Home is where the Heart is

While Treviso was only my home for a short while when I was 18, I have visited many times. It was the home of my father and grandparents before they emigrated like thousands of other Europeans post-war to Australia, and has been the place that inspired my second cousins that still live there to write about its folklore, study its history, and celebrate its beauty.

Treviso has a wealth of agriculture due to the fertile land (hello Prosecco!), of architecture (shout out to Andrea Palladio), art (Antonio Canova), delicious food, and lively, attractive people (like yours truly…ha!) that make it one of Italy’s most productive, and seductive, regions.

The apartment we stayed in was a 5-minute bike ride from the centre of town. We rode through the main streets, helmet-less and free, passing peeps enjoying their afternoon “passeggiata”. We visited the bar I used to work at as a teenager “Osteria Trevisi” for a spritz. The dude behind the counter could not have given one hoot about my tales of working there decades earlier, and how the place had changed. His loss.

Conegliano

Rising above the prosecco vineyards 20-minutes from Treviso’s town centre is Conegliano’s Castelvecchio (old castle). On a scorching mid-30’s day we met up with our cousins Laura and Michele for lunch under the castle’s trees; a small wedding taking place in one direction, and the 13^th century stone castle housing a small museum, in the other.

La Famiglia

We don’t get to see our Italian cugini often, but when we do, it’s as if no time has passed. There are laughs, fond memories shared, new stories told, and special ways of bonding that cross language and culture barriers.

Cousins Fabio and Elisa and their boys Enrico and Massimo joined us at Giovanni and Mara’s place for a Veneto-style banquet with prawns and fresh fish from the barbecue, octopus salad, baccala, gelato, and a array of delicious treats prepared by the cousins and family matriarch Zia Bianca.