A few weeks ago I asked where all of the good customer service guys had gone? I lamented the lack of a customer-service oriented mentality in south Italy and wondered how businesses could remain open with the attitude they have towards their customers. Well today, I have that answer. photo credit: Gudlyf But before we...Read More
As aB&B owner, I’ve seen my fair share of guests – some, wonderfully charming as they are become like family and our days are a little dimmer when they’ve gone. Others … eh, not so much. You might feel the urge to chalk that up to personality preferences, but you’d be wrong. We love 95%...Read More
Becoming fluent in another language takes hard work, a little patience and a tough skin. You have to listen to the language. You have to speak the language. And it helps if you can live the language. So if all of this is true … why, oh why is it so dang hard to learn...Read More
Did you know Calabria was the 10th largest region in the Bel Paese? Well it is. With more square kilometers than world-famous Liguria or Campania and just slightly smaller than Rome’s Lazio, Bella Calabria has a lot to offer. So how can I possibly narrow it down to five? Well, I can’t. But I’m gonna...Read More
If you’ve been around the Italy expat scene for a while, you have likely heard tale of disheartening shopping trips, overpriced shoes, bags and bras or the never-ending search for a properly-fitting pair of jeans. Shopping in Italy when you are on vacation=fun. Shopping in Italy when you live here and a pair of pants...Read More
There is one in every city – in every family – in every circle of friends … . There is a place you depend on. A place you rely on. A place you return to time and time again for a good meal. For my husband and me here in Catanzaro, Italy that place is...Read More
Part of this post was originally published in March, ’07, but since I’ve been out of the country for the better part of a month, I’ve missed my markets and I wanna talk about ’em again. You see, Thursday is Market Day in Catanzaro Lido and like all good Calabrians, I like to make my...Read More
I know, I know … Christmas is over but sometimes when you live in a foreign country (read: Italy) you see funny things you just have to share with the rest of the world. Like, for example the Christmas present I saw last month when I was wrapping up my to-buy list. I was with...Read More
In all of the 73,695 hectares that make up La Sila, no village is more enchanting than Villaggio Mancuso. This petite-sized Alpine community is home to 37 or so inhabitants who feast on their homegrown mushrooms and red hot chili peppers – the food, not the rock band. The village is often one of the...Read More
Morzello is a traditional Catanzaresi dish that is served in many local restaurants throughout the area but the best, I’ve heard, is when it is homemade. According to legend, Morzello, or morzeddhu in dialect, was created when an impoverished mother, widowed and alone, was forced to accept odd jobs to support her hungry children....Read More
