by Dianne Hales | May 26, 2020 | amore, art, art history, Books, books on Italy, coronavirus, history, Italian language, Italy, Language, Leonardo da Vinci, literature, love in Italy, Romance, Sayings and expressions, Social behavior, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs, wine
Cari amici, In a world turned upside down, we know that we can’t return to what was, yet we have no idea what will be. Although much has changed, one thing hasn’t: our love for Italy. Over the past few months, we’ve wept for the lives lost. We’ve worried about friends...
by Dianne Hales | May 19, 2020 | amore, art history, Books, books on Italy, culture, Current Affairs, Florence, food, Food and Drink, history, Italian language, Italy, Language, Leonardo da Vinci, literature, love in Italy, Music, Renaissance, Romance, Sayings and expressions, Travel, Tuscany, Web/Tech, Weblogs, wine
Not even a global pandemic can stop people from doing what they love. Over the last few months, we’ve seen dancers dance; singers sing; actors perform—wherever and whenever they could. The same is true of writers. While sheltering at home in California, I...
by Dianne Hales | Apr 28, 2020 | Books, books on Italy, coronavirus, culture, Health, Italian language, Italy, Language, Sayings and expressions, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs
A guest post by Valeria Biancalani At the forefront of everyone’s mind at the moment is the coronavirus, which has caused a devastating pandemic throughout the world. Over the past few months, it has become the main topic of conversation for most people in most...
by Dianne Hales | Feb 18, 2020 | Books, Carnevale, culture, food, Food and Drink, history, Italy, Language, Romance, Sayings and expressions, Social behavior, Travel, Venice, Web/Tech, Weblogs
For centuries the pre-Lent festivities of carnevale sumptuously celebrated carne, a word that translates as both “meat’ and “flesh,” in every sense. However, the name comes specifically from the Latin for meat (carnem) and “take away or...
by Dianne Hales | Jan 7, 2020 | Books, books on Italy, culture, food, Food and Drink, history, Italy, Language, Sayings and expressions, Social behavior, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs
A passion for food merits a precise word in Italian: golosità (from gola, for throat), which goes beyond appetite, craving, gluttony, or hunger. Friends proudly declare themselves “golosi,” often for a dish made only in their hometowns, only with local ingredients,...
by Dianne Hales | Jan 3, 2020 | books on Italy, Christmas in Italy, creche, culture, history, Italy, Language, Nativity scene, Sayings and expressions, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs
Long after many Americans have taken down their Christmas trees and packed away the decorations, Italians continue to celebrate. The final feast is l’Epifania (Epiphany), on January 6, which commemorates the arrival of i re magi, the three kings who followed the...
