Well. A lot has happened since my last post. But the big event last month was that our daughter Caroline came to visit. She was here for a week and a half, and we made the most of this time.
She took the least expensive flight from Chicago, stopping over in Iceland, then arriving in Fiumicino (Rome) early afternoon on a Monday. Since she’s not traveled much and we had a lot to catch up on, and I wanted to be sure she found the bus to Vasto, I took the bus from Vasto Nord to meet her. We were a bit surprised when she didn’t arrive at terminal 3. Turns out, she went through customs in Iceland when she changed planes, so her plane went straight to terminal 1. We did manage to find each other, and then eventually found our bus. The buses here are very comfortable and it was a nice 4-hour ride to Abruzzo.
Mike picked us up and drove us home. From here, things get a little foggy for me. I acquired a serious sinus infection and for the rest of the time she was here, I was pretty much out of it. Which is one reason this post is so late. I am now, after several weeks, and a series of antibiotics, finally feeling normal. Anyway, here’s the highlights of our time with Caroline. Not necessarily in chronological order, but you will see that we did, in spite of my not being well, have a great time. I should say that Caroline’s objectives were to (1) see where we live and meet our friends and neighbors, (2) to meet the Italian family, and (3) take some well-deserved relax time. I think we very successfully accomplished those things. Click here to see the photos.
One afternoon we had a barbeque for friends and neighbors. So much fun! Mike grilled burgers, Caroline and I made deviled eggs and finger sandwiches. Maria brought her bean salad and a cake. And we had picked up a tray of delicious deserts from a bakery in Vasto.
We went into Vasto old town area, saw the Roman ruins, and took in the view. We had lunch at the restaurant Osteria Muro delle Lame, one of our favorites, which has a great view of the sea.
We went to the beach to show her our beach club and she met our friends Marsha and Bob there.
We went to Monteodorisio to take in the view from the castle. Here, we shopped at the little market and had a coffee. There we met the nice man who sings for us every time we go there,
Since I wasn’t feeling well enough, Mike drove the entire 6-plus hours to Mirano. There, we stayed in Lina’s B&B. It was a Friday, and that evening Sara’s son Andrea had a year-end celebration of his successful soccer, er football, team. It was so much fun to meet everyone and see how excited the boys can be. Caroline made friends with a couple of the moms. Mike and I left early, since he was tired from driving and I was sick. Caroline hung out with everyone, and Simone drove her back to the B&B where they joined Lina for drinks. I think Sara, Massimo, and Andrea went too. There was a band playing across the road, and they all went over to listen to the music and dance.
The next day, we drove to the train station in Dolo, and headed for Venice. It was a magical day, as Venice always is. Highlights are the Fenice theater, the Doge’s Palace secret doors tour, coffee at the Florian, and just walking around.
We took the train back to Dolo, then drove to Mirano where we met up with cousins Monica and Serenella. We walked to the town square for dinner. There was a kind of festival going on – country-western music!! As a result, all the restaurants were booked. So we went back to Monica’s house and they fixed us an impromptu meal that was delightful.
The next morning, after breakfast and sad goodbyes, we headed north to Oderzo to meet the rest of the family. They had set up benches in the front yard and we all sat around and chatted. For Mike and me, it was if we’d never been away. We all just fell in as family. It is such a remarkable feeling.
Valentina hosted an amazing lunch. I can’t describe all of the delicious courses. But. I do remember Luisa’s tiramisu. It was THE BEST ever. We all just hung around for a while afterwards, then headed into town. Valentina and Alberta checked Antoinette (Valentina and Luisa's mother) out of her assisted living facility and brought her to the town square. There was a festival going on, so lots of people and activity. Typical Italian Sunday. We walked around looking at the Roman ruins that are everywhere. Oderzo was once a holiday destination for wealthy Romans.
Then it was time to eat. Again. We went to the same pizza restaurant that the family had taken Mike, me, and our niece Sandra to when she was here several years ago. Great fun and great pizza. We slept that night at Valentina and Alberto’s. After breakfast, we reluctantly headed home.
For Caroline’s last full day in Italy she wanted to go shopping for gifts. That didn’t work out unfortunately. But we did get to see the beautiful beach at San Salvo and had a very nice lunch there.
The next morning we drove her to the bus stop at Vasto Nord and waved goodbye with lots of tears.
There are lots of details that I’ve left off, mostly because I forgot them. It's those kinds of things that make a trip special. I’m hoping Caroline will add comments to the photos.
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