Sweet Little Pari
Letter #48: Staying in Pari provided Hil and I with the most amazing welcome to our time in Italy. <3
7/11/23
I was restless sleeping without A/C, even though the overhead fan circulated the air in this cellar-like room very nicely. Even without the most restful sleep, Hil and I woke up around 10am on Sunday morning feeling pretty well-recovered and thinking we may have beat the jet lag. We decided to go for a run in the Tuscan hills (in this heat?!) We were crazy. The temperatures were clocking in around 86 F in the morning, and up to 96 F—sometimes nearly 100 F—in the afternoons. We planned to stop at Market da Roberto on our way back from the run for some breakfast supplies.
The run was…hot. VERY HOT. Lots of walking back up the hills and we kept it short—under 3 miles. We got back to our room around 11:30am so we could buy groceries from Roberto before his shop shut down at 12:30pm for the afternoon siesta. It is common for shops to close from 1:30pm-3:30pm every day. Charming, right? I wish we had a siesta in the US.
The shop was amazing, Hil and I were in heaven. It was a tiny room with one of each of everything you could need for a simple meal—with the exception of pasta, where Roberto offered several types. We grabbed fruit first, which is the #1 thing I crave in the morning. The nectarines smelled so good, Hil took 3 bananas, and we picked out a cantaloupe. Then we grabbed a block of Pecorino Romano (Roberto’s suggestion), and he gave us a carton of 6 eggs from behind the counter. Eggs are not kept in the fridge here. 🤷🏻♀️ Hil choose an entire basket of tomatoes, red onions with the stems still attached, and a block of burro (butter). Roberto portioned out some stems of parsley for us and we grabbed a carton of milk for coffee. The AirBnB already supplied olive oil and balsamic vinegar so we had everything we needed for a quaint meal. Right before we checked out, Roberto asked if we needed pane. He spoke very little English, but with gestures and our languages mixing, we were able to put together the perfect grocery list. Nothing was processed, everything was fresh and locally made. We were giddy. We paid our friendly grocer and walked the 1 minute back to our room. I jumped in the shower while Hil began cutting up the veggies.
The shower was perfect. Water pressure on point, and I turned the water cold so I could stop sweating from our run. When I got out of the shower, Hil had Lavazza coffee ready to go. I told her to add zucchero, one more spoonful than you think you should give. I have the taste palate of a child when it comes to coffee. Then Hil jumped in the shower and I began cutting up the fruit. I started with the nectarine. I popped a bite into my mouth as I continued cutting…and thought I was hallucinating. Never in my life have I tasted something so sweet, so perfect. I couldn’t believe it. I fed Hilary a piece immediately when she came out of the shower, still wrapped in a towel. She looked at me with eyes wide, and said the nectarine tasted like it had been infused with extra sugar. She wasn’t wrong. I cut up the cantaloupe next—same thing. It was the best cantaloupe I’d ever had in my life.
Next, Hil began cutting up the tomatoes, red onion, and parsley, drizzling them with olive oil and a dash of salt. I don’t really love raw tomatoes but these ones changed me. Like Hil does, I was popping them my mouth like candy. They were so sweet and warm. I had learned, years earlier, from my sister-in-law, Angie, that it is sacrilege to put tomatoes in the fridge.
The onion was subtle and sweet. We used super chunky sea salt on everything. The kitchen didn’t have black pepper but we didn’t need it. There was so much flavor in all of these simple ingredients that we were happy to eat them as plain as can be.
The eggs came next. Hil makes these soft scrambled eggs that make my mouth water. But the uovos themselves—so rich! The yolks are a bright orange color, so different from what I buy at the store in the US.
After we finished our brunch, we got back in the car and headed to Viola’s farm, Podere Le Lapole, to use the pool (about a 7 minute drive from our AirBnB). It was SO hot, we couldn’t wait to lay around and sunbathe, taking a dip in the pool whenever the heat became unbearable. We had the pleasure of meeting Viola, another very petite woman, coming up from a swim in the pool after completing her work during the morning hours. She bakes bread in her workshop in the afternoon, so she, her partner, and their helper, Jacobo, just finished harvesting the wheat she’d be using. She showed us her huge baking room where sheets of wheat were laid out to dry under a fan. She also showed us her little store—an honesty shop where you can go into this tiny cellar at any time, choose from one of the many homemade items, and write down what you took so she could charge you at the end of your stay. She had jams, beers, wine, champagne, lavender sachets, magnets with local birds painted on them, elderberry liquor, fruit juices, candles, handprinted postcards, and ceramic mugs. Nothing was commercial, all of it made artisanly. It was a little heaven for Hil and I, and we purchased several items, including wine to have back in our apartment.
Viola had two perfect pups following her around, Cappuccino and Narina. She breeds them together from time to time, and, we were in luck, because Narina had just had 3 puppies, 2 of which live in the village. She said we were likely to run into the puppies at some point. I told her that the next litter she has, to save one for me. ❤️
After lounging at the pool for a few hours, Hil and I went back to the apartment to shower and get dressed for dinner. We decided to go back to Bar de la Sandra e Barbara. Dinner service didn’t start until 7:30pm (which is very common in Italy), so we took our time, having a glass of wine and listening to the Italian radio station at home while we got ready. At the ristorante, we sat closer to the entrance on the little patio for a “change of scenery” that night. (Really you can’t go far, as this was the tiniest town square I’d ever seen). The servers are all so smiley, so happy, and hardly speak a word of English. This time I used Google Translate to read the menu. Hil and I decided on the bistecca and a truffle ravioli. I ordered more red wine, and Hil got an Aperol Spritz.
The meal? INCREDIBLE. The server insisted on cooking the steak medium—we usually order rare or medium rare. But his recommendation was perfect. It was one of the best steaks I’ve ever had, seasoned only with salt crystals. We finished every last bite. And the best part? It was only 15 Euros.
We sat a while longer, enjoying our drinks and listening to the locals chat in the square, when Roberto entered onto the patio area. We said “Ciao!” And I asked him to wait while I pulled up the photo of the breakfast we made with the food from his store that morning. His face lit up as he admired our meal, and he returned later, asking if we wanted to share a limoncello. He pulled up a chair and sat with us, toasting Salute with our little glasses. We did the best we could communicating—he could understand our English, but would respond in Italian. When he learned we were coming from New York, he exclaimed there was another New Yorker living in the town! He called over Jenna, who also came to say “Ciao!” She was immediately personable, claiming Roberto is her official teacher for the Italian language. 🥰
I was impressed at how well she could speak with Roberto and translate for us. She had been visiting Pari for the past 20 years after first studying at The Pari Center to participate in classes that combine philosophy, science, and spirituality. She loved Pari so much that she eventually decided to move here and buy a house. She is now in the process of refurbishing it.
Roberto encouraged her to pull up a chair and went in to buy another round of drinks for all—spritzes for Jenna and Hil, red wine for myself and Roberto.
We got to know Jenna and Roberto quite a bit that evening. Jenna was a stand-up comedian in New York. Roberto was born and raised in Pari—a true Parisani—and it felt like he was the heartbeat of the town. Over time, more locals stopped to say hi and pretty soon Filippo the Parisani, Julie from Belgium, and Francesco from Calabria had all pulled up chairs. Julie was holding Pixie, one of the puppies of Cappuccino and Narina, who I believe was the sweetest, most patient puppy I’d ever met. We also got to meet Macchia, her sister.
We had tons of laughs that evening—especially when learning that many Italian names for vegetables are dirty words here…? Roberto insisted on bringing out an entire bottle of limoncello. Other locals came and went, and before we knew it the restaurant was shutting down—it was 11:30pm. I went inside to pay the bill. The server, Lorenzo, had forgotten what we ordered. So I wrote out our items from memory, in Italian! I was VERY proud of myself. He tallied them up, crossed off about half of the bill, and brought our total to only 30 Euros. It was one of the best nights I’d ever had—Hil and I were cracking up the entire time, really enjoying learning about the lives of our new friends, AND we got a family discount! We made plans to have coffee with Julie and Jenna on Thursday morning, the day we were to leave, but knew we’d likely see each other again before that. The town is seriously that small. We finally said “Buonanotte!” at 12:30am and everyone headed off to bed.
Where I’m at now…
Whew! Well I am in week two of WWOOFing in Italy. I’m currently in the north, living and working at La Trappa—a textile factory from the 18th century, that briefly housed Trappist monks seeking refuge during the French Revolution. I can only get 1 measly bar of service if I stand out on the edge of the property, or at the highest window on the third floor. Wifi is non-existent. So I had to trek to the nearest village and hope to find a cafe with WiFi in order to keep my Friday newsletter posts going—I have posted every week since the middle of December 2022, and I did NOT want to break my streak! I was in luck. I found a cute little outdoor cafe where I could enjoy a glass of wine, a cup of gelato, and keep writing to all of you. 😍 I’m here for the next two weeks so this will be my new Thursday routine!
Hey! Would you like to connect over creativity, self-growth, and problem-solving? Or just to have a virtual glass of wine or mocktail? Please book a time on my Calendly for us to chat! I can’t wait to see you. XOXO.
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What an absolutely idyllic village and amazing group of people! This might be my favorite place you’ve gone!❤️
Wow, I was drooling all over my phone while reading this newsletter. What beautiful experiences!!