Curley

Curley’s reviews

1. Orvieto is a magical place. It has been eleven months since we Adventured to Italy with Bill and Kristi Steiner to explore the city of Orvieto, yet I can still feel the magic of turning down a narrow alley-way, suddenly finding the cathedral in its gold splendor explode into view at street’s end. Or leaving an Orvieto ristorante realizing that Marlena De Blasi was sitting with a friend on a bench at the entrance. Or tramping through neighborhood streets, then happening on what could have been a local version of a convenience store, where we sipped prosecco, mingling with neighborhood children and two nuns just out of school for the afternoon. Much of Orvieto’s magic belongs to Orvieto, but the Steiners made certain that we had eyes and ears to experience the magic for ourselves. When Kristi and Bill found we would be taking the same train to Orvieto from Rome, we were encouraged to exchange pictures. The Steiners found us in the train terminal, and by the time the train was underway, we had caught their enthusiasm for Italy and had relaxed knowing our needs were cared for and our expectations were going to be met—magically, as it turned out. Consider only instance: pasta. We made our own under the twinkling eye of Chef Lorenzo, after which, we sat down to one of the most magical of dinners, each of us made to feel expert in the ways of Tuscan cuisine. Making pasta together was but one way Kristi and Bill turned a band of strangers into a party of friends. Strolling to our convent at the end of the day, gelato in hand, we were at home in our city.

   Curley reviewing Journeys of discovery