francesca bezzone

The Beati Paoli are, perhaps, the most mysterious citizens of Palermo, so mysterious we don’t even know if they existed. For more than five centuries, their name and the legend surrounding it has permeated the streets of Sicily’s capital, with …

To us Italians and Italian-Americans – and to most historians – there isn’t really any doubt about it: Christopher Columbus was from Genoa. However, not everyone is as certain as we are, so much so the University of Granada, in …

If you read us regularly, you are definitely familiar with Pasquino, the talking statue located near Piazza Navona that, through his invectives, satires and commentaries  (the famous Pasquinate) — all rigorously seasoned with a hefty dose of humor —  outlined …

Naples has her sfogliatella, the North plays with the Teutonic idea of krapfen, but Rome… Rome has the maritozzo.  You look at it and it’s perfect: golden and shiny, sliced in a half, its creamy filling perfectly levelled all at …

Castel del Monte has a way to charm its visitors. Architecturally unique and historically precious, this medieval dwelling located some 15 miles from Andria and about 50 from Bari, in Apulia, had been constructed in the 13th century to meet …

Possibly the most famous and recognizable Roman building in the world, the Colosseum is as iconic as anything can be: it’s synonym with the grandeur of the Roman Empire, with its power and, well… also with our ancestors’ penchant for …

My great uncle was a painter. Class 1918, the youngest of three, he had blond hair and the looks – I am told – of an old Hollywood actor. Left-handed and extraordinarily talented, he had always been an artist at …

Every Italian born after 1961 has, for sure, some childhood memories tied to figurinePanini and their beautiful albums. We’d buy them – or better, beg our parents and grandparents to buy them for us –exchange them with one another to …

The world discovered the existence of trenette, the traditional Ligurian noodle, thanks to Pixar’s Luca and his voracious appetite for them. But for every person familiar with the Italian Riviera and its cuisine, they are far from being a surprise: …

While the vaccination campaign against Covid-19 in Italy and Europe continues, new ways to limit the spread of the disease, which has become more contagious because of its delta variant, have been discussed and implemented around the continent. Recently France …