Category: Any Day in Pontelandolfo

This Is A Drill – Earthquake!!!

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo

This is a drill. I repeat, This is a drill.  Crash, boom, the house is moving.  *&^%$, an earthquake!?  A terrorist attack? Run? Hide?  What do we do?  Sirens wailed.  We ran out of the house. Ambulances raced to the historic center.  My emotions are off the chart.  What the hell is going on?

Today, July 9, civil defense teams from all over Campania raced to Pontelandolfo to aid its residents. I repeat, This is a drill.  Jack was an emergency management professional for over 40 years and was part of the teams that created drills.  I would pop in and out of exercises simulating the media and harassing state and national spokespeople.  When we heard there was going to be a simulation of a natural disaster, we had to witness it.

I put it in my calendar and when I woke up I shrieked – it was 9:30, we’re late! At about 8.30 am, Pontelandolfo was to be invaded by approximately 150 Civil Defense volunteers from various parts of the Campania Region. Twenty associations had given their commitment to participate in this unique event.  When we got to the piazza at about 10:00 they were all gathering under a tree near the two way radio transmitter.  Soon, everyone stood at attention for the national anthem. This signaled the beginning of the drill.

The purpose of the drill was to implement and test Pontelandolfo’s Municipal Civil Protection Plan. I wander if I ask nicely, if Jack and I can read it?  According to my source for all things Pontelandolfo – the Pontelandolfo News – 

By setting up such a document, the administration wanted to give a strong signal for the protection and security of citizens in the event that they experience natural disasters such as an earthquake. Pontelandolfo, nestled in the Apennines, has  high seismic risk, knowledge and preparation to face this danger is critical.

Emergency vehicles from all over the region encircled Piazza Roma.  My heart burst with pride as I remembered that just like all of those Flagtown Fire Trucks of my New Jersey youth, these trucks were driven by a dedicated group of volunteers.  The same type of dedicated volunteers who, in recent years responded to horrific earthquakes and dug out the victims of the massive avalanches in northern Italy.  These men and women are the backbone of our communities. We thank each and every one.

After a short briefing, an Emergency Operations Center was activated at the Municipal Building.  We didn’t peak our nosey noses into the EOC but watched the volunteers mobilize for a variety of scenarios. The evacuation drills  were staged in our medieval village center – which has historically been hit by earthquakes. The various teams evaluated the extent of damage caused by the faux seismic events.  Other teams practiced rescuing the wounded. The Croce Rossa ambulances  soared up the steep hill and returned with rescued wounded.  A triage tent had been set up to evaluate and assist the wounded.

Vonuteers from Pontelandolfo’s Protezione Civile prepared lunch for all.  It is great that all of these volunteers from various towns get to network.  Those relationships will certainly be important if and when they need to assist each other.

I made a perky little video to salute the work of all of the volunteers – again – WE THANK YOU ALL!!!

Visit Galleria Civica Before September 17!

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo, Stops Along the Journey - Sites Off the Tourist Track

Woodsman Greeted Us

Being cultural junkies, Jack and I visit lots of art museums.  Somedays, we are impressed, enlightened and love the eye candy we find.  Other days, Jack walks slowly by grand masters and I stifle yawns. This June in Trento, Italy, I had my very first visceral experience in an art gallery.  Yes, dear readers, previously, art touched very few of the senses I was born with. Most works of art only got me sensually to first or second base – I was a gallery virgin .  Today, I know what it feels like to look at something, connect, and feel my entire body tingle. Legno|Lën |Holz, curated by Gabriele Lorenzoni, at Trento’s Galleria Civica was the most incredible exhibition I have ever experienced.  No I mean it – in MY LIFETIME – as an arts patron.

Each sculpture pulsed with life.  One grouping of two women made me pause and look even closer. Were these two real women in make-up?  I swore I heard a heart beat and know I felt their souls connecting with mine.  The photos that I took don’t do justice to the life altering experience of walking through rooms of life size work that literally pulled me into each of their stories.  I wanted to know who they were, why they were captured at this point in time and what they were thinking.

Trento, nestled in a valley of the Italian Dolomites, is home to Galleria Civica.  This museum is part of MART – Museo d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Trento e Rovereto.      We happened upon Galleria Civica, located at Via Belenzani, 44, noticed the poster for the show and went in.  The two euro entrance fee makes the museum accessible to everyone.

According to the MART catalogue of 2017 exhibitions, Legno|Lën |Holz, is “the first Italian exhibition of the wood sculptures by the most important artists currently active in the Dolomite area.”  I sincerely hope there will not only be more exhibitions, but also, that this show is a catalyst for the work venturing out to the rest of the world.

If you are coming to Italy this summer and have the time – head over to Trento.  The exhibition is up until September 17.  My video doesn’t do it justice but it just might tease you into visiting Galleria Civica.

 

I’ve Been Blogged!

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo

Che cosa?  What?  Non puo essere vero? That can’t be true.  My pal Angela whipped out her cell phone and showed me the blog that had been written about the night Jack and I danced the night away in a tiny local bar surrounded by thirty-somethings.  Note, I said written about –  not by me!  All these years I’ve written about other people, places and things and I hadn’t really thought about how they might have felt seeing themselves revealed.  Actually, I don’t give a tinkers damn how Verizon Wireless feels when I write what a terrible corporation it is.  Or don’t feel sad when I bash politicos.  Perhaps I should.  Perhaps, I too need to think before I pound a keyboard.  I mean, is it fair of me to decide that a certain village isn’t worth stopping in or that I wouldn’t let a wild dog eat in a certain restaurant?

In today’s world of instant access via Instagram, Facebook and all the other “wheeeee I can send something out to stratosphere sites,” I feel compelled to never leave home without full makeup, my hair done and ready for my closeup.  Compelled but often, yawn, don’t bother and then WHAM a fugly photo of me shows up on FaceBook.  ERRRRRRGGGGG.  If you are going to take my picture – stand on a chair and shoot down – I look thinner.

Midge & Jack Party 2017

I didn’t post this picture.  But it isn’t bad. The person who did, likes us.

Back to the blog –  the author didn’t use our names, so why did I think she was writing about us?  Because people who weren’t there told me they recognized our personalities and young folks who were there told me it was obvious. We were the only “old” couple there. GRRRRRRRR.

Ad un tratto li vedo, ballano bene, conoscono i passi, ma non è quello che mi colpisce: sono una coppia di mezza età, ballano stretti stretti, si guardano negli occhi, si amano con la tenerezza e la complicità di chi attraversa la vita insieme…

Suddenly I see them, (Guess who?) they dance well, know the steps, but that is not what strikes me: they are a middle-aged couple, (Bless you darling)  dancing closely together, looking at each other with love, tenderness and the complicity of those who go through life together.

There is more but I would need permission to re-post it.

Discovering that tons of people in Pontelandolfo knew exactly who this particular blogger was writing about – even though she didn’t use our names – felt a little bit squirrely.  Then I read the article.  OK,  it still feels a little bit strange, but since all press is good press, what the hey – I’ll enjoy the moment.  Especially since the story was touching, positive, a wee bit sad and reinforces the good life we have here in Pontelandolfo.  It was also very well written.  I would like to have coffee with the author. PS – if it isn’t about us – gulp –

PS – if it isn’t about us – gulp – I WILL FEEL REALLY STUPID.  Even if it wasn’t about us, it served to make me rethink – or remember – that old adage – “Think before you speak.”

Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt. Abraham Lincoln

Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/speak.html

 Ci Vediamo

Buona Pasqua – The Dancing Pastiera

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo

Buona Pasqua!  Happy Easter!  Wizzzzzzz there goes a pastiera!  Vroom – watch out! Another pastiera is zapping by.  Screeeeeech – quick stop and one pastiera down!   EEEEEKS – is that a flying pizza piena?  WAIT A MINUTE – is that the pastiera I gave you yesterday?  It just landed back on my table!

My best buddy, Rossella and I were laughing madly.  The laughter was so loud that it crossed the Atlantic Ocean.  As a matter of fact, the ocean between us must have been rockin’ and rollin’.  She had been telling me that she had made a number of pastiera – a Neapolitan tart made with cooked wheat berries, eggs, ricotta cheese, flavored with orange flower water and candied citrus.  In our part of Southern Italy, for Easter, we practice the Neapolitan tradition of baking pastiera and/or pizza piena  — crust topped pie or calzone shaped pasta stuffed with ricotta cheese and dried meats.  Women from Pontelandolfo, Casalduni and other villages in the Sannio hills  visit their friends and bring them a gift of a lovingly baked pastiera or pizza piena.

As Rossella was talking I was thinking of my  Aunt Julie making “pizza chiena” in my grandmother’s kitchen.  She tossed in eggs, ricotta, mortadella, salami, cappicolla and rice to make a pie that would sink the Titanic.  But boy were they good.  BOING – it suddenly hit me why she made three or four but we only got to eat one!  She too took them to other people’s house.  But in Flagtown, NJ there weren’t any other Pontelandolfese to bring us a scrumptious gift.

Suddenly, I saw a parade of pastiera moving slowly up curvy mountain roads, into valleys, around centro storico, pausing for a moment at a house and dashing out again.  Rossella, I said in my pigeon Italian, let me get this right.  I make a bunch of pies and I bring them to a bunch of friends.  They make a bunch of pies and bring them to a bunch of friends.  What happens if they get more pies than they made?  I bet they give to a friend the pie I made or you made.  How long would it take before we got one of our own pies back as a gift?  She started to giggle, I started to giggle.  The laughter started to roll.

May this day of Resurrection be filled with peace, love, happiness, laughter and new beginnings.

buona pasqua

 

 

 

Pontelandolfo Featured on RAI TV!

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo

On Sunday, March 5, 2017, something fabulous happened in Pontelandolfo. The national television channel, RAIUNO, broadcast the 11:00 AM mass live from one of the most beautiful churches in the province of Benevento –  Parish S.S. Salvatore of Pontelandolfo Chiesa Madre.  The church, built in a Romanesque style, heralds back to before 1500.  Completely destroyed by the earthquake of 1688, the church was then rebuilt ten years later in a Baroque style. This is the church my grandparents were married in and my aunts and uncles were baptized in.  It is truly magnificent and deserves to be seen by the world.

Archbishop March 2017 Ponte

Mass was officiated by the new Archbishop Monsignor Felice Accrocca.

Pontelandolfo News  published the formal announcement from our parish priest, Rev. Don Giusseppe Girardi and our mayor, Il Sindaco, Dott. Gianfranco Rinaldi.  My heart filled as I read the announcement.  It reminded me just how many of us left this village in the Sannio hills.

“Sarà un momento unico e irripetibile che ci permetterà di entrare nelle case di tutti, in particolare in quelle dei nostri fratelli emigrati in terre lontane, per stare ancora più vicini agli anziani e agli ammalati.”

“It will be a unique and unrepeatable moment that will allow us to enter the homes of all, in particular in those of our brothers who emigrated to distant lands, to be even closer to the elderly and the sick. “

The WhatsApp texts and e-mails started flooding my in box.  The mayor sent me a notice, my friend Nicola sent me pictures of the crews setting up an incredible collection of cameras in the sanctuary.  My favorite florists Nella and Fabio were up to their elbows in flowers.  My family urged me to grab a plane and get back.  I sadly missed the mass but thanks to the RAI application on my iPad.  I was able to get up at 4:30 AM and watch the program live.

Rai Pix

Pontelandolfese filled the church.

To me – with my public relations hat on – the opening of the broadcast was the best thing that could have happened to Pontelandolfo.   Before Mass, RAI, presented an overview of the village.  It featured the mountain scenery that daily takes my breath away, our iconic medieval tower and other points of interests.

I don’t know how long the link will be live so click on it and see why I return to spend months at a time in Pontelandolfo.

RAI 1 in Pontelandolfo

Ci vediamo.

E Fuori Nevica! Repeat Performances

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo

Bravo!  This February 12th, Forum Giovani di Pontelandolfo produced E Fuori Nevica!  The young actors had only planned on one performance – wrong!  The show was so well recieved that an encore performance is being presented stasera, tonight, Friday, February 24, 2017.

valerio-play-poster

2’nd Chance to See the Play!

Enthusiasm for the actors, the play and the project has moved beyond the boundaries of Pontelandolfo.  The play will also be touring to Casalduni and Fragnetto!    Whew – my enthusiasm is leaping ahead.  You’re probably wondering who, what, where…

WHO:  Forum Giovani di Pontelandolfo is the association of young adults that actively endeavors to bring culture, entertainment and a grand good time to the village.  Many of them were involved in the July, 2016 collaborative theatrical production of Sacro di Santa Giocondina. The production was so well received and such a positive experience for the young thespians that they wanted to continue to bring quality theater to the community.

valerio-3-carmella

“It’s Snowing Outside” presented in Teatro San Rocco

The comedy deals with the familiar theme of family relationships and dealing with a handicapped sibling.  The characters include: the burgeoning musician, Enzo, played by Gennaro Santopietro; Cico, suffering from autism, played by Antonio Del Ciampo (President of the Forum); Giovanni Ruggiero plays Stefano, the brother with an excessive sense of responsibility; and Valerio Mancini (my handsome cousin in blue blazer) plays the notary.  Paola Corbo and Jonathan Moavero provided technical support.

WHAT:  E Fuori Nevica! by Vincenzo Salemme is the tale of three brothers thrust together by their mother’s death.  In order for the three men to inherit from mom, they had to live together .  That means three incredibly different personalities – including an autistic adult, obsessive, and bopper – find themselves in the same house.  The story is hilarious, touching and heartfelt. Author, Salemme, born in Bacoli, Province of Naples, is a familiar comedic actor and writer.  He worked with the prestigious company of Eduardo De Filippo and has written and starred in numerous films.  You might recognize him from the RAI series Da Nord a Sud… e ho detto tutto!

valerio-play-2

WHERE:   The City Council granted Forum Giovani free use of sala-teatro Papa Giovanni Paolo.  The multi purpose room is behind Chiesa San Rocco on Via San Rocco.

I am in New Jersey and this is happening tonight in Pontelandolfo!  ERRRRRRRRG.

Ci vediamo.

 

2017 – Villages Diverse But The Same

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo

At the dawn of 2017, fireworks surrounded Pontelandolfo’s iconic tower!  Pontelandolfesi bundled up against the cold mountain air, hugged each other and cheered.  In Flagtown, New Jersey illegal fireworks boomed in back yards.  We peered out the window and cheered – nah three people cheering loudly wasn’t the same as being in a village surrounded by other cheering folks.

Version 2

Messages of good wishes whipped through cyber space.  WhatsApp and FaceBook Messenger made me feel like I was in that piazza shouting auguri!  That’s a big lie. What I was really doing was shouting *&^%$ every time the muscles in my left thigh did the “I’m gonna get you back now” flash of pain dance.  I came back to New Jersey and had my left hip replaced the week before Christmas.  By New Year’s Eve my brain and legs were functioning but my left leg was still really angry at me.  Having spent a few weeks lying around between physical therapy sessions, I really had a chance to think about my life and I had an epiphany.  The Village that is Pontelandolfo is incredibly similar to the Village that each of us creates to survive 21st century life with out nervous breakdowns.  Here are some examples –

Being a hospital scaredy cat, I was blessed to have a village of women friends who took shifts hanging out in the hospital with me. Providing Jack with an opportunity to dash out and a sense of safety for me.  Last year, when  Zia Vittoria was in the hospital in Benevento, Italia, her grandson, Nicola made sure that folks were lined up to visit and check in. We see that kind of neighbors helping neighbors not only in my precious Pontelandolfo but in all kinds of neighborhoods across the world.

During the holiday season, Pontelandolfesi rally creating cultural events that engage everyone.  Pontelandolfo’s crafters and artigianal foodies sell their wares at the two day holiday market.  Wait?! Don’t we have those in towns across America too?  We do.  It is an opportunity for the local folks to share their talents and make some money.  Musical, literary and theatrical events are scheduled in many Italian villages.  In the USA we dash to local productions of the Nutcracker, Scrooge and Handel’s Messiah.  Different and yet the same, people all over the world enjoy the culture of their holiday seasons.

I am a culture lover and sadly admit that my New Jersey hometown feels like a culture wasteland.  Possibly because we are so close to Philadelphia, Princeton and New York the community doesn’t organize many holiday cultural events beyond religious services. Sadly, I am not in the Sannio hills and am missing both Casalduni’s and Pontelandolfo’s La Befana celebrations.  I will bet that a quick google search will turn up a “Three Kings Day ” Celebration somewhere in New Jersey.

DSC00810

La Befana Celebration in Alghero, Sardinia.

Religious festivals, community picnics, community theatre, local musical groups, writer’s groups, book clubs, local dance companies – these things exist everywhere.  It doesn’t matter what religion someone is, what their native dress looks like, or what side of the ocean they live on, all of us enjoy belonging to and participating in community life.

May 2017 provide each and everyone of us with the village and sense of community we need.

Happy New Year !  Buon Anno!  Bonne Année!  新年快乐   Gelukkig Nieuwjaar!  

Gutes Neues Jahr!   あけましておめでとうございます    Feliz Año!       Šťastný nový rok!    

سال نو مبارک      С Новым Годом!    Feliz Ano Novo!    Gelukkige Nuwejaar!

Baci e abbracci!  Ci Vediamo!

Transitions

by midgeguerrera, posted in Any Day in Pontelandolfo

It has been a month since you have heard from me.  Yikes? What have I been doing?  Well for the first week after the USA election I stayed in bed with a bottle of scotch and Italian candies.  Baci, baci!!

It has taken a while for me to make the transition from a citizen of Southern Italy to a citizen of the USA. Every November I find myself back in New Jersey.  I am happy to be in the clutches of my family and friends.  Ecstatic to see how much the wee ones have grown into interesting young adults.  After the frenzy of “welcome backs,” the happy hugs that make the emotional bubble in my chest burst with love, I look around and think “where am I?”  I had a teacher once who said that Europe didn’t exist – you got on a plane and flew around and then landed at a place like Disney Land where the pretend Europe was built.  He was kidding and trying to get us to think about the explorers who thought the world was flat.  He wanted us to realize that you have to get out of your comfort zone and see the world in order to understand not only the breadth of the world’s society – but who you are. But where am I?

The transition from the woman who lives in a small Southern Italian village to the woman who lives in the buzzing metropolitan area has always been difficult.  The culture shock of prices – $10 for two cappuccinos and one brioche makes my blood boil.  Hey, I get great cappuccinos for €1 and a FRESH brioche that tastes GREAT for €1.  Errrggg.  But more than prices, it is my difficulty accepting the changing cultural climate of my motherland.  I don’t need to harp on it – those of you who marched for equal rights understand that now we appear to be sinking into the quicksand of — well I can’t even talk about it.  If I do, I’m sure my “file” will just get thicker.

Transitions.  How do I transition from a life that includes a daily walk down the hill to the village piazza for a cappuccino and conversation to a life that means driving for an anything?  Everyone I pass in Pontelandolfo says buongiorno.  People I pass in my car flip their middle fingers because I drive to slow, fast or freaky. The fruits and vegetables I buy from Antonio’s truck in Italy haven’t been sprayed with stuff that could kill me.  The meat at the macelleria hasn’t been shot up with hormones.  Yes, I am lucky to have found a circle of local organic farmers in NJ so I am not forced to shop at giant super-markets.  I think about those that can’t.

Transition – my credit card is leaping out of my wallet. Don’t get me started on big pharma and the fact that the USA does not have a single payer health care system and is ranked under my feet on most studies.  Bloomberg News , Bloomberg Health-Care Efficiency Index, on September 26, 2016 ranked Italy 6th and the USA 50th.  My co-pay in Italy for my high blood pressure medicine is €2 – in NJ it was $46. How could this be?

I am a child of the 60’s.  During my university and young adult years, I was part of the politically active force of women who helped insure that reproductive rights belonged to women.  Who marched and voted for equality for all.  Who forced curriculums to include literary works by more than dead white men.  Who tossed boulders at glass ceilings. Who organized communities to improve the lives of those less fortunate than ourselves.  Who worked to bring arts experiences to children from all socio-economic strata.  Who –

Who now wonder “where have all the flowers gone – long time passing.” (Lyric by Pete Seeger.)  That is who I am.

Transitions.

Don’t despair, dear readers, don’t despair.  In a day or so the transition will be done and I will be back to my funny sardonic self.

Ci Vediamo.