Dowd adventures in Bologna

martedì 30 agosto 2011

Circolo Tennis Bologna

Well we joined the Bologna Tennis Club "Circolo Tennis Bologna". And l cant help think of Groucho Marx words, "that any club that accepts me as a member, l don't want to join" That said, we have been enjoying the clubs facilities (tennis table, gym, pool, tennis courts) all summer, in particular the swimming pool. Like all these clubs there are rules, and they are clearly stated in the rules book l was given, of course it is in Italian, and so l fear l may have breached many rules, not maybe as many as at Metropolitian Golf club, but give me time. I was informed by Marco the club manager that we are the first Australians as members, the club has about 10 clay courts, which are covered with massive air bags over winter, so you can play all year round. The pool is terrific, but on days can look a little like a pool on a cruise ship, as many members are as old as the club and lounge around the pool like lizards, on the lounge chairs. There is the delightful custom at the pool , like all pools in Italy of wearing a swim cap, l am told to stop hair blocking the filter, l did question why did l have to wear one, but maybe it is better l don't stand out, l may try to get a floral one, or maybe there is a market for ones with moose horns, or big ears on them.
They have a lifeguard at the pool?, but l think he is there mainly to stop people from breaking rules, like not wearing a swim cap, jumping in , banging noodles on the water, playing in the swimming lanes, ( lanes which seem to change with a whim) talking too loud, ohh and not having a shower before and it seems after you get in/out of the pool. That said, they are lovely lifeguards, and we have got to know them well. They did have a problem with the boys, as l don't think Italians are known for their swimming, and when the boys started swimming laps, they were confused to which lane they should be in, the kids lanes or the adult lanes that are for adults and swimmers. most adults don't swim they just walk in water holding a noodle.
We have played a bit of tennis, though it has been hot, in fact so hot that we have been the only people playing in the day.
Jayne loves the "CLUB" and has met as usual some wonderful people, who have been most helpful. We have been invited to events, houses, given advice and help regarding my art and galleries, where to buy good bread or spices as well as lessons in Italian.
Jayne met a lovely pharmacist Frederico, when she first came to Bologna in November last year, and he invited us to the CLUB a couple of months ago, we were taken by its pool and cheap drink and food prices, Jayne asked could we become members, and so he took us straight down to the manager, and saying we were friends of Pat Rafter, which l am led to believe helped, became members. It sounds easy, but l have found out with friends from the school, that they have tried several times to become members, as always its who you know, and l now know, everyone knows Frederico.
The CLUB is open every day except christmas day, and till 1am, serving food for lunch, dinners, it is well attended by many members who don't play tennis, just enjoy the other facilities.
It takes me back to the days l played every week with Andrew Watson, Dick Johns and Simon Bones at the South Yarra Tennis Club, sadly l don't play as well as l did then, and l don't have those guys to practice with, but l do have the wonderful meals and drinks after to look forward too.

giovedì 4 agosto 2011

Summer in Santa Margherita

We just spent a week in Santa Margherita on the west coast, visiting places like Portofino and Cinque Terra.
Our first impression was what are we going to do with the kids for 10 days, so we cut the trip down to 5, then after 4 days we increased it to 7. Getting there was a small episode, we just picked up our second hand Honda CRV, black executive, petrol, 38,000 on the dial, rides like a silken horse. It has heated seats which l look forward to in winter, but most essential a navigator thingy on the dash, which has got us to where we wanted to go. The drive was 3 hours, seemed like 10 as Jayne reminded me constantly that there was a truck in-front of us, that l was going too fast, l was too much over to the left, l didn't have both hands on the wheel. And over this pointing out to the boys to look at the castle or village on the hill, then snapping at me as l tried to get a quick peek.
We arrived safely without a scratch.
We went out to see Cinque Terra by ferry one day, deciding to get the ferry one way, get off at Riomaggiore, and walk to Manarola, the walk was very impressive and l believe the best part of the walk, it cost 15 euros, as they have recently upgraded the track. The track has got thousands of locks , locked to all types of things, a metaphor for love, left by lovers. I can only imagine a locksmith could make a killing, bolt cutting them open, as love fades.
From Manarola we caught another ferry to Vernazza, as Corniglia is closed , due to a landslide on the track there. Vernazza was the best of the towns, and we had lunch there, and it was terrific, not as many tourists, and very beautiful. We then decided we could catch the original ferry back if we got to Monterrosso in half an hour by train, so we ran and caught it, arriving with 10 minutes to spare, on boarding the ferry after a very quick look at Monterosso, we found that it was going to Vernazza for an hour. So another look at our favorite town, and a ice cream that we never got there the first time. Back on the ferry and back to Santa Margherita. A wonderful day, met a couple of lovely blokes from St Kilda who we ended up having dinner with. Leo who works at Audi in Swan St Richmond, is well worth going too if you want an Audi, a friendly happy person.
One of our favorite places in Santa Margherita is Villa Durazzo on the hill overlooking the town. It has a wonderful garden, full of ancient cycads, palm trees, shaded with marble statues lining along the pathways. The villa is used for art shows, musical performances, all free. It has a room dedicated to Vittoria Rossi, a local writer who died in 1978, there are some great portrait paintings on the walls, and some terrible modern art by some terrible artists, part of the villa doing its bit for upcoming artists, needless to say what l think they should do with it!. There is another house near by that is also used for that and has a cafe for your espresso. We saw a wonderful performance of a violinist (Ermir Abeshi) and pianist (Valentina Messa), with about 200 people squeezing in to see.
Later we went up there for a dinner on the tables in the garden, wonderful place to see the setting light fall over the town, as it's lights light up.
There are some very good places to eat, our favorite was a kitchen restaurant (Trattoria da Pezzi), that closes at 9pm, which is weird in Italy, the food was perfect and the size of the deserts was massive, too the point you felt like singing happy birthday.
There are some amazing hotels on the cliff face, (Metropole, Continental) which look great and have all the feelings of Healesville.
We booked ourselves into Bagno Margherita on the beach, about 1 km around the head towards Portofino, above it was a very cool old building that we kept looking at, wondering how can we get into it. This bagno was more expensive than Milano Marittma, the chairs are jammed in, and the beach is pebbles, but the water is clear and cool, and the boys loved the big blow up banana shaped object that kids could swim out to it. Hunter spent the whole day out on it. Ewan spent most of the time on it, and the rest at the ping pong table, he has become quite the Forrest Gump when it comes to table tennis.
Jayne found amazing ways of buying things on sale, she is very talented at buying things, l am told that we only live once, and this is trip is a once ever, l have decided to paint nights as well.
Speaking of painting, we bought 3 little pictures by a Milanese artist Enrico Vairo, the boys did say, that dont you paint these things dad, and they are right, but l am not from Milan and not dead.
One very strange thing we noticed in Santa Margherita was that men walk around with their cashmere jumpers wrapped around their bellies, l mean that the body part is over the belly and tied at the back, it is weird, and l can only imagine is done to cover their large stomachs, much in the same way as you see women running around the botanical gardens in Melbourne with their gym top tied around to hide their apparently large bums.
Ohh the local dish is great it is short pasta, of around 1-2 inch, in a pesto sauce, under the pasta is boiled pieces of potato, with steamed beans. And of course you cover it in parmesan.
Now we are back in bologna, arrived the day of the anniversary of the Bologna bombing of the train station, 31 years ago. The piazza had a full orchestra performing pieces that had been picked from many entrants to be performed live, there was some spoken word with the orchestra which was very inspiring. It is organized by the families of the victims every year, the bombing killed 88 people and wounded 200. They still have not really figured out who did it, but 4 people were jailed.
The piazza, has now been cleared back to normal, so the massive film screen and 600 chairs are gone, something l look forward to next year, the best film festival.

venerdì 15 luglio 2011

Those were the days

Here we are at Milano Marittma, a local beach for the folk of Bologna, Ravenna, Rimini. It took us about 2 hours on the train, but that is a local train stopping all stations, in a car about one hour. On first appearance it reminds you of Rye, Rosebud, there is a water theme park near by, it is crowded and people everywhere, many 3 star hotels, lots of shops and bars, restaurants. It is known for young people coming here to go wild, but our expierence in the Astra Hotel, three star is quite something.
Imagine if you will, going back in time, a time of tranquility, of few simple pleasures, a place our parents spoke of, or we saw in movies like Monsiuer Hulots Holiday. The taxi from the train station delivers us to the hotel, we ascend the grand stairs coated in red carpet, greeted warmly by a youngish man who smiles and leads us to the front desk, the front lounge is decked in apricot couches, which later l find is the common colour through out, and are infact very comfy. There is a bar in the lounge, and a few people sit in the comfy couches, obviously well versed in their comfyness and chat about good times l imagine in Italian. No need for passports, or visa card, just a smile , a key and the youngish man helps deliver our bags to the room. Fortunately we were well advised about the hotel and came here 3 weeks ago to check out the rooms, we picked room 32, top floor with a balcony, definetly small, and the bathroom is very small, but we are here for the beach, and what a beach, of which l will talk of soon.
We were told dinner was at 7.30 onwards, and a word of warning, don't think your in Italy here, get in early, we arrived after going quickly to the beach to book our lounge chairs and umbrella, number 43 at Adriatico ( the beach is broken into strips, each serviced with lounge chairs and umbrellas in military positions, aptly serviced by a bar, cafe) We arrive at the dining room, which is apricot, with 70's chandeliers of thousands of glass beads, the dining room is alive, much unlike the audience, who are the living dead. I say this in a lovely way, even though their age is extremely large, they have preserved themselves well, with in some cases Botox, salt sacks and wigs, they have the skin of Mallee pigs, but all dressed for dinner, which l must say is a delight to see such effort put towards a meal. We are ushered to our table, one which we will be on till our departure.We are offered a selection of 4 entrees and 4 main meals, which will be followed by a desert, and a buffet sits proudly in the middle of the room, covered like a nannas quilt in all sorts of veggies and dishes that have to be good for you.
We then are given a A4 print out of tomorrow's lunch and dinner menus which we must fill out what we want, this is done every day. The food is terrific, always different, l try to go with the local dishes, nothing has let us down yet. The deserts are brilliant, obviously gelato , but a variety of cakes, fruit. At the end of a meal you have had a well balanced meal of greens, meat, and fruit.
The boys have taken to seeing who has turned up late and may miss out on a particular desert, of course they never miss out on their preordered dinners. The service is remarkable, again very un Italian, it is quick, polite and efficient .We have our waiter who's English is limited, but who's desire to helps rides high. We of course practice our Italian with him, but this is a short lesson, as the waiters are on speed, and invisible roller blades. They scoop from table to table, serving, clearing, replacing water, it's as if their lives depended on them doing their duties in a allocated time, or their first born would be sacrificed.
So far we have had no bambini for a meal. Though the chicken pasta was suspiciously yummy.
The dining room of course is apricot, lots of mirrors, because it is just necessary, Hunter has taken to looking at himself way too often, and adjusting his hair in all sorts of manner, l don't know if he was watching someone do this, or is just doing his thing!
Now the beach, well it must be a few km long, and in the morning is completely covered in people on their preordered lounge chairs, l mean there must be 50,000 people at least , the sea is flat, and rather dirty looking, well worth going out 40 meters to get a cool part, as the first 30 are full of people, mind you beware of the lifeguard who rows a pontoon raft with a chair and life buoy, these lifeguards, are really quite a joke, as there can be no chance anyone could drown in the water, the only problem could be heat exhaustion in the crowded water.These lifeguards paddle like mad at you, if they think you have gone too far from the shore, the fact you could stand in water probably 100 meters out does not seem to matter.
So we sit on our lounges, watching old lizards roll over on the lounges, who cannot move their faces due to the recent Botox injection. Though l must say that most women have taken great care of their bodies, and feel quite happy to wear bikinis that 18 year olds would stagger at.
So the boys build their sand castles, until they are told not to do it, as old people can trip in them?
Hunter then skips shells over the water, which is quite skillful considering how many people he has to miss. We have bought a small net to catch the odd lost fish that we saw swimming in the water, which gives you hope that the water is in some way safe. The sand is extremely hot, l think this is due to the fact that there is no real tide, so it never gets wet, and it is bloody hot, you have to work your way to the boardwalk in the shadows of the umbrellas. Everyone wears sandals or thongs, it is as if sand is the common enemy here, no one would dare sit on the beach, order is the state of the day. And that order continues, for as it chimes close to 12.30 the people march off in file along their boardwalks to their hotels, to enjoy their pre ordered lunch. Some who dare return after lunch and that is only a few, and l think it is mainly foreigners , for the others must sleep, for there is a dinner to come.
The afternoon on the beach is more pleasant as the crowds are down, but around 5pm they return for a quick lie down after the sleep, one last slap of sunshine to rosy the cheeks for dinner.
Dinner is much like lunch, but more formal, afterwards around 10pm, the town comes alive and every soul who was on the beach 12 hours earlier is now marching the streets, shopping, window shopping, drinking, playing in the theme arenas, or playing mini golf, riding 4 wheel bikes, eating more gelato. They return around 12 or so, tuck themselves in , and dream of another ground hog day

domenica 3 luglio 2011

Some thought's on the boys

Thought it important, even if just for me to remember, to mention what Ewan and Hunter have been doing and saying of late
Hunter has of the two found it harder adjusting to the change, and so has found everything hard, even if he was able to do it before. Last week he had trouble understanding how a kid born in Italy could speak English, much as l tried to explain the fact that you speak the language you are brought up with, but you can learn another language as well, which is easier when you are young. He still does not understand and said to Jayne, mum when you LAID me, was l Australian?. Its these comments l have trouble getting around.
Ewan sings continuously, everywhere, in fact the teacher told him to be quite as it was disturbing the students? He loves singing in the shower, and now when things don't go right , throws his arms about saying mamma mia.
The boys did drama after school last term, and will continue next year as they love it, part of the class was to wear a funny hat with their clown noses. Ewan firstly had a mexican hat, but that was a bit large and kept hitting other kids, so l made him a painted crown out of cardboard. Hunter got a black and white checkered hat, in the style that you see guys wearing alot now. But he has taken to wearing it everywhere, with his white sunglasses, and checking with me if he looks good, the worrying thing is all the people who see him in the street, say to him how good he looks, when in Rome!!!
Hunty cannot get the word right for apartment, and keeps saying we live in a department.
We finally found some weet bix, though not as good as at home, breakfast is difficult in Italy. And it reminds you how much, when you get excited about finding an inferior pack of weet bix.
Ewan has found a Smurf chess set in a toy shop, and is determined to buy it. He tried the angle on me, that it would be good for me to teach him chess. In my mind was the image of me playing chess with Smurfs, how childish, of course the fact that l don't know how to play chess and only checkers, did not seem so childish.
We went to the local cheap market yesterday, Hunter bought a wrist band, the ones you flick over your wrist and they wrap around, with the word DREAM on it, Ewan bought a soft used toy for 50 cents, judging by the look of it it belonged to an Indian or Sri Lankan. Saw a small muslim boy in a pram with a large toy machine gun, ratt a tatting away.
Hunter is in the piazza practicing his times tables, as they need to catch up, schooling here is further along than in Avenel, Ewan is doing some painting, drawing, as l try to explain that mistakes are some times the best thing in pictures, he gives me a certain look, that makes me question myself, and l go in to a dark place. I look up with lost eyes to see him rubbing furiously with a rubber, there are so many shavings, its like parmesan .
They finished their first week of summer camp, ( a all Italian centre where kids go during the holidays and do all sorts of activities, football, swimming, painting, wood work, games, drama) they love it, though Hunter gets a bit nervous with no English.
Ewan has just showed me a large project paper, he is doing titled "Saving Up List" which he is putting all the things he wants and how much they cost and where he can get them, this is when Ewan is much like me.
We are looking after a pet hamster at the moment for some friends, Hunter loves it, as he does all animals, and l think we might need to get a pet of some kind, it may well make Hunter a bit more relaxed.
Jayne was out with Hunter a few days ago, they went by a ice-cream shop, and she said do you want an ice cream, he said after some thought , no, can we get some calamari. That is Hunter
If it was Ewan he would say, yes, but can l still have a brioche later?
Last night at dinner, Hunter orders spaghetti with clams and a calamari dish, while Ewan as always orders lasagna or margarita pizza.
We got the boys some new runners, for some reason Hunter has gone from a size 2 to 5, l asked him, were your toes tight in those shoes, he said yes, but he liked them, he is very much like Jayne when it comes to shoes. Mind you the size 5 look like clown shoes, but Hunty tells me they look cool. Ewan checked with me first before getting his pair if they were too expensive, guess who?
Enough of that now, more about other things later.
Have a hankering for some coffee