Simona is the secretary at school. She is only a few months younger than me and full of enthusiasm and life. When she found out that I would be alone this weekend, she invited me to hang out with her. On Saturday, we first went shopping at the shopping center and got necessary food items. Then that evening she took me to one of her favorite places to eat pizza. Apparently, she, like many others, always eats pizza Saturday night. We had the classic Margherita pizza but it was made with the traditional Neapolitan Buffalo Mozzarella, so therefore its name was something like Buffalina. I ended up eating the whole thing!!! There was also a soccer match on while we were eating pizza. You could hear the screams as soon as Naples scored. Naples ended up winning 3-0 Inter.
After the pizza, Simona took me to Naples. We ate gelato. It was delicious! I will have to remember all these places she took me to because they were great! We walked around the town. Simona decided to wear her new shoes around and unfortunately one shoe gave her some pain. We decided to sit down and enjoy a drink. I had wine of course :) and Simona had the only drink she likes, Irish Cream (Baileys). While we were drinking our drinks, I people watched. I kept thinking, these guys don’t seem anything like American guys, the way they dress, walked, etc.
I came home at a decent hour, around 1 am. We decided to meet Sunday at 11am for Sfogliatella. So, Simona arrived at 11am and we went to Naples. We went to Carraturo, apparently the best pastry shop in Naples. We ate Sfogliatella, a pastry with a filling similar to a cannoli filling. It was delicious! Then we drove back to Acerra to have lunch with Simona’s family.
I arrived at Simona’s house with great welcomes from her family. The table was set with the good china in honor of me. I was fed so much food! :) It was all-delicious too! We started with the carne (meat) because as how the father described it to me in Italian, is that you get full off the pasta and don’t have enough room for the good stuff, the meat, so we will eat the meat first and the pasta second. So, we ate the meat first. It was great! I started off with a larger portion but told them that I eat a little. They just kept saying, big deal. One day out of the week you eat a lot, the rest of the week, you don’t eat. But, I knew that there would be more food coming so I insisted that my portion be cut in half. They obliged. Then the pasta came. Again, I said perfecto to the amount but somehow more got put on my dish. I was very full at this point. Then the roasted pork, peppers, spinach, olives and eggplant were put on the table. I kept saying “Mamma Mia” :) Oh, I forgot to mention at the beginning of the meal, red wine was poured into my glass. I drank it and finished it. Once we began to eat more, they asked if I wanted more wine. I said, “No, I am full.” Well the next thing I know, the grandma grabbed the wine and is pouring me a glass filled to the brim. I thought to myself, well I guess I shouldn’t disrespect my elders. :)
Then the fried zucchini flowers came on the table with a basket full of nuts. Oh, was I full! I took many breaks and ate slowly. They were going to pull out the dessert but I said I was too full, so we waited. Afterwards, we all took naps. I think I slept for about an hour. Then we had our dessert. We had sfogliatella and babba. Babba, is a sponge cake soaked in rum and traditional to Naples.
Then we just kind of hung out. Simona’s mother and grandmother asked if I liked arugula. I said yes. The next thing I know, fresh arugula and basil are making their way into the house from the garden. Then I am being asked if I want lettuce, eggplant, parsley, carrots, potatoes, onion, garlic, lemon, balsamic vinegar, pasta and friarielli (a neapolitan broccoli) . I felt like I was back in college getting shipped off with food for the week. And I did! I came home with three very full bags full of food! I am looking forward to eating it all!
As we were waiting to go out to the near by town, we played Scopa. They said it was a Neapolitan card game. I looked at it for one second and told them I know the game. I played it many times with my relatives in Sicily and with my grandfather in America. So it wasn’t difficult for them to refresh my memory. As we were playing, Simona’s father, I think, came into the room and said that today is Saint Angelo(a)’s feast day. They all said Happy Birthday to me! Then came and gave me hugs and kisses in honor of “my” day :) Simona’s brother’s girlfriend, who is a beauty technician, did my nails for me as a gift for my “birthday.”
As we left for the evening, I said goodbye to the parents and grandmother. I told them thank you for everything and they in return told me that if I need anything to just call and that I am welcome in their home whenever I want, even if Simona isn’t at home. I felt very welcomed and honored to be treated as family.
We went to the nearby town of Pomigliano. We had dessert, again. :) I had a chocolate crepe. Simona and her brother’s girlfriend had the waffle and her brother had ice cream. But, this is the funny part. The waffles were topped with chocolate and their choice of a topping. The toppings of choice, are you ready for it, are Cherrios (Honey Nut) and Rice Krispies and the brother put on his hot fudge sundae coco puffs. I couldn’t believe it! I thought to myself, American breakfast anyone.
We then went to a square nearby that has a nice park like atmosphere. There were many people and even had a children’s playground. Of course we had to take part and have a photo shoot in the playground. I’m sure you will see them soon on Facebook :)
Well I am back in my apartment now. I put all the food in the refrigerator like I was told to do and will reheat it tomorrow. I think overall, I had a great weekend. Thank you again to Simona and her family for graciously hosting me. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it! I feel welcomed and blessed for meeting these people.
