Sunday. After 40 hours travel from the Samoan Islands in the Pacific, through Brisbane, Bangkok, Rome, to Catania in Sicily, MB arrives mid morning to Ortiga Island, Siracusa.
After not seeing Janet for over a month there are great hugs and kisses.
It is a beautiful day, no wind, calm blue sea. Off to the rock beach for a swim first up, in water about 21 degrees.
After lunch in a nearby cafe, MB rings our architect Gemma Davies and her assistant, Laura,to congratulate them on a spectacular job in designing and coordinating our renovations of our 17th century apartment. Gemma pays us a visit to receive lots of hugs. She and Laura are so thrilled with the work and with our international art we have hung here. The place is beyond our expectations especially after seeing it about a year ago during construction.
We spend the rest of the day relating the activities that Janet and I have been doing over the last month.
Unfortunately Janet had experienced problems with the plumbing with showers and toilets over flowing. Salvo, our construction manager had been able to get some clearance of the old pipes hoping that would solve the problem.
We go to Sunday Mass at the Duomo, all in Italian with nice singing. This cathedral has been a continuous place of worship for over 2500 years.
Phillipa Buxton arrives to stay with us for a few days, ha ha.
We go to dinner at the family restaurant in Via Vittorio Veneto, 'Antico Locanda'.
Monday. It is a public holiday celebrating the establishment of the republic after the Second World War.
The weather has turned foul, gale winds and rain. We take our morning walk, but it too rough to swim with large waves breaking over the rock breakwater.
Our normal walk finishes with a stop at a small cafe for our fresh orange juice 'spremute', ricotta cornetti, and long machiati.
Neither has Euro cash left and the ATM's appear to be out of money because of the holiday. Phip has to shout us the visit to the Archimedes museum in the Piazza of the same name. This is a good museum with a good film on the early history of Siracusa.
Afterwards, we just wander reacquainting ourselves with the Labyrinth of small streets, and ancient buildings. Lucia, joins us for dinner at the very good local restaurant 'Osteria Sebe'.
I contact Baron Peter Beneventano to invite him and Rosanna to dinner on Tuesday night. I asked him where I can buy some jeans, as I have only bought my tropical clothes. He says he will pick my up at 3pm to visit a shopping complex called 'Ocean'.
When Peter arrives We quickly reacquaint ourselves and our frienship. As we travel towards Catania, he gets a bit lost looking for the shopping complex, almost entering the NATO complex in the rugged hillside, and he explains that this vast area once belonged to his family. It now houses all the petroleum storage for the NATO Navy and Air Force.
The shopping centre turns out to be a cheap factory outlet store, slightly downgraded from our Target store. It sells absolutely everything. We have to serve ourselves and work out the complicated sizing. I buy 2 pairs of jeans, 4 T-Shirts, 1 tracksuit pants, 1 pair of casual slacks, 1 pair of loafers and a rain jacket, all for 100 Euros.
In trying on the rain jackets, I leave the store not realizing that I still have one jacket on with the electronic security tag on which I hadn't paid for ,it keeps beeping but not loud enough to worry anyone.
We enter another shop and there is a beep going in and out again and we wonder why it is so. I get home and realize they did not pack the tracksuit pants I purchased. I realize I have a second rain jacket on so I work out that I am about even.
Peter then takes me to a hardware store 'Brico', to buy some tools etc. He cannot find a car park that suits him so he parks in the middle of the road.
By the time we get home Janet, Lucia and Pip have gone to the restaurant Osteria Sebe.
Tuesday. The weather is worse with gale force winds and huge seas. I am up early to go to the market to buy calamari and stuffing, plus fish for our dinner with the Baron.
At the market I make acquaintance with a couple of fish mongers who speak some English, Angelo and his son Marco. They are very friendly and helpful, they will become great friends.
We need a blender to make the chamoulah paste for the fish recipe. JB and I head off to the mainland part of Siracusa to find an domestic electric shop. JB thinks she knows where it is but we end up walking around in circles asking people directions, until we almost give up. We find each direction we are given is wrong. We can't find a taxi so with new directions we walk several kilometers out of town and eventually find the 'City Micca' store. On our way we realize that I am wearing the new rain jacket that emits a louder beep going in and out of shop security entering the supermarket. JB sees the security tag is still on the rain jacket and forbids me to enter another shop amidst fear we will be arrested as theives. MB has to stand outside while she does the shopping. We manage to buy the blender and the kind shop keeper offers to call a taxi for us. Eventually it arrives 20 minuets later. Home at last, I cut off the security tag.
The afternoon is spent cooking. Peter arrives for dinner at 7.30 and we enjoy talking about many subjects. He loves to talk and has entertaining stories. MB cooks stuffed squid, his Aussie style, which Peter says is better than they do in Sicily. JB has done a wonderful chamoulah baked fish. For Dolce figs, marscapone,and warm spiced honey.
Accompanied by french wine.
Rosanna, Peters lovely wife, who has flown in from Milan, joins us for dessert and a glass of wine. It is a great night and they ask us to join them tomorrow for dinner so Peter can serve his specially prepared Tuna.
Wednesday. No swimming yet as the sea is still very rough.
Our first Yoga session with Francesca who we had met last year. Her sessions are quiet spiritual and meditative.
Gemma and Laura arrive to finish bits and pieces and to look at the problem of the blocked drains, which has returned. The real concern is the old pipes are not accessible, in fact they don't even know where to locate them.
They have organized for a special device to be used that is a heat sensor.
By turning on the hot water they can trace the pipes.
Janet's friend Jacinta from her book club has rang as they are in town for a few nights. She arrives with her husband Mick they bring their friends John Denton who is a partner at Corrs, and his wife Jane Turner, of Kath and Kim fame. They love the apartment and ask us to join them for dinner. MB is still jet lagged so we decide to stay at home for a light meal.
Thursday. We are up early to do some Yoga. We meet Alessia our cooking teacher who we have known for several years. Our usual meeting place is the market where we buy our fresh produce for the recipies. MB wants to learn about sea urchins as they are in season and can be bought fresh just out of the shells. From a Sicilian cookbook I printed out a few recipes. "Risotto with Sea Urchin ('Ricci'). Alessia advises against this as she says food that is still cooking like risotto will ruin the flavor of the sea urchin. She suggests we use them with spaghetti.
Another recipe 'Involtini di Pesce Spada'. Alessia is excited about this and explains that it is swordfish stuffed rolls. We add to this a salad of lettuce and tomato and a sicilian orange salad.
This feast will be our lunch, with a bottle of white wine given to us by our friend Gaetano at the cheese shop. The recipies for all of these dishes is too long to include here but it was fantastic to buy from her favorite local merchants, who are so helpful in cutting the sword fish to the right thickness. She has a special herb store, tomato stall and cheese shop etc. For instance she needs for the fish stuffing a special tomato called 'Datorino' in which one merchant specializes.
In 2 years Alessia's english has improved so much she does not need Lucia to interpret.
Back home, we help Alessia prepare as she explains and I write down the recipes. For the fish rolls she makes 2 types of stuffing, one with orange the other tomato. One she will fry, the other bake. She explains if you use orange juice in a stuffing, you cannot fry it as it has a bad reaction with the oil.
After a very rewarding lesson, we enjoy a stunning lunch together with Lucia, Gemma and Laura.
Janet leaves to meet Ford who is arriving from Melbourne.
We have decided to try and buy the Garage below us that still belongs to signore Cappucio. With Lucia MB meets Mr. and Mrs. Cappucio to inspect the garage and try to complete a deal. We are also trying to locate the sewer pipes that we think could be in the garage. The council has no record of this buildings pipes and Gemma explains that this is the same for all the old buildings. We cannot find the pipes, but after negotiating we conclude a deal to purchase the 3 level garage.
This garage used to have a tunnel from the lower level to the sea, where the fishermen would bring their boats to unload their catch.The tunnel is now blocked up after the last major earthquake.
We had been waiting for confirmation of the dinner with Peter and Rosanna, but as we hear nothing we take Ford and Pip for a light meal in Piazza Duomo. As we are concluding our meal, Peter comes out from his Palazzo. We call him over, and to our embarrassment he enquires why we did not turn up for dinner. Rosanna did not mind so we reschedule for Friday lunch.
Friday. MB and Ford go for a swim at the rock beach. We then take Ford for a tour of the Market and a Panino prepared by JB's friend Gaetano. He is the son in law of the famous fresh ricotta cheese shop owner, Andrea. We are also ordering our food for the cocktail party we are having for the team who worked on the apartment. Our breakfast panini are fantastic, followed by a lunghi machiati at one of our favorite pastry shops.
Lunch with Peter and Rosanna. His recipe is Tuna fried with a caramelized onion topping. The first course was seafood spaghetti and dolce was Rosanna's cured grapefruit peel, dried and sugared.
We always have fun with this charming couple.
Our cocktail party starts at 7.30, but as most of our guests are working no one will really arrive until 8.30.
Our guests include, Lucia, Gemma and Antonio, Laura and Antonio, Salvo and his wife, Paulo and his wife, Gemma's dad Stephen and his mother in law from England. Also, Francesca and her husband, our neighbour Santi and his girlfriend Juliet.
Everyone bought a presents mainly cakes and plants, as is the tradition.
The party started slowly as they don't seem to drink much. MB introduces everyone to Venezuelan Rum Punch which seemed to loosen them all up.
Then the whole Cappucio family, including their grand daughter arrive.
Beppi, (Guiseppe Cappucio), on the request of MB has brought his Piano accordion, and his brother has a Piccolo. They played and sang local folk songs. Well the place came alive!!
JB and I start dancing with others joining in. The finale was a conga chain being led by MB through the apartment.
What a night!!
Saturday. The weather is beautiful. During our morning swim we run into our friend Salvo, fishing off the rocks. He and his friend are catching tiny reef fish to put into zuppa. We walk through the town stopping at one of our favourite pastry shops where Janet introduces Ford to Ricotta Cornetto, Spremute( orange juice) and coffee.
We then rest and relax. In the afternoon Jack Moore and Therese Ryan arrive, we all have dinner together at Antico Locanda.
Sunday. Ford, Jack and MB are picked up at 5am by Davide, Laura's brother in law. He has organized a fishing trip from Marzameme, an old Tuna fishing village in the south. We are hoping to catch Yellow Fin Tuna.
On our way to the Port we meet up with Francesco and Guiseppe, our fishing guides. Francesco is a surf fishing casting champion and is one of the top three in the world.
We stop and have a customary coffee and pastry. Our guides do not speak any English. Davide has good language skills together with Jacks reasonable understanding of Italian, we can communicate. The boat we are to fish from is a good 9 metre American boat with huge twin outboards. It belongs to a local GP who is coming with us. The day before, he and his team caught a 60 kilo, 1.25 metre Yellow Fin Tuna, so they are pretty optimistic for today. There gear is all large first class game rods and reels. They have loads of Sardines for bait and burly. It is a fantastic day, no wind or clouds. We head south into the Ionian Sea some 20 Nautical miles. We are fishing on a sea mount rising to 140 metres from 600 metres. We anchor amongst numerous other boats. After we set the lines, we continue to chum with sardines. The doctor brings out an electric reel and rod, to fish the bottom. We catch numerous good fish like Snapper and other deep sea species,that we are told are very good eating. We don't get any action on the Tuna and during the change of tide at about 1pm, we decide to move to another mark. It is very hot so we swim and continue with more successful bottom fishing. Just as we are about to give it all away, we have a strike. Francesco hands the rod to me and I successfully land a 30 kilo, Red Yellow Fin Tuna. They are not meant to keep Tuna until the season opens on the 13th of June, but they cannot resist. So they butcher the fish immediately. The doctor keeps most of the fish's organs including the large sac of sperm, which he explains is a delicacy. By the time we clean up and travel back to Ortiga it is 9pm. We have a late dinner of fresh grilled Tuna and salad.
Janet and Therese have had a really relaxing day at 'Aranella Beach' which they said was very crowded but fun.
Monday. Another beautiful day swimming. The platform at the rock beach is now complete. After our usual walk and breakfast we relax doing the daily Age quiz, read the paper, answer emails and listen to music.
We visit the market with Jack and Therese to introduce them to some of our stall holders. we buy rolls and cheese from Gaetano, then I am saying goodbye until next year.
We have lunch with Gemma, Laura, Lucia and Ford. Gemma explains we have to replace some piping in the walls, and get the council to fix the sewer.
With gemma MB inspects the upstairs apartment which is in serious need of renovation. It is a great apartment with a large upper terrace. It is priced at 300,000 Euro and needs another 300,000 to renovate it. It appears to to avery good buy. We learn that the apartment next door to us has been sold for 150,000 Euros, hopefully the new owner will be better than the old ones, as nothing seems to get done here without conflict.
While JB is a the hairdresser, I go with Gemma to inspect some old apartment buildings that appear to be very inexpensive, and badly in need of repair. The first one is no good, as the entrance stairs are far too steep. The second one, a 3 story one Via Guidecca, part of the jewish quarter and just off the main thoroughfare of Via Maestranza, is very interesting at about 200,000 Euros. It would be 2 apartments, 2 shops and a garage. This would be an exciting small project. I tell Gemma to pursue this as Italians don't appear to be able to borrow money from their banks. So cash goes a long way.
Jonathan and Libby Altson have arrived and are staying on their yacht in the Marina. We invite them for drinks with their traveling companions along with Jack and Therese and Ford, before heading off the baron Pietro's for dinner.
The Baron has also invited a large group of Australians doing a horticultural tour of Italy, lead by Princess Phillipa there were about 25 of them.
We are greeted by Peter and Rosanna at the Palazzo. He addresses the guests with the history of his ancestral home dating back to the 16th century. He makes special mention of our friendship and the forthcoming generosity of our donation of our Art Collection. On the greeting card on the banquet table, he gives special mention to JB and her invited friends.
There is a beautifully prepared dinner with spaghetti marinara, a large buffet of fish and local lobster. Peter again thanks his guests, and MB thanks them in return on behalf of the Australians. Our Melbourne friends are very impressed with the whole affair and are delighted we asked them.
During the dinner Therese had to leave as she had dramas with her daughters Isabella and Dominique who were late coming in from different parts of the world. Their mobile phones were not working so they lost communication with Jack and Therese. However, after lots of tears and joy they were reunited.
We joined them for a quick drink before we headed home so I could pack for my departure the next morning.
Tuesday. MB is up at 5 am and takes a taxi to Catania for a 8 am flight to Rome. However, on arrival at the airport, he finds he is due to leave the next day. He takes taxi back to Siracusa arriving at 7.30am and he was worried he would not be able to wake up the sleeping JB and Ford. Luckily Ford answers his phone, and to their great surprise, MB arrives back. There is lots of embarrassment and laughs.
After a nap, a morning swim, breakfast at the cafe, we relax until we meet Lucia for lunch.
We meet Gemma to inspect the inside of the property on Via Guidecca. Salvo, Antonio and Laura are there to do the costings on renovation. Subject to their conclusion and a quick feasibility we decide to try and purchase.
Jonathan and Libby call in to say their goodbyes. They will sail around Sicily to the Aeolian Islands for about 6 weeks.
Phillipa is off to Florence.
We have dinner with Ford, Jack and Therese and the girls at 'Don Camillo, an excellent restaurant with good food and wine.
Wednesday. MB up early again and at last off to Thailand for a few days before reaching home.
I meet our friends Marco and Federica at the Rome airport. Marco has a project he wants me to finance, but on analysis it is not my idea of the type of project that I understand. However, it is nice to catch up with them.
As I had upgraded on Thai Airlines from Bangkok to Rome I wanted to the same going home.If I prebooked it would cost $3400 to up grade at the airport $500. However they had to find out if they could organise the meal even though I didn,t need one .I got on and was glad to go 1st class on an 11hour flight .
MB