Topher on our morning walk. He was sad to see us head off to Italy without him but managed to keep himself well rested and fed while we were away thanks to the careful attention of our cook Sebastian and his family.
In Italy standing on the land we just bought near Castelnovo ne' Monti in the Reggio Emilia region. Housebuilding begins this summer! We hope all of you will come for a visit.
Standing on the road just above our land. The weather was horrible most of our visit but we were able to capture a bit of the view for you here. In the background is the famous "Pietra di Bismantova," a fantastic rock formation that sits in the heart of Castelnovo ne' Monti.
Once back in Delhi we had to deal with the sudden heat of summer that arrives like a freight train in April. We quickly introduced Giovanni to the swimming pool at the American Embassy. We now head there once he wakes from his afternoon nap, often inviting one of his pals along. His girlfriend Matilda (an older woman at 7 months!) even comes in a pink swim outfit just like his own. What a cute pair!
We had a fantastic 10 day trip to Italy! Giovanni handled the 9 hours of flying quite well, though he did enjoy practicing his new high-pitched squeal for much of the time (to the delight of our fellow passengers, I am sure). We spent our time in the idyllic town of Castelnovo ne'Monti, which is about 2.5 hours south of Milan in the Reggio Emilia region. Here is where Paolo spent much of his childhood running free with his best friends Angelo and cousin Willy. Both men still live in the town so we were able to enjoy many days and evenings with them and their families. We stayed with Paolo's aunt Louisa and uncle Renato who took excellent care of us, filling us with homemade pasta, endless bottles of wine and laughter. Giovanni was a huge hit with his Italian family and seemed to thrive in the cool temperatures and fresh air of Castelnovo. We spent most days on walks through the rolling hills, drives and strolls in town.
Paolo and I were lucky enough to get some "insider info" on some beautiful land coming up for sale near his family's home. We bought the land and plan to begin building a house this summer- a place for vacations, visitors and, someday, retirement! It is so easy for me to picture senior citizen Paolo hanging out in the town square with his childhood friends, playing bocce and debating Italian politics. Maybe by then I will have finally mastered the Italian language? In between the ground-breaking this summer and our senior moments we do hope many of you make your way to Italy for a visit to the Belli home. We are at the edge of an enormous chestnut forest so after a day of chestnut gathering we will entertain you with local cheese, wine and prosciutto. For you more active types there is skiing (alpine and nordic), running trails, rock climbing and bicycling options aplenty. Hope to see you in Castelnovo very soon.
We are now back in Delhi for another month or so before we make our way to the US. We are still not sure of our arrival date as we are awaiting (still!) approval from the World Bank for Paolo to work from DC for one month. We will be staying in Georgetown and will be quite busy introducing Giovanni to the USA and to all of his friends and family there. We will have to leave dear Topher behind for the month of June while we are in Washington. He will certainly miss us, especially his new brother Giovanni (Topher rarely leaves his side these days), but we are reassured that he is so well loved by Sebastian and his family who will live here at the house to care for Topher. He will never lack for company, special treats, and cool air conditioning. We do hope the month passes quickly for our dear dog.
Enjoy the coming month of May- we have Paolo's birthday to celebrate and the hottest temps of the year to contend with (often 120 and above in May!). After nearly a year away from the US I am eagerly awaiting my homecoming. I cannot wait to see as many of you as I can. All of my love, Clara
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