May 10, 2008

Martina and Jason stayed up late last night uploading the blog to the Internet. The WIFI in the hotel wasn’t operational, so we had to use the computer in the lobby. This morning Salvatore took us to pick up our laundry at the lavanderia. Then, Salvatore and Domenico and his wife drove us to the next stop: Vibo. The name of the hotel is “Hotel 501”, named after a Fiat. The hotel was very nice. Jane and Martina even had a balcony overlooking the Tyrannian Sea.

Giuseppe (Peppino) Sarlo, his daughter Stefania, and her fiancé GianCarlo met us at the hotel for a coffee before embarking upon a walking tour of Vibo Centro (city center). Today is Saturday, so there was an open air market (mercato) downtown. Martina bought a new handbag. Nick took lots of pictures, and Nick, Jason, and GianCarlo talked about American politics. GianCarlo is a financial controller for a real estate company so we all spoke with him about our plans to buy a house in Italy.

Next we visited a famous castle that had a museum and a restoration center. We viewed (and held) artifacts, some that were as old as 500BC. In the restoration center there were literally thousands of boxes of ancient treasures in various stages of restoration. Many of these items were of Greek origin, as many Greeks traveled by boat, and settled in Italy. Vibo was the most prominent harbor in Southern Italy for quite some time, so Vibo was a key port for the Greeks. We also learned that the Romans branded their pottery with stamps, while the Greeks did not. We saw wine jugs that were quite large and took two people to carry them. They were used on ships to transport wine, and if the ship became too heavy, they were thrown overboard. As such, they are often found in shipwrecks. We also saw a foil description of a legend called a mnemosyne. This is a rare artifact; one of only 5 in the world.

Next we had an excellent lunch in the city of Pizzo which included lots of fresh fish (pesce) and pasta (spaghetti).

We then visited Piedigrotta, which is an underground cave (and church) near the sea where a father and son carved religious statues into the rock over the course of 30 years during the 19^th century. Religious services are held on July 2^nd only.

Finally, we visited the Castle (fortress) of Pizzo that was built in 1492. It was used as a prison and held Gioacchino Murat, who had been married to the sister of Napolean Bonaparte.

We enjoyed dinner with everyone, and also Peppino’s nephew, Gregorio at a typical Italian family restaurant in the country. We enjoyed various pastas. Jane’s tasted the best. Peppino was very pleased to receive the print of Independence Hall, and said he would think of us when he looked at it. He asked us to send him a PDF of our presentation so that he could write an article about us.

If only we could access the Internet!

May 9, 2008

We started off the day in Lamazia Terme with Carlo, Peppino and Domenico who gave us maps and packets of information about the region. Lamazia Terme is actually comprised of three towns: Nicastro, Sambiase, and Eufamia. We visited the local archeological museum. Two excellent guides took us through the museum showing us the treasures of the area. We saw an ancient will stamped on bronze, an ancient loom, and a 2000 year-old tomb.

Jason asked what “Terme” means in the name “Lamazia Terme.” Domenico explained that Terme means “thermal baths,” and we were then on our way to a thermal bath center. As we got out of the car, we immediately smelled the aroma of sulphur. We went inside where people were breathing the sulphur steam for health purposes. We went back outside, and Martina waded into the thermal pool. Many lizards scurried around.

On our way to lunch we stopped at a large structure created by the knights of Malta.

Carlo joined us for lunch at the hotel, but could not join us for dinner because his wife was returning from Lourdes (in France).

We had some free time so we wandered around the train station.

Salvatore picked us up at 3:30 and took us to the mall so that we could buy Italian SIM cards for our cell phones. Jason, who was confused by all of the calling plans, decided to stick with a good old fashioned calling card.

Next we went to a kiwi farm owned by Rudolfo and his wife. Nadia, Marisa, and Rudolfo fed us cake and then drove us through the farm in the back of a pick-up truck. The kiwi farm began in 1971 with 10 plants. Now there are 14,000. Some interesting facts: there is one male kiwi plant to 7 females. Kiwis contain vitamins A, B, and C. One kiwi has more nutrition than 3 oranges. Rudolfo also grows olive trees for olive oil (olio), and has over 5000 olive trees. Everything is contained on 48 hectares, and very little pesticide is used. Rudolfo invited us to join him for harvest season in November. Jason is seriously considering it.

Next we went for a long walk around the town of Nicastro, and were rewarded with Gelato. Finally, we had a quiet dinner at our hotel. Notice the order: Gelato first, dinner second.

May 8, 2008

We woke up for our last morning at Hotel Villaggio Guglielmo and gathered, for the last time, around the pool with the palm trees gently swaying and the swallows diving to and fro. We enjoyed our blood orange juice and cappuccino before hopping in the van to visit the coffee roasting plant of the Guglielmo operation nearby. Daniel, the plant manager, greeted us and his assistant, Silvana, explained the operations while offering all of us espressos. We watched coffee being roasted and packed to be shipped all over the world…But, the best part was the coffee pot car in the parking lot.

We returned to the hotel where we met Franco and Francesco who helped us stuff our many bags into their cars and off we went to Lamezia Terme. Giacomo, the president of the Rotary Club of Amantea, met us at the hotel. We said good bye to our friends from Soverato and took a ride along the beautiful west coast of Italy overlooking the turquoise waters of the Tyrennian Sea. We navigated the narrow streets of Amantea, a lovely historical town along the coast, and met up with some Rotarian friends. Again, we saw another permanent meeting place for a Rotary Club in southern Italy in a meeting room in a hotel on the sea. From there, we went into the hotel dining room for pranzo (lunch), with an excellent local wine. It began with a seafood salad and many other types of appetizers (including a fish fritter, a zucchini fritter, shrimp, sardines in olive oil and lemon, salmon, cheese, salami). And when the waiter asked what we wanted next, we replied with a chorus of “Pasta!” For dessert, we had Macedonia (fruit salad). During lunch, Alfonso reveled us with his tales of his family and his travels. He even called his daughter in Milan to share his meeting us with her.

After lunch, the best picture of the day was Nick on Alfonso’s Harley in front of the hotel. Or, was it the clothesline hanging in the historic center of town? Or, was it the hearse, bedecked with copious amounts of fresh flowers, and the accompanying marching band at a local funeral? Or, was it Martina on “Danger Street?”

We walked by the sea and then ran into the town Mayor and took some pictures. Nick, Jason, Martina and Giacomo hiked almost all the way up to the castello high on the hill while Jane sat and caught another pass of the funeral marching band. At the top of the hill was a historic military lookout for Napoelon’s army. From this lookout, Amantea successfully held off Napoleon’s army for more than 5 months before succumbing.

After the funeral and castello, we left the old section of Amantea and headed down to the sea where we met Enrico, who had come to play a short recital for us and a few Rotarians, and his girlfriend Anna. Enrico is a student of Giacomo’s and is also a teacher at the music conservatory. He played a Beethoven sonata and two Chopin pieces. It was a huge treat to have such a private concert arranged by such considerable, kind people only for our pleasure. It must be what royalty felt like.

From there, we headed back to the hotel and to a quiet dinner with just the four of us. Jane was happy that she could have pastina soup. Martina was ecstatic that she could eat chicken for the first time in a week. Jason ordered typical Calabrian sausage and loved it.

And, the most important thing of all: we’re getting our laundry done tomorrow!

May 7, 2008

Today was intended to be a leisurely day for us and, thankfully, it stayed true to form. We were greeted at the entrance by Givoanni, his wife Anna Maria and 6-7 Soverato Rotarians. Due to Enzo’s great concern for Martina’s ability to hike in high heels, Maria, the Soverato club president, presented Martina with a brand spanking new pair of Yike sneakers. Next, we headed out to Soverato. Again, the boys went in one car and the girls in another.

Within 90 minutes or so, we had reached our destination: Serra San Bruno. Serra San Bruno is a small, mountainous town and is named after San Bruno, a monk who founded a cloistered monastery in the town in 1091 and had been Pope Urban II’s mentor. We met up with a tour guide when we arrived. She was French but spoke English and led us through two of the seven churches in the town, including the largest, San Biaggio. In 1783, there was an earthquake that destroyed the entire town but the town began to rebuild quickly and San Biaggio was finished by 1795.

After that, we drove to the monastery founded by San Bruno. No one is allowed to enter the monastery and the museum was off limits today due to construction. So, we walked around the outside and learned more about San Bruno and the history of the monastery. San Bruno was born in Cologne in 1030 and founded the Carthusian Order in 1084. He fled to Calabria in 1090 to escape oppression. From there, we drove to the Santa Maria chapel, where San Bruno was buried. In 1984, Pope John Paul II visited this site for the 900-year anniversary of the founding of the Carthusian Order.

By the time we finished there, we were all hungry and getting ready for a lunch of “mushrooms only,” or so we were told. Luckily, lunch turned out to be more than just a huge plate of mushrooms. In fact, we had quite the spread there waiting for us. Several types of sliced meat, zucchini wedges, fried cauliflower, bread, fava beans, a pasta roll and broccoli were lined up for us near our table. Before our entrées arrived, one of our hosts, Giuseppe, suggested we try “nduja,” which is Calabrian dialect for a hot red pepper spread. Jason and Nick tried, and loved, it while Martina and Jane declined the adventure. Giovanni told us how to clear our plate of excess sauce. You are supposed to use “scarpeta”, which means “little shoes” but is actually using small pieces of bread to soak up the sauce. Grazie, Giovanni.

After lunch, we drove to Grecio, a pipe workshop at the artisan’s house. The owner’s wife showed us a pipe that her father-in-law, the founder, had handcrafted. There was a woman’s face with amazing detail carved into the wood. The type of wood used comes from the base of local briar trees. We headed inside the workshop to meet the owner and see some of his work. He explained the process of making these pipes and we were amazed at what went into the whole thing. Briar trees’ wood is used because the adverse conditions in which they grow force the trees to adapt in order to continue to thrive. The wood is extracted from the trees and boiled for 20 hours. Then, the wood is placed in racks and exposed to the elements for 10 years! After this short wait, the wood is expected to have been weathered enough to be ready for lifelong use. The pipes are then carved out of the wood, treated and sold to shops around the world.

We headed back to the hotel to quickly change and head to the Soverato Rotary Club office to deliver our presentation. While we were at Grecio, Jane told Monica, a Soverato Rotarian, that Nick was in love with the Italian song, “La Gatta,” and she actually sang it for us. Well, not only did she sing it but she also arranged for the song and lyrics to be hand delivered to Nick at the meeting! Needless to say, Nick is still on Cloud Nine. After meeting the rest of the Rotarians, we gave our presentation but, this time, we had an interpreter! We all felt pretty good about our performance. Then, we exchanged gifts and were treated to a nice, small dinner of pizza and finger foods. This was a great break for our stomachs because we have eaten so much since we’ve gotten here. We also had some great desserts, all of which were handmade with almonds. Best of all was the limoncello, made by Maria, the club president! After dinner, Stefano took us to Marrons Glacés, the gelato place we went to the other night and we made up for the calories we missed at dinner!

This was our final day with the Catanzaro and Soverato clubs and we have to say that it has been a fabulous start to our trip. Everywhere we turn, our hosts are there to make us feel welcome, engage us in excellent conversation and give us all we need and more. Our group has come to the conclusion that we couldn’t think of a better place to go for the Group Study Exchange. The hospitality of southern Italy, not only of Rotarians but all people we meet, is overwhelming. We are anxiously awaiting our next adventure in Amantea tomorrow. Stay tuned for the next post.

Thank you and good night.

May 6, 2008

We finally got around to buying Internet access this morning. Hopefully that will mean we can publish this tonight. This morning we went to visit Gruppo Cusimano, which is a local tile and brick manufacturer. Francesco Cusimano, a Rotarian, is the owner and was our guide - he walked us all through the plant. Francesco’s father came from Palermo, Sicily 35 years ago and invested in land in Calabria and now operates a very successful business. One interesting story is that Francesco’s father traveled back to Sicily right before Francesco was born so that he could be “from Sicily” officially. Italians are very proud of where they are from. Gruppo Cusimano exports bricks and tiles to France, China, Japan, and Russia.

Next we went to the University of Magna Grecia where Stefano and Rocco are professors. The school offers three main courses of study: medicine, law, and pharmacy. There are 12,000 students, and the university was founded 10 years ago. Until then, there was no University of its kind in Calabria. The medical school is very competitive; 700 students applied last year, but only 80 were accepted. The tuition costs are paid by taxes which are based upon a sliding income scale. Most students are from Calabria, however some are from Campania and Basilicata. We viewed a nanotechnology lab and saw an electron beam microscope. They are working on their first nano product for commercial use. We also visited Stefano’s lab where they are using computer modeling to research the effectiveness of potential pharmaceuticals. Later they can be tested in the biological lab.

Next we had lunch at Rocco’s house. His wife Anna prepared an amazing lunch with many courses including Ricotta Cheese made from sheep’s milk, pasta made with shellfish, and eggplant parmigiana. For dessert, there was a rum cake that Jason labeled the “flammable rum cake.” It was very good, but everyone was exercising restraint in the food department today. Dazzling guests with delicious food is part of Italian culture, but we are all realizing that we need to say no sometimes so to avoid gaining 20 pounds this month. Rocco presented our team with “strumbolo,” which are hand-made spinning tops. Before we left, Rocco’s sons, Gaetano and Donato performed a crowd-pleasing skit they had prepared especially for us.

Next we visited a military museum that had two parts: Napoleon and Risorgimento. Lots of what you would expect: Medals, Helmets, Armor, Guns, Uniforms, Grenades, etc. We took a golf cart ride around the beautiful park that surrounded the museum, which apparently used to be a garbage dump until 2002. The city of Catanzaro commissioned the park to be built which now includes fountains, an amphitheatre, a skate park, a pizza shop, a bird sanctuary, and lots of things for kids. There was a long tunnel that was covered with fragrant flowering wisteria that someone labeled the “love tunnel.” Today we came to the conclusion that the Italian word Prego can be used for just about anything. In our Italian books, it’s supposed to mean “you’re welcome.” But people say it when they open the door for you and when you say hello, and basically all the time. Nick, Jason, and Martina started saying Prego to each other a lot. I wonder if Calabrians know about Prego spaghetti sauce. I doubt it. Next we visited the Carabinieri – imagine if you combined the army, the navy, the coast guard, the police, the secret service, the marines, and the armored truck companies. That’s the Carabinieri. Apparently it was highly unusual that the general and his cabinet could meet with us. They presented us with a large, velvet box holding the seal of the Carabinieri. By this time we were about 2 hours behind schedule which was causing everyone’s cell phones to ring even more than normal.

We hurried to the next stop – Camera di commercio. Translation – Chamber of Commerce. We met with the President, and he told us there are 200,000 businesses registered. It was an interesting meeting, but somewhat cut short due to the fact that it was 7pm and everyone was ready to go. We got cool gifts there too. Speaking of gifts, the gifting is overwhelming. It is not an exaggeration that we need a suitcase already to transport all the gifts back, and we’re only on day two. Not sure if this will continue. Stay tuned. Next we visited the Rotary club of Catanzaro Tre Colli (3 hills). Here’s an interesting note about both Rotary Clubs in Catanzaro: they have their own offices where the Rotary, Rotaract and Interact Clubs meet and they have large displays of banners, charters, etc. We gave our presentation for the first time in Italy. We all agreed that it went very well. More gifts.

Next we went to dinner at Pepe La Rouge’s. The fare was very typical Calabrian. We had some more Ricotta – Italians eat it plain - as an appetizer. There were fried zucchini fritters, and fried meatballs that were shaped like sausages. Interesting. Then it was time for the main dish, which was Morzello. It’s basically a spicy meat sandwich on a roll. There are two kinds – meat and fish. Jason opted for fish based upon a recommendation from Francesco’s wife, whose name (I think) was Sabrina. Nick went for the meat, being a bit tired of fish. As his meal arrived the locals broke the news to him that the meat was really the internal organs of veal. Upon hearing this, Nick was too proud to decline, and Martina skipped dinner. Jane got the fish, but it was too spicy for her. Check out the picture and decide for yourself. Believe it or not, the next course was raw fava beans and raw fennel. It was actually pretty good. Next there was cake, but everyone declined. Dinner (called cena – pronounced CHAY-na) was followed by a healthy round of goodbyes (Ciao!!!), and Nick got a ride around the block on Stefano’s scooter. A domani and Prego!!

May 5th 2008

Jason awoke to the sound of a train and decided to take a shower. Nick, on the other hand, awoke to the sounds of knocking on the door, courtesy of Jane. Breakfast was typical European fare, although the blood orange juice was a nice surprise. Martina’s new laptop had WIFI problems, which none of us could fix. Giovanni joined us for breakfast, and asked where the liar was. We explained that Martina (a lawyer) was still getting ready. Roberto (Catanzaro Rotary Secretary) didn’t speak much English, but did speak French, so we thought it would be a good idea if Jason and Nick rode with Roberto, since they both spoke French. Everything was fine until we picked up Roberto’s wife, Maria Teresa, who didn’t speak French. Then there were 3 languages being spoken in the car. Nick and Jason decided to revert back to Italian. Meanwhile, Giovanni’s car apparently stopped to take pictures of the Morandi bridge, which, by the way is 43 years old, and the 2nd largest single arch bridge in Europe. Then we arrived at the courthouse. We couldn’t find a parking spot, so we just stopped the car in the middle of the street, and got out. This seems to be common.

We then met Nunzio, the Vice President of Catanzaro Rotary club. When he learned Jason was a Geographer, he gave him a hug. Nunzio is a professor of Economic Geography. Nunzio thought Nick looked like Barack Obama, which earned Nick the nickname of “Obama” for the remainder of the day; possibly longer. Interestingly, you can smoke in the courthouse, and the witness stand has bars around it. Next, we proceeded to the MARCA Museum, which houses a collection of Calabrian art. Marcella, our English-speaking tour guide showed us the Mimmo Rotella exhibit. Rotella invented deCollage, a style of art where you layer posters on top of one another and rip pieces off. Quite interesting. His most famous piece is untitled and is 18m wide. It is all white with wrinkles and apparently worth 2 million Euros. We walked by a few local sights, and took some pictures. A journalist spotted us, (OK actually Nunzio spotted the journalist). Anyway, we had our picture taken. Then we had a meeting at Confindustria, a local organization that supports entrepreneurial enterprise. We met the Director (Dario), who is also a Rotarian. We were filmed by the local media, and apparently we’re going to be in the newspaper tomorrow.

The Confindustria organization offered us some aperitifs, and a book on Calabria. Next was lunch: 7 courses. First Course: Fish salad. Second Course: Bianchino – a white fish with breadcrumb crust. Third Course: Mussels. Fourth Course: Fish ravioli with pasta, shrimp, and artichokes. At this point there were 4 bottles of wine on the table, and Nunzio had offered at least 6 toasts. Fifth Course: Baked cod. Then we had salad. For dessert, we had lemon cake with crème. Jason had explicit instructions to investigate interesting culinary dishes, so he took pictures of each plate before eating. Someone proposed grappa, but we all said no. Instead they ordered us Amaro del Capo, which was an herbal liquor. At this point, Jane divulged that she in fact makes the best cheesesteaks in the entire world. At 4pm, we decided lunch was over, so we went to the Catanzaro Rotary Club to exchange gifts. We all tried on our new hats, and took some pictures.

Next stop: Roccelletta – Roman and Greek ruins. We wandered around for about an hour, and checked out the ancient amphitheatre. Then, we went back to the hotel to relax for about an hour, before heading out for….yes, more food. They took us to the local pizza favorite, Lido Don Pedro. For some reason, Nick decided to engage in a pizza eating contest with Julia, who was Marcella’s 13 year-old daughter. Julia won.

Still hungry? How about some pizza with molten dark chocolate on top? Jason was skeptical, but later conceded that it was pretty tasty. We had a nice time speaking with the Rotaractors, who we will see again tomorrow. We presented gifts to the district Rotaract representative-elect. Finally, Gregorio, the assistant district governor-elect drove us back to our hotel. Jason stated he is going for a run in the morning, and Nick is doing push-ups.

May 4th - Our First Day!

We met at the airport more or less at 3:15p as planned (Jason was late). Russ (Governor), Brian (Treasurer), and Jenny (GSE Co-chair) arrived to see us off. Jane and Nick successfully navigated the ticket kiosks. Jason and Martina weren’t so lucky, and received error messages that resulted in a slight wait for an attendant. Security and the airplane trip was smooth and uneventful.

We arrived at Rome customs with 4 people, but only 3 jackets, because Jason left his on the airplane. He tried to take the train in the reverse direction back to the gate, however was chased away by an Italian security guard. We had to call and have security retrieve the jacket. Total delay = 30 mins. Luckily we had a 4 hour layover. We stopped to sit down at a café, and eventually some of us became hungry. Some people next to us were eating via frattina, which looked good, so Martina bought one. Nick asked, “what kind of bread is that?” Martina thought the person who sold it to her called it “spicy bread,” but later realized it was “spiced bread.” Jane, who until this point wasn’t paying full attention to Martina asked if she was eating a spicy donut. Nick and Jason thought this was quite funny, however this may have been due to trans-Atlantic delirium. Most of us fell asleep while we were waiting for the plane to Lamezia Terme. Luckily Jane stayed awake and woke us when it was time to go.

We boarded the plane, which had a bright green interior, and promptly fell asleep before takeoff. We awoke in time to see olive trees, wind farms, and the sea before landing. Stefano, Giovanni, and Enzo were there to meet us.

We took some pictures in front of the Rotary monument at the airport before making our way to Copanello, where we are staying at a seaside hotel.

Martina, Nick, and Jason went for a walk on the beach for a few hours.

We met everyone for dinner at 8pm for a 4 course meal, which was accompanied with the local white wine. Finally, Giovanni offered to take us for gelato in Catanzaro Lido. Jason dropped his camera on the floor. Jane remarked that it was the best gelato she’d ever had in her entire life. Quite a statement if you ask me.