Basilicata, also known by its ancient name, Lucania, is located in Southern Italy, on the arch of the boot. For most of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the story of Basilicata was one of emigration, driven by the concentration of land ownership in the hands of a wealthy few, and neglect by the state—as many as 400,000 Lucani left for North and South America, and for elsewhere in Europe.
But the Lucani took Basilicata with them—its saints, its language, its food, its customs. Joe Rinaldi’s family left the town of Craco in 1967 and emigrated to Toronto. As he says,
“…inside our home, Craco lived on. In spring we celebrated Easter with roasted lamb and home made taralli. In summer my father planted tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, cicorie, parsley, and basil. My mother preserved tomato paste for the winter. In the fall we made wine. At Christmas, seafood filled our table on Christmas Eve, followed by savory zeppole and sweet chestnut-filled pastries. In January, there was salami and pancetta. Through these rituals, my parents ensured that although we had left Craco physically, Craco never left us.”
Joe’s story is the story of many of the Lucani who emigrated. Today, there are Lucani diaspora organizations all over the world, in places like Toronto, New York, Buenos Aires, Vancouver. They have kept faith with Basilicata, and they have always been returning—to visit, and sometimes to re-establish a life there.
We are proud to be partnering with Adele Newton, whose family emigrated from Pisticci to Canada, for our first Basilicata tour, a tour that celebrates the people who have always lived in Basilicata, and the people who are choosing to come here, to make it their home. Lucania has always been a crossroads, shaped by everyone from the Greeks to the Bourbons. Now the Lucani of the diaspora are writing a new chapter.
You’ll find Adele’s tour here. You’ll stay at Torre Fiore, a farmhouse in Pisticci restored to a luxury hotel by the Giannone family—Lucani who emigrated to Toronto, then returned to build something that honors where they came from, and who they have become. The April tour is sold out, but there are still spots available for the October tour, which coincides with the Feast of San Vincenzo, the patron saint of Craco.
We’d love to work with other Lucani to craft tours that honor their stories and their communities.
