Insert silly music

Jason vs. the Giant Chert nodule!

This is a time lapse video of hammering the beejeezuz out of a chert nodule so we could collect some pieces (I think this music is appropriate). Chert is really hard and so getting pieces of the nodule out of the outcrop was quite an undertaking! Jason is a star field assistant! Sorry for the shaky camera, I was laughing too hard.

Venetian Dinner Day 2

After our excellent Venitian dinner last night, we decided to stay on the island again this evening! 

We started with a classic Venitian dish, Spaghetti al Nero di sepia (spaghetti with cuttlefish cooked in ink)! Even though I am allergic to cephalopods (minor allergic reaction), we wanted to try it! I stayed away from the cuttlefish, but both of us really enjoyed the delicious sauce! It is much better than it looks ;)

 

For our second course we had a Gaffero (?) Pizza... Soft mozzarella slices, fresh basil, olives and sweet cherry tomatoes! So tasty, we forgot to snag a photo before we started!

Of course we had some lovely local wine! Tonight, a red and a white!

To finish? Tiramasu... Why not? (As our waitress said). Definitely a great choice if you're on a good Venetian restaurant (but not a cafe.... No sir... we got multi-coloured sprinkles on our dolce!)

Dinner in Venice

Tonight we stayed late in the beautiful city of Venice! We decided to splurge a little and go for some Venitian cuisine!

The dinner started with some delicious carpaccio (very thinly sliced steak with cheese). This dish seemed to be the Italian version of sushi, and it was excellent!

The prima was a delicious venetian style gnocchi (creamy mushroom sauce and potato dumplings). This was really fantastic, best gnocchi I have ever had! We paired this with the house wine, a Veneto white.

The secondo was the catch of the day, cooked in true Venetian style! The fish was a flounder (turbot) and we were shown the fish before it was prepared, after it was baked, and then finally as a beautiful fillet on your plate. 

The waiter filleting our fish for us!

The fish was baked with olives, potatoes, cherry tomatoes, and some magical delicious sauce!

After this we decided to stay late and get a caffé (for Jason, espresso), a Moscato (for me), and the best Tiramasu I have ever had!

 

We even got serenaded by a guy with an accordion (he actually started with "when the moon hits your eye like a big piiiizzza pie, that's amoreeeeee")

A great evening in a quiet corner of Venice right next to the canal with some amazing food! Definitely worth the splurge!  

Agritur Masi Brenta

The last 3 nights we stayed in the Agritur Masi Brenta. Here are some reasons why we thought it was the best B&B in Italy!

 1) Stunning mountain location!

2) Vineyards all around, and in the evening you can sip their delicious vino de la casa!

3) Awesome breakfast spread (from which you can make a lunch!)
4) Don't want to go out for dinner? They will make you dinner! You can also get a bottle or crafe of wine left in your room.
5) Beautiful, renovated rooms with amazing views!
6) Great English!
7) Cute little farm with donkeys, goats, and sheep.

8) In the fall, they harvest and grind the maize using traditional tools.
9) They gave us a beautiful handmade pillow cover!
10) The dad collects the fossils he finds around the grounds and he had a nice collection of ammonites in the front room (and the maize macine is made of lithiotid limestone!)
11) Beautiful patio/garden with a view of Rovereto.

12) Stunning views in all directions!

13) A sweet hiking trail through the mountain steeped in WWI history!
14) Elevator (great when you're on the top floor!)
15) Only 5 minutes from town but still a lovely getaway!

16) Have I mentioned the mountain views?

A morning harvest

We have been driving around Trento and Veneto this past week and these two regions are full of vineyards! This morning I finally managed to get some shots of them harvesting the grapes!

Full of grapes!