Today, while taking our usual walk through the parterre and then around the bend, we heard voices coming from below the hill. We knew at once it was people picking olives at Casale della Torre, the Agriturismo operated by friends Lapo and Paola. We walked down the winding road and saw Ilaria in a tree… “Possiamo aiutare?” (Can we help?) we called out. We knew the answer would be yes.
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We spent the rest of the day with Ilaria and some of her relatives and family friends, talking, laughing, and enjoying the incredible autumn day as we picked various shades of olives. Except for Ilaria, none of them spoke English, but that didn’t matter as we shared a common language in the effort.
Two of the men were in the trees, expertly cutting and dropping large branches, from which we would remove the olives. Apparently, those involved deemed Len and I expert enough from our previous work as no one gave us additional pointers. (I did notice, however, that Ilaria occasionally checked to be certain we left no olives on the branches!)
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One of the things I love about working with Italians is their love of the land. The olives vary among the trees, large riper ones easy to remove and others, still small and green, a bit harder. At each tree where the olives were large and very ripe, they would be delighted and describe them as incredible, beautiful, etc, still having appreciation for nature after picking olives for more than 40 years.
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We worked several trees at once, and after a tree was picked, the olives would be gathered and the nets would be moved to the next tree. “Corragio, avanti” they would say after the tiring day got long…have courage and move on (to the next tree!)
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After a bit, it was time for a “simple” pranzo, so we gathered in the cantina to enjoy pici with pork and bread with the new oil they had already harvested. As always, a lovely, fresh, and delicious meal, shared among friends.
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Afterward, it was back to work.
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Sunshine, new and old friends, working the land. An American friend recently commented that we work hard and pursue our careers in order to have the opportunity to return to our roots and understand the land of our ancestors. Well said, Jean. So true and so rewarding, and exactly why we keep coming back.
Ciao,
Judy
Tags: Autumn Olive Harvest; Nuovo Olio, Casale della Torre, Olive picking in Cortona
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