nuntium septuagesimum sextum (76th post) Home again

I'm finally home!  I had a wonderful time both in Italy and in California but I am a homebody and being here with my family is a treat like none other.

I have had some access to the internet but not much time.  I couldn't wait to start Frivole's Flowering Quatrain but had to wait until I got home because the only thread I had in Italy was the Oliver Twists.  (I made a bunch of the same crosses I've been doing for graduation gifts.)

motif #23 Frivole's Flowering Quatrain bookmark in Lizbeth size 20

I did make the bookmark in the Oliver Twist but forgot to take a picture so that will have to wait.   As usual Frivole's pattern is a joy to tat so if you haven't tried it, I encourage you to.  Myself, I think it's time to finish that Quatrain dresser scarf now!

So would you like to see some pictures from my travels?  I have many wonderful pictures but they are mainly of the students so I won't share those with you.  We averaged 8 miles a day with me dragging those poor kids around.

This is from our re-created Ancient Roman dinner.  The foods are from Apicius' recipes which are barely recipes in that they have the ingredients but not quantities nor preparation methods.  An archeologist and a master chef worked together to develop modern recipes and here is the appetizer course.  Yum!

This is my absolute favorite thing from the Romans.  It's a frescoed dining room from the Empress Livia (Augustus' wife).  It was moved to my favorite museum to save it from the flooding of the Tiber.  It's on all four sides and absolutely peaceful and wonderful.  The colors are mostly true but there is NO way to capture the room and the feeling.

I love the details: the birds and the stone wall with its lattice work.

Here's something new for me this trip - caffè di nonno.  Grandpa's coffee.  Oh my.  Yummy frothy coffee, almost gelato but not the same.  (With it being 97 today, I could really have used one here!)

In the Roman forum, the House of the Vestals was open for the first time since I've been going to Rome since 1987.  It's been "restored" with the garden redone.  It might be a little difficult to understand but...

After 2 days of being home, I got on a plane to join two friends in Santa Monica, CA and go to the Getty Villa.  Here is a picture of one of the garden rooms which would give you a sense of the place and maybe of what the Vestals' atrium would have looked like.

The Getty Villa is a Latin teacher's dream come true.  It is based on a Roman Villa in Herculaneum with a staggering collection of antiquities.  The weather was glorious and we felt like at times we had the place to ourselves!

This was in the herb garden.  It's almost impossible to take a bad picture here.

Look at the workmanship on this piece of jewelry.  2,000 years old.  I'm not sure what it is (unmarked) but maybe a head piece.

And this is a collection box from a temple.  They would slide coins in the top.  The door on the bottom would open with the key which you see placed in front.  

I had this outdoor room to myself for almost 20 minutes!  Imagine the sound of the fountain and the glorious setting and weather.

Last but not least, we had lunch at a Greek restaurant in the Grove. Unusually, we had wine with lunch. Then I noticed the restroom sign and got seriously worried about how much I'd had to drink because the restroom people seemed to be dancing!  I took a picture and was quite relieved when I got home to see they are still dancing and it wasn't me!

Well, enough of the travelogue.  Back to tatting next time.