My first couple of days in Italy have been everything I dreamed of and more. I am staying with my cousins Jane and Peppe who have given me the royal treatment and showered me with so much, food, sights and attention I feel like the most doted on guest in all of Italy. Upon my arrival at the train station, we went and had real Quattro stagione pizza which means 'four seasons pizza' (think Vivaldi!) and has four different toppings separated into quarters- mushroom, olives, Mozarella, and cuttlefish. It was delicious, so light and the sauce was truly something special. Above is a photo I took on my first full day. After lunch, I went with Jane and Peppe's son, Adriano (in the back holding the two salami) and Alessia, to the home of their friend who was making sausages from a wild boar they had slaughtered the day before. Each person at the table has a job. One fills the casings, one ties the link closed, one pokes the holes for the air to escape and one seperates the big link into smaller links. This is exactly why I came to Italy- to see people and families, continuing traditions and making things on a small scale where they know exactly what is in the food they're eatinga nod why it tastes the way it does.
Later that night we went for a walk in Gaeta which juts out into the sea. The town is a seaside paradise, with roots dating back to 338 BC, with roman elements still surviving.
Gaeta goes all the way out to the far point in this photo. The town is beautiful and I look forward to exploring it more. It was an important port in the past and the US military still has a naval base here. The thing I'm looking forward to the most through is the fish market that happens on Thursdsy. Peppe and I are planning on picking out some fish so stay tuned for that.
There's a cat in the blue boat licking itself. There are lots if cats here which is great since I'm starting to pine for my Cakebread....
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