Two days after Tony Bennett, her late husband, died at age 96, Susan Benedetto talked about their wonderful times together.

The famous American musician died in New York City.

“Benedetto,” which is his family name and which I took when we got married, means “the blessed one,” Susan, who is 56 years old, told People Sunday. “And I was most certainly blessed to have Tony in my life,” she said.

Benedetto, whose real name was Susan Crow, married the singer on June 21, 2007. During his seven-year fight with Alzheimer’s disease, she was his main caregiver.

Benedetto said that the entertainer, who was born in New York City, ‘naturally, loved visiting his ancestral homeland, and we spent many summers in Italy over the years, and it was always a special time for us to be together, just the two of us.’

Benedetto talked about what the I Left My Heart in San Francisco singer liked to do when they went on vacation to Italy.

Benedetto said, “Tony would paint all day, and then we would eat pasta, which was his favorite meal. Everyone knows Tony had heart, but he also was a wonderful soul.”

Benedetto spoke out for the first time since she and Bennett’s son Danny Bennett released a joint statement after Bennett’s death on Friday. Bennett would have turned 97 on August 3.