A few more new things

November 5th

We played tennis last Thursday for a hour on a wonderful clay court. They make good use of their abundance of red clay in this area. It is a pleasant walk right along the Adriatic to the hotel that has the sport center. That's where the outdoor ping pong tables are located too. It seemed easier on the legs to be playing on clay, and the balls sit up higher, plus it wasn't hot. The view of the sea wasn't too shabby either.

Dick had a great idea for class Thursday evening. He played Frank Sinatra's My Kind of Town, Chicago Is... on the IPad and I gave out the words for everyone to follow along. Another animated evening.

We tried our hand at another Istrian dish, gnocchi with veal stew. Went to a little butcher shop right next door and after a nice young woman made a phone call to check the ingredients we left with veal, rosemary and tomato sauce. Then on to my friend at the fruit and vegetable stand.

Yesterday, Ticijana, from our class, gave us a ride to Brtonigla for the mushroom picking contest. Several clubs competed and we came during the fun lunch break time. Lots of singing, dancing and beer drinking. We did a bit of each and took a leisurely walk around the town. There's a **** hotel, San Rocco, there and we took a little tour. They are big on spas here and this hotel has quite an elegant one.

Everyone was entertained at the lunch party by two accordion players who sang traditional Croatian tunes. We joined the dancing and lip-synched the songs. Lots of fun and laughing. The mushrooms were judged for size and prettiness, not for taste. Some teams had very elaborate vests embroidered with their club name. It's a serious pastime.

We ended the evening with still another different kind of pizza and watched a strange ball game on TV at the cafe...a kind of a cross between basketball and lacrosse/soccer.. Its played on a basketball-type court, with a lacrosse-type goal, guarded by a goalee. The soccer-sized ball is thrown into the net, defended by six players plus a goalee. Croatia lost to Serbia, 22 to 20.