Santa Alessio.... WHOA.

This is where we write from.......

So today marked our arrival to Sicily where we have planned to stay with Brandon’s family friend Vince’s relatives who have lived on this beautiful island their whole life. They don’t speak

much English so we timed our visit as to coincide with that of Guiseppe, the son of the family and his polish and 8 month pregnant beautiful wife Kasha. After a 2 hour bus ride from the Catania airport to the tiny seaside town Santa Alessio, we get off the bus, grab some gelato and quickly realize that English is NOT an option here. We have arrived at what I can only described as one of Italy’s best kept secrets, lush green plants and trees, vibrantly colored flowers adorning every corner, fence, yard, inch of land that isn’t being hogged by the most incredible ocean view anyone has ever seen. Guiseppe picked us up and drove us back to Conchetta’s (his mother’s) house where

we meet his sister Chiara, wife Kasha, Uncle Peppo short for

Guiseppe, Uncle Tino and Aunt Maria. We seriously could not believe our eyes when he said “we are here!” ocean front, just nestled into the hillside, with the view of the ancient castle of Santa Alessio in the background he points up to our apartment, just next door and 3 floors above his family’s home where our balcony is pretty much a diving board into the Mediteranean Sea. The whole family is sooooo friendly, we immediately sit down to chilled home-made red wine (they make their own wine along with olive oil and sundried tomatoes) and a 3 course lunch after getting settled in our sweeeet ass pad. Guiseppe is rad, 35 years old, software engineer/musician who currently lives in Rome and comes home

to visit this utopia paradise of a town a couple times a year. I cannot imagine what someone has to have done in a past life to grow up here. The town is litterly hanging off the cliff here... Bella! There are appx. 1000 people in this town, and roughly 10,000 in the summer monthes. It is about 90 degrees and humid, no air conditioning everything is just open and relaxed. The strip that they live on is equivalent to the beachfront homes in Newport, just with tiny little pizzerias, cafes, and bars on the ocean side of the street and spilling out onto the sand. After lunch and a genuine Sicilian buzz, Guiseppe, Brandon and I walked the whole 30 feet into the water; turquoise, perfect temperature just cool enough to provide refreshment from the heat. (* note it is 9 pm and I am on the front porch typing, I can hear Brandon attempting to make conversation with Conchella as she prepares our albeit delicious dinner, in his tiny bit of broken Italian and her progressing English; priceless)...... to be continued....