Today is the DAY!

Shortly I will be leaving for the airport. First we fly from BWI to JFK in New York and then off to Rome. This is so exciting. Between the canonization of Pope John Paul II and the trip to  Fiuggi, the town in Italy where my grandparents were born, I'm just floating on a cloud!

Say a little prayer for our safety and look out for more blogs to come as I blog my way through Italy and my heritage! Hugs!

Still Counting

TWO days and counting. It won't be long and the Pope that had been such a large part of my life, Pope John Paul II will be made a Saint. Was there ever any doubt he would be a Saint? Not for me. I am so delighted that I will be there to witness the canonization. It is something I have never been a part of and something I've always wanted to do. 

I was going through old photos, etc. last night and I found these old postcards. My Dad kept them for years. When Grandmom died they were going to throw these away and Dad said he would take them. Glad he did. Now they are safe forever or at least until I die. Many of them have messages from our family in Fiuggi from both the Iori and Pannone sides.  The hotel pictured is one that was owned by the Pannone family. There are pictures of people who also worked there with their hotel uniforms. I hope to find this hotel.

 I have always liked this postcard. It's of the fountain in the old part of town. I hope to find this fountain too.

The street pictured is typical of the streets in the old part of town. The two streets I am looking for (ones that  my grandparents were born and lived) look like this. My genealogist in Italy took photos of those streets for me. I want to find them and this one in particular.

I hope they still look like this so I can take photos for later paintings.

For those of you who never heard of Fiuggi, it's a mountain town noted for it's mineral water. Way back in time, even the early Popes would go there to drink & bathe in the water. It is said that the water is healing and helps break up kidney stones.

The hotel we are staying in is a newer one...resort spa conference center. I'm hoping it's not too far from "Old Fiuggi"

Count Down

THREE days and counting. So the last time I took this photo  with me

 The photo is of my grandparents Giovanni and Beatrice Iori (Nee Pannone) and Zio Nazzareno Pannone .

The reason I did that was because my Dad told me that his Dad (Giovanni) would cry every time he heard the song Arriverderci Roma because he was home sick.  So I decided maybe I couldn't take them back physically but I could in spirit. So in 2008 they went to Rome and Assisi.  I took pictures of them all over both towns and even threw a coin in the Trevi Fountain for their return (I guess it worked huh?)   This year I am going to Rome and Fiuggi, the town they were born. 

Taken the day of my parents wedding

I'm also going to take this photo. My Dad (2nd in from the right) always wanted to go to Fiuggi. I wanted him to go with us in 2008 but my Mom didn't want to go and wouldn't let him go. I remember how he teared up as he fought back tears. He said, "I should have gone with Fausto. He always asked me and I never went."  

Well Dad now, I'm taking you and your brothers and Aunt Nat (and Aunt Phyl not pictured here) all back in spirit. I love all of you and I hope you all enjoy your trip with us. For Uncle Vito the first

one from the left, it will be back to the town he was born. Since he is in the photo, I am also taking my cousin Sonny (the little kid in the middle). He wasn't Italian (he's Polish on Mom's side) and he's also in heaven with Dad but I figured Sonny might enjoy the trip anyway. Maybe one day, Sonny, I'll take you to Plock, Poland where our grandparents on that side were from.

In the meantime I'm really excited about going to Fiuggi (not that I'm not excited about the canonziation of Pope John Paul II and Pope John XXIII). 

 I cannot wait to walk the streets where my grandparents were born and to visit the church where they were married. It's been a lifetime dream for me as I have worked on my genealogy over the years. My dream come true in 3 days and counting......

come with me on this journey as I blog along the way. Love you all.....

Best Laid Plans!

It has been fun. I put a weather app on my phone and added the weather of Rome and Fiuggi along with my location (Pasadena, MD). Every now and then I check on it. For a while the weather in Rome was always 5 degrees cooler and Fiuggi 10 degrees cooler (it is in the mountains) than here.

Today I checked it out. It is 41 degrees here 62 in Rome and 52 in Fiuggi. It looks like the forecast for this weekend is in the 60's here, in the 70's in Rome and in the 60's in Fiuggi.

 I thought I had this all figured out so I would know exactly what to pack.

It's the "best laid plans of mice and men" as they would say.

Resurrecting the Travel Blog

Mom and Dad

So I haven't had a major trip/adventure since 2008. Right after my trip to Italy and cruise my father had a brain bleed. After that, I was terrified to go too far from home. Well a lot has happened since that time. My Mother passed away in December 2012...three days after Christmas. We buried her right after New Years 2013. Then Dad passed away June 2013.


 I find myself having the time to travel again. I have really missed travelling. Glenn and I had been going on cruises every other year until Dad's health issues. This year we will also be going on our first cruise in 6 years!

Me and Jackie at the Vatican in 2008

 But before that cruise in June, Jackie (My daughter), her husband Jay and I are travelling to Rome again.  Today marks 1 month before we leave.

This time it's on our own to the canonization of Pope John Paul II and Pope John XXIII. We are
also going to take a couple of days to visit Fiuggi where my grandparents were born & married. I'm so excited about that.

The last Rome trip  we went on a Pilgrimmage with "The God Squad" and members of my church and 2 other churches in the Archidiocese. We had a free day and we wanted to Fiuggi but Father Brian insisted we stay with the group. In retrospect it was probably a good thing because in the meantime I hired a genealogist who was able to tell me the streets my grandparents were born on and the church they were baptized and married in. So it will be more meaningful for me.

The God Squad, Frs. Stephen, DeAscanis and Fr. Brian

I'm so excited but a little nervous too. The last time we were with a tour group and everything was so easy. This time we are on our own with millions of people there for the canonization....yikes. I picked a crazy time to go but I so loved Pope John Paul II that I can't imagine not going if I have the means to do it. Well anyway, watch this space as we get closer to April 25th .

In the meantime, if you'd like to look at our photos from the last trip visit:  http://public.fotki.com/HeyLucy1/travel/2008/italy-08/

Today is the BIG DAY!

I leave in 2 hours to go to our meeting place in Baltimore. We will board a chartered bus to take us to Philadelphia for our flight to Rome. It all seems so unreal at this point even though I'm packed, etc. Pray for our safe journey. Ciao!

The postcard is of the town in Italy, Fiuggi where my grandmother and grandfather were born.



This picture is of family who never left Italy. From reading the names behind other photos I believe it to be the sister (Benedetta Pannoni) of my grandmother, Beatrice. Her husband Vincenzo and Pietro D'Amico...not sure of the girls name.