Back to Back Festivals

One of the many concerts/festivals was in a small town which was just a cluster of  homes and one church. While they were setting up the stage directly in front of the church, I beheld the view behind it which was indescribable.

They also had a market there, with lots of local food & herbs. Reflecting back on this day I can see how excited I get about this sort of thing. Everyone specializing in what they enjoy doing. You have local cheese, honey, bee pollen, yogurt, herbs, fruits, vegetables, and other artists selling a variety of goods. I was loving sampling everything and before I knew it 50 euros was gone and I had an entire wheel of goat cheese, 5 containers of bee pollen, 1000 grams of honey, 5 bottles of whole goats milk yogurt, and a tea that was made from a bunch of local flowers, orange peel, lemon peel, and carob pod for a little natural sweetness. I tried carob pod for the first time, and it has a nice chocolate-esque flavor with a slight sweetness. I'm siked, and then I make two drinks with the yogurt and honey for me and Mattias. It was perfect. While they were still setting up they put a simple beat on, and me and Mattias were sitting in the front row, buzzin' off bee energy, beatboxing & rapping.

A nice telescope & a projector that showed the different star groups, and so before the concert started, we got to look at the moon close up. 

The concert started, I took some epic pics, and towards the end we had a huge group of people dancing together, hands linked. There was an unforgettable moment where we surrounded Salvatore, while he was still singing, and just danced it up.

Salvatore is the man.

After the concert, while they were packing up, I was practicing my Italian and combining words and phrases I had learned. Mattias was dying. He says you should go up to those girls we met earlier and say that, so I did. I walked up and said, "Lo sono una verdura... melanzana." I just stood there and enjoyed their reactions. Next, there was a small group of people sitting down. I tell Mattias to give me a countown from 20. 3, 2, 1 alright here we go, I walk up to the group, sit down, "Scusa." They are all looking at me intently. "Looo sonooo una verdurraaaaa... melaaanzaaana!" I get up and walk away. That would be translated as "excuse me, I am a vegetable, eggplant!" And I said it with a proud and all-important tone, it was too funny. I come back after walking up to where the concert was, and Mattias is struggling to stand up, he is laughing so hard that his eyes are drenched in tears. He told me after I walked away they saw Mattias laughing and so understood it was a joke, and they started laughing too. The rest of the night was spent that way, just goofing around. That first group, as they were leaving, said "Ciao Melanzana!"

The next day I tried figs with the local honey and goat cheese, and those were near perfect bites of food. Oh. My. Ridiculous. No wonder the honey is so dang good, the bees get to feast on almond blossoms among other things. For breakfast the next week or so I had organic oats, whole goats milk yogurt, bee pollen, raw honey, and figs. That's a breakfast fit for a warrior, it's so energizing and sustaining. No processed food can give that kind of energy. These are the food combinations that are worthy of dreams. This is when food goes from just a necessity to survive, into a real joy. One of my favorite new food ideas would have to be brownies made with an heirloom (wild) variety of cacao, almond flour made with my own almonds, coconut sugar, my own eggs, and either coconut oil or butter from grass-fed cows. And then an unheated fig ganache with equal parts creme & figs. To top it off, a scoop of coconut milk ice cream. I can imagine how outrageously good (and nourishing) that would be.

That night we headed to the tip top of an unknown mountain for another festival. 

Before the music started they had a play of some sort. I had no idea what was going on but it was cool to see. 

Salvatore had an instrument that made a sound like boing boing boing but it sounded a lot cooler than that description. 

As the music picked up I found such bliss in just looking at the entire family dancing freer than birds

to their Fathers music. Magic.

Check out the guy sitting to the left of Salvatore. He pretty much just sat there the whole time with a wine bottle and glass in his hands and every so often would pour Salvatore a glass. I laugh every time I see him start grooving.