All of your dining is in the Villa at the top of the hill. The villa also has a nice library and gets numerous world newspaper and very timely, in all kinds of languages (because it is an international center and used a lot by the UN/WHO and other Rockefeller-sponsored meetings).
It is a very fambly-like environment - and when you have week-long or longer CONferences, which are relatively small - ours was maybe 20 people as participants and you are spending all day with them and living next to them, it becomes like fambly. There can be multiple CONferences going on at the same time - there are a few CONference rooms in the Villa - all pretty smallische - like a really long CONference table, small enough you just need your regular voice - no mikes or amplification - cozy. Treats, candy and various beverages on DaTable and a breaks you can swing by the dining area and there is a small snack bar area to gett what yer tummy desires and take it back into the CONference room if you wish - or eat/drink it on breaks.
The meals are awesome. Even you wood approve. Chef-prepared and international butt IIRC Italianische-slanted overall. No menu choice - you are served whatever is made - butt who cares because it is always gut - I never recall any meal that was nott first rate and delish. No chikkin and pasta that I recall, butt one excellent dish with ziti and either eggplant and/or zucchini in a thin tomato sauce with olive oil and maybe a couple other vegetables - spinach I think was one. I loved that veggie pasta dish!
IIRC, and this is only a vague memory and I am nott shure of it - butt I think the library also has a TV which is set on a news channel like CNN or SkyNews with the sound off and the closed captioning in Engrish. Butt the TV may be in another room - I cant be shure it is the lieberry - there are also sitting rooms and such - I just recall seeing a TV with a news channel and running the closed captioning.
Your room has a basic bathroom and shower, no TV butt a radio. No mini-fridge (no need)), butt they restock your room every day with gas and non-gas bottled water - large bottles, room temp) have maid service and clean the glasses. No AC, butt did knott need it - however on the third floor, it did gett a bit too warm in late afternoon (when you came down for pre-supper rest until the van came back to take you back up the hill to the villa), butt outtside temp is mild and it cools down quickly when the sun goes down. I had a LOTT of luggage (Id bought a large set of teak blocks in a suitcase-style box with carrying handle for DaSun in Milano and had to cart that along with my other luggage; so I wish I had the second floor room instead - cooler and easier to haul the luggage up one flight of narrow stairs instead of two. Butt you dont get a choice - they assign you your room. It had a great view anyway.
Thank allah for the van service. Some of us tried to walk up for breakfast and after once to twice, we decided it is better to use the van. You could walk downhill, butt the drive is so serpentine and you cant cut thru because of grape vines, trees, and landscaping - pretty shure that would be frowned upon if you tried it. So if you walk down, it is a very long, serpentine walk and you have to be cognizant of the van coming and going because the path/road is very narrow and the van is about as wide as the path/road - and you know Talyun drivers - so find a place where you can get off the path before that van comes by and splats you onna DaGrille.
Oddly, I do knott recall if there was any internet - I think knott - and this was pre-smartphone and WiFi daze and I do knott remember ever using my laptop in the room for internet. Certainly nobuddy would think to bring a notebook computer into a COnference room - that would be extremely rude and you might be told nott to do it. It is possible there was one or two computers in the library or a siting room, because we all had to be able to Czech our emails. I just dont recall doing it. But I think there were a few public use computers somewhere in the villa and they had internet - at least for email access.
It was a very unusual and very cool experience.
Oh yeah, the Villa also hosts writers and artists in residence, so you get to mingle with those in-residence folks at meals and in the library and sitting rooms. Again, those artists and writers are invited - they fill outt applications to the Rockefeller and a tiny fraction (1 or 2 of each type) are selected for in-residence work for I bleeve it is a year. And they get a stipend and grant for their work (supplies, etc.). I dont recall any other CONferences going on while we were there, butt I recall one of the writers in-residence vaguely. Nott his name, butt his face - he often sat near where I did for some meals - he only went to a few meals while I was there.
Oh, and they do your laundry. Leave it in a bag in your room and when the maid comes down in the morning she tosses it to the van driver who takes it to some laundry facility on the estate, when you come back down to your room for your pre-supper respite, your laundry has been done and is hanging in your closet or on the dresser - if needed, pressed. Thus you can put on clean clothes for dinner. Nifty system they have worked out. As you know, supper in EUrope is generally later than in North Merrika - so you can grab a pre-dinner nap if you want - my room was a bit too warm for that, so I usually took a shower and read. Suppers were long, multicourse and leisurely - to provoke conversation I think. Then there were post-dinner chats and socializing in the sitting areas and I think we started down to our room 10-ische or so. i know it was dark and in the summer (June or July IIRC).
I wunder if they had to shutt down for COVID? They employ a fair number of folks. Must be 10 or so just gardeners and landscapers.
AI
