Children bugs life

Its the time of year for bugs to start going into hibernation.  At last the mosquitos are starting to tire of biting and the lizards and geckos are all busy chasing each other.  We have some wonderful bug hunts here with our guests who love to see what we can find.  Today was a real treasure with a snakes skin coming out of a hole in the wall.  Our friendly snake (grass snake so harmless) must have decided to get out of the sun and shed its skin somewhere cool.  They are often lying along the edge of the stone walls and they seem to use the wall to help them to 'scratch' off the old skin.  It must be one for our children to take into school and show everyone before our guests can take some home if they would like. 

Wonderful meal with Dana and Melchiorre, Mangia Mangia

I have just had THE most amazing lunch with Dana and Melchiorre of MangiaMangia based in Umbertide, Perugia, Italy (http://www.mangiamangiaitaly.com/).  We had a meeting set up to talk about plans to have short cooking classes with young children in a child friendly enviroment.  The plan is to have a 2 hour class for very small children so that they can learn from a true Italian chefs.  Both Dana and Melchiorre are fully trained chefs and know all the tricks of working with fresh ingredients that are only available in season. 

We had agreed that we would try something different so rather than have a typical Italian lunch it was to be  a Sushi menu.  There was an amazing starter of Norimaki (seaweed rolls filled with rice and seabass), it was the most tender Norimaki I have ever tasted.  The rice was creamy and the roll melted in your mouth.  Next we had wild asparagus with quails eggs which you then rolled with a very thin pancake.  I have never had this before but I can say they were wonderful.  Finally came quickly cooked fresh spinich with pieces of seabass and anchovy fillets. 

The lunch was so tasty I will just have to set up a follow on meeting to discuss menus and plans for childrens classes with a child friendly menu.  

About Dana and Melchiorre: Melchiorre and Dana are a chef couple who are passionate about their cooking and passionate about the cooking experiences of their guests. The hold catering classes but can also cater for you at your home.  

August - time for fresh tomatoe recipies

 
The tomotoes this year have been wonderful, we have been busy making fresh passata and taking our baby tomatoes to do sun dried tomatoes, how delicious they taste.  For Sun dried tomatoes just cut them in half and lay them out for 2 to 3 days, put into a jar and cover with olive oil. Yum Yum.

Mirabilandia - fun fair Italy

We decided to take a day out and visit Mirabilandia, near Ravenna.  Its a great outdoor park for younger children oh and a few good rides for adults too.  So at least the dads can go off and have fun for an hour whilst the kids chill out in the shade.  We spent all day there with a few water rides at the end of the day so that we weren't too wet.  It was great fun and we will be back later in the summer. 

Spring is truely here

Well spring or summer is here at last.  It is now 24 degrees and set to become at least 26 by the weekend which is great news.  Time for eating outdoors again and watching the wasps steal some chicken - their favourite food.

Pools are being opened early to catch the heat of the day, a refreshing dip in the morning is always good to wake up to.

The buds are out on all the flowers and Strawberries are back in season.

March madness - still skiing in March, a great time for families

Abetone is a great little ski resort just north west of Florence.  The snow at Abetone, except for the occassional exception, is first rate. This year the snows came in early December and the by New Year more than four metres had fallen.  There are lots of different lifts (25), two of which have wonderful new 6 seater fast cars with covers.  There are never lots of queues and this time of year (late March) you can get some wonderful deals on lift passes and hotels.  Some weeks you can get a ski pass for €15/day and a hotel for €100 with 2 hours of ski lessons thrown in.  Its too good a deal to miss.

Carnival time to celebrate the arrival of Spring

Well it's here at last, with the last of the Carnival festivities over Spring has finally decided to grace us with its presence.  Back to T shirts and hopefully shorts.  Carnival time is a great time for families, everyone gets dressed up in costumes, from children as small as 3 months old right up to the elder generations.  There are parties in the local community halls and the use of confetti (coriandole) is everywhere.  It is a great time to have fun and enjoy acting like a chlid again (what good excuse) AND let the children paint your face....

A day at a fun indoor soft play center, Assisi near Perugia

Ramba Zamba is a relatively new soft play area on the lower hillside of Assisi.  It has different areas for very young children and the slightly older children.  It's open 6 days a week and is currently closed on Mondays.

We went at 10 o'clock on Sunday morning, had some Pizza at their snack bar and we all kept playing until 4 o'clock.  It's open until 9pm at night!  Adults can go on all the play areas which include 3 full size trampolines.

There is also air hockey and little 'booths' for parties.  We all came home happy and exhausted - all just in time for a good nights sleep.

Definately a place to go for a change and bit of indoor fun.

Early spring in Umbria

Sunday was a wonderful sunny day in Umbria.  It was so warm (16 degrees) that we all wore t-shirts, Poppy and Michele even put on their shorts it was so hot.  We decided to go to the nearby beach at Lago Trasimeno for an Ice-cream, its a great place for children as there are always swings, slides and climbing frames with lots of sand around.  After a lazy afternoon building sand castles sadly we had to come back and make tea.  But what a great way to spend a day in January.