Simple Italy

Celebrating Your Inner Italian

Dream Weaver in Lucca

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By Sharon Sanders

Weaver Genni Tommasi was profiled in a recent Dream of Italy newsletter article about artisans in Lucca. I bookmarked the piece and this morning made the pilgrimage to Tommasi Loomworks at Via Sant’Andrea 28 to meet the tanto talented Signora Tommasi and her gentle assistant, the collie Lady Hawke.

As promised in the DOI article by Mary Ann Hemphill, the space was graced by Tommasi loom- woven creations in natural fabrics: tops, scarves, neck ornaments, chandelier coverings, tote bags, even aprons. Tommasi, a former harpist, has two looms set up in the back of the showroom. She says her son is now weaving with her.

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Tommasi was chatting with friends — an American family who live in Belgium –who had stopped by to visit. Also in the showroom was an associate from Norway who represents Tommasi’s creations in Scandinavia.

Lady Hawke brings a gentle vibe to the Tommasi showroom.

It was a thrill to meet the artist and acquire (grazie, Walter) a silk shawl of exceptional beauty.

The Walls of Lucca

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“Nel caso di Lucca ci si fierisce quasi sempre, anzi sempre, alla citta definita dall’ambito delle Mura. Perche di essa apprezziao non solo la forma, gli aspetti storici e urbanistici, l’esistenza di monumenti, di beni ed eventi culturali, ma anche la presenza di negozi, di attivita varie, commerciali, degli uffic pubblici e privati; della gente che va e che viene.”

“In the case of Lucca we almost always, indeed always, get to the city defined by the area of the Walls. Because of this it appreciates not only the shape, the historical and urbanistic aspects, the existence of monuments, cultural assets and events, but also the presence of shops, various commercial activities, public and private offices; of the people who come and go.

–Gilberto Bedini, renowned Lucchese architect and urban planner

By Sharon Sanders

Today I am one of the people who come to Lucca and after some days, I’ll depart from Lucca. But the walls encircling the ancient city will remain.

The first defensive walls were built by the Romans. Then came a medieval rendition. The current iteration to protect the city from invaders began construction in the early 1500s and took about a century and a half to complete.

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One Day in Genoa

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By Walter Sanders

They Say Genova. We Say Genoa.

Piazza Caricamento fronts the Porto Antico.

My previous experience in Genoa was in the airport in 1999 to attend a Financial Services Congresso (Conference) in nearby Portofino.

I recall the view from the car window upon leaving the airport as uninspiring: a mixed bag of grungy industrial sites, grim housing, busy highways.

So, upon an 8:15 a.m. arrival at Genoa’s Porto Principe railroad station to meet our guide Filippo Zamparelli [fzampare@fastwebnet.it] for a walking tour of the city, I am a blank canvas. 

Filippo (right) captained our little group through the old port of Genoa.

Filippo is a delight. Bookish, fine command of English, a sharp sense of humor, a deep and abiding interest in history (his major field of study at the University of Genova) and a lifelong resident of the city.

We get to know each other informally over a caffé. He loves history of all types … including US history. Turns out that he follows the Chicago Cubs who until 2016, share a lovable losing history akin to the Genoa soccer club, which Filippo also closely follows.

From the get-go of the tour, Filippo emphasizes how the city is changing itself. Long a port of global importance, and a major industrial city of Italy, Genoa found itself falling behind other port and industrial cities. The competition was killing the city and it was unable or unwilling to react.

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Simple Italy Greatest Hits

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Le cose cambiano. Things change.

SimpleItaly is evolving. Fresh posts will appear less frequently.  Our greatest hits, however, are always a click away. When we discover a new Italian regional recipe, destination, experience, or person, we’ll share the gems with our fellow Inner Italians.

Let’s re-visit some of our fondest timeless memories–encompassing cooking, wine appreciation, people, music, movies, art and serendipitous experiences–from a decade of SimpleItaly.

Bolognese-style lasagna

Lasagna alla Bolognese (Bolognese-style lasagna),  a dish that embodies the allure of slow food, has only four components–fresh spinach noodles, ragu, balsamella, Parmigiano-Reggiano–but each deserves attention.

Flavors of Friuli

Elizabeth Antoine Crawford traveled throughout Friuli for five years to research her new book.

 

Sauerkraut, poppyseed, and cinnamon-sugar on pasta. Is this Italian cooking? It is in the northeastern region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia.  These seductive ingredients and more are explored in Flavors of Friuli: A Culinary Journey through Northeastern Italy.

 

A truffle hunter with his prized partner.

On the Truffle Trail in Le Marche

Acqualagna is all about truffles. One-fourth of the residents are qualified truffle hunters and 70 percent of Italy’s truffle dogs are trained here. The white truffle is celebrated each autumn with the Fiera Nazionale del Tartufo Bianco. (This article first appeared in the November 2011 issue
 of the travel newsletter Dream of Italy.

Confetti Town

Lining the main streets of Sulmona, in Abruzzo, are shop after shop selling confetti, the confectionary for which the town is famous. It sounds simple: start with almonds, pistachios or hazelnuts and coat them with multiple layers of molten sugar cane syrup. This dessert artistry has been evolving since Roman times when almonds were coated with honey. The results are magnificent. They are edible mosaics, work so detailed, artistic and well-executed that they fool your eye. Of course these are real flowers . . . no, they are confetti.

Brides of Amalfi

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Love was in the air during a visit to the Amalfi Coast.

Ragazzi Reminisce

The Leather School, tucked in back of The Basilica of Santa Croce, is the scene for this dynamic duo’s meeting.

C’era una volta. . . once upon a time. . . Max (Massimo Melani) met Wally (Walter Sanders) in Firenze. (Spoiler alert: An iconic Florentine panino plays a supporting role.) Here’s the story in their own words.

The Inner Italian Q & A: Melissa Muldoon

All of our Inner Italians shared delightful personal journeys but, so far, only one has gone on to become an Italian language and travel diva. Artist, designer, cultural conduit, and author Melissa Muldoon hosts La Studentessa Matta (The Crazy Student).

Whites for Summer

In his wine commentaries, Walter seeks out the best, most affordable, wine produced from Italian grapes. He hopes to raise awareness of indigenous varietals that deserve a place on your table.

Lemon Semifreddo

The spoon dessert semifreddo translates as “half frozen.” A cross between a frozen soufflé and gelato, a semifreddo delivers the plush mouthfeel of frozen meringue with the luxurious richness of cream. This lemon version pairs well with red berries.

Malika Ayane


Of this sensational pop vocalist, Paolo Conti said: “Il colore di questa voce è un arancione scuro che sa di spezia amara e rara.” The color of this voice is a dark orange with a dark and rare spice.

Cinema Italiana

SimpleItaly adores this hangdog comedy. What happens to those Italians left behind during Ferragosto, the national August vacation? One such scenario is brilliantly portrayed in the 2008 film Pranzo di Ferragosto released in the U.S. as Mid-August Lunch. Gianni di Gregorio, who co-wrote the script and directs, stars as the soulful Gianni who lives in the heart of Rome with his 93-year-old mother, exquisitely played by Valeria De Franciscis.

Do you have a cherished Inner Italian memory? Share it below.

Taxi Tales: Part 3 Paestum

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By Walter Sanders

Magna Grecia! Paestum is the site of well-preserved Greek temples dating to 600 BC. Sharon had visited Paestum some years ago on a press trip and wanted to share its wonders with me. Modern Capaccio-Paestum is also a thriving seaside resort with a wide range of facilities.

Walter and his taxi hero Antonio.

Walter and his taxi hero Antonio.

It was Ferragosto, the August holidays, when we arrived at the train station. We stepped out into the afternoon and encountered one person: a taxi driver named Antonio. We introduced ourselves, he loaded our luggage, and asked “Where to?”

“We have no reservations…anywhere,” I said.

“That could be a problem this time of year, but don’t worry, we will find something.”

He immediately called his father who runs a tourism coach business and is well connected with the local lodging providers.

The dad provided suggestions. Antonio called hotels while we drove the seafront hoping for a cancellation or a no show. No luck. We moved away from the seaside to agroturismo establishments located near the numerous mozzarella di bufala enterprises inland. Nothing. We even looked at old style rooming houses. Still nothing.

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Antonio called his sister to network with her. After more than an hour of searching we had a lead on a country house owned by one her friends. It was away from the sea…but it was available.

Ricotta di bufala cannoli and a pastry cream cornetto at Tempio.

Ricotta di bufala cannoli and a pastry cream cornetto at Tempio.

It turns out the home belonged to a widower who died in January. He had willed it to his two daughters who were hoping to run it as tourism lodging. We were destined to be the first paying guests.

The Antonio network had worked. Over the course of several days, he squired us to some of his preferred spots: Azienda Agricola Tempio for a divine breakfast of bufala milk ricotta stuffed cannoli and Azienda Agricola San Salvatore 1988 for a marvelous fixed price summer lunch of local foods.

We used Antonio for our long hauls to Pasteum, and even once to stock up on groceries. He was a gem to us.

Contact info: Antonio Savria Mobile: 39 334 819 8398

The Neapolitan Novels

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Photojournalist x captured this image of two girls in post-war Naples. The f

Journalist David Chim Seymour captured this poignant image of two young girls who could be Elena and Lina in Naples 1948.

As fate would have it, I finished The Story of the Lost Child on a recent stay in Naples.

The last pages resonated with me as I don’t believe they could have anywhere else.

The Story of the Lost Child, is the final book in the Neapolitan quartet by Elena Ferrante. The protagonists are Elena Greco (also called Lenuccia or Lenù) and Raffaella Cerullo (also called Lina or Lila).Elena and Lila were born into a shattered world in August 1944–in a dismal neighborhood in a neglected city that had endured massive bombing during World War II.

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The Neapolitan Novels

My Brilliant Friend
The Story of a New Name
Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay
The Story of the Lost Child

In the narrative, the girls grow into women and then into old women. Their personas are inseparable even when they are physically apart. For those who have read the novels, nothing I could write would enhance your experience of them. For those who have not read the novels, I can say: If you read the Neapolitan novels you will enter a world you will never forget.

Fans are anticipating the November 2016 release of Frantumaglia: A Writer’s Journey, a nonfiction collection of the author’s writings, to glean insights into the life and work of the fiercely anonymous novelist.

cover_9781609452926_806_600Ferrante elaborated on the word frantumaglia in a May 2016 interview with Nicola Lagioia published in The New Yorker:

“We are, as you say, interconnected. And we should teach ourselves to look deeply at this interconnection—I call it a tangle, or, rather, frantumaglia—to give ourselves adequate tools to describe it. In the most absolute tranquility or in the midst of tumultuous events, in safety or danger, in innocence or corruption, we are a crowd of others. And this crowd is certainly a blessing for literature.”

She mentioned the word also in a Paris Review interview conducted by Europa publishers. “My mother liked to use the word frantumaglia—bits and pieces of uncertain origin which rattle around in your head, not always comfortably.”

While Ferrante would no doubt disapprove, journalists and travel writers are descending upon Naples sleuthing for locations to pin to the narrative. Here are a few interesting reads: The New York Times, NPR, The Irish Times.

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I myself followed Ferrante’s footsteps to Piazza dei Martiri in the chic Chiaia shopping district. In the books, this piazza represents a place of aspiration, but never quite assimilation, for some of the characters.

Along the lungomare on a Sunday twilight, I spotted two teens who could be Elena and Lina in 2016. I wondered how different, or maybe in some ways similar, their lives are compared to the Neapolitan novels.

Have you read the Neapolitan novels? Share your thoughts with us.