Pizza and the Long Lunch

Chiara closed the lab for the long Italian lunch. "Come with me," she said.

Polly perched on her shoulder. They walked into the park.

Naples at lunch was busy. People were going to espresso bars. The streets smelled of garlic and tomato.

Chiara took her to a small pizzeria. Inside was a big wood-burning oven. The fire was very hot.

Neapolitan pizza is special. The city has rules for it from two hundred years ago. The dough is flour, water, salt, and yeast. The tomatoes are from the slopes of Vesuvius. The basil is fresh. The oven cooks the pizza in ninety seconds.

The pizza maker put a pizza in the oven. Ninety seconds later he pulled it out. The crust had dark spots. The cheese was melted.

Chiara gave Polly a small piece of crust. It was salty and charred and very light. Polly understood why Naples had protected this pizza for two centuries.

"Octopuses are smart because they only live a few years," Chiara said. "They have to learn fast. We can learn slowly. Pasta will learn everything she knows in two more years."

They walked back slowly. The afternoon was warm.