L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 36 L'Italo-Americano wrote: "Ms. Barbieri was the second woman to become a resident of our city. She was a p e r s o n a l f r i e n d o f o u r founder Abner Weed." T h a t d a y s h e r e c e i v e d congratulatory phone calls f r o m h e r r e l a t i v e s i n Bagnone, other family mem- bers in Indiana, and from U S P r e s i d e n t R o n a l d R e a g a n . C a r m e l a d i e d i n Weed shortly after. Besides devoting her life to her husband and their children, Carmela provided a r o o m a n d b o a r d t o w o r k e r s . S h e w a s a k i n d boarding house proprietor to her Italian guests with no family in the US. "She made bread in a brick oven twice a day. Weed residents and the nearby communities loved her delicious bread and Pan di Spagna or sponge cake," reported the local newspa- per. At 90, she wrote a letter to her relatives in Italy com- municating she had left to go and eat "il pane dalle sette croste" or the bread with seven crusts - meaning, the daily migrants' life is hard work in difficult condition. When you bite the first crust off, a second, then a third and a fourth crust, and so on, will follow. The harsh search for a better life, the soft inner part of the bread or the crumb, requires a lot of patience, resilience, and endurance. In 1947, Carmela's dau- g h t e r K a t i e b e c a m e t h e owner of the Weed Steam Laundry & Dry Cleaners. S h e a n d h e r h u s b a n d worked together for the next 33 years without taking a vacation. Except for her sister Ines who settled in San Leandro, a l l o f C a r m e l a ' s s i b l i n g s lived in Weed. Her cousin Giuseppe left Weed for San Francisco to be a waiter at the world-famous Fairmont Hotel at 950 Mason Street. Today, Carmela's great- grandchildren are successful p r o f e s s i o n a l s . T h e y h a v e v i s i t e d B a g n o n e a n d i t s s i g h t s t h a t i n c l u d e t h r e e castles, the churches of San Niccolò, San Leonardo, and San Terenzio. T h e l o c a l h e r i t a g e m u s e u m , t h e M u s e o Archivio della Memoria, organized a photographic exhibition on the families portrayed in the book La Merica. The Bagnonesi com- bine two cultural identities. "We feel half Tuscans and h a l f L i g u r i a n s , " e x p l a i n s F r a n c e s c a G u a s t a l l i , d i r e c t o r a t I l M u s e o A r c h i v i o d e l l a M e m o r i a . "We maintain an orientation toward both cultures. Due to c u l t u r a l r e a s o n s , w e a r e Tuscans but genetically we are a Ligurian ethnic group descending from the ancient Apuan Ligurians," she says. "You can tell by our cuisi- ne." Their gastronomy is authentic Liguria's cucina povera or the cooking of the poor. And it is terrific as evidenced by their special- ties: the Testaroli, huge pan- cakes cut into pieces and s e r v e d w i t h p e s t o , t h e Lasagne Bastarde, a flavored d i s h m a d e w i t h c h e s t n u t flour, tossed with sausage, leek, and Parmesan cheese. As well, it is worth trying their savory cakes stuffed w i t h S w i s s c h a r d a n d herbs. Castagneti or chestnuts woods surrounds Bagnone. Through forested hills, you c a n w a l k a l o n g t h e V i a Francigena. Each stage of t h e r o u t e c o n n e c t s t o a h i s t o r i c a l t o w n s u c h a s Pontremoli, a must-see. It is the quintessential heart of Lunigiana designed around Baroque palazzos with bal- conies overlooking winding a l l e y s . T h e s o l i d h e a r t o f Italy beats to its timeless rhythm in Pontremoli. Its slow time promises respite from the urban rat race. This locale seduced the international singer-songw- r i t e r Z u c c h e r o " S u g a r " Fornaciari, who has been living here since 1993. The m u s i c i a n f r o m R e g g i o Emilia chose Pontremoli for his home in a difficult period of his life. "When I am out of ideas and lack inspiration, I walk out to the courtyard to look at the chickens," he told t h e I t a l i a n p r e s s . " I n t h e early 90s, I was dealing with serious existential depres- sion. I was in a dark place: too many unanswered que- stions," he confessed from h i s f a r m h o u s e n a m e d Lunisiana Soul that he sha- res with his second wife. "I had just released my album Miserere, a resounding suc- cess. But, as a man, I no lon- ger knew where to stay or where to go. I had separated f r o m m y f i r s t w i f e , " h e explained. "One day, I star- ted wandering around the countryside of Lunigiana. It is such a mysterious corner o f I t a l y , p e r h a p s b e t t e r known abroad than domesti- cally. I was mesmerized by the beauty of nature. I wan- ted to find a farmhouse to renovate and do the con- s t r u c t i o n w o r k m y s e l f t o improve my mood, distract myself with physical work, and move on. The moment I was about to give up, from a road up high in the moun- t a i n s , I s a w w h a t I w a s looking for. A ruin to rebuilt sat in the middle of the val- ley. Well, this home saved my life. It saved me from depression." LIFESTYLE FASHION FOOD ARTS ADVICE Continued from page 34 A view of Bagnone (Photo: Lunigiana World) Panigazzi, a typical dish of Lunigiana (Photo: Dmfrancesco/Dreamstime)

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