Thanksgiving

This was our second Thanksgiving in Italy.  Of course, this isn't a European holiday, so it was a completely normal work-day and school-day for our family.  At the end of the day, though, we came together for something of a 'traditional' Thanksgiving feast, giving thanks for our health, family, and many friends.  Okay, so we didn't get a turkey.  Ann did go to the butcher to get a nice chicken, which we roasted in the oven.  Accompanied by mashed potatoes, and the other appropriate fixins', we had a very nice dinner.  Later in the evening, we called our families back in the 'states.  So, despite the typical-day routine, it was a nice 'family-day'.

In the weather department, it is still quite cold here.  In fact, the wintery weather has continued, including another proper snowstorm!

First Snowfall of the Season

We've been in Italy now for nearly 17 months, and we can only remember one snowfall during the entire time.  One snowfall, that is, until we woke up this morning.  It was snowing!  Thomas was so excited, and it actually seemed good to see the white stuff covering the grass and trees.  Okay, we realize that it was barely a dusting, but we're no longer used to the meter-deep drifts of snow that we'd see during a regular nor'easter in Pennyslvania.  

We don't have much other news to report.  Little Sammy was sick with a head and chest cold all weekend.  So we cancelled our usual weekend excitement.  He had a really rough few days, but he's doing a lot better now.  

Sammy Loves Daddy

Beautiful Sunset

Good Week and Quiet Weekend

We had another week of solid rain in Italy this week.  At least the weekends have been nice - beautiful, in fact.  Instead of going on our usual travels, we stayed home this weekend.  One of Thomas' classmates had a birthday party, so we needed to stay close to home so that he could attend the festivities.  

The party that Thomas attended was a 'Fancy Dress Party'.  In other words, a costume party (Thomas went as Zorro).  It's amusing to us that Thomas is picking up British English expressions, like 'fancy dress' for 'costume' or 'rubber' for 'eraser'.  At school, he studies 'the maths' instead of 'mathematics'.  The list could go on and on, but he's becoming more familiar with British English expressions than those of American English. 

Since the weather was beautiful on Saturday, we went for another long walk along the lake.  

During the week, Sammy had a regularly scheduled visit with the doctor.  He's doing great, and is very nearly walking.  The doctor said that he'll surely be walking with ease by Christmas. 

Speaking of the holidays, nearly every store here is completely decorated for Christmas.  This week seems to mark the beginning of the season.  At mid-week, lights, trees, and Santas were everywhere. 

Alba Tartufo Festival

We had read a lot about the famous White Truffles of Alba. To celebrate these rare truffles, there's a famous festival held each year from the end of October through early November in Alba. We had wanted to attend, but the weather has been abysmal the past few weeks. Until, that is, this weekend. So, we decided to make the drive to Alba, the home of great italian wine and mushrooms.  When we arrived, we first spent some time wandering through the huge outdoor urban market in Alba. The city is quite small, but has a bustling vibrancy that's infectious.  By late morning, we were ready to hit the festival, which is held in a large convention center. The first thing that you notice on entry is the aroma. It smells like you walked into a wall of truffle, cheese, and porcini. The smell is so intense that you'll carry it with you long after exiting. Of course, it's also so delicious a smell, that you immediately want to eat.
We had a great time at the festival, visiting vendors, and sampling salami, food, and wine. (The Dolcetto and Barolo were fantastic.) We ended up buying two white truffles. They were relatively small, and were probably the most expensive food product (by weight) that we've every bought. We ended up eating the truffle as shavings on a marvelous pasta later in the day.
All in all, we really enjoyed Alba. It was a great little trip.

Walk Along the Lake

We've had a solid week of rain here in Italy.  It started raining last Sunday night, and didn't let up until today.  Friday was Halloween, although no children came to our door.  This isn't really a suprise, since Halloweeen isn't really celebrated here (the first and second of November are significant religous holidays).  We think, though, that the rain played a big part in keeping people inside.

Anyway, after a solid week of rain, we needed to get out of the house.  We visited Lago di Varese, a quaint little lake near our home.  It's (of course) located near the city of Varese, and has a paved walking path that circles the entire lake.  

Ann's visited the path before, but this was the first time that we took a long walk along the lake as a family.  The weather was a little cool and damp, but at least it wasn't downpouring.