We first met Anne Kaplan at our friend Paola Salvioni's home. Anne is a professor at Columbia University, and when not in New York, she is at her well-restored country home in the hills near Greve-in-Chianti, living the expatriate life (at least part-time). Anne had the inspiration to invite the expats she knew to an old-fashioned 4th of July barbecue and potluck at her house.
Anne's home is beautiful inside...
... and out,
That is Paola on the front porch.
...with flower gardens (yes, Carmen snapped a lot of photos!),
... a vegetable garden that supplied tomatoes, cabbage for cole slaw, and cucumbers for our dinner,
...and a pond with lily pads, frogs, and koi!
Anne fired up her brick wood-burning barbecue and cooked up a ton of good old American hot dogs and hamburgers, in addition to making sloppy joes, potato salad, and cole slaw. Anne's gentleman friend Gary made a killer lime jello salad. Some of the side dishes brought by others had a decided Italian flair, it must be said. But it also must be said that Pasquale, the one purely Italian guest, said that the burgers and dogs with mustard and ketchup were the best!
We are unquestionably loving our year of living in Italy and enjoying the experience of Italian culture, but we also love our roots, as exemplified by a 4th-of-July gathering. We want to thank Anne for having us over and putting this together. Needless to say, EVERYONE went away well-fed!
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