January Review 2026
January 2026
Remember that Naida and I have a YouTube channel you might find interesting
January Brought . . .
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Friends, new friends & renewed friendships.
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Food, oh my, food. Naida says she’s never eaten more cheese or pasta (not to mention her favorite pizza, made with truffles).
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Roof repair, at least the beginning.
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And ITALIAN LEARNING! Tutto i Giorni (every day), in class with others, over the internet with our live tutor, and in the Piazza, with Ivana and Romano.
Christmas till January 6.
That’s right, Christmas is celebrated here until January 6th. Needless to say, we had a number of events we could go to, even after December 25th.
Clockwise, beginning with the detailed Nativity scene is very typical here. I can’t imagine how long it takes to put one of these together.
Next is a huge Christmas tree in old-town L’Aquila. We spent the night there due to an early morning meeting to get one of our documents, and we didn’t want to deal with snow and ice. We found a great Bed and Breakfast in the heart of “L’Aquila Centro” which suited our needs well.
The service we attended was a “post-Christmas” musical which was very Evangelical in the choices of music.
Finally, I thought Naida was stunning in her suit she wore to the New Years Eve party and since we didn’t leave until after midnight, I decided that photo qualified for 2026 photos.
Friends, NOT the TV Program.
Friends are a HUGE part of our life. Amazingly, in the USA we barely knew our neighbors. Here? We are constantly meeting new ones and getting reacquainted with old ones. Pier (yes, that’s the proper spelling) who I’m hugging took us to dinner one evening, his wife was there, and she ordered. AMAZING! She ordered things we had no idea were on the menu.
Mark’s Hair-Care!
Our Italian Learning!
Mark’s Tooth!
January forced us to deal with some issues we had put off in every other trip to Capestrano. But we were here permanently now, so I needed a “Parrucchiera” in my own village. Alessandra has been an answer to my “hair-prayers” (not that I pray about that sort of thing, of course).
Our “Comune” payed for and set up a series of Italian lessons for “Straniere” to learn the local language (local dialects not withstanding).
And then there’s the issue of a dentist, when you need it. He’s a GREAT DENTIST and I couldn’t be more pleased, but drilling into my tooth without novocaine was, well, interesting. I’m lying, IT WAS SCARY!
Snow? Not Here, Baby!
One of the things we love about Capestrano is that we get to see the snow, OUT YONDER. It is beautiful, and tops the mountains in our valley, on the OTHER-SIDE of our valley.
Until, that is, a few days this year.
Naida and I were “kind-of” okay with it, but my Aloe Vera plants are still grumpy at me.
Food? It’s How We do Life Here.
I’m serious! When you’re at a restaurant, you own the table, all night! It’s amazing. The waiters are not kicking you out to prepare for the next sitting. I can’t tell you how often we do 3-4 hour dinners and 2-3 hour lunches.
And, regarding the food we put into our bodies, OUR BODIES notice the difference the moment we start to eat it. When we returned to the USA, after being in Italy for two months, our bodies wanted to rebel at the food.
And then when you find something you like, you keep ordering it. At this particular restaurant Naida has found a Sausage and Truffle Pizza which is incredible.
I wish I knew what she was smiling at, but doesn’t she look like she’s just eaten half the pizza all by herself?
Vaca in Abruzzo!
Our “Region” is known for its outdoor activities. Italians love to vaca in Abruzzo. Our little valley is known by two names; “Valle del Tirino” & “Valle Tritana” for the three mountain springs which feed the “Fiumi Tirino” (Tirino River).
Naida and I try to walk every day. We have found some brilliant trails, paved and not, where we can walk for hours.
Incredibile! (that’s the Italian word, not a misspelling of the English)
Are We Having Fun Yet?
YOU never have to ask that here. Believe me, WE NEVER have to ask that here. The move hasn’t been easy, but we are much more comfortable than we were the first year.
We walk everywhere. We try to never take the car up to the piazza. We have a brilliant little outdoor market every Friday, our own mini supermarket, a doctor, pharmacy, post office . . . all the comforts of home.
Oh, hey! It is our home, at least the home in the upper left corner. The home in the lower left corner is a former restaurant right on the river. It looks like it is being renovated. We’ll see. The river actually runs under the edge of the building. One of the videos below shows you this building and the SUPER CLEAR Fiumi Tirino.
All the Comforts of Home.
Naida is actually carrying down the hill the “separated-out garbage” which was not taken by the garbage men on that day . . . we had put out the wrong bags for the day.
Naida has done A PHENOMENAL JOB making our new house a home. Using ideas like, mirrored armoire’s to give the room more depth. And glass shower doors which open around the sink without hitting the sink.
And the coup de gras? Her hair. I feel sorry for her. My hair is pretty oily but hers is pretty dry and the water here has challenged it. But she is getting the better of it, trying various remedies, and talking to the older women who have lived here for a long time. Even I’ve gotten involved making a “Jojoba oil & Rosemary Concoction” which I’ll try to convince her to use.
They Started on Our Tetto (our roof)!
YIPPEE!
I don’t need to say anymore than that. That one word says it all! Believe me.
But I will say this, Santo and Sebastiano, a father and son team are brilliant! I have loved watching Santo look at a problem, and then he thinks thru the solution. You can see the wheels turning over in his head.
We are very, very grateful for them. Next month I’ll have more photos of where they’re working right now. At the beginning of April they’ll get started on our “Parcheggio” (parking area).
Did I tell you how much Naida and I appreciate them?
I’m Sorry for These Photos.
I am. I’m sorry. I got greedy!
There are so many good, no, GREAT photos of our valley from our place, I just wanted to give you a taste of them.
Depending upon the weather, sometimes 10 minutes is all it takes to fill the valley with fog and then reveal the beauty.
What can I say?
È magnifico!
Our Biggest Need???
Naida and I Covet Your Prayers. Please Don’t Stop.
CHECK OUT OUR TWO SHORT VIDEOS BELOW.
The first one is January 7th in L’Aquila and the snow.
The second one was January 31st, taken as Naida and I walked down the hill from our home.