These days, yellow and white banners – the colors of the Vatican flag – flutter off balconies and over pointed-arched medieval doorways cheerily blending with the vases of red geraniums hanging on…
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On the last day of Citta’ della Pieve’s October saffron festival, guided visits through the town focus on “the saffron hues in Renaissance master Perugino’s Citta’ della Pieve masterpieces.” Art intertwined with…
We let the celery lead on a late October Sunday in Trevi. After all, we were there for the celebration of the renowned sedano nero (“black celery”) of Trevi, one of fifteen…
On October 3rd – date of the death of St. Francis of Assisi in 1226 – hundreds of African and Syrian refugees tragically died, too, drowning close to the coast of the…
As Chiara ordered the pastry tray at Bar Bi, she summed it up: “Anthropologically speaking, the bar is a microcosm of the town, a reflection of town life. Every Italian town –…
Calcio (soccer) is inextricably linked to Italian life – and to Pope Francis’ Assisi visit on October 4, 2013: the Papal helicopter touches down in a soccer field at 7 45 a.m…
“Pari ‘na paniella” (“it looks like a panella”) is an expression in palermitano dialect to describe an object flattened by a heavy weight. And every Palermitano – no matter age or social class…
Rain these past few days and warm sun: mushroom time. I spotted a couple yesterday under the oak trees. What memories of past mushroom hunts – and here is a note on…
On a summer night, skirt around the crowded outdoor tables in the piazza facing the medieval church, go through the door of the crowded Focacceria San Francesco and join the camaraderie. No…
While visiting Pino’s family in Palermo, we finally visited the island of Lampedusa this past summer, discovering another Mediterranean treasure. Bellissimo! No time for our usual jaunt to Ustica – but hopefully,…