After spending three amazing days in Rome, then driving across t
he Italian countryside to finally meet our Italian cousins, followed by a visit to the sites in and around Teramo, we were now finally going to visit our grandfather's family home in Valle Vaccaro, a small village in the Appennine Mountains. The house was home to the De Federicis family since they built it in the early 1600's. I can't even describe the feelings and emotions of finally seeing the house where my Grandfather lived until he was 15 years old. What we had just found out was that his father had given him money for his education, but instead Grandpa left for America! That was in 1912, and he never returned to see his family, his homeland or his home. And now, here we were, five of his grandchildren, on our way to visit the home that he left almost 95 years ago!After spending a few hours in Fratolli visiting the ancient church and enjoying our picnic of walnuts in the churchyard, we all got in our cars and continued up the mountain to Valle Vaccaro. We were in the midst of nowhere, with mountains surrounding us on all sides. As we got nearer, we passed
a small, ancient stone house which Rossella told us was where the washerwomen used to do all the laundry. This was the entrance into Valle Vaccaro and several yards in front of us were some ancient stone houses, a church, and a school house. This was the entire village. Before we left for our trip, I had pictured what I thought Valle Vaccaro would be like. I had expected one single old farmhouse with an overgrown yard surrounding it, with the roof and shutters falling off! It was nothing what I expected! The stone houses were solid and sturdy, and the area was very beautiful and well-kept with stone walkways and beautiful views. The area to park our cars was above the houses, and our first
view of the house where grandpa lived was very exciting! We took pictures from above before we went to get a closer look. When we got out of our cars, it was to find that more "cousins" had joined us. Besides Luigi and his family and Gigi and his family, everyone was there including Zia Irma, Annalisa (Francesco's sister), and Cousin Diana and her daughter Barbara who brought us old family photos to look at. Barbara was a beautiful soft-spoken young girl with long dark h
air and she spoke almost perfect English. We all walked down towards the house, and sitting in front of Grandpa's house were a group of old Italian men playing cards. It was such a perfect picture of what you would expect to see in Italy. We spent a long time in front of the house and looking at the other houses in the area. The "old-timers" - Cesare, Irma, etc. really enjoyed seeing their old home and talking to the villagers. We met an old woman who said she re
membered her cousin Mario, but we all agreed later that she would have been much too young to remember him and she probably just remembered stories about him. We took our picture with her and she seemed very pleased. We didn't get to see the inside of the house, but Annette and I walked all around it and in the back, just a few feet from the house, there was a small pasture with goats in it. As we walked up a little stone walkway alongside Grandpa's house, I noticed a small window that was open and decided to peek in. I only saw a little bit because there were people inside, and all I really saw was a
stone floor and a little bit of furniture. The stone houses were so solid and it was amazing to know that they were a couple of hundred years old. We thought it was funny when we saw a modern convenience - a satellite dish attached to the side of the house! Our cousins pointed out a few things including the family name carved above some of the doors, and also - something we didn't know at the time - the family motto. It was very old and carved in stone on the front of the house and it was written in Latin, but it translates into the "golden rule" - "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you". I thought that was a great motto to have as our family motto since it's something I always try to live by.
After spending time in front of the houses, we went for a walk in the woods surroun
ding the house. What we were all immediately impressed with was that the surrounding grounds were so much like the farm. Our Italian cousins were so happy to hear that and to know that Grandpa found "a little bit of Italy" home in America. There were hazel nut trees, elderberry bushes, and gullies to walk through - I laughed because I thought except for the mountains and the 17th century stone houses, it could be the farm! We walked to the edge where there were beautiful views of the surrounding mountains and v
alleys, and they pointed out how far away everything was and showed us in the distance the old road that Grandpa would have had to walk just to get some kind of transportation into a main town. I sat on the edge of the mountain and looked all around me and it was all so beautiful, and I wondered how Grandpa could have left all of this. But then as I looked around and realized how remote it was and how it must have seemed to a boy of 14, I realized how he could have easily looked out into the mountains and wondered what else was out there, and even though it was so beautiful, I could understand why he would want to leave.
We walked back to the houses and we saw the schoolhouse where Blandina taught. We also saw the house near Grandpa's house that Gabriella's family still owned.
Then we took a photo of me, Gary, Danny, Joyce and Annette in front of Grandpa's house, and hoped that somehow Grandpa knew that after all these years his grandchildren were here to visit the house that was his boyhood home.
See: Lunch in Frattolli
After spending many happy hours in Valle Vaccaro, we got in our cars to go back to Frattolli for lunch. As we left V.V., we could see down below the small cemetery that they had pointed out to us on our way in. It was, like almost everything in Italy, ancient. They pulled the cars over and we all got out and walked down the hill into the cemetery. It was very small and surrounded by an old stone wall with an iron gate. On the way down Angela found some berries and we picked them and ate them. We opened the big ir
on gates and went inside and looked at all the headstones. It was difficult to read some because the words carved into the stones had been washed away over the years, and there weren't too many headstones, but we found a few "De Federicis" family plots from long ago.We got back in our cars and headed back down towards Frattolli where 
our luncheon was waiting for us. We were going to a local trattoria and Luigi told us that the food would be typical Abbruzzi food. We arrived at the Trattoria called "Monti della Laga", and everyone who was at V.V. had joined us. We went inside and went into the back room where a long table was waiting for us. We all sat down and were served almost immediately. There was, of course, all kinds of wine on the table and something that me and Gary thought was part of the decor - small, thin red peppers spread all over the table - only to find out later that they were meant to be eaten by cutting pieces of them onto your plate. There were so many of us at the table, and just like at Blandina's I was so impressed that even though there was a language barrier, we all seemed to get along great and have so much to talk about. Gary and I were sitting next to Barbara and since her English was so good she was able to tell us a lot of things we wanted to know. They started bringing out dishes of food, but I was afraid to try any of the meats because I didn't know what they were. They brought out a huge platter of some unidentifiable meat and Gary tried some because he had decided he would try it first, then ask what it was. I didn't want to try anything that I didn't know what it was, so I didn't have any. After Gary ate some he liked it and asked Barbara what it was. She thought for a minute, trying to think of the English words, then said - "Mother of Goat!" but then she realized she said the wrong thing and said "Lamb's mother!" and Angela corrected her and said it was Sheep. Here is the complete menu: Antipasto, fagiole (bowl of cooked beans), big bowls of chicken li
vers and onions, spinach gnocchi, pasta with mushrooms, sheep, roasted potatoes and Abruzzi cake for dessert. The food was very good, especially the gnocchi, potatoes, and the dessert! Then Angela told me that the cook had kept coming out during the meal to find out if we were enjoying the food and was worried that we weren't and offered to make something different if we didn't like what they were serving. We didn't know that was happening, and I felt bad because I realized how much they were trying to impress us, and I didn't want them to think we didn't like it. So after the meal I told Angela we all enjoyed it and asked her if we could thank the cook. They were all very pleased that we would do that, and said they'd go in the kitchen to get the cook. I don't know why, but I 
was surprised when the cook came out and I found out it was a female. We thanked her and told her how much we all enjoyed it. She didn't understand much English, but I think she knew what we meant, and then I asked if we could take her picture with us, and she agreed. She kept asking us if we liked it and I honestly told her how much I loved the gnocchi and told her it was one of my favorite foods. Our meal was followed by, of course, more wine and other drinks including limoncello, grappo, amaratto, a black licorice liqueur, and an herbal liqueur. Gary had gone outside where the men were smoking, and out there they offered him some "hard" liquor. None of the men that were outside with Gary spoke English, but they ordered Gary a drink. It came in a small glass so he drank it down like a shot, but then noticed that they all still had theirs and they were just sipping them! Since Gary drank his so fast, they ordered him another one, which he drank a little slower but still finished it before they finished their first one. They just looked at him and ordered him a third drink! It was all very funny, and I was surprised he was still standing! We all were ready to leave the restaurant, and just like when we went to Shannon's Pub our first night in Teramo, or when we went to to the Agritourism restaurant with Marco's family, not only did we not pay for anything - but we didn't even get a chance to try to pay because we never even saw a bill or saw anyone else pay for one!
As we walked out of the restaurant and were ready to get into our cars, Barbara came up to us and asked if any of us left a bag behind because they had one in the restaurant. We all said no, none of us had any bags. Then she insisted that it must be one of ours. We all still said no - Joyce, Annette and I had our purses, and none of us were carr
ying any bags. Then Barbara said - I think you might call it a "fanny pack". Joyce and I were standing next to Gary and we burst out laughing. It was just too funny! Gary had lectured us about watching our wallets and purses BEFORE we left for Italy and all DURING the time we were in Italy, and then he leaves his fanny pack in the restaurant! It had his passport in it, his credit cards, his American cash and all his Euros!!! And he left it behind! It was just way too funny... but it turned out that wasn't the end of the story... Gary went back inside with Barbara to get his fanny pack, and when he came out we were still laughing and couldn't wait to get back to tell Debbie about it, but then Gary said - I didn't leave it in the restaurant. We didn't know what he was talking about and we looked at him trying to figure out what he meant, and he said - I left it at the church and someone brought it here because they knew this is where "the Americans" were coming later for lunch. He had left it behind in the beautiful church in Fratolli that we had been at hours and hours earlier!!! If it was at all possible, we laughed even harder! We were doubled over! We had even been to Valle Vaccaro and back in the meantime - and someone in the church found it and knew it was one of ours and brought it to the restaurant knowing we'd be there later. Only in Italy!
When we finally stopped laughing, we all got in our cars and headed back to Teramo where we were going to meet back up with Debbie and Aunt Evelyn and then go to dinner at Blandina's. We got back and found out that A.E. was feeling better, and Debbie had very successfully beat her in several games of Scrabble (we don't know that for sure, but that's Debbie's version of the story!).
That's the end of this section of the story, but next go to "Sunday: Dinner at Blandina's" to read more about all the wonderful time we spent with the family on our last evening in Teramo.
he Italian countryside to finally meet our Italian cousins, followed by a visit to the sites in and around Teramo, we were now finally going to visit our grandfather's family home in Valle Vaccaro, a small village in the Appennine Mountains. The house was home to the De Federicis family since they built it in the early 1600's. I can't even describe the feelings and emotions of finally seeing the house where my Grandfather lived until he was 15 years old. What we had just found out was that his father had given him money for his education, but instead Grandpa left for America! That was in 1912, and he never returned to see his family, his homeland or his home. And now, here we were, five of his grandchildren, on our way to visit the home that he left almost 95 years ago!
a small, ancient stone house which Rossella told us was where the washerwomen used to do all the laundry. This was the entrance into Valle Vaccaro and several yards in front of us were some ancient stone houses, a church, and a school house. This was the entire village. Before we left for our trip, I had pictured what I thought Valle Vaccaro would be like. I had expected one single old farmhouse with an overgrown yard surrounding it, with the roof and shutters falling off! It was nothing what I expected! The stone houses were solid and sturdy, and the area was very beautiful and well-kept with stone walkways and beautiful views. The area to park our cars was above the houses, and our first
view of the house where grandpa lived was very exciting! We took pictures from above before we went to get a closer look. When we got out of our cars, it was to find that more "cousins" had joined us. Besides Luigi and his family and Gigi and his family, everyone was there including Zia Irma, Annalisa (Francesco's sister), and Cousin Diana and her daughter Barbara who brought us old family photos to look at. Barbara was a beautiful soft-spoken young girl with long dark h
air and she spoke almost perfect English. We all walked down towards the house, and sitting in front of Grandpa's house were a group of old Italian men playing cards. It was such a perfect picture of what you would expect to see in Italy. We spent a long time in front of the house and looking at the other houses in the area. The "old-timers" - Cesare, Irma, etc. really enjoyed seeing their old home and talking to the villagers. We met an old woman who said she re
membered her cousin Mario, but we all agreed later that she would have been much too young to remember him and she probably just remembered stories about him. We took our picture with her and she seemed very pleased. We didn't get to see the inside of the house, but Annette and I walked all around it and in the back, just a few feet from the house, there was a small pasture with goats in it. As we walked up a little stone walkway alongside Grandpa's house, I noticed a small window that was open and decided to peek in. I only saw a little bit because there were people inside, and all I really saw was a
stone floor and a little bit of furniture. The stone houses were so solid and it was amazing to know that they were a couple of hundred years old. We thought it was funny when we saw a modern convenience - a satellite dish attached to the side of the house! Our cousins pointed out a few things including the family name carved above some of the doors, and also - something we didn't know at the time - the family motto. It was very old and carved in stone on the front of the house and it was written in Latin, but it translates into the "golden rule" - "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you". I thought that was a great motto to have as our family motto since it's something I always try to live by.
ding the house. What we were all immediately impressed with was that the surrounding grounds were so much like the farm. Our Italian cousins were so happy to hear that and to know that Grandpa found "a little bit of Italy" home in America. There were hazel nut trees, elderberry bushes, and gullies to walk through - I laughed because I thought except for the mountains and the 17th century stone houses, it could be the farm! We walked to the edge where there were beautiful views of the surrounding mountains and v
alleys, and they pointed out how far away everything was and showed us in the distance the old road that Grandpa would have had to walk just to get some kind of transportation into a main town. I sat on the edge of the mountain and looked all around me and it was all so beautiful, and I wondered how Grandpa could have left all of this. But then as I looked around and realized how remote it was and how it must have seemed to a boy of 14, I realized how he could have easily looked out into the mountains and wondered what else was out there, and even though it was so beautiful, I could understand why he would want to leave.
See: Lunch in Frattolli
