July 2-3 Dolimiti Moutains, Trento

We visited the Trentino-Alto Aldige region which used to be part of the Austrian empire. Thus, it is where Italian and German cultures convolve.

DAY 1 - DOLOMITI MOUNTAINS

After 3 trains and a bus, we made it to Ortesei, which is a quaint ski town at the base of the Seceda Mountain...and this town is already 4000ft about sea level. Here we fueled up with some food.

• Pane de segale puterese - relatively flat bread (but it is leavened). rye bread with caraway and fennel seeds. not too light, not too dark rye.
• Tomini - while I had this in Milan, the rind of the one here is a little more aromatic (or pungent to some)
• Apple cake from Langgartner Konditorei Pasticceria - very light crumb with beautiful crust. The crust was slightly harder and toothier, as if it had cornmeal. That may not be the case but the powdered sugar on top certainly contributed to the texture.

Then we took the cable car up another 4000ft. (BTW the peaks are even higher.)

Then we hiked around the top for a bit. We had an amazing view throughout. As expected, the air was not only thinner but also cooler. Lots of wildflowers and cowbells in the distance.

What I hoped to capture were the pretty blue butterflies.

I only noticed the other prominent aspect of nature later :p

This cow in the middle of the trail didn't mind when others passed, but turned its horns towards us when we approached. Probably because of my pink shirt. Anyway, some guy behind us simply walked up to the cow, touched its head and smacked the cow's butt. Real cow whisperer / farm boy - unlike us city folk. Only then did the cow move from the trail.

Funny thing - one of the two PhD students from China that Laura and I went with commented: "Why do you go downhill SO slowly, but uphill SO fast?!" Answer: lack of experience in hiking, plenty of experience in climbing up stairs

Also there were some nice playgrounds near the restaurants along the trail.

There were many times when I thought that pictures couldn't capture all of nature's beauty, but here they are anyway. 

Then we headed to Trento for dinner.

GREEN TOWER RESTAURANT

• Tagliere Trentino - cold cuts from Trentino region. carne salada typical of the region just tasted like thin sliced roast beef, though the texture was different from the cooked version and perhaps less beefy. salami was very good though - peppery in the beginning, aroma of wine at the end
• Risotto al fieno di motagna con filetto d'agnello ("mountain hay risotto with lamb tenderloin") - couldn't tell if there was hay?? it was cheesy for sure and there were also these broth jellies (jellied from added gelatin it seemed). tenderloin was lemony, not much lamb flavor.

• Spaghetti alla chitarra afumicata, vongole, porri e guanciale ("smoked spaghetti, clams, leeks, guanciale") - well rounded flavor, slightly creamy, slightly smokey. Guanciale didn't add much flavor since already smoked but added some crunch

• Strongolapreti Trentini al Fontale Cavalese e nocciole - gnocchi of the region. Very spinach forward dumplings, creamy but mild sauce. Hazelnuts didn't add much

• Zuppa d'aglio orsino, cozze e pinoli ("soup of aglio orsino, mussels, pine nuts") - very herbacious soup. brightness of puree complement sweetness of mussels, though perhaps overpower a bit. Pine nut contribute to sweetness but don't add too much

Search up "aglio orsino" to see what the herb/plant looks like

Look kinda like chives, but taste more vegetal and less pungent

Sunset+mountains on the way to our airbnb. There were a lot of tomato and grape fields near us (I think?)

DAY 2 - TRENTO AREA

We walked around the Duomo region. Trento definitely gives quaint capital city vibes. Also there were like five churches within three blocks of each other. Most of them had a medieval feel, though one had more of the Baroque extravagance.

ORRIDO DI PONTE ALTO

A cool canyon where they also built tall walls. The walls caused the water flowing down from the mountains to lose some energy, though that energy is not captured. Nevertheless, the built structures allowed us to experience the canyon.

CASTELLO DEL BUONCONSIGLO

Castle with artifacts and art from Trento, dating back to Roman times

Then we headed back because the Chinese students wanted some cheap Chinese food in Milan, which was understandable.

Game of pictionary telephone of the train

MORE FOODS OF THE REGION

Yogurt - very balanced. creamy not too acidic. perhaps not super aromatic/fatty.

Beer (non alcoholic) - again pretty balanced. light, a little sweet from the malt, a little bitter from the hops.

Schuttelbrot - bread croutons but in a large round form. rye flavor, fennel seeds, sesame flavor only when i bite through one.

Canderli con Speck - I had actually bought this at Aldi, prior to the trip without knowing that it was from the Trentino-Alto Aldige region. Made with stale bread and speck, so it was like a smokey matzo ball to me. Makes sense that it is also common in Austria, Czech, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland.

Formaggio Marienberger (cheese from Alto Aldige) - a bit funky and a little peppery, like Parmiagano Reggiano in terms of funk but less aged, more creamy, more salty

Formagella di Temosine (cheese from area near Lake Garda, right near boundary between Lombardia and Veneto) - pretty sweet and mild