One of our holidays was a visit to La Scentella
I hope you are having a lovely summer. We have had three holidays. It has been a welcome break from British politics.
One of our holidays was a visit to La Scentella an agriturismo in the Italian province of Le Marche bordering the Adriatic coast. Le Marche is an area of beautiful old hilltop towns. Down below are fields of grapes, olives, lavender, sunflowers, fruit and vegetables of many kinds.Our host at La Scentella, Roberto Ferretti, a retired family therapist, an expert on peasant cooking, is an informal leader and co-ordinator of the many Agriturismos in the area. One year when we visited, he arranged a lavender festival in a great castle. He travels the world demonstrating Italian peasant cooking.
As a result whilst his agriturismo attracts visitors from many countries.
Whilst we were staying six women from Japan, including a cook and a potter, a journalist and his friend, a couple from Sweden, another from Sicily, a family from Argentina and a woman from France.
We often cooked meals together in Roberto’s kitchen under his direction and ate together.
Roberto took us out to visit his friends: producers of fruit and vegetables, organic artisan grain and pizzas – the best I ever tasted, cheeses and makers of olive oil and a bread fair,
after which everyone was fed using the lovely bread on display. What these agriturismos have in common is that most are organic and they share a love of high quality unadulterated local food.
Roberto had asked me to give a talk/discussion on Democracy in crisis: what’s gone wrong and how we can put it right. It would be much like my blog posts on the subject and talks that I have been giving in the UK. However I asked him to provide a speaker on the situation in Italy. In fact there were two, including a philosophy professor who said “we need a change of heart”.
So true. I was also provided with an interpreter, a school teacher with very similar ideas to my own. We worked together to make my Power Points as concise as possible to allow time for her interpreting. Over fifty people came. First we all ate together in the garden.
world is a world of living well on our planet and international friendship. He modestly embodies his philosophy in his way of life. It is truly inspirational. His sort of approach, which is to influence by doing and being, is so refreshing and such a cure for the current aggressive and often abusive debate going on in the UK and European politics. We need to come together, collaborate and find common ground in re-imagining a better UK, a better Europe and a better World.Roberto’s world is a world of living well on our planet and international friendship. He modestly embodies his philosophy in his way of life. It is truly inspirational. His sort of approach, which is to influence by doing and being, is so refreshing and such a cure for the current aggressive and often abusive debate going on in the UK and European politics. We need to come together, collaborate and find common ground in re-imagining a better UK, a better Europe and a better World.
Bruce Nixon is author of The 21st Century Revolution: A Call to Greatness . My Blog and occasional newsletter, which you can sign up for on this site, are available to keep you up to date.