I haven’t posted in a couple of days. Things have been a little busy and I’ve been earning my Tour Manager salary (for a change).
We’ve just got back to the hotel from a really fun evening. We learned how to make Pizza, hand-on, and then ate the results. Turns out a glass of wine and getting your hands mucky while wearing a plastic bib is a whole lot of fun for everyone.
Yesterday we travelled from Rome to Napoli and then by coach onwards to Sorrento. On the way we stopped for lunch at an agriturismo (a sort of working farm that supplements its’ income with visiting tourists.
I made a new friend (named Bambi) down on the farm. She has fabulous eyelashes, an inquisitive nature and a tongue like a rasp. I dated worse when I was younger.
Out tour of the agriturismo started with a visit to the olive oil pressing room. The olives are crushed into a paste with this giant mill stone…
… and the paste is then strained and the water content allowed to separate in a tank. This was explained to us by the owner, a slightly scary lady who you felt would not be the sort that you would want to cross.
After that, another lady (Maria) showed us how Mozarella is made. Curds are separated and then in hot water they magically turn into Mozzarella which Maria braids rather than making the usual sphere. (the scary lady is on the right of the photo – she seems to be able to bend her elbows backwards).
Take a look at the picture below. Do you see the large pan on the stove top? It contains the whey and a sort of curdy skin. This is skimmed off and placed in the saved bowl next to Maria’s Mozzarella. As the liquid drains away you are left with… Ricotta Cheese! Nope, neither did I.
After all this we had a peasant lunch with local farm food and wine. They baked a cake for us which, just prior to serving was soaked in Limoncello. After that we all tried a glass of Limoncello before taking a short walk through Sorrento (by now in a haze of Limoncello).
Today we were scheduled to take a ferry along the Amalfi coast o visit Amalfi. The weather Gods were in a bad mood and the ferry was cancelled so after some rapid re-planning we travelled by coach to Positano. My clients took the disruption well (thanks) and we had a pleasant lunch and shopping expedition. No photos of Positano – sorry.
Tomorrow Pompeii. It’s probably going to be raining… sigh
TimOnTheTrain 