Final Reflections

My journey to Sicily has come to an end.  Today, we made the long trip across the Atlantic.  I have a few brief final reflections.

1.  We all have made decisions that have had profound consequences on our own personal lives or the lives of others.  Vincenzo Farfaglia, Giuseppe Rinella and Frances Facone all made the decision to leave their homes for an unknown land.  Because of their decision, these two wonderful people met, fell in love, got married and had a family.

2.  Sicily is an intense land marked by centuries of a very complex history.  The Greeks, the Romans, the Arabs, the Normans, the Spanish and World War II all have left an amazing impact on a very profound culture.  Thus, it is easier to understand the contrast between the fervor of Catholicism vs a noticeable anti-clericalism, and the friendliness of the Sicilians vs their horrid driving habits.

3.  Whenever we ask for a cannoli at a good Italian restaurant or bakery, we need to keep in mind that one cannoli is actually a cannolo.  Cannolo is the Italian language singular for the famous Sicilian pastery which has Arabic roots.  Cannoli  is the plural, such as when you purchase a box of cannoli.  Thus, "leave the gun and take the cannoli," not "...leave the cannolis" and "these cannoli were made by nuns who took a vow of silence," not "...these cannolis..."

Back to Reality

Today is our last day in Sicily.  We decided to return to the incredible beauty of Scopello.  Scopello is a small village situated in the national reserve of Zingero.  Here are some of the scenes.  Tomorow we leave very early in the morning for our flight back to JFK.  Some time tomorrow night, I will post a final reflection on my journey to Sicily.  

Beautiful Views from Scopello

Scopello is a small fishing village located west of Palermo on the Sicilian coast.  Here are some remarkable views.

Palermo in Depth

Today, Saro Pirrone, our tour guide, took us through the old part of Palermo. We saw some very beautiful churches. Here is a brief overview of our visit.


1. The Church of the Matorana
2. The Church of Gesu
3. The Palatine Chapel
4. The Palermo Cathedral
5. Restaurant - Antica Focacceria San Francisco started in 1834
6. The Massimo Theatre (scene of the shooting of Mary Corleone, Godfather III)

Cefalu

After our visit to Savoca, we made a visit to the famous town of Cefalu.  Here, in the center of the town, is a famous cathedral.  The art work is similar to Mondeale and the Palatine in Palermo.

August 15 is the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  This Catholic feast day is celebrated with a lot of joy in Trappeto because it is the most important Marian feast day of the village. There has been a lot of celebrating since last night with a procession and fireworks. There will be a large boat procession tonight followed by more fireworks.   My sister had to leave us today.  It was great to have her with us.  

Tomorrow will be kind of catch up day.  Above all, we need to get some laundry done.  On Saturday, we will be doing a day long tour of the most important historical spots in Palermo.

Savoca

Yesterday we left behind Linguaglossa and Castiglione, and we made our way back to Trappeto which is located about 30 minutes west of Palermo.  During our drive back to Trappeto, we visited the beautiful town of Savoca which is located north of Taromina and south of Messina.  The views were amazing.  Moreover, this is the town where some of the Godfather I was shot.  On the bottom of the hill and in front of the town square is the famous Bar Vitelli.  Godfather fans will remember that this is where Michael Coreleone met his first father-in-law.  

Another Interesting Day in Sicily

Mount Etna is the largest active volcano in Europe.  Early Monday morning the usual surrounding clouds had disappeared, allowing for a spectacular view from the our home in Linguaglosa.

After breakfast, we spent most of the day back in Castiglione di Sicilia.  We were able to search  family records, only to find out that any record keeping prior to 1921 was pretty basic.  However, we were able to locate my grandfather's birth certificate and the street address where he lived before immigrating to Connecticut.  The house where he lived is no longer standing, but we took a picture on the street where his house was located.

In the middle of the picture is Giuseppe Farfaglia.  Somehow we are related, but we do not know how.  We were unable to trace the family line, but we did find out that the last name Farfaglia is well known in Castigilione di Sicilia, but it is not a common last name.  Thus, I conclude that all of the Farfaglias are related, but we don't know exactly how.

Last night, I had dinner in Linguaglosa with an old friend, Nick Cornwall, who is on deployment off the coast of Catania.  Nick was a parishioner at Saint Helena's while in Navy flight school at the Corpus Christi Naval Air Station.  He met and married his wonderful wife, April, at Saint Helena's when I was the pastor.  It was great to see Nick again.