Sunday, September 25, 2011
Rick Steves: Florence, Italy: Michelangelo's David
Monday, September 5, 2011
Raising Second Generation Italian American Children in the USA
A guest post this week from Italian American Girl's sister, Maria.....
As a first generation Italian American raising my children I feel so honored to share so many special traditions and cultural knowledge with them. Growing up in a first generation household I learned the importance of art, history, cooking, traveling and most importantly- family. As I became a mother myself it never was a question of passing on all the beautiful and intense things I learned growing up.
I spoke Italian with both my children from birth instilling the gift of a second language and the flexibility to learn more than one language by the age of two. My children travel yearly to spend their summer on the breathtaking southern Italian beaches of the Mediterranean, indulging in the local cuisine, life style and building life-long relationships with all my relatives. The beauty is that it is all very normal to them to see a diverse lifestyle than here in the states and become educated on the vast culture Italians have shared with the world.
Cooking is an integral part of my children being raised Italian American, we follow traditions year round and indigenous recipes and tastes are always on our menu, not to mention the luxury of home-made, healthy foods, which are delicious! The kitchen is our meeting place and all family meetings are conducted around the table, not to mention my children appreciate wonderful baked goods we make regularly to pair up with our “coffee,’ which is a staple in our home.
My children are exposed to organic gardening by my father daily and appreciate the love and dedication it takes to nurture a delicious fruit or vegetable, they share the experience of loving the earth and nature with their Nonno and Nonna.
But for us the most important part is family, we support each other through thick and thin, we eat together, we cry together, we laugh and love together. We never think twice to help each other out if one of us needs a hand, my children are taught to share and give love unconditionally, which comes naturally because we lead by example showering them with love and support.
I am so proud to share all these wonderful things with my children and know that it will have a positive impact on how they interact in the world as adults.
-Maria
**Photo- Copyright 2011 Italian American Girl - you must ask permission to use any and all photos on ItalianAmericanGirl.com - Grazie
TweetSaturday, September 3, 2011
Popular Italian Rock Star - Zucchero Set To Debut North American Tour
Zucchero's autumn/winter tour on behalf of Chocabeck includes a handful of dates in select cities across North America including Toronto, Montreal, Detroit, Chicago, New York and Boston to name a few (for a complete list see below). Asked to describe Zucchero, his longstanding collaborator Bono said: "My friend Zucchero has had Italy singing and dancing for years. . . His boyish smile makes him the most charming man in Italy, that smile that just runs all over his face. But the voice is the sound of aged oak, like an old, oak-aged whisky. . ."
I think it's pretty exciting to have one of Italy's famous Italian popular rock artists here in the states.. I say rock, but what makes Zucchero so unique is the way he can rock out and infuse a blues vibe. One of the greats.
Catch one of Zucchero's concert here in the USA and Canada:
ZUCCHERO FALL 2011 NORTH AMERICAN TOUR:
Saturday, 10/15 Toronto, ON Massey Hall
Sunday, 10/16 Montreal, PQ St. Denis Theatre
Tuesday, 10/18 Ottawa, ON Centre Point Theatre
Thursday, 10/20 Edwardsville, IL Southern Illinois University
Saturday, 10/22 Chicago, IL Park West
Sunday, 10/23 Cleveland, OH Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
Tuesday, 10/24 New York, NY Beacon Theatre
Thursday, 10/27 Cranston, RI RI PAC
Friday, 10/28 Collingswood, NJ Scottish Rite
Saturday, 10/29 Boston, MA Berklee Performance Center
For more information and tickets:
http://www.zucchero.it/eng
http://www.deccarecords.com
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Photo of the Day: Reggio Calabria, Italy
Monday, August 22, 2011
Podcast Interview On 'Tandem With The Random' Show With Italian American Girl -
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Il Divo - Hallelujah (Alelujah)
Saturday, August 20, 2011
What You Don't Understand About The Italian American Family..
Sunday, July 24, 2011
CANZONIERE GRECANICO SALENTINO- Performing North American Tour 9/15-10/6/2011
Leading Italian Musical Group
CANZONIERE GRECANICO SALENTINO
bring the power of Taranta to North America for the first time
11 city debut concert tour of the US and Canada announced for September 15 – October 6, 2011
Hailing from the Puglia region, the seven piece band and dancer are the leading exponents in a new wave of young performers re-inventing Southern Italy’s Pizzica Taranta musical and dance traditions for today’s global audience. Canzoniere Grecanico Salentino’s North American tour brings the concert experience of The Notte Della Taranta festival to US and Canadian populations for the first time.
Here is list of concert dates:
Thu, 09/15/11 New York, NY New York Gypsy Festival
Fri, 09/16/11 Madison, WI Madison World Music Festival
Sun, 09/18/11 Chicago, IL Chicago World Music Festival
Mon, 09/19/11 Chicago, IL Chicago World Music Festival
Wed, 09/21/11 Cedar Rapids, IA Landfall 2011
Thu, 09/22/11 St. Louis, MO Washington University
Fri, 09/23/11 Bloomington, IN Lotus World Music & Arts Festival
Sat, 09/24/11 Bloomington, IN Lotus World Music & Arts Festival
Sun, 09/25/11 Boston, MA Club Passim (Cambridge)
Wed, 09/28/11 Toronto, ON Small World Music Festival
Fri, 09/30/11 Montreal, PQ Maison de la Culture Frontenac
Sat, 10/01/11 Montreal, PQ Maison de la Culture Ahunstic
Sun, 10/02/11 Montreal, PQ Maison de la Culture Rivieres des Prairies (Cégep Marie-Victorin Salle Désilets)
Wed, 10/05/11 Philadelphia, PA World Cafe Live
Thu, 10/06/11 Washington, DC National Geographic
Italian American Girl: Making Giambotta- Vegetable Stew
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Traveling to Europe? Clark Howard's "Living Large In Lean Times" - Get Insider Secrets: Traveling On A Budget
- Check message boards before you bid on Priceline or Hotwire
- Find cheap vacation rentals by owners
- Use social media to resolve hotel issues
- Use hard discounter airlines to travel around Europe
- Ditch the frequent-flyer miles credit card
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Italian American Garden - A Video Tour
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Like it or Not- "Jersey Shore" Cast Is In Italy Filming Another Season
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Italian American Girl: My Ballroom Dancing Journey
This year I embarked on many changes and one of the major changes and goals I wanted to accomplish was to learn how to ballroom dance. I've always wanted to learn to dance professionally and it just seemed this was the moment it was going to happen.
There is always a story behind my story...as you've come to read from my life story in previous posts. So, the idea of dance has always been in my family since I can remember. When my father came to the United States he worked as a dance instructor teaching jive and the tango, these were his two favorites.
Now, he was never trained professionally; it was just something he knew from having such an immense love for dancing. Growing up that's all we ever heard about was how he would go into Manhattan on weekends and dance at the social clubs doing the tango and jive. As kids; my siblings and I always laughed because we would think Papa would never do that, but he always proved us wrong. We would attend family weddings and he would always grab my mother and swoop her into a mean tango. They were pretty hot dancing, some times to the point where people at weddings would clap for them because it was pretty amazing. I remember being little and just thinking wow, my father is awesome and he can dance; literally.
As the years went by, dancing seemed to fade into the background of real life and we just lost the presence of it. So, after so many years....I decided to commit to ballroom dancing. I had no idea how hard it would be. I mean who doesn't watch Dancing with the Stars and just say, "oh yeah, I can do that..." so not the case.
It is probably one of the hardest sports or I would say ...it ranks up there. I give professional dancers such credit for how hard they have to train to become good and then have to teach others how to dance, it's a challenge.
My journey began with me just walking into a local dance studio and asking the front desk receptionist, "how do I start?" From there I met the instructor, his name - Reason - who would become a great inspiration and add an incredible value to learning how to ballroom dance.
I'll be honest; I'm not sure I would have felt the same about learning to dance if I hadn't been paired with Reason. I started my lessons in December right before Christmas, not sure why...but I figured hey, if I'm going to do it doesn't matter when..I was committed.
I started out with a few lessons here and there, but then slowly became addicted to learning, perfecting, and just absorbing the amazing knowledge of my instructor. There were times I would watch the other instructors practice and it was incredible. I think to feel the way I was feeling about dancing you really have to have a love for it. I can truly appreciate and value everything I was taught.
As my lessons went on, I became very connected with Reason. Honestly, you spend a lot of time together and you really begin to know each others patterns, moves, mistakes.. I should say my mistakes... he is a pro. This relationship teaches you a lot, it teaches you about yourself, patience, your drive, and most of all your level of passion.
Reason is younger than me, but I learned a lot from him and it wasn't just about dancing. His drive to be so good and a professional at a young age actually inspires me, his energy is contagious. So, you know when they say you can learn from others, its really true.
I was working toward a goal, which was to learn a lot of the ballroom technique and really perfect one dance in order to perform it at one of our socials. So, I chose to concentrate on the Waltz. I worked on it for weeks and really wanted my family to witness the result of all my hard work. The interesting part to this whole ballroom goal, was that I didn't tell anyone I was doing it, so it was a huge surprise to everyone in my family when I said, "hey, by the way.. I want you to come to my ballroom dance presentation, and oh yeah I've been ballroom dancing for the last 4 months.."
The reaction was amazing, my family couldn't have been more supportive and actually just surprised. The night of the social, my family came and completely cheered me on. I was extremely nervous and I think a little overwhelmed at the same time. I went all out and had the dress, hair and make-up to prove I was going to represent it all the way.
I performed with my amazing instructor, Reason. who I can't thank enough for his patience, professionalism and overall friendship. Our performance was perfect, I couldn't have been happier, a great night!
I'm going to continue my passion for ballroom because it makes me happy. If you have something you love to do, embrace it..! Like many other experiences I've had in my life this is another great one, which I choose to share with you. Let me know what you think.
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Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Italian American Girl at the Garden State Film Festival in New Jersey
Photos are COPYRIGHT OF ITALIANAMERICANGIRL & ITALIANAMERICANGIRL.COM 2011 - You must ask permission for reuse. Tweet
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Social Media and The Vatican - Pope John Paul II
Monday, March 14, 2011
ITALIAN SUPERSTAR JOVANOTTI CONFIRMED FOR MUSIC FESTIVAL BONNAROO 2011 in USA
Jovanotti's 12th studio album Ora (Now) debuted at number one in Italy the week of February 1, 2011 and includes special guests Michael Franti and Amadou & Mariam. Italy’s premier music ambassador — who has shared the stage with peers around the world such as Juanes, Bono and Bob Geldof — is the obvious choice for Bonnaroo’s International Mash Up Stage on Saturday, June 11, which will be curated by Eugene Hütz of Gogol Bordello. This will be Jovanotti’s only US concert date for 2011.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
JOURNEY OF HOPE –THE FILM Featuring Local Italian American Set To Premiere At Garden State Film Festival in New Jersey
This year's Garden State Film Festival 2011 will feature the film 'JOURNEY OF HOPE- The Film' produced by award winning Italian American Marino Amoruso, the same producer of 'PRIDE & PASSION: THE ITALIANS IN AMERICA, a very successful film which premiered on PBS.
Journey Of Hope L'Aquila Earthquake Relief Fund
Date: Thursday March 31st
Time: 7:30PM
Place: Paramount Theatre
BUY YOUR TICKETS HERE:
http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/135986
I WILL BE THERE FOR THE PREMIERE! COME SAY HELLO!!
The Best of Sicily - Rick Steves' Europe
Saturday, February 5, 2011
World Nutella Day - A Social Media Movement Created By Italian American Bloggers
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Italian Wine Country - Insider's Take From Piedmont, Italy
from Saluzzo, Piedmont, Italy--- it's been almost six years in Italy...never thought I'd get married to a Piemontese but I am so happy to share my culinary, geographical and cultural discoveries of this beautiful Italian landscape!
Growing up, I always felt Italian. Proudly raised in an Italian American family and hearing about my parent's one year adventure in Rome was just the start of my serious relationship with Italy. I guess I can call myself lucky that I grew up in Napa Valley surrounded by beautiful vine covered hills, some of the best restaurants in the USA and embracing a standard of refined food and wine from a young age.
This made my transition to Piemonte, Italy, a bit easier. I already knew the proper pronunciation of words like Sangiovese and gnocchi and the differences between pecorino romano e parmigiano reggiano.
I remember when I first got to THIS new wine valley without any knowledge of Piemontese wines I was frustrated, wanting to learn in a hurry. I tried to visit enoteca regionali in towns like Barolo and Barbaresco, and read 500 page books on Italian wine. Nevertheless, I had to let time take its course and truly experience the wines to learn about them.
After 6 years of living in Piemonte, names like Dolcetto, Nebbiolo and Barbera seem like old familiar friends. While I am no expert in wines (when I left home I was barely of drinking age!), I am passionate about them.
One noteworthy Piemontese wine deserves the spotlight: Barbera (bar-bear-ah). Even in Italy, it has suffered scandals in its past, and was taken advantage of for its yielding capabilities. Barbera traveled across the ocean to the New World as so many of our ancestors did, making its way into the American wine world. Initially, it was only partly accepted, used for blends and mass produced wines. As an American expat like myself is starting to fit in here, Barbera is finding its place in America. It is finally being appreciated for what it is, has developed finer wine making techniques and has turned into a “superior” red wine!
What better way to experience and learn about this wine than take part in an event presenting 5 Italian Barberas and 5 American ones. The anxiously awaited #barbera2 event will take place right here on Barbera's originating land of Nizza Monferrato Asti. Where winemakers, wine lovers, journalists and artists can solidify century old bonds through passion and wine. Likewise, on the other side of the ocean, there will be the #barberafestival where you can learn more about this versatile and vivacious red wine in California! Salute with un buon bicchiere di barbera!
Anna blogs from Italy:
http://www.annainsaluzzo.blogspot.com/ Tweet
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Cast of Jersey Shore Heading to Italy..???
I will reveal my thoughts on this topic shortly..... in the mean time.. what do you think?
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Italy's Most Recognized & Famous Butcher, Dario Cecchini Coming To New York & Boston
Chapman University Announces Lineup for 14th Annual Author Festival: Focus on Italian Writers
Chapman University’s 14th Annual John Fowles Literary Series, the university’s acclaimed yearly festival of visiting, internationally recognized novelists, poets and playwrights -- will focus on world-renowned Italian writers this year, and will also include a special appearance by an Israeli-born novelist who is the university’s 2011 writer-in-residence.
Monday, March 7 at 7 pm
DACIA MARAINI
Dacia Maraini, daughter of a Sicilian princess and famed as the longtime companion of novelist Alberto Moravia, is a world-acclaimed author and playwright. She has won many awards for her work, including the Formentor Prize for “L'età del malessere” (“The Age of Discontent,” 1963); the Premio Fregene for “Isolina” (1985); the Premio Campiello and Book of the Year Award for “La lunga vita di Marianna Ucrìa” (“The Silent Duchess,” 1990); and the Premio Strega for “Buio” (1999). She co-founded the Teatro del Porcospino, devoted to producing new Italian works, and established Rome’s feminist experimental theatre La Maddalena. Her play “Mary Stuart” has been performed in New York and on stages around the world, and her other plays continue to be translated and widely performed.
Monday, March 21 at 7 pm
ASSAF GAVRON – 2011 Writer-in-Residence at Chapman University
The son of English immigrants to Israel, Assaf Gavron was born in a small village near Jerusalem in 1968, and currently lives in Berlin. He is this year’s Shusterman Foundation Writer-in-Residence at Chapman University. Gavron has published four novels (“Ice,” “Moving,” “Almost Dead” and “Hydromania”), a collection of short stories (“Sex in the Cemetery”), and a non-fiction collection of Jerusalem falafel-joint reviews (“Eating Standing Up”). His English translation of “Almost Dead” was published in 2010. Among the prizes he has won are the Israeli Geffen award for the novel “Hydromania,” and the prestigious DAAD Artists-in-Berlin Fellowship in Germany.
Monday, April 4 at 7 pm
ERRI DE LUCA
Erri De Luca, recently named "writer of the decade" by the influential newspaper Corriere della Sera, was born in Naples, Italy in 1950. His first book, published in 1989, was “Non Ora, Non Qui” (“Not Now, Not Here”). Many more books have followed and have become best sellers throughout Europe and in the U.S. Self-taught in several languages, including ancient Hebrew and Yiddish, De Luca has translated several books of the Bible into Italian and explored various aspects of Judaism as a non-believer. He writes regularly for various Italian newspapers and magazines, lives in a remote cottage in the countryside outside Rome, and regularly pursues his passion for mountain climbing.
Monday, April 11 at 7 pm
PAOLO GIORDANO
Paolo Giordano, born in Turin in 1982, is a professional physicist. His first novel, “La Solitudine dei Numeri Primi” (“The Solitude of Prime Numbers”), took Italy by storm, sold more than a million copies, and won the nation’s most illustrious book award, the Premio Strega, in 2008. The book, which has been translated into English and more than 30 other languages, tells the tale of a man and woman, Mattia and Alice, both traumatized in their youth in ways which leave them unable to relate normally to the world around them. Though they are drawn to each other, timing and awkwardness keep their relationship on tenuous ground. Giordano’s spare yet beautiful prose asks whether there are those among us who, like prime numbers, are destined always to be alone and apart.
Monday, April 25 at 7 pm
GIUSEPPE CONTE
Italian poet, novelist and translator Giuseppe Conte published his debut book of poetry, “La Parola Innamorata” in 1978. His follow-up, 1988’s “La Stagione,” was awarded the Montale Prize. His other poetry books include “L’Ultimo Aprile Bianco” (“The Last White April”), “Dialogo del Poeta e del Messaggero” (“Dialogue Between the Poet and the Messenger”) and “Canti d’Oriente e d’Occidente (“Songs of the East and the West”). His novels include “Il Terzo Ufficiale” (“The Third Officer”) and “La Casa della Onde” (“The House of the Waves”). Conte has translated many English works into Italian, including those of Shelley, D.H. Lawrence, Walt Whitman and William Blake.
Monday, May 2 at 7 pm
GIORGIO PRESSBURGER
Born in Budapest in 1937, Giorgio Pressburger does not write in his native Hungarian but in his adoptive Italian, and has often reflected in his talks and writings upon this choice of language. He left Hungary after the Russian invasion in 1956, and settled in Italy, where he studied biology in Rome and worked in theater and film. His novel “The Law of White Spaces” won the Independent Foreign Fiction Award in 1992. His other works include the novel “Teeth and Spies” and the short story collection “Snow and Guilt.” His most recent novel, “Nel Regno Oscuro” (2008), inspired by Dante’s Inferno, describes a journey to hell which is also a meditation on the 20th century and Pressburger’s personal losses.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Italian American Sunday Dinner: Making Meatballs
Sunday dinner and my mother makes the best meatballs in the United States.. sorry she does! Here are a few montage photos of her making them. The recipe is also secret.. maybe we'll get her to give it up and so we can share with the Italian American Girl audience. LoL. Enjoy! Tweet