Apparently shopping is a thing that happens in Italy. Fashion is an important consideration here as well. The group schedule for the morning was left open to allow everyone to indulge in these pursuits. Although Ivrea has a weekly market not far from our hotel, we decided to travel slightly farther afield, to the town of Biella which is known for its textiles. The drive took us up a winding road and through a tunnel into the next valley over. We ended up seeing a number of interesting shops, including a gourmet food store and (as promised) a fabric merchant. (Shopping for fabric itself turned out to be harder than we had expected, because “fabric stores” in Italy actually sell fabricated goods — i.e., clothes.) On the way out of town we stopped at the factory outlet store of Piacenza cashmere, a family business run by three brothers in the 14th generation. They sell fancy fabrics!

As it happens, our schedule also included two fancy restaurant meals. The first was a group lunch at La Mugnaia in the old town of Ivrea. For starters we had a zucchini veloute soup with poached pigeon egg and parmesan tuile, followed by tagliatelle with wild mushroom ragout. The main dish was guinea fowl on mashed potatoes, and we ended with a cold chocolate mousse topped with a coffee foam.

Between lunch and dinner we had more singing practice in the castle. The group is really coming along nicely. The instructors have chosen a nice mix of different songs, enough to provide us with a challenge yet definitely attainable. It is a real pleasure to look at a song that seemed complex and difficult when we tried to sing it on the first day, yet now has become familiar enough that we can sing it through with feeling and inflection.

Our dinner reservations were at the hotel restaurant, which until recently had held a precious Michelin star. Alas, the star was revoked not long ago, perhaps for some trifling infraction — as far as we could tell, the food was inventive and delicious, and the service friendly yet efficient. The dishes we ordered were rabbit with sweet and sour vegetables; zucchini and cheese flan with a poached egg; green ravioli with spinach and ricotta, and pigeon with foie gras and plum sauce. Far beyond these, the staff kept bringing us additional treats that we hadn’t ordered: house-made vermouth (delicious) as an aperitif, an inventive five-layer concoction of colorful vegetable foams that celebrated the recent Torino Olympics, served in a martini glass, and a plate of small petits-fours-style dessert bites to go with the semifreddo and chocolate torta we had ordered. It was all mouthwateringly delicious.