Weekblog #98: To take a break from Italy

It is Monday again and I am sipping my cappuccino at a Roman bar down the street while I open my laptop to write this blog. I read the bits and pieces I typed on the plane this morning.  It takes me a while before I really find the right inspiration. These past three days, I have been in the Netherlands and those three days were crammed with all kinds of fun things with family and friends. As a result, I have not slowed down even a minute, let alone that I had time to think about this week’s blog.

I was immediately impressed, because I had never seen such a perfected Italian place – a combination of a coffee bar, traiteur and restaurant – outside Italy. Every detail was just right

I let my thoughts drift over the past weekend. On Friday morning, me and my father happened to be in Sittard, a beautiful little city in the south, so I decided to take the opportunity to drop by Soffritto, an Italian place. The owner and I met via Instagram, and now we finally got to know each other in person. I was immediately impressed, because I had never seen such a perfected Italian place – a combination of a coffee bar, traiteur and restaurant – outside Italy. Every detail was just right. All the drinks in the fridge – from the brand of iced tea to the beers – were Italian, and even the radio was tuned to an Italian station, causing a loud and happy “Buongiorno!” to resound through the place. Inside, you literally forget that you are in the Netherlands. The cappuccino I had there was perfect of course, and after one look at their freshly prepared food, we decided to bring home Roman pizza al taglio (square pieces of pizza with a thick, crispy base) and Sicilian arancini for lunch. 

When we got home around noon, I found my mother in the kitchen, already chopping up the celery for the soffritto

However, when we got home around noon, I found my mother in the kitchen, already chopping up the celery for the soffritto, the classic Italian mix of carrot, onion and celery and coincidentally also the name of the Italian place where I had just been. It is the basis of several dishes, including the famous lasagna. I wrote down the recipe of the classic school in Bologna for her during the first lockdown and ever since, it’s on the menu whenever I am in the Netherlands. Something I absolutely do not complain about.

My team, consisting of aunts, uncles and cousins immediately said they wanted an Italian team name, so the not very original but beautiful sounding La Squadra Bella was born

On Saturday it was time for our annual family day with my father’s side of the family. Every year there is some kind of competition, and also this time we were divided into four teams. My team, consisting of aunts, uncles and cousins immediately said they wanted an Italian team name, so the not very original but beautiful sounding La Squadra Bella – the literal translation of ‘the beautiful team’ – was born. Unfortunately, we did not win the title like that other squadra bella, the Italian national team, did last July, but it was certainly not our fanaticism that kept us from winning.

In the evening, we were in the middle of announcing the scores of the pub quiz when my aunt said she needed me immediately “because you speak Italian”

In the evening, we were in the middle of announcing the scores of the pub quiz when my aunt said she needed me immediately “because you speak Italian”. The catering had arrived and plenty of boxes of pizza (family size) and gigantic trays full of gnocchi alla sorrentinatortellini and lasagna were carried in. The measurements of the portions were obviously also done according to Italian standards, and there was no way we could finish that amount of food that night.  Guess what many of my family members, including me, got for dinner the next day too?

The next hour was filled with stories about wine tasting, the world-famous Brunello wine, beautiful views, and narrow country roads that taxi-drivers took with a dazzling speed

On Sunday afternoon I finally saw my dear friends again at the cosy café du Pont in Roermond, my hometown. They had been on holiday together last summer in the Val d’Orcia in Tuscany, where I also stayed a few days last June. It turned out that they had visited exactly the same places as I had: Montepulciano, Pienza and Montalcino, so as soon as I arrived, they enthusiastically started to recall memories and share their experiences. The next hour was filled with stories about wine tasting, the world-famous Brunello wine that has transformed one of the boys, a beer drinker, into a precise wine connoisseur, beautiful views, and narrow country roads that taxi-drivers took with a dazzling speed. It goes without saying that also my own memories of my time in the Val d’Orcia all came back. 

I told her all about it and all her enthusiastic questions made me relive that special period all over again

After an hour, another dear friend joined us, whom I hadn’t seen in far too long either. That long, in fact, that she hadn’t heard any of my stories about the Eurovision Song Contest yet, and about the band Mäneskin in particular. I told her all about it and all her enthusiastic questions made me relive that special period all over again. It also made me realise how special this year has already been so far.

The owner of the bar came by for a second and said: “So, how was your weekend in the Netherlands? You must have missed Italy a lot!”

But as always, weekends like these fly by and before I knew it, I was making my way to the airport again. When I arrived in Rome, I decided to immediately go out for a coffee and to write this article. So here I am, at the bar. This past hour, I’ve been enthusiastically writing this blog. So where did my inspiration come from in the end? Well, the owner of the bar came by for a second and said: “So, how was your weekend in the Netherlands? You must have missed Italy a lot!” Eh, what can I say? Even if I would like to take a break from the Italian life every once in a while, it’s almost a mission impossible. Oh, and did I mention that the sun was shining in a bright blue sky all those three days too?