Chapter One
Land of Our Heritage: Palmoli, Italy
The Cieri family and
the Monaco family had their roots in Palmoli, Italy...
in the latter 1800's;
in the Provincia di Chieti;
in the territory of Abruzzi;
on the east, central coast of Italy
almost directly east of Rome,
not far from the Adriatic Sea
situated in the foothills of the Apennines
between the two highest mountain peaks in Italy: Mt. Corno
and Mt. Amaro
where the climate is generally
moderate;
the air is
exceptionally clear with famous blue skies.
the area is
not economically highly developed ;
the
inhabitants are mostly farmers called Bruzzese
who speak in a distinctive, identifiable dialect;
live in clustered houses on tope of a hill;
have living quarters over ground-floor stables;
walk great distances to work in the fields;
carry their farming tools with them;
where there is evidence of a mixture of races from invasions:
the tall red-heads of Venice and Lombardy;
the blond, blue-eyed Celts;
the Mediterranean darker types of the south.