I just finished an amazing book, War in Val D'Orcia, by Iris Origo. Iris was an Englishwoman married to an Italian marchese. During World War II, they turned their 15th-century Tuscan farm estate, La Foce, into a home for refugee Italian children whose homes were in populated areas that were susceptible to bombing, or who … Continue reading 50. War Times
Saturday night, the Swarthmore College community got a message from the Provost regarding Indigenous Peoples Day, formerly known as Columbus Day. She wrote: "... the choice to celebrate Columbus served multiple purposes in the United States: to many, it was aspirational in attempting to end anti-Italian and anti-Catholic bigotry while simultaneously to many others, it … Continue reading 49. Columbus Day
I received this email from my cousin Anna Abbruzzese on September 27, which would have been my father's 98th birthday: "When I noticed today's date, couldn't help but remember the sweetest man I had the privilege of growing up with. With all the homework, etc, that your Dad had to do to keep up with … Continue reading 48. Chain Migration
I knew my daughter Maria had just moved into an Italian neighborhood in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, when I saw the giant Virgin Mary shrine on her neighbor's porch. But any lingering doubts, if I had them, would have been expelled by the multiple expressions of ethnic pride one sees just walking down the street. From the … Continue reading 47. Ethnic Pride
Naples is filled with iconic sights. There's Mount Vesuvio overlooking the Bay of Naples. There's the treasures in the National Archeological Museum. There's the food, ranging from pizza to sfogliatelle. But I think ranking in the top ten would be the characteristic sight of narrow streets festooned with laundry hanging from the balconies. In Italy, … Continue reading 46. Laundry Day
Italians love babies. Not like the Americans who give phony lip service to family values and protecting the innocent, but then don't want to spend a nickel on their actual well-being, or even necessarily want to be around them. I mean really love them. Babies seem to always be out and about with their families, … Continue reading 45. Baby Love
Oh, no! Say it ain't so! I opened the New York Times on Wednesday, to see a full-page announcement from Starbucks that they were opening a shop in Milan. This first is a special "Roastery" shop, to be followed by four regular, Frappuccino-serving stores in the near future. As the ad suggests, Howard Schultz, Starbucks' … Continue reading 44. More coffee talk
In 1987, Ben and I decided to honeymoon in Italy. And what a wonderful trip that was, three weeks driving aimlessly, stopping in any town that caught our fancy. Of course, many of our highlights were food-related: not surprisingly, a wonderful dinner In Parma, known worldwide for its prosciutto, but also a great restaurant in … Continue reading 43. Looking Back
One stereotype of Southern Italy is that it is a dangerous place. Whether from the higher rates of poverty and unemployment than the North's, or because of its famous crime syndicates -- the Mafia in Sicily, the Camorra in Napoli, the 'Ndrangheta in Calabria -- one feels maybe one is taking a bit of a … Continue reading 42. Criminals
My mother's family story is the classic story of Italian immigration. According to my cousin Joan O'Reilly, our grandparents both came as children from the mountain village of Trivigno, Basilicata, searching for economic opportunity and a better life. My grandfather Anthony Casella, an orphan, came with his older sister when he was ten, and was … Continue reading 41. My mother’s side
Gigi's Italia 