Ciao ~ Jane & Marie
Tag Archives: Jane Ceminsky
Personally Speaking ~ Italy’s Finest Three Princes On Their Thrones ~
Who but Italy’s three finest crown jewels would look better on these colorful thrones? Â We have watched them come to dominate the kingdom of Italia and music all over the world! Â Yet always appearing so humble and modest. Â True gentlemen and ambassadors of distinguished music and pure love. Â
~~ Jane ~~
Photo credit: Facebook
Personally Speaking ~ An Idol Becomes a Friend ~
This beautiful picture of Andrea Bocelli’s son Matteo, Â Gianluca, Andrea and Ercole, made me think of this meaningful quote by Wilma Rudolph, Â a famous American track and field sprinter.
“Never underestimate the power of dreams and the influence of the human spirit. Â We are all the same in this notion: The potential for greatness lives within each of us.”
We all know that Andrea Bocelli has been an idol of Gianluca’s since he was very young.  Who can forget the heart warming reaction Gianluca had when  Andrea congratulated him on winning the Ti Lascio Una Canzone competition?  Gianluca was not the only one shedding tears during that beautiful moment.
Seeing this photo of the two of them together made me think of the “greatness” they both possess, the power of Gianluca’s dreams and the important  influence this person had in Gianluca’s life.
Born with poor eyesight, Andrea became permanently blind at the age of 12 following a football accident. Â As a young boy he showed great passion for music. Â At the age of six, he started piano lessons, and later, also learned to play the flute, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, guitar and drums. Â Then, when his nanny, Oriana, gave him the first record of Franco Corelli, he realized that pursuing the career of a tenor was his destiny. Â By the age of seven, he was able to recognize the famous voices of the time and tried to emulate the great interpreters.
Like Gianluca, Bocelli also spent time singing during his childhood. Â He gave his first concert in a small village not far from where he was born. Â At the age of 14, he won his first song competition, the Margherita d’Oro in Viareggio with “O Sole Mio.” Â Does this not sort of parallel what we know of Gianluca’s start in singing?
Andrea has gone on to show the world his greatness not only in music, but in philanthropy and charitable work. Â Gianluca has been doing the same giving of his time and talent to various charitable organizations and important causes close by his home town.
I see Gianluca being so positively influenced by not only his extraordinary parents and family, but by watching and learning from this great man as well. Â Andrea gave him powerful words of advice upon winning that memorable competition...“Always think with the mind, Sing with your voice and listen to your heart.” Â Look where the power of his dreams has brought him to this day. Â
When introducing Andrea Bocelli during one of her Christmas specials, Celine Dion said, “if God would have a singing voice, he must sound a lot like Andrea Bocelli.” Â I think it’s safe to say the same when talking about the voices of the men of Il Volo.
~~Jane~~
Photo credit to All Things Il Volo
Story excerpts from Wikipedia
Personally Speaking ~Are We There Yet?
As a child we would pose this question to my dear Dad over and over as we drove down the highway on family trips with all seven of us kids in tow, “Are we there yet?” Â Being a patient man he would answer it the first few hours and then ignore it the rest of the way. Â We kids must have realized if the car hadn’t stopped yet, we must not be there!
Well, I feel like a kid again as Marie and I are anxiously awaiting to leave on our Italian adventure! Â I’m not bugging her (yet) by asking if we’re there yet (she will hear that once or twice in the plane for sure), but I do send her the ticker count regularly as we count down the days until take off!
I understand and appreciate why people choose to go through a travel agent or go with a tour, but  we chose to do it all on our own and it’s been a wonderful journey thus far and we haven’t even left yet!  Through hours and hours of researching everything from cities, towns, villages, transportation, lodging, sites to see, car rental, insurances,  you name it…we have learned so much already about this beautiful country we are about to set foot in and have tailored our trip exactly to our desires!  It’s also been a plus to hear from those on this site who have gone there before us and have offered their valuable insight.
Oh dear…Jane should have listened to Marie when she said the deal sounded too good to be true!!
ITALY OR BUST!!
~~ Jane~~
Oh No! Â Now I’m worried! Â Jane made all our overnight accommodations!
By-the-way, did Jane tell you we were renting a car in Sicily?
No Jane, we’re not there yet!
~Marie
Personally Speaking~IL VOLO…Like it…Love it…Gotta Have it!
We have an ice cream shop called ColdStone Creamery, that sells three sizes of cups for you to choose from as to how you would like your indulgence served up to you.
1. Â LIKE IT
2. LOVE IT
3. GOTTA HAVE IT
As I was standing in line trying to make this most important decision looking at all of the to die for ice cream concoctions —I suddenly realized these three choice sizes perfectly fit my NEED for Il Volo in my life! Â As you can tell, these three guys jump into my mind frequently. Â Does not matter what I am doing at the time.
LIKE IT
Â
I LIKED IT from the very start. Â Seeing them on the Detroit PBS special, I liked what I saw and heard. Â How could anyone not LIKE three such adorable, handsome, down to earth kids with voices of men beyond their young ages? Â I have always LIKED hearing beautiful music… symphony, opera, blues, you name it. Â I credit my love of music to some wonderful teacher in high school who taught us Music Appreciation. Â Little did I realize back in the day how those lessons would stay with me for a life time. Â I LIKED hearing their beautiful music in any language, but the fact that this quality of music was coming from such young boys made it all the more intriguing. Â I LIKED the fact their parents were traveling with them, knowing the value of having that guiding presence close by.
LOVE IT
It did not take long before LIKE IT turned into LOVE IT. Â A LOVE of watching them grow and change and evolve into a phenomenon I’d not seen before. Â A LOVE for listening to them learn our language in front of a camera and not being intimidated or shy away from expressing themselves. Â This showed great courage on their part. Â I would not dream of getting in front of an Italian camera and attempt to speak their language! Â Each guy has shown us how they can master anything they set their mind to. Â My LOVE IT list is endless...their music, respectful manners, dedication, joking around, interactions with audience, how they stay in touch via social media, genuine and pure hearts…when they glance over at each other during a song and watch the other one sing his part, the love and dedication to their style of music, the way they treat their families and the superb values learned at young ages. I LOVE IT when they show genuine love and respect for all ages from babies to grandmotherly types like myself!
GOTTA HAVE IT
I’m not sure how long it took me to morph into the GOTTA HAVE IT size. Â Maybe a nanosecond after entering the LOVE IT size! Â I NEEDED to hear their voices sing to me everyday, to check in on social media and the Flight Crew site to see what they were up to, to pre-order each new CD and DVD Â the moment Amazon would let me and to climb what ever mountain or obstacle stood in my way to see them in concert and Meet and Greets as often as I could!
At this point in my life the GOTTA HAVE IT Â size is the only size I need. Â So what size fits YOUR needs?
~~Jane~~
Photo credits to Images for Il Volo