A Porky Day

 

Yes, that is a roasted pig head in the case.

This man is my hero. He was at the market both of the Tuesdays that I was there. He sold roasted pork! As my Mom used to say, "pork, my favorite meat." Now, if you have reasons for not eating pork, that is your problem, but not mine. My problem was getting close enough to this guy to get a bite. His porchetta stand was always packed. I just stood from afar and took photos. I could never get a good one of him as the bar of the counter was always right in the middle of his face, even when he stopped working for a fraction of a moment so I take get his photo.

The first time I saw him, there was an entire roasted body of a pig around 5 months old, head and legs removed, but skin intact! It was a hugh piece of roast pork that he sliced from. On this second Tuesday, we arrived at the market later in the morning, and he had already sold about 3/4 of this new carcass, sending away might happy customers.

I just took more photos and said to myself, "that must be really good for these folks to line up as they do." 'The Prochetta Man' cut per order, placing the meat on a piece of butcher paper. His customers could also tell him if they wanted some crispy skin, or some of the stuffing that was inside the pig. His assistant weighed the meat and took the money, and Porchetta Man just kept slicing. They also made panini sandwiches.

I just watched, and wondered. I walked away several times, and as I walked away for what i knew would be the last time in my life, I said to myself, "Are you nuts? You LOVE pork, and you are dying to know just how good this is. GO TRY IT!" So I got in line. When I got to about number three in line, I could see the sign on the glass saying what he sold along with the prices. I had no idea, except that they sold a sandwich.

Now next up at bat, he asked me if I wanted a panini. I said "no," made the 'small gesture' with my thumb and index finger and said, "picolo". He understood me, smiled, and sliced a piece of meat, rolled it and placed it in a napkin and handed it to me, free of charge with a big smile.

I walked away with the morsel and popped the entire thing in my mouth all at once. It was truly a little slice of heaven! Succulent, perfectly seasoned, and melted in my mouth. It was worth the wait, and just enough for an exquisite memory.

Later that day, we were off to Orvieto. We went to see the Duomo, but not far from the parking up a narrow street, this is what we came to.

A wild boar head trophy.

I just had to get my photo with it.

If you could see it, you would know that the charm on the necklace I am wearing is a pig, given to me by my granddaughter for Christmas some years ago now. I love pigs, ever since I met the pink pigs that my brother-in-law was keeping. They had such personality, and intelligence, and they stood and posed for me while I recorded my first pig drawings in a sketchbook. Fun stuff!

Below is a photo of this large boar

and the man that took the trophy.

Look at the size of it!!!

It could have killed him I suppose with those tusks.

 Above is the profile shot!

And below, much later I came across this tile sign.

Made me smile, and reminded me of the end of the movie 'Fargo'!

If you've seen it, you know what I mean.

 And on my last day in Italy, in Perugia,

here were images of boars on a very fine and famous fountain.

Who knew there was such a love of pigs and boar in Italy?

Yet more proof that this animal is loved was a comment to me from Diego, at the Civetella Raniera Castle. He saw my necklace and said,

"I like your necklace, because I love that animal."

I couldn't have said it any better myself.