91-That might have been the trip when Asst AD Richard Laskowski got robbed by gypsies on the streets of Madrid…took all his cash and passport. What a nightmare. That photo of Carmine Dante and LoBalbo was ‘91 then. Where ever the team stayed or ate, Carmine would introduce himself to the owner and helped with the menus. Then the team went to Bologna where Carnesecca commandeered all the team travel trunks and loaded them up with fine Italian wine and liquors like Amaretto and Sambucca for the trip home. He reached out to Chris Mullin’s father at Customs at JFK to let him know of our arrival…whoosh right through customs!
The ‘85 trip the team went to Madrid, Toledo, Malaga and Valencia and Florence. Players bought tons of Gucci right from the factory there. The coaches visited the gold shops on the Ponte Vecchio bridge, and the Italian National Coach set them up with huge discounts. Coaches Rollie Massamino and Jimmy Valvano and their wives met the team in Florence as the Nike International Coaches clinic was being held the same time as the team was playing. Everyone stayed at a beautiful hotel called Villa La Masa.
Built in the 13th century as an enchanting country house for an aristocratic Florentine family, Villa La Massa was owned by European aristocrats until 1948, before it was transformed into a luxury hotel. Louie was in his glory hanging with Rollie and Valvano each day and night. What a bill they rang up
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www.villalamassa.com
