We took a trip to see the yacht that famous architect designed and the one whose construction Sam is supervising.
Aren't Sam and Anna cute in hardhats?
Since it was the day after Liberation day, we went on to visit -
Sant' Anna di Stazzema
A few years back Sam happened upon the book written James McBride "The Miracle at St. Anna". There he was at the airport looking for a read, Sam saw the cover with a little boy set during WWII and an Italian story line - he was hooked. He read the book, then I did, we recently gave it to Sarah, she was asked to read it for school. We all loved the book. The story was powerful and over the years we have passed our well worn copy to friends and family. After Sam and I read the book we were curious to see and visit Sant' Anna di Stazzema for we knew it wasn't far from Chiavari. Last week we finally made our trek and saw the tiny village where the novel is set.
Some backround.
Stazzema is a hilltop village in the Tuscan hills or the "Appenines" outside La Spezia. For those who know their Italian WWII war history, you know that those hills were part of the "Gothic Line" that stretched across Italy all the way to the Adriatic Sea and was the German army's last major defense line during their retreat from Italy.
The area was full of partigiani (Italian resistance fighters) and saw heavy fighting as the Germans retreated and many war atrocities were committed. Among one of the worst was the Massacre at Sant' Anna di Stazzema. German troops marched into this town on August 12th and in retaliation for partisan activity in the area slaughtered 560 women, old men and children - including infants and even a newborn. The war ended, the world moved on and St. Anna was forgotten. In 1994 that all changed and things were set in motion that brought the story to light. Prosecution for those who ordered the massacre finally came in 2005. If you are interested and want to read more click here . The site has a very good short summary.
The Miracle at Sant' Anna is coming to theaters near you! Spike Lee has been filming the movie based on the book and just wrapped up a few months ago. I believe it will be released next year in the fall. The film is already controvsial, Spike Lee, what can one say? Controversy is his middle name. Read the book before you are tempted by the movie. I promise you the book is worth it and you have plenty of time to do so before the movie hits theaters.
If you come to Pisa on your trip to Italy... take the time to make the pilgrimage to Sant' Anna. If you get car sick easily, take your motion sickness pills, the road up is steep and full of twists and turns - like life.
Krista
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