Rome, NY to Toronto; Labor Day

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Writing this entry at the Ontario Service Plaza on the New York State Thruway. We wound up spending most of our time in Rome sitting at someone's table. As a result, we didn't see a whole lot of the town (city?). However, we did have a very relaxing four days staying with Camille and Donna and visiting with Franca's family. We are about two-and-a-half hours from Toronto now and will be stopping off at Niagra Falls shortly.

I have been to most of Western Europe, Croatia, Hawaii and Hong Kong. I am just as excited to go to Toronto for the first time as I was to go to any of those places.

Monday, September 1, 2008

Happy Labor Day

My first impression of Rome, NY

Franca and I got to Rome on Saturday evening. Since we arrived, I feel as though I am trying to store up food for the winter. Every day has been an eating extravaganza. Franca has told me that Italian families show their love by feeding you.

Romulus, Remus and me suckling at the wolf's teat

We are staying with Franca’s mother and aunt, Camille and Donna, on an inflatable mattress in the living room. Unless both parties lie down at the same time, the mattress has the tendency to forcibly eject the person who is already in bed. However, I have definitely gotten the best sleep here that I have had since leaving Indianapolis. Ever since leaving John’s in Pittsburgh, I have been rethinking whether I want to spend several nights at a time sleeping on a rollup mat. I think I’ll have to get a twin inflatable mattress before I start the trip out west.

We took a driving tour of Rome during the day, but I cannot remember a quarter of what was pointed out to me. I’m sure Franca and I will visit a few of these places in the next day or two and I’ll be able to write about them then.

Last night, we had dinner with some of Franca’s cousins in nearby Sylvan Beach, which is a lakeside community about 20 minutes from Rome. The town reminds me of the kind of beach resort town you might find in Florida or along the Gulf coast, but with fewer palm trees. Our hosts Walter and Sandy have a house about 100 feet from the beach of Oneida Lake. Walter’s mother Rose is staying in the house for the summer before returning to her home in Anaheim.

From L-R: Barbara, me, Donna, Rose, Sandy, Camille and Marcella. Not pictured - Franca (taking the picture) and Walter (asleep on the couch)

Rose was once a hairdresser who had a tendency to feed and entertain her customers more frequently than she would actually work on her customers’ hair. It seemed last night that she has maintained that excitement at being the host of the party. There were nine of us seated at the table for dinner, and each branch of the family tree contributed a dish or two for the meal. Franca’s mom and aunt brought a delicious eggplant parmesan, Rose made a delicious salad and brought an enormous platter of garlic chicken from the local grocery store (she assured us that the chicken guy was Italian), and there were ravioli and bread. Everything was wonderful, and I felt very welcome among Franca’s family.

After dessert (homemade pumpkin pie, pecan pie and cake) and coffee, Walter got out his guitar and plugged into his amplifier/karaoke setup to entertain us with a few songs. His set ranged from classic rock to country to Rat Pack-era standards. The crowd then encouraged me to sing something with Walter, but I began to get a bit shy. I’m not certain if I was feeling self-conscious or sluggish from all of the food, but Walter started flipping through his classic rock selections and happened upon “Taking Care of Business” by Bachman Turner Overdrive. This is one of the songs that plays in heavy rotation on the radio stations I tend to listen to, so I didn’t even have to look at the words very much. Once the song started to play, I found some courage and had a good time jamming with Walter and his karaoke setup.

Franca went right after me with Joan Jett and the Blackhearts’ “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll,” which was one of the first records I ever owned. She and Walter followed up with “You’ve Got a Friend,” in more homage to Carole King than James Taylor. Our audience asked us to sing a duet after Franca’s last song, but the only duets we could find were “To All The Girls I’ve Loved Before” and “You’re The One That I Want.” Since we couldn’t decide who would be Willie Nelson and we both have a fanatical dislike for Grease, we politely declined.

Since it is Labor Day today, we probably won’t go too many places where we might have to fight a crowd. We’re visiting another cousin this afternoon and then more tour of Rome, NY tomorrow. Despite the fact that I had never even heard of Rome, NY before meeting Franca, I am impressed with just how much activity this small city has going on in and around it.