As for this post, be prepared for a long story... I'll try to condense it as much as possible for both your sake and mine. My thumbs may break if I write all the details, because too many memories were created in such a short time.
The reason for the title is because the last few days of our euro trip were broken up into based on our roots into two families (due famiglia). 3 of the people in our group of European travellers have roots that track back to Calabria, Italy (imcluding myself). However, because mio famiglia is coming to see my home town in November, we divided up 3 and 3 into 2 different home towns in Calabria. The division was basically mangicakes and manigcakes who are trying their hardest to be pure-breds. As a result my last few days were spent in the beautiful town of Angoli. In order to sum up this town in a few words, I have come up with the following:
1. Beautiful
2. Family
3. Food
4. Wine
5. Piccolo (only 300 people)
6. Experience
Angoli is basically a little town that sits ontop of a mountain and overlooks both the Tyrrhenian and Adriatic sea on either side. It is such a small town that all you can hear throughout the day is honking. The reason for this, is because when the locals recognize the car that is passing them, they honk as a way to say hello.... This happens to pretty much every car that you pass.
If you are ever going to have a meal with an Italian family for whatever reason, I suggest you prep your body for it and make your stomach as expandable as possible. Coming to Angoli after traveling Europe for a few weeks and eating only 2 small meals a day was the worst! The food was unlike anything I've ever tasted and I did not want to stop eating. My body kept freaking out because even though there was no space left in my stomach, I literally was not allowed to stop eating. If you ever try to resist the "manga manga manga" in an Italian household, be prepared to basically be force fed.
Now the reason I said this food was unlike anything I've ever tasted is because everything... And I mean everything, is either grown or produced in someway in this families backyard. From the vegetables all the way up to the sausages and capicola made from the pigs they raise. It was mind blowing and mouthwatering all at the same time.
Other than the amazing food and company, this trip was amazing because we finally got to relax. We made no plans, all plans were made for us and we were taken everywhere by car. This meant no grabbing 6 people and waiting for everyone to be ready, no trains to figure out and no drama!
We went to see so,me of the most beautiful beaches that were surrounded by the most clear water I have ever seen. For those visiting Calabria make sure you go to tropea and pizzo, and do not leave pizzo until you have tried their Tartufo! They are known for this and the portions are massive!
