We were only in Como for one overnight, which meant only one real meal. I had booked a very special off-season rate that included a dinner for two at Metropole’s excellent restaurant; however the night before our arrival I received a note that said that they were closing the restaurant and instead we would be given a credit for the missed dinner. They recommended an Osteria and having walked by it and noticed it previously, we decided to give it a go. We first had a drink in a lovely bar that wasn’t far from the hotel. Anyone who has traveled in Italy knows that if you order a drink, any drink, between five and seven, you also get an amazing amount of wonderful food. In our case Cindy had a Prosecco and I a Campari and shortly after the drinks were delivered, we were served a tray which contained a bowl of small mozzarella balls, two slices of local cheese, three types of local salami, pickles, bruschetta and a bowl of potato chips and another of peanuts. What a feast!
Needless to say, we didn’t need an appetizer course at Osteria Gallo, despite the owner telling us we should have it since it is so special. The Osteria did not have a menu, everything was oral - and I mean rapid fire oral - but we understood it all and Cindy ordered ravioli stuffed with pumpkin and I had spaghetti with tomatoes and prosciutto, both of which were homemade and marvelous. The rest of the meal was a bust, average chicken with potatoes and really bad wine: How horrible, I did not finish my white!! While not a very good dinner, it was certainly more expensive than it should have been, but then we were in Como.
We spent the next three days with our dear friends of twenty years at their lovely home in the suburbs of Milan. Roberto and Maria have been working in international schools in Milan for nearly 20 years and we have tried to get together with them at least once a year, sometimes in Nice, sometime in Italy, and we always have a ball. This visit was no exception! Roberto cooked excellent dinners and we found great spots for long, lovely lunches, and in between we would take long walks. Truly a very special time.
Too soon it was off to Cuneo, a small town in the foothills of the Alps in the Piedmont. We knew nothing about it except that one eats well in the Piedmont, so we booked a hotel and we were off. What a magnificent place Cuneo is, physically beautiful with one of the largest public squares we have ever seen in Europe. The long pedestrian zone is filled with shops and bars, cafes and restaurants, all under arcades on either side of the street, allowing all activities to be conducted under cover in all weather conditions; simply marvelous. We did something we have never done in our travels and ate three meals in the same restaurant. The first night we ate so well and so inexpensively that we booked a table for the next night, only to find ourselves being pulled into their warm embrace for lunch also. The first night we shared a starter of grilled octopus, their warm tender tentacles served on a purée of potato and surrounded by cherry tomato halves. We washed it down with a half liter of the local Prosecco. Cindy had noticed that some of the pasta and rice dishes said that they took 20 minutes to prepare, so we figured why not and she ordered risotto ai fungi and I had trofie al pesto. Cindy’s dish was so hot that it took awhile to even try it - a very good sign - and the funghi were local and delicious. Trofie are a short twisted pasta, most popular in Genoa, and how they got the pesto to taste so fresh is beyond me. Cindy likes red wine far better than I do, and she thought the Nebbiolo from the region was over the top. I had a carafe of local white that made me very happy and when the bill was presented, I was even happier. All of the other dishes we had on subsequent meals there were of the same high quality, and the detail of preparation and presentation was remarkable. In addition, the waiters were thoroughly charming and helpful and seemed to enjoy their jobs immensely; most refreshing and also very fun.
The next morning Cindy went running on a path around the perimeter of the old town while I wandered around and admired the placement of this city. It is surrounded on three sides by snow covered Alps and on the fourth side it opens to a fertile plain that is best known for wine production and truffles. On Tuesdays the entire town becomes a market, with vendors selling everything from clothing, food, and chainsaws to live poultry. It was a grand party with everyone milling about and some of the older men sharing wine, while the women took breaks in outdoor cafes. The food hall was buzzing and I bought a ring of cooked sausage from a vendor, then went to a bakery for a fresh roll, and went back to the hotel and shared my tasty breakfast with Cindy. We truly enjoyed every moment we spent in Cuneo. If it weren’t so hard to get to I’m sure we would go back, but it was time for us to head over the mountains and into Nice on what we thought would be a relaxed and scenic drive. It turned out to be the trip from Hell! It started off well with a lovely morning drive out of Cuneo. Soon the two lane road started to go up hill and the weather turned much colder, but still dry and bright. We hit the really bad switchbacks shortly after leaving the ski town of Limone and it was slow going, at least for us being stuck behind a very un-Italian driver. Despite the snow and switchbacks, we were passed by a young Italian with a death wish. We knew there was a one-way tunnel on the route and that you might have to wait for your turn to pass through. The stupid Italian who passed us got there just before the red light and we were left sitting there for twenty-five minutes, just waiting. (I guess he wasn’t so stupid after all!) Once though the tunnel, we encountered ever more horrible switchbacks and my enjoyment factor was decreasing rapidly.
We were finally out of the mountains and following a river which took us through lots of little villages, and I thought the worst was behind us and that the river would end at the sea and we would then turn west and on into Nice. It was not to be! We encountered a detour which took us up, and up and up via switchback after switchback and then down and down and down, with more switchbacks. It was a forty-five minute detour that was just miserable - and just when we thought we were home free, the traffic was stopped for an inspection by the gendarmes. They were well armed and very polite and went to each car and truck and had us open our trunks as they looked in the cars and trucks for illegal immigrants. We were very close to the Italian border city of Ventimiglia, where hundreds of immigrants are stopped from entering France. Seems there is a bit of a smuggling business and the French are having none of that, thus the inspections.
We finally arrived in Nice in time to meet our landlady and get a tour of the apartment and collect our keys. I found a convenient, albeit expensive, parking garage to deposit the car and we were finally free to take our first walk on the Promenade. The next installment will include 2 French plumbers! Cindy and Wm
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