Andiamo per Gelato

I have, likely since day one, been a complete chocoholic. My family could tell you embarrassing and funny stories about how obnoxious I used to be about it. Then the page turned, and quality became an important factor, and then I lived in Italy for a year and a half and saw how good gelato, chocolate, and other foodie things could be. Snob or not, I have definitely scoffed over the past three years, sometimes half joking, at all Italian wannabe foods negli stati uniti.

So when I came back this time around, I was wondering if I had remembered correctly. Could gelato and the rest of the food really have been as good as I used to think? Was it still on this pedestal made of gold with splashes of diamonds all placed on the beach and surrounded by mountains, or something just as good?

Yes, yes it is. There’s a certain magic to gelato here. Especially in the summer when it’s nice and hot out. You can ask the gelato masters why it’s so much better. You’ll get various answers ranging from the ingredients, the process, the family recipes, the machines, the texture, or the Italian love. I believe they all help in making it special and diverso. However, I believe that there’s one more piece that can’t be overlooked. It’s the setting.

Eating gelato while strolling around Piazza dal Duomo, admiring the cathedral that took over 400 years to build and doesn’t have 2 of the same stones nor designs. Then meandering into La Galleria di Vittorio Emanuele and seeing all of the shops yet envisioning what this grand mall must have looked like 200 years ago when it was lit by candlelight and had a ceiling of crystal. Then to walking towards La Scala and hearing, whether actually or from memory, the beautiful notes of some of the most talented opera singers performing heart-wrenching and soul-baring operas. Then strolling down a narrow cobblestoned alley to see the stores that have been there for hundreds of years.

Or when you’re lucky it’s when you finished a delicious pasta alla carbonara lunch with the newlyweds, recovering from a 16-hour wedding day; and your best friend’s new hubby knew you had a goal of having gelato every day so he got some for lunch. And you make affogato with coffee gelato covered by the Italian espresso that also is so much better than you remembered. Looking at pictures and videos, laughing at all of the stories that continue to pour in from the day before, enjoying every second with such dear friends, loving each aspect of life and not taking anything for granted, including your soupy coffee gelato.

It could also be while you’re navigating gli navigli, enjoying the views then walking by the church and dog park you used to live near, or walking down Via Dante with the Castello behind you and Duomo in front, stopping to sit at Piazza dei Mercanti since you know the secret of that little courtyard. All the while feeling as though you never left and that as much has changed and improved just as much hasn’t changed at all and will always be this special special place.

Or perhaps it’s while you’re waiting for your train in the hectic and bustling Stazione di Centrale, with people running every which way to catch their train. Some heading off to their work city; some, like me, in no rush at all and just waiting for my binario to be announced so I can hop on the first of a 3-leg train trip to the mountains. Taking an extra minute to try to find how this gelato can be this good. Then realizing that I don’t really want to find out how, because the magic of Italy will always be the secret ingredient, it will always be what makes gelato as good as it truly is.

So yes, I have had gelato every day so far, and yes, I will continue to do so until I leave. However, I’ve also run in the mornings or walked over 25,000 steps, or danced for hours. So tutto va benissimo. Plus, it’s kind of like the sunshine tax I pay in SoCal, except it’s much less expensive and it’s just as rewarding. La maggia del gelato sará sempre quello – un po di maggia e un po della bellezza dell’Italia. Brindisi al gelato. E adesso devo prendere anche il prosecco per il brindisi. Scusatemi.