Basket Weaving

Monica, our program director, planned a great day for us. We started out by meeting up with a local, older gentleman who is the only person in Tuscania who still knows how to make authentic, hand-made, Italian baskets. These baskets were similar to the ones that Becca and I had made at our Cherokee pow-wow; however, those were made more out of craft materials. The baskets that we made here were made out of branches that he had found, stripped of the bark, and then soaked in water. The guy who was teaching us was a bit of a perfectionist. Whenever I started to mess up, he would take it out of my hands and correct it for me. It was cool learning how to make something with Italian directions. If I was doing it right, he would say “Bene” or “Brava” and nod and smile. He was very patient while teaching four American girls how to weave their own basket.

Following our intense basket weaving, we took a trip with Massimo to the thermal baths in Viterbo (a larger town about 20 minutes away from Tuscania). I would compare Tuscania to Abilene and Viterbo to Salina when it comes to both size and location. The thermal baths were so relaxing! They are natural hot springs free and open to the public to enjoy. We chilled there and ate a picnic as we watched the sun go down on another Italian day.

On the way home in Massimo’s van, the song “Hey ya” came on. We all get really excited when songs we know come on the Italian radio stations. Massimo started dancing as he was driving and then turned the inside lights on and off as if they were strobe lights….