Caffe Santa Zita
Rain and grey skies. Grey skies and rain, but no snow in the mountains.
It has rained since forever. Hard rain bucketing down, rain that gathers in puddles and drips from leaves. We are stuck in; rain, consecutive colds and a stone dead car battery.
Undisturbed over winter, the wildlife reclaims the garden, right up to the door. A Little Owl was sitting atop the chimney pot looks as if it had just landed from 100 Acre Wood. In our study, the patter of rain on window sill is broken only by the dusk bird songs. I can’t tell them apart so got the Merlin App and have now become a twitcher.
Slide back the heavy old bolts on the door, step out onto the rain washed stones and the garden is alive with damp birds. Melodic blackbirds, warbling robins all sing at a dusk as if auditioning for the romantic poets. And intermittent screeching sound erupts as if a bird was being given a hard poke. ‘Little Owl’ says my app.
Little Owl, sweet, diminutive mythical creatures, Minerva Goddess of the Night’s owls, icons of wisdom and knowledge, harbingers of death. Legend has it one foretold the murder of Julius Caesar.
My theory is that Mozart had in mind the Little Owl when he wrote ‘Queen of the Night’ play both videos together as a duet and see if you agree.
The grey clouds retreat to the hill tops, the garage man installs a new car battery.
![](https://whitmartlet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/High-brow-museums-768x1024.jpg)
![](https://whitmartlet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Sleepy-Renaissance-palaces-1024x927.jpg)
![](https://whitmartlet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Thousand-year-old-olive-tree-768x1024.jpg)
![](https://whitmartlet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Gardens-waking-up-768x1024.jpg)
We risk a shower to dash out to Lucca. The walk along the walls is crowded by Lucchese out in the fresh air. We think about a couple of museums, but don’t venture in. We think about a few churches; nah. Instead we are lured into the most delightful romantic tea shop in a little piazza just down from the walls for an early St Valentine’s indulgence. Cafe Santa Zita
OOOO it’s lovely. Rammed with shiny old world things, wood, low light, pastries, biscuits, various Willy Wonka machines for making hot chocolate or coffee. The background music- piano. The hot chocolate is wanton, pure sin.
Dare I say it- if you want to cosy up in a nook with your loved one, if you want to scoff apple pie and dive head first into hot chocolate so thick. you can stand a spoon in it- it’s fabulously unmissable.
![](https://whitmartlet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Bisciteria-768x1024.jpg)
![](https://whitmartlet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Gin-tipples-768x1024.jpg)
![](https://whitmartlet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Rambling-olde-worlde-charme-768x1024.jpg)
![](https://whitmartlet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/wanton-hot-chocolate-768x1024.jpg)
Special thanks to Nigel Williams for allowing me to use his simply wonderful photograph of a Little Owl chick. What an amazing shot! For this an other beautiful photographs go to https://www.nigelwilliamsimages.co.uk
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2 Comments
Loved this atmospheric little bloglet! 🦉☕️
Thank you so much! Did you play the videos side by side? I think I’m onto something! Much love xxx