Pieve: Mujeo Ladin Fodom

From the castle, we drove to Pieve … in the commune of Livinallongo del Col di Lana … aka Fodom in the Ladin language. We’d stopped at this town on moving day and strolled around a bit, but this time we timed our visit to coincide with the opening hours of the Ladin Museum.

We had time on our hands, however, as the museum did not open until 2:30p. No worries … we wanted to have lunch first anyway. We opted to go to Ristorante Pizzeria Klematys … in the square below the church.

The ambiance was German/Tyrol; the service fast; the waitress had a sense of humor; and the food was good. Mui ordered the special on the recommendation of our server … a beef fillet doused in a peppercorn sauce that had just the right amount of bite. I ordered the cotoletta alla Milanese (aka Wienerschnitzel) that came with French fries. Both dishes were delicious. We wrapped up with a special dessert — Kaiserschmarrn — which the waitress said isn’t always on the menu.

Kaiserschmarrn is a traditional fluffy Austrian dessert … it can also be eaten as a light meal. It consists of a slightly sweetened pancake that is shredded into bite-sized pieces while cooking. Often studded with rum-soaked raisins, it is typically caramelized with a bit of sugar and served warm with powdered sugar and a fruit compote.

I found the backstory to this dish interesting … so here it is as provided by AI: “The name translates to ‘Emperor's Mess’ … originating from the German words Kaiser (Emperor) and Schmarrn (mess or scrambled dish). It is famously named after the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph I. According to local legend, a chef accidentally tore a pancake intended for the Emperor. The Emperor tried the shredded pieces, loved them, and the "scrambled pancake" became a staple.”

Onward to the museum.

We didn’t know much about the Ladin Museum Fodom, but wanted to get a better sense of the Ladin culture since it is an important part of the Dolomiti. We were given a €1 discount each for being 65+ … paid a total of €8.

The purpose of the museum is to “… preserve and to pass on to future generations the ancient Ladin culture.” There were models of the different types of houses one might see in Ladin communities; agricultural equipment; samples of arts and crafts; several traditional costumes, including the more formal outfits a bride and groom might wear; geological artifacts; and examples of furnishings.

It was an interesting visit … our only disappointment being that none of the poster-sized signage included explanations in English. So we were left with the information we had pre-read on the web.

On the way back, we followed the same route we drove when we moved to Chalet Cogolara on the 10th. By 4:00p, we were at the apartment. Wanting to just chill (pun intended), I sat on the balcony and read. The wind added a chill factor that had me seeking out a fleece blanket to wrap around myself. Hey, no complaints … I’ll take cold over the alternative anytime.Read more