christmas/natale/new year's/capo d'anno 2009-2010

Not much to tell here - we've had a fantastic Christmas "giù" in
Martina Franca with Tullio's family. We don't do much of anything,
but have scrambled to find presents for everyone, eat and sleep. Ah,
and the nightly or afternoon passeggiata... We've been able to visit
with friends and family, and had a great time. A distant cousin from
the U.S. came to visit along with Cousin Geraldo (Gerry for us!), so
we got to introduce this "giant" to the rest of Puglia. We forgot the
camera at his parents' house, so no pictures, darn it. I may update
this eventually with some great pictures. wish us luck...
We drove home to Turin from Puglia a few days before New Year's,
toting along Tullio's sister Rita and her friend Zelinda. We drove up
into the mountains around Turin to meet our friend Matteo for New
Year's. We had made the rounds of all our winter clothes, Tullio's
dusty skis, Tullio's friends who had ski clothes, etc... before
leaving - And as we drove up, we were glad we had - - you could feel
the temperature drop perceptibly! His grandmother's place was
nestled in the mountans, a few houses up from his neighbors who threw
a big party for New Year's. We had met them in Turin, and I didn't
realize that they all knew each other from their mountain houses!
Anyhow, it was a very laid-back party with everyone about 5-10 years
younger than us. Our hostess, it turns out, is actually a national
champion sprinter (or runner, in any case) and she had some
interesting friends at the party. We all tumbled outside into the
snow to watch all the home-grown fireworks displays at midnight. Very
fun, a bit out of control... After that, the tradition is to go
bobsledding down this one incline behind Matteo's house, but we
declined and trundled off to bed. We noticed a red light we hadn't
noticed before on the side of the house, but didn't make anything of
it and went to sleep. The next morning, Matteo awakes us to tell us
that the red light means the propane tank is out of gas, and we are
without HEAT! YIKES! So we quickly call our friends Martino and
Katia who were planning to come up that day from Turin, and asked if
they could round up a heater or so before they came. Matteo somehow
magically found one heater and we scrounged a bit more firewood from
someplace. Tullio's cousin and a far-removed cousin from the U.S.
joined us for a day of skiing.
Have I mentioned that I have not gone skiing since college, when I
went on the easy slopes of Santa Fe one Christmas for some reason? I
thought it'd be like riding a bike. Except a lot more falling down.
It's not. My calves still hurt, even thinking about skiing. There
are muscles in my butt and legs I didn't even know existed that are
still complaining. We arrived off the lift to a "muro" - a straight
drop down on what looks like ice. And this is supposed to be an EASY
SLOPE? What the hell?? So after painstakingly making my way down
this so-called "easy" slope which had another three or four drops like
this on it - an HOUR LATER, I find myself at the lovely lodge,
drinking hot chocolate. When they say hot chocolate, they basically
mean they've melted a candy bar for you and put some whipped cream on
top. I have never had such a thick soup of chocolate in my life. And
I deserved it! Happy New Year, indeed! Looking out over the Alps, I
could only conclude that life is indeed magical. Tullio then informed
me that he had discovered a REAL easy slope, and we skied down to take
the lift up, only to discover it was closed. grrrr. or BRRRR, as the
case may be.
We got back to our chilly abode, to warm up with the fireplace,
heaters, etc... and had a great evening around the fire, playing a
great board game that right now I forget the name of, of course...
Taboo! Hilarious. The NEXT day, the propane guy could come, and
fill us up. It was fun to "rough it" for a day, and it will be a New
Year's we'll never forget! Thank you, Matteo!!!!!