This morning we are heading out for San Gimignano after a glorious week with our friends at the Villa Casa Rasa in Tuscany. Back in Canada and before leaving for our trip I had researched some places on the internet with regards to accommodations in San Gimignano, and eventually decided on a rental apartment…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on November 14, 2009 at 5:30am —
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The "last day of a dream" has arrived for the six of us. So it is that I am sure we all awoke that Friday morning with a feeling of melancholy, knowing how lucky we all were to have realized a dream come true, but at the same time feeling regret that it is all too soon coming to a close.
We are no…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on October 31, 2009 at 6:00am —
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I am getting used to this waking up in Casa Rasa, and this morning it is so neat to lay back and gaze out the window at the foot of our bed toward the rolling countryside beyond, listening to the sounds of my fellow travelers moving about. Craig is already up and emerges from the bathroom fully dressed, heading for the kitchen and his morning coffee. It is hard to imagine that we are already five full days into our stay here, with only two days left. But today we will make the most of it…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on August 20, 2009 at 12:00pm —
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It’s Wednesday and we can’t believe that already we are in the middle of the week of our stay at Casa Rasa. However, we have the whole day ahead of us and we are going to make good use of it. Craig and I have offered to do Salmon for dinner tonight and that means a trip into Siena market as we were told the first day in Buonconvento that fresh fish in this area can only be obtained at the market. The market at La Lizza, Siena runs every Wenesday from 8Am to 1PM in the afternoon. It will t…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on August 8, 2009 at 1:30pm —
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Waking up to what promises to be yet another glorious day in Tuscany we have our sights set on Cortona. Who would not be excited about seeing this ancient town, especially after reading Frances Mayes’ memoir “Under the Tuscan Sun” chronicling the renovation of her beloved villa “Bramasole”. Through her account , one not only got a glimpse of the joys and travails she experienced on this project, but also an introduction to Cortona itself - a bit of it’s history and the people who live there now.…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on August 2, 2009 at 12:00pm —
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It’s morning and Day 1 of our week at Casa Rasa - our Tuscan Villa. We’d arrived the day before some time in mid afternoon - and settled in after stocking up at the local co-op grocery store in Buonconvento. For our first evening we played it easy with a simple Pasta Pomodoro with Sandy doing Salad and bread - and of course we all “did wine”. That much was evident when we converged on the kitchen early the next morning and witnessed the wine bottles lined up on the counter. A good start to our h…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on July 22, 2009 at 1:00pm —
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Finally May of 2006 has arrived and both Sandy and Al have been given the green light to travel to Italy. Sandy and Joe have been so many times back and forth to Italy that this time around they do not care to do Rome. Not quite having our fill of it yet, we four Canadians decide to go two days ahead of time to do some more sightseeing. Not only that, this time without the restrictions of the Globus Bus Tour we will be free to come and go as we please. Through the internet we have selected what…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on July 9, 2009 at 6:30pm —
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It’s May of 2001 and once again Craig and I, along with our friends Al and Louise are heading for Italy. This time we will be touring Rome down to Sicily and back. We are by this time becoming old hats at Rome, as it will be my third visit and their second, so we feel no ambivalence at all while we make our way around the familiar sights. As has become a tradition for us, our first stop is Piazza Navona . We are in no hurry with just the welcome dinner awaiting us in a couple of hours time, so w…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on July 2, 2009 at 5:30am —
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The next nine days was a whirlwind of activities as Louise, Al & Craig took in all of the sights that I had seen the fall before. Even I, as I knew I would, had new and great experiences. Starting off with our tour of Vatican City, St. Peter’s Basilica and especially the Sistine Chapel soon had the three realizing that the Globus Bus Tour was a good choice for this trip. We always seemed to be front line and center with regards to getting into all and any of the venues. Of course there were…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on June 7, 2009 at 10:30am —
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In September of 1997 my Aunt Mary invited my sister and I to accompany her on a trip to Italy. I was hesitant to go without my husband Craig, as we had been talking about doing just such a trip ourselves for some time now. Of course he encouraged me to go ahead and take advantage of this wonderful opportunity and I am so glad that he did. The whole experience with my aunt, set the stage for what ultimately inspired two more trips to Italy. In fact after my first half a day in Rome I called Craig…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on June 6, 2009 at 5:00pm —
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Eventually became the Palace of Dr. Falcone
I believe that I have a colorful history on the side of my Lanza family from Roseto Valfortore. Not much is known about them with the exception of stories that have come down through the years as told by my fami…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on May 13, 2009 at 5:00pm —
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I guess every family has to have a little spice added to life, along with a few skeletons in the closet. My family seems to have it’s share, but I have decided that some stories are better left untold. After all there are those of us in my generation, my cousins and spouses who might be just a bit annoyed at me for divulging some of the shall I say, more contentious family secrets. Fanny on the other hand has been gone so long, as have those who were close to her, that I don’t think I ris…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on April 24, 2009 at 5:00pm —
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I’m feeling a little sad today. Maybe it’s just the result of the last two months happenings coming to a head and the realization that the only two remaining senior members of my family are in their “twilight years”.
I think of all the years that I went blissfully along never wondering or questioning anything about our family’s heritage and our beginning years in Roseto Valfortore. Certainly while my grandmother was alive, I don’t recall ever having a single conversation with her about her home…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on April 3, 2009 at 5:00pm —
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Maria Celeste Cascioli
My maternal great grandmother Celeste and I had something in common. We were both born under the Zodiac sign of Leo - she being born on August 17th and I on August 5th. Of course I never knew her, but I do wonder how much alike we could be, taking into co…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on February 28, 2009 at 2:13pm —
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One day years ago she awoke to a particularly blue day. It is so long ago now that she doesn’t even remember why - just that it was an out of sorts day. She left for work as usual and had not been at her desk for very long when he came down the hall, peeked around the corner and presented her with the cutest stuffed brown teddy bear.
What woman can resist an adorable stuffed animal, no matter her age, especially when it is given by the person she loves. An immediate weight was lifted off her ch…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on February 14, 2009 at 1:30pm —
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It wasn’t until I was about three years old that I had my first Italian experience. When I looked back over the years I realized it was around that time that my father’s mother came to visit us in Toronto from Italy. All I could remember of that visit was a vague image of a person whom I could not understand nor speak to in the same language. I didn’t know then that many years later I would endeavor to find out as much as I could about that woman whom I had met so fleetingly, and the life that m…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on February 6, 2009 at 5:30am —
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Mom and I - Christmas 2007
Do you ever notice that the older you get, the faster the years seem to fly by? It only makes sense too then that Christmas and those ultimate deadlines for shopping, baking and preparing for all of the seasons’ festivities is upon us before we know it. As I am…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on December 13, 2008 at 1:30pm —
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Aunts are very special and I have been very lucky to have two aunts in my life on my mother’s side. Auntie Mary who passed away just a little over a year ago and Auntie Ida who we are so lucky to still have with us to share in all the little joys that are happening in our life, as well as to help us through any trying times that we might come upon.
I have been busily writing all kinds of stories while in this genealogy quest of mine. For the most part I have been reminiscing about people who ar…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on December 9, 2008 at 10:00am —
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Christmas is coming and lately I have been feeling kind of melancholy. I have spent a considerable amount of time in the last few days putting together a little portfolio of my short stories - reflections of my family memories of people who are no longer with us. I plan to give this to my mother “as something a little extra” with her Christmas gift this year. I am hoping that she will find enjoyment from this, because not only have I tried to say something about my grandparents, her mother and f…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on December 7, 2008 at 5:53pm —
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The other night my husband and I were washing and drying dishes, an occasion that doesn’t happen often in this age of dishwashing machines. However, our dishwasher finally decided to quit and we were in waiting mode for a part and return of the repair man. Side by side at the kitche…
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Added by Lynda Matthews on December 2, 2008 at 4:30pm —
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