Last night was the definite highlight of our week. The family, led by Mirella (Enza’s daughter), planned a final banquet to send us off. All the people we have met this week came – plus a few more – 30 in all! Each of them was related in some way to Anointetta (Frank’s mother). It was heartwarming, fun, boisterous, and very, very special. Three of Frank’s first cousins were there – see picture at the top.

We drove out to the country to a trattoria that was set up just for us. Once we settled in, the men sat at one end, the women in the middle, and the kids on the other end – all talking up a storm. We feasted on pasta, carne (meat), contorni (vegetables), fragole (strawberries), and tiramisu, all washed down with unlimited pitchers of red wine.

Frank and I both even gave a little speech thanking everyone for their hospitality – we wrote ahead of time and used Google Translate, with Mirella’s help on pronunciation.

We did not get home until 2 am! These Sicilians know how to have a good time!

I will let the pictures speak for themselves.