Well the African heat is back and once again we are plunged into 100 degrees heat, way too hot for me so we decided to head off for the hills of Frascati.
Frascati was unexpectedly beautiful I was worried it would be a bit boring but the drive through Villetri and Castel Gandolfo was lush, green and so much cooler, it was a welcome diversion.
Here in Frascati I discovered that my other half would have made quite a good spy, so look out Daniel Craig you have competition. My partner has oodles and oodles of charm that all the girls fall for including the Italian belladonna's who should be so used to it by now but lo and behold even they are not immune from it, just ask my lovely local supermarket ladies, that's how good he is!
This time though he did really impress me as he managed to charm his way into the closed office of the local mayor so that I could get a close up photo of a bronze statue called Icarus which proudly sits on the mayor's private balcony. My other half was incensed that the public weren't allowed access and told a great cock and bull story of how he would complain to Matteo Renzi the prime minister at our dinner with him that night as apparently I am now a journalist for the Daily Mail!!!!!
Bronze statue of Icarus which sits proudly on the mayor of Frascati's private balcony
Unfortunately, after all his blagging to get me into the office the sun was so strong that I couldn't get a great photo but at least I did get to see the statue close up in person so it was worth it.
You cannot go to Frascati and not drink the actual grape so off we went to dinner that evening, romantic reservation booked at "Belvedere dal 1933" which was absolutely superb. It's run by two brothers who unfortunately I didn't get to see but my trusted spy informed that they were busy cooking in the kitchen whilst I was busy knocking back the 2 bottles of Frascati wine that we had! Well, the first one was so good we polished it off and just had to have another, I hasten to add we were there for several hours and it was a special occasion, we're not alcoholics I promise.
Ristorante Belvedere dal 1933 with Rome in the background
The restaurant overlooks the eternal city of Rome and the view is quite spectacular, it is well worth a flying visit especially for the restaurant as the pasta was sublime. Naturally, being Italy you have the obligatory churches in the town and Frascati's were beautiful we were fortunate enough to see a lovely elderly couple celebrate their golden wedding anniversary and we, along with everyone else, clapped and congratulated them inside the church. We also found a hidden doorway surrounded by tomato plants, a requisite in any Italian garden. I think I saw what can only be described loosely as one of the oldest bakeries I have ever seen with an old oil tin drum and broomsticks outside but inside they still had the old bread oven, fascinating.
Bakery in Frascati
The following day with heavy heads and a serious hangover we headed off to Lake Albano, WiKi describes it as a small volcanic lake in the Alban hills of Lazio, however, I thought it was bloody massive at 2.3 sq miles long it's the largest lake I've ever seen and it is also has a depth of 560ft. It was extremely peaceful with small sailing boats and locals swimming in the lake, however, I think I would be a bit wary of swimming in it as I always think of Loch Ness and monsters in lakes.
From the lake we drove a further 10mins into Castel Gandolfo, one of Casteli Romani's historic towns, it's famous for being the summer residence of the Pope. This time we didn't attempt to blag our way in for a cup of tea as think that might have been pushing it too far! The main square Piazza della Liberte is very pretty with a beautiful church and brightly coloured bunting for local restaurants and it was here that I fell in love with Pedro.
Pedro I hasten to add is a cat, a great big fluffy marmalade ginger cat who was beautiful, he looked like a great big fluffy lion absolutely gorgeous. Although Italy is a nation of small doggie lovers, they are the requisite must have fashion statement and I have seen some really cute ones but I am at heart a cat lover. I even follow a cat on Instagram of all things! His name is Ollie the Grey, he is adorable check him out he's quite the ladies' man. We have 2 cats at the moment, Loulou and Caesar, both have stolen our hearts. Loulou is a black and white moggie with absolutely stunning piercing green eyes and a big fluffy belly, well not surprising as all she does is eat and sleep! Caesar is the love of my life, a Siamese chocolate point, he's daft as a brush but at the same time highly intelligent, he loves to talk and his favourite game is hide and seek.
Pedro
We love, love, love Siamese cats, so much so that we are on the hunt for another one. They are so adorable, very inquisitive and they talk non-stop with you, I personally think they are the most beautiful breed of cats. We did have 2 others but sadly they both died last year, my big chonker "Gino" was a real tom cat, a black moggie, he was the boss of the neighbourhood, he would have been "Don Gino" if he had come with us to Italy! CC was our first Siamese cat, she was very intuitive and she adored my other half, she would sit for hours just watching him. It broke our hearts when they both passed away but I would never be without a cat in my life, there is nothing better than coming home to chat and snuggle up with your cat, so yes I think not only must I have been a Viking in my past lives but also a witch.
I have several other cat ladies in my life. Beate has 3 of her own but she also feeds all the cats in her street, they all come in and out of her cat flap so she's now known as "Beate's cafe" to the local moggie community. My sister Caroline had 9 cats at one point, everywhere you looked there was a cat either sitting or sleeping, one of them I used to call the "alien" as he had such a scrunched up face but was very cute, she is now down to a more manageable 5! My sister Simone is passionate about Persian cats, the bigger and fluffier the better, I call them posh cats. At the moment she has a lovely blue Russian called Smokey who took quite a fancy to me when I stayed with her, so much so that he slept at the bottom of my bed much to everyone else's chagrin so he's now called "the traitor". Ahhh but that's cat's for you, they are not daft, they have no master, you are there when and only when they want you, but when they do it's such a wonderful feeling and a moment to treasure, so on that note I'll say goodbye for now and leave you with the origin of the expression "Cat got your tongue?"
Meaning: Asked to a person who is at a loss of words
Origin: The English navy used to use a whip called "cat-o-nine-tails" for flogging. The pain was so severe that it caused the victim to stay quiet for a long time. Another possible source could be from ancient Egypt, where liars' and blasphemers' tongues were cut out and fed to the cats!.
Water fountain in Frascati piazza
Secret doorway
View from Hotel Flora in Frascati
Love this, local transport
Castel Gandolfo
Frascati at night
View of Villa Aldobrandini in Frascati
Church in the main piazza in Frascati
