The mountain dweller's meal

After a strenuous hike, the mountain dweller's meal: polenta e cinghiale (polenta and wild pork). Leo's mountain dweller training goes through this practical exercise as well...

Complicity

Cosa ridacchiano questi due? (What do these two giggle about?)...

I believe I can fly

Since he was young, Leo appeared to have a great inclination towards flying. I just help him on with his talent…

Gran Sasso

Happiness is: hiking in the mountains with my family...

Fragments de Paris - La salle de jeux

Un grand merci à Victoire et Hortense pour avoir partagé leurs jeux.

Fragments de Paris - La Crêperie des Pêcheurs

Summer

Summer has begun chez les M&M’s…

Meet Ann & Neil

They say that Italians have a strong accent when they speak English, but have you ever heard a French speaking in English?

Well, one of Mathilde’s (small) prides is that when she speaks English, very few think she is French. Actually the majority believes she is American.

Well, most of the merits for Mathilde’s American accent go to Ann and Neil, an American couple from Louisiana who hosted Mathilde for a few months during her youth, allowing her to learn and improve if not the language of Shakespeare and Dickens, at least the language of Whitman and Hemingway.

And many years after, we are happy to have been able to return the favour and to have hosted Ann and Neil here in Rome, even if for one night only.

We hope people will now think you are native Italian when you order a pizza or a plate of spaghetti at the restaurant.

Nice to have met you Ann and Neil, and please, come back to visit us again next time you pass by Italy.

Vă prezentăm Claudia (intrducing Claudia)

This is a long due post. Ladies and gentlemen, we have the pleasure of introducing you a person that since November can be considered a full member of our family in all respects: Claudia, Leo’s nanny.

Do you think I am exaggerating? Ok, let me give you an example in support of my statement.

I had returned from a mission during which Leo hadn’t seen me for about ten/eleven days, and I was very happy and very proud to experience the warm welcome he gave me: he did not only not forget my face, but he seemed truly excited to see me again. But when the day after I observed that the excitement he expressed to me the previous evening was only half (or a third) of the excitement he expressed to Claudia when she arrived the following morning for her daily duty, I understood which place Claudia takes in Leo’s affective hierarchies.

So, if in addition to Italian, French, and hopefully English, Leo will at one point be fluent in Romanian as well, don’t be surprised!

Leo, santo subito! (Leo, immediately saint!)

Last week-end we celebrated Leo’s baptism in Paris.

It has been a week-end of families and children.

Pictures and stories soon.

The last monthiversary

We celebrate today Leonardo’s last monthiversary (le dernier moisiversaire; l’ultimo mesiversario). Starting from next month, we will start counting the ‘years’!

Happy (last) monthiversary, Leo!

(Ps: above, from our files, another of Mathilde’s favourite pictures, which I have been accused of deliberately not publishing. Again, I was just waiting for the right occasion...)

Welcome to Ingrid

We welcome Ingrid to Italy. Ingrid left Brussels and moved today to San Vito di Cadore*, at the heart of the Dolomites.

But, above all, we welcome Ingrid among our ‘official followers’.

Welcome Ingrid!

(*) For those who wonder where we will spend our next winter holiday weeks (please note the plural), above the answer!

A night in Deira

Last time I stopped over in Dubai, I opted to visit the part of town that expands along the Sheikh Zayed Rd: the ‘new’ Dubai - paradoxical, excessive… almost unreal. This time I decided to spend my overnight in Dubai on the other side of the Creek, in Deira, the ‘old’ city, the pulsing heart of Dubai.

Here waves of Syrian, Iraqi, Afghan, Filipino, Lebanese, and Pakistani immigrants have disorderly settled in in the past decades, and live now altogether in a Saudi melting-pot. Here the various souqs (the Gold Souq, the Spice Souq, the Perfume Souq, etc.) contrast the luxury shopping-malls on the other side of the Creek.

Described as dusty, crowded, and chaotic, travel guides consider it the ‘Karachi of the Saudi Peninsula’. Well, I have never been to Karachi (not yet), but I do start knowing that corner of the world well enough to feel comfortable in saying that Deira is still too clean, too tidy, too new to be compared to any city of the Indian sub-continent at all. However, the smell of spices and street food, the crowd in the streets, the queues outside the mosques, the small shops open late in the night, make this place pleasantly lively…

Leo and his sharks

As in Clement Richter’s book, Ti-Koyo et son requin, Ti-Koyo - a young boy who lives in a Pacific island - developed a special friendship with a baby-shark found in a small inlet of his island, likewise Leo is developing his friendship with sharks in a bath-tub in San Felice.

Imagine if we were in Fiji!

(Ps: Test of your marine biology knowledge: can you recognize the sharks in the bath-tub?)

Three

... and three! Happy anniversary to us!

The 'iPad' generation

At my times, these pipes* were grey, made of cement, rough. Now they are coloured, made of anti-cancerous material, ergonomic, and child friendly...

The new 'iPad' generation!

(*) Al parco giochi della VII.

Leonardino va in treno

Leonardino è un leoncino che vive a Nairobi, la capitale del Kenya. Questo week-end Leonardino doveva andare a trovare la nonna che vive a Mombasa, una città sulla costa a circa 350 miglia da Nairobi.

Ci sono quattro modi diversi per andare da Nairobi a Mombasa: in aereo, ma costava troppo. In macchina, ma il papà aveva venduto il suo Mitsubishi Pajero rosso tanti anni fa. A piedi, ma ci vogliono delle zampette belle forti, e Leonardino barcolla ancora un po’. Oppure in treno. Ma Leonardino non era mai stato in treno…

"Nessun problema" disse il papà di Leonardino. "Ti accompagnerò io, così imparerai, e la prossima volta, quando sarai un leoncino un po' più grande, potrai andare da solo".

Così, dopo una ricca colazione a base di latte di giraffa (Leonardino ha avuto qualche problema di digestione ultimamente, e il dottore ha consigliato di evitare il latte di zebra per il momento), Leonardino e il suo papà si diressero verso la stazione...

Com’è andata?

Chiedetelo a Leonardino (o ai suoi vicini…)

Marseille-Ivrea

While Mathilde went to Marseille to celebrate Delphine’s bachelorette party (see picture below from our files), Matteo & Leo went to Ivrea to celebrate the Capobelsky’s renowned ‘Festa di Ivrea’ (photo credit: Capobelsky 2011).

Pictures and stories, of both the events, soon.

And tomorrow, back on the road - destination Kabul.

See you in a week.

I piediniiiii!!!!*

(*) The small feet; Les petons!!!!

Lahore. Dinner with some Pakistani Government officials, businessmen, journalists...

Lahore. Dinner with some Pakistani Government officials, businessmen, journalists...

- Where do you come from?
- Italy
- Italy? Oh, we love Italy! Italy is the Pakistan of Europe!

La Madrina (The Godmother)

Leo will be baptized at the end of the month.

According to the tradition, Leo’ spiritual growth would need to be supported by two reference figures: a godfather and a godmother. And according to the tradition, each branch of the family should provide one of these figures.

Having already a Saint in their family, the choice for the Iweins has been relatively easy, and fell on (Saint) Jean-Marc.

But for the Marchisios the choice has been much harder, as no one in the family really fulfilled the minimum requirements for the appointment.

The choice fell on Chiara eventually, selected for her uprightness and unquestioned moral qualities.

Or not?...

Jockey

We abundantly extolled Leo’ swimming talent in the past posts - and this is certainly from the Marchisio’ side of the family.

But we didn’t celebrate Leo’s horse-riding skills enough - and this certainly comes from the Iweins’ branch of the family.

Looking forward to horse-riding with the cousinettes soon! J

Charlie’s Angels or conservationists at work?

The last (American) supper

We recognize there have been few pictures of Mathilde on the Blog lately. We remedy immediately by posting these pictures from our files: Mathilde’s last supper in the US.

La carbonara non si discute (you cannot question the carbonara), but - we confess it - sometime we miss a fat, greasy, junky (but succulent) American burger…

And some hyper-caloric donuts as well!

As a commuter

As a consummate commuter, I run to catch my usual flight, the 12.10 pm FCO-ISB via DOH.

See you in a week. I’ll try to take advantage of the next few nights without Leo to update the Blog.

Keep an eye on it!

Mirò

Squaletto

After only two classes*, Leo already received his first swimming certificate: squaletto (little shark).

Blood will tell out (buon sangue non mente; bon sang ne saurait mentir…).

(*) Ref: http://www.matteoandmathilde.org/2012/05/next-michael-phelps.html.

L’amico ritrovato (Reunion)

Catherine used to be my room-mate at the World Bank. We shared the office, but not only. Confidences, frustrations, aspirations… she was my office-mate, but she was a good friend as well.

And then, as often happens in our profession, someone leaves - in this case Catherine, destination: Nairobi. A few emails to keep in touch, but, with time, fewer and fewer, each of us taken up by our respective routines. I had heard she had moved to London after Nairobi, and then to Azerbaijan, but meanwhile I had moved to Delhi, and by that time we had completely lost track of each other.

Until yesterday, when I unexpectedly received a message from her. She is in Brussels now, got married, and got a beautiful daughter, Helena Chiara, more or less as old as Leo.

An Uhlman’s happy ending - which may become a Hollywood happy ending if we meet again eventually.

Who knows? Do keep on follow our Blog, and you will discover the end of this story...

Ten

With a few days of delay (apologizes, it has been a quite hectic period) we celebrate Leo’s first ten (decina, dizaine).

Happy tenth monthlyversary, Leo!

(Ps: this is Mathilde Leo’s favourite picture. I had been accused of deliberately not publishing it. I was just waiting for the right occasion...)

How I found Leo today when I came back from office...

… standing on the bed on his feet.

We witnessed this event with enthusiasm and - can’t deny - with a bit of apprehension as well.

They say in fact there is - in every child - a turning point, an invisible line on this side of which you have to pay attention they don’t get hurt, and beyond which you have to pay attention they don’t get up to all kinds of mischief.

I am afraid we are getting closer to (if we have not already passed) that line...