Reflections on Vacationing in Italy

This journal entry was written while Oma was staying with Orlando's family at the farm in Gooding.


This is my life!

September 3, 1986
A biography for my children and grandchildren to remember me by.

“This is my first real vacation in my life since I got widowed.  Two years before Rolando died, we went to Italy, the first real vacation in our married life, without our children. 

People told me after his death that he knew he had to die, so one day when he said to me, “I would like to take you to Italy for two weeks,” I said, “I cannot leave this six children alone with a babysitter lady.”  We had a lady to help with the house and so Rolando said, “They are not alone, I am sure the lady will take good care of them.”  I told it to an old neighbor lady next door and she said, “If your husband wants to go alone with you, you should go.”

So we went and had a lot of fun for a few days.  The trip on the Orient Express – a fast speed train going from Switzerland to Italy – was real exciting.  The ride went for long distances through fields and fields of grapes.  Then along the ocean for endless hours.  We traveled to a small town on the Riviera called Cattalina (possibly Catalina) It was one of the best times of my life!

We would go swimming, go for rides in a small buggy, pulled by a tiny donkey and directed by a special driver, my husband himself.  For hours on end we would frequent the business streets, looking for gifts to bring home to the children. 

On that trip we also bought our golden wedding rings.  Because of the war we had golden covered silver rings before, which we had purchased from friends of my Mothers, A family Dietz, living in Pforzheim. 

After about 5 days’ vacation, I wanted to go home, because I was missing my children so much. Rolando tried to have me stay at least 5 more days, but to no avail. I could not sleep at night and was worried that something may happen to the children.  Finally, Rolando gave me another day to go shopping and we went home. 

The children were sure glad to see us again.  Renato had lost one of his shoes, by playing captain in a little creek, and the “ship” took off and went under the ground. He was not too happy about it because it was a new pair of shoes.  But the thing that had made the children most unhappy with their “nanny” was, that she had been feeding them chocolate pudding till they finished it. They said it tasted down right awful.  We all were happy to be together again.

Picture of me and the children standing at a wall before the house in Switzerland, the children holding their gifts.