Easter Customs

Italy has its own version of the Easter Egg.

In the USA, we decorate hard boiled eggs and also purchase chocolate Easter Eggs the size of a real hen's egg.  In Italy the chocolate Easter Eggs range in size from a small football, in the 10 Euros range, to the top of the line ones the size of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for about 60 Euros.

These Easter Eggs are hollow chocolate affairs with a small toy surprise inside that is related to the character on its wrapping paper.  Of course, this toy surprise is just small enough for the bambini to swallow whole.

They got them for the little girls.

They got them for the little boys.

Calcio Catania fans get one too.

Even Laurie's cat "Gattuso" (a.k.a., Bridgit) back home in Camarillo gets one!

On the Elephants' front, we had a VERY intense practice Monday night as we try to get our season back on course.  The competition in practice was at a fever pitch and that is what any team in any sport needs to improve.

Tuesday night's DVD study meeting of the Ancona game lasted for 2 1/2 hours and proved very beneficial on many levels.

Our opponent this week is the Bergamo Lions, who are the defending IFL Champions, so we are going to have to play MUCH better in order to keep up with the IFL's traditional powerhouse franchise.

We practice again tonight here in Catania and then we have a Thursday night practice in Palermo to get our teammates from western Sicily up to speed.

In our continuing search for the family roots of our Sicilian-American friends back in the USA, we plan to take a side trip on Thursday to Santa Elia, a small fishing village near Palermo and the ancestral home of our friend Chris Pagliaro who will visit Sicily in May.