Belleville Lodge goes Italian

At Belleville Lodge in Edinburgh, residents are getting through lockdown with the help of themed days moving around the world. Their first country themed day took them to Italy with a celebration of Italian food and reminiscence about famous places, from the comfort of the Belleville Lodge lounge and dining room!

The armchair travel day was a great success, says Matron Margaret Russell. “We downloaded lots of pictures of famous Italian sites, and made each resident an individual place mat, so we had the Trevi Fountain and the Coliseum, for example. The dining room tables and windows were decorated with Italian flags and we enjoyed an Italian menu throughout the day. Lunch was lasagne and garlic bread with tomatoes and peppers, with a glass of Italian wine and tiramisu for dessert. Then at afternoon tea, we had Italian chocolates and cakes, and heard interesting facts about Italy.”

“Quite a few of our residents have visited Italy and enjoyed reminiscing about their time there, so the pictures and facts triggered memories of past adventures.” Residents are of course adhering to social distancing, with people sitting at separate tables in the dining room, says Margaret. “We have enough space for around nine people with social distancing, and we had 1-2-1 chats and Italian treats for those who can’t be downstairs at the moment, so they don’t miss out.”

Many thanks to the staff at Belleville Lodge for the lovely photos.