University of Washington Explorer Seminar
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August 31st and Sept 1st
I bid farewell to Salvatore and boarded the bus. In two and a half hours, I was jumping off the bus at the Catania airport, and calling Charlotte. Jodie and Charlotte showed up after half an hour, and we were on our way back to the agritourismo Orange Park. Considering that I barely knew the local language, I think it was pretty fortunate that hooking up with my colleagues in Catania went so smoothly. Orange Park is categorized as an agritourismo, as it is a small, privately owned farm which hosts travelers. The one experience I had of an agritourismo was far more intimate. While this accommodation was very clean and had good service, the charm was not present like it was in the other one in Crespano del Grappa. Orange Park is true to its name – they have a decent (small by industrial standards) orange grove. Unfortunately, it was the wrong season, and we were constantly teased by the thousands of small, green oranges-to-be. The first day there, only half of the crew had arrived. There was a few logistics to be taken care, of but otherwise I was free to just work on my own stuff like my poster and catching up on writing. The second day was a little busier with regular shuttled to a from the airport, figuring out groceries, chores, etc. I also went for the first jog since I had wrecked my ankle in the Wind River Range (to be written shortly), and commenced a calisthenics routine to recover from the massive overdose of food while staying with the Sferrazzas. I got up early for the sunrise the first two mornings, but the clouds were generally uncooperative. I think the one picture that was of interest from the first two days was the praying mantis!
Everyone made it to Catania successfully, although a few bags were improperly directed to other locations. In the end, it all worked out. Monday night was my night to be on kitchen duty. Mimi, Janet and I chopped an enormous pile of vegetables that ended up distributed amongst four pans to sauté. The veggies were served with a decent drenching of olive oil to make it its own sauce. It was a long process, but we got the job done, and people seemed to enjoy it. We also enjoyed more great wine. Mimi had done a great job of picking a good quantity of great wine, and it was enjoyed by all.
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