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This is the blog of Steve Burkett of Italy, Our Italy

Lamplight on a Blue Door

Today I have a transformation for you…but it is a bit different than my usual transformations.

“ I could have taken that mail out of the mail slot early on in the process, but I’m not sure of the legal ramifications”

— Quote Source

I came across a rather blah door whilst strolling Venice. And there, sitting right there in front of that door, sat a lamp…but, actually I think it was standing, rather than sitting. And, the cord was draped on the wall, unplugged.

Rather than leave it there in that state, I decided to digitally turn on the light and make it a nighttime scene. See how I did that.

The Original Snapshot

I know, I know. It looks horrible, doesn’t it. So, let’s get going.

Cropping the Original

As is nearly always the case, cropping is necessary. Not only to work down to a 4:5 aspect ratio, but to focus in on the subject. With the modern image resolution of professional cameras, one can zoom in a good bit without losing detail.

And the vertical lines of the doorway seem to drift a bit, so I’ll fix that.

There is still more cropping needed to get to that 4:5 ratio, which is perfect for an 8x10 or 16x20 print, but wait...

What is that Relief Carving Above the Door?

I think ancient superstition has been upheld here. You’ve heard that folks years ago, when hearing thunder, thought that the god’s were bowling in Heaven. I think this just might prove that old-time notion. Note that the angel is holding what appears to be a bowling ball. This large, plaque-like carving is obviously a bowling-trophy-of-old that one would place over their doorway.

Crop It Down

Here I crop it down to the finished size.

Let’s Add Some Color

I am now going to blue-up the door a bit. As the lamp will be emitting a yellowish glow, the contrast of the blue should work well.

Make it Night

There’s too much ambient light…and I want it to be night time so the lamp can do it’s thing.

Turn On the Light

Yes, I was able to find a place to plug in that lamp cord. So, now we have a lonely light, just sitting (or standing) around not doing much of anything, it seems.

And that distracting bowling trophy above the door has been removed.

Did you notice the mail in the mail slot?

Dealing with the Mail

I’ve been putting off this part. I could have taken that mail out of the mail slot early on in the process, but I’m not sure of the legal ramifications, being Italy and all. After examining it closer, I see that it’s just a circular of some sort, complete with a helpful map. Since it’s late at night and they haven’t yet claimed their mail, maybe they just aren’t interested. I’m going to take it out of the slot and throw it away.

Oops, it’s not actually night, is it? I took the photo in the morning…just after mail delivery. So, I’ll slipped it under the door…after all, it could be notice of an upcoming sale at a small, gem-of-a-store called Prosciutto e Parmigiano, which cuts the prosciutto by hand, right in front of you. You can learn more about prosciutto here.

So, here is the finished product. And oh, I also removed the lock on the door…just a little too modern for my taste. And, you can see that the mail has been slipped under the door…I have no interest in being sent to the Italian mail-theft prison.

That’s it for today folks. A lonely, abandoned lamp has been given a new lease on life, casting its abundant rays out into the night…oh, so poetic. But, that reminds me…how about a lamp double Haiku?

Lonely broken lamp,
Yearning for a place to glow.
Silent night - no light.

Broken lamp now fixed,
Casting light like ne’er before.
All is well - tonight.

Until next time…

Ciao for now,

Steve

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Provinces, Comuni & Regions of Italy

Index of Articles

Until researching the nomenclature of the Italian political subdivisions, I was both ignorant of, and baffled by, the terms that I’d hear bandied about regarding Italian socio-political geography. I thought you might also be a bit baffled, so I decided that it’s high-time for all of us to know a bit more about these areas of Italy. It’s not too hard to understand.

There are 3 terms that you need to know: region, province, and comune. Think of a region as a state in the US. And think of a province as a county, or parish. And then think of every square inch of Italy as being located in one comune or another.

COMUNE (plural is Comuni)

We hear a lot about Italian towns like Roma, Venezia, Milano, Napoli, and the other big towns of Italy. In the US, we would call these ‘municipalities’ or ‘townships’, but in Italy the word ‘comune’ is used to describe these political units.

The comune is the smallest political subdivision within Italy. There are 7,918 of them and all of Italy is contained within some comune. This is in stark contrast to the US, where non-municipal land abounds. Just below is a map showing all of the comuni of Italy

In the map above, can you spot the very large comune of Roma, which is about half way down the Italian coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea. That little speck of a dot in the middle of the comune of Roma is another country…that being Vatican City.

Now, with a bit of enlargement of northern Italy below, it gives you a better idea of how the 7,918 comuni are organized. I’ve circled (from left to right) Torino, Asti and Milano. As you can see, those municipalities are much larger than their surrounding counterparts, and they are like islands in a sea of the other comuni.

A comune is where you would get your birth certificate, or the death certificate of another (obviously not your own), get your deed registered, pick up a marriage license, etc.

You can see a complete list of the 7,918 comuni/municipalities here.

The largest comune is Roma, which is about 25 miles in diameter, and has a population of 2,761,477 inhabitants. You undoubtedly (I have faith in you!) found the comune of Roma, earlier. The smallest comune is Atrani, which tips in at only 1,300 feet in diameter, has only 832 people.

Again, for a comune, think municipality/town/township/city, but with a bit of the flavor of a county.

PROVINCES

The next political subdivision is the ‘province’. Think of a province as being like a US county, or parish if you live in Louisiana. There are 107 provinces in Italy.

The smallest areas shown on this map are the provinces. For now, ignore the darker lines and the shading differences.

REGIONS

Then, we come to the largest of the institutional, geo-political bodies, the ‘region’. There are 20 regions, which you can see displayed in this map. Remember, these are like the states in the US.

On this map, you see the names of the regions, using the Italian nomenclature. For instance, we in the US call ‘Piemonte’ by the name ‘Piedmont’, and ‘Toscana’ by the name ‘Tuscany’, etc…don’t ask me why, and don’t get me started on that…Rome/Roma, Florence/Firenze, Venice/Venezia, etc.

The ‘regions’ of Italy, showing their Italian names

There you have it! The regions (states), provinces (counties/parishes), and comuni (municipalities) of Italy. Each region has its own special character…as well as characters. Some are influenced mostly by the sea. Others by their mountains. While others have lakes as their defining feature. And most have a good bit of wine in their makeup. And of course each region has their own, tasty foods, including the various locally-defined shapes of pasta…but that’s a subject for next week’s article!

Wouldn’t it be great to spend time in each of these regions?! I sure think so. Let’s plot out an all-inclusive route and get going!

Ciao for now,

Steve

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Haiku on a Blue Door

Index of Articles

I recently received an order for a print of one of my favorite doors of Venice. Connie had just written a beautiful haiku poem about her longing for Venice…I join her in that daily. As I’ve said many times, ‘Quando sono solo, sogno Venezia”…maybe you do, too.

“‘What is Haiku?’, you ask. I’ll tell you.”

Anyway, her haiku envisioned peeling blue paint on a door of Venice, and her search for an accompanying image resulted in one my transformed doors on this website (see Ancient Venetian Doors here).

Want to read Connie’s beautiful haiku? You’ll see it at the end of this transformation article.

I decided to give Connie a peak behind the curtain…something that most of you have seen many times…to show her how her door came about. As usual, I envisioned something other than what was before me as I walked through the San Marco sestieri of Venice. And as usual, I don’t want to give you the Venice of today, but the Venice of yesteryear, before electrical and water conduits, street lights, mail slots, doorbell ringers, etc.

So, today we get a transformation from blah, to ahh. Here you go, Connie.

[As always, you may click on an image for a full-screen view]

Step 1

Here is my original snapshot. Yes, I know…ugh! What possessed me to even stop and snap this lackluster door? But alas, I always have a vision, and I love to capture images to transform when I return home. And Connie, I’m sorry you have to see this!

Yes, this is the starting point for the final photo. This photo needs a good bit of work to get it to the point of my vision for Venice.

So, what is my vision as it relates to my photography of Venice? It’s important to me that you see a Venice of years gone by. It just so happens that Venice is now celebrating its 1,600th birthday…I know, right?!..that’s a lot of years that have gone by. I would love to have seen it along the way to what it is today…a marvelous city, unlike any other in the world.

To better understand why and how I work toward my goal of a Venice of another time, you can read one of my first blog articles, “The Venice That Isn’t There”.

But back to the blue door…let’s get started.

Step 2

Now, what has to go? The hole above the doorway. All things new, not old. The stormwater drain in front of the door. The window to the right. The doorbells. The address…did they have addresses in Venice’s early centuries? Conduits for water and electricity definitely have to go.

So, here is the door with all of those elements removed.

However, I’m not happy at all with this composition. The angled wall on the left just doesn’t balance well with the wall on the right. But, I can fix that.

Step 3

Time to remove that wall and it's window on the left.

OK now, we’re getting close.

Step 4

With the composition the way I want, it’s time to work on the richness of the color.

Step 5

And next, to move back in time to an older Venice, let’s work on the old-world patina a bit.

Now, we are into the ancient-Venice territory.

Step 6

A blue door is what I had in mind. I’ll show you why in just a moment. But in the meantime, I’ll paint over the door to get that nice blue color for which I longed. And, while I’m at it, I think I’ll polish the door handle a bit.

So, there you have it…Connie’s blue door.

Why the Door in Blue?

Now, about that idea to paint the door blue. As I was strolling the calle of San Marco, I ran across an image that I just had to capture. According to the time-stamp on my digital images, it happened to be exactly 46 seconds before I took a photo of today’s door.

Here was a man dressed in blue, white and red, reading the matching blue, white and red of a framed menu (the window beyond his head is the one that is to the left of the doorway…the wall and window that I removed in Step 3, above).

Serendipity at its best! I just had to match the door’s color to the gentleman’s sportscoat.

Connie’s Haiku

And now, to Connie’s Haiku. ‘What is Haiku?’, you ask. I’ll tell you.

Haiku was originally a form of Japanese poetry consisting of 17 syllables in three lines of 5 syllables, then 7 syllables, ending with another 5 syllables. I say originally, because the original subject matter had to do with evoking images of the natural world. But today, any subject matter that fits the Haiku cadence seems to work.

Finally, here is Connie’s beautiful Haiku:

For Venice, I long...
peeling blue paint—rusted locks
gondolas at dawn.

That’s it for today. Just a quick transformation to celebrate Connie’s Haiku. I hope that you enjoyed seeing behind the digital curtain to glimpse a photo going from zero, to hero. I’ll leave you with this…

For Connie, I print...
transforming pain to beauty,
I too miss Venice.

-or-

Old brown door so blah,
Photoshop transformation -
Now so pretty blue.

As always…

Ciao for now,

Steve

p.s. Please leave a comment below, but make the expression of your experience today into the 5-7-5 syllable format of a Haiku…go ahead, give it a try.

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Michelin-Starred Experiences

Index of Articles

The original Michelin Red Guide, French Edition

Last week I explained how the Michelin stars are awarded to restaurants in Italy…and I also explained that many of our favorite Italy restaurants aren’t even in the Michelin guide at all.

But today, I want to show you what you can expect when you dine at a starred restaurant in Italy. And, since I am writing this article, what I personally expect for my own dining experience ,so that my peculiar, I mean particular, expectations are met…or even exceeded.

So, here is what the Burketts expect as they dine with Italian stars!

First is Dressing Up

We like to dress up a bit when dining at a nice restaurant in Italy…and we don’t want to feel out of place because we did so. Three stars? Take the opportunity to get spiffed up.

And, speaking of dressing up, here is a photo of the two dapper gentlemen who started the Michelin guide, as well as the Michelin tire company…André and Édouard Michelin.

The View

If the evening is to be special, then a meal with a view would be nice. These are views from starred restaurants that we’ve visited.

Bread!

That’s right, bread! I tend to judge an Italian dining establishment by their bread. It needs to be nice and crusty. Grisini, or breadsticks, need to be house-made, not wrapped in a waxy, paper envelope. Here are examples of 3-star breads.

Presentation

This involves more than plating…it is how the food might be presented before plating, like this nice branzino presented by Elizabette at La Terrazza Danieli, just before it was fileted and deboned for serving. By the way, it is really a lot better looking after plating…and it tastes like no other seafood you’ve had.

Smiling Faces

I believe that you can judge a person by the way one treats the waitstaff at a restaurant. And, it’s much easier to relate to a smiling face, isn’t it?

A Bit of Music?

How about live music…and, with a smiling face, too…double your pleasure! And, it’s not often we’ve found such an amenity.

Table Settings

Of course a nice table is appreciated. And what a surprise it was to find an embroidered charger at our table at Ravello’s Il Flauto di Pan.

The Food

This is pretty much why we came, right? I know, the other things are nice, but the food is the star of the starred show.

Endings

Dessert has a special place in our dining experience. There are desserts in the ‘Food’ grouping above, but this one from La Caravella dal 1959 in Amalfi gets special attention. We thought this soufflé too large for two people when presented, but two was just too perfect not to finish. Being a soufflé, it was really lite…seriously…please don’t judge…you had to be there to appreciate it.

What’s All That Stuff on the Plate?

In my opinion, some restaurants on the Michelin-starred list try a bit too hard to embellish the plates with little dots of this-and-that (we call them ‘plops’), and special plates that are not necessary to one’s dining enjoyment. You will note a bit of simplicity in the photos of ‘Food’ above. Nice and clean.

However, here are a few Michelin-starred plates that we’ve been offered along the way where we think things were a bit messy and they were trying a bit too hard to impress, but didn’t. Give me the plating at a Cracker Barrel restaurant and I would have been happier.

A Parting Shot

But what about a Michelin-starred restaurant in the morning? Here is my selection from a typical buffet breakfast at Poggio Rosso at the fabulous Borgo San Felice. We took our breakfast with a mimosa out to the terrace and dreamed of coming back!

Breakfast at San Felice - is it too heavy with the bread…I don’t think so

So, there you see a few of the things that Ellen and I feel make up a scrumptious evening…or breakfast. But you know what? These meals are missing one thing…and that’s you.

We love to travel with friends, building memories along the way that we can reminisce about for years to come. I sincerely hope that you can join us in the future at a restaurant of Italy…or anywhere in the world, actually.

Ciao for now,

Steve

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Michelin-Starred Restaurants

Index of Articles

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Last week you joined me for a wonderful meal at La Pergola in Rome. Wow, it was great wasn’t it?

Of course, you didn’t get to taste anything, but at least you got to see the experience that we had there. I know, I know…not the same…like the “My Grandpa went to Toledo and got me this T-shirt” experience…just not the same as actually going to Toledo, is it?

So, just what is a Michelin star? I’ll be limiting this discussion to restaurants in Italy, though most of Europe is now rated by Michelin, and the USA has now been added to their guide.

The Michelin-Star System

I would start off by saying, “Don’t confuse Michelin stars with the Michelin tire company”, but alas, they are the same. It might seem strange at first, but, Michelin began publishing the travel guide in Europe in 1900 to encourage new drivers to take road trips to local attractions...wearing off a bit of tread in the process, right?. And, among other things, the guide included restaurant reviews that focused on the quality and flavor of food served, as well as mastery of culinary technique and the ‘personality’ of the dishes.

The Michelin guide features more than just the prized ‘starred’ restaurants. In their annual Michelin Red Guide for Italy, you will find many, many places to take a tasty respite. But for now, let’s stick to the essence of the Michelin emphasis…stars.

Stars are for a restaurant, but at the same time, they are also associated with the chef…as this combination is what makes dining at an establishment meal-worthy. It’s probable that if chef Nancy leaves her Michelin-starred Ristorante Fabuloso, then when chef Thomas comes in, things might go down hill a bit and the star made fade until, over time, things started to go back up hill again, and the stars may come out, again.

The rating system was first introduced in 1926 as a single star, with the second and third stars introduced in 1933. Here’s what the Michelin Guide says about a starred restaurant:

1 star - "a very good restaurant",
2 stars - "excellent cooking that is worth a detour", and
3 stars -"exceptional cuisine that is worth a special journey".

The listing of starred restaurants is updated once a year.

Star recipients gain immense prestige and exposure along with the honor, and many restaurant owners also see an increase in business after receiving Michelin stars. Conversely, if you lose a star, you generally lose business.

What is Quality, anyway?

You want to go to a restaurant that has good quality, right? So, what is quality, as associated with dining? ‘Quality’ in any realm is defined as ‘meeting the customers expectations’.

Awhile back, I used to teach a class on Total Quality Management (TQM). In that training, I would ask the question, “Which has greater quality, McDonalds or [insert the name of a great restaurant with which you are familiar]?”

Since the definition of quality is ‘meeting the customers expectations”, it could be either or both restaurants. For instance, regarding timing, if you went to McDonalds and it took three hours to get through your meal, you would not be having your expectations met, as you would be looking for an in-and-out experience. Conversely, if you went to a ‘really nice’ restaurant and they rushed you through in 20 minutes, you would be furious when you received your hefty bill at the end of the meal.

And considering taste, if you were looking forward to very tasty french-fries (mmm…how do they do that, anyway?), and they served you potatoes au gratin at McDonalds, you wouldn’t be happy. And think about how hard it would be to eat those potatoes au gratin whilst driving…not a great idea, and definitely not what you were expecting for your drive. You get the point, right?

So, it’s about expectations, which puts a lot of pressure on the Michelin folks to not raise our expectations above what they say the restaurant can deliver. Thus, they have to be very careful in their lauding of eating establishments. And, this is why there are only 11 three-star restaurants in all of Italy.

Calculating the Stars

How are the stars ‘calculated’? Here’s what the Michelin guide says:

“Restaurants may receive zero to 3 stars for the quality of their food based on five criteria:

quality of the ingredients used,
mastery of flavor and cooking techniques,
the personality of the chef in their cuisine,
value for money, and
consistency between visits.

Restaurant inspectors (anonymous, by the way) do not look at the interior décor, table setting, or service quality when awarding stars - these are instead indicated by the number of 'covers' it receives, represented by the fork and spoon symbol.

OK, it’s getting a bit complicated now, what with the ‘fork and spoon symbol’. The number of ‘fork and spoon’ symbols, or ‘covers’, is an indication of ‘comfort and quality’ of the establishment (but not the food, as that is the job of the stars). Here’s how the fork and spoon symbols are relegated:

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Your eyes are glazing over…I can see it happening because the camera on your phone or laptop is actually on right now. Please, either turn it off or perk up a bit with a cappuccino, as I’m just getting to the good part…which of Italy’s restaurants actually have stars.

Italy’s 3-Star Restaurants

There are an estimated 150,000 restaurants in Italy. How many of those get a Michelin 3-Star rating? Only eleven, as of 2020. So, 11 out of 150,000 means those stars shine, don’t they? That’s 0.007% of all the restaurants in Italy.

The following table is from Wikipedia and is current through 2020. And, note that the chef’s names are listed.

One- and Two-Starred Restaurants in Italy

I’m not going to list the 1- and 2-starred Italian restaurants, but here are the numbers:

1 Star - 323 restaurants
2 Star - 37 restaurants

That’s a total of 371 Michelin-starred restaurants in Italy. Each one should provide you with a great meal. But, what about non-starred Michelin recommendations? Do they have recommendations for that, too? Yes, they do.

There are 2,019 Italian restaurants listed in the Michelin Red Guide. So, there are 1,648 restaurants listed with zero stars. Plenty to choose from, I would think.

That about wraps it up for those fabulous Michelin-recognized restaurants in Italy, be it starred, or just listed. You won’t go wrong with your dining experience using their guide.

But, here’s the deal…we’ve eaten at many, many restaurants in Italy that don’t even make the basic guide with zero stars, like Enoteca della Valpolicella or Antico Martini or Donna Selvatica or Banfi’s La Taverna (note that Banfi’s La Sala dei Grappoli has it’s own Michelin star!). These are places that in our mind are “…worth a special journey” and are “very comfortable”.

So, if you see a quaint place to dine along a road in Italy…just forget about that Michelin guide and stop to dine. I’m guessing that your expectations will be met!

However, if you want to drop a few Euros for fancy table settings, and plates with lots of little dots of this-and-that on them, then go online to find one of those 3-star extravaganzas…but don’t count on just pulling up and going in to dine…remember that these are extremely popular restaurants, requiring long approach times for reservations.

Covid Impacts on Italian Micheline-Starred Restaurants

Just FYI, Michelin has kept up a ‘barometer’ of the health of its starred restaurants. Here is the picture for Italy, with week 10 of 2020 on the left, and week 10 of 2021 on the right. Ouch, right?! They are going through another shutdown.

Want to compare this with the United State’s Michelin-starred restaurants open by week? Click here.

Thus ends our journey into the Michelin star process. As I mentioned above, you need not rely on a published guide to find great food in Italy,

Next week, I’ll show you some of our Michelin-starred experiences, and what WE think gives us a dining experience that meets, or exceeds, our expectations.

Ciao for now,

Steve

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