Cavorting With the Contessa

I may have been up way past my bedtime due to the Tuscany train strike, but that didn’t prevent me from getting up in time to spend the day with my parents and Pauline, also known as Contessa Witts. Pauline, who lives in Walnut Creek just minutes from my house, is the grandmother of one of our students, Ben. Her daughter Judy runs a cooking school in Florence, right near the Mercato Centrale, and Pauline herself knows Florence intimately, often arranging for accommodations for U.S. visitors who travel to the city. She was hoping to meet my parents while they were in town, and Friday seemed like the perfect day.

We picked Pauline up at her quaint hotel, Hotel Boticelli, just steps from the Mercato Centrale, which was our first stop. How thrilled we were to learn that Pauline knew practically everyone there! Everywhere we went we would hear, “Pauline, Pauline!” This would be followed by warm hugs and introductions all around. We met Andrea and his daughter Susannah, who run Perini Brothers, a wonderful deli filled with meats, cheeses, olive oils, sauces, and other delectable treats. Andrea gave us sample after sample of Tuscan meats, many with savory sauces to complement them. Next we met a wonderful couple, Stefano and Grazie, who operate Conti, selling the freshest fruits and vegetables in all of Florence. (This is where Judy gets her produce for her cooking school.)

After a thorough exploration of the market (including having to talk my mom out of buying a pig’s head and a shank complete with hoof and fur!), it was time for lunch. Pauline took us to Trattoria Mario, which sits right on the piazza outside Mercato Centrale. Of course, she knew everyone here too. More “Paulines” and more hugs and then this: “Let me just bring you some plates.” We didn’t even have to look at a menu! Suddenly the most exquisite fish dishes began to arrive (it was Friday during Lent after all!): mussel stew, calamari salad, grilled monkfish, prawns kebabs, and sautéed codfish. Heaven! I think I might like this Friday Lent thing after all!

After our long lunch, we walked Pauline back to her hotel, and then we all agreed that there was no way we could eat dinner that night. We were much too full! So we said our goodbyes and headed by home, all hoping for nice long, deep sleeps. You see, we had another date with the Contessa the next day…