Italy needs ice.
Its so hot here.
It has been in the high 90s for almost a month.
Today, it was 104.
Right now, its 10:03pm, and it is 90.
I need an icy drink, but we used up all of our 2 trays of ice this afternoon. Just go buy some ice, you say? Well, first of all, its after 8:00, and everything is closed. And second, and more important,
YOU CAN NOT BUY ICE IN ITALY!!!
WHAT KIND OF A CRAZY COUNTRY IS THIS?!?!?!?!?
I first realized that one is unable to purchase ice in Italy on my birthday, because I was making Mojitos, and obviously, ice is integral to this cocktail. But no dice, its unheard of to buy ice in this country.
And, sometimes, in the morning, when I am walking to work, I really want an iced coffee. But, let me warn you now: don't try to order iced coffee in Italy - it doesn't exist. I once ordered a caffe with ice, and what did I get? An espresso, in a normal espresso cup, with one cube of ice. Not exactly what I was thinking....I re-expained what I wanted to the barman, being more specific about using a glass, and the exact quantity of ice cubes that I wanted (I'm sure I was charged extra for this), and, basically, I showed the barman how to make an iced coffee....americans.......
Italy does have 2 cousins to the iced coffee: Caffe Freddo, litterally cold coffee. I have tried this - not too good - generally way to sweet, and, of course, they don't serve it with ice - its already kind of cold, right? Who needs ice? The other is Caffe Shakerato. Caffe Shakerato is fantastic, but its expensive at 2.50 euros, compared to .80 for espresso. Its made by putting a shot of espresso in a shaker, with ice, and Bailey's - I skip the Baiiey's, and often substitue Varnelli, an Italian anice. Then, of course, its shaken, (less reputable bars use a machine to shake it) to produce a beautiful cappucino-like foam. I love Caffe Shakerato.
But, I really just want some ice...
Its hot....
Its so hot here.
It has been in the high 90s for almost a month.
Today, it was 104.
Right now, its 10:03pm, and it is 90.
I need an icy drink, but we used up all of our 2 trays of ice this afternoon. Just go buy some ice, you say? Well, first of all, its after 8:00, and everything is closed. And second, and more important,
YOU CAN NOT BUY ICE IN ITALY!!!
WHAT KIND OF A CRAZY COUNTRY IS THIS?!?!?!?!?
I first realized that one is unable to purchase ice in Italy on my birthday, because I was making Mojitos, and obviously, ice is integral to this cocktail. But no dice, its unheard of to buy ice in this country.
And, sometimes, in the morning, when I am walking to work, I really want an iced coffee. But, let me warn you now: don't try to order iced coffee in Italy - it doesn't exist. I once ordered a caffe with ice, and what did I get? An espresso, in a normal espresso cup, with one cube of ice. Not exactly what I was thinking....I re-expained what I wanted to the barman, being more specific about using a glass, and the exact quantity of ice cubes that I wanted (I'm sure I was charged extra for this), and, basically, I showed the barman how to make an iced coffee....americans.......
Italy does have 2 cousins to the iced coffee: Caffe Freddo, litterally cold coffee. I have tried this - not too good - generally way to sweet, and, of course, they don't serve it with ice - its already kind of cold, right? Who needs ice? The other is Caffe Shakerato. Caffe Shakerato is fantastic, but its expensive at 2.50 euros, compared to .80 for espresso. Its made by putting a shot of espresso in a shaker, with ice, and Bailey's - I skip the Baiiey's, and often substitue Varnelli, an Italian anice. Then, of course, its shaken, (less reputable bars use a machine to shake it) to produce a beautiful cappucino-like foam. I love Caffe Shakerato.
But, I really just want some ice...
Its hot....
yes, its incredibly hot here - the only good thing about it, is that, at the end of the week, you can go to le Marche and jump in the sea!
Posted by: Jennifer McIlvaine | July 23, 2007 at 09:09 PM
Wow, I didn't realize it was that hot - maybe it's ok that I left Italy after all! ... naaah... I miss Italia.
In Seattle we just had two weeks of summer and now it's cold and rainy. We're all cranky again. :-)
Posted by: Tina | July 21, 2007 at 12:30 AM