Cloudy week

 

On this cloudy Monday fishermen's boats are all stalled because of rough sea. It seems the new week will be still cloudy. As a result, many Italian fishermen are working on the ground. They are repairing their fishing nets at the fishing port.

After I had taken a few pictures while I was walking close to the fishing port, I noticed that a seagull was on the roof of my car. I could see that the seagull was well fed, although it was still looking for food :-)  ... those creatures sometimes are close to the fishing port, as they have the opportuny to eat fishes that can't be delivered to the market.

With regards to fish dishes, I have heard that eating fish could help people who had lost interest in activities. According to some studies, people who eat fish regularly are much less likely to become depressed.

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/11-health-benefits-of-fish

Have a nice week!

The smallest country in the world

When we walk past the border checkpoints of Vatican city we noticed that we are close to the smallest country in the world. Actually, it is encircled by 2-mile border with Italy. 

One week ago I went to Rome for job, and on the way back, in the early evening, I took two pictures of Vatican Square. Tourists weren't there, as the Italian government hasn't eased Covid restrictions yet.

Yesterday the Japanese restaurant, Kokusai, here in my town, delivered the food that we had at dinner. It was really delicious! We look forward to getting Japanese food once again next month.

The cups of Italian cappuccino here below weren't served in Vatican City and its surroundings. I already mentioned the nice waitress who like writing "Good Morning" ("Buon giorno" in Italian language) on top of milk surface. 

As it is known, cappuccino is an espresso-based coffee drink that originated in Austria with later development taking place in Italy. The cake in the picture below also is of North Europe origin.

Have a nice weekend! 

Renault 4

In my previous post I mentioned Citroën 2cv after I had seen an old one while I was walking. This morning I saw another old one: it is Renault 4, which had been produced from 1961 to 1992 by the French car maker Renault. I was happy to see that old car, as it was the car I used to drive when I was 20 years old. 

To celebrate the 60th anniversary of Renault 4, that's its name, the French manufacturer has created the "Suite N. 4" that has maintained the same dimensions and external lines of  the original model. 

While I was walking I also took pictures of two of the oldest stone fountains. These two small town's landmarks, which were both built in the late 16th century, provided water supply for horses and donkeys.  

At the local market I saw an easy way to enjoy fresh tomatoes in late Autumn 🍅

Have a nice Sunday :-)

Rome in late Autumn

This week, on a rainy thursday in late Autumn, I went to Rome for job once again. I hate wet socks, that's why I put in a change of socks while I was there. It seems people who live there are able to ride those manual scooters also on rainy days 🛴 ... but abandoned manual scooters along Rome's sidewalks were so dangerous.

I soon noticed that Christmas decoration were already there along many streets and squares. 

On the way back, while I was walking along an historical alley of the town, I saw a Citroën 2cv on the cobblestones. It's an old car manufactured in France from 1948 to 1990. In the late 1970s the Citroën 2cv was a very popular car. It has always been so colorful, al least two colours.

I also took the next two pictures in Rome:  refurbishment of a historical building (Ministry of Finance) and an urban green space, which provides psychological relaxion and supports physical activity.

The last picture above shows that on the 42nd parallel lemons are already on branches. Lemon is an excellent source of vitamin C.

In the hills on October, 31st

A few images taken on October 31st in the hills (Itri, 90 km South from Rome). This time there weren't many olives in my mother's garden. So we couldn't make olive oil. 

 

We also enjoyed chestnuts cooked in the fireplace.

Lemon flowers were blooming and the surrounding vineyards began to change their colours.

I hope you will have a nice week!

Plastic apples

The apples in the picture below seem realistic decorative apples for home or kitchen decoretion. Unfortunately, they are true apples, and they were shipped from one of the Northernmost village in Italy. I saw them at the supermarket in Civitavecchia (Central Italy). 

I also saw Australian walnuts, Chinese garlic, and Argentinian almonds! Maybe, we should boost the supply of fresh, healthy and locally produced food.

 

The photo below has nothing to do with plastic red apples and walnuts shipped from the Southern emisphere. One week ago I went to Naples, South Italy, once again. As I mentioned in my previous post, published on 28th of September, I already went there last month. In Naples I saw "The seven acts of mercy" represented in the Caravaggio's oil painting. The painting was made in 1607 and it is housed in the church of "Pio Monte della Misericordia" in Naples. Caravaggio combined all seven acts of mercy in one composition, instead of seven separate panels around the church.

https://www.caravaggio.org/the-seven-works-of-mercy.jsp

If you go to Italy, please don't miss to visit Naples. I will go there in December, once again.

Parthenope (Naples)

On the small island of Megaride there is the oldest standing fortification in Naples (picture above). During the 8th century BC Greek colonists founded on the island of Megaride, which is now a peninsula, the first nucleus of the city of Naples (South Italy). They named the settlement Parthenope, after the siren in Greek mythology. 

The seagull in the picture below is enjoying the gulf of Naples and its volcano. 

Since Friday 24 September I have been in Naples, as my mother and my two sisters live there with their families. I noticed that many people, who live in Naples, wear a mask outdoors. After a while I learnt that Naples mayor ordered to continue to wear masks and observe social distancing rules everywhere. He is afraid the virus may be still dangerous, although more than 60% of people who live in Naples are fully vaccinated.

The picture below shows an old local market in Naples, where I bought Italian walnuts, almonds and hazelnuts ... unfortunately, grocery and supermarket clerks in Rome and surroundings (where I live) sell walnuts, almonds and hazelnuts that are almost exclusively shipped from great distance, such as Argentina, Australia, Chile, South Africa,  US (California), Turkey, etc. 

I think eating local food is better for us, for the environment, and for our taste buds.

Lunch at the beach

Since early March 2020, epidemic spreading, lockdown measures and social distancing rules have changed everything. And while big tech multinationals are trying to destroy middle class' retailers, people have no choice but to buy online many products and services they need.

In late 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic began to spread across the Northern emisphere, Amazon had announced a pilot program for a virtual medical clinic. The virtual clinic services would consist of video visits with doctors and registered nurses. It wasn't Amazon's first step outside its confort zone. 

As it is konwn, in 2019 Amazon was, and still is, a grocer, a fashion venue and its own delivery provider. As mentioned by many experts, considering Amazon's pervasive presence worldwide, no company is ever truly safe. But Amazon, Google, and Alibaba Group will never be able to serve us a fish dish at the beach on a sunny Sunday.

Have a nice Sunday and stay safe!

Piri-Piri

 

As request by Nicole, from DVArtist , I would like to publish two pictures of the flowers I see on my balcony in Spring: they're hollyhock and white geranium.

In addition to these two flowers, I have a tiny greehouse which contains wee Piri-Piri plants. I put the seeds more than forty days ago, in late March, and I saw the small Piri-Piri plants in late April.

Piri-Piri is a type of chili pepper widely cultivated commercially in Uganda and in some African Portuguese-language countries. It has grown in the wild in Africa for centuries and now it is cultivated for both commercial food processing and pharmaceutical industry.

If someone liked Piri-Piri plants in her/his garden, balcony or backyard, I would send her/him the seeds  by mail. 

Meanwhile, yesterday I received the first dose of the Pfizer-BioNtech Covid-19 vaccine. It seems I haven't had any symptom after the inoculation.