Autogrill

A Pasticciera in Erice

Blood Oranges, Palermo

Garlic Aglio

Melenzanie – Eggplant

Mushrooms, Rome

Artichokes, Carciofi Roma

Fresh Bread, Roma

My banana harvest, Vero Beach, FL

Not Italy but this came from a Tree in our front yard.

Ciao

May 5, 2020 3

More Photos From Past Trips. The Daily Market in Siracusa, Sicily

AT THE MARKET IN SIRACUSA, SICILY

Cipolla di Tropea.: The Calabrese cuisine is a reflection of its history – it is not refined or elaborate, normally simple, using most of the time vegetable such as the onions, in particular the red onion, the red onion of Tropea. These famous red onions are grown in an area which stretches in both directions along the coast from Tropea. Important enough to be sold in Sicily. (Google)

April 26, 2020 3

My Favorite Streets In Rome

This year we returned to Rome for eight wonderful nights. In 2017 we were in Rome for two weeks, and enjoyed becoming familiar with the city. It was no longer intimidating. On our last visit we stayed in an Airbnb on Via Dei Bianchi Vecchi. It was a great location to walk to many of Romes’s attractions. This year we found an Airbnb that did not have 67 steps to climb to the second floor. It was located on Via Cappellari about 200 feet from the Campo Dei Fiori.

From our location which was “Via dei Cappellari, 124 primo piano” we were able to walk to the following sights.

Chiesa Dei Santa Barbara Dei Librari

Chiesa Dei Santa Barbara Dei Librari Interior

Well worth the visit, small and beauitiful

Campo dei Fiori

The Campo dei Fiori is a great place to wanter and view the sights night and day. Surrounded by restaurants and shops, it transforms from a daytime tent city to vendors selling everything from fruits and vegetables to clothing and other items to a huge area wandering people.

Stalls and shops at the Campo

St Peters is about 10 min from the area. Walk down Corso Vittorio Emanuele and cross of the bridge by Castel Sant’Angelo and make a slight left and you will see it ahead.

St Peter from the dome

St Peters Interior

On to lunch in Trastevere

The chiesa of Santa Maria in Trastevere was another short walk

Always a wedding seven days a week

Crossing the bridge headed back to our Airbnb a beautiful view of St Peters in the distance

December 16, 2019 0

Osteria da Mariano, Siracusa Sicily

Ristorante da Mariano in Siracusa is a small space with all the right things. A short walk from the center of Siracusa or the waterfront this is where you can find local Sicilian cooking.