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Archive for the ‘Italian Culture’ Category

31 Days of Orvieto: Day #6 – CHOICE!

Posted in Culture, Italian Culture, Italians, Italy, Living abroad, Living in Italy, Orvieto, Orvieto Italy, Travel, Travel to Italy, Umbria, writing, tagged , , , , , on August 6, 2015| 4 Comments »

Close up of Brian

Some people live where they happened to be born, where they got a job or where a spouse is from. But some of us, like my friend Brian, chose our home. Brian is an example that it’s never to late to realize a dream or change your life. I once asked him, “How do I explain to people why I chose to live here in Orvieto? His answer is now mine: “It’s easy, just tell them it’s BECAUSE YOU LIKE IT!” Live, dream and do! That’s my friend, Brian.

Want to know more about Brian? Read a post I wrote about him back in 2012 here.

Like! Share! Visit!

‪#‎31daysofOrvieto‬ ‪#‎orvietoorbust‬‪#‎livingthedream‬ ‪#‎Italytravel‬ ‪#‎Orvieto‬ ‪#‎Italy‬

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31 Days of Orvieto: Day #4 – FUN FACT DAY!

Posted in Italian Culture, Italy, Orvieto, Orvieto Italy, Travel, Travel to Italy, Umbria, tagged , , , , , , , , on August 4, 2015| 4 Comments »

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Did you know that: 1) 2,500ish year-old Orvieto sits on volcanic tufo cliffs; 2) The Pope(s) slept here; 3) There’s an underground city with as many as 1,200 Etruscan caves and wells; 4) It was sacked by Julius Caesar’s Rome in 280 BC; and 5) The famous funicular railway was once operated by a water-ballast counterbalanced system?

Want to find out more? Come! Visit and Share the “31 Days of Orvieto” with your friends!

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31 Days of Orvieto: Day #2

Posted in Artists in Italy, Culture, Italian Culture, Italy, Orvieto, Orvieto Italy, Travel, Travel to Italy, Umbria, tagged , , , , on August 2, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Tamburino kelly

Kelly Medford in progress

DAY #2 of “31 Days of Orvieto” is entitled INSPIRATION.

Roman-based artist Roman-based artist Kelly Medford is a frequent visitor to our town. Other great artists who’ve found their muse here: J.M.W. Turner, Umberto Prencipe and Luca Signorelli…. Come to Orvieto and be inspired too! ‪

water color pze dell repu kelly

Piazza della Repubblica, Orvieto

maggies kelly wc

Orvieto, Italy

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31 Days of Orvieto: Day #1

Posted in Artists in Italy, Culture, Italian Culture, Italy, Orvieto, tagged , , on August 1, 2015| 17 Comments »

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As some of you may know, during the entire month of July, I created a Facebook Project called, “31 Days of Orvieto”.  About half-way through the month, however, I suddenly realized that many of Orvieto or Bust’s followers aren’t on Facebook (or haven’t ‘friended’ me YET – hint, hint). In order to rectify the situation, I’ve decided to repeat the project here during the month of August. If you’ve already seen the posts on Facebook, I want to apoligize in advance for the duplication. For those who are seeing “31 Days” for the first time, I hope you’ll enjoy them at least half as much as I’ve enjoyed creating them!  

And here we go again…

It’s DAY 1 of “31 Days of Orvieto”! I have a theory that if people knew about Orvieto and it’s splendors, they would certainly come to visit us. Tourism is down in our little town, so I’ve decided to start a campaign to spread the word about Orvieto’s greatness. You know me – I’m all about promoting my adopted home – so every day in the month of August, I will post an article, a photo, a story, a tid-bit about this wonderful place. If you love Orvieto and/or would like to support my efforts, please take a moment to read, and if you are so inclined, share the posts and, in doing so, help me create an “Orvieto buzz”. Go, Orvieto, Go!!!!

I begin with my 2011 homage to this place that I love so much…Orvieto, Italy: A Land Where Time Stands Still.

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Book Review: The Gondola Maker by Laura Morelli

Posted in Artists in Italy, Culture, Gondolas, Italian Culture, Italy, Travel, Uncategorized, Venice, writing, tagged , , , , , , , on November 9, 2014| 12 Comments »

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“From the author of Made in Italy comes a tale of artisanal tradition and family bonds set in one of the world’s most magnificent settings: Renaissance Venice.” 

 

I don’t know much about wine. I’m not an expert on classical art and, although I live in Italy, I’m the antithesis of a “foodie”. However, when it comes to giving my opinion about a glass of red, a painting in a gallery or the dinner on my plate, I’m quite certain of three things: 1) I know what I like, 2) I recognize beauty when I see it, and 3) I can tell when a meal tastes delicious.

It’s the same with a book. I’ve never actually written one, but I know a good novel when I read it.

Halfway into the first chapter of Laura Morelli’s The Gondola Maker, I found myself wondering if the author had a time machine. I suppose a historical novel should transport the reader to another time and place, but Ms. Morelli’s use of crystal-clear imagery and her microscopic attention to detail went above and beyond. I’d be putting it mildly if I said she’d done her homework.

The Gondola Maker’s story swirls around a young protagonist, Luca Vianello – a boy on the brink of adulthood. Born into a long line of gondola craftsmen, he works alongside his father and brothers in the family’s boatyard and never allows himself to imagine a future beyond the one that has been chosen for him. But following one single, blinding moment of rage, the direction of his life is altered forever and Luca must set out on an odyssey through the dark underworld of the Most Serene Republic of Venice. As he slowly picks up the pieces of his shattered life, he finds his true passion and destiny and, in the process of discovery, comes full circle.

As Laura Morelli spins her intriguing and authentic Renaissance tale, she brings to life the time-honored artisan trade of gondola making and reminds us that if not preserved, this centuries-old craft and others like it will be lost forever.

About the Author

View More: http://sarahdeshawphotographers.pass.us/laura-morelliLaura Morelli earned a Ph.D. in art history from Yale University, where she was a Bass Writing Fellow and an Andrew W. Mellon Doctoral Fellow. She has taught college art history in the U.S. and at Trinity College in Rome. She is the creator of the authentic guidebook series that includes Made in Italy, Made in France, and Made in the Southwest, published by Rizzoli. Laura is a frequent contributor to National Geographic Traveler and other national magazines and newspapers. A native of coastal Georgia, she is married and is busy raising four children. The Gondola Maker is her first work of fiction. 

Find her here website or on Facebook and Twitter.

 

I want extend my sincerest gratitude to Laura Fabiani of Italy Book Tours for inviting me to participate in my first book review event. Second, a huge “Grazie” to the author, Laura Morelli, for allowing me the privilege of reading and then sharing my thoughts about her novel. It takes talent, fortitude and sheer guts to write a book.  

 

AWARDS

IPPY Award for Best Adult Fiction E-book 

Finalist for the National Indie Excellence Award 

Finalist for the Eric Hoffer Award 

Shortlisted for the da Vinci Eye Prize 

WHERE TO BUY THE “The Gondola Maker”…

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Book Depository

About Italy Book Tours 

Italy Book Tours Logo jpeg 225 pixels

 

 

 

 

Italy Book Tours gets books in the hands of readers who love everything Italian. They offer professional virtual book tours to authors and publishers whose books are set in Italy, have an Italian theme, are written by an Italian author or translated from Italian. For more information you can contact Laura Fabiani at http://www.italybooktours.com.

Read more Italy blogger reviews of “The Gondola Maker”…

Tour Schedule for The Gondola Maker

Nov 3 – Studentessa Matta – review / giveaway

Nov 3 – Il Mio Tesoro – review / giveaway

Nov 4 – Packabook – review

Nov 4 – Venice from Beyond the Bridge – review

Nov 5 – Monica Cesarato – review / giveaway

Nov 5 – Seductive Venice – review

Nov 6 – Food Lover’s Odyssey – review / giveaway

Nov 7 – The Venice Experience – review / interview

Nov 8 – Hello World – review

Nov 9 – Orvieto or Bust – review

Nov 9 – Capturing Venice – review 

by Toni DeBella

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Finding Rome on the Map of Love: Book Review #2

Posted in Expat in Italy, Italian Culture, Italians, Italy, Living in Italy, Orvieto, Orvieto Italy, Rome, writing, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 2, 2013| 17 Comments »

Finding Rome on the Map of LoveShortly after arriving in Italy, I accepted an invitation to a book signing and reading event in Rome.  When I learned of the book’s subject matter (a thirty-something woman who finds love with an Italian and moves to Rome) I thought, Oh no, not another fairy tale about coming to Italy, having an affair with Marcello Mastroianni and living happily ever after!  Needless to say I was skeptical.  Seriously, is there anyone out there who could bring freshness to this tired and overly saturated genre of storybook fantasies alla Three Coins in a Fountain, Under the Tuscan Sun and Eat, Pray, Love?  I know I sound jaded, but my expectations are low.

IMG_1262After a brief introduction author Estelle Jobson sat down on a cushion in the courtyard of The Beehive Hotel, opened her book, Finding Rome on the Map of Love, and began to read.  As I listened to her recount the stories, I noticed the corners of my mouth began to spontaneously turn upward.  Her elegant and proper South African accent was in sharp contrast to the wry, sardonic and sassy repartee.  Hey, this girl gets it!  When she finished I was a bit sad, but fortunately I’d purchased my very own autographed copy of the book and immediately cracked it open on the train back to Orvieto.

During the first couple of chapters, I was gulping down Estelle’s pages the way a typical American might eat their dinner: swallowing without taking time to taste.  Perhaps I’ve been in Italy long enough that a voice inside my head warned, “Don’t be in a hurry. Savor each flavor and texture.”  This book was just like a good Italian meal; I never wanted the literary feast to end. And when it did end, I felt warm and utterly satisfied.

IMG_1263Estelle Jobson is a talented writer who has a true gift for observation. She describes things that, as an expatriate, I’d experienced but was never able to fully articulate.  What appreciate most about Estelle’s storytelling is the way she doesn’t laugh at Italians, she laughs with them. Her book is filled with intelligent humor, compassion, and edgy insight. She’s sarcastic without being mean; clever without being pretentious; and emotional without being overly sentimental.  Estelle sees Italians the way they really are and reconfirms, at least for me, why I love living among them.

I’ll stay with the food analogy just a little bit longer. I really enjoyed chewing slowly on every single delicious “bite” of Finding Rome on the Map of Love. Her words were proprio buonissime! 

Enjoying my copy...

Enjoying my copy…

...in front of the...

…in front of the…

...Duomo di Orvieto.

…Duomo di Orvieto.

by Toni DeBella

You can contact the author at findingrome@gmail.com

Find her and her book on Facebook

ebook on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Finding-Rome-Map-Love-ebook/dp/B009HBLYYO/ 

Online extract here: http://italianintrigues.blogspot.ch/2012/10/the-socialization-of-italian-man.html

 

 

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La Signora: Il Capo d’Italia

Posted in Expat in Italy, Italian Culture, Italians, Italy, Orvieto, Travel, tagged , , , , on April 1, 2012| 14 Comments »

People often speak about the traditional “Signora” as if she were a charming part of Italian society long since past.  Don’t you believe it!  La Signora is quite alive and well and combing the streets of Orvieto in search of a naïve and insecure American like me to use for target practice to sharpen her skills of intimidation.  Frankly, I live in terror of getting on the bad side of one of these ladies.

I had my first real run in with La Signora at our town’s Saturday outdoor market.  I’d made the amateurish blunder of hesitating for a split second and a woman with her produce-filled cart literally ran over me, scraping the back of my heel which broke the strap of my favorite pair of sandals. She didn’t even slow down – blowing right past me without a word.  She was surprisingly unaffected by the ranting and cursing of a bloodied lunatic who doesn’t know her way around a vegetable stand.  I learned at that moment that La Signora, like other people of great power and influence, is a force to be reckoned with.

La Signora demands respect and she most assuredly gets it.  She is a sensible shoe-wearing, evil eye-casting, mama’s boy-promoting woman on a mission.  She is serious-minded, takes no prisoners and doesn’t trust you as far as she can throw you.   Her outside shell is tough to penetrate – Fort Knox would be easier to crack than her personal inner sanctum.

I both admire and revere La Signora.  She is able to out cook, out shop and out walk me up a hill…and if she needed to, I believe she could even out run me.  In Italy, La Signora reigns supreme.

by Toni DeBella

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Full of Art is Not that Bad!

Posted in Expat in Italy, Italian Culture, Italy, Living abroad, Living in Italy, Orvieto, Travel, Umbria, tagged , , , , , , , , on March 18, 2012| 18 Comments »

You’ve probably heard of the Stendhal syndrome, named for the famous French author who detailed his experience of being overcome with emotion by the immense beauty of Florentine art.   In 1979 an Italian psychiatrist finally gave the syndrome its official name after reporting nearly 100 tourists at the Galleria degli Uffizi had fainted – some sent to hospital when their heads hit the hard marble floor. Personally I have never actually swooned from viewing a painting, but I do get a bit light-headed at the sight of Michelangelo’s David.

Art: The Good, the Bad and….

Unfortunately there won’t be any swooning happening here. You see, at the base of the rock that I live on, in front of the town’s train station sits a sculpture in a fountain. This “work of art” makes a very strong first impression to visitors arriving by rail on their way up to town. It is my understanding (I did some asking around) that the artist is internationally renowned and important enough that the City commissioned not one, but two of his works for installation.   I don’t get it.  I can’t even describe the fountain to you without using terms that would make a 9 year old boy collapse in a heap of laughter at my “potty” humor.  Fortunately no one really cares what I think about the fountain, and why should they?  Who the hell am I to judge the merits of a piece of art?  What I know about art couldn’t fill an espresso cup.  Art, as they say, is in the eye of the beholder.  Enough said.


by Toni DeBella

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The Sicilian: Remembering My Father

Posted in Culture, Expat in Italy, Italian Culture, Italian-Americans, Italians, italo americano, Italy, Orvieto, Sicily, tagged , , on December 17, 2011| 23 Comments »

Luke Joseph DeBella: 1917 – 2004

As the 10-year anniversary of my father’s passing comes and goes, I have been thinking a lot about him and of the legacy he left behind.  To say that he was my role model and hero seems trite — everyone says that about their father (if they are fortunate enough to have a strong man in their life to lead them into adulthood as I did).  A man of few words, I learned what was most important by watching him conduct himself throughout his life and in his 52-year love affair with my mother.  It was in this manner that I witnessed the qualities I wanted to emulate for myself.  If I could only become half the person that he was…

When my dad was a young man his nieces and nephews used to call him “Uncle Tootsy”.  If you’d ever met this man you’d understand how ludicrous a moniker that was because my father’s reputation as a curmudgeon was legendary.  He could come-off a little scary at first and often caused my friends at school to shiver in their boots.  However, despite his well-executed “tough-guy” persona, once you got to know him you’d soon realized that his “schtick” was designed to hide one of the biggest and warmest hearts on the planet.  Babies in particular adored my father – they were not fooled by his stern, gruff manner – they could see right through him into his soft, mushy center.  My father had more friends than you could shake a stick at.

Dad was born at home in San Jose, California and raised in a house with 9 other siblings by Sicilian immigrant parents.  Not formally educated past the 8th grade, he would religiously read the newspaper cover-to-cover every day and watch the news each evening.  What my father lacked in academic knowledge he more than made up for in an uncanny intelligence for reading people.

At a young age my father learned his trade as a car mechanic and after returning from Europe at the end of World War II, he began an automotive repair business, “Luke and Martin Service”, in an old converted barn behind my grandparents’ house.  When I was a little girl, I never hesitated to take the opportunity to boast about him. If a kid bragged that his father was a brain surgeon, I would shoot back, “Well, MY dad is a mechanic”! He worked in that capacity until he was nearly 75 years old because, I believe, his regular customers refused to let him retire.  A good, honest and trustworthy auto repairman is really hard to come by.

He wasn’t the kind of guy to show off or talk about himself.  He avoided people who put on “airs” or thought they were superior to others.  He valued honor and respected hard work and straight talk.  When I was a teen, he once said to me, “Being rich doesn’t make you happy”.  My response back was, “That’s just what poor people say to make themselves feel better”, and he just smiled.  He was crazy about Westerns (especially John Wayne and Clint Eastwood), and was an avid outdoor sportsman.  By far, his favorite activity was to fish in a boat on a lake with his buddies.  He was so passionate about it that my family had the words “Gone Fishing” carved into his gravestone.  The cheekiness of that gesture would not be lost on him.

I guess the bottom line is that my dad was the “strong, silent type”.  Not very demonstrative – he wasn’t much for talking about his “feelings”.  In all honesty, I don’t remember my father ever saying the words “I love you” to me, however, there wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t feel loved and cared for by him.  Some people ‘talk the talk’ but he actually ‘walked the walk’ and taught me one of the most important lessons of my life so far: “Love” isn’t a noun, it’s a verb. by Toni DeBella

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Orvieto, Italy: A Land Where Time Stands Still

Posted in Expat in Italy, Italian Culture, Italy, Living in Italy, Orvieto, Umbria, tagged , , on December 8, 2011| 29 Comments »

Another visit comes to an end. When I lament to friends about how much I will miss Orvieto, invariably one of them will say to me, “Oh, don’t worry. It will be exactly the same when you return. In Orvieto, nothing ever really changes.” In my absence, I cling tight to the comfort of this statement and hope that what they say is true: In Orvieto, time is suspended.

 

 

 

As if deposited by a time machine from the past, Medieval Orvieto is a contradiction of ancient and modern, a paradox of now and then; a throwback to a simpler era. Centered near the birthplace of the Cittaslow movement (whose logo, coincidentally, is a snail), life inside these tufo walls moves at an easy pace – causing one’s blood pressure to plummet and heart rate to slow.

Orvietani march to a dreamy drummer and are not particularly in a hurry to get where they’re going. In this village, lunchtime lasts 3 hours and includes a nap, and buying a stamp can take almost as long as the letter’s journey to its destination. One’s social life is not planned too far in advance, but typically made up of chance encounters and spontaneous invitations.

Its unique cocktail of sophistication and culture is unusual for a town of its size and population, however, before you decide if Orvieto is the right place for you, ask yourself this important question: “Do I crave the excitement of metropolitan life?” If the answer is yes, buy yourself a one-way train ticket to Rome, because “hustle and bustle” definitely don’t live around here.

by Toni DeBella

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