Return to Salvatronda, Italy 2012

Back in Simioni-land!!

updates and photos to follow.

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A Busuito, Gigli, and Simioni in Rome!

Big surprise!
I was contacted on Facebook by a Busuito living in Rome!
Elisabetta Busuito. a criminal law attorney.
Her father was born in Sicily, she in Rome.
...we met. and, her sister is married to a Gigli from Rome.

more later.....

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Rome for my 60th Birthday

more later ( I hope!)

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Flooding and mudslides in Cinque Terre

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There were terrible rains and mudslides in Cinque Terre about 10 days after we were there.
I'll post some of my "before" photos, but here are some from an Italian newspaper:
genova.repubblica.it/cronaca/2011/11/24/

I found it through an American girl living in Liguria's blog. I'll post one of her updates "Prima-e-dopo", but if you also read her earlier posts, you see how awful the mud was/is.

Monterosso

This church was directly across from our apartment in Monterosso al Mare

Another news story from when the floods happened:

http://www.euronews.net/2011/10/28/italy-declares-emergency-in-flooded-northwest/

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Simioni del Mondo! It's a small world after all!

 Mattia meets Veronica in Greece..... OMG!

We are back in the USA for just a few days when Mattia Simioni writes me from Greece where he is working for the summer.  He is from Rick's father's hometown of Castelfranco Veneto.  

He tells me this story:  At his hotel a girl checks in who ends up working with him.  Her last name is Simioni too so they start up a conversation. She live about 2 hours from his town.  She happens to mention that she had recently met some Simionis from the USA who came to visit.  

He replies:  You don't mean Nancy & Rick Simioni do you???  She says "YES!!!" And he tells her how we had just visited HIS family!

In Greece!  It IS a small world after all!
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Returning to the lakes: Maggiore & Como, with Lucas & Elena

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Florence

Michealangelo:

Pinocchio was everywhere.  Rick finally asked, in some basic Italian, why.  Well, it turns out the author of "Pinocchio" lived in Florence.

Speaking of books and Florence, we both read the true story "The Monster of Florence" by American author Douglas Preston.  It was very very interesting.  The book ended up being more about the legal system in Italy, and, relates directly to the Amand Knox case.  Read it all the way through if you can.

With the very narrow roads, some trucks are as small as motorcycles!


The Florence Duomo

http://goitaly.about.com/od/florenceitaly/a/florence-duomo.htm

And, a little side trip to Pisa (we just had to!)

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Bologna with Cippi

Rainy Rainy Rainy.   dang.  enough already!!!

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Lucas, Elena, Sergio... Simionis By The Lakes

 

We have visited so many fabulous places with Elena and Lucas.  Here are a few more.

and then to Lucas' cousin Sergio's.  Cavona is the smallest village I've ever seen.  Very old, and really spooky in a thunder and lightening storm!  ;)

and then, this little village of only 200 people has this museum:

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Cittadella/Salvatronda/Castelfranco.... Birthday/Anniversary....

May 5 - Cittadella - Carlo/book/simioni strada with Gabriele

Simionis everywhere!

May 6 - priest: found desiderio(s); train to Treviso
Birthday party!

A good old-fashioned, down the basement, loud and fun birthday dinner with 6 homemade pizzas and 3 other Simioni families!
We may be related to the former NHL player Mario Simioni!

May 7 - castelfranco mercato; cemetary; back to emanuele's for dinner

No relatives here that we know of.  They move the bodies after 30 years!


May 8 - Basso?   dinner at Gabriele's?
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Finding Desiderio - Going to Castelfranco, Veneto, Italy

Having a fantastic time, and cannot keep up with the blogging....  see Facebook for now.

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Oscar, Annalisa, Silvia, and Federica Simioni - Cartigliano, Italy

Silvia is one of my most active Facebook Simioni friends.  We have connected with her family too, through her.  Last year her father, mother, sister, and Silvia, drove 7 hours to meet us for the first time -- in Rome.

This time they drove a half hour to pick us up in Thiene (where we were for the wedding) and took us down to Venice for the afternoon.  We went to a small, off the tourist route, seafood restaurant where they brought out platters of food for 2 and a half hours!  It was incredible.  We enjoy this family, but sure wish we could communicate more!  Only Silvia speaks both languages fluently. (Although, young Federica is coming along with her English quite well when no one else is listening!)  What a meal!  What fun!  

Then we went to walk around Venice and the rain started....  it got cold and windy too.  Little did we know we'd have rain off and on for the nest 17 days!

Annalisa is so sweet too -- but now try to imagine me with her for 4 hours and not being able to have a conversation on our own!  Still, we laughed a lot, and even spent the night at their home.  At Silvia's request, I made them an American breakfast:  eggs and toast!

We Skype with them now and then, but only if Silvia or Federica are there to help us.

Silvia Simioni and Nancy

Above, Oscar Simioni and Rick.

Below, at the restaurant in Venice.

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Simioni Wedding In Thiene, Italy

So many Simionis, so little time!

We really enjoyed meeting Simionis from Thiene, Italy!

We were invited to the wedding of Elias Lorenzin and Diego Simioni.

Rick, Roberto, Diego, Elisa, Nancy, Francesco

We stayed two nights at the home of Roberto and his family: Guila, his daughter was my first Thiene Simionis Facebook friend, then Roberto.  Eventually, I became friends with many of the cousins.  Unfortunately, Giulia was not home this weekend, but at work in the USA!  New York City.  

 Elisa and Diego

 Many Simioni Cousins! (but none related to Rick.)

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Italy! In Search of Desiderio.

Our long awaited trip to Rick's father's hometown has begun.

We arrived safely in Milan and spent a day and a half adjusting to the time change and seeing a few of the sites.  The best was the view and architecture at the top of their Duomo!

More Photos on Facebook.

Then, the train to Vicenza, and on to the Simionis of Thiene and the wedding of Elisa and Diego.
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North County San Diego Italian Language Meet-up Group

Last Summer, in an effort to find people to learn Italian with, I found a Meet-up Group online for "Italian Speakers".  In fact, I found a couple.  But they were down in San Diego, a 45 mile drive and we just didn't get down there.  We love going to San Diego's "Little Italy" but again we don't go into the city often.  Then I found a Meet-up group in North San Diego County!  And we haven't looked back.

We have met many fun and interesting people. I think about 1/3 are Italians now living here, 1/3 are Americans who have lived in Italy a year or more, and the other 1/3 like Rick and I: love Italy and want to learn the language.

We meet for dinner at an Italian restaurant every-other-Monday in Encinitas (still a half-hour drive).  The group just started last Spring with about 4 people, then maybe 15 when we started going in the Summer and now: over 100!

We often have parties at homes, and darn, with busy days we had in December including Rome and Christmas, I forgot to post that Rick and I hosted a "Festa di Natale" for our group.

Oh, there was so much food!  I'll have to go find some photos to post.

Last month Stephanie held an "Italian Movie Night" while her Italian boyfriend Cippi was here visiting.  Yesterday Nino & Susan had many of us over for a "Cherimoya Tasting Festival/Individual Guacamole Contest".  As typical, a "few" bottles of wine were involved.
Susan with Cherimoya Ice Cream:

Jodi is also a group member and she teaches Italian.  Rick and I took her class last Fall, and I'm starting another this week.  We are improving but slowly slowly.  It's still fun.  We have been listening to a variety of Italian language cd's since last May when Carolyn bought me "Fodors Italian for Travelers" cd's for my birthday.  We listen while home, walking, driving, when ever we can.  In fact, a Pimsleur lesson is running on this laptop as I type.

Rick and I are getting very excited for our Spring return to Italy.  Several Simionis have invited us to their towns to show us around.  Brother and sister, Mattia and Elisa, live right in Rick's father, Desiderio's, boyhood home Castelfranco.  We have not found any direct relatives yet, but I don't doubt we are all cousins!

We have also been invited to a Simioni wedding in Italy on May 1st!  So, we are moving our trip up to late April so we can be there for that.  Our plan is to fly to Venice and spend a week or 10 days in Veneto which is where most Simionis live.  Then head over towards Milan and the lakes area for a few more Simionis.  

Somewhere is this Simioni family is the groom-to-be, Diego:

Then we'll move down to Florence and Bologna for more typical touristy travel.  Cippi lives in Bologna so we hope to meet up with him. Another person in our Meet-up Group is going to Florence in a few weeks and is staying for 3 months.  This will be the 3rd year she and her husband are doing that.  We should over-lap a few days and now are planning to meet up with them there!

OK...  I'd better listen closer to these Italian lessons so I can chat with all the "Simioni del Mondo"!

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