Before I came to Italy I was a busy person. There was never enough time and I often wished the week had an extra day in it. You know it’s pretty bad when you resent the time you need to spend sleeping. I had a friend who somehow managed to function on only 3 or [...]
Posts under ‘Culture Shock’
The line-up
I tend to avoid generalizing about people and it always bugs me when other people do so. You know, the statements like “I’m supposed to have a bad temper (or talk loud), I’m Italian” or “I like to drink because I’m Irish” – those kind of stupid statements. For the record, not all Italians have [...]
Above the law
Italy is my home. I’ve chosen to live here, not only because O lives here, but also because I love it, warts and all. Sometimes those warts can seem pretty big though. So big, in fact, that no amount of Compound W is going to get them to go away. With the recent problems in [...]
Expat Chat: How the Internet is Changing the Expat Experience
I’m pleased to host a guest blogger today; Cherrye Moore is a fellow expat who lives in the beautiful region of Calabria where she and her husband run a Bed & Breakfast. Cherrye is also a southern travel consultant and freelance writer. Today Cherrye discusses how the internet makes the expat experience a bit easier. [...]
Reading the signs
Lately I’ve begun reading again…..well, when I can. It’s not always easy and if Luigi sees me with a book in hand then he wants it. He’s pretty tricky too, finding ways to get me to put it down where he can reach it and then trying to snatch it when I’m otherwise occupied. Getting [...]
There went the bride
On Saturday we went to a wedding – a nice joyous occasion and it was a beautiful day too. But, there are some pretty big differences between Italian weddings and American ones. First of all, they last all day and almost all night. There’s also A LOT of food. We’re not talking surf and turf [...]
Which witch?
I hope everyone had a happy holiday season. But, alas, all good things must come to an end, so we’re heading back to work. Actually though, here in Italy, some people are still on vacation – until the 7th that is. That’s because tomorrow, Epiphany, is a holiday here. The day when the three wise [...]
Bubbles are good
Sometimes it’s the simple things that escape us. I’m talking about the little differences that you don’t expect to run into when you go to another country. Take for example simple baking products. Those of you who aren’t currently living in Italy probably can’t imagine that it is impossible to find vanilla extract here (not [...]
The lights were on AND somebody was home
The last few years that I lived in the US I was a big fan of online shopping. It saved time, I had more of a selection, and I didn’t have to drive all over creation to find something. When I moved here to Italy I was not prepared for the fact that online shopping [...]
Malocchio, Part II
I’ve never considered myself to be a very superstitious person, but sometimes things happen that have absolutely no explanation. Some of you may remember reading about my encounter with the malocchio several months ago. At the time, it seemed unbelievable that someone performing the malocchio removal ritual could make my headache go away, but there [...]
