Southbound

It was another bright and early start for me here in Bologna. . .bright and early enough for me to catch my 6 a.m. flight to Sicily.  And honestly, I couldn’t be more excited.  I am looking forward to leaving all of the gloom and rain behind me, and heading to warm, dry weather, and to family!  My hubby still has relatives just outside of Palermo, and I am headed down there to spend the week with them.  The love and affection of a Sicilian family is like none other, and I am so ready for it!  (I am also really excited to see them, because this will be my first time seeing them since I have learned to speak Italian!)

It was such a great feeling to arrive in Palermo and have family waiting for me.  As much as I love traveling on my own, nothing takes the place of family.  And of course, they let me carry absolutely none of my bags, and showered me with hugs and kisses immediately.  It was a great start.

We drove just outside of Palermo, where I would be staying with one of my husband’s cousins for a few days before some more Stateside family arrived.  And after getting settled in, I helped Serena and Irene do the finishing touches on a surprise birthday cake. . .meticulously decorated with the tiniest little chocolate chips.

After seriously testing my skills for how carefully I could place chocolate chips onto a cake without smudging the frosting at all, Irene and I headed out for some fresh air.  We walked the town and she pointed out the main stops to me, and the best places to grab a coffee or a gelato.  On our way back home we made a quick pit-stop to order some fresh cheese for later in the week, and also to pick up some fresh bread for our lunch.

And after that?  Well you can imagine that we had worked up quite the appetite, so it was lunch time of course.  And boy did they put on a spread – pasta al forno, swordfish with pistachios, bread, salad, cheeses, meats, desserts, and homemade wine – there was no shortage of delicousness going on.

see those big boys in the back?  they are my new favorite – basically imagine a soft and doughy doughnut stuffed with freshly sweetened cannoli cream

After a delicious feast, they all encouraged me to take a nap since I was up so early.  And although I am not a nap person, I was perfectly happy to take them up on the offer, as I knew that our day was not going to end early.

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Feeling refreshed from my rest, I got up, and it was actually time to get going right away.  (Today is the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner for Serena’s wedding.)  So we drove into Palermo, and got to the church just in time for all of the fun to start.

the beautiful church ceiling

After the rehearsal was done, we drove (in secret) towards a restaurant to grab some pizza.  We were in secret, because today is also Pierina’s birthday, so we are doing a double dinner celebration – part rehearsal dinner and part surprise birthday party.  Remember the cake that I told you about earlier?  Well, it’s almost time for it’s big reveal.

We all ended up getting to the restaurant around the same time, but Pierina was still surprised, and so delighted.  We piled ourselves in, ordered loads of pizza and wine, and just chatted and laughed for hours.  Finally around 11 p.m., it was time for us to say our long goodbyes, share multiple hugs, and then head home to catch a little shut-eye.

look at Tancredi’s face. . .he is so excited about that cake!

It was a long but beautiful first day in Sicily.  My head is swirling with the excitement of speaking Italian, the joy of catching up with family, and the overwhelming love that they all have shared with me.  Buona notte!