More Research in Trani, and off to Chieti

This is a continuing saga of our research trip to Southern Italy in search of ancestral data.  In this post, we get one more surprise visitor, say good by to the farm in Palo del Colle, and begin our journey north to Chieti.  First, we stop in the village of Trani for a little research at their Archivio di Stato

Oh no!  Not again!  Yesterday we walked at least 1000 miles through the streets of Bitonto and Bari.  We're dead tired and there goes that blasted donkey again, at 5:00 AM.  Couldn't he let us sleep in just one day?  But just look at him.  How could you possibly be angry at a face like that? 

We got up and washed and immediately began fretting about how we were going to get back to civilization from the farm.  There were not enough uneaten breadcrumbs to mark the path to the town.  The GPS had not a clue as to where we were.  Oh bother!

Down to breakfast for one last time and again we feasted on the fresh eggs from the farm.

We were mentally plotting our departure in the lobby when in walks Domenico.  Domenico must have seen the glazed look in my eyes as he was drawing his "exit" map, the night before.  He decided to come and personally lead us out to a main road and show us the highway to Trani.  And so, we bid farewell to Marie and her husband, got in the car, and began to follow Domenico through the back country roads, to a fairly major highway.  There, we said farewell and we were off to Trani.

An angel shows us the way to our next stop

 You should understand that the Archivio di Stato for the province of Bari is in the city of Bari.  However, they have a branch archive in the small commune of Trani, some 20 miles north of Bari.  The records for Palo del Colle are kept in Trani.  Since we missed our opportunity to go to the Ufficio Di Anagrafe in Palo del Colle, we wanted to spend some time in Trani before we made our way to our next destination near the commune of Vasto.

Trani is an amazingly clean looking commune right on the coast of the Adriatic.  The incredibly blue sky made the whiteness of the buildings seem even whiter.

A church in Trani with a bright blue sky background

 We parked in a small piazza and walked a short distance to the Archivio.  There we were greeted, almost like royalty.  You develop a distinct impression that the clerks here don't see too many "Americani" searching for "dead people".

Lots of help at the Archivio di Stato

We spent several hours in Trani, and photographed a few more interesting documents.  If it weren't for the fact that most of the Palo records are available on line, we might have stayed longer.  

Archivio di Stato, Bari - Sessione Trani

We said arivederci and began our trip north to the commune of Rocco San Giovanni.  This is a village on the Adriatic coast which lies almost halfway between Vasto and Chieti, two important destinations for our research activities.  This is the home of my paternal grandmother.  


The ride was scenic, but otherwise uneventful.  We stopped at an Auto Grill for some lunch.  When we got to our destination (close to the village of Lanciano) our GPS ordered us to ascend a very steep and very narrow road.  We were having apoplexy as it seemed we were driving straight up, at a 90 degree angle.  Eventually, we stumbled upon our hidden B&B, and what a magnificent surprise.  

Rifugiomare is a B&B high up on a mountainside, overlooking the Adriatic Sea.  The view was simply amazing.  The building was constructed on two levels.  The main house and the lounging area were on the upper level.  The rooms were on the lower level, underneath a grassy patio area.  From both levels there was a breathtaking view of the sea, and it seemed so close that it felt like you could touch the water.

 

The Rifugiomare Lounge

We settled into our very spacious and very comfortable room (with a walk in shower).  We climbed to the upper level and sat down in the lounge to catch up on our emails and other internet activities.  Our hostess, Brunetta, brought us some (American coffee) and introduced us to Wine Cookies.  

Fish - Adriatic Style

We did some planning for our next day and then went down the mountain to a seaside restaurant.  We had pasta and fish.  Eating fish from the Adriatic, Italian style was a new experience for us.  It was hard work breaking all those shells, but the food was delicious.

Beach in front of the Restaurant

We took a little walk on the beach after dinner, and then we went back to the B&B.  We met Brunetta's husband, Bepe, and had some coffee and more wine cookies.  We capped the evening with a little lemoncello and slept soundly.

Next Post:  More fabulous genealogical finds - A trip to the Vasto Ufficio di Anagrafe and to the Archivio di Stato in Chieti.

Wine Cookies:

3 Cups of flour

1 Cup of Sugar

1 Cup of wine (red or white)

1 cup of olive oil (maybe a little less)

1 teaspoon of baking powder

Mix the ingredients into a pasty dough

shape into small meatball size balls

Roll in sugar

bake at 375 for 20 minutes 

Sunday, a tour of Bitonto and Bari

This is a continuing saga of our research trip to Southern Italy in search of ancestral data.  This post covers our day in Bitonto and Bari and describes our first glimpse of the Adriatic Sea.  We also get a surprise visitor.

Despite a despirate longing to sleep in, our Donkey alarm clock had us opening our eyes at 5:00 AM once again.  We lay there, listening to the animal symphony that was "kicked off" by the donkey, and thinking about sleeping in.  Not today!  Perhaps, tomorrow!

We got ourselves up and ready for the day.  We went for another wonderful breakfast and decided to take a walk about the property.  The farm is very large and there were a large variety of animals and  crops.  Strangely, we had the sense of being in total isolation in the country while still knowing that just a mile away, there was a small but densely packed and very busy village.

We toured this village yesterday and, in stark contrast to the open spaces about the farm, we noticed that there did not seem to be any yards attached to any of the homes.  A satelite image of the village confirms this observation.  It shows "sardine packed" homes along all the narrow streets.

 Here, on the farm, there are palm trees and fig trees and rows and rows of olive trees.

When we returned to the farm house, we found visitors.  Cousin Angela Lattanzio and her husband had come out to the farm to meet us.  What a pleasant surprise.  Vito said he was going to call them, and he did.

Two ladies with the DNA of Michele Lattanzi and Sabina Mastrandrea

 Cousin Angela was excited to meet us and she brought family pictures with her.  We sat and talked for some time, sharing stories as best we could, and often, with the help of English speaking Marie.  Gay and Angela have a common bisnonno, Michele Lattanzi.

While this was going on, in walks Domenico Tricarico, ready to take us to Bitonto and Bari.  This certainly answered the question, "what were we going to do today?".   

We got into Domenico's car and we drove, first to Bitonto, and then to Bari.  Like his father, Domenico is well versed in the history of these cities, and, as a bonus, speaks a little English.

We walked through the streets, saw amazing antiquities, and walked some more, and saw some more, etc.  Look at a few of the pictures.

This church was built around 1180

This 14th Century Palatial Piazza was
designed to collect rain water at this fountain

 We had a very nice lunch in Bitonto and then we drove on to Bari.  Here are more pictures.

Gay's great Grandfather, Michele Lattanzi,
was a Bari Goldsmith, and lived in this castle.

An Ancient Roman road, uncovered during a construction project

Our first glimpse of the Adriatic Sea

We walked and walked and walked some more.  My feet have still not recovered.  This was indeed a full day and I have posted other pictures on the Web "HERE".

We returned to the farm and Domenico stayed for dinner with us.

Another "Masseria Vero" feast

We talked into the late hours and discussed our plans for the next day.  We were going to stop at the Trani "division" of the Bari Archivio di Stato.  If you recall, we had not driven our FIAT for the last three days.  We have been taken everywhere by the kindness of the people about us; a kindness that we deeply appreciated and made this journey more than special to us.

Tomorrow was going to be a challenge.  First, we would need to find our way off the farm; no easy task in itself.  Second, we would need to find a road north to the village of Trani.  I was going to rely on our Italian GPS, but Domenico drew us a map and explained what route we should take. 

We were more than ready for a good night's sleep.  Buonnonotte!

Next Post - One more angel, a trip to the Archivio di Stato in Trani for more research, and the ride to Rocco San Giovanni, near our final stop, Vasto, Chieti, Abruzzo.