Italy, Ireland, Same Thing

I had the greatest few days of my life thanks to a little unexpected adventure. The family I'm working for took me to the countryside where they have a house just one hour outside of Rome. Its located in the Lazio region, and the mom's side of the family owns a small village perched comfortably atop a huge piece of land overlooking herds of sheep and mountains. It was literally like a small village, with houses only owned by those related to the grandparents. All of the houses were made of stone and covered in ivy and English roses. The family even owns their own Catholic church that sits proudly among the dozens of beautiful homes. I felt that I had left Italy for the weekend and landed in Ireland. When I I went for a walk through the countryside, I felt like I fell into a scene from PS I love you. 

I spent the entire time drinking homemade red wine, horseback riding through the mountains, and doing my best to stay on the good side of the strict grandparents. 
Clemi, the eldest daughter, took me aside later and assured me not to worry about them, because "nonna is impossible." This made me feel much better, and I could see it was true every time we sat down for a meal when the grandmother would boss everyone else at the table around. Get your elbows off the table. You cannot sit at the table with messy hair, you must tie it back with a pony tail. Sit up straight. Speak more clearly. 
I even got the chance to go to Bracciano, the town where Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes got married. As it turns out, the mom is close friends with the woman who owns the 15th century castle where they got married, and I got to go there! I was completely wonder struck and have never seen anything so extravagant in my life. I asked the woman how the wedding happened. My first question was how they approached her. She explained that Tom is a close friend of the Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani and they have connections and BAM - they had the wedding there. 
Now I'm back in Rome sweet Rome, and missed the city oh-so much during the past few days. The family is still in Bracciano and comes home tomorrow, giving me some time to do whatever my little heart desires. I drove home with the Filipino workers who sang country songs for over one hour.