It is hard to escape the pull of Italy. All roads lead to Rome and sometimes, one just has to accept it.
After living in Italy, which is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, I am continually asked if I miss it. No. But I do miss the cooked ham. The cured ham. The thinly sliced ham. So I went back. Not just for the ham.
In a small commuter town south of Florence, I went to a fantastically wonderful deli called Prelibum. Prelibum is Latin for “before the cake” so this is a place to buy delicious savory dishes before one eats cake. The deli has proscuitto, cheeses, wine, prepared dishes, and my favorite, Norwegian salmon. If you have never had Norwegian salmon, then I recommend it. If you think salmon is too oily or fishy, then try Norwegian salmon. (I don’t work for Norwegian salmon). Prelibum is also located in a small town in Belgium as the owners are Belgium and Italian.
In this little town in Tuscany, I also had other good food. But I must admit that I was bit focussed on the ham. The one I liked was called “Prague ham” — call me weird, but I liked that it looked like ham. Not a mishmosh of pieces stuck together with meat glue. (I prefer that as spam or a hotdog — what did you think it was made of?)
Sure, I walked along the Arno, drank prosecco, and walked the passegiata, and all those other “dolce vita” things that one does when in Italy.
On the train to Rome, I ate ham. On the flight back, I ate ham.
I love living in Adana, but maybe I need to take some ham breaks…