taste of life

Eterna Roma...

iana1986 — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 19:50:00 GMT

We run, running all the time, running to the people, places, plains, future... But this city always seems to be calm. Really eternal - it haven't changed since thousand years. The same Colosseum, Forum and St. Peter's Cathedral.

The eternal city stands on seven hills and from each one of them you can see the yellow tiled roofs of the houses. If you close your eyes for a moment and just listen to the voice of the city...for everyone it has a story to tell.

My favorite place in Rome is a forum hill. There is a small orange tree garden with a view on the city and Vatican. It is a calm and shadow place out of the tourists route.

When I came there - I was already very tired, 'cause the temperature that April day was about +30 degrees C. So, I have decided to have a rest a little bit and to take a seat on a bench in the shadow of cypresses.

Imagine my surprise when I suddenly discovered that I was not alone there. These were not tourists, no! It was an old lady feeding cats! I have no idea where did they come from - I can swear I had not seen them when i sat on that bench. Really, she was like a ghost from the old times: old, but with beautiful features; very elegantly dressed and with an accurate hairstyle. As for me she looked like a real Italian woman, the type of woman I would like to be at her age.

She soon went away. It was strange to see a local person in the heart of Forum, which is always full of tourist crowds. Frankly speaking, I don't remember much about what kind of people I saw in Rome; I don't remember neither shops nor restaurants. In my memory the image of that old lady will always be associated with real Rome and genuine Italy.

I think that was a moment when I understood Italy through its people.

by Iana

Photos: Roma

iana1986 — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 08:33:00 GMT

Rome, Italy

Photos: Sicilia

iana1986 — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 07:40:00 GMT

Say No to diet - eat chocolate!

iana1986 — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 07:08:00 GMT

When it comes to chocolate - for me this is not a question of quality but quantity. I always thought like this before I came to Brussels - the capital of chocolate in Europe.

The streets of historical center of Brussels are full of chocolate aroma, it is everywhere. Black, white, milk, handmade and produced on a factory - wherever type of chocolates you choose - it will be unforgettably delicious!

The most famous chocolate fabric is Leonidas with lots of fashionable shops around the city. But if you travel on a budget I would advice you to go to any supermarket and buy chocolates there for the price 2-3 EUR per box. Believe me, the taste will be the same gorgeous!

The only competitor for chocolate in Belgium are waffles. If you want to play "I'm local" game, never order waffles with cream and fruits, take only with chocolate. It tastes even better than with a tone of cream on it.

Once you're in Brussels it is impossible to resist this chocolate euphoria - chocolates are everywhere. So, forget about your diet and eat! Try all kinds of chocolate - with salt, black pepper, red pepper, lavender, and you can even try a chocolate famous "Mannequin Pis", who pees with chocolate! These small fountains made my day! Incredible thing like black pasta in Italy or herring sandwiches in Amsterdam.

French fries with mayonnaise, waffles and all kinds of chocolates - are a must eat in Belgium.

Chocolate is not just a product or a trade mark for Belgians, it is a philosophy and art. Enjoy this art like you enjoy wine, music and traveling!

My Amsterdam

iana1986 — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 05:19:00 GMT

He was my North, South, my West and East... I've heard so much about him and imagined myself there so many times. Amsterdam met me with sun and rain, he was opening his best and worth parts to me.

Every traveler opens his own Amsterdam and leaves it with different impressions - but always excited and dreaming about coming back. In my memory this city will always stay in a morning fog, smelling with tulips and marijuana. Pictures of Van Gogh and Red Lights District...

Beautiful girls selling themselves through the window shops, crowds of tourists watching them and the old cathedral just two steps from the Red District - probably to pray for the sin after.

Amsterdam doesn't look like typical capital of the country with wide prospects and skyscrapers. It's rather a lovely province city where you know by name a postman, backer and cheese seller. For me this city will always be an association with a bicycle - yes, I think I should learn how to ride it!

The city of freedom, but not lust; it looks rather natural when people smoke marijuana, go to coffee shops, magic mushroom shops and to Red District. However, with all these freedoms, city is very secure - you can even sleep in the park with no problems.

Free, safe and extremely beautiful. Still, after one month can't get it out of my head - houses looking like chocolates and never ending canals. As a famous poem says "...nothing can ever happen twice" - but I still hope, that one fine day I'll see him again.

by Iana

Italy - taste of life

iana1986 — Sun, 1 Apr 2012 02:29:00 GMT

ITALY - THE TASTE OF LIFE

by Iana Roginska

What would you like to see from your window? Fountain, which became famous thanks to Fellini or a small cosy garden on the island? Well, Italians have a huge choice - but the fact is that they are looking on what they build. Or I would better ask – what would you like to see on your lunch plate? Pasta, mozzarella, tiramisu? Everyone has its own taste, but personally me, I prefer to start from the desert!

Food in Italy is not just eating - it is a ritual, where everything has its meaning. Where, in which order, in what mood... My personal advice: once in Italy choose a restaurant or trattoria where there are more locals. Why would a chef cook well for those "barbarians", who without any reason order cappuccino for dinner (not for breakfast) and eat pasta as a garner for meat?!

For Italians the quality of food is a kind of national, cultural and even political question. A politician that once was insecure to tell something unpleasant about national cuisine, lost his electorate. Because here the cooking book is a kind of honourable literature. The recipes here are saved as endangered animals.

If you want to understand Italy it is not enough just to see Uficci gallery, Coliseum and La Scala - you have to eat with an Italian!

That truth I understood after a dinner with old Sicilian Don. Answering your question - "Don" doesn't mean Mafioso, it is just a polite appeal to the person.

I got acquainted with Don Marcello during the eleven hours train trip from Rome to Palermo. Our conversation started from his two questions:

- How do you like Sicily? and

- How do you like Sicilian men? (despite the fact, that he was the first Sicilian man I met at that time!!)

Our conversation was so exiting, that I didn't mention how the time flew, and when the trip came to the end, there were so many things I wanted to ask him (I think he could feel it:)))) and he invited me to have a dinner together and to continue our conversation.

He took me to the local trattoria - cosy, little noisy and extremely charming, taking me in my mind to a favourite Italian black and white movie "Uonimi, che mascalzoni!", watch it if you have time and you'll understand me!

So, the first dish was mozzarella with tomatoes and basil. Mozzarella.....sounds like music moza....rella...This cheese stands in line with such worldwide known visiting cards of Italy as Coliseum, Rome and pizza. Its skin must be smooth, shiny and soft inside. When you cut mozzarella there must be a small amount of fluid, which indicates its freshness. The second dish was.....and here I had problems. What to choose - pasta or risotto? Two number one dishes and none of them want to give its garland. But, as Giuseppe Garibaldi said: "Pasta will unite Italy", I decided to support his thesis and to order pasta:))) Delicate creamy taste of pasta with ham, basil and parmesan cheese....yes, there are things on a planet to live for!

And finally desert. As Don Marcello told me, Sicily is a confectionery of Italy. Canolli, ice-cream, which you can drink through a straw, eat with a spoon or to spread it on a brioche. And finally a flowering of marzipan culture - you take a small sheep in your arms and it happens to be edible!

The final point on my menu is coffee. No more than 1 Euro per cup of coffee, drunk at the bar, is a rule that unites Italy no worse than pasta!

Sitting there on a terrace after ten days of travelling around Italy and watching people I understood that wherever you go in Italy - you will feel the taste of life. And even the bravest desires in this country can be realized. Ah, even Rafaella Carra sings on the radio - "if your love left you - find another one, what’s the problem?!"

My Scholarship entry - Understanding a Culture through Food

iana1986 — Sun, 1 Apr 2012 02:26:44 GMT

ITALY - THE TASTE OF LIFE
What would you like to see from your window? Fountain, which became famous thanks to Fellini or a small cozy garden on the island? Or I would better ask – what would you like to see on your lunch plate? Pasta, mozzarella, tiramisu? Everyone has its own taste, but personally me, I prefer to start from the desert! Food in Italy is not just eating - it is a ritual, where everything has its meaning. Where, in which order, in what mood... If you want to understand Italy it is not enough just to see Coliseum and La Scala - you have to eat with an Italian! That truth I understood after a dinner with old Sicilian Don. He took me to the local trattoria - cozy, little noisy and extremely charming, taking me in my mind to a favorite Italian black and white movie. So, the first dish was mozzarella with tomatoes and basil. Mozzarella...sounds like music moza..rella.This cheese stands in line with such Worldwide known visiting cards of Italy as Coliseum, Rome and pizza. Its skin must be smooth, shiny and soft inside. When you cut mozzarella there must be a small amount of fluid, which indicates its freshness. Next what to choose - pasta or risotto? Two number one dishes and none of them want to give its garland. But, as Giuseppe Garibaldi said: "Pasta will unite Italy", I decided to support his thesis and to order pasta:))) Delicate creamy taste of pasta with ham, basil and Parmesan cheese....yes, there are things to live for! And finally desert. As Don Marcello told me, Sicily is a confectionery of Italy. Ice-cream, which you can drink through a straw, eat with a spoon or to spread it on a brioche. The final point on my menu is coffee. No more than 1 EUR per cup of coffee, drunk at the bar, is a rule that unites Italy no worse than pasta!Sitting there on a terrace after traveling around Italy and watching people I understood that wherever you go in Italy - you will feel the taste of life.