We'd like to acknowledge just how wonderful it was to bookend our epic trip by sharing time with our amazing friends from Canada, the Hoopers. Starting with our stay at their cabin in Ontario and ending with them joining us in Sicily was simply marvelous. We are privileged to know some great people, and that privilege is epitomized by these folks.
The morning we were leaving Sicily, we had a little time to kill while waiting for our train out of town (more on that here). BC took the kids to a playground in Capo d'Orlando near a random little cafe. He looks up and sees some dude wearing a Jerry Garcia Alligator guitar shirt. Of course, BC struck up a conversation. 😁
Turns out the guy is from Israel. He and his wife brought their very young (~18mos) daughter to Sicily to get away from the fighting going on in their homeland. They hung out and talked about the Grateful Dead for about 30 minutes while the children played. Distant family is still family.