Buon Compleanno!

 

 

Many thanks to everyone for the kind birthday wishes yesterday! Last year I started my birthday with a breakfast so lovely and memorable (above) that I decided it should be a tradition. On Monday I walked to the fruit & veggie shop and bought a watermelon and hauled it uphill for a half hour home. Phew! The lady in the shop picked out a special one for me since it was for my birthday, and she certainly picked a good one. Yum! I see now looking back at my photos from last year that the hydrangea bushes in the garden are blooming much later this year. Last year for my birthday there were so many I cut some for the table. But there are a few starting to look pretty this year:

 

 

The bougainvillea in the garden is certainly lovely! We have one that is purple and looks so nice against the white wall:

 

 

And my new bougainvillea has started to bloom! We have been waiting to see what color it would be since it didn’t have flowers on it when we bought it. We were hoping for the intense bright pink that you see on Capri, but  I am rather fond of the light red color we ended up with. I haven’t seen very many quite this color. I love surprises!

 

 

Yesterday the weather couldn’t have been more opposite than a year ago. Last year I spent the day on the beach and I remember it being almost too hot to be in the sun. I thought of that yesterday while I spent the afternoon reading a new book (set on the Amalfi Coast in 1939 . . . more coming about that soon!) under a blanket and listening to the rain and the thunder rumbling up in the mountains. It was the perfect cool evening for going to one of my favorite restaurants called Le Querce  (The Oaks) up in the Valico di Chiunzi in Tramonti. After driving up into the mountains, and continuing along a tiny road up and up and up, you reach Le Querce, which is a rustic and warm spot that makes amazing steak. (If you go, definitely try their homemade salami!) When we arrived, the powers was out for the entire city of Tramonti, and we started our dinner by candle light while the storms continued outside. It was an wonderful and memorable (and not to mention tasty!) way to spend my birthday evening. Many thanks again for all the birthday wishes!