On Palm Sunday, Art and I decided on a nice drive into Italy for a great meal...somewhere!! We headed to Ventimiglia, which is just over the boarder from France into Italy, and headed north. The area becomes hilly quickly, and we drove along a river bed. As we drove, we passed many churches with children outside with their palms. Many braided into crosses.
Onward we headed to Dolceaqua, a village on the river's edge, where the water is plenty, and the village hundreds and hundreds of years old. Again, the medieval village sits high above the modern town, with it's castle at the top, almost destroyed by time. The windows glow with light from within, and it shows through the lovely lace curtains. Flowers are plentiful, and the architecture just captures our hearts. Many live in these little medieval villages, with no conveniences of garages or even roads to drive to their front doors with. Just foot paths and cobblestone walks. Amazing, but so much character.
After walking up to the ruins and through the medieval village, we sat for a bit in the town square having a cappuccino, as only the Italians can made. The smell of the coffee is so wonderful and the thick and creamy froth on top is a treat for us. The families gather after their church services, some enjoying just a glass of water, and others a touch of their favorite liquors. Children running around, dogs following close by for a drop of their baguette, and parents, young and old looking on.
We decided to head onward, to another village we had been told about, Apricale...that was settled by the Irish on their way to Rome during the great crusade. Unfortunately, they never made it to Rome, and settled in Apricale, a lovely, very high medieval town. This town has an Irish Flair to it...in the art on the buildings. We drove to the top of the town but were unable to find any parking, so we had to head back down. We stopped just outside of the village at a lovely restaurant called La Favorita, and it is definitely one of ours. The owner met us out front, helping us to park our car, and telling us the history of the area. He was Mario...and was so hospitable. We loved it from the moment we pulled in. He got us a very nice table, which is a chore in these villages on Sundays, so many head to the restaurants after the church service with their large families.
Inside, there was a nice, open fire, cooking lamb, beef and other local delicacies. We asked what was special, and enjoyed a great meal of Italian delights. Art was taken by the lovely fire, we had to take pictures of the gent cooking. Such a treat for us.
Dessert was home made zaglione...what a wonderful thing. Usually you get this served over berries, but...no, not here. They bring out the BIG copper pot and fill your bowl of it at the table...with some little frites, like small muffins, pastry like. It was delightful, but very rich. I enjoyed every bite...so much for a diet at this restaurant.
We headed home, following the directions of "Flo"...our GPS system in our car. She is faithful as to how to get us OUT of all these little towns.
I am always amazed at the cultures we are able to find in just a short drive from our wonderful city of Monte Carlo. We go through hundreds of years of history in every drive....amazing!!!
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