Still taking it easy in Putignano

We are loving Putignano! It’s still freezing cold in our trullo but the weather has climbed to a splendid 20C. We’ve started eating meals outdoors and are spending as much time as possible playing outside!

We’re still in the process of figuring out our future, and have given ourselves until June to decide. Jonathan is considering going back to school, and has begun contacting people. I’m sort of waiting to see what he’s doing to apply for jobs. I’ve applied to a few, but am not worried.

I am currently outside on my patio table with my laptop. It is gorgeous here! The birds are chirping, the fruit trees are still blooming, my puppy is so happy she is bouncing around, and Jonathan is laughing it up playing lawn bowls with Donato in the backyard. I am in a happy place!

Last week, I went to my friend Ioana’s English class to make a presentation. She wanted someone to come to her class so her students could hear a “native-speaker” accent. I’m not a native speaker, but speak it pretty well if I can say so myself. Anyway, I had a great time making a power-point presentation and speaking in front of the group. A nice man came to me and said in Italian “I don’t speak a word of English but understood everything you said!” I would say it was a success.

Jonathan and Gianni were nice enough to make me a bunch of canvases to paint on. I am nearly done my first one despite spending the week in bed sick. I’m just waiting for it to dry to add the little details. I have a wide range of choice for my next painting. Jonny made me tiny canvases, and I think I will go paint the landscape around my house on them. I’m looking forward to painting outdoors for the first time.

Jonathan has taken a liking to drawing. As geologists, it’s important to know how to sketch the landscape quickly and clearly, and he is improving by sketching outside. He usually gets out of bed at 7 and takes Nomade for a stroll. He sits on a stonewall and sketches while the puppy does her favourite thing: hop around in tall-grass fields. I am usually asleep while all of this is happening, but I went with them one morning. Jonny was sketching a gorgeous trullo while I was walking around taking photos of the blooming trees. We were in somebody’s field, but the gate was wide open, the field was empty, it was 7 in the morning, and we weren’t bothering anybody. After a little while, an angry man called us over. I stayed near the wall, while Jonny went to see him, smiling. The man lived nearby and was very rude to Jonathan. He implied that we were thieves and that we shouldn’t wander around. I was wearing a baseball cap and I was far away, but once I yelled at Jonathan to see what was going on, the man realized I was a girl. He then backed off and said that if he had known we were a couple of teenagers (a regazzo and a regazza) he wouldn’t have said anything… Anyway, it was weird. Some people just love to stick their nose in everything, even when two people aren’t doing anything wrong!

In other news, Leo, Angela’s tiny cat, has a cold. We have been giving him extra cuddles this week.

Also, Angelo, the smallest pony, has become less timid. His mother is pretty protective and used to get a little testy when we approached him. Now, he is free to come and say hello, much like his sister Liduina does. The only thing, is that he loves licking us! His cute little tongue is so soft and strange. When I was there, he kept going for a good 5 or 10 minutes.

He’s grown up quite a bit since we’ve been here, and it’s beautiful to see. Valentina, the mommy pony, is pregnant, but won’t give birth until September. I would love to see her give birth!

We are still having an amazing time in Putignano. We are still playing cards with our neighbours nearly everyday. We love French Tarot! It is a very interesting game that takes a bit of thinking, but it so much fun.

I will try to update more often!

ps. There's one more thing. I sprained (or hurt) my ankle while hiking in the wood picking wild flowers. It made for a glorious bouquet, but I've been immobilized for the last few days. I hope it will be better tomorrow, so I can go on fun walks with Jonny and Nomade!

A little something about our dog, Nomade

I have likely mentioned that Jonathan and I have expanded our little family with a puppy. Her name is Nomade: an homage to her mother, Gitane (meaning Gypsy), and to our way of life for the past few years.

Nomade’s mother, Gitane, is a 24 kg Border Collie and black Labrador mix. She is a kind dog who loves to run around, play fetch and destroy inflatable balls. Here she is, lounging:

Nomade’s father is a bit of a mystery. He is a Turkish Shepherd who lives in Eastern Turkey. He watches a flock of sheep. He is very tall, thick furred and mostly white, with some black spots. He is timid, well, I assume since it took him a few days to lure Gitane. From the description our friends gave us, he is likely an Akbash and probably looks like this:

Here’s how we got our dog:

Jonathan and I stayed at Nehru Park in New Delhi for weeks, trying to get our Iranian visa. The park turned out to be a squatting point for many people travelling in camper vans, most of whom were also waiting on their Iranian visa. We ended up spending our evenings with many lovely people.

We met a French couple, Laurent and Amandine, that was dropping by to give another French couple a puppy. Laurent and Amandine’s dog Gitane, had gotten pregnant in Goa and had given birth in Nepal. All of the puppies had been given away except for this last male, who was reserved for these friends. The puppy was a gorgeous little guy with very particular colouring. They named him Cawa, a slang for coffee in France.

Jonathan and I met up with Laurent and Amandine in Islamabad, still trying to get our Iranian visa, and decided to travel together. We got along wonderfully with them and their dear Gitane.

We crossed Pakistan and part of Iran with our friends and said our goodbyes near Persepolis. Jonathan and I wanted to stay in the South of Iran a little longer, while they wanted to head North. We were sure we would see them again in France.

Once in Turkey, at the Cappadocce, Jonathan and I received an email from Amandine. Their camper van had broken down and the insurance company was flying them home. There was a major problem though, there was no way to put Gitane on the plane. Jonathan and I were happy to take a detour and pick up their happy dog.

So we met up with Laurent and Amandine who gave us instructions on how to take care of Gitane. After all, neither Jonathan nor I had ever had a dog! There was one more little thing, Gitane was pregnant.

Gitane had become in heat much earlier than suspected. She had had her Indian litter in March, and shouldn’t have been in heat for another 6 months. Well, nature isn’t always on our calendar and brought things early. While we were still with Laurent and Amandine we watched Gitane, who was in heat, to make sure she didn’t get busy with a male. Well, one night in Turkey, right before bedtime, a shy male who had been visiting their campervan for a few days, successfully wooed Gitane.

Laurent said that if we wanted a puppy, we could have one.

So we took Gitane back to Luxembourg without a hitch. She was a darling to travel with, and a wonderful bodyguard. She showed us that morning sickness occurs not only in humans, but we didn’t mind cleaning up after her. We had a great time with her. Our friends came to pick her up, and reminded us that the puppies were coming in late August. I said we still had to think about it (we still had no idea what we were doing) but that if we took one, we wanted a dark coloured female, like Gitane.

On September 1st, 2 days before we returned to Europe from Canada, we got an email that the puppies were born. There was a dark female with white paws, a white nose and white on the tip of her tail and she was ours. We still hadn’t confirmed what we were doing, but I told Jonny that she was ours, and our responsibility. We told Laurent and Amandine that we were naming her, Nomade.

In October, Jonathan and I took the Wombat to St-Mathurin-sur-Loire in France to see our puppy. She was only six week old and too young to take with us, but we were so happy to make her acquaintance! It was love!

We visited Bretagne and went back to pick up Nomade. Our friends who had adopted Gitane’s Indian puppy came to visit. He was 7 months old and looked just like an Indian dog: long and lanky! It was a very special family reunion.

We were lucky to adopt our puppy from friends. She lived with her mommy in a house for the first 2 months of her life, and learned so much from copying Gitane. When we got her, she already knew her name and to “sit”. She never once had an accident in the Wombat, and was so easy to train. She loves learning and knows many tricks. Here is a video of her at 3 months:

She is friendly, happy, trustworthy and so much fun! She still jumps on strangers when she meets them (she loves making new friends), but we’re working on that. She knows Jonathan’s name and mine and loves to play hide and seek .She has never gotten bored while playing (she has lots of energy) but knows when she needs to calm down for bed-time. The vet has estimated that she will be 30 kg (6 kg more than her mom) and at 6 months she already weighed 21 kg. She is growing up to be quite a looker, and is a lot of fun. I don’t remember what life was like without a dog. She wakes us me up every morning at 7 with a little kiss on the nose, which is one of my favourite things.

She may not be a pedigree pure-breed show dog, but she’s our one-of-a-kind little angel. She is the best souvenir I could have ever imagined taking home from such a memorable trip.

Why I love film cameras

I just found a cd of photos i had developed. I took these with the Pentax I bought in Australia. The pictures aren’t all wonderful, the quality isn’t perfect (some of the film I bought was expired…) but the element of surprise is worth all of the negative aspects of film cameras! I like that looking at my strip of film is like putting a puzzle together, trying to remember how each event follow one another…Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate digital cameras and the way they let me take photos everyday so easily, but there’s something so special about film cameras!

Here are some photos from one single 27-exposure film I used last year, in chronological order:

A camel and the cappadocce in Turkey

Some kids playing in front of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul Turkey,

Pregnant Gitane, Nomade’s mom, taking a rest

The Wombat safely parked in Luxembourg

Jonathan, his father and his brother chopping wood in Ste-Émilie-de-l’Énergie in Québec

Jonathan fitting in with the locals beside the Seine in Paris.

I was so happy to see how many things one strip of film can capture! The digital version of these events includes 10,000 pictures of nearly the same thing, captured at slightly different angles or with different camera settings, just in case, for some reason, I would happen to need dozens of different versions of the same picture. The luxury of digital cameras has turned me a little bit ridiculous.

I love the suspense of film cameras. If someone blinked, if the lighting wasn’t right, if you didn’t load your film properly, if you look like a wank or if your shot turns out blurry, it’s just something you have to live with and accept. No re-shoots, no thousands of pictures to look through, no worries.

:)

Gorgeous days have arrived!.

First of all, it was my brother-in-law Chris’ birthday on the 27^th. I wish I could have been there to celebrate! Happy birthday Chris!!

Here in Italy, I’m so glad that the weather has been getting nicer ! The trullo is finally warming up, meaning that we don’t have to constantly watch the fire ! Most of the time, we don’t even have a fire burning; we only light one in the evening to help reduce the humidity.

Yesterday, Nomade turned 6 months old. We celebrated by going on a super long walk with her and some friends. It was so wonderful to stroll around with spring in full bloom ! The almond and wildberry trees are blooming, and with every gust of wind comes an amazing perfume !

By the end of the walk, my nose was itchy from smelling every flower in sight (my favourites were the wildberry trees/bushes. Their flowers actually smell like blueberries !!) Along the way, Marisa picked up a big bunch of wild asparagus. I had never seen an asparagus bush before, and could never have guessed it looks like this :

Asparagus sprout from the ground, under these spiny horrible looking plants. It's worth a few stratches to pick them, though. After the walk Marisa gave us the asparagus with cooking instructions.

To know how much of the asparagus you’ll need to snip off, you check by trying to pierce it with your fingernail. If your nail can pierce the asparagus easily, it’s good to eat. Once it’s too hard, you need to cut that part off. Marisa told us to cut them in little pieces and fry them with diced tomatoes, oil and garlic.

You can add cubes of pancetta or ground beef if you’d like. Then, you serve over pasta. It is incredibly simple, but oh so good! Although the asparagus were tiny, they were FULL of flavour! I guess I had never tasted asparagus so fresh before. Amazing amazing amazing!

I still go to visit the ponies when it’s nice out. The little baby has grown so much since we’ve arrived in Putignano! He’s become very friendly, like Liduina. There are 4 ponies in total, but the mommy pony, the baby and the male don’t generally come by to say hello, and only Liduina does. The other day, though, I was lucky enough to give a little pat hello to all of them!

The male and the baby were engaged in a full on neck hug and were chewing each other’s manes! I guess spring-cleaning is in full swing!

In other news, I’ve finally found a television program I enjoy. You see, Italian television is very strange to me. Programs are filled with provocatively dressed women, many of whom dance around like strippers. I have yet to see one male news anchor, but I have also yet to see once without bursting cleavage, bouffant hair and some part of their face redone. For instance, there is one program that shows special reports on the mistreatment of people by their landlords, employers, etc. It “busts” and confronts people on horrible things they’ve done and tries to inform the public of what’s really going on in Italy. This is a good idea for a show, the sort of 20/20 of Italy, but the way it’s packaged and delivered doesn’t make sense to me. The hosts come on the stage one at a time and dance around. They sit at a news desk and chatter and act silly for a while. One of the hosts is a woman who, from what I understand, appears to be quite witty. Then, two scantily clad women (always one blonde and one brunette) appear dancing like strippers and crouch awkwardly on the desk for a while… it’s just one example, but to me, it makes no sense. Right after the dancing, the jokes, the sound effects and the dancers, they go on to presenting serious reports about the injustice in Italy…it just makes no sense. The female host usually takes a jab or two at the dancers by saying things like “you really call that dancing?” or finds another way to poke fun at the situation. If the host realizes the concept is ridiculous, you know there’s something strange going on…Well, I guess the producers know what the public wants…Anyway, what I meant to talk about is that I found another show I really like. It’s a game show called “Eredità”. There are six contestants and they gradually get eliminated until there is one left over who tries to win all the money he or she has “inherited” from the contestants who were eliminated. I like it because the questions are written down when asked, so it really gives me a chance to learn Italian. I watch it with my French/Italian dictionary handy! What’s funny is that there are also “stripper women” (4 of them) on this show. I tolerate their 30-second “dance” sequence by telling myself it’s okay because these women actually get to talk on this show. They read out questions and fun facts every once in a while. It’s better than on most shows

I made brownies again this weekend to try and perfect my recipe. It’s getting pretty damn good. I think my friends are happy I’m working on this recipe :)

Apart from that, not much is new. I’m still working on my painting and enjoying myself in the process. We still make cheese on Sundays and go out for dinner and drinks with friends on Saturday nights. I’m having a wonderful time in Italy and really appreciate everything I’m learning here!

Oh, and Nomade loves laying in the sun. In the photo below, I disturbed her from her precious sun bathing time. She eventually forgave me.

MC

Life is life in Putignano

This week has been a little rough for my roommates ! Jonny and Nomade were both tummy sick for the most of it… I tried my best to take care of the both of them. We had a little scare and thought that Jonny might be lactose intolerant, but we were told that there is a virus going around Putignano…Well, everything seems to be back in order now.

The weather has been getting a lot better. I have to admit, it was a little sad at first to see the Sicilian weather forecast on the news… While it was 4, 5 or 6 degrees here in Puglia, it was 14, 15, or 21 in Palermo!! Finally, spring has arrived here in Putignano, so I’m happy. Jonathan and I will likely eventually make it to Sicily, we’re just not too pressed for time.

We’re slowly trying to figure out what we’re going to do after Italy. Jonathan has applied for a job abroad. We’re looking for something where we can settle for a while. I don’t like the idea of working as a geologist and doing “fly-in fly-out” like I did in Australia (it’s where you fly to a minesite for a set amount of days and then get flown back home for your holiday. Jonathan and I did 9 days of work to 5 days holiday). It ends up being a difficult lifestyle. You’re always living out of a suitcase, and aren’t in one place long enough to get rested and comfortable. I’m loving the country life, and I hope we can find a way to make our living while staying on a farm.

We’ve been toying with the idea to get a car or a scooter for the past month or so. The plan was to find something over 15 years old so we would pay very little insurance on it. Also, we were hoping to find something for under 500 Euros. The Wombat is running just fine, he’s just expensive to insure and hard to park in the city. A large 4x4 campervan isn’t the most efficient way to get around here. Apparently it was very possible to find a decent and running car for as little as 250 Euros in the region…but not lately. The government offered a 500 reward for anyone who took his or her car to be crushed. It’s a way to jump start the economy where people crush their old little Fiats and buy buy buy new little Fiats. Great for Italy’s economy but not for ours. Cheap used cars are now hard to come by… We have our hopes up though, because the government recently decided to stop this cash handout. We’re hoping something will come along. There’s another problem though: there is a 300 Euros change of ownership fee. It looks like it’s going to be pretty expensive to get a car or a scooter (a scooter is cheaper to buy, but more expensive to insurance than an old car). So we toyed with the idea of getting a horse. Jonny went to a man’s farm where there were dozens and dozens of horses. The man sells them. We joked that perhaps we could “loan” one for a few months. We have the fields and a shed we could turn into a barn. Also, our lovely neighbours have 4 ponies, and could help us to take care of him. Then we thought we could get a donkey. They are a little more stubborn but much easier to care for. I remember in Pakistan when I asked how much a donkey cost I was told they cost the equivalent of 30 Euros. I was also told that they’re much less trouble than horses. Horses need to run and eat grass. Donkeys, apparently, can just stand there all day. And that’s what they did. In Pakistan, you see donkeys tied to carts parked in the road like cars… just standing there. Well, surely our donkey would not have to live through that. He would be the happiest most spoiled ass in the world! Well, it’s all a big dream to buy an animal instead of a car, but it’s fun to consider. Never in my life have I been in a situation where that argument (horse vs. car) could actually hold any ground. I love living in the country!

I’ve been painting a lot lately, and I’m having fun doing it. Soon, I’ll be able to go outside and paint a picture of our trullo.

My little "studio":

I’m still have fun cooking and baking, although this week has been simple because of the tummy aches. I made myself breaded broccoli (Marisa’s recipe). It’s not the same broccoli I’m used to, it’s more of a mix between broccoli and cauliflower. Anyway, here’s how you make it:

Here is a photo of the broccoli-flower, fresh from the garden.

1) Cut in long stems

2) Put in baking dish with water and salt. Cover and bake for 10ish minutes

3) Take out of oven drain most of the water. Add crushed garlic, lots of fresh parsley, and oil. Cover and bake until broccoli is cooked to your liking (likely another 10ish minutes)

4) Take out of oven. Remove lid. Cover with equal parts of breadcrumbs and parmesan. Salt and pepper. Bake a bit and then broil.

5) YUM YUM YUM. Eat as first part of meal. Follow it by meat or cheese.

We went to have lunch at the Netti’s on Sunday. This time Jonny and I made brownies for dessert. It is a very American treat (nothing like Italian desserts), and I think everyone liked them. They were a little undercooked (gooier than some like) but there’s nothing wrong with gooey lovely chocolate.

Peace from St Peter in Bari

Last week was meant to be the last parade of the carnival (on Mardi Gras), but it was cancelled because of rain. It’s such a shame because it was gorgeous out the day before and the day after! The town tried to push the events to this Saturday, but needed permission from the priest. It’s not right to hold carnival festivities once lent has started. Mardi Gras” literally translates to “Fat Tuesday” and is the last day (Tuesday) before Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday marks the start of lent where Catholics give up something to feel the burdens Christ lived through. So, because for 40 days before Easter, Catholics have to live solemnly, tradition started to have a little party on the last day before sacrifice. Typically food had a big thing to do with lent. People would give up their favourite food, meat or even fast altogether until sundown. Understandably, on “Fat Tuesday” one would eat their favourite rich and fatty foods. In many catholic countries, a carnival is held in the days before lent starts. A very famous one is in Brazil or New Orleans (where they simply call it Mardi Gras, not carnival) or here, Putignano!

Disco Saint in Putignano

Anyway, the Mardi Gras parade was cancelled, but the masked ball afterward wasn’t. I went with some friends, while Jonny stayed home. I dressed up as Super Girl. The party was held in a kind of warehouse. It was nicely decorated, and there were some pretty amazing costumes! My favourites were: one guy who dressed as a bull, Jim Carrey’s “The Mask”, and a bunch of “The Incredibles”. We got there at about 11pm, when it started. At first it felt a big like a high school dance, but it finally got started at about 1am. I was exhausted. I remember in University, I could dance until 3 in the morning, no problem….I’m getting old! I had a lot of fun though. You could tell I was the only foreigner. There were lots of Italian songs that played, where everyone knew the words and the gestures and I kind of just swayed around. Still, at least I knew the words to “Volare”, thank goodness. :)

Sometimes I wonder if people recognize Jonny and I as the “town foreigners” There are only 28 000 people in Putignano. I don’t mean that everyone knows everyone but everyone knows someone who knows who your talking about (does that make sense?). Anyway, Jonny and I now have our little routine: we visit the Wednesday market, we go to see our friend Elena the butcher, we get our cheese at the same cheese maker as Marisa, and our bread at the same baker, we go to the same fruit and veg vendor….The other day, the fruit and veggie man asked Marisa if I was her daughter. She laughed and said “Yes, I decided not to teach Italian to that one”.

Well I’m sort of ranting now. Time to make lunch

MC

ps: here is a photo of something I find really neat. In a lot of the historical centres there are narrow roads with little ridges made from raised stone. You only find them on slopes, because they are there to prevent horses from slipping! Neat!

A few photos!

I wrote Nomade's name on her dish. I made a mosaic using electric tape. Here is when I presented it to her, and her thanking me with a kiss (actually, she was most likely checking if there was food on my face, because there was none in her dish)

Here is Jonny cutting bread to have with our pancetta wrapped chicken with leeks. You can see the kitchen, and our heating system (the fire place) I don't like the table cloth and am looking for a new one. I found one I liked at the market, but it was too expensive...

Here is our super long driveway.

Jonny: "Marie-Claude viens ici j'ai quelque chose pour toi"

MC: "Je joue aux cartes"

Jonny: "Allez"

MC: "k"

Jonny sort quelque chose de sa poche

MC: "AHHHH WOWO WOWOWO WOW!! AHHH TROP CUTE!!!!"

Jonny: "Il a 2 semaines"

MC: "WOW WOW AHHHH WOW"

Here is Liduina's blue eye. The other one is brown.

Enjoy

Carnival is so much fun!

We’ve had a great time for the passed few weeks! Having a house has been a fantastic change! Though it is only temporary, it’s nice to finally unpack my bags. Jonathan and I have been living out of suitcases for the passed two years, and are glad to finally have drawers. It’s made me really think about what I want in life and where I want to end up. I love living in the country, despite all the work that comes with the lifestyle!

Living in the country, you are never bored, (especially with a puppy…Nomade is lying at my feet right now, wondering when lunch will be served. The rule is that she eats after we do, and Jonny went to Bari this morning, and I’m waiting for him to eat, meaning she’s also waiting. She keeps sighing, it’s pretty cute). I spend a large part of my day cooking, and cleaning up, but I try and keep the complaints to a minimum. Here is a typical day now that we are pretty much settled in the trullo:

Lately, Nomade wakes me up at about 730 in the morning. She usually does so by liking my nose, or by frantically sniffing whatever limb may be sticking out from under the covers. After a few whines and moans I get up. I turn on the electric heater in the bathroom and the hot water heater if one of us wants to take a shower. Then, Jonny or I tend to the fire. There are usually a few embers left from the night before, and one of us acts like a caveman to get some heat going. Then, it’s time to bring wood into our big container in the kitchen.

Then, it’s coffee time! I make Italian coffee using the espresso machine we bought in Australia. We eat a simple breakfast. Nomade eats breakfast. Then, dishes, and sweeping. There will be lots of dust all over the place and little branches from bringing wood in. If it is raining, a little mopping is in order. Then, I usually like to sweep the bedroom and the bathroom. The plaster is peeling from the bathroom walls, so there are little white chunks on the floor in the morning. Nomade isn’t allowed in the bathroom, so I don’t need to mop there everyday. It’s not as bad as it sounds, I am just a little finicky.

After a few card games, some dancing in the kitchen and either a trip to town for food or the Netti’s home for a hello, I make lunch. I’ve been trying new recipes from a book Jonathan’s mom gave me for Christmas. I love cooking here, because the ingredients are so fresh! The Netti’s give us some herbs and veggies from their garden every week, and I make whatever I can with them! We stayed with them for 3 weeks, and Marisa (the mama) really inspired me! They eat so well. The first dish will be soup, pasta, or some sort of veggie dish, the second will be the meat and cheese dish. Then, we eat more cheese, or walnuts. Finally, the big bowl of fruit comes out for dessert. I like eating this way, and have adopted it. I’ve been having a lot of fun cooking. This week’s highlights have been a wonderful carrot cake (with Netti carrots, cloves, walnuts and lemon), an onion gratin (with Netti onions and thyme) and pancetta wrapped chicken breasts served on leeks (well, here only the thyme was from the Netti’s). One other great, and very simple, success was pancetta wrapped mozarella braids.

Pancetta is nothing like bacon because it is sliced paper thin, and is so delicate it can be eaten raw. Also mozzarella here is nothing like what I was used to in Canada...it's amazing in Italy. Hand made fresh mozarella is so wonderful, it makes me want to live in Italy forever. No joke. We get our greens from a super nice green grocer or the market, our cheese is from the cheese makers, or what we made on Sundays with the Nettis, and our meat is from our friend Elena’s butcher shop. Even Nomade gets to eat fresh meat from there. I love cooking because whatever I make usually ends up being pretty good because of the quality of the ingredients.

After lunch, we take Nomade out for a stroll, or go to the Netti’s for card games. I always love to make it down to the poneys' pen to say hello to Liduina, the one who loves cuddles.

I have started oil painting again, and I’ve been trying to get a few hours of painting in each afternoon. I am looking forward to warmer weather so I can paint the landscape outside. As the day goes on, I usually sweep some more in the kitchen and then play with Nomade. We either play ball outside, or with her beloved stuffed animal: Monsieur Nounours. She’s really getting into tug of war, and I’m starting to have trouble because she’s so strong. She’s just over 5 months and already almost as tall as her mom, Gitane. I think Nomade is going to be a pretty big gal.

Jonny and I are appreciating this time. Neither of us are working, and are using our time to discover new things. Like cheese making, archery, mechanics, fire building, dog training, oil painting...and whenever an opportunity to try something new arises, we take it!
I like to make dinner pretty late. Afterwards, we either stay in and play games, go to the Netti’s and play games, I play guitar, or we go to town for a carnival event. The floats at the parade were amazing! They have a parade everyweek!!
So that’s a day in my life right now.

Yesterday was the horned men holiday. The concept is that men who have been wronged by a woman grow a set of horns on their head. On February 11th, there is a big celebration in the piazza (same place where the bear declared a longer winter) where the men have their horns removed. We showed up, and the place was packed! It was much warmer than on the bear night, so a lot of people showed up. There was noise, shouts, laughter…it was a party! There were many men costumed in black and red capes and high top hats equipped with horns! We had a little look and I convinced Jonny to have his horns cut off.

As I was taking his photo, the top hat men called me over. Nowadays, women participate too! I was a little shy, but had fun! After your horns are removed (they stick masking tape with red dots on your forehead prove you’ve gone through with the procedure) they give you a certificate and move you to a “full body scan”. After, you can even test your strength. I was a deer, Jonny, a ram. Afterward, we went for a walk around town. It was very nice.

I made pork schnitzel for lunch. Jonny approved.

This weekend is Valentine’s day. It should be fun. Marisa invited us over for lunch on Sunday, and we're going to check out the carnival parade afterwards!

MC