let the adventure begin. I’m just 24 hours away from heading to Italy for a vacation. I didn’t expect to return so soon after my visit last summer, but an opportunity arose. I promised myself that the next time I went to Italy, I would visit Aiello Calabro, where my great-grandfather, Rosario Cuglietta (1873–1954), was born and raised.
So why so soon? Well… it’s Italy! The food, the places, the beauty, the history, and the people. Did I mention the food? Italy was all I could talk and think about when I got back. It may not be for everyone, but it grabbed my heart and won’t let go.
In the past year, my youngest son, Nicholas, graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno, with a degree in geography. He still needed to complete his language requirements for his third and fourth semesters and had the chance to study in Viterbo, Italy. He’s currently staying with a host family for the summer, attending classes, traveling on the his 3 day weekends and also learning Italian. This presented us with a great excuse to travel back to Italy.
With Nicholas already in Italy and he will be on a one-week break, my wife, sister, and I are flying into Rome to meet up with him. We’ll spend a few days in Rome, and the head up to Viterbo to meet up with Nicholas, and finally travel to Southern Italy to Calabria. Our itinerary includes stops in Matera, Aiello Calabro, Tropea, Salerno, and Cosenza, along with a few other places along the way. I am excited about visiting, Aiello Calabro, it is our smallest place to visit, but emotionally it will be the most heartfelt. I am hopeful that I will run into Cuglietta’s that live there and in the surrounding area. Andiamo! (let’s go!)