Roman Food

The food in Rome was AMAZING, but the best part, was the coffee!!! Now, these pictures are out of order, but you'll get the idea.

Even at the continental breakfast in our hotel, there was an espresso machine. The kind where you can make cappuccinos, macchiatos, and straight up espresso for breakfast.

This meal on the Italian airlines came with tiramisu for desert, and tasted as fresh as if it had just been made. 

After walking for a few hours around Rome, exploring the Appian Way, and taking a ton of pictures, we stopped for some gelato. Essentially, it's basically just soft serve ice cream, but the notable difference in taste, is the natural flavors. I tried several kinds, and none of them had artificial flavoring. Even the pistachio, was flavored with fresh chopped nuts, and was amazing!

These were the biggest coffee cups I saw the entire time I was in Italy, and are the equivalent of a small in America. At first, it seemed odd how all their coffee drinks are so tiny, but when you're drinking pretty much straight espresso, you can't drink an American extra large. Another noticeable difference about the coffee menus there, apart from everything being small, is that none of the coffee drinks were sweet. You could add your own sugar, but the initial drinks weren't sweet. Unless you ordered hot chocolate. That was a different story.

There were fresh orange trees everywhere. We had fresh orange juice at breakfast, including trying the red orange juice.

Roman restraunts have different rules. These pizzas sit out at room temperature all day, and when you pick the one you want, they heat it for you. We didn't die, and the pizza really was amazing!

Then, we had our pasta cooking class, and tiramisu class. It was fun getting to know the different people in our group. We had a family from Amsterdam, two gals from Poland, and a family from L.A.

Even at McDonalds in Italy, they have tiny espresso, odd items on the menu, and marble  pillars out front.

It seemed like every window you walked by had amazing food displays!

Cannoli!

Now, the hot cholate in Italy isn't like anything I've had in America. It's kind of a mix between a hot liquid chocolate pudding, and a melted candy bar. They don't come with marshmallows, but lots of whipped cream.

Fettucine was way simpler than I thought!

Our hotel breakfasts were always set with China dishes, and had a huge menu!

This nutella and blueberry crepe served in a cone to go may have been the best thing I ate the entire trip. It was actually in a little shop in the Roman airport, and was everything you expect in an Italian dessert. Nutella is a staple in Italian desserts, which makes sense, since Nutella was invented in Italy right after WW2, when making chocolate was so expensive.

If you want to act like a local, you sit at the bar counter and leisurely sip your caffe latte from China until you're done. Sitting at the basic tables costs, and sitting on the tables outside cost even more, because they wait on those tables.

We had lunch twice on the plane back to America, because of the time change. We left Amsterdam at 10 something in the morning, and arrived in Minneapolis a little after noon.

Our hotel room didn't have Styrofoam cups, just the China ones.

We enjoyed drinking tea on our hotel rooftop overlooking the streets.

This was a salmon croissant.

In America, we have soda pop machines. In Italy, they have espresso machines. You stick your euros in, and watch it work. I got a cappuccino just for the experience, and it turned out to be pretty great.

In Naples, we had an authentic Mediterranean pizza.

When you're eating Mediterranean, you have to get some falafel in there!

Fresh squeezed pomegranate juice at Pompeii.

Just your usual bakery display case in the Roman airport.

Our rooftop was next to a taller building and had shade part of the day and full sunshine the rest of the day. We even had lemon trees up there.

 

Roman Water

 Hi everyone! So, I was planning on posting as soon as I got home . . . but there were too many pictures! There are still too many pictures, but I came up with a plan. Instead of overwhelming you all with dozens of pictures, I'm going to do a few at a time on a topic, and share some of what I learned.

For those of you who don't know, my sister and I just spent a week in Rome! It was partially research for a book character, partially inspiration for more articles, and partially, just a vacation. It was an incredible experience and I would go back in a heartbeat!

Since water is essential, I'm told, we'll start there.

All over the city, there were these old water fountains. They came in all shapes, sizes, and styles. The first one we saw, I dubbed the 'Creepy Angel Fountain', and I refused to drink from it, because I wasn't sure it was safe. By the end of the week, that was one of my favorite fountains! The 'Faceless Fountain' pictured above, is the first one I actually drank from, and is located along the Appian Way.

Even in Pompeii, on our tour, we saw some of the same style water fountains, although these ones weren't running. Speaking of Pompeii and water . . . did you know that they had lead pipes in Pompeii before the eruption of 79 A.D. ? I saw them!

And speaking of water and Pompeii . . . This is by the Bay of Naples in the Mediterranean Sea, and in the background, you can see Mt. Vesuvius.

We've all heard of the Roman aqueducts, and how some of them date back to B.C., but did you know that Rome still uses them? I'm not sure how many are still in use, but we got to see one that's still in use. The famous Trevi fountain has water supplied to it by the aqueducts built around 19 B.C. Also, some of the drinking fountains around the city are still getting water from the old aqueduct system.

Speaking of the Trevi Fountain . . . Like everything in Rome, it's perfectly balanced. What's on one side, is reflected on the other side. Except for one thing . . .

This sculptured ball is not matched on the other side. According to the story, the architect was annoyed by a shopkeeper while the Trevi Fountain was in building. It took 30 some years to complete, and the shopkeeper was constantly complaining about the noise, and the workers, and insisting that the hype was misplaced as the fountain wasn't even going to be spectacular. Last minute, the architect added this sculptured ball in such a place that it blocked the view of the fountain from that shop. To this day, if you're standing by that shop, you can't see the Trevi Fountain.

And here's the "Creepy Angel", fountain that I actually learned to like! That fresh spring water is great!

They also had another style, pictured above, where if you want to drink from the fountain instead of filling a bottle, you just plug the bottom hole, and water shoots out the top like an American water fountain.

We walked by this little angel a lot, so it became a regular stopping spot.

And that's the water of Rome!

Release Date - December 10th!

 

COMING SOON!

Coming soon! Mayhem at the Mistletoe Morgue.

       Most of the dead bodies in the basement belonged. She'd been startled by them more than once as the family business expanded.

       Coming home to the Mistletoe family morgue for Christmas is anything but a vacation for Fanny Mistletoe.

        When an unidentified body shows up, all evidence points towards her family. Was it possible that someone in their household could have something to hide? Going to the police is out of the question as they search for answers.

        For Fanny, it's more than just her family's past, it's their future. Is there anything in Pine River worth staying for besides the handsome doctor? Does God still have plans for their business or will this casket seal their doom?

 

After the Corn Maze . . .

 Life is pretty crazy during the corn maze season, and as soon as the maze is over, and we're supposed to be doing all those things we've put off all maze season, I get the urge to go on an adventure. So, we did!

The pictures are out of order, but they're from my two recent adventures.

The highest peak in MN, is Eagle Mountain. Located out in the arrowhead region, my sister and I decided to hike to the top, going from Minnesota's lowest point at Lake Superior to the highest point in one beautiful morning. The hike was about 7 miles round trip, and for Minnesota, it was a pretty cool mountain.

Then, after years of bemoaning the fact that my brothers don't take me fishing anymore, I decided to go out on my own. I actually went out a couple of times, and had a great time! Whenever I go fishing, I think of my Grandpa O, who loved fishing. I was so thankful to have Grandma O. over for a fish fry. 

On another note, I'm frantically working to get Mayhem at the Mistletoe Morgue out by Christmas. Whether it will actually be done on time or not is a mystery, but I'm trying!

Zucchini

 So, I've never been a huge fan of zucchini, but it's so prolific, that I figured I'd better try some new recipes with it. 

This baked zucchini wasn't my favorite, but it wasn't terrible either.

The zucchini smoothie with chocolate and banana was not exactly my cup of tea either.

Now these zucchini egg patties with a basic dipping sauce were amazing! I've made them twice now, and I'd totally make them again! They almost make the zucchini taste like hash browns.

And while I thought zucchini soup sounded kind of gross . . . it was actually really good! Especially with all the fresh basil leaves and thyme for flavor. This recipe joined my list of ones to make more than once.

And that's my garden update of the year. :) 

July in Review

 July is always a crazy month! Here are a few pictures I had on my phone to review the month.

I had the opportunity to spend a week volunteering at Northland Camp! I've had some great summers there, and jumping back in was a blast. The summer staff was probably the most welcoming staff I've ever worked with.

Having been on the 'other-side' where you're there all summer and dozens of volunteers come and go, I know that it's easy to not spend a lot of time getting to know them, since they're only going to be leaving at the end of the week. This staff didn't care that I was only there for a week, they let me jump in, got to know me, helped me out, and made sure I was at home. I loved my cabin, and being back counseling made me miss it! If you ever get the chance to counsel at a camp for a summer, do it.

(Can you tell I'm a die-hard Red Team fan?)

Back home, life is busy getting ready for the corn maze season. Upkeeping the trails is always a job, and it's that time of year where we have to leaf-wack. In other words, we go along with big knifes and cut all the leaves off that are leaning over the trails.

It's a lot of work, but makes such a difference!

Miriam and I managed to sneak out one evening, do some scouting, and pick a few blueberries.

There's nothing like those fresh picked wild blueberries.

I was invited to Zippel Bay for a birthday party, and had a great time. I hadn't been out there in years, so it was fun to see the place again. I also got to go paddle-boarding for the first time. Although, I never did master standing-up on the thing. :) 

When you go to clean church, you never know what you'll find. One day, I found this bag, and I thought, "What more do you need in life?" Looks like they have it all!

One of my cousins got married, and I enjoyed getting to catch up with a dear friend! Miss you, Jess!

As we were waiting for the fireworks to start on the 4th, the guys started a game of hacky-sack, but it was getting dark, so they had their own field-lights with the help of a few cell-phones and some willing sisters.

I hadn't been out to see the fireworks in several years, so it was fun to hang with family and friends and enjoy the show!

In addition to all the things listed above, I also ran a corn maze/Priscilla's Books booth at the Roseau County Fair, and spent a week out that way. O course, there was also lots of babysitting, gardening, maze-work, my job at the coffee shop, a published book, a finished rough draft to another book, weekly articles to the newspaper, and a whole lot of stuff that I've already forgotten!

I hope your July finished up well, and you're enjoying the fresh garden produce!

A Package!!!

 So, this was NOT the post I've been working on for weeks, but that will have to wait, because I got a package in the mail!!! 

I came home from my cousin's wedding today, and to my surprise, book two in the PK Detective series is published!!

Available Here!

Moving to a new church isn't always easy. Especially when you're the preacher's kid. For thirteen-year-old Titus Rich and his family, the adventure turns into more than they bargained for when a deacon goes missing. Are the strange flowers and the deacon's disappearance connected? Although the redheaded neighbor kid wasn't in the plans, could he help Titus and the PK Detectives find the missing deacon?

And if you missed book one, it's on SALE!