Central Italy - Awe---some!

Who knew the Adriatic was so pretty?  Not I.  We had (I think) our one and only McDonald's stop here at this little seaside town.  Remember how I said the tide would be high.  My goodness, was it ever.  It covered this beach, went up the beach steps and into the main streets. 

Has anyone noticed yet that I haven't posted even ONE picture of a toilet this trip?  Not a ONE.  And believe me, Italy's bathrooms rank right up there with some of the worst I've been in.  Just nice pictures though.  Nice, sweet, little pictures...you're welcome.  This pretty little town was on the way south from Venice, before we headed west into the mountain area of central Italy.

Introducing *drum roll* ......San Ginesio, Marche, Italy.  It may possibly be one of the prettiest places on earth.

The house where we stayed.  Too cold for the pool.  Three stories.  On a hill overlooking a beautiful valley, above a grove of olive trees.  Perfect for us.

Did someone say olives?  Oh, yes I did.  Ever wonder how olive oil is made?  The good kind.  The green, rich extra virgin olive oil?  Mmmm.  My wonderful cousin Rachelle lives here in this garden of Eden some of the time (Sydney, Aus. the rest of the time).  She has connections here,  and gave us wonderful memories to last a life time. Our first day she took us to see how olive oil is made, and basically how it's been made - forever, I guess.

So, the olives go in the blue bin, then into the big round 'bowl' to be crushed by giant rolling stones.

Here are the olives being crushed into a paste.  The olives are all locally grown an small farms and sold to the "Olive Oil Man' - as we now call him.

The paste is then extracted onto these round discs.  I'm not sure what they are made of, but they allow the oil to be pressed through them.

Stack them.  Then squish them.

Then it's liquid gold - heaven....

Olive squash-er on the right, oil extractors on the left - Our wonderful "Olive Oil Man" in the middle.  I love him - because he makes heaven appear on earth.  We bought A LOT of olive oil.  Like, several gallons.  And I hoard it like gold.  "Don't waste the good stuff on the kids, for crying out loud!  They can eat the store bought stuff."  I may have been heard saying.

Piazza in San Ginesio.  Everything here is so cool.  The church with the steeple was built in 1000.  We went to Mass there.  What a neat experience for the kids.  Sam just finished studying the effects of Catholicism during the Middle Ages (or something of the sort) right before this trip.  I think it made history come to life for him.

We are all really wanting one of these.  Aren't you?  They have a name... I can't seem to remember.  But they are everywhere and go like the speed of golf carts.  If you're behind them on the way up to the hilltop villages - better not be in a hurry. OR, what am I saying, it's Italy.  Just drive around them - run them off the road - what ever.

All of these little villages have parks in them.  They are surrounded by small farms and winding roads that lead up to the ancient villages on the top.  SO COOL. 

So this is my totally wonderful cousin Rachelle.  She lives in Sydney, like I said.  She married an Italian a few years ago.  So in preparation for this trip I e-mailed her asking for any ideas of where to stay for a 'truly Italian' experience.  Luck was with me this day when she said, "We're here in Italy for six months while Federico (her husband) is on leave from teaching.  (He's an oceanographer, professor, and specializes in something or other about genetic codes.  He's smart - let's just say that.)   You should come and stay here with us!"  What an offer! (she's so innocent, isn't she - offering for 5 crazy kids to stay at her house)  She sent me links to the village online and we knew we had to go.  While she offered several time for us to stay with her, I assured her we still wanted her to like us after we left.  A family of seven staying with a couple with no kids of their own yet - recipe for disaster. 

We ended up renting a house 3 miles from Aunt Rach and Uncle Fede.  Rach spent all day and into the evenings with us.  You can see here that Ruby permanently attached herself to Rachie.  She was SO kind and loving to all my kids.  Even to Gid who treated her rotten; little stink pot!  She rode all over the country side with us.  And let me tell you, I'm sure she had to sew her ears on after they were talked off - several times.