Scheduling lunch seems to approach the sacred in Italy. It’s one of those “rules” that dictate certain Italian behaviors (like not taking a shower right after eating, and never drinking a cappuccino after breakfast time). I don’t do things at … Continue reading
I was hanging out with a group of people in a pub last week and the subject came around to Italian salutations. You may remember my first post on the subject. The evening was winding down and some people were … Continue reading
Oh, who are the people in your neighborhood? In your neighborhood? In your neighborhood? Say, who are the people in your neighborhood? The people that you meet each day. (from the Sesame street song “People in your Neighborhood”) A strange … Continue reading
Out of nowhere, when we were stopped at a red light, someone (who shall remain unnamed) reached over and grabbed my inner thigh and yelled enthusiastically “Morso del ciuccio!” Lower those eyebrows, dear readers. It was all in good, clean … Continue reading
In this list (perhaps one of many to come) I’ve compiled some of the things I like about Italy. (Rereading this, I see that half of them have to do with food, which doesn’t surprise me that much since I … Continue reading
There are a lot of stereotypes floating around about Southern Italy, many of them negative, and not all of them deserved. My month in Matera, which is in the Southern region of Basilicata, helped shatter a few of my own … Continue reading
Me and my camera on the plain overlooking the Sassi of Matera from the other side of the canyon Tourist shot! I’m on vacation in Matera, a small city in the region of Basilicata in Southern Italy. Most Italians are … Continue reading
It’s been hard for my neighbor to digest the fact that I’m a vegan, as it’s not a lifestyle she’s familiar with. She’s a seventy-five year old Calabrese widow who invites me over for liquor and cookies and spreads apartment … Continue reading
I love pasta. At family meals in the US it was the custom to make a huge pot of sauce and pour it over lots of spaghetti and serve it for dinner. Everyone would usually have two helpings, and that … Continue reading
I chuckled to myself one day when I saw an Italian friend for the first time after returning from a trip to the States. I told him I was tired and he asked me if I was still recovering from … Continue reading
