Read the post below for the story behind the pics. Except for the hose one. That's just cute.
Today was the first of the two Faculty/Host Family vs. Student soccer matches that will happen this year, and in case you were wondering, we kicked their butts. The final score was something like 9 -2, and I even managed to put one past the keeper. It was a beautiful day, and we all had fun. The next match is in April, and it just might take me that long to recover. My back more or less went out in the warmups before the game, and in true weekend warrior fashion I ignored the pain, played on, and really screwed up my back. Hence the title of this post. Now I do have somewhat of an excuse, mind you. The bike I have been riding (including a 50k ride this morning before the game) has a stem that is 2cm longer than the stem on my bike at home. What that means for you non-cyclists reading this is that I am stretched out a bit further as I rest my hands on the handlebars. This is putting extra stress on my lower back. And in case you aren't reading between the lines, I am getting old it seems.
In other news, last weekend we went with another American teacher, Ashley from Houston who teaches math, to an agriturismo outside of Amelia on the way to Macchie. Check the location out on googlemaps (search for Amelia Umbria Italy). This is rural Italy. Last week was cold in general, and we were looking for a way to get out of the apartment and see some pretty countryside. We thought we might see some leaves changing, but the lack of rain seems to have affected to changing of the seasons. The agriturismo (basically an inn that is part of a farm of one sort or another) was one we found online, and we had called ahead to make a reservation. When we walked in the door, we saw that there was no table in the restaurant with less than 15 people . 3 or 4 of these giant tables were multi-generational family affairs, and one was a group of youngish graduate student types. Then there was our table of four. We settled in for a fantastic meal that included many products produced on the farm, including the wine, olives, and now that I think of it, just about everything we ate. The winner was a dish that Ashley ordered, a ricotta ravioli with a taleggio radicchio cream sauce. It was one of the best dishes we have tasted since we have been in Italy. The real excitement of the meal, however, came when Eli was playing with a bunch of kids from the big family tables I mentioned earlier. He was having a blast with them; that is until he fell over. This fall was particularly notable because he put out his arms to absorb the blow, but his arms fell on either side of the rim of a giant ceramic planter. The edge hit him squarely between the eyes, and he had a bump there for four days.
On the way back we drove to Macchie, more or less just to say we have been there. The town is one of the smallest we have seen. We drove up to the walled section which consists of about 10 or so medieval houses at the crest of a hill. The local gentry were seated outside as we drove by, and we were the recipients of a good, long stare. I think our drive-by may be the annual total of tourist activity for this remote town. On the way back to Viterbo we had to make a stop because we thought that Eli soiled his diaper. It turns out it was just a big fart.
Enjoy the pictures!
No comments:
Post a Comment