Tag Archives: culture

Italy’s coffee culture

Posted on June 1, 2011 by chasingcappuccinos

I wrote an article about Italy’s coffee culture for AOL/Huffington Post’s My Daily site. Please check it out (and comment, if you feel so inclined!) at http://www.mydaily.com/2011/06/01/italian-coffee-what-it-taught-me-about-cultural-differences/

Posted in coffee, Italy | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Feast of the Seven Fishes

Posted on January 27, 2011 by chasingcappuccinos

We spent Christmas in Portland with my family this year, but we still celebrated the Italian-American Christmas Eve feast, La Vigilia, or the feast of the seven fishes.  It’s not certain where this tradition arose, but fish is symbolic in … Continue reading →

Posted in America, culture, food, Italians, Italy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

The good witch visits again

Posted on January 8, 2011 by chasingcappuccinos

Felice Anno Nuovo! I’ve been lax in my entries lately due to holidays and work, but it’s 2011 and a new year to write. Yesterday was the Epiphany, which celebrates the arrival of the Three Kings bearing gifts to Jesus, … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, Italy | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Home for the holidays

Posted on November 20, 2010 by chasingcappuccinos

We’ve headed home to the U.S. for the holidays and I’m in Chicago now. Talk about some reverse culture shock! Big SUVs, big supermarkets, big everything. Even the toilet bowls have more water in them than the ones in Italy … Continue reading →

Posted in America, Italy | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

L’ora dell’aperitivo

Posted on October 15, 2010 by chasingcappuccinos

Ah, the aperitivo hour in Italy, like happy hour in the U.S. but so much better.  I love bitters and Italy is full of bitter aperitif options: Aperol is a spritzer favorite in Italy and is very refreshing, combining the … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, food, Italy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The power of wind

Posted on October 10, 2010 by chasingcappuccinos

Italians like to talk about wind. Many Italians (the older generation in particular) think that too much air can be unhealthy and can cause mal di gola (a sore throat) or cervicale (cervical syndrome, which affects the neck). I’ve often … Continue reading →

Posted in American, culture, Italians, Italy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Grazie!

Posted on October 9, 2010 by chasingcappuccinos

Yesterday, I received the nice surprise of having my post on “the culture of driving” featured in WordPress.com’s Freshly Pressed section. I was a little overwhelmed with the sudden spike in traffic, but it was nice to see. I wanted … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, Italy | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

The culture of driving

Posted on October 8, 2010 by chasingcappuccinos

Something I appreciate about Italian drivers is that they rarely honk their horns. In America, drivers honk anytime someone is going too slow, or pulls out in front of them, or when they’re stuck in traffic (as if that will … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, driving, Italians, Italy | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 79 Comments

Pass the olive oil and cheese, please

Posted on July 22, 2010 by chasingcappuccinos

Alex isn’t eating solid foods yet, but that introduction is only a few weeks away. I see how he stares at my pasta during dinner! So, I was reviewing the food chart our pediatrician gave us earlier this month and … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, food, Italy | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

The land of window shopping

Posted on June 4, 2010 by chasingcappuccinos

Italians love to window shop. You might say it’s one of their favorite hobbies. And, with good reason—they make beautiful displays (a local café has constantly changing flower arrangements and stacks of beautiful desserts and chocolates) and they’re of course … Continue reading →

Posted in culture, Italy | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment