Student Journals: AIFS in Rome, Italy

Gina Manzo
Manhattan College
Richmond in Rome, Italy

Finding the Roots That Gave You Wings

Whether they are your parents, grandparents, great aunts or uncles, they are your family and blood. They are a part of you. There is no similar feeling to the one that hits you when you see where your family began: where you began.

My family originates from a quaint, old village, Duronia, in the region of Molise. The small town sits on top of a snow covered mountain. It is quiet, cold and simple with a lot of character. When my parents and brothers came to visit me, we rented a car, plugged in the navigation system and typed in our destination, Duronia. I previously e-mailed the mayor and told him that my family and I were planning a visit. Throughout the years many visits were paid back to Duronia, so they weren't surprised to hear from another Manzo. We were welcomed with open arms and greeted at the entrance of the town. We hadn't known what to expect, so it was a lot to absorb. The language barrier was difficult because nobody spoke a lick of English. I was struggling, digging through my brain for each word of Italian I could use to communicate. I mostly used my hands, and I would advise bringing a dictionary. I ended up getting my points across, and I understood enough to see the church where my great grandfather was baptized, where he and his family lived, where my great grandmother’s town was. We met a man who welcomed us into his home because he knew some people of my family who had passed away. He was trying to explain to us some memories he had of his mother, who knew my family. He cried. We needed to do one more thing, get a cup of homemade "scattone."

Seeing where your family comes from helps solve a few family mysteries and gives you a better understanding of why you are the way you are. Scattone was somewhat of a mystery because in America, my family doesn't know anyone who knows what it is besides a couple other families whose origin is Duronia also. I always knew it came from the village where my family is from, so we couldn't wait to get a cup of scattone from Duronia. We didn't even need to ask for a cup, they knew exactly what we wanted because it is common there and the cold weather calls for it.  The drink consists of part boiled water that was used in the pot to make pasta. After the pasta, preferably spaghetti, is finished, the hot water is mixed into a bowl or mug with homemade red wine and a little portion of the pasta. It is basically a soup with hot water, red wine, and spaghetti. This drink warms you from head to toe on a cold day. Try it.

Finding your roots might be a difficult trip to plan, but it is well worth it. There is no other feeling in the world like seeing where your family began. We have the chance to make day trips or weekend trips and this is our opportunity to get in contact with where we come from. I understand a little more why I am the way I am. I can't wait to share the entire experience with the rest of my family and hopefully each of us will get a chance to see where we all began. Many of us, students, travel to countries where we have relatives or origin; the experience isn’t completely fulfilled if you don’t go where those family members were and see what they saw as children and experience the lifestyle that they took with them to America.