3 For 1 - "We Gotta Get The Hell Outta Dodge"; "Roma La Bella, Roma La Magnifica"; "Bologna La Grassa, Bologna La Sontuosa"

Ok folks, so there has been a lot going on in the past 2 weeks; much of it unexpectedley, yet serendipitously perhaps for the best.

As soon as our Irish friends left the farm there was a very noticeable shift in the way things happened and what was happening - there was much more swearing, in general and at me; more rage was openly displayed and along with it was not uncommon for things to be thrown around in anger; the dogs true "training program" came to light.

I been working in kitchens for a while now and have been sworn at and have even had things thrown at/around me. It wasnt an ideal situation, as this is supposed to be a working HOLIDAY and I had no intention in entering an overly stressful situation, however if he was willing to teach me pasta I figured I could bear it. It was the "training program" that was the straw that broke camel's back. It was flat out abuse of the dogs, and it came to the point where he was comfortable enough to do it right in front of us. It completely broke my heart. I am not one to cry, but I was incredibly close as I witnessed this happening. The dog almost army crawling to him in submission as he called her over, knowing what horrific fate awaited her, him picking her up by her scruff then beating her with an open palm, her not yelping, but more crying and then him literally kicking her into her prison and laughing, The monster was LAUGHING as he went inside, ready to make dinner. Every time I think of this it causes me to recall that scene in Sin City when Marv is at the farm and sees EW's character walking down the stairs and says "Heading down for a snack, and I can guess what kind" - pure terror.

So we hopped a train to Rome the next day to get our heads straight and figure out our next move.

ROME

Prompt arrival - check, hotel - check, lunch spot locked down - check, check.

Our less than 24 hour whirlwind tour of Rome was awesome.We didnt have Rome on the itnerary and I had no interest in going back, until I went back. It is such an astounding city, most of a all to me because it is a modern metropolis built up around the ruins of an ancient city. Its so incredible that you can be walking down a street, you turn the corner and WHAM! The Coliseum (or some other bastion of ancient history)is staring you in the face in all its magnificence and glory. Or you could be walking down a main road and ruins of an ancient arena suddenly pop up beside said road. Or youre walking down a street and an ancient structure has somehow been built into the side of  a house/small apartment.
The city is so staggeringly rich in history and culture (food and coffee being my favorite) that one day was not nearly enough. We did our best though. But not until after some lunch.

We tracked down a quaint little trattoria recommended to us by a friend whom is becoming closer and closer to us these days - The Internets. I have a fantasy that we will wander whatever city we are in and fate will have us bump into the most stupendous restaurant in the city. As romantic as this sounds, I'm finding it doesnt really tend to happen unless you have an extended amount of time to track down a promising restaurant.
Lunch was magnificent, beginning with the most iconic of Roman dishes, cacio e pepe followed by rigatoni with oxtail and climaxing with a plate of caramelized onions and lamb heart and liver. The first two dishes were stunners, the cacio e pepe with a very rich flavor with a hit of minerality and punch of pepper; the oxtail a rich sauce containing a very hearty beef stock and lots of tomato. The bread provided (not free of charge in Italia) was quickly put to use to mop up all that scrumptious leftover sauce, Good Lord I could eat just the two of those dishes for the rest of my life. The mixed offal plate was a little much, as it was just a pile of offal with a load of caramelized onions. It couldve used something to cut the richness and some of the livery flavor. Well sated and wined up, we set off into the blazing sun to just wander, something I have become very fond of, as sometimes you DO find a gem of a place, plus it is great to just get off the tourist track and see the actual city.

After hammering back a coffee granita (caffeine to balance the booze - check) and a delightful lemon gelato we were actually on our way. We worked our way through narrow, snaking streets, drinking in the sun, the Italian chatter floating through the air, and the water from the 5 bottles we had stashed in my satchel. A rest at the hotel and Lynn tackling the planning for Bologna and we were back on the road, in search of La Prosciutteria and a delicious sandwich. We arrived, waited and ate. As we were waiting we saw enormous charcuterie boards zooming out of the tiny kitchen and made a quick revision in deciding to geta  board instead of sandos. Great meats and cheeses, but the accompaniments were sort of lacking. Sometimes though, the atmosphere makes up for small shortcomings in the food and this place had atmosphere to spare!! It was perfect - a young vibe, loud, and jovial. Everyone in there was having a blast, from the cooks to the people hammering back charcuterie (NO ONE had a sandwich. Maybe its more of a lunch thing)to the people sucking back drinks waiting to get in. Great evening. WIth Bologna to follow the next day

BOLOGNA

Trained in at about 530pm, met our ebullient host and had dinner. We'll just skip to the next day shall we?

Yesterday we arose, got caffeinated and pastried up and set out in search of La Piazza Maggiore, pretty much the city centre. Our very accomodating host gave us detailed instructions on how to get there, things to see and do and of course, places to eat (this IS a research trip for me). We started at what seemed to be a goods and textiles market, scoring a little Italian coffee contraption right off the bat. Bellisimo! We meandered along our route, marvelling at the architecture, the cathedrals and of course the fresh pasta on display!!! After checking out a couple of these pasticerrias I am going to try to score a 3 week stage at one to try and learn all I can about the pasta making process. When in Bologna...learn how to make pasta motherfucker!

We stopped into Tamburini, something like a much larger version of Bottega Nicastro in Ottawa to pick up some meats (read 5) and some cheeses (only 2) for our picnic today. I couldnt help myself from sampling the pristinely white, glistening lardo. It was very salty, porky and buttery. Oh so buttery. I ate more, and more and more. Not too sure how much we have left for the picnic.

After wandering around what I can only assume was food alley, we decided to return home, to rest up for dinner. Not before encountering a live street band, complete with tuba, clarnite, sax and a tiny drumset. Covers performed included the Pink Panther he Tequila Song and the theme song to Austin Powers.

Dinner was at 8 at a little Osteria about 40mins from the house and I was expecting great things, especially after the disastrous dinner from the previous evening.

It did not disappoint. I have gotten to the point where I am relatively confident ordering things in Italian, but for some reason not so at restaurants. Perhaps it is because the server may respond with a comment or question I wont understand. Three glasses of wine quickly dashed any fears I had and I was jabbering away, commenting on the deliciosity of the food left and right.

To start we had a massive platter of pan roasted porcinis, caps removed and fried and stems split and fried. It was a tad undersalted (though I an known to have a bit of a salty palate) but this being a place of no pretense there was salt and pepper readily available. A dash of salt and one of the best dishes Ive ever had was on its way to my belly. It was cooked to perfection, eating and also looking like a piece of meat. There was a grain in the stem, and when you cut into the cap, it looked like a thin chop with a tiny fatcap where the gills of the mushroom connected to the top. Jesus it was good! what was to follow was just as stunning - a ricotta and herbed tortelloni in sage butter.

 Christ was it tasty. So opulent, yet not sickeningly rich. The perfect amount of fat and richness and just the right amount of sage; not so much that it was overly sagey, but just enough that it had a strong presence. It didnt need acid. Perfect as it was.

The tagliatelle was delicious, but not as eye poppingly scrumptious as the others. We happily mopped any errant ragu bits that missed the tagliatelle train to Bellyville.

For dessert we had tiramisu and what was described as bread cake. Both were delicious, the tiramisu falling into the "eye poppingly good" category, eclipsed only by the one at North and Navy. We finsished with a complimentary plate of peaches macerated in syrup and mint, which was surprisingly magnificent. The lesson I learned - truly simple food executed perfectly in a comfortable atmosphere is the best food you will ever eat. A meal to remember. Oh yeh and their house wine was incredible too.

Until next post (promise it wont be this long).

Ciao tutti.