One of the things I like most about traveling is meeting new people, having new experiences or experiencing something familiar in an extraordinary way. I’m always surprised when something I’m familiar with takes my breath away and embeds itself into my grey matter. On a recent trip to Italy, I found myself hiking along a spectacular trail between two coastal Mediterranean towns. The trail was very narrow and steep and just another of the thousands of terraced ledges that create the origami landscape that faces the beautiful blue sea. It was a perfect day…blue sky, white puffy clouds, fantastic temperatures and blustery breeze that kept us comfortable as we traversed this threadlike path across the mountains.

As we turned a corner, the trail opened up and there in the elbow of the next switchback was a tall elderly man that looked something like how I imagine Father Time should look. Grey beard, long grey hair and a straw hat. Although he was a bit shabbily dressed, he still somehow managed to come across as very stately. He spoke no words as he stood next to his baskets of lemons and oranges. We selected two beautiful oranges and conducted our entire transaction with bad Italian on my part and gestures on his part, still no words. He took out his knife and scored the oranges, so we could peel them more easily. We eagerly gathered up our bounty and headed down the path in the wake of his smile and silent wave.

At the next wide spot in the trail, we scrambled up the nearest ledge off the trail for a seat and enthusiastically dug into our oranges. This was the most amazing orange I’ve ever had. Fresh off the tree, fully ripe and perfect. The rind peeled easily from the meat of the fruit. The orange was tender, sweet and juicy. It wasn’t pithy or fibrous like the oranges I get at home, where to eat the actual fruit becomes a chore and ultimately I end up just trying to suck out what little juice remains. As I sat with my husband of 25 years, overlooking the Mediterranean while delighting in the sweet and succulent taste explosion in my mouth, I knew this was a moment to be treasured.