New Home for Taste Life Twice

Thanks for visiting Taste Life Twice!

As of 2012, Taste Life Twice has moved to:

taste-life-twice.com

And as of 2014, my new writing website may be found at:

MargaretPinard.com

Hope to see you there!

-Margaret

Offbeat Art, With Some Lost in Translation

More photos from la bella Napoli, with more observations...in fact, I observed so much life in Napoli it would take months of posts to do it justice. You had better go and experience it yourself. :-)

One of the repeating themes of Naples (entirely open to interpretation, I might add) was the graffiti, and this character was one of more than a dozen similar figures I saw in red, white, blue, and black. They were all clownish stylized figures, and this one made me think it might be related to a football club, but I can't find anything on it, at least not by searching in English.

Here is another one, which might be related by the colors and shapes. Anyone have theories? I like the whimsical design. This picture was at Porta Medina in Naples, as you might be able to see on the hundreds-of-years-old sign there...

I tried to pay attention to these signs, but there were so many! Naples is crammed with so many layers of history and competing cultures that while it is very easy to find something peculiar and charming, it is difficult to determine the origin of that thing. Well, usually. Not so for the historical courtyards, which are marked by marble signs on the street, as proper as any town of antiquity. This was my favorite: simply an inner courtyard, now for parking, that used to gently welcome its inhabitants home with the sound of water and the pleasing elegance of stately painted columns. (I think that's supposed to be a stag, but its ears to the side do give it the look of a donkey, don't they?) Ah, the life of a courtier, eh?

More like:

"Ah, the life of the imagination, that can fling its arms to a distant past and feel the air and in so doing, understand how much things can change, and have changed, and will change again."

-Me

That's one of my favorite lines of thought while out traveling the world: what happened here? What did life used to be like? How do people here cope now?

This is what happens when you travel alone for long stretches of time, evidently. 

Finally, there was the art that was lost in translation, which I here offer up for your perplexitude...

What does one eat there?

Halb fub or half foot fruit? It makes a big difference!

I love quirky finds, both animal and mineral, from trips to new places. What have your adventures brought to your notice recently- real or imaginary?

Dog Days of Summer, Italian translation

**Last Call!**

I will be hosting one final cooking class on Southern Italy in August, so email me now to reserve a space!

This class will focus on Southern Italian foods and cultural foodways, which I learned a lot about while in Naples, Sorrento, and Sicily this spring. Instead of cooking for today though, I am throwing in some whimsy from the trip...

First of all, it was not that hot in the Bay of Naples, where these photos were taken, but the dogs of the neighborhoods I visited obviously thought otherwise. There were plenty of them sprawled out on the streets, too pooped to acknowledge the passersby.

This is my favorite -- such a dramatic scene! I picture an acting out of the Romeo and Juliet balcony lines (this is in the vicinity of Verona, after all), but I'm pretty sure it's just another lazy dog.

This one, poor dear, I saw in a back alley of Pozzuoli, I think behind a hairdresser's, as a matter of fact. I tried to snap the photo before the dog could turn its mournful eyes on me and entreat me to leave it some dignity.

Finally, crossing a busy street in Naples, I had to move fast to catch this crowd! I can't think that he's a dogwalker with that preppy sweater placement, but do you think they could really be all his dogs? Perhaps we've found the equivalent of the Crazy Cat Lady...

I do love finding the quirky 'side dishes' of travel: those unexpected humorous moments can be what you remember years down the line, laughing until you cry with those you love (remember that fish in the buffet at the Grand Canyon, Dad?).

So remember, it's fine to have goals -- sights to see, places to dine -- but don't forget to stop and take in what the city or country is putting right in front of you for your enjoyment!

Happy summer travels, readers, and don't forget to sign up or spread the word about the last class in August!