23 Comments
May 1Liked by Elizabeth Minchilli

Hi Elizabeth! I loved your comment about wanting to travel to the Italy on the screen in Ripley! While watching Ripley I shared a similar thought with my husband: "I want to travel to the Italy of the 1950s!" I think I primarily wanted to stroll the close-to-empty streets and wear the cute outfits!

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Exactly! And order coffee served in those beautiful cups while reading real newspapers all day long.

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May 1Liked by Elizabeth Minchilli

We have 3 (!) freezers and by October they are full of B.C. berries, stone fruit, and veggies to enjoy all winter long.

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May 1Liked by Elizabeth Minchilli

I really appreciate your newsletter ! And the info about the trains..... so helpful! I agree about Ripley,

so stunning visually! Gorgeous photos of Italy!

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Everytime I read your updates I want to come back and sit in your garden with you!

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You chair is waiting!

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May 1Liked by Elizabeth Minchilli

Hi Elizabeth!

I hope you will watch All The Light We Cannot See on Netflix. But be prepared, while good, it leaves out much of that fantastic book. The book was flawless and unforgettable. The miniseries isn't at that level, unfortunately.

Thanks for your great posts!

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Just loved the book so much. Maybe I should skip the mini series and re-read? Fun fact: Four Seasons by Anthony Doerr is partly set at our home in Umbria which he stayed in one winter.

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The acting is good in the miniseries, but it leaves out so much detail and plot with respect to the book, that maybe a re-read would be a better idea. I think I should read it again as well! It's one of my favorite books of all time.

I love your fun fact! I have 2 of his other books (About Grace and Cloud Cuckoo) , but now I'll have to get Four Seasons, too!

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May 1Liked by Elizabeth Minchilli

Your monthly letter is so enjoyable Elizabeth. I totally feel what you're saying in regards to the movie: "It makes me nostalgic for an Italy that I never knew". As for freezers, my Roman fridge is so itty-bitty that it hardly has one!

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Sophie has an itty bitty fridge too, with a mini freezer. But she does manage to freeze stuff on Sunday that she then eats during the week.

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May 1Liked by Elizabeth Minchilli

Have you read Anthony Doerr's FOUR SEASONS IN ROME? It's about him winning the Rome Prize and moving to Rome with his newborn twins and wife.

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You know the chapter that is set in Umbria? That is our house!!

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May 1Liked by Elizabeth Minchilli

My freezer is full of baking treasures!

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That's the one thing I never freeze, except for bread. We end up eating everything I bake. (which I do rarely)

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May 1Liked by Elizabeth Minchilli

I also loved Ripley. So gorgeous and moody. But keep your expectations low re: All the Light We Cannot See. Brilliant book, terrible production!

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So I now hear.

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My kitchen is being dismantled tomorrow (or maybe Friday 🤷‍♀️) Luckily the freezer will stay plugged in but I just pulled out a kale/broccoli/pea soup and some cheddar drop biscuits for dinner tonight.

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Also: Thought of you when I pulled tomato soup out of the freezer yesterday and came very close to making grilled cheese to go with it.

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I haven't made biscuits in years and years. Good idea.

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I also collect the Buon Ricordo plates. They always spark dinner conversations with my girls remembering the restaurants and the trips that we got them on.

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Hi Elizabeth, I just shared your May news with all of my subscribers, since it is so interesting and well written and I know they love all things Italy. Hope you see some new subscribers from it. I write my Substack, "Letters from a 300-year-old Italian farmhouse," from my home in an ancient hill town in Piemonte. My goal is try to bring some of the area's magic into my reader's lives. Would love it you checked it out, too. Maybe we could collaborate some day! Barbara

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I love Ripley too . Just the sheer photography and the frames look great

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