Le Mura

The walls of Ferrara. . .

Our city is literally a walled city. The walls are hundreds of years old and circle the entire city (9 km). At one time they were an impressive defense system and were even studied by Michealangelo. Today, not only are they still standing, they are wide and lined with trees and are the perfect place to bike or walk. Really, one of the only places our kids can ride bikes in the city is on top of a 12 meter, 700 year old wall. Crazy.


Inside the walls (where we live), the city is very urban and outstide the walls almost immediately begins the countryside. So from the top, you can look down one side and see the hustle and bustle of the city and from the other, the peaceful country. Bello.

La Nebbia

The Ferrara fog. It covers the city almost every morning in winter. Before I experienced it myself, I met a girl from England who now lives here and told me about it. Of course I thought, "how depressing" but she said in her lovely British accent "no, it is really quite mystical". She's right... it is eerie and mysterious to see all these centuries old buildings bathed in fog. Mystical is the perfect word to describe it.

So I've tried to remember that and as my hair is limp and plastered to my forehead from the fog, I repeat to myself... "it is mystical, it is mystical, it is mystical". When visibility is really low, the children and I play "guess what that is" while walking to school. Someone points out something and we try to guess what it is. One time we guessed sign and it was actually a dog.

These tricks work pretty well until mid-January.  By then, I am desperate for the sun.  Last year during the fog, I ordered a bunch of spring clothes in bright yellow.  Of course I never wore them.  I don't wear bright yellow but in the midst of the fog, I seemed to forget that.  This year, on day 16 of no sun we booked a trip to the Canary Islands (Spanish islands off the coast to Africa) to go lay in the sun for a few days.  Luckily, this week, the sun has appeared.  Who knows what we would have done next.

Vado a Bicicletta

It is becoming increasing difficult to think of things to blog about because life in Italy is becoming increasingly normal to me.  Don't get me wrong, it is wonderful, but I'm just not noticing the things that are different anymore.  For example, I didn't think anything was strange or different about the way I get around now.  I'm simply doing as everyone else does... but when my family was in town, they were a bit surprised.

Driving in this city is less than ideal and parking is even worse. Within a few months of living here, I already "bend the BMW" as the Italians say. So last year I walked everywhere because I had a two year old in a stroller. (If you have ever tried to shop with a two year old on the loose, you understand why I needed that stroller.)   Even when my two year old needed stitches, we walked to the emergency room.  It is a few blocks from my house and there is no parking at the hospital. 

This year, however, I have joined all the other Ferrese and I go by bike.

Ferrara is the city of bicycles. The number of people biking here is among the highest in Europe. I'm not talking about Sunday afternoon leisurely bike rides. No, this is a way to get from A to B. It is common to see 80 year old women loaded down with shopping bags, whizzing past you on a bike. I often see people smoking a cigarette and talking on the phone pedaling down the street. People eat gelato while riding, teenage boys ride with their girlfriend on the bar in front and kiss while they ride down the street, people ride with their dogs in the basket. I've even seen a waiter in an apron biking while balancing a tray of espresso. This all used to amuse me, but after living here so long, it all seems quite normal.

Outside of the train station:

When I take the kids to school...

Saturday morning in centro...

On the way to dinner with my husband...

Sempre a bicicletta.  (Always by bike).  It is actually faster than driving but I'll be honest, the biggest advantage is that I can wear heels again. 

Sono Qui

I can't believe it has been almost a month since my last post.  It has been a wonderful, but very busy month.  December is absolutely lovely in this city and I spent most of the last month just enjoying it instead of writing about it.  The city is busy and bustling with everyone out bundled in their furs doing their Christmas shopping.  Seriously, it is like living the Christmas song "Silver Bells".  Right down to the bells in the bell towers ringing while strolling the outdoor Christmas market.

We've had family in town and enjoyed cooking big meals and talking over wine, shopping, a trip to Venice, a trip to Verona, a night out with an eight course dinner... I've been to Sorrento, the Almafi Coast, Naples, and Pompei.  So much to write about but first I must catch up on the mundane things I've been ignoring.  Like two weeks worth of laundry to plow through one 2 hour load at a time.  Stay tuned.  I might be finished by February :)

At the Grocery

Italian grocery stores are pretty different from stores in America.  Almost everything in the store is from Italy so that means no ingredients to cook internation food (Mexican, Asian, etc).  There are not aisles and aisles of processed food like in the States.  No doritos, no flavored potato chips, no soups in cans, no bottled salad dressings.  Hydrogenated oils are banned in much of Europe.  So margarine is actually illegal.

Now I am used to the new way of shopping and actually prefer it.  However, this time of year, I am making many of my traditional recipes and am once again missing American ingredients.

Here's my top ten list of things I wish I could buy here:

1.  Brown sugar
2.  Sour cream
3.  Plastic bags (like ziplock)
4.  Cheddar cheese
5.  Goldfish crackers
6.  Italian sausage (they sell sausage here but honestly it is not the same and not as good as the "Italian" sausage from stores in America)
7.  Ranch dressing
8.  Self rising cornmeal (I could probably use polenta but I haven't gone to the trouble to figure out how.)
9.  Cilantro
10. Corn on the cob (They only sell corn in cans.  Never fresh, not even frozen.  Only in cans.)
11.  I know I said 10 things but I have one more.  I miss breakfast food like English muffins, bagels, bacon, etc.

I could go on but really, I don't miss the things I used to eat.  We can do without the frozen burritos.  My husband lost 10 pounds within the first couple months of living in Italy.  Even though he probably eats more food here, the quality of the food is better.  Turns out the packaged food he ate for lunch on the go was packing on the pounds, but a three course lunch with fresh ingredients doesn't.  Hmmm.

I Libri

Addesso e inverno, now it is winter, and time to be cozy and read a good book.  Here's a list of books about Italy that I have enjoyed.  All are set within 30 or 40 miles of where we live.

Italian Neighbors by Tim Parks
Written by a British guy who lived in Italy for 10 years.  Almost everything in this book has happened to me or someone I know.

Playing for Pizza by John Grisham
Cute, easy read set in Parma about an American pro football player who ends up playing in Italy.  I was in the middle of reading this when I met our doctor and friend for the first time.   He is an American who has lived in Italy over 25 years and guess what, used to be the quarterback of an Italian football team here.  This is American football, not soccer.

 The Broker by John Grisham
Another fast read set in Bologna.  Great descriptions of Italian life, architecture, and food.

Leonardo's Swans by Karen Essex
Historical fiction about the Este family who ruled Ferrara for centuries. Da Vinci painted two of the Este princesses and this book centers around them.  Set in Milan and Ferrara.


Now I am in the middle of reading Ciao America.  It is the exact opposite of what I am living now.  It is written by an Italian who moves to America for a year.  The first thing he does in his American house is try to close the shutters but of course American shutters don't move.  He is completely confused by American air conditioners and why anyone would want it to be 70 degrees inside when the outside temp is over 100.  The book is a bit outdated (it was written in the late '90s) but still interesting to read that Italians are as confused in America as we often are in Italy.

Happy reading!

images from Amazon.com

What Not to Say

Today instead of writing about pretty things, I'm going to give a little Italian lesson about what not to say.  First, let me tell you where I went wrong.

It was last January at 9:00 in the morning.  I had my two year old in the stroller and was going to the Friday market with my friend.  (Friday market is a lovely outdoor market that fills the city center with vendors that sell everything from scarves to apples) We were short on time but as we walked past our regular cafe it just didn't feel right to not stop for cappuccino.  We didn't have the time so we just decided to stop in, say ciao, and get a bottle of water to take with us to the market.  We were feeling pretty good about our Italian at this point and this is what we said:

Us: Ciao Bea!

Bea: Ciao! Come stai? (Hi How are you?)

Us: Bene. Per oggi, vorrei solo un aqua naturali da asporta (Good. For today we would like only water to go)
Us: Perche addiamo a marketa (Because we are going to a prostitute)

Bea:  Nothing.  She just stared at us.

Luckily then her husband stepped out of the back laughing and said no, "addiamo a mercato"

Got that?  Mercato not Marketo.  Easy mistake for an English speaker to make don't you think?  Marketa (actually spelled marchetta in Italian) sounds just like market.

It happened again this summer (but not to me thankfully).  I was in the city center with my boys and these cute little American college students who were studying abroad were standing in the street saying "Marketo?  Marketo?"  Poor things didn't speak any Italian and were looking for a grocery store.  Of course no one would speak to them because in Italian they were asking for a prostitute. 

Okay so remember, Mercato not Marketo.

Allora, addesso vado a un mercato.  Ciao ciao.