Many Italians use the holiday as an opportunity to visit cemeteries where their loved ones have been laid to rest, often bringing flowers and lighting candles at their graves. One flower you'll often spot around this time of year is the chrysanthemum, or crisantemo, which is strongly associated with remembrance and mourning in Italy. But, as with many Italian holidays, traditions vary from region to region.

Today, the date remains an occasion for families to visit cemeteries, bring flowers, light candles, attend Mass, and reflect on those they have lost. Although the customs may differ across Italy, the underlying meaning is the same: remembering the people who came before us, and keeping their memory alive.

“Not Rome? Not Florence? Or Venice? You’re going to Italy for a month, and you’re planning to spend the entire time in Catania?!”

Of course, that’s not quite how things ended up. I did quite a bit of traveling during my month in Italy. Looking back, I’m incredibly glad I gave myself that initial month-long stay in the place I was considering calling home. And if you’re seriously thinking about moving, I highly recommend doing the same.

When I first landed in Catania that September, I felt a mix of excitement, overwhelm, and anxiety. I literally raced out of the airport the moment I landed, completely forgetting my checked bag. Apparently, retrieving my luggage wasn’t as important as seeing the place I had dreamt of for so long and breathing in a deep breath of Sicilian air.

From the airport, I took a cab into the city center and I then walked. And walked. And walked. I wandered around for hours until my legs hurt! I had just enough energy left to make my way back to the bus station and return to the airport for my long forgotten luggage.

And the heat. Mid-September in Sicily is certainly different from mid-September in New England.

None of these things were necessarily bad. They were just different.

And that became one of the most important things I learned during that month. Because when you’re thinking about moving to a new place, the question shouldn’t be, “Do I love it here?” Of course you do! That’s probably why you’re considering moving there in the first place. The better question is: “Can I see myself building an ordinary life here?”

And that is a much harder question to answer after a one-week vacation.

Nobody believes you when you’re in high school and you say, “When I grow up, I’m going to move to Italy.” I know, because nobody believed me. 

I ran into another issue with my grandfather’s death certificate. His name, along with his father’s, were spelled incorrectly. I had to amend them both in order to be accepted by Italy’s high bureaucratic standard. And unfortunately, the state of Massachusetts doesn’t make name corrections easy. I was surprised to find out that state documents, like marriage certificates, cannot be amended at all! The death certificate however, had more wiggle room. I was able to go directly to the funeral home and have them submit the request to amend the record. Although they fixed my grandfather’s name, they were unable to fix his father’s name because there was not enough room on the form! Luckily, the comune worker who accepted my application was unbothered by this minor misspelling.