Culture

At the foot of Rome’s Capitoline Hill, by the staircase leading to the Piazza del Campidoglio, seat of the city government since the Middle Ages, a statue of a hooded man waving a sword commemorates a crime. On this spot …

What does being — or better, feeling — and identifying as Italians mean,  when living outside of Italy? What is Italy, for all those born from migrant parents, people who left il Belpaese and crossed the ocean to find a …

This past 4th of July, the US Embassy in Rome celebrated the 244th Independence Day anniversary unusually. It didn’t only move all celebrations online — because of the pandemic and the consequent ban on gatherings — but it also decided …

Ah, l’Italia! Paese di Santi, navigatori e poeti! Have you ever asked yourself why, historically, the people of Italy are seen as such? It seems to be particularly apt this time of the year, the fact that — according to …

Kings of the internet, rulers of our homes, cats have also another important role in Italy: they  are emperors of the Città Eterna. If you visited Rome, you know felines are revered and respected around its streets and that they …

Bologna: la dotta, la grassa, la rossa: “dotta,” the learned, because home to the oldest university in Europe. “La grassa,” the fat, because of her rich, decadent food. “La rossa,” the red, because of the terracotta hue of her buildings …

Those among you who have an ear for languages — or music, as the two seem to go hand in hand — probably haven’t failed to recognize how this week’s word, influenza (een-floo-ehn-zah) sounds a lot like the English “influence” …

Time passes, life changes and we can’t stop growing old, as a song says. This seems to be particularly true once you turn 40. Far from saying 40 is “old” in any way: I don’t think it is and I …

Every chocaholic knows that Italy has three capitals when it comes to cioccolato: Turin, Perugia, Modica. Trying to pick an absolute queen would be useless and even damaging,  for there is no reason to have a favorite: three is such  …

You are certainly familiar with it, the curnicello, or cornetto, that red chili pepper Neapolitans use to attract good luck and be protected by evil forces, or malocchio, as they call it. Found often on market stalls,  it has become …