Saturday, January 19, 2019
After Friday's glorious and unseasonable weather, it was back to winter in our Alpine foothills today as I awoke to this weather report . . .
. . . BRRRRR!
There was indeed a light mantle
of snow on the Villa Skorpions II's
grounds this morning
There was really only one option in weather conditions like this, get on the C line bus for the ten minute ride into downtown Varese for some shopping at the weekly, Saturday morning farmer's/flea market.
The nearest C line bus stop is about a five minute walk from the Villa Skorpion II and, in parts, can be a bit harrowing with no sidewalks for protection from the on-going, never ending Formula I racing that is at the core of every male Italian driver's being.
I survived.
Today.
Once on the bus, which somehow showed up on-time thus flying in the face of all Italian traditions, I needed my seven day transportation pass that is good for all busses, trams, funiculars and trains in Lombardia to be validated on this, my first use of said card.
Of course the on-board validating machine did not work so the bus driver told me to just take a pen and write today's date on the back of the card.
That sounded like a recipe for a future international incident so I needed to come up with an alternate plan.
Once in downtown Varese, I needed sustenance and time to think about my transportation card validation plan.
Buongiorno, un café e un brioche
di marmellata, per favore
I was now both nourished and with a plan.
Near my little dining spot was . . .
. . . Varese's Nord Milano Train Station
Their validating machine was fully functional and potential disaster was averted.
On to the farmer's/flea market which sets up in the train station's nearby parking lot.
The inclement weather kept away
both shoppers and vendors
I bought about half a meter of
spicy Sicilian sausage here
Packed with some of the essentials that I needed to set up housekeeping in my new digs, I headed home and discovered more of today's . . .
. . . Winter Wonderland
About 45 minutes after returning home, Giorgio Nardi, my next door neighbor and the Skorpion's "Mr. Do Everything", invited me to join him on another shopping trip, this time to the local Esselunga supermarket.
Now this is not just any of the Italian mega-chain's Esselunga supermarkets mind you. This is the chain's #1 top revenue making store in all of Italia!
It was Saturday and when we got inside there was a horrific scene of shopping cart gridlock reminiscent of the 405 freeway at 6:00 p.m. on a Friday night.
I had never seen anything quite like it in my life, each aisle took several minutes to carefully maneuver and it was a miracle that no one lost their life.
It was easy to see why this particular store is indeed the chain's top money making venue.
After purchasing several more necessary items, we headed home but first Giorgio showed me another of Varese's historic land mark's near the Esselunga and our home.
It was the 12th-century
Velate Watch Tower
An impressive five-story structure
Apparently, about 3/4s of the original
four sided structure is no longer with us
From the Velate Watch Tower I spied
a snowy Sacro Monte hilltop
Weather permitting, I will join Santa Barbara and Giorgio Nardi on Sunday for the funicular ride to the top of Sacro Monte and then we will hike down the hillside.
It will be good exercise full of several photo-ops I'm sure.
The ornately carved legs of the
Villa Skorpion II's dining room table
Definitely not from IKEA.
At 3:00 p.m., it was time for my first contact with the Skorpion players in a 2019 practice setting.
Skorpion Pride mural in our
locker room complex
Skorpion Field's dormant grass
was in decent shape
Our agility warm up bags were
ready for use
And here came the U13 and U15
flag football players ready for
a two-hour workout
It was a light turnout as the weather kept many of these young players at home today. The ones who came worked hard on improving their skill sets.
Our U17 flag team worked out as well today bit a bit later than the U13s and U15s.
Flag football is a big part of the Skorpions youth development program. In Italy, flag football is played on a smaller field with five on a side. Young girls play an integral part with the boys on most flag football teams.
Giorgio and I concentrated our coaching efforts today on the six U13 players in attendance today with drills first emphasizing passing and catching the ball and later stressing "tackling" the flag.
We ended the practice by playing a three-on-three scrimmage for about 30 minutes.
It was a lot of fun today.
I will conduct my first Senior 11-man tackle team two hour practice of the season on Tuesday night. The team itself has been practicing with our veteran assistant coaches for several weeks now.
Now, how to end this jet-lagged day?
. . . with another incredible
meal at the Nardi home
Giorgio and Barbara have gone way above and beyond in their efforts to make me feel at home.
The roast and potatoes that they created for dinner tonight was amazing.
In the picture above I am digging into our dessert of panettone cake with a homemade, delicious, sweet white sauce added to finish another fine dining experience in the Nardi home.
. . . and oh SO good for you too!
Between the main course, the dessert, the prosecco and the mandatory after dinner grappa made by Giorgio's uncle, my jet lag had hopefully reached its apogee. I went to sleep quite quickly and look forward to a now fully refreshed and recovered Sunday.
The Lord's Day will end at the Skorpions team bar, the Bella Vita, watching the 9:05 p.m. local time kickoff of the NFC Championship game in New Orleans between the Los Angeles Rams and the home town Saints.
Winner goes to Super Bowl LIII.
Go Rams GO!
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