the lost chapter of Spannocchia: the pigs

I finally figured out how to get the photos and videos off my camera. Well, I still don't know how, but I managed to do it anyways. 

First I looked for my friends.

And then I found them.

That.... is a pile of pigs.

They really are pigs! This farm raises the pigs to be eaten. They are rarely grown now because they are not efficient. They take 2 years instead of 1 to get to slaughter weight, they are uncomfortable (like any pig really) indoors. Spannocchia saved this breed of pig with the Noah's Ark program.

bumming around Spannocchia

I had quite a bit of time at Spannocchia, I spent most of it trying to take in the scenery. This is the secret garden.... it's not much of a secret anymore....

This is my good friend Zeus, one of four of my canine like friends at Spannocchia.

Drying grapes for vin santo!

This is Santa Lucia, the standing building use to be a monastery, next to it was the church that has fallen.

I did see a live wild boar there! It was a massive pig, much larger than what I have seen in Spain.

This is the key I got for my room at the hostel on my way back through Rome. I was in the attic, and it had a serious lock to keep out.... I never found out what it was to keep out....

pressing olives, and Spannocchia

The picked olives were brought to the press. First they are washed (in the machine by the man in the blue jump suit), then ground pits and all by two massive wheels.

Next they are put onto woven plastic mats. The oil runs out just under their own weight, then they are squeezed in a massive hydraulic press for a few hours.

The oil goes into a centrifuge to remove the water and to mix it well. Then it is bottled or put into a tank. The waste product looks like dark chips, the oil business buy these "chips" but nobody at the press knew why. I have consumed liters and liters of olive oil here, it is great!

After Panic Ale (Panicale), the town I was staying in, I got a ride from Paul and Jane to Spannocchia, which is near Siena.

I made some new friends. The farm is part of a program called "Noah's Ark" which is in effort to save the heirloom breeds of farm animals because they are less "efficient" at growing, working, or producing.

Spannocchia makes wine, vin santo, grappa, olive oil and other products. These are grapes that were not fit to make wine, but look yummy to me! Wine grapes are not very good to eat, they're mush.

I am going to do a whole blog post just to the pigs there when I figure out how to get the rest of the pictures off my camera. The pigs are amazing!

Picking Olives

I have been happily working for our neighbors since I arrived in Panicale. I do a few hours of work and they give me internet, lunch, and a bag of food to bring home. It could not be better. This is the road I wander down every morning to their house.

Olive trees grow so slowly that if you shock them by cutting them down they do not die, they just send up more trees.

Picking olives is simple. Put a net down to catch them, and rake or hand pick the entire tree. There is some technique to raking the tree. Climbing in them is both necessary and enjoyable until one falls out.

This tree below has been the record for producing the most olives, and it has a hole right through it.

One tree makes about 1 liter of oil.

Siena

Well, Stew, Midge, Kiki, and I went to Siena for lunch. It was a two hour drive which was fairly uneventuful except for picking up a Dylan Dog comic book. Damn, that is a great comic book. Always wears the same clothes, gets the girl, and survives/defeats the bad guys.

I look up at the uncompleted church. I look down at my legs. I have cartoon legs.

what I have been up to for the last week

I have been working for our neighbor here in Italy. Last week we went to a plant nursery and consulted with the experts (above) on what to get. Bellow is a citrus fruit called the "hand of buddha".

This is half the stuff, a full truck dropped more off the next day.

Work lead on to olive picking. To be continued.....

excuses

I have 5 dogs crawl over me as I attempt to blog and do other computer chores.

The internet is cooperative today, so more post to come!

I love Tuscany. It is my second home. It even has the "you can't get there from here" kinda thing. This is where I have been eating lunch every day.

I am staying with my aunt and uncle at their beautiful house for a while.

My friend Kiki and I went to the second largest buddhism site in Italy.

Our neighbor Nico came over and made us dinner! He spoke only italian and referred to me as Louie. We were attempting to recreate the first dinner that was ate in the house about 10 years ago.