Put on a Happy Face When You Travel or Easy Jet Ain't So Easy

No one can predict which challenges may rear their "adorable" little heads when you are travelling, but it is best to develop a good sense of humor and a bundle of patience in these matters.  For instance, in Greece a few years ago, I was using my flat iron with the converter on my hair and I heard a strange sizzling sound and smelled a putrid burning.  When I removed the iron from my long thick hair, I noticed with horror that my locks had been singed off up to my ear!  A quick trip to an unknown hairdresser created an unexpected new short do to fix the damage.  At the time, it was pretty traumatizing, but now it is fodder for my blog.  Another time in Vienna, with my travel buddy Kelly, 400 of us taxied out to the runway, along with Bob Dole, sat there for a few hours and then taxied back.  Then they told us we would not be flying anywhere that day.  As Senator Dole jetted off in a private jet, the rest of us lined up for hours and tried to rebook with the sole frustrated airline rep available on a sleepy Sunday.  All's well that ends well, since they gifted each of us with our own private room( a welcome experience after being in close quarters for nearly two weeks) and a gratis dinner and breakfast at the airport luxury hotel!

On this trip, we discovered that Easy Jet ain't so easy.  I kept receiving persistent notices by email for weeks from Easy Jet, the airliner that travels between the European countries.  They were warning me to check in with our information and get our boarding passes up front.  It was a complicated process that I thought I had negotiated with success.  When we arrived at Rome's airport after a ride in a cab driven by a frustrated Monaco GP race enthusiast, we were confident it would be an easy trip to the gate with plenty of time to peruse the Italian shops and perhaps pick up some designer frocks for me (lol) and have a final plate of pasta.  Were we ever wrong!  KO and I had decided to economize by taking only one behemoth suitcase for our two week journey and a small backpack for each of us with personal items.  The attendant told us sternly that first, our bag would have to be unloaded to the tune of 20 kg and even after that, our half empty valise could only travel on this plane to the tune of 35 euros!  We stepped to the side and started taking out what we thought would be 10 kilos, only to return three times and be turned away or threatened with having to pay 13 euros per kilo in excess weight!!!! , plus the 35 euros, of course.  Sweating profusely, and baring my packed silky undergarments for all to see, we finally managed to squeeze the overage into our Moms market bags and backpacks to lug around the enormous airport to our gate.  But wait, we weren't done yet!  As we passed through security we were flagged for my backpack.  I was confident as the guard searched my Kelly green mini knapsack.  Suddenly he extracted the adorable foldable fork, knife and corkscrew combo we had purchased as gifts for travelling macro friends.  OY VEY!   Wonder of wonders, it turns out you can not take a knife on a plane.  This was one of the weighty items I had removed to reduce our excess weight.  Sadly he tossed this nifty 20 euro each gift right into the rubbish pail.  And finally as we arrived in Bristol, in the UK., we approached the customs authority and he looked at our forms with a cautionary face.  What could be wrong this time?  It seems that our profession of Vegan Chef was causing his some dismay.  A vegetarian himself, he had noticed a plethora of new healthy restaurants cropping up and was concerned that we might be seeking employment in his country.  Since my return to the US tickets were in my checked luggage, he kept us there for many uncomfortable minutes as he peppered us with questions regarding our travel plans.  Finally convinced we weren't here to pilfer employment from the locals, he let us pass, with a recommendation for a veg restaurant he had enjoyed in Bristol recently.
When you leave the comforts of home to enjoy the cultures of the world, you have to expect the unexpected and be ready for whatever crosses your path.  The captive dryer that stole half our clothes in Paris last year and the pickpocket women who lifted KO's phone( see 2013 Paris blog), my singed hair in Greece or rolling heavy suitcases through the hilly streets in Switzerland with my daughter, only to find out it was a holiday and the buses weren't running to the airport....all are just part of the "baggage" of travel.
 I have thought of my sister, Joan, frequently on this trip.  She prefers the comforts of home and her familiar life of knowing what to expect.  Travel is not for the faint of heart. It takes energy to walk for 10 hours around the ruins of Italy or to lug your suitcases up and down the stairs in the London tube.  It takes flexibility to deal with lost reservations and missed flights.  It takes patience to deal with your travel partner after about a week of close quarters. It takes cash to pay for luggage fees you had not anticipated.   But the rewards greatly outweigh the costs.  We get to experience the food, peoples and cultures and history of foreign lands most people only dream about.  I wouldn't trade that for anything.

Musings on Rome

Our final stop in Italy was to the eternal city, Rome.  We hopped a train from Florence and made our way down the coast to experience city life.   First we walked down the wide avenues until we reached the Roman Forum, Palatine Hill and colossal Coliseum.  For this important phase of Roman history we decided to join a tour with a versed guide.  Strolling through the ancient ruins, I was impressed by the sheer height of the Basilica, the width of the columns at the Forum  and the enormity of the Imperial Palace with the remains of its gargantuan rooms.

I wondered how the early Romans at the beginning of the first century had the knowledge and ability to construct such structures as these.  I learned that a system of pulleys and slave labor accomplished these feats.  At the Coliseum I was horrified to hear that 9000 animals were killed in 100 days for sport.  Exotic animals would be displayed in a natural looking habitat and then trapped and killed for fun.  Our guide explained that since there was no television in 80 A.D., this is how the people would entertain themselves.  Then to add to the enjoyment, gladiators would fight each other to the death.  Our current football stadiums ressemble the Coliseum and I guess we continue the tradition of attacking for sport as entertainment when we watch our favorite teams tackle each other on the playing field.

Since I am a cultural Jew, I wanted to pay a visit to the Great Synagogue of Rome, built in 1870.  In 1986, Pope John Paul II visited the building, making it the first time a pope had ever entered a synagogue.  We listened attentively as the docent described the Nazis ultimatum to the Jews of Rome in World War II.  They were to gather all of their gold and present it the next day and their lives would be spared.  The Jewish community along with their Christian friends scoured the area to come up with as much gold as they could.  After presenting it to the Nazis, they were told they would be saved.  Three days later the Germans gathered up all the Jews and sent them to Auschwitz to be exterminated.  I was relieved to hear that some of them were hidden and saved by their Italian neighbors.  In 1982, armed Palestinian militants bombed the building as worshipers were finishing services.  A two year old toddler was killed and many injured.   Italy has been the home of many Jews from the diaspora. When Queen Isabella of Spain expelled the Jews during the Inquisition, many of them found refuge in Italy.  The Jewish community in Rome goes back to the second century B.C. when the Roman Empire had an alliance with Judea under the leadership of Judah Maccabias.  Then  many Jews were brought to Rome as slaves after the Jewish Roman Wars in Judea from 63-135 C.E.  I guess the Romans have the Jewish slaves to thank for some of those monuments that they enjoyed and that we enjoy to this day.

Before we leave Italy and Rome, we must discuss the culinary experience there.  I ate more pasta in Rome than I have eaten in my whole life.  Pasta is served al dente in Rome with a scant amount of sauce that is chunkier than what we are used to.  Since we try to avoid nightshades(potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant and peppers), dried baked flour such as bread, and dairy, it was difficult to find macrobiotic quality food there.  I ended up eating some eggplant, tomatoes, bread, wonderful gelato and lots of salad.  Even the Vegetarian restaurant we went to, Il Margutta, near the Spanish Steps, where we had risotto, salad and quinoa, was really not too good.  Thankfully, our wonderful cooking class in Tuscany made up for our Rome meals.

In concluding the Rome chapter of our trip, I will treasure my memories of spending time in a Tuscan villa, seeing how the Romans live up close and personal and taking home some lovely Italian Vegan recipes.  I will revel in awe at the accomplishments of the Roman architects, painters and inventors of the aqueducts.  To be able to accomplish all they did without computers, and technology is truly miraculous.  We were very fortunate to be able to visit this beautiful land and experience its treasures firsthand.

Macrobiotic Basics in Italy...Cooking the Italian Way

Macrobiotic Basics in Italy....Cooking the Italian Way

As we begin our first cooking class in the villa, Patricia describes her culture and philosophy of cooking.  She cooks seasonally with local ingredients, always fresh and often from her nearby garden.  Sitting at the knee of her Southern Italian father and her Northern Italian mother, she has learned a melding of the two types of cooking.  She describes several different varieties of sauces, and other qualities that distinguish the two regions.  Northern sauce includes butter, as cows are found in that region, while southern sauce uses olive oil, as olive trees are abundant there.  This is so similar to Macrobiotics where we learn to eat what is local to our area and in season.  Stressing the importance of her culture and tradition in her cooking, I think about how far some of us Americans have gotten from our original roots in our eating habits.  There seems to be a distinct pattern to follow here in eating and behavior, founded on ancestral guideposts.  

Since we are vegan and the meals here are typically vegetarian, Patricia has made some modifications to the recipes for us.  Ours comrades include a French pediatrician, and a woman from Nebraska on a month journey to discover herself and find health.  The four of us have our own place on the marble table, complete with sharp knife, apron and recipes.  We begin with Patricia's recipe for tiramisu.  She apologizes to us for the eggs and sugar in the recipe, but we assure her that we can make an exception this time.  We soak the delicate ladyfingers in a coffee bath placing them in a dish laden with the creamy egg mixture. layering to the top, then dusting the highest level with cocoa.  Next is a fascinating dish called a Timballo.  it is created from a shell of eggplant which is then filled with enormous tube pasta, tofu, fresh basil and tomato sauce.  We create the shell by folding the eggplants slices over the other ingredients.  After cooking we turn the mixture upside down and it forms a spectacular delectable display.  Zucchini boats stuffed with onions, carrots, Sage, breadcrumbs and freshly ground nutmeg are quite delicious. Last a salad of slivered cabbage, fresh apples, raisins, lemon juice and parsley is offered.

Local red and white wines are always on the table as we dine together outside under the darkening sky.  New friends, amazing fresh food and quiet peace...who could ask for more?

Our second cooking class was today.  Our menu includes Ravioli di Zucca, Seitan alla Siciliana, Cucumber and Mint Salad and Stuffed Peaches.  What really impresses me here is the use of colors and favors to create meals I have not experienced In American Italian restaurants.  There is a lot more to Italian cuisine than the average American gets to experience unless they have an Italian heritage.  

We begin with plump, ripe peaches which we fill with a mixture of cocoa, amaretti biscuits and ladyfingers which have been crushed and mixed together with cherry liquor.  White wine and basil are placed in the bottom of the pan and the peaches placed on top to be baked until the filling tastes like a delectable cherry brownie.

I have requested a chance to prepare pumpkin ravioli, not realizing the amount of labor that this dish requires.  I will never take this dish for granted again!  We prepare a delicate dough, blending it and then coaxing it into a circle with our rolling pins.  The filling is composed of sautéed pumpkin and baked potato blended with chopped parsley and other herbs.  These are blended into a smooth paste.  By the way, our teacher, Pat,  does not use machines, but rather puts her gentle energy into the creation of the dish.  Sounds like macrobiotic beliefs, eh?  Small circles are cut out of the dough and we fill them with the squash mixture.  These are placed into a vat of hot bubbling water where they bob up and down until done.  A sauce is prepared composed of thick soy cream, olive oil, Sage and Rosemary.  The result is quite delicious.  

The Seitan dish we prepare is made with chicken for the others.  The melding of olives, raisins, sundried tomatoes, oregano, pine nuts and thyme makes for a salty and sweet combination with the Seitan absorbing all the flavors and complementing the carmelized onions on the plate.  Finally we prepare cucumber with a gadget that forms a type of spaghetti made of this refreshing vegetable.  A bright green nest is created and sweet pink watermelon is placed on top and crowned with mint, basil, black olives and sesame seeds.  The dressing is a creamy affair resembling a Greek sauce.  All of the meals are served course by course with red and white wine and a hearty bread.  Good conversation and breaking bread with our fellow travelers at 9 at night is becoming our tradition.

  

Journey to Tasty Tuscany

Journey to Tasty Tuscany

Journeying to Italy usually includes visits to Rome, Venice, Florence and perhaps the well known hill towns of Sienna or San Gimignano.   For our vacation we chose the lesser " trampled by tourists" area of Tuscany called Palaia, not far from Pisa.  

We have selected Tasty Tuscany, a cooking school, complete with daily tours of the neighboring walled towns.  Our heavenly vacation begins high atop a hill to a villa we reach by climbing a windy dusty road.  Approaching the summit, all our cares of everyday life begin to slip from our overburdened shoulders. The villa is composed of two homes, one for Patricia and Paolo, the chef and tour guide respectively, and one where we will lay our heads for the next four days.  The kitchen is one any chef, or chefs,  would die to have, a stove top with eight gas burners, a huge slab of white marble to prepare and teach classes, two generous sinks, and multiple shelves and cupboards for storage.  There are pass throughs to the dining room and the outside where an Italianate tiled table, crowned by wisteria vines, overflowing with their lilac pedals, awaits for alfresco dining.  The grounds are ornate with the scents and beauty of the yellow Brush flower and Jasmine, tall cedars and multicolored flowers bloom all around us.   Our enormous room is bright tangerine, with a red and tan checkerboard floor and antique armoire covered in a colorful silk screen of orange, pink and purple designs.  We have a private bath in the hall nearby.  Outside, for our leisure, there is an amorphous pool for lounging.  The meditative silence and sounds of nature promise to soothe and nurture us for the days to come.

After a sound and well needed sleep, we awake to the sounds of the resident rooster.  Three dogs, eleven cats and many birds also reside here.  Our breakfast today is comprised of a hearty farrow grain and delicious oil sautéed Swiss chard.  In addition I spy freshly baked crusty bread, cereals with soy milk and fresh apricots.  Then it is off to our first day of sightseeing.  Paolo leads the way in his roomy van entertaining us with facts about the region.   Our first stop is to an uninhabited ghostly village.  

We learn about the Villa Saletta where the nobility lived in the lavish home and the peasants squeezed their families of sometimes thirty people into small apartments removed from the sight of the wealthy.  The nobility lived higher up from the rest, hence the Higher class.  There are two stone churches here, one connected to the villa and the other for the poor. The second son of the family becomes the priest of the nobility's church. Next to the peasant's church, the middle class, composed of the craftsmen, have a larger dwelling, denoted by more windows, than the poor.  Between the nobility and the poor is an all important deep well and a large oven.  The wealthy Higher Class control the poor with the well, doling out water only when the less fortunate do their bidding.  The poor never handle money, but rather trade using a barter system.  They only get the use of the oven one day a month and cook all their bread for the month.  Hard bread is used in a soup called Ribollito, which means boil again.  The brick buildings are covered with plaster and then frescoes are painted on them and we can see the remains of painted columns and the family crest.   Ancient mulberry trees are growing nearby with their sweet fruit.  They were here to feed the silkworms used to create lovely cloth for sale.  The uniformity and size of the cobblestones tellsôpi us the size of the wealth of the inhabitants as more affluent folk could afford more.  Not so different from today.   So much to learn from the remains of a once prosperous life, if you can decipher the clues.

Other trivia includes the use of the stately Cypress trees in Tuscany.  They dot the landscape and are utilized to denote boundaries of property, prevent erosion with their straight roots and keep headstones from being disturbed in cemeteries.  Andrea Bocceli built a theater called Theatra de Silencio in his town and returns there once a year to perform.  The fields of dynamic sunflowers are used to feed everything from birds to cows.  Gas is eight dollars a gallon.  Solar panels in villages are bought by villagers by the share, so everyone can benefit from them.  Delectable gelato is everywhere in the towns and impossible to resist!

We enjoy our lunch in the town of Voltarra.  It is a medieval village built high on a hill protected by three sets of walls.  In the town square we learn about the towers where the nobility would go in times of attack along with the servants lower in the tower and the army too.  A curvy path leads us to the original castle which is now used as an insane asylum.  Our lunch is at an organic vegan vegetarian restaurant called Dioniso Bistro.  We enjoy a thick soup of lentils, grain, mushrooms and broth.  Next is a lovely al dente pasta with a creamy savory tomato sauce.  Finally we have to sample the pizza complete with fresh zucchini, roasted red peppers and red onions.  Everything is fresh and colorful.  It is so pleasant to dine on one of the three terraces where we can enjoy some people watching.

Then it is time to head back for our first cooking class, which I will describe in the next blog entry.

It Takes A Village

Hello All,

Just recovering from intense back pain that started one week ago.  It all started innocently enough.  I simply lifted my cat carrier to take Mitzi to the vet.  Simple enough, right. Not right!  That night I could not move my body without excruciating pain coursing through me.  How could this happen?  After all, I am macrobiotic and therefore superhuman and immune to all physical ills.  Lets consider this statement.  First of all, macrobiotics just gives me a leg up.  If I eat healthfully and exercise and do not put toxins in my body, I will be less likely to fall ill, but I am still human and discharges of everyday emotions, foods and environmental factors are normal and healthy.  But...was I really following my macrobiotic regime lately?  I had been falling off the wagon, as it were.  I had eaten a whole bowl of corn chips and salsa at a Mexican restaurant just the night before, after a not so emotionally nurturing lunch date with my mom that afternoon.  The Mexican dalliance had been in direct response to that lunch and a need to let loose plus the fact that it was taking them hours to serve us! Excuses, excuses...  In addition, I had made the type A decision to work my tale off to produce a bevy of yummy macrobiotic, vegan and gluten free treats for an open house at an Orthodox pool three days before which introduced stress and pressure and ended up being less than fulfilling when the kosher attendees chose to only purchase 20 dollars worth of goods.  I did get to spend some quality time with one of my super cool friends who sold none of her elegant and classic stained glass.

So...I was ripe for a fall.  I was not following my own advice to meditate daily, reduce stress in my life, including toxic people,  and only put nutrient rich quality macrobiotic food in my belly.

How did I recover from my self sabotage?  It took a village of support to nurse me back to health.  I consulted my chiropractor who assured me it was just muscle spasms, though I was convinced it was a dread blockage of the fatalistic kind.  I consulted my wonderful homeopath, who lived in India for 30 years and has the calmest, most nurturing bedside manner, on the phone because he is in Florida and I am in Maryland.  His remedies and suggestions were life saving!  I made several visits to my acupuncturist, whose best guess was gallbladder issues.  His knowledge of the body and patience and openness to my lifestyle is unsurpassed.  Then, of course, I had to drop a line to Warren Kramer who immediately called me back and asked the dreaded question, with his innocent bashful tone, "Have you eaten anything dried and baked lately, by chance?", knowing full well I had,  before he even asked!!!  All of these guys are on my team.  I picked them from the roster of choices and I am so grateful to have them.  They are the cream of the crop!  And lets not forget KO who was there every step of the way, lifting things for me, feeding me healthy food, driving me and giving me TLC.  Phone calls from friends, my ever supportive sister and a relative here and there did the trick.

The heartfelt message is that WE NEED PEOPLE.   We need them when we are well and when we are not so well.  My advice is to form your own team before you need them. Also offer to be on other people's teams.  I am willing to reach out and support my loved ones when they need it and be more aware of when they need it, offering a ride or a listening ear, a meal or just a loving prayer.

Would love to hear comments on your own experiences with your own needs and experiences in these situations.

With love,  Almost pain free and more awake to my life, Susan