In the area of Salento, Puglia, we visited a Buffalo Mozzarella maker and farm. La Masseria San Biagio is an old farmhouse that now supports a water buffalo herd and creamery as well as extensive wild herb and vegetable gardens, a young fruit orchard, and an educational farm.

The day we visited we found ourselves the happy witnesses to a baby water buffalo's first steps! I know we'll see many births and first hobbles in our future, but I'm positive that this one will hold a special place with me. After a chat about the Masseria and a walk through their fascinating and madly deliciously smelling gardens, Davide, one of the farmers, told us about the calf that had just been born. He brought us over to a secluded area padded with fresh straw where the most beautiful, doe-eyed, knock-kneed, dewy nosed little creature lay blinking while it's enormous wild eyed and dramatically majestic mother paused from nuzzling and licking it to circle her calf before tossing her fur around and taking one or two "don't mess with my baby!" steps towards us.