27 July 2006

Before or After the Cycle Tour, Stay at Bella Baita for R&R and more...

Our friends Lise & Gary of
Adventure Travel Group
stopped by for a bit of R&R before they were off to Istria in Croatia to lead another of their bicycling adventures. They enjoyed our area and want to come back to do a bit more exploring. Perhaps they will find they may want to add our Olympic valley to their future itineraries. If you ever wanted to cycle thru Chile and Argentina or follow the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France with experienced guides who make the whole experience a feast for all the senses, Lise and Gary are the guides for you. They specialize in customizing trips for all abilities and interests. Have a look at their new site coming soon and and book that special trip you've been meaning to take. When you find yourself booked on one of their trips, you might consider a stop here before or after one of their european trips for some R&R mixed with a bit of local exploration for the things Val Chisone has to offer.

15 July 2006

In the Good Ole Summer time


Summer time has always been my favorite time of the year. I love the long days and warm nights complete with fireflies and watermelon seed spitting and juice dribbling down, in spite of your best efforts to be civilized when you eat a thick luscious wedge. I also love the cascades of flowers and all the insects that are attracted by the promise of nectar. I love them as long as they are doing their thing with out bugging me that is. Let's just say it's fascinating to watch the secret lives of butterflies and bees. If you look very closely you'll see this is a very popular insect magnet. Summer is always a great time for eating together when the sun starts to lose a bit of it's firey intensity and here in the northern mountains of Italy that can be quite late, so it's not unusual to not eat before sometimes 8:30 or 9 pm, as the cool of the mountains and the specatular evening sunset makes for a pleasant relaxing evening with good friends, good food and delicious wine...Italy has much to offer of the simple pleasures in life.

11 July 2006

World Cup Fever Frenzy

"We are the champions, we are the champions,
we are the champions...
of the world" lyrics from Queen song
Yes, indeed the world cup is over and the bragging rights have started.
It was a hard fought battle and unfortunately it came down to a penalty shoot out, but that is the way of the world cup. Somebody wins, somebody loses. Italians are estatic over this win. They say there were 40
,000 people in Torino watching the game. Seven of the starting lineup have played for Juventus and Torino was proud. When the team arrived home on Monday, they say there were over a million people out to greet the "Campioni del Mondo". It was a fine moment for the home team. It's also been a profitable year for the flag companies of italy this year between the Winter Olympics and the World Cup. I have never seen so many Italian flags flying around Italy in the the time I've been here. The national flag has been sprouting from balconies and business billboards like porcini mushrooms during a great season. It's fantastic to see everyone so upbeat.
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