Paris. The City of Lights. The city of romance … the city where everyone spews French faster than the TGV can get to Versailles and where the locals, well … may or may not like your American-ass accent. Eight years ago I boarded my first intercontinental flight and headed thousands of miles from everyone I...Read More
This is my first time guest blogging and I’m really excited about it because I love My Bella Vita. I hope to get out to Italy one of these days myself but haven’t had the time or money yet. Three years ago, though I went to Spain on a study abroad program and fell in...Read More
One of the benefits of living in a foreign country, besides the striking people and homemade dishes, is being able to display around-the-clock affection for your home country. Not that expats plunge onward in blind patriotism, in fact, it is the opposite. Many of us are aware of our country’s, dare I say, shortcomings, but choose to love...Read More
Loyal blog readers might remember my recent girls’ getaway to nearby Sicily. Michelle and I ventured out, armed only with the clothes on our back (and all the clothes we could cram into our cases) and her mini corno, you know, to ward off the malocchio! And, it worked! One of the most picturesque sites we...Read More
otherwise known as “The Godfather Village.” That’s right, folks. Believe it or not, everything you see in the movies IS NOT REAL. Hollywood would try to trick and confuse us? Sad, I know. But, the small Sicilian village of Corleone, the quaint, close-knit town we all longed to visit when we watched The Godfather, is...Read More
Madonna della Lettera isn’t the only interesting thing to see in the port city of Messina, but she makes her presence known throughout the town, as evidenced in one of the more charming city attractions. The Bell Tower of the Cathedral contains the most complex mechanical clock in the world, and it shows off it’s...Read More
Like most – if not all – Italian towns and villages, the port city of Messina, the entranceway to Sicilian civilization, is blessed with a patron saint. For Messina, Madonna della Lettera, is that saint. Standing boldly and shining like a beacon (in all of her gold-toned glory) Madonna of the Letter is the first...Read More
For all of those “babies” and “Peppes” out there who are 1) too shy to emblazon their love on a public walkway 2) afraid of breaking the law (and getting caught) -or- 3) who don’t have a steady enough hand… Directly from the street facing the Duomo in Palermo… These are for you! Can anyone...Read More
Oh, yes, friends. It is true. I am a BIG ‘OLE fifone. Or, for those of you who prefer English – A BIG ‘OLE WEENIE! It’s true. I am scared to death of the Mafia. Seriously. So, why oh why am I leaving today on a jet train and heading towards the land of the...Read More
In honor of my home state, I present to you… Five Things To Do in San Antonio Standing proudly as the icon of Texas independence, and nestled on the banks of an ancient river, San Antonio is home to the nation’s oldest surviving cathedral. Now the eight largest city in America, San Antonio maintains an...Read More
