Touring Termoli

Today, we headed into Termoli to book our bus tickets to Rome and two nights at a hotel. My cousin Pasquale was still visiting his in-laws but we thought a few days alone would be good for us and we still wanted to see the sights of Rome. After the booking was complete, our Zio Enzo, our personal tour guide, took us for an espresso (the boys had chocolate milk). This was the first time I had an espresso at an espresso bar. They call it an espresso bar because you literally stand at a bar waiting for your shot, you down it and a small glass of water and go on your way. It’s not like Starbucks where you sit and savour your Venti coffee over the next half-hour.

So the tour began. We walked through town by a very old castle and all long the coast line. The wind was strong and cool but the view out into the Adriatic Sea was beautiful! I could see why one might want to live their. I just love being near water. Walking through the small roads and narrow walkways was like we walked back in time. I loved seeing people hanging their laundry out or the window and older people just walking about. It was so nice.

When we arrived back from our tour, Zia Connie had the table set and lunch was ready. She made one of my favorites pasta e brodo (broth). A simple dish perfect for when your ears are so cold they burn. We spent a relaxing afternoon catching up on reading and finishing up a paper Dan had to hand-in as soon as he got back to school. We didn’t want to do any work while in Rome. We played some Scopa with Zio Enzo, looked through old pics with Zia Connie and watched a movie. Later that evening we watched the many fireworks from their balcony. They have a great view and then we heard the firecrackers being set off in the parking lot for the next few hours. They really know how to celebrate in Italy. After a few phone calls to parents, aunts, uncles and cousins we called it a night.

Casacalenda Day 2 and Family Farms

Today we headed back to Casacalenda and it was a much different experience with blue skies and the sun shining down on us. We were able to walk around in the streets and today I got to see the house where my grandpa grew up as well as take a few sunnier shots of my grandma’s house. I would have loved to them walking the streets when they were younger. Zio Enzo thought I was nuts taking so many pictures but he said Zia Lori was just the same (he made that comment after I took a picture of a door! Hahaha!) . We stopped at the butcher to buy 4 different kinds of meat for our New Year’s Feast, picked up a few postcards and purchased a hand-painted carafe of the Casacalenda bell tower. My own little keepsake. I love it.

After touring Casacalenda we stopped by my cousin Angela and Enrico’s farm. I met two of their daughters, Mirella and Antonella. They also have 3 sons, Vincenzo, Massimo and Franco . They have olive trees, a huge garden, horses, a few dogs and a MASSIVE chicken operation. They raise chicks until from soon after birth until they are 4 months old. The “barn” they keep them in is so long, I couldn’t see the end from one side. They have more than 250 thousand chicks at one time. They were so cute!

Then we were off a few minutes down the road to my Nonno Giovanni’s old farm which is now owed my three of my cousins (all brothers) Gian, Carmine and Pietro. It was so cool to see where my grandma would have worked in the fields. So many stories came to life for me there and again, I wished she was there with me. (Soon! I just got word that she has applied for her passport!) They have sheep, goats, ducks, a bunch of dogs including half a dozen puppies and hundreds of olive trees. My Nonno Giovanni had a house in the valley about a 10 minutes walk from the main house. To give you a better idea, these farms are in the midst of small mountains (or big hills). The terrain would not be easy to work. Unfortunately I could not walk down to the house because it was too wet and I would sink walking on the dirt road. Maybe this summer. Zio Enzo took us for a ride through the mountains on the rocky dirt roads later to give us a closer look of the small farm house. It was a wild ride…so fun! Thanks Zio Enzo! By this time it was late and should have gone back home to supper with Zia Connie who wasn’t feeling well so did not come with us but we got “conned into staying for supper” . (Twist my rubber arm!) We had spaghetti with mussels along with all the side dishes, homemade bread, salad fixed with olive oil made from trees my great-grandpa would have planted and of course vino. You know it’s good for your health! It was a great night.

Bethlehem in Larino

Today we drove around a bit more with Zio Enzo and Zia Connie and ended off at Maria (their daughter) and Daniele’s house for lunch. Once again, we ate like royalty. Homemade lasagna was the main dish. Yum! Their son Gianvincenzo is 7 years old and the cutest thing. He really enjoyed playing with Dan even though they did not always understand each other. I attached a little video of Dan and Gianvincenzo playing together and Gianvicenzo trying to overcome the language barrier.(Again, sorry about the crooked filming. I still hadn't figured out that you can only record one way.) In the picture you can see they are playing swords. It was pretty cute and funny. Gianvincenzo had no mercy on Dan.
Later that evening we headed into Larino to do some sightseeing. Maria is quite the tour guide and all in English which was great for us. We visited several beautiful historical churches and a nativity contest. Nativity contests/exhibits are very popular in Italy during the Christmas season. We saw nativity scenes made from seashells, rocks, pasta, in wine bottles and shoe boxes as well as some with flowing water and moving parts. However the best nativity scene we saw was the live nativity scene in the streets of Larino. Hundreds of Larino citizens come together to set up Bethlehem in Larino. Dozens give up their cellars to be transformed into various mini scenes of what would have been going on in the time when Jesus was born. There were scenes of sheep sheering, cheese making, bread baking, Bible translating, Scripture memorizing, jewelry crafting, guards arming, baccala selling, market bartering, wood carving, belly dancing, basket weaving, wheat grinding, tax collecting, grape squishing, fire stoking, chestnut roasting, stew brewing and of course angels singing, Mary adoring, Joseph comforting, cows lowing, shepherds praising, kings giving…Jesus lying in a manger. Every scene was complete with real people, real animals, real food, real music, real smells and a real sense of cooperation, love and community. I have never experienced anything like it. It was truly amazing. A must see if you are ever in Italy at Christmas time.
Hint for viewing pictures: You can click on the picture to view it larger.

Casacalenda...my roots.

So this morning after having breakfast and a café latte, we headed off to Casacalenda. I was SO excited! I had my camera and I was ready to see it all. Little did I know that Casacalenda was on top of a small mountain. After approximately 45 minutes of driving switchback up to Casacalenda, I was determined not to let nausea ruin this moment for me. It was a pretty cold day and we even got snow by the time we made it to the top. It was such a cool experience for me, this was something I always hoped to do. The only thing to make it better would have been my grandma in the back seat telling me stories about her walking these roads when they were just dirt. I got second best, Zia Connie telling me about how she used to “walk these roads to church. They were only dirt and we didn’t always get a donkey.” It was priceless. I am looking forward to more stories. Because it was snowing we couldn’t see too much of the beautiful countryside. We visited the cemetery first and refilled relatives vases with fresh flowers. It was so weird to see DiLalla and Iannidinardo on so many grave plots. The cemeteries in Italy are very different, instead of being buried, the caskets get sealed in a type of drawer. Richer families would actually be sealed together in a small house. I know I am not wording this properly but I will post a picture so you get an idea. (Auntie Linda, I can show you more later if you want.) We then drove around and took some pictures and stopped for an espresso and some Italian dolce. Dan opted for the hot chocolate which is more like a hot chocolate pudding . He had to eat it with a spoon. We then headed back to Termoli as it was cold but Zio Enzo ensured me that we would come back on a nicer day and walk around.

The picture at the fountain is special because Zia Teresa gave me a picture of my grandma and grandpa at this fountain when we were in Torino. Zia Connie told me they used to get water from this fountain in a great big copper water vessel and carry it on their heads all the way to their house. There's also a picture of me in front of the house my grandma grew up in and a video of the bell tower right beside the house. Sorry the video is horizontal. I didn't know you couldn't flip it afterwards. More on Casacalenda later.

Termoli Bound

We said our last goodbyes to Zia Teresa and Zio Mimmo this morning and hopped on a 7 and a half hour train ride to Termoli. Lucky us it was direct and we didn’t have to hop train to train. We got settled in our two seats and played many games of crib (which I won most of), read a bit, slept, listened to music and watched part of Schindler’s list as our laptop only had enough juice for about half the movie. I took a few pictures too. Surprised? It was cool to see water of the Adriatic Sea reach all the way to the train. The east coast of Italy is beautiful.
When we arrived at the Termoli Station, we didn’t see Zio Enzo right away and since we have never met, it can be an awkward experience looking people in the face and wondering if they are looking for you too. After about 10 minutes we found each other and headed over to their place to meet Zia Connie (Concetta, another one of my grandma’s sisters) for the first time. It’s so funny that the sisters can be so much a like after being apart for so many years. My grandma last saw Zia Connie in 1974 during her last visit to Italy. It was so nice to be welcomed so warmly by family I didn’t really even know. Later on that evening, Zia Connie told my grandma that we could just stay here and she would find us jobs. It was pretty cute. Not long after yet another delicious supper, Dan and I hit the sack. We were tired from the long trip and Zio Enzo was ready to take us to Casacalenda first thing in the morning.

Still Full…Do We Even Need to Eat Today?

After eating pretty much nonstop for the past 48 hours, we were given a bit of a break and we ate pretty light most of the day. Zia Teresa and I spent more than 3 hours looking through all of her pictures. I love looking at pictures and to see them of my family from before I was born is always a treat. I got to see pictures from the “old country” as grandma would say and it was a real special time for me. I even snapped a “few” shots of the pictures to bring back to Canada with me. I know my grandma will enjoy seeing them. (The pictures above is of my grandma's parents kissing...so cute!)Later in the evening we packed up our bags to get ready for our 7am train to Termoli in the morning.