The Genealogy Detectives — Antonia

Many of you know Antonia from her blog posts on this site. With myself and Barbara Catino we have started “The Genealogy Detectives” to research and translate civil and church records in Italy

MY RELOCATION TO ITALY

From a very early age I remember my mom talking about her beloved hometown of Caramanico Terme in Abruzzo. She  would delicately describe everyday chores with a certain amount of romanticism and nostalgia. 

These lovely stories, told in her still soft-spoken voice, instantly captivated me for life. So, for a few decades I would tell anyone and everyone how much I wanted to move to Italy…without a single plan in sight.  

THEN CAME THE INTERNET

I first checked the Italian Consulate website in Los Angeles to find out if I was qualified for dual citizenship. The short answer is yes…through my paternal grandfather.

GETTING ALL YOUR DOCS IN A ROW

The long answer is this: about sixty-two documents later, with steam rising out of my credit card, my search for birth, death, marriage and citizenship documents were needed from my paternal grandfather, father, mother and my own birth certificate. 

Any documents in English were to be translated into Italian and then receive another document called an Apostile ( similar to a notary public.)

Most importantly the dates must match up, and if they don’t, you get to fix it officially and then come back when you have ‘all your docs in a row’ (yes, that’s original 🙂

Because I had to go as far back as my grandfather for dual citizenship, it took longer and the whole process of document gathering took about six months, then a year’s wait for the appointment, then another eighteen months waiting for approval once I submitted the final documents. Making the entire process take three years.

I STRONGLY RECOMMEND IF YOU PLAN ON BEGINNING YOUR DOCUMENT SEARCH, TO CHECK WITH YOUR LOCAL CONSULATE AND MAKE AN APPOINTMENT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. Four and a half years ago, I had to wait a year for my appointment, and I’m sure it’s longer now. 

At this point, I had been living way too long in Los Angeles, tired of the traffic and car culture in general.  So, rather than waste another trip being indecisive about where to live in a Italy, I received  a small scholarship to attend an Italian language school in Salerno. The plan was go and see if I liked it and then if I did I would stay.  So, I stayed, enjoying the small city and looking at it with a new perspective. I walked by the water every day to school and kept saying (probably out loud) I’m finally living in Italy!!  But almost three months later, I still didn’t receive my dual citizenship. What to do??

And just like that…luck was on my side. One week before my tourist visa was about to run out I received a very short and unceremonious email saying I had in fact become a dual citizen. Yippee!  I was now eligible to vote, buy a house, a car, and open a bank account without any major hassles. 

So here I stay, three years now enjoying my life in Italy.  Even during the pandemic, I managed to do some domestic travel: Cinque Terre, Trieste, Verona, Caramanico Terme (of course), Milan, Rome, the gorgeous Puglian peninsula, Amalfi, Sorrento, Capri, Ischia, many day trips to Naples and various other long weekends to the Cilento coast.  I still can’t believe I live here and can travel so easily to places I only dreamt about.  

Acquiring my dual citizenship took a total of three years requiring unlimited patience and determination.  But I can tell you even without making My Big Fat Move to Italy, putting all the pieces of my family’s history together opened up a window to the past that I would never have known about had I only gone to Sunday family dinners. 

Even though some of the facts were surprising and some sad, I highly recommend this arduous project as it will enhance your life as well as the lives of future generations in many ways, the least of it possibly living in the most beautiful country in the world. 

Per piacere, contact The Genealogy Detectives to make your dream come true of being a dual citizen or just learning about your family’s history. Maybe your first name came from a great-grandmother or your last name was picked up from your family’s town when they passed through Immigration on Liberty Island. 

Or, maybe you would like to give the gift of ancestry documents to the person who has everything.  (Just think…no more useless ties or ugly Christmas sweaters!) Plus, we can save you the time and trouble of doing the complicated and overwhelming search on your own. 

Whatever your reason, your customized search will be fascinating and possibly a treasure trove of information. 

Make Genealogy Detectives your first stop towards starting a new chapter and fulfilling your dream. 

Buona fortuna!