Off The AutoStrada

Now that we have completed the excerpts from my book, "1800 Kilometers in a Fiat 500", this blog will concentrate more on things Italian; the country, the people, the history, the culture and Italian genealogy.  Enjoy this episode, a ride through the countryside in the mezzogiorno.

Many of Italy's roads are similar to American roads.  The AutoStradas are wonderful and the highways are quite acceptable.  The country roads are something else.

We present, here, a video of the back road from the commune of Padula to the commune of Sassano.  Here's how we came to this road.

We had spent a few hours at the Museum of Surnames in Padula, Salerno, Campania, Italy.  This surprising find was tucked away in a most implausible location in the old part of Padula, another hillside commune.  There we found one of Italy's most enthusiastic genealogists, Michele Cartusciello.

We left the museum and made a very short visit to a monastery, San Lorenzo.  Because we were short on time, we did not do the monastery justice.  So we got in the Fiat and drove back to Sassano.

Monastery of San Lorenzo - Padula, Salerno, Campania

Driving through the countryside is not like anything I have experienced in good old "Stati Uniti".  First off, the dirt road was barely wide enough for one car.   You felt as though you could reach out your window and knock on the doors of the farmhouses we passed.  There were loose animals everywhere.  It was quite an experience.  Press the play button and see for yourself.





Listen to the soothing hum of the Fiat's diesel engine and watch all those farmhouses go by.

Buona Salute a tutti




#genealogy   #Italy    #Mezzogiorno