3) THE CITY WELCOMES THE PARODI FAMILY 

Ecuador 1865: Giovanni Battista Parodi, originally from Taggia, runs a prosperous business (several  department stores and extensive cultivation of coffee, cocoa and bananas), with his brother Amedeo which guarantees them a solid fortune.

Sanremo 1878: on one of his returns to Sanremo Giovanni Battista marries Bianca Luigia Goeta from Sanremo. Born in 1864, she follows her husband to Ecuador, and some of the couple's many children are born there, including Bianca Mercede who name testifies to the devotion to this Marian figure.

1893: Giovanni Battista Parodi becomes seriously ill and is on the verge of death, when his wife makes a vow to the Madonna della Mercede and her husband immediately recovers.

1900: the Parodi family returns to Sanremo and acquires properties and land in the San Martino area...