Sunday 3 May 2015

A visit to Assisi and a cooking class in the Italian countryside


Last week, my friend Gwen from Edmonton came to visit me here in Rome. We stayed a week in the city and then went up to Assisi for a few days, to stay at Letizia's B&B and take a cooking class. (We also scored copies of Letizia's great new cookbook A Kitchen with a View.)

I also showed Gwen a few of my favourite spots, such as the tranquil and beautiful Eramo delle Carceri, where St. Francis of Assisi used to flee what he described as the noise and chaos of 13th century Assisi.

There are a few bronze statues of the saint and his followers who studied the movements of the stars from the retreat where they slept on beds of stone with rocks for pillows.




I can never resist photos of some of the gorgeous trees that have stood here perhaps for centuries, given how old olive trees can grow to be. 




Meanwhile, at Letizia's agriturismo we enjoyed seeing how beautiful, green and blossoming April can be in the mountains above Assisi. 









During the cooking class, Gwen and I enjoying trying our hand at making pasta! I think Gwen, who is an excellent cook, enjoyed the process.



And we all definitely enjoyed the final results!