I have to admit that when I first heard about the Covid-19 cases emerging in Italy, it felt like one more health risk to worry about. In January, I was already six months pregnant and scrupulously trying to avoid touching my face or getting sick from the flu. This new virus went onto my list […]
Author Archives: Natalie
Have you been meaning to brush up on your Italian skills? Perhaps you suddenly find yourself with a lot more free time, or maybe you decided that there is no time like the present to learn the language for your next trip. One of the easiest ways to plug into a new language and stick […]
“You may have the universe if I may have Italy.” So exclaimed Giuseppe Verdi in one of my favorite quotes, but I would say that many of us feel the same way. This includes celebrated photographer Steve McCurry, whose images from his travels around the world have become iconic. Now, the artistic explorer has created […]
Even if you don’t consider yourself superstitious, you probably notice when Friday the 13th rolls around. However, it is the number 17 that is unlucky in Italy – not 13. That makes Friday the 17th a day to be particularly careful of bad luck. The belief that the number 17 is unlucky in Italy probably […]
It has become obvious to most of the world at this point that “going back to normal” after this health crisis won’t be normal at all. Things about our daily lives are going to have to change, even after lockdown measures ease. We are now on our 38th day of lockdown, and we will definitely […]
Are you going to celebrate a birthday in Italy? In Italy, birthdays usually mean cake and presents, but some of the details differ quite a bit from the United States. The main one being: Italian birthdays are paid for by the celebrant. Your day, you foot the bill! Here are the top Italian birthday traditions, […]
With all of Italy in a nation-wide lockdown until May 3rd, and all religious services suspended, this has been a strange Easter. We heard the church bells start early this morning in Rome, though the mass would be celebrated without the faithful. The Pope live-streamed his Urbi et Orbi Easter message from an undecorated St. […]
I have struggled to watch some of the videos of an empty Rome, or to see normally busy sites in Italy completely deserted. It has been painful to see a country that is normally so full of beauty be laid so bare. Today is the 30th day of our national lockdown. As the curve seems […]