Eurotrip with the Bambino

Last week we returned from a week-long trip to Switzerland and Italy - with baby in tow - and it was quite an adventure!

We began our trip with two days in Lausanne. My IMD MBA Class of 2008 was celebrating our 10-year reunion, which means I've now been blogging for more than 10 years too! The reunion was fantastic with well organized activities - social, professional, and educational - and the weather was idyllic for enjoying the beautiful locale outside of the scheduled events.

~40% of our class (plus families) showed up and it was wonderful to see so many dear friends at the site of the "crucible" where our strong bonds were forged. For the first time, though, the joy of our reunion was tempered by those who could not be there. Our class suffered its first loss this year as a classmate died suddenly and several classmates could not attend the reunion due to treatments for cancer or other afflictions. They were dearly missed and it was a reminder to us all of the fragility of life and the need to prioritize the things that really matter.

The reunion continued for four days but we departed after two in order to visit relatives in Italy. We flew to Napoli, rented a car, and drove to Lucera, the small Pugliese town where my relatives live. When we stopped along the highway to pick up a couple of bottles of water for the road, we were pleased to discover that the gas station was offering extremely fresh mozzarella and locals were coming from kilometers around to purchase some. The father-son team who ran the station prepared a couple of sandwiches for us with that fresh mozzarella, prosciutto, and freshly baked bread - not bad for gas station food and definitely #onlyinitalia!

Our three days in Lucera were joyful. We hadn't seen these relatives since our wedding seven years ago so this reunion was long overdue. Additionally, it was a particular joy to introduce them to the next generation of our family since it had been nearly half a century since the arrival of the most recent addition on their side. Our Italian relatives have always been incredibly welcoming of us but, with a bambino now upping the ante, they went into full-on doting mode! Our kiddo was a little off of his usual schedule but there was no shortage of family members lining up for a turn to hold him and settle him down.

We spent some time touring around Lucera - walking around the castle, visiting local churches, and taking pictures at the house where my father was born - but, frankly, most of our time in Lucera was spent eating. I, of course, wouldn't have it any other way! It was a short trip but certainly enough to keep the relationship going between our side of the family and theirs.

I don't know if our son will identify with the Italian side of his family as I have or if he will ever learn Italian; that will be his choice. I am pleased, though, that he spent some days feeling the Italian love and being surrounded by the beautiful, undulating language - not to mention the amazing food - such that the culture will always be at least a small part of him.

We had two full days of travel to return to the States - one day back to Geneva and then the next day back to NC. I'm really, really glad we did this trip, though. It is easy to be intimidated by the prospect of international travel with a little one but we have many friends who, to borrow a popular tag line, just do it. We have been inspired by them (And certainly we have been beneficiaries of their advice!) and now we are pleased to have moved down the experience curve ourselves a bit, hopefully laying the foundations for more adventures in the future! Bon voyage and buon viaggio!!!

Travel Recommendations for Toscana

A friend recently let me know that she would be traveling to Tuscany and was seeking recommendations both for tourist travel and wine travel. Having lived in Florence and spent much more time since then traveling around bella Toscana, I compiled the following recommendations for her:

Firenze

• Stay away from Florence during the summer! It's overrun by tourists and you will hear more English spoken than Italian. It can also get decently hot/humid so near the Arno and many buildings aren't equipped to handle that. Autumn is my favorite time to visit Toscana; there are harvest festivals for wine grapes and olives and the lush green hills begin turning into patchworks of autumnal colors.
• Pro tip: if you reserve a rental car for pickup in Florence, make sure that you specify Florence, ITALY, not Florence, Alabama. Not that that happened to me once . . .
• Florence is very walkable so use the opportunity to walk off all the amazing food you will have there!
• Visit the Duomo and, unless you are prohibitively claustrophobic or acrophobic, climb to the top for breathtaking views of the city. 
• Allocate an entire day for the Uffizi. Pro tip: reserve tickets for the opening time then head immediately to the top floor (which will be much less crowded) and work your way down.
• Spend time among the statues in the Piazza della Signoria; my favorite statue, Ercole e Caco, is there. 
  
• Visit the Accademia and prepare to be stunned when you turn the corner to see David for the first time.
• Make a pilgrimage to Vivoli for Florence's most famous gelato - but also eat gelato everywhere else too. :-)
• Generally avoid eating in restaurants near the main tourist spots. Wander a few blocks off the main path and find some unassuming trattoria. Order a carafe of the house wine and enjoy damn fine food at a fraction of the cost of tourist traps. If you're a carnivore, go for the Bistecca alla Fiorentina, which you order by the kilogram. Generally avoid any place that has laminated English menus with pictures of each dish.
• Spend time oltr'Arno (south of the river) as well to get away from tourists. While you're here, visit the Palazzo Pitti and the Giardino di Boboli.
• There are a million more things to do in Florence but these are my recommendations for a short stay.

San Gimignano

• San Gimignano is a nice day trip from pretty much anywhere in Tuscany. Climb the tours. Look out over the Tuscan countryside. Swoon. 
  
• Visit the Collegiata for some real fire and brimstone, wrath of God, dogs and cats living together frescos.
• The award-winning Gelateria Dondoli alone is worth the trip!

Siena

• Siena is another day trip-able city that is very walkable.
• The main religious attraction is the Duomo but make time also to visit San Domenico, where you can visit the most grotesque relic I've ever seen: the head of Santa Caterina!
• Spend time in the Piazza del Campo and, if you ignored my previous advice and traveled during the summer, see if you can witness Il Palio, the famous in-town horse race. 
  
• My strongest restaurant recommendation is Antica Osteria da Divo, where you should make sure to order the risotto that is served up from the inside of parmigiano cheese wheels!

Tuscan Countryside

• I strongly suggest getting off the beaten path a bit to enjoy the beautiful, blood-pressure-reducing life of Toscana outside of the cities.
• My greatest recommendation for this is Castello di Montalto, an entire hamlet about 20 minutes south of Siena.
• I can also recommend Hotel Borgo Casabianca as a countryside home base for Tuscan exploration
• Montefollonico is also a nice hilltop town for getting away from the hustle and bustle of city life. Others have recommended visiting Lucca and Pisa too but I haven't spent enough time in either to include them in this post.

Wine Touring

• Now for the most important part: the vino! Let's start with my favorite: Brunello di Montalcino!
• I love the little town of Montalcino itself but most can probably skip it.
• Visiting Italian wineries is much more laid back than visiting in Napa or Bordeaux. There usually is no fee but call/email ahead to secure a time slot and to ensure that there is someone there who speaks English (if you don't speak Italian).
• Valdicava is my favorite Brunello di Montalcino stop. It's a small, unassuming vineyard that has a very non-interventionist approach to its grape growing. They aren't really set up for tours and often don't have English-speakers on hand but, if you can get an appointment, barrel-tasting there is not to be missed.
• Castello Banfi is the polar opposite: a huge estate owned by Americans with a massive tasting room that is very much meant to host English-speaking tourists. If this is more your style, you can drop in without an appointment.
• Casanova di Neri has a nice, low-key tour.
• Fattoria Barbi has a nice, low-key tour.
• Livio Sassetti Pertimali has a nice, low-key tour (but may not have an English-speaker on hand).
• I can't recommend Boccon Di Vino highly enough as a place for lunch when touring around Montalcino - fine dining, a great wine selection, and fantastic views!
• Do NOT under any circumstances go to Castelgiocondo! My one time there not only did they screw up my appointment but they also lied to my face, claiming that all of their grapes were hand picked despite our having driven by their mechanized harvesters in their vineyards on our way in. Bad people!
• Also very near and dear to my heart: Chianti Classico
• Villa Calcinaia is my favorite destination by far. I confess bias as one of the members of the family that owns it was my professor when I was living in Florence. It's really fantastic, though; nice tastings, 300-year-old balsamic vinegar, beautiful views - Calcinaia has it all!
• Castello di Brolio is another large estate that is well equipped for tourism if that's your speed. Even if it isn't your speed, it's a worthwhile pilgrimage to the birthplace of Chianti.
• Dievole is a nice estate with a very charismatic proprietor and good wines.
• The town of Greve in Chianti is best visited during the fall harvest festival. Buy a glass and walk from booth to booth sampling all the local wines.
• Montepulciano is also a worthwhile stop, not just for its own charm but for the highly underrated Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. If you're there over the summer, see if you can time your visit with the Bravio delle Botti!
• One final note on wine touring in Toscana: GPS is easily confused by the windy, hilly roads, so allow plenty of time to get lost and consider using more traditional means of navigation.

I hope this is helpful for those planning to visit Tuscany! Let me know how if I've missed something obvious and/or how my recommendations work out for you! Buon viaggio!

Wedding in Italy

No, not my wedding! Last week Katie and I attended an IMD friend's wedding in Italy, which was absolutely marvelous.

The day before we departed we attended the Rice-UT football game at Reliant Stadium. There was just a splotch of Rice blue in the very UT burnt orange crowd but we cheered disproportionately loudly. The Owls gave us something to cheer for too, scoring first and outscoring UT in both the first and fourth quarters. A few key mistakes led to a 34-17 loss but overall we felt pretty good about our performance against one of the top teams in the nation--this should bode well for the season to come!

Sunday we departed for Bari in Puglia (the "heel" of Italy's "boot") via Milan via Newark. Both our Houston-Newark and Newark-Milan flights were on older Boeing 767 planes with two significant disadvantages: 1. Their entertainment systems are fixed, offering just a few movies at regular times and 2. They have special power ports that require a special adapter to use. I had become so spoiled by the 777s flying back and forth to Geneva (offering hundreds of on-demand movies and normal power outlets) that I was already in a sour mood when I realized that I would only have a few hours of laptop time and that I wasn't interested in any of the movies. Shame on me for not checking on this in advance, though.

On the international leg, Continental forgot my vegetarian meal request (At least they remembered Katie's.) so that left me with an even worse impression from the flight. Then Milan Malpensa airport lost Katie's luggage so that she arrived in Bari without any toiletries or changes of clothes. All-in-all, not one of our best flight experiences.

No matter, though, we were determined not to let it affect our trip. We swung by a clothing store outlet near Bari and picked her up some essentials then drove North to Lucera, where the Italian side of my family lives. We spent two days with my Italian cousins and it was a grand time. Touring around Lucera (which is older than Rome and has tremendous ruins of a castle and anamphitheater), eating, clothes shopping for Katie, eating some more, and just catching up with family. Oh, and eating even more! No matter how short it is, it is always a special experience to spend time with this distant family. These are my humble roots and it is important to stay connected.

Wednesday we drove further North to Tuscany to check out a venue we are considering for our own wedding. It was everything we hoped it would be and it had a few surprises for us--like a ping pong table and volleyball net on the premises! We spent the night there just to be sure but it is clearly the right choice.

Thursday we turned back around and drove South to Fermo, where we met up with dear friends from IMD. They weren't going to be able to make it to the IMD wedding so we were very excited to be able to see them regardless. We spent the night with them and their family and, once again, ate very, very well. It was our first time in that region (Le Marche) and we were very impressed. Mountains on one side, the Adriatic Sea on the other, rolling green hills in between . . . Le Marche has it all!

Friday we returned to Bari, where we were informed that Katie's bag had finally arrived--better late than never! We settled into a villa we were sharing with other IMD friends, including GIVEWATTS founder Jesper Hornberg. Friday night there was a dinner hosted by the bride's family but we turned in early, knowing that we would need our rest for the late, late festa the next night.

Saturday was unfortunately rainy. The wedding was supposed to be on the beach so the bride and groom audibled to a nearby indoor venue which was quite lovely. The ceremony was nontraditional and featured two IMD friends as officiants. After the ceremony we relocated to a beach club for the reception. This place was awesome! Course after course after course of food was served and the music had all been requested in advance by the bride, groom, and guests. Nourished by great food and buoyed by great music, we danced well into the morning.

I had been asked to be the Master of Ceremonies so my job was to ensure that the program of the reception was followed ontime (at least within the bounds of Italian standards of punctuality!) and to make announcements in English and Italian throughout event. It was a real honor to be asked to serve and I hope my performance was sufficient for their special day!

Finally, after a resounding chorus of Bohemian Rhapsody (a promise I had made to the groom), Katie and I departed around 4 AM. We heard that many people stayed until 6 but we needed to be up for a flight relatively early. Our return flight wasn't much better (again a forgotten meal request and we were passed over for upgrades for some reason that Continental still can't explain) but at least both of our bags arrived. All-in-all it was a really, really excellent trip!

Victory Lap

What a truly wonderful week it has been! Katie and I arrived in Florence early Monday morning, just in time to catch the sunrise over the Arno. We found our hotel, which turned out to be a medieval tower in the center of the city, close to the Duomo--awesome! We dropped off our bags, got some breakfast, and then climbed to the top of the Duomo for spectacular views of the city. Wow, did I miss living there--it really is beautiful.

After spending the whole morning just walking around, we rested our legs at an outdoor cafe, where we had excellent fresh pasta and two Tuscan specialties: ribollita and fava beans. A full day of walking around after a not-so-restful night train with not-so-comfortable sleeping quarters meant that an afternoon nap was in order too!

Recharged, we struck out for the evening. First things first, we stopped by Art Bar for caprioska alla fragola (strawberry). We were informed, however, that peaches were in season, so we ordered caprioska alla pesca instead. Then we were informed that it was happy hour and drinks were half price--so we ordered the caprioska alla fragola as well! After all that fresh fruit, it was natural for us to want more so we headed to Salamanca for sangria and tapas. We then called it a night after a long, wonderful day in bella firenze.

Tuesday morning began with a visit to the Accademia to pay our respects to David. We then trekked up to Villa La Pietra, where I lived nine (Yikes!) years ago. The villa grounds were largely unchanged (as they had been for six or seven centuries!) and brought back a flood of memories. The villas from the 1500s, where I ate, slept, and took classes . . . the fig trees, olive groves, and vineyards, where I took long walks and contemplated what I wanted to do with my life . . . the rolling hills where I ran incline sprint workouts . . . :-) What a sublime place to spend several months of my life!

Tuesday afternoon we rented a car and drove to San Gimignano, which was as charming as I remember. We arrived there late enough that most of the bussed-in tourists were gone so we just walked around the entire town, analyzing menus to see what spoke to us. We finally settled on a little cafe in the square of the duomo, where we enjoyed some great pasta dishes and lots of Baroque violin from a street musician.

We then moved to a wine bar near our hotel. I remember San Gimignano's local wine, Vernaccia, as a simple, crisp, delightful white wine and, yes, it still is. However, at the wine bar we tasted several oak-aged riservas which were downright stupendous! Kudos to the local vintners for experimenting with some modern vinification techniques; these riservas could go toe-to-toe with some of California's best chardonnays--and for a fraction of the cost.

A description of our evening would be incomplete without mentioning the amazing gelato at Gelateria della Piazza. During our stay of less than 24 hours we visited the place thrice (It was maybe 20 meters from our hotel.) and savored its award-winning awesomeness. I wish I could remember all of the flavors we tried but here are a few: Vernaccia, violet, lavender, saffron, black cherry, raspberry & rosemary. So good!

Wednesday morning we beat the crowds to climb the Torre Grossa and take in the breathtaking views of Tuscan countryside. It was at this location that, nine years prior--almost to the day, I first looked out over Tuscany. I had seen pictures and paintings before but nothing could ever do justice to the beautiful patchwork tapestry of rolling green hills. There must be one hundred different shades of green in any given Tuscan landscape, each more beautiful than the next. I love Paris in the springtime but oh how I love Tuscany in September!

Wednesday afternoon we spent in Siena, walking around and sampling the local cuisine. The highlight was definitely the risotto at lunch. It was prepared tableside inside a huge wheel of Parmigiano-Reggiano. The heat from the rice melts the inner layer of cheese as it's being mixed up and creates flavorful, gooey goodness.

For the next two days we resided at Villa Casabianca, another great find by Katie. In the middle of the Tuscan countryside, this complex of villas and suites was peaceful, serene, and absolutely beautiful. We were shown to our suite, "Suite della Musica," where sparkling white wine awaited us. We sipped it while strolling the grounds and listening to Mozart's Requiem in D. Dinner followed and we were very, very happy campers.

Thursday was dedicated to tasting Brunello di Montalcino. We began at Livio Sassetti's Pertimali estate. Livio's son showed us around the vineyards, explained their winemaking philosophy, and then showed us how they carried it out in their viticulture and vinification. Generations of passion for great wine came through in his explanations--and in the tasting that followed! This family loves its wine and I strongly recommend it.

We then visited Valdicava and dined at Boccondivino, both of which I covered in my post about my June visit. As in June we visited Castello Banfi, but this time Katie and I toured the winemaking operations. Banfi was the first winery in the world to be certified "green," which is a pretty cool distinction. They also use funky oak/steel hybrid fermenters, which I don't really get. However, there's no arguing with the end result; they make a damn fine Brunello.

After days and days of rich restaurant food, we stopped by a supermarket and assembled a picnic dinner of cheese, bread, and grilled vegetables. Of course we supplemented it with Castello Banfi 1998 Brunello di Montalcino Poggio al'Oro Riserva, which was gorgeous: rich and complex with undulating layers of taste and texture. First you were hit by the black cherry then along came the vanilla. After that the tannins were very smooth and the finish lasted forever. I like!

Friday we departed the villa after a lazy morning and wound our way through Chianti. We stopped for lunch at Castello di Brolio, where Barone Ricasoli "invented" Chianti centuries ago. We walked around the castle grounds and then stopped at the cantina for lunch.

Although our flight back to Switzerland was later that night, we managed to squeeze in some additional Chianti time. First we stopped by Greve in Chianti, where the annual Chianti Harvest Festival was just beginning. Scores of vintners were present in booths waiting to show you their wines and olive oils. The cost of admission bought you a Chianti glass, which you could then use to walk around the booths and taste. The glass came with a convenient necklace attached to it so that you wouldn't break it when you were too bombed to hold it any longer.

A short drive from the town center was the winery estate of my former professor, Count Niccolo Capponi. He is a descendant of the Florentine Capponi family and a fine historian. His brother runs the wine operations at Conti Capponi but Niccolo was able to sneak us down into the cellar for some barrel tasting. We caught up, reminisced about the Fall of 2000, and drank good wine--what a pleasant evening!

Finally Katie and I turned in the rental and hopped our flight to Geneva. Tomorrow we fly to Houston so that I can begin work on my new startup. Our grand Tuscan adventure is over, but oh what a week it was!

Pics are available in my facebook album.

Back in Lausanne

I am back in Lausanne and I have finally made it through the 400+ emails and several crises that were waiting for me upon my return. Toward the end of the week I started coming down with a cold but, through rest, fresh fruits/vegetables, and lots and lots of garlic, I seem to be beating it.

The rest of my Amalfi trip was wonderful. On Monday we went into Sorrento and walked around. The weather was nice and it was very pleasant just people watching. In the evening I made dinner for the whole clan: caprese with tomatoes, basil, and fresh mozzarella from just down the road; roasted peppers, eggplant, and zucchini from a small fruit/vegetable stand in town; bolognese sauce with fresh, local pasta; and an assortment of desserts prepared by the bakery in town. Actually it would have taken an inordinate amount of time if I had been the only one cooking, so I enlisted the help of some willing volunteers. Many thanks go out to our team of sous-chefs, who proved that "too many cooks in the kitchen" can actually be a good thing!

Tuesday we spent on the isle of Capri. "Isle of Capri" was the title of one my dad's pinball machines. I also grew up with a painting of Capri's Faraglioni just outside my bedroom (My mom brought it back from a space industry conference that was held there.). I had been to Capri once before but the weather was cold and rainy so I turned back after just one day. This time we couldn't have asked for better weather.

We split up and each subgroup wandered off in its own direction. Mom and took the funiculare up to Capri (the town) and spent the day wandering along the cliffside paths in search of lunch. We finally found the right place, an open-air restaurant built into the side of a cave and overlooking the sea. We sat back and enjoyed local seafood, wine, pasta, and--of course--insalata caprese. We returned to the mainland as the sun was setting but it was a glorious day of quality time, just my mom and I.

The evening featured what was--for me--one of the highlights of the trip. Naturally it involved food. The caretaker of the villa, Anna Maria, and her daughter (who both live just down the road) spent all day cooking for us. We gave them a broad mandate (The only criterion was to stay away from hearty red sauces since we had had that the night before.) and we were not disappointed with what they turned out.

For antipasti we had roasted, sauteed, and fried vegetables, spinach pie, artichoke pie, olives, fried balls of prosciutto, and provolone. As a primo piatto we had pasta with a light tomato-basil sauce. As a secondo we had two kinds of fish, both marinated and baked to perfection. And finally, for dessert, we had traditional Napolitana pastiera. Oh what a meal!

Wednesday morning I arose before the rest of the group and hopped on the bus to the Naples airport. I was excited to have arrived on time until I learned that my flight to Rome had been canceled. Alitalia: strike 2.

As one may imagine, this caused a great deal of consternation with all the passengers and I stood witness to classic examples of Italian "non-queueing." Italians seem to believe that lines are made to be broken. Anyone who has ever set a toe in Italy will understand what I am talking about. At the airport, with rope-defined lines up to the ticket counter, I thought perhaps I would find an exception to this rule.

Oh how mistaken I was. The passengers in line seemed to think that roped line boundaries were meant to be deconstructed and that the louder they yelled at the poor customer rep who was trying to help the one person at the front of the line at a time, the better/faster service they would receive. Oy. This spectacle was repeated when it came time to load our baggage into the bus, almost crushing the poor driver in the process. Oy.

The bus ride was nice, though, and I met a nice Napolitana girl who was on her way to London. She asured me that Alitalia wasn't all bad and that they had recently acquired Air One, which was actually quite good. It turned out that my flight from Rome to Geneva was operated by Air One and, sure enough, it was great. So I suppose the lesson learned is that, if flying Alitalia, make sure to choose Air One-operated flights. Good to know!

Although this trip to the Amalfi Coast was short, it was great. It was a little surreal hanging out with the friends of my parents/parents of my friends from back when I was in preschool/kindergarten but it was a lot of fun. Many thanks to them for organizing the trip and for welcoming me along.

I have fond memories of living in Huntsville. It was a good time in my life; I had a mother who took great care of me, I had great friends, and my father was still alive. So I suppose what made Huntsville so great was its people. 40 years ago this year Huntsville's people put a man on the moon. I'm glad to see that, even now, the city's greatest assets are its people.

Auburn Engineering In Italy

It’s fun being around the Huntsville crowd. It’s my first time in a while being around southern accents. Some words have extra syllables added (“Now” becomes “Nay-ow.”) while some have syllables taken away (“Bry-an” becomes “Brine”). They’re good people and the people, places, and activities they talk about remind of good memories growing up in HSV.

This morning Mom and I went into the town center for some provisions. We bought up necessary staples (wine) and nice-to-haves (water and food) and brought them back to the villa. Despite our noontime return, everyone was only just getting up—don’t they know that the siesta is supposed to be in the afternoon??

Auburn engineering won major street cred today. Except for one Hokie and this Rice Owl, all of the men on our trip are Auburn engineers. After much levering, bracing, pushing, and discussing, our fearless Tigers got the sliding door to one of our grandevans back on track. While walking back to our villa, the engineers detected another cry for help. A group of French tourists could not start their car—Auburn engineers to the rescue! After a few minutes they had isolated the problem to a fault in the car’s CPU but were able to bypass it with some “creative” modifications to the battery cabling system. War Eagle!

After a leisurely afternoon, the evening was something really special. We went to dinner at Don Alfonso, the best restaurant in Italy south of Rome or one of the top three restaurants in all of Italy, depending on which guide book you consulted. Either way it has two Michelin stars and it earned them both!

Most of our group ordered the prix fixe’ tasting menu but I just stuck with a few appetizers (asparagus, deep fried lobster, and roast duck in cacao/orange/sweet wine reduction). Even still I found myself incredibly full after all the breads, cheeses, and other inter-course palette cleansers that were brought out. One of our group captured it aptly when he said, “I’m so full I can’t even swallow.”

Fortunately we had 5+ hours of dinner so plenty of time to digest. The service was excellent, including choreographed presentation of entrees and coordinated removal of their silver covers. Despite their 25,000-bottle wine list of the best of the best of Italian and French wines, we kept it simple. We began with a rose’ champagne, moved on to a Rhone mix from Liguria, and wrapped up with Tenuta dell’Ornellaia Le Serre Nuove 2000 (the second wine of this Super Tuscan), which was superb. I will have try the Ornellaia 2000!

Some of us also had the opportunity to visit the restaurant’s cantina, which is an underground system of caves and tunnels dating back to the 1500s. Disguised as a well, these passages were used for nobles escaping Sorrento (I was never clear on what exactly they were fleeing.) but now house Don Alfonso’s wines and aging cheeses at naturally perfect temperature and humidity.

What a great day! Hopefully the weather will clear up tomorrow so that we can explore the coast.

Bell'Italia

Today I hopped on an Alitalia flight to Rome and met up with Mom and many of our old friends from Huntsville, AL. Long ago I decided that, although Alitalia typically provided attractive flight attendants and good food, I didn’t trust its maintenance and engineering. This flight validated my mistrust! My armrest literally fell off and pieces of plastic were hanging down from the ceiling—I hope at least the wings were in better shape! We arrived late of course but I finally met up with our travel group.

We rented two HUGE vans, the likes of which are not commonly seen in Europe, for the 12 of us and made our way down to the Amalfi Coast. We stopped in Latina for lunch but just about everything was closed for pre-Easter Saturday. We did find a little bread/cheese/other shop, though, where they sold freshly made ricotta and mozzarella. They got a big kick out of the random Americans dropping in and they loaded us up with lots of extra food for free despite our attempts to compensate them. They insisted that we needed nourishment for our drive and I think it all would have gone bad anyway over the holiday weekend. Grazie!

It’s a good thing we had extra food too, because we didn’t arrive at our villa in Sant’Agata sui Due Golfi until nearly midnight. On our way we missed several turns due to poor signage and were stuck in an hour of traffic due to an overturned potato truck. Driving these huge vans (nicknamed by the locals “grandevans” insead of “minivans!”) through windy coastal and mountain roads turned out to be no small feat either! Finally, though, we made it, dined on wine, bread, and cheese, then collapsed around 2 AM.

Benritornato in Italia!

Bella Firenze

I'm checked in at my hotel in Florence. If this if four stars--as advertised at hotels.com--then my middle name isn't Guido! Oh well, no worries; it's a fine place to hang my hat and lay my head for a night. It's not far from the airport or from GE O&G HQ, far northwest of il centro. Needless to say, this isn't exactly the Florence I remember from when I lived here as a student! It looks like there should be time after my interviews tomorrow, however, for a quick trip into town before my late evening flight back to Geneva. Gelato? Bistecca alla Fiorentina? Chianti? All of the above? Only time will tell!

I'm off to dream golden dreams of how I will help GE change the world of energy--then hopefully convey said dreams to them tomorrow!

Back in Lausanne

After three glorious days in San Menaio, a small town on Italy's Adriatic coast, I am back in Lausanne. San Menaio was wonderful, as it always is: no Internet, no work, just peaceful beach life with my Italian cousins.

The Italian side of my family is always incredibly welcoming and accommodating in their little beach house. We spend the mornings and evenings at the beach, separated by lunch and a siesta. Then, after dinner, we travel to nearby towns at night to "fare la passagiata," just walk around a bit. The food is always prepared fresh from little carts that travel by the house in the morning selling fish, fruit, vegetables, etc. Life is good in San Menaio.

I read some of the first Harry Potter book in Italian while I was there. It was slow going because my vocabulary of magic-related words is pretty deficient. By the end of the trip, though, I was reading much more quickly than at the beginning. Now that I'm about to recommence the torrent of IMD activities, we'll see if I can finish the book by year's end.

It's great to be back but there is much to do before we begin a mini-course on Crisis Management tomorrow. I wouldn't mind another week of vacation!

I have updated and finalized my facebook albums for this vacation:

France
Italy

Hiking

Today was a simple day in Piemonte. We woke up late, had a huge breakfast at the villa, then went hiking around vineyard trails in Monta', not too far off. We had gelato for lunch (still too stuffed from breakfast for anything more) and pizza for dinner. The evening is cool and the sky is clear for stargazing. I will miss Piemonte.

Tomorrow we leave for Puglia to meet the Italian side of my family at their house by the sea and I will be cut off from the Internet for a few days. The next time you hear from me I will be well fed and incredibly relaxed. Ciao, a dopo!

Pictures are in my facebook album.

Barbaresco

Today was full of Bacchanalian goodness. We began in Barbaresco at Bruno Rocca. We were pleased to be greeted by Luisa Rocca, Bruno's daughter, who led us into the tasting room to begin. No tour, just right down to business--we didn't object! We learned about the vineyards that Bruno Rocca owns throughout the region and all of the different wines that are produced. Then we tasted three of them: Bruno Rocca Dolcetto d'Alba Vigna Trifole' 2007 (unrated), Bruno Rocca Barbaresco Coparossa 2004 (93), and Bruno Rocca Barbaresco Rabaja' 2005 (unrated). The Dolcetto was a wonderfully balanced value wine and the Barbarescos were divine. The day had started off right.

We then made our way into the little town of Barbaresco itself for lunch. We ate at a little trattoria in the shadow of the town's main tower, wandered around a bit, then headed back to Barolo for our afternoon appointment at La Spinetta. La Spinetta held special significance for me since its mascot is a rhino and only a few weeks ago I was being chased by a rhino in Kenya. We arrived early and were offered a glass of champagne while we waited--off to a good start!

We toured the Barolo Campe' winery then tasted six wines, beginning with the La Spinetta Barbera d'Alba La Gallina 2006 (unrated). We then tasted the three single-vineyard Barbarescos: La Spinetta Barbaresco Starderi 2005 (92), La Spinetta Barbaresco Valeirano 2005 (unrated), and La Spinetta Barbaresco Gallina 2005 (94). The one from the Valeirano vineyard was my favorite as it was spicier than the other two, which were lighter and showed wonderful finesse. Our final red wine was the La Spinetta Barolo Campe' 2004 (95), one of the few La Spinetta wines without a rhino label. Its label featured a lion instead, because Barolo is the king of wines. And wow, what a king this was--all hail! We wrapped up with the La Spinetta Moscato d'Asti Bricco Quaglia 2007 (unrated), which was a light, refreshing way to finish.

Finally, we met the La Spinetta guard puppy, a border collie who chases tennis balls and nibbles on low hanging fruit (i.e. helps out with the green harvest!) all day. Adorable! After a day of such great wines, we didn't even go out to dinner. We made it back to the villa early and I am heading to bed a super happy boy.

Pictures are in my facebook album.

In Italia!

After a long, beautiful drive along the Mediterranean coast, we arrived tonight at our B&B just outside of Asti in Piemonte. Our home for the next few days is Villa Sampaguita, a charming estate owned and operated by two ex-pats. They served us a multi-course dinner upon our arrival. Everything in it was grown and made here at the villa--including the several vintages of Barbera d'Asti that we drank. Our hosts are gracious, the grounds are beautiful, and we are prepared to take on the wines and castles of Piemonte . . . after a good night's sleep.