Bye bye April and hello May. If today is the template then May will be brilliant. It's sunny 22 with a light breeze here today.

Well it's a massive day on Italy today as Pope John Paul II's beatification ceremony is being held at St Peters square in Vatican City. The whole square and surrounding roads are crammed with people and I am glad we are in the Tuscan sticks today although the church bells in the village and surrounding villages are getting a thorough workout. Still I cannot imagine how noisy our apartment in Rome would be today as it was a 5 minute stroll to the middle of St Peters.

As I type some dark clouds have come in from the alps. Wow northern Tuscany must be on the same weather pattern as Melbourne.

It's chore day here and Tarn & Mum are washing, I'm cooking, and the girls are fighting - pretty normal really. I made up a batch of Bolognaisse sauce with a Tuscan twist.

TOSCANAISSE SAUCE

Ingredients
1 kg minced Chianana beef
1 brown onion
2 carrots
1 zuchinni
8 cloves garlic
1 can diced tomatoes
2 bottles passata
3/4 cup Chianti
1 tsp dried rosemary
Salt & Pepper
2 large stalks fresh rosemary

Method
Dice all the vegetables and garlic. Add mince, veggies, dried rosemary, salt, pepper and brown.

Add tomatoes, passata, and chianti and bring to heavy simmer. Add fresh rosemary and reduce to slight simmer for 1 hour.

Serve with your pasta of choice.

Ideally leave it overnight but a few hours will still be OK.

Buon Appetito

On the subject of the world game the Italian's take passion to new heights (or lows depending on where you sit).

They have this show Quelli Che d'Isola (Whichever the Island - go figure) on RAI on a Sunday arvo which is a cross between the Footy Show, Perfect Match and mornings with Kerri Anne.

It's a live coverage of all games hosted by some piece of peroxided mutton thinking she is prime spring lamb and they have live crosses to games for comments from various raggazza of varying hotness. they seem to just perve on blokes with no tops on then get them in the commentary box and chat them up.

Currently Fiorentina are giving me the usual highs and lows and lead 4-2 on after 70. There are near riots at Sampdoria as Brescia just went ahead and Samp are looking at life in Serie B, and in a lower grade game at Sorrento where Gubbio just equalised the scorer climbed the security fence to goad the Sorrento fans only to get a punch in the head and a yellow card (for being a tool I guess.

There seems to be no rhyme or reason to it - very much like the driving. They make Sam Newman look humble and reserved.

La Viola just slotted no 5 in the 80th so still 10 minutes to let 3 in and share the points. Oh well there's the Arab phone sex channels to cheer me up in case 

Anyway Tarn is talking about going for a drive - i.e. Her getting behind the wheel so I better go and find out what synthetic substances she has been ingesting.

Ciao