A new post after a few days of silence. I apologize for all who read this personal blog, for the short delay in updating you all about our trip adventures. As good as the internet connection deal can be, there areas in this beautiful country where one coverage beats the other, and I always seem to own "the other" deal at that spot, where there is no sign of life on my machine.
As you may remember, our kids left with Pino, Bella and Giovanni, our good friends, to go to
Calabria, to a small town called
Santa Maria del Cedro, about five hours drive from Rome. We joined them on Thursday, venturing one of the worst highway connections in the world: the Salerno-Reggio Calabria highway. For a small section of the road, since we only had to reach a small distance, this highway has alternate access to one or the other side of the road, where cars drive in opposite directions one joining lanes. The constructions in this area (about 500 km in total) started in 1956...and they are not nearly half way done. I let you imagine the rest! We were helped by the fact that we drove in the middle of the week against the main flow of tourism on both days. Nevertheless, the drive was stressful and we felt very grateful that we made it in one piece both ways.
Finding the kids so accustomed to the locals' way of life was a real satisfaction for Nick and I. We had no doubt they would be treated like royalty, so that was a given. But we were happy to hear comments from everyone who met them saying that they were extremely well behaved and polite kids. Parents count on that type of comment to be said when their kids are alone with others - it is like hoping that what we teach and believe in has actually happened in our children and we can feel proud of our hard work in teaching them good ways to be a human beings.
Needless to say the little town, the food, the company, the activities and everything else in between where. extraordinary! Pino and Bella cooked for us a wonderful meal, all the way to an amazingly big watermelon (see photos of our kids attempting to eat it). We spent a nice afternoon by the beach, and the beautiful ocean in Calabria. Everything was so clean, calm and relaxing. Even a jet-lagged Nick had a great time. Dinner was a bit late at a special pizza place where everyone knew each other and the atmosphere was very friendly and it felt truly like home. I observed that overall life goes at a different speed in these towns, especially when they are by the ocean. It is futile to change the rhythm of life: we had to adapt (not a great sacrifice after all, let me tell you!)
The following day we headed for
Maratea, the only town in
Mar Tirreno that belongs to
Basilicata, another region of Southern Italy. A very hot day indeed, but sunny and shiny on our visit to the hill where a statue of a big Jesus reigns over visitors and everyone who goes there to reflect on life. The town was also lovely and we had (big surprise!) yet again another phenomenal meal. We made it home alive just in time for dinner at my mom's and had a deserved rest for the day. I should probably mention that I also did a bit of shopping moment as well...those who know me will appreciate the need to satisfy a small pleasure moment once in a while!
The adventures of Saturday belong to a new blog post. For now enjoy the new pics.
The following day we headed for Maratea, the only town in Mar Tirreno that belongs to Basilicata, another region of Southern Italy. A very hot day indeed, but sunny and shiny on our visit to the hill where a statue of a big Jesus reigns over visitors and everyone who goes there to reflect on life. The town was also lovely and we had (big surprise!) yet again another phenomenal meal. We made it home alive just in time for dinner at my mom's and had a deserved rest for the day. I should probably mention that I also did a bit of shopping moment as well...those who know me will appreciate the need to satisfy a small pleasure moment once in a while!
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